Habitat office burnt down

This morning I got the bad news about Habitat for Humanity Office..

I am very saddened to hear about this.. I will wait to hear more details when it comes out if it was arson or something else..

"Suspicious" fire destroys Oak Ridge church

December 31, 2004

OAK RIDGE (WATE) -- It took all units from the Oak Ridge Fire Department, plus units from Marlow and Clinton, to battle a fire that destroyed the First Christian Church building early Friday morning.

The first units arrived just before 2:30 a.m. and found the roof totally engulfed in flames. For more than 10 hours firefighters fought to extinguish the fire in the church building on Michigan Avenue.

Oak Ridge Fire Chief Mack Bailey said the fire's origin was suspicious. "We're going to take a close look at it," he said.

Bailey said at least two separate fires were thought to be burning in remote parts of the building when firefighters arrived on the scene.

"The volume of fire was just too much for the limited number of people we had," said Bailey, explaining why additional units from nearby area were called to help. "It's just a matter of how many people and how much water you can assemble to control something large like this."

The local office of Habitat for Humanity was housed in an upper floor of the building. It had been located there for just over a year. All of its contents are believed to be destroyed.

Happy New Year! Welcome 2005!

Happy New Year to you all! Have a wonderful evening of parties.. Be safe!

Bucky and I'm heading toward Sandy's place to party with Sandy/Robert, Mom/Dad, Vicki/Doug along with three cats and a dog.

Hope 2005 will be a better year for everyone! Are you making resolution this year?? :)

My Mom made this..

My Mom's hobby is crocheting and making things similiar as this but smaller. She makes money from this hobby and some names are easy to make and take about a week for her to finish. This certain one took her about 3-4 months to finish.

I have told Mom that I wanted her to make one like this for me to hang in our new house next Christmas.. :-)

I hope you are able to see what the valence say..

Letter

Story last updated at 1:10 p.m. on December 28, 2004

Letters

Reader grateful to Habitat for Humanity

To The Oak Ridger:

I am soon to be a homeowner for one of the houses on Wakeman Lane recently vandalized.

I am very sad and disappointed there are people out there who felt they had to do something like this to a wonderful organization and to us the families who are very excited about our houses being built.

I am very grateful for the wonderful organization like Habitat for Humanity. My family and I will enjoy our home because it is something more special than buying a house off a market. The house was built by people who cared, family members who came together to work and build the house with us.

We will be making our house payments for 30 years just like other mortages but with no interest.

Please, I'm asking whoever knows about the vandalism that was done to please get in touch with the police and help Habitat for Humanity the way they help low-income families fulfill their dreams of having a home to call their own.

Mary Carver
Oak Ridge


*** I emailed the letter to Oak Ridger and they printed it in paper.. :)

Our house and Justin's room

As I promised that I would post a picture of Justin's room being painted black..

We painted a coat on Monday and waited till Tuesday to come back and painted second coat. Then came today to take the picture of the room and the house.

I think the room looks real good. I'm going to do some more to Justin's room later on when we get things to put on the wall such as molding etc..





and also here's the pictures of the house so far..

The front of our new house



The side view of the house


The rear view of the house

Real life totem pole

I had to share this funny picture.. Tori took the picture of Nana and her little dogs sleeping and I teased Mom that it looked like a totem pole. I decided to post this pic on the blog and share this cute and funny picture..

Mom falls asleep easily on her chair and this was one of the moment when she fell sleep with two dogs.. They are Blackie and Brownie for very obviously reasons :) or as Bucky calls them "Dumbells"...

New addition to Wynn's Family

My cousin Kevin in Delaware and his wife and older sister welcomed new baby Rozlyn to the family on Decemeber 1, 2004. Here's the picture of proud family!

Proud Daddy with Rozlyn


Proud Aunt Lisa and Grandma


Proud big sister


Rozlyn Wynn


Lisa and Kevin are children of Elmer and Margie Wynn.. Elmer and my Dad Monroe are brothers. Elmer had passed away when he was 42 years old due to cancer. Kevin was about 6 years old when his Dad died and now he's grown man with two daughters.. He looks excatly like his Dad! WOW!!

Home Sweet Home

Bucky and I had a early start heading home as we came home on Sunday instead of Monday as planned. We enjoyed our visit in North Carolina but Bucky was hurting. He was helping his grandparents out by cleaning their furance under the house, a loose brick fell and hit his big toe. It was so painful that he complained some until we noticed that his big toe turned into purple toe.

