Merry Christmas!
Every year, this is how I celebrate Christmas.
Merry Christmas, friends! May you always remember the best moments of life and love today.
Friends are like bras; a good one never lets you down
Every year, this is how I celebrate Christmas.
Merry Christmas, friends! May you always remember the best moments of life and love today.
One of my favorite songs for this time of year.
It’s pretty much the same for me every Christmas Eve. Well, musically. Mostly.
Here’s Justin Hines.
Epenthesis and Anaptyxis walked into a bar and confused the hell out of everyone.
This week’s new words are wonderful. Simply wonderful. Or should I say they’re “wonderaful”?
Epenthesis (eh-penth-e-sis) is the adding of a vowel or sound to a word in order to facilitate pronunciation. Like “es-top” or “stop-e(h)”. Or “bu-lue”.
More spectacularly, the addition of the vowel in epenthesis has a specific name: (you guessed it!) anaptyxis (an-app-tu-sis). Think of Yogi Bear telling BooBoo he’s going to get that “pic-a-nic” basket. That’s epenthesis and anaptyxis in action.
What’s even more fun is when Epenthesis and Anaptyxis are out drinking and they run into and are mesmerized by Paragoge. Paragoge also goes by the name Proparalepsis. (Can you tell I love this stuff?)
Paragoge/Proparalepsis “refers to the annexing of an expletive syllable”. In some cases, you can think of it as a nickname for words and, (ed: er…um…) names. Like “Johnny, for John;” “deary, for dear;” “withouten, for without.” (ed: Or my personal favorite “broughten, for brought.”)
When someone asks me “what kind of weirdo are you?” I’m the kind of weirdo who loves this shit. And that’s the honest to God truth. I’m also just a huge ol’ word nerd.
Stay tuned for more words I’ve encountered which have charmed and enchanted me. I have a list. Yeah, an actual list.
Feel free to share words of your own in the comments section.
I finally got a pic uploaded to the site, but I can’t post it. The file info is weird. The code I used to add it to the post is weird. When I save the post, the code duplicates itself and does funky shit to the code.
What I’m saying is this: WordPress, in its current configuration, sucks balls. Big ass dirty donkey balls.
This may well be the straw to end my blogging — after 21 years. I hate it. Hate it. Hate it. Hate. It. HATE IT. HATE. IT. HATE. HATE!!!
That is all.
End of transmission.
I’m 57 today. Fifty-fucking-seven. I know time goes to Cleveland*, so, then, can you explain how I ended up HERE?
I’ve also been blogging 21 years**. Twenty-fucking-one years. In this time I’ve had a career I loved, endured an attack on my career and my family by bloggers I had once thought of as friends, went to work at a new job, lost my career due to an on-the-job injury, lived in at least 16 different homes***, lost dear friends, gained a significant amount of weight, almost lost my sister TWICE, almost died myself when I developed sepsis, lost both parents, was diagnosed with diabetes, had a complete emotional breakdown, lost a not-so-insignificant amount of weight, developed a cataract that’s essentially blinded me in one eye, and I’m still fucking here.
During this time, I’ve also been privileged to watch my children become lovely adults. I’ve formed some truly beautiful friendships with people who are more like family. I’ve had amazing experiences. I’ve met legends. I’ve achieved some of my loftiest goals. I’ve lived, I’ve laughed, and, yes, I’ve even eaten, prayed, and loved.
Are there things I wished were different? Hell, yes! At the same time, I wouldn’t have wanted to miss out on what came next. You, know, the whole rainbow after the rain thing.
I believe we experience the worst of times to understand and appreciate the best of times. The roller coaster is only fun because of the ups and downs. Otherwise, it’s just a trolley ride across a flat town.
For those of you who are still around and commenting (Pam) or just blurking, thank you. I’m truly grateful. For those who have turned away, I wish you well (or, in one instance, have wished you hell [or at the very least, karmic comeuppance]). Mostly, I wish for the good stuff. Mostly. And that’s what I spend my time praying for. I can’t help myself; I’m a kind of a marshmallow deep down.
Here’s to another trip around the sun!
* ME: Where does the time go? LD: Cleveland.
** As of May 16.
*** It may be more, but I’m too exhausted by the thought of all that moving to list each place on paper and properly get the actual total.
Hope your blessings are too numerous to count.
Note: I’m having major issues with the site and only just now was able to sign in. I’m working on it.
I started a post last night with music, but was too tired to follow through. Today yielded the exact same results.
The drive to San Diego was uneventful, save for a dust storm and a rain storm. The drive back was uneventful, save for the fact I left my fucking wallet in a bathroom stall at a travel stop attached to a casino. I didn’t realize it until we were already an hour away.
About 500 calls later, it hadn’t been turned in and I had to call to cancel my Visa debit card, my EBT card, and I still have an incredible amount of calls left to make. Insurance, DMV (again! And which has already proved to be nigh on impossible), social security, and I need to call about my birth certificate. I know the last two items shouldn’t have been in my wallet, but they were there for a reason. Also, my vaccination record was in there.
