Well...it sounds like the start of a joke but it is where and who we spent our Christmas eve and day with :) After seeing my baby brother and his family, we learned my oldest daughter couldn't come so we followed yonder star being the nomads we are and headed home to New Orleans. Although my intentions were to attend mass at St. Louis Cathedral in Jackson Square and eat at the Fairmont Hotel...Jim's vacation was cut short and had to head off to Atlanta today so we spent it with friends in LaComb.
So even though this is only the 3rd time I put up a tree since the terrorist attacks (the other 2 were the first year we blew up here from the Gulf, and the year we got Paros and my youngest daughter came to visit)...it will signify the visit of my youngest brother and end of war. With my parents deaths...not much family left here anymore. Some estranged, others scattered, and then those we don't really have any bonds built with. A brother and cousin is always nice to hear greetings from and keeps this place feeling a bit like home.
Of course it was nice to run from our water issues that are still occuring and Charleston's 'Prom Night in Mississippi' being shown in Washington this week giving it national attention. Yeah...the county commissioner who is my new nemisis did give us some pressure during Thanksgiving week and then again this Christmas week but thoughts of all the 3rd world countries I've visited and returned from without contracting dysentery....wouldn't you know it would get us good here :/ So we bought a water cooler but I relapsed after drinking a soda from the melted ice :( I did have to shave the Shih Tzu, Annabelle will have to be clipped, and I'm still struggling to save Paros coat I've been growing for the past 2 yrs. and still want to have him shown).
And how congruent that the friends we visited down in Louisiana had NO water at all! Their well went out and won't be able to have a new one dug until the first of the year so we could relate! D is a better 'wing it' cajun coon ass than myself so I knew she'd have her routine down in the kitchen and not to trip her up while I visited and allowed the guys some time to themselves in the shop. I just would throw a party platter and fudge to kibble on we had brought down. 
And just ooohhhh why couldn't I figure the new camara out Cmas eve when Caveman and Big Jim put together a 4 yr olds electric scoot? Nothing like 2 huge bikers a a small cajun woman around an electric dirt bike the size of a tricycle :D Not to mention another 2 smaller couple hooking up the basketball goal. It could have been worse though. I could have gotten up in it all with my high BP misfiring brain stroke self blind as a bat with short fingers :/ Weeee. :l
When we stopped, I didn't even count my blessings. I was just aware of them and know they are too numerous to even begin to count. I am thankful for the time I spent with good people who are sound, warm hearted, gracious, and tolerant to accept two wandering nomads off the road from blowing in the wind into their home. I also thought if I had issues taking the extra XBox back...maybe David could take it to the SOS clubhouse as a present to them. It's there Boar's son got me hooked on video games years ago lol ;)
FINALLY got to the bottom of why I am running under 1.0 on my internet speeds!!! The neighbors say THERE IS NO AT&T internet line or service here EXCEPT for me and that is because it was a 'personal' and 'side' job done by one of their techs here. Not authorized by AT&T so not their fault BUT WHAT IS THEIR FAULT is that they should've known they didn't provide these services when I had my services move with me over 2 yrs ago. And why have I had to stress about all this? I dunno but about to find out in court maybe (because I doubt they will arbitrarily settle this to my satisfaction).
Some good things have been my neighbor lady and I darted off to dinner a couple of times earlier and I gave her a Christmas gift early this year. She is having a large dinner party and asked if I knew where to purchase dessert forks at a reasonable price so I found her a set and that is done. She is an awesome lady and great neighbor. We laugh a lot together but if I were to have 18 dinner guests...I'm popping valium and pulling out paper plates :l
With Jim home after hitting NJ for a week, home for a moment, then IN for 9 days...he let me out my cage for a small Clarksdale excursion. Paros acted like it was Christmas getting to ride, walkabout town, strangers petting him at the local shop we visited, and of course treats we always stop for.