Bucky and his Mom went to ER Saturday evening and they determined that it wasn't broken but very deeply bruised and Bucky's Mom has kidney infection. She has a kidney stone that wont move up from lower part of kidney and she gets kidney infection so often. So they both were given meds to get them feeling some better.

Sunday, Bucky and I woke up and got ready to go back to Tennessee. I woke Tori and Ryan up and told them that we were going home. Bless Ryan's heart. He was upset that we were leaving but he calmed down since Tori and Justin was staying. I can't wait to have the kids back home on Saturday!

The trip home was uneventful. But it was a great chance for Bucky and I to have a different type of talk than we normally talk in front of children. It was a good heart to heart talk.. When we got home, Mom and Dad had supper ready for us all. Sandy and Robert came and joined us for dinner. It was a quiet dinner without kids to liven it up. :)

After dinner, Mom and I went to K mart as I wasn't able to get any advantage of the Christmas Sale.. I bought three packages of Christmas wrapping so we could wrap the gifts when we make any early purchases. There was not much of selections to look around to get anything a good deal! OH WELL!

Today the household is quiet and still saying ZZZZZZZZZZZ.. Today our current house will get the gas services back on so Bucky and I will head on back home to sleep in our own king sized bed! Can't wait for our new house to be ready to move in so we can go ahead and move in the house! :) OH! Bucky and I will be heading toward the house and paint Justin's room black!

Will post the pic of Justin's room being painted black.

M

An unfortunately event..

This is very unfortunate event that had happened to Habitat for Humanity of Anderson County. It was at our house but the vandalism didn't occured to the houses itself but to the outdoor equipment that was sitting on the yards..

Habitat site in OR hit by vandals; projects process explained

In the midst of the holiday season, Habitat for Humanity of Anderson County recently experienced vandalism on the site of its current project on Wakeman Lane in Oak Ridge.

Though the recent vandalism won't cause any delays, it occurs as the construction project nears completion.

"It is disappointing to have this occur at this time," Executive Director Susan Burgess Parrish stated in a news release. "And, this may have been due in part to a misunderstanding of what we do at Habitat for Humanity."

Parrish explained that Habitat for Humanity doesn't give houses away. Habitat for Humanity of Anderson County builds homes in partnership with hard-working, low-income families and individuals in Anderson County.

Future homeowners must put in at least 350 hours of "sweat equity" labor by helping to build their own home and working on other Habitat projects. A $500 down payment is required, which can be paid in installments before construction begins.

After construction is completed, houses are sold at cost to partnering homeowners with no-interest mortgages. Monthly payments, including taxes and insurance, are repaid over time, and the payments are used to build additional Habitat houses in Anderson County.

"There is such a need for simple, decent and affordable homes in this area," Parrish stated.
According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition (www.nlihc.org), a person earning minimum wage can afford a monthly rent of no more than $268 in Tennessee and the Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom unit in Anderson County is $553.

Meanwhile, 13.4 percent of all people in Anderson County live below the poverty level.

Parrish said it is the mission of Habitat for Humanity of Anderson County to build simple, decent and affordable houses with participating families - working with diverse individuals, organizations and faith communities to serve others

This was printed at OakRidger

Merry Christmas!

Hello Everyone!

Yesterday on Christmas Eve, we had our dinner at Sandy's house and it was filled with good stuff to eat! OH BOY! I didn't even eat after that dinner at 1 pm till this morning! LOL!

It was so fun this year with kids opening their gifts.. They were appericative this year than they were last year! THANK GOODNESS! SMILE! The kids got a lot of good stuff, clothes and useful things for their rooms..

Sandy and I were mean to Justin! LOL! Justin had asked Sandy for a Playstation 2 game called Monster Hunter.. That was the game that he desperately wants and it cost around 50 bucks. I usually don't buy him games that cost more than 50 dollars so he knew I wouldn't buy one.. So Sandy said she would get him one and the stores didn't have it.. Only way was to order it online.. BUT fortunately Sandy's coworker had gave her a number to call EB Games at the mall. They had it for $49.95 so I went there to buy it for her while she was at work. Sandy and I decided to trick Justin into thinking that Sandy wasn't able to get it this time..

Justin said "you promised you would get it for me on Christmas"
Sandy said it would be about 2 to 3 weeks for it to arrive if order online and it would not be on Christmas for him to get it.
Justin said he didn't care as long as he gets one..

Sandy decided to wrap the game in a bigger box than the original size. Justin was dying of curiousity what that box contains.. We made him wait to open it till middle of opening the pile of gifts and his expression was priceless when he saw it was actually PS2 game he wanted. He was really EXCITED and hugged Sandy while saying I hate you over and over again LOL.. That was his best Christmas Gift he got this year.

