Current Events

Friends, Floridians, fellow storm trackers, lend me your ears

There are a bevy of storm products out there to make your hurricane experience more enjoyable, and there’s nothing like two close calls in the span of three weeks to put a little slack in those purse strings and loosen the crease in those wallets! Yesterday, your roaming blog correspondent walked into a 3M storm-window shop (it happened to be right next door to my daughter’s…
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Wellbeing

Looking for an old friend

I return to work after a four day layoff something less than refreshed. There are now two storms down, with one possibly to go. A slight relaxation deficit, combined with a computer system failure, conspires to make this a very long morning. It’s a classic story, really. Who among you haven’t sat idly at work while everything around you refused to cooperate? Who hasn’t wished…
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Current Events

We now return you to our regularly scheduled weather pattern

Our last reminders of Hurricane/Tropical Storm Frances are sitting in a large pile at the end of our driveway. After one false start, I was awarded an extra day off from work to deal with these reminders which were previously scattered about our yard. Spending half of the morning reminiscing in the yard was a really great time. Armed with a rake, a pair of gloves, two trashcans and one daughter…
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Family and Friends

Listen to Nancy

If you are visiting our home in the near future and someone offers you a chocolate-chocolate chip cookie, just say no. You see there was an incident at our home, an incident filled with disappointment, tragedy and loss. It had little to do with the hurricane and everything to do with my ineptitude in the kitchen. It began with a party planned at my office. There are several individuals in my…
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The Sunshine StateWellbeing

When boredom is a good thing

Hurricane/Tropical Storm Frances is still making its presence felt in Dunedin, Florida. Despite a whole heck of a lot of rain and some gusty wind, we’ve gotten off light. The electricity has been out at my in-law’s place. Power has been intermittent at my parent’s house. Yet, we’ve had power throughout the storm. The storm has left our property relatively untouched, other…
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Family and Friends

When the lights go out

This evening we had a steady stream of electricity into the house. This is only remarkable due to the weather, and the fact that my parents and some friends did not. We got a call asking us if our power was out. It wasn’t. Naturally, Cheryl became concerned that our power might go out sometime in the next 24 hours. A light bulb went on in that part of Cheryl’s brain responsible for…
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Kitchen Sink

The receptionist

The doctor wanted to see us again in two months. As we were leaving, the receptionist offered us the date of October 29th. Her two-tone hairstyle and youthful detachment lent an “I won’t be working here much longer” air to her demeanor. I asked if she had something on November 5th. She dutifully advised me that two months would be October 29th. I said I wanted November 5th. The…
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Kitchen Sink

A little extra spit never hurt anyone

I was sitting at work and I was desperate for a postage stamp. I don’t normally conduct personal business at work (these entries being a notable exception), so I’m not used to carrying stamps to the office – let alone using them. I broadcast an APB for a stamp and got an immediate reply. A stamp had been seen in the office next door. My coworker dutifully gave me a single stamp…
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Going for Broke

That dull ache in your head is not your imagination

Sinusitis. The pain starts on the side of my face; under my eye and in front of my temple. The pain spreads to my eyebrow ridges, across the forehead and down the other side. The cheek bones come next, followed by a slight pain with each inhalation somewhere behind my nose. Tension. The pain starts just under my hairline on my forehead. It slowly spreads to each temple and jumps the gap to the…
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