On the graphics front...I've had a blast playing with PS and making a background for my you tube page, wallpapers, and making videos (post below...learning between windows movie, Corel Video, HP Media Smart, and well forget Cyberlink DVD suite :/). Also studying which between Dreamweaver and Expression Web, and adding another back up battery for the main computer. Then there is wanting to update my camera to one of at least 16 MP so it will be sort of the equivalent to my 35 mm. I really love the little 'snap and shoot' digital 8 mp camera. I seem to take more photos since I don't have to lug and keep up with all the other equipment :/
So I go to order the HduO water cooler with the dog bowl on the bottom. Nope. Seems Aninx Corp was only a company of 1 with leaky design flaws :/ (Edward Wittbold who is director of marketing at Conair). Well...his design idea is BRILLIANT so I hope someone backs him ;) Hell...I'll order a leaky one! One of Jim's license is that of a plumber so I'll have him fix it (and if he can build harleys, big machine mechanic, fix old pipes in New Orleans French Quarter, not to mention my bar that no other plumber could get right....he could do it! ;)
We won't even mention AT&T but nice they finally came through with the static IP address I ordered before Easter :/ Don't need it now though :P What is worse is each month billing charges me for one thing and the sales dept. keep selling me another. Really tired of them but as long as my 6.0 DSL doesn't hit below 5 and I keep the same unlimited plan I've had with Bell South all these years...I'm in on that part. But Verizon may be doing my phone along with Jim!
So I guess I'll be cut off from communications, my foyer will go from 'construction zone', then 'lobby' to 'parking lot' with the harley, I'll lose my first God given adult tooth, drive my friends and neighbors crazy lonesome and downloading on them, go broke from analyzing the liver thing, and thirst to death waiting for the water cooler to be available :/ I was even a good girl not ordering QVC's 'daily special' sleep number bed with advanced memory foam and looks like I could've had a soft place to be 'holed up' or die on if I didn't have all this other stuff on my list :(
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| Jim's Pic of Headstone in IN. |
Wouldn't you know that not only ALL the dogs are scheduled to go under for spays, ears, and the dental already done, but that I am now scheduled for surgery this Friday :l I must have gasped when my peridontist said a lot of things come about from stress. OMG...I had to respond to a friend I download on 'Is that like when my Mother died Easter Sunday and we drove running from the 300 plus tornadoes during that 3 day period while flying in a daughter from Cali at 2 am....who picks up the flu with her child? And we hit the funeral the next morning on 3 hrs of sleep? Dropping off Paros to his specialist in Memphis?" I could go on with just a 1 week ordeal :/
And she has been on my mind in Tai Chi when my instructor tries to remind me to pop my butt in. I have to admit...the story of the translator running across the floor with the master translating "He say...he say...why you butt out like that?" has me laughing amidst the current turbulences :D And in discussing this on the phone with my daughter, wouldn't you know her instructor is on her butt about it being in the air too?!? Better than our noses lol! :P
And God bless Annabelle's breeder for mentoring me through this 'under dog' thing. My panic attacks are literally making me sick and she has grounded me a lot through emails. I probably will call her during my nervous breakdown when Anna is scheduled for her spay. Then there is Jim's Bayou to have the hair plucked out of his ears. Vet already knows him by 'Hannibel' lol.
Not much in the graphics lately. Jim came back from NJ but headed back out to IN so I played a bit Rays Icing style in Adobe marketplace and found my old 'Southern Roads' site in the 'Way Back When' Archives :l. Also did the awesome futuristic text in the wallpaper from PSD TUTS. I just changed the contour in bevels and left out the scratches and screws. Fun and easy ;) The digital scrapbook page is from Computer Scrapbooking. I just layered P's pics, added the butterfly and font with my own layer styles. Good way to chill out with some free time :)
Prayers answered today for what motivates and colors my life. A sister says it's where my heart lives. It was missing for several years when I lost my afghan hounds but beats again through Paros. He is where my heart lives and just sooo glad he woke up and I'm done with the panic, sobbing, and nausea attacks that took me to dark places :) His yearly is done, bloodwork, fecal, and the infection in his ears will clear up now (although he is such a sweet boy, I don't think the vet would have had any problem flushing them out). So thanks to God and his vet!
Also found that killer texture site; My Photoshop Textures. Not to mention Photoshop Brushes where the pattern below came from and has inspired me to rivet leather or jeans into a wall piece :D I usually went to My Photoshop brushes but don't always have time to read terms so I don't have a lot of them :/. The leaves in the wallpaper 'Honey Rider' are from his site too (I believe one is O. Dawn...I've seen her stuff in here for years...she makes a lot of them and they are all good so thanks to her too for these ;) |
And what's really hillarious about getting things back asswards is reviewing the mental picture of me in tai chi class tonight. Lol...I kinda got a talk to when a girl tried to help me. Actually...we both did and well...like the beauty contest I was in when I got Miss Memphis Bicentinnel alternate...I was on the end facing one way while everyone else was pivoted the other :l I think a sister has that pic. That's 'bass ackwards' too :( 
Well....I didn't get much art done other than these 2 digital cards I sent out and the new Paros fall collage I am working on here but I found 2 killer PS textures and brushes links (My Photoshop Textures is one to be added in links) and I also forgot to take the camera to take a pic of the Charleston Arts Center where the Tai Chi classes are held (not to mention the dogs are dirty) but I did find a girl from class to help me around the house! Car, painting, dogs, cleaning but she prefers more pay for quick work whereas I am more opposite in thinking. I would like a more relaxed lower pay at first until she sees the order or priority levels of my mess I need done. Like the yard has to be blown before the inside floors get swept from the leaves Paros sweeps in with his coat....then it's hit the tub time for my boy!