After our dinner and opening gifts at Sandy's house, we went back home and started to pack up for our trip to North Carolina to spend Christmas Day with Bucky's family. We decided to leave at 8 pm and arrived Taylorsville NC at 11:15 pm..

This morning at 10 am, Bucky and I woke up. We realized the kids were still sleeping and didn't get up to open their other gifts from Grandma and Mom Mom and Pop yet. So we got the kids up and they opened their gifts and they got more nice stuff! It was real nice to be able to celebrate Christmas with both families!

We are going to get more families coming to the house and open their gifts as well..

So I'm going to close for now until I go back to Tennessee on Monday..

Have safe Merry Christmas!

Remember the true meaning of Christmas, Celebration of Jesus's birth!

Christmas Events

We are preparing for one of two biggest holidays of the year.. Christmas!

We will be getting together on Christmas Eve at Sandy's house eating dinner, opening our gifts from each other when the sun goes out. Watching kids being excited getting things from the tree, unwrapping presents. Santa will come early this year and leave gifts for the children. I had contacted Rudolph and told him about us being on the road to North Carolina on Christmas Day. He's going to have Santa bring the kids's gifts earlier..

Christmas morning, we will head over to Taylorsville, NC to visit Bucky's side of family and celebrate Christmas Day with them. We will stay till Monday then Bucky and I will come back home while the kids will stay with Grandma for a week vacation till New Year day.

It's hard to believe that we are actually getting close to end of 2004 and beginning of 2005! Time sure flies so quickly when you are having so much fun!


On New Year Eve, Sandy's going to host a New Year party at her house and she invited Vicki and her hubby Doug, Bucky and I to her house to celebrate and welcome 2005! Looking forward to play cards and laugh loud!

ELECTRIC is ON!

We went by the house today and to our amazement, the house had lights ON in Living room, kitchen..

We were very excited to see that we have gas line installed and a meter installed so we are waiting for the central HVAC to be installed and water heater to be hooked up, finishing up the ramp to front door and few things left to be FINISHED and be able to sign the closing paper! OH BOY!! Can't wait!!!!

The kids are going to be staying in North Carolina for a week from Christmas Day to New Year Day so Bucky and I will use that time without the kids to get our house packed up and try to get the time to paint Justin's room black.

I'm hoping that we will have a better news to share in next few days! I will post some pictures of the house with lights on as it's a milestone! :) I'm so excited!

Chronic Venous Insufficiency

Hello everyone!

Last Monday the 20th, I went to Vascular doctor surgeron by the name of Dr Zirkle at Baptist Hospital..

He has said that I have Venous insufficiency and poor lymphoid drainage.. He said that I will have to use support hose to be able to keep my legs from swelling so much.. There is nothing he can do for me..

So I guess I'm left here trying to figure what my future will be like and trying to see what I can do to improve my future..

Former Ridger's Comedy Barn bonuses are no joke

Former Ridger's Comedy Barn bonuses are no joke

By: J.J. KindredThe Mountain Press

(Sevierville)PIGEON FORGE - Twelve employees who have worked at The Comedy Barn Theater in Pigeon Forge for its 10 years of existence are having their loyalty pay off - literally.

It will be a very merry Christmas for them and their families as well, as Comedy Barn owner David Fee - a former Oak Ridge resident - shared this year's profits from his theater, giving a Christmas bonus of $10,000 to each of the employees for their long-term employment and dedication.

Fee is the son of Gordon and Miriam Fee of Oak Ridge. Gordon Fee is retired as president of Lockheed Martin Energy Systems.

Fee told his employees about the bonus on Dec. 2, and presented the checks on Dec. 5. The employees, including the ones who have had a lesser tenure at the theater, will also travel next month on an all-expenses paid trip to Las Vegas.

The bonus is reportedly the largest given to the cast of any Pigeon Forge theater and crew.
Fee said he called the employees to the theater for a special meeting on Dec. 2, and informed them they were getting the bonus. He said they all reacted very ecstatic, and some even cried.

"We wanted to take care of the employees that were so loyal and have stayed here through good times and bad," said Fee. "Our employees have medical bills and families to take care of, and we wanted to reward them, no matter what their position was.

"We started with nothing when we came to Pigeon Forge," Fee continued. "These employees have been with us since the beginning, and they are a big part of the success we enjoy. It's great to be in a position to do this for them."

Fee added that he did not expect any resentment or jealousy from the other employees who have had lesser tenure at the theater.

"Everyone got cash bonuses," said Fee. "We've hardly had anyone who has been here for a year, and they're still going to Las Vegas."

