I'M SO EXCITED!

Well, folks that know me know I am a fan of Chris Sligh, a top ten finalist from season 6 of American Idol. He's writing and performing in the contemporary Christian genre, and has put out an incredible album called "Running Back to You." You may have heard his hit single, "Empty Me" on K-LOVE and other Christian radio stations. I've been wanting him to come to Arkansas for awhile now, especially after making drives to OK and AL to see him perform.

My wish has come true! I'm a member of the Junior League of North Little Rock, actually a sustaining member, as I "retired" from active service in May. I've been in for eleven years, and it has been a passion of mine. I love the League and what it has done for the community through the years. Nancy, our president, asked me one day if I thought we might could get Chris to come and do a concert for a League fundraiser, and I told her I had no idea, but I'd ask.

Long story short, he said yes! Chris and his band will be coming to Central Baptist Church in North Little Rock on Saturday, January 17th, 2009. This is an incredible opportunity for the Junior League....this will actually be a benefit for our signature project, Heaven's Loft. We have a store where low income families of young children can spend vouchers (received at pre-natal visits, well baby checkups, immunizations, etc.) on items such as diapers, wipes, infant and toddler clothing, etc. Diapers are our number one most requested commodity, and we're also having a diaper drive for church and school youth groups and the winning group will have a pizza party the night of the concert and Chris will make an appearance.

On top of all this, several of my friends from Chris's blog are going to make the trip to AR for the event. Which means, this girl has got to get off the computer and get started with some major housecleaning. Yes, I know we're three months out. I hope it's enough time. 'Nuff said. : )

Gosh, where does the time go?

I started this blog with the total intention of keeping it updated, at least every couple of weeks. Now I see it's been since mid August since I posted, and it's almost October!

Well, I guess my only excuse is that I've been busy. August brought the start of school and the beginning of technical assistance visits and now reviews in the classrooms that I visit. It seems like since I retired from teaching and started this job, I have less time than ever and I can't figure out why!

I want to have a Mary Kay holiday open house in November...actually, what I've done in the past that works out very well is to run one for about two weeks, and schedule appts. throughout the time period. My office looks like Hurricanes Gustav and Ike ran through it though, so I've got some work to do!

OK, I have got to get to bed and get some extra ZZZZZ's! More later!

Blessings

Today was a day of blessings. A dear friend, Cathy, had cancer surgery, but got a great report from the lab, so follow-up chemo isn't needed. That was a huge answer to prayer!

Second blessing--cooler temps and some much needed rainfall yesterday and today. No running the sprinkler system! (our bill was over $117 last month, so you can see why I'm so thrilled!) Hopefully the 100 degree heat has broken and we won't get above the 90's. But today, I was just loving me some 70's!

Third blessing--even a few days after my birthday, I'm still getting birthday wishes. I just love facebook and myspace. LOL It makes it easier to keep up with folks you don't see all the time.

Fourth blessing--Gaylon froze the rest of the Italian creme cake. Thank the Lord! It was delicious, but I have been in a cake coma from eating too much! : )

So, a good day. Hope you had a good one, too.

Birthdays

August is kind of a busy month for birthdays around here. Lindsay, our daughter, turns 26 tomorrow on the 5th. We celebrated early Sunday night, with Linds and her friend, Magnus, who shares the day (he's turning 29). My birthday is the 8th, on Friday and I'll be 51. Man, that doesn't seem possible! AARP eligible for a year! Just 4 years away from the 55 and up discounts offered around town. I can't be that old, can I? It just seems like yesterday that I was turning 31. (that birthday bothered me more than 30....30 was still touching 29 on the number line and 31 seemed like the entrance into the last half of my life. LOL)

But, it's all good. God has blessed me with good health and I believe Oprah when she says 50 is the new 30. (except when I get out of bed in the morning!) It's all a matter of attitude. And right now, I've got an attitude of gratitude. I've got a wonderful family and the best friends anyone could ask for (local and some that live far away). I don't think you can ask for more than that. God is good.

Life is good!

The desktop charger came in...the Blackberry is cooking again! And I'm VERY happy at spending way less than the price of a new phone. So, HMMPH to AT&T!

A BB Update

After several not so pleasant phone conversations with AT&T, they agreed to let me get a phone at the 2 yr. upgrade price plus $75 (and locked into another 2 yr. contract). Not so much of a bargain, and after the poor service I got this go around, I'm thinking about switching next year. So, I did some research and found a desk charger that doesn't rely on the USB port and ordered that for a heck of a lot less than a new phone. I don't sync my BB with my computer anyway...I'm an old fashioned datebook kind of girl and don't use that portion of my phone, so I think this will work.

BTW, I thought my southern friends should know what one representative told me on the phone. When I explained for the umpteenth time I hadn't dropped it in water, and unless the phone could suck humidity from the air, I didn't understand how the infamous little dot had turned red, he said, "humidity in the air can be a factor." WHAT! HELLO! I LIVE IN ARKANSAS! HAVE YOU BEEN TO ARKANSAS IN LATE JULY? The BB should come with a warning label--" if you live in Arkansas, purchase at your own risk...."

It's amazing how additive a BB can be. (I guess that's where crackberry comes in!) The picnic girls kidded me about never being without it, and my husband claims he is seeing serious withdrawal symptoms since this whole thing began on Sat. OK, so I like to be able to check my emails regularly...is there anything wrong with that? : )

OK, that's it for now...enough on the BB saga. And to think my phone before this was a Nokia...the OLD style Nokia. heehee

I'm a Little Blue, Not Pink

It has been one of those days, ya' know? It started off on the wrong foot when I took my Blackberry off the charger this morning and found out it hadn't charged. And wouldn't charge despite me changing it to several different outlets. So, I made a trip to the phone store, where they thought it was a faulty connector on the phone, and they sent me to the device store
WAAAYY over in far west Little Rock. Long story short, after a great deal of rudeness from the clerk there, she told me my phone had water damage and that was that. (and they didn't offer insurance on the BB when I got it...they started that in June). I have NOT dropped my phone in water, and have no clue when any water could have gotten in the phone, and the manager admitted the problem was the connector, as my phone was working perfectly, just unable to charge. But the little red dot means no replacement phone. Have you priced a Blackberry (or any smartphone for that matter) at full price without it being tied to a plan lately? And I have over a year left before I'm eligible for another. ARGH! So, I guess it's off to Ebay for me and a lot of praying that I get an honest seller.

Oh, and I got the "another candidate has been chosen for the position....thank you for your interest...." letter. I was expecting it, but it just was sort of the icing on the cake for the kind of day it's been. Some days are like that, ya' know? Tomorrow will be better, I'm sure. Forgive me for whining.....it's just a whining kind of day. : )