Malevolent Monday

First things first, it’s Monday.  A day to be dreaded by most everyone because it isn’t Saturday or Sunday but has the unfortunate circumstance of being after those two lovely days.

Anywho, it’s Monday.  And It’s exactly 1 year to the day that my Grandma fell and broke her hip.  She had a really hard time recovering and hasn’t been the same since.  And yesterday she fell again… and broke her other hip.  Crazy huh?  She had surgery today and we are waiting to hear how it went.

Since they live in Florida for a little more than half the year, it means they are there and the whole family isn’t.  Last year my dad, my cousin Lacey, her baby Wylie and myself went down to visit them and help out a little.  And now we are all on standby to see if an emergency family visit will be needed again.

We hope not.  We love them, and of course we love Florida, but things were just scary last year and we do not need to repeat that. If you are so inclined, she could use some extra prayers right now.

I Wonder…

I took a little driving trip to le outlet mall today and as I was driving, I had the privilege of seeing some absolutely amazing views of the mountains.  And it made me wonder…

Do they only make me stop in awe because I haven’t seen them daily for months or years on end?

Do the people who have always lived here appreciate the natural beauty they are surrounded with everyday?

I truly hope they never become something routine for me.

Brave?

Brave [breyv]: 1) possessing or exhibiting courage or courageous endurance. 2) to meet or face courageously: to brave misfortunes. 3) to defy; challenge; dare.

Since the moment I announced that I was packing my bags, leaving everyone and everything I knew behind, and moving to the beautiful Appalachian region, I’ve had so many people look at me in shock and say, “Wow! That’s brave!”

I’ve never thought of it as a particularly “brave” thing to do. A little crazy nuts maybe, a little impulsive maybe, but not brave. But each of these people have used exactly that word.

I don’t know if I fully agree but I liked the last definition I found:

To defy; challenge; dare.

I agree with that wholeheartedly.  I defied everyone who didn’t believe I could or should go.  I challenged myself to be something different.  And I dared to believe that I was meant for something more.

I will take that word and wear it with a smile because I’ve learned something about myself… I learned to be brave.

Tell Me This

How is it possible that there are NO local phone numbers available through Google Voice OR Verizon for the Johnson City area?!  They give you “local options” that include places like Kingsport, Elizabethton, Limestone… but how do I know which one isn’t going to be long distance?

The whole point of me changing phone numbers is so I can have a LOCAL number that my staff can call if they need to reach me.  So if I can’t get a number that won’t charge long distance back to my cost center, I might as well stick with my Michigan number right?

UGH!

As far as I can deduce by using the phone book and internet searches, Limestone seems to be truly “Local” where Elizabethton and Kingsport are in question.  Can anyone confirm this?

Netflixter!

Maybe it’s a product of not having any friends or family in the area to keep me occupied on a Friday night… or the fact that my first paycheck since mid-December is “on hold” at the bank until tomorrow… or the fact that I’m just lame and wanted to do nothing much after total information overload the past 3 weeks… No matter what it was, I decided to sign up for Netflix on Thursday.

Now I’ve had Netflix in the past but deactivated my account because a) I wasn’t using it enough to justify the expense because b) the apartment I was living in had NO box for outgoing mail and c) I was too lazy to drive to the box in the business complex a bit down the road.  This was all pre- instant movies and my having a Wii. I loved the service back then and was sad when I closed my account.

But I am convinced Netflix rocks for a few reasons. 

1. Even though I am a former member, I still qualified for a free month “trial” of their services.  Score!
2. My movie queue from my prior membership was still there, ready and waiting for me to catch up on all the movies I missed.
3. My first physical movie selection arrived on Saturday [Eat, Pray, Love]
4. It was SUPER easy to connect my Wii and start watching movies immediately!

Yup I’m a happy camper!  Next weekend I promise I will go out and explore the area and get some pictures posted… next weekend.