Kathy Lapp-Kearney, Fee's secretary who has served in nearly every position at the theater, said she was one of the ones that cried when she received news of the bonus.

"It was just so unbelievable," said Kearney. "Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought they would have done this."

Kearney said she and the other long-time employees have done everything such as painting, cleaning floors, selling tickets and concessions, working with the video taping and performing.
"There's nothing any of us didn't do to help," said Kearney. "We gave our heart and soul to everything in this building."

Kearney added that her husband and family didn't believe her when she told them about her bonus. She has already put the money to use, purchasing a new van.

Wes Herrick, who works the animatronic character of Grandpa Duffy at the theater, said he was surprised and had to pinch himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

"He just presented it. There was no forewarning," said Herrick. "The bottom line is we have a great man. We have tons of faithful customers that keep coming back, and it enables us to do clean, family entertainment."

Herrick said he will use the money to continue projects he has been working on to help military veterans.

Audio engineer Frank Ziepiela said he expressed major shock upon news of the bonus. He said his family shared in his shock, and he will simply put the money in the bank and pay off some bills.

"You don't expect that from an employer," said Ziepiela. "It is unheard of for an employer to do this. You never know if you will have a job tomorrow. It's a sign that we've done well. I'm very thankful."

Steve Curry, who plays guitar in the theater's band, expressed his joy in one word.

"Yee-Ha!" shouted Curry. "It will be nice to have a good Christmas and pay some bills.

"I've been here from the first rehearsal until now," Curry continued. "I've worked (in Sevier County) since the mid-60s. There's not many here who have had a 10-year run at the same place."

**** Mary's comment
It must be real wonderful to be able to get that bonus and acknowledgement from their boss.. WOW! Multimillionaires companies don't do a great thing like this.. That's unfortunate!

No raise for low performers at Y-12

No raise for low performers at Y-12

OAK RIDGE (AP) - Division directors at the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant have been told to rank their salaried employees and then withhold pay raises for the bottom 10 percent.

Dennis Ruddy, president and general manager for BWXT Y-12, the government's contractor, said the policy is designed to get poor performing employees to improve - or leave.

"We have a certain amount of money available for merit increases next year, and we're going to give it to the people who are making a difference in our business," he said.

Ruddy said a small percentage of Y-12 employees don't work hard enough, and he wants them to be faced with a decision.

"It's real easy. We want them to make a decision whether they want to be in the group of 90 percent that's acknowledged as making a contribution or go somewhere else where maybe the grading style is perhaps a little more lenient."

Y-12 National Security Complex employs 4,700 workers at its facilities 20 miles west of Knoxville. It is the nation's primary storehouse for highly enriched uranium.

The plant's other duties include making the second stage of nuclear warheads.

Workers fabricate the components from enriched uranium, lithium and other materials. They also dismantle nuclear weapon components when the weapons are retired from the nation's active nuclear arsenal.

Ruddy said there was already a system in place where employees with unsatisfactory performance evaluations didn't get a raise.

The same applied to some managers, he said.

"There were dozens of people, maybe 100 people, last year who didn't get raises," he said.
The new policy is designed to make the process more orderly and make sure pay raises are going to those who truly deserve it, the Y-12 chief said.

The directive applies to about 3,000 of the 4,630 employees at the Y-12 National Security Complex. About 300 salaried employees won't get pay raises next year, a spokesman said.
It does not affect the plant's hourly workers, whose wages are established by a contract with the Atomic Trades and Labor Council.

Some Y-12 employees have contacted The Knoxville News Sentinel to complain about the policy, saying it has hurt morale.

Ruddy acknowledge the controversy.

"Well, of course it's unpopular," he said. "Good gosh, any change is unpopular.

"Changes that move in the direction of accountability generally seem to be threatening to everybody - no matter how well they're performing."

**** Mary's Comment

I think it is unfortuate for them to do this at this point of year.. Cost of living, family situations etc.. I am just hoping that they don't impact too many of people at Y-12 so they can have a Merry Christmas..

As promised..

Here's the pictures as I promised I would post on Monday.. Even though it's now Tuesday :D!

Here's the pictures of stairway..



The pictures of bedrooms-

Tori's room is painted Lavender purple..


Bucky and my room is painted Gold/yellowish..

Mother, Mom, Mama, Ma

I got this from my Aunt in Indiana, I decided to post this so we can stop and think of our Mom and being grateful for our Mom..



While I think fathers will appreciate this as well, only a mother will know the true emotion of this.