What really kills me is that the last note my mom ever wrote me was in the wallet. Photos of the kids. Ticket stubs from long ago concerts. Eighteen guitar picks I’ll never be able to replace. Things like that.
I know as time goes on, I’ll think of other items I’ll need to replace, but for now I’m just kicking myself each and every time I remember what happened. It’s the preferred option when compared to an accident or someone breaking into the car amd stealing all the things in there. We were lucky in that sense.
Exhausted by my own stupidity, I leave you with absolutely no music and 100% permission to laugh at my misfortune.
Until…um…next time, I guess.
I’m so exhausted from doctor appointments and packing that I’ve completely forgotten to post music and other updates.
My study is officially over here in Lubbock, but the docs have found me another study close to where I’m moving! (Note: call sis with update tomorrow before it gets late!!!)
There are a few lingering issues that are concerning enough for the docs to want me to continue on with various therapies. Since their study only deals with a specific period of time following the initial Covid infection and the early stages of long Covid, it was imperative they find something to continue monitoring and testing me for the next (minimum of) 90 days.
I wasn’t sure if I was really going to make the move to Phoenix, but the timing of the the study availability, location, and a freakily timed call from my friend means that everything is happening. Very. Quickly.
I leave Friday.
I’m almost done with all the packing. I better be! I have to ship boxes tomorrow afternoon. I’m checking one suitcase and taking one carry-on, plus my purse. It’s not exactly inexpensive, but needs must. It would cost more to pay for extra baggage than to just ship the stuff, so that’s what I’m doing.
I’m both excited and a bit terrified. I’m excited to see my dear JK again, to meet her man, and to finally meet her girls! There are also a bunch of animals, including a huge tortoise, an emu (squee! I love emus), a snake, and two hedgehogs. There are many more, but those are my top four.
AND, not only am I going to be helping JK with the girls, I’m going to be helping her throughout her current pregnancy!
I was so sad I’d missed out on her pregnancies with the girls. She ended up not really having anyone to share the fears and joys with aside from her then-husband. She didn’t have a girlfriend to talk about things with her. Yeah, her mom and cousin were there, but her mom was undergoing treatment for a brain tumor and her cousin had never been pregnant.
But now…now we get to do this together. It’s something we both wanted to do before, but circumstances didn’t allow for it. Now we get to.
I don’t anticipate staying with her and her family permanently. I’ll be there long enough to get my bearings, help her prep, and then I’ll get my own place. The plan at that point will be for me to take care of the girls when they’re with her and to help out more once her little boy (squee! Again!) arrives. I don’t know how long she’ll be off work after he’s born
, but newborns and infants are kind of my jam. Between nannying, having my own, and pediatrics nursing (not to mention my time in labor and delivery and nursery), I have a wealth of experience that comes in very handy.
Anyhow, that’s what’s happening here and why I’ve been neglecting updates.
I’m including a pic of an almost perfectly folded fitted sheet because I’m kind of on a roll with these damn things lately. Sadly, this isn’t perfect, but it’s close enough for me to call it a win. I’m so tired, my hands are floppy and numb. Close. Enough.
Please excuse the quality
, my lack of editing, and my shoes making what just may be their last ever appearance in a photo of any sort. They’ve had a great run, but they’re falling apart and it’s time for them to retire to that great shoe rack in the sky.
With that, I’m out for now. I’ll update when I’m able.
TTFN & LYL!
This first song is my favorite Flatlanders song ever. It’s just…perfection.
The second song reminds me of my time in the mid-late 80s when I was dancing every weekend and spending a lot of time getting to know some very interesting and amazing people.
I missed this week’s Twofer Tuesday. And Threefer Thursday. It’s been a WEEK.
So here are some songs for absolutely no other reason than I just happen to really like them, have time to share, and the ability to share them.
I am very confused. I’ve just discovered a couple posts with weird code embedded in them. Nothing visible. The only clue there was anything amiss was odd spacing/breaks in a sentence here or there.
I’ve gone in and removed the errant code, but it bothers me it was there at all. I mean, how??? I know all three people who have access to the blog. Is there some weird ass bug with WP I should know about?
Ugh.
Not that I’m savvy enough to do anything about it, but I would really like to know what’s going on.
I started this blog twenty years ago today.
I can’t believe I’m still posting, if I’m being completely honest.
At various points over the years, I’ve considered quitting. Instead, I just didn’t do anything. I let the blog sit idle for long stretches. I posted nonsense (still do). Yet I kept coming back.
What’s kept me here? A number of reasons
I hope you’re safe & warm and feeling appreciated.
May 2022 be kinder!
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On the twelfth day of Christmas, a song from John Berry. That voice. This song. Every year. Every. Year.
It’s simply THE SONG I have to hear on Christmas day.
Merry Christmas, friends! May you always remember the best moments of life and love today.