So my old number is on although we will barely hear each other, I saw Jim drink for the first time in 2 yrs on his 'pay AT&T day', and I'm going another direction in Tai Chi class but I'll arrive somewhere :l And when I find myself backing up...I think I'll look around and analyze my next move. Is the way forward clear and going to work for me or shall I gun it and fly the other way to leave a backwards ass thing? Or is that 'back ass ward'?
Now I already had my other blog posted and the day just brought about more twists and turns. Like Jim getting called off to Eastern Tn. for backup on the hurricane teams. And it hadn't been 4 days since I picked Aurora up from her dental...so now I am visiting one too (it takes an act of God or serious pain for me to go but this one already shows signs of being more saavy than the ones in Metairie, Slidell, or Bay St. Louis). But still not feeling like a party, sister stayed in Texas, so I hung alone...a bit in pain and not really up to finish painting the dining room before my furniture delivery :(
And wouldn't you know....still troubleshooting computer software I'm loading....Corel tech just had a bit of an issue with working winzip and installing KPT. I had to uninstall it again and retry. Found the problem. It doesn't update automatically via 'update button' so I had to manually do them. This could be because of working on 64 bit but also noticed the KPT collection is shy 10 filters or so. No shapeshifter and whereas the other KPT Collection I bought (yes...I bought 2 :/) works...it is unable to register so has the annoying 'pop up' everytime you use a filter :( Hmmmm. I will have to call them when I find the time :\
I came into this world butt first and had bangs and a big mouth from the start. I will probably slide on down the other side and end the same way but I think I will opt out of being buried with my boots and leather on for my Lily Rubin or Peter Nygard clothes. The dogs ashes (Chauncey and Dancer) are still to be placed in my casket or we are to be scattered in the wind together.
A few years before Katrina I had lost my 2 Afghan Hounds and a grandson within a years time. Doing a 180 from the reputation of the soberist bar manager in New Orleans, 'land of bars', I started to drink. I then opened my own bar where I would drink a case of beer before leaving and end up at friends bars where I progressed to bottles of rum, jack, gin...whatever my entourage and I decided to roll with. Sometimes I would ride with other bar owners in an RV hopping all of our bars that lined the path from New Orleans, Slidell, and into Biloxi and go for days. I was suffering severe liver damage and ignoring the doctors. I was self destructive.
I still drink now and then with the doc's permission but it doesn't even add up to 4 times a year. And that's the holidays and our birthdays. That gift of love, support and determination became my saving grace. I think it prolonged my life and I am able to enjoy the love of my dog Paros, Jim, and others.
Well...I commented on how pretty a dining room set was and I don't know what compelled Jim to buy it for me but maybe it was to avoid laying the wood and slate floors I wanted. Maybe he felt getting me a practical gift like floors wasn't the way to go. I am a virgo and virgo's are practical lol. Most I know. He is one too :} Thank you, honey. You are sooo sweet and I would have been just as happy with the floors but if this is what you wanted me to have...it just makes me a bit happier :)))
Metaphorically, crossroads are where 2 worlds meet. Usually the spiritual and physical world. To me, it is a time to decide if I want to keep on the same linear path or veer off into another direction. Living on the blues trail from Louisiana to Memphis....it is depicted in blues songs just as that; a point in life a particular road is taken.
Down here in the south...Mississippi is well known for their crossroads. It is considered to be where you meet the devil to bargin with and legend has it that Robert Johnson, a legendary blues singer and guitarist, dealt with the otherworldly being to learn guitar. Or so as history writes it. He couldn't play a lick and disappeared for a year but when he returned....he could blow them all away. Those crossroads are where 61 and 49 meet in Clarksdale (couldn't find my pic so posting this one of Reverand Zombies voodoo shop in New Orleans French Quarter here. See City Confidential: Devil and Delta Blues or The Search for Robert Johnson).