After 21 years of marriage, I discovered a new way of keeping alive the spark of love. A little while ago I started to go out with another woman, It was really my wife's idea.

"I know that you love her," she said one day, taking me by surprise.

"But I love YOU," I protested.

"I know, but you also love her."

The other woman that my wife wanted me to visit was my mother, who has been a widow for 19 years. The demands of my work and my three children had made it possible to visit her only occasionally. That night I called to invite her to go out for dinner and a movie.

"What's wrong, are you okay ?" she asked. My mother is the type of woman who suspects that a late night call or a surprise invitation is a sign of bad news.

"I thought that it would be nice to spend some time with you," I responded.

"Just the two of us ?" She thought about it for a moment, then said, "I would like that very much."

That Friday after work, as I drove over to pick her up I was a bit nervous. When I arrived at her house, I noticed that she, too, seemed to be nervous about our "date." She waited in the door with her coat on. She had curled her hair and was wearing the dress that she had worn to celebrate her last wedding anniversary. She smiled from a face that was as radiant as an angel's.

"I told my friends that I was going to go out with my son, and they were impressed," she said, as she got into the car. "They can't wait to hear about our meeting." We went to a restaurant that, although not elegant, was very nice and cozy. My mother took my arm as if she were the First Lady. After we sat down, I had to read the menu. Her eyes could only read large print. Half way through the entrees, I lifted my eyes and saw Mom sitting there staring at me. A nostalgic smile was on her lips.

"It was I who used to have to read the menu when you were small," she said. "Then it's time that you relax and let me return the favor," I responded. During the dinner we had an agreeable conversation - nothing extraordinary - but catching up on recent events of each other's life. We talked so much that we missed the movie. As we arrived at her house later, she said, "I'll go out with you again, but only if you let me invite you." I agreed.

"How was your dinner date?" asked my wife when I got home.

"Very nice. Much more so than I could have imagined," I answered.

A few days later my mother died of a massive heart attack. It happened so suddenly that I didn't have a chance to do anything for her. Some time later I received an envelope with a copy of a restaurant receipt from the same place my mother and I had dined. An attached note read: "Son, I paid this bill in advance. I was almost sure that I couldn't be there but, nevertheless, I paid for two plates - one for you and the other for your wife. You will never know what that night meant for me. I love you."

At that moment I understood the importance of saying, in time: "I LOVE YOU" and to give our loved ones the time that they deserve. Nothing in life is more important than your family. Give them the time they deserve, because these things cannot be put off till "some other time." Somebody said it takes about six weeks to get back to normal after you've had a baby ...

Somebody doesn't know that once you're a mother, "Normal," is history.

Somebody said you learn how to be a mother by instinct ... somebody never took a three-year-old shopping.

Somebody said being a mother is boring .. somebody never rode in a car driven by a teenager with a driver's permit.

Somebody said if you're a "good" mother, your child will "turn out good." Somebody thinks a child comes with directions and a guarantee.

Somebody said "good" mothers never raise their voices ... somebody ever came out the back door just in time to see her child hit a golf ball through the neighbor's kitchen window.

Somebody said you don't need an education to be a mother . Somebody never helped a fourth grader with his math.

Somebody said you can't love the fifth child as much as you love the first. Somebody doesn't have five children.

Somebody said a mother can find all the answers to her child-rearing questions in the books ... somebody never had a child stuff beans up his nose or in his ears!

Somebody said the hardest part of being a mother is labor and delivery..Somebody never watched her "baby" get on the bus for the first day of kindergarten. or on a plane headed for military "boot camp."

Somebody said a mother can do her job with her eyes closed and one hand tied behind her back . Somebody never organized seven giggling Brownies to sell cookies.

Somebody said a mother can stop worrying after her child gets married.. Somebody doesn't know that marriage adds a new son or daughter-in-law to a mother's heartstrings.

Somebody said a mother's job is done when her last child leaves home... Somebody never had grandchildren.

Somebody said your mother knows you love her, so you don't need to tell her .... Somebody isn't a mother.

Pass this along to all the "mothers" in your life.

Since I am very close to my Mom, I am able to talk to her about practically everything but of course a few things is better left unsaid... I am very grateful for my relationship with Mom. I love Mom very much and I do love my Daddy as much as I love Mom.. This just shows me how much I want to make sure Mom knows how much she meants to me..

Mom, If you are reading this, I want you to know how much I love you and how grateful I am that you and Dad brought me to the world and taught me all you had taught me, raised me the way you raised me.

I know I was a wild child when I was younger but I am grateful that you are able to overlook my mistakes and actions and continue to love me for who I am. Your everlasting open arms just makes it so easy to have the relationship we have..

I love you so much and want you to know that I'm grateful for all you have done for me.

Your daughter, Mary

Sad story..

This is a sad story.. I can't even imagine how Logan feels about his Dad who was the one that hit the vechile that Logan was in and injured him. It is hard to even imagine him losing his Dad the same way his Mom died 14 yr ago.. I will let you read the story.. I used to live near that area 6 years ago. I didn't like the roads out there..

I hate reading stories about children with parents who are alcholics.. I am fortunate that my Dad stopped drinking long time ago when I was young girl. Bucky's Dad and brother, Bill are both alcholic. It's always very sad to see them drinking and know that they are making mistakes of their lives.. They are missing out the great moments that won't come back the second time. There are stories to tell but not at this post..

Of course, I'm not against drinkers. I just feel sorry for children when their parents abuse alchol and do things that endangers themselves and everyone else..

Misc..

House update: They worked on the stairway putting laminate planks on the steps and it is halfway done but looking SO GOOD! Will post pictures of it on Monday.

Saw Susan in office on Friday and she said we MAY BE signing the closing papers on Dec 24, 2004.. I AM HOPING we get to sign and be able to move in REAL SOON!

Bucky and I spent about 2 hours in our bedroom at the new house painting our walls.. I like the color and the pattern of the painting.. Again, I will post the pictures on Monday..

Christmas Cards: I have gotten couple of Christmas cards.. I am real bad on mailing out some but will do it soon with the correct address so people will have our new address..

Christmas Shopping: As for now, We are done with Christmas shopping except two more items I wanted to get the kids.. OH BOY! I need to get started WAY EARLY next year so I won't be stressed out with the shopping and it won't be as expensive..

Tori: She wanted to go to TSD tonite for a Christmas Party they were having. We took her there at 6 pm and she is going to come home on Wednesday then spend Thurs night at school then she will be home for Christmas break. OH NO! I'm NOT ready for the kids to have their vacation! HA!

Gifts for teachers: I was thinking of what we could get the teachers for Christmas. We decided to go with fudges for the teacher along with a wooden apple that has cute looks and it said Time for Break.. :) I gotta make some fudges this week so the kids can bring to their teachers on Thursday/Friday..

Three things in life

Subject: Three things in life

Three things in life that, once gone, never come back - Time, Words & Opportunity
Three things in life that may never be lost - Peace, Hope & Honesty.
Three things in life that are most valuable - Love, Faith & Prayer.
Three things in life that are never certain - Dreams, Success & Fortune.
Three things that make a man - Hard work, Sincerity & Commitment.
Three things in life that can destroy a man - Lust, Pride & Anger.
Three things that are truly constant - Father, Son and Holy Ghost.

I ask the Lord to bless you, as I pray for you today; to guide you and protect you, as you go along your way. His love is always with you, His promises are true. And when you give Him all your cares, you know He'll see you through.

J.E. Lewis, 1SG, USA, Ret. Vietnam Service 1968-1969

Thanks Sandy for sending this to me! Love ya Runt!

Chapters in the book

I was talking to Sandy tonite on IM, I mentioned about the chapter in a life book being unfinished and there are more chapters in the book that has been written and continously writing but that certain chapter hasn't been finished..

It made me wonder if I had any unfinished chapters in my life. I know there are some chapters that I wondered if I would have done any different if I went back in time and redo the scenarios. There are some chapters that I'm very happy with their endings or how it's going toward ending..

I know there are some bridges I burned, some bridges I mended, some relationship that went sour and never resolved, some relationship that got lost and forgotten.

I think it's time for me to sit back and sift through my chapters to see where I am at.. It's good timing to reflect the life before the year changes to 2005..

Parents

I was saddened that I had "exposed" a blog to a parent of a blogger. I had thought that the parents had knew about their son who had a blog for over a year and I mentioned that I have enjoyed reading the blog and reading the comments on his blog. The Mom nodded like she knew what I was talking about. Then she talked to her son, the blogger and asked him for his website address.

I can understand because his blog has some information detailed that his parents might not want to be exposed. I have learned some stuff from his blog that I am not exposed to in my lifestyle.. Since he's gay and I am married with kids, we lead different lifestyles in different regions of America, he is in New York while I'm in Tennessee, I'm being exposed to his lifestyle and I learn from him. I feel that each person has their own opinions and they have the right to express their own opinions and feelings the way they are feeling without worrying or being criticized for their thoughts.

I post on his commentbox after finding out that I had exposed his blog to his parents my apology for putting him on spot with his parents and my thoughts on his blog and comments, he has replied that he has no hard feelings. I hope that his blog will not change because it's who he is just like this blog is who I am.

M-

Wednesday..

Wednesday was a WONDERFUL DAY for me!!

The new contractor was not able to get started on the drainage on Monday because of heavy rains we had, on Tuesday the ground was drying up some and he tackled some errands prior to work on the drainage.

WEDNESDAY, He started working and he was able to COMPLETE the pipes laying and covering it up with dirt but he is needing to get some more dirt and will be leveling the ground! He really know what he is doing. He handled the bobcat very well and quickly! Here's the pictures of the land being worked on..







This is what the front of house looks with stuff that is going to be worked on for our walkway, etc..

Fudge making

Last Tuesday afternoon, I went to Sandy's work to ride with her to visit Vicki as we were going to make fudges. Vicki had easy receipe to make fudges and it tasted so good that I wanted to have my own portion to bring home :)

So simple and easy and I'm going to make some more for Christmas gifts! :) 5 items to mix and makes 5 lbs of fudge!

Anyway, back to the story.. We got to Vicki's house and Vicki went to work making the fudges for me. While the fudges was cooling down, Vicki, Vicki's Mom Rowena, Sandy and I went to Kentucky Fried Chicken place to eat our dinner and chatted a bit. We came back to her place and the fudges was setting real good! We sat down and I was showing Vicki how to use her sidekick beside using AIM. Using email, text, downloading games, getting on computer to do more stuff that will be on her sidekick, and all those good stuff.. I think I overwhelmed her with too many information..

Here's pictures I took of Vicki and Sandy!


Sandy was sitting on the bunkbed that Vicki has for her grandkids in her computer room.. I took pic of her looking like this! LOL

How popular are you?

Find out how popular your first name has been over the past 100 years, just click below and enter your first name.

http://www.birthdayalarm.com/name


My name is Mary and the results was..


Decade Popularity Rank
1900's 1
1910's 1
1920's 1
1930's 1
1940's 1
1950's 1
1960's 2
1970's 15
1980's 34
1990's 41

I did a couple of names to see what their ranking was.. It is interesting to see some names that has stayed strong throughout the years and some other names went downhill through the years and some didn't even exist earlier in years and some later in years..

Pictures

Hello Everyone,

I had asked Sandy if she could meet us at Norris today to have some pictures made of my family and she said she could. Robert came with her to help take pictures. OH MY GOODNESS many of the pictures came out good! I'm tickled!!

Here are some of the pictures.. I am posting my favorites..







Bucky and I posing..






Kids posing..






We also took pictures of Sandy and Robert.. Those are my favorites..

the weekend..

My parents left Thursday for Maryland for a weekend visit and to attend DINGO event hosted by IAD, then will be visiting Sandy Duncan in Pa for a overnight visit then go to Wilmington Delaware to visit my Dad's sister and sister in law before heading back home.

SO we are home all alone! :)

We didn't do anything much special..

Friday, We went to our house in Oak Ridge as we were supposed to meet Executive Director to have our picture taken at 3 pm. We didn't know it was cancelled.. We had someone call them and they said since we were still there, they would send someone over to take picture of us, so they did.. We left to go to visit Granny and Gramps and we all decided to order pizza from Papa John's.. I LOVE their pizza.. I am not real pizza lover but if I had any choice, I would order pizza from Papa John over any other pizza places. After eating pizzas with Granny and Gramps, we came home and got online to chat and check emails..

Saturday at 7:30 am, We got up and dressed up to go to Knoxville Center, formerly known as East Town Mall to attend a Christmas party that we were invited by T.S.D. They had a cute movie for us to watch, SpongeBob movie.. Ryan was thrilled because he likes SpongeBob.. I was hoping to be able to watch Christmas with Kranks but unfortunately it wasn't to be! We stopped by Dollar General Market and bought a couple of things and came home to relax for a while. I took nap, it was good while it lasted.. Now we are just sitting around relaxing after eating our dinner..

Tomorrow (Sunday) Dollywood is having Deaf Awareness Day.. I was planning on attending but i am not too sure if we will go for sure as we are due to have scattered rain tomorrow.. We will see..

Good Husband

Several men are in the locker room of a golf club. A cell phone on a bench rings and a man engages the hands free speaker-function and begins to talk. Everyone else in the room stops to listen.

MAN: "Hello"

WOMAN: "Honey, it's me. Are you at the club?"

MAN: "Yes"

WOMAN: "I'm at the mall now and found this beautiful leather coat. It's only $1,000. Is it OK if I buy it?"

MAN: "Sure, ..go ahead if you like it that much."

WOMAN: "I also stopped by the Mercedes dealership and saw the new 2005 models. I saw one I really liked."

MAN: "How much?"

WOMAN: "$65,000"

MAN: "OK, but for that price I want it with all the options."

WOMAN: "Great! Oh, and one more thing .... The house we wanted last year is back on the market.They're asking $950,000."

MAN: "Well, then go ahead and give them an offer, but just offer $900,000."

WOMAN: "OK. I'll see you later! I love you!"

MAN: "Bye, I love you, too."

The man hangs up. The other men in the locker room are looking at him in astonishment. Then he smiles and asks: "Anyone know whose phone this is?"


LOL!! I wonder what the owner of that phone would say when he comes home and found the wife making all those purchases.. LOL!

Something to ponder..

Please note the following: CANCER

Not all cancers are the same. 1/3 is curable. 1/3 is preventable.

2 factors of cancer that cannot be controlled are AGE & FAMILY HISTORY.

CAUSES OF CANCER

1. Smoking is very often the main cause of cancer.

It kills us silently and drains money from us quietly. There are 4,000 harmful chemicals (thoughin diluted form) in one stick of cigarette. Taking one puff is 600 times worse than inhaling exhaust fumes from vehicles.

2. Some foods that cause cancer is:

a. Barbecued Food
b. Deep Fried Food
c. Overheating Meat
d. Food that is high in fat causes our bile to secrete acid that contains a chemical which is a promoter of cancer cells.
e. Food that contains preservatives, too much salt or nitrates, e.g. canned food, salted egg & veggies, sausages, etc.
f. Overnight Rice (where Aflatoxin is accumulated)
g. Food that is low in fibre : Our body needs 25 gm of both soluble & insoluble fibre daily. We must drink at least 1.5 litres of plain water a day.
h. Contaminated Food (e.g. molded bread causes our body to secrete toxins that may eventually lead to liver cancer in the long run. Never eat bread that is kept in room temperature for more than 2 days especially in a humid weather.)

3. type of fat and which is best?

Highly Recommended for health:

a. Olive Oil - It does not absorb in our body.
b. Fish Oil - Omega 3 (contained in NI's Circulytes) has poly-unsaturated fat. good for our brain cells.
c. Peanut Oil - It contains Vitamin E. A small dosage is recommended only.

Not recommend for health:

a. Vegetable Fat - Palm oil is worse than coconut oil. It is high in cholesterol and highly unsaturated.
b. Coconut Oil - It has saturated fat.

5. Specific Food & Beverages

a. Egg when eaten too much can cause High Colon Cancer, Risk Ovary Cancer, Prostate Cancer.
b. Cabbage is highly recommended for health reason.
c. Tomato is best eaten raw with a bit of olive oil for better absorption. Other alternative is to take tomato sauce.
d. Coffee is good because it contains 2 anti-oxidants. Inhale coffee aroma for half each day is equivalent to eating 2 oranges a day. However, the residue of over-burned coffee is extremely bad for health. It can cause cancer.
e. Tea, as long as it is in its original tea leaves and not processed into BOH or Lipton packets, it is good for health. Tea contains 30 anti-oxidants. Recommended dosage is 2-3cups a day.

EXERCISE AND BE FIT! Have a balanced lifestyle. Exercise regularly.

F : Frequency: 3 to 5 times a week.
I :Intensity: Exercise till we sweat and breath deeply.
T : Types of exercises: Find one that suits our age, lifestyle...

HAVE REGULAR CHECK-UP once we reach the age of 45 & above, it is recommended that we go for regular comprehensive health examination. Early detection may save lives.

Cereality

Cereality.. What the heck is that?!?!!?

I was reading Knoxnews and stumbled a story about Cereality restaurant in Philly PA and I wish Knoxville has one!! I LOVE CEREAL!! I would go there and eat and sample different cereals..

ONE more post ..

Just one more post then I will be off! :)

GUESS WHAT!!!

I had emailed the lady at Habitat asking if we had gotten someone to do our storm drainage since they had fired the previous contractor.. She had emailed back and said no, they have not found one yet but were looking.. THEN yesterday they emailed me and said... They have met with a contractor and they have signed contract that he would do the storm drainage on Monday, weather permitting.. Then We may be in our house in time for CHRISTMAS!! OH BOY!! it's so exciting! I am HOPING and praying for good weather from now on till the storm drainage get fixed, our moving in then it can rain, snow or BLIZZARD for all I care! LOL!!

Thanks! Just wanted to share my exciting news..

M-