Hey all, hope your week went well and that your weekend is off to a great start. Mine is, having finally arrived after a very long week. Two days of no bosses, no job, and no stress...hello weekend, hurray.

While I pride myself on being a flexible, go with the flow, try almost anything, type of person, something has happened to me that I never thought would. Open minded as I am, I figured that in my late forties, some things were already set and not likely to change. I have, once again, proven myself wrong.

I am talking about football, or rather my dislike of the game. Professional American football, (never to be confused with soccer), as seen on TV, is boring, long, and drawn out. Every play, even the most mundane, shown over in slow motion. After taking forever to set up for the next play, you then get ten or twenty seconds of action, followed by several minutes of the players milling around before the next play. To me, it is a waste of time and I would much rather be reading a good book, watching a good movie, or doing almost anything else. Given a choice, I think I would rather clean out the fridge than sit through a pro football game. Football just isn't my thing, or at least it wasn't.

Last night was game two of our high school football season. I went, as always, to support my daughter in the band. They play all the fight songs and put on a very nice halftime show. It is always worth seeing, but last night was different. After winning the first game last week, we went into this game hopeful, but doubtful about keeping our undefeated record alive. That hasn't happened for our team in a very long time. Our teams of the last several years have been more like comic relief than a winning team.

I took my usual seat and prepared myself to watch the game. Jacket on over my band T-shirt, cold drink in hand, and seat cushion protecting my behind from the hard, cold metal bleachers, I settled in. The first quarter passed with neither team managing to score. The clock seeming to lose time faster than should be allowed. There were several close calls, as the rival teams got the ball within yards of a touch down, but were stopped short of their goal. I found myself clapping politely with the rest of the crowd as we stopped every play short.

The second quarter started and only a few minutes in, the opposing team managed to score. I groaned, along with the crowd, visions of a winning season slipping quickly away. But our boys answered to that touchdown a few minutes later with one of their own. I cheered a bit, but found myself groaning again as we failed to make the conversion for the extra points. The game went on, the crowd cheering and moaning as one, then things got a bit exciting. We intercepted a pass that allowed us our second touchdown of the night. This time I cheered a bit louder. The other team scored again, and we went into halftime only one point down.

The halftime show went off without a hitch, the music as good as always and the band members all looking very pleased as they filed past me to retake their seats as the second half of the game got under way. It was very fast and furious, with possession of the ball changing sides very quickly. Another interception from our team led to the next touchdown and I was, by this time, glued to the game.

The other team could not answer that one and we went into the last quarter in the lead. I found myself grimacing as our players were tackled and looked like they were being squashed into the field. I found myself yelling, "Go, go, go," as our boys ran down the field, one clutching the ball and the others trying their best to protect him. I was literally bouncing up and down in my seat as we got yet another interception. As time wound down, we made one final and spectacular play, our boy running almost the length of the field, ball tucked in tight, me on my feet, screaming encouragement, along with everyone else, and jumping up and down when he crossed the line for the last touchdown of the night. The clock ran out, the game was over, and we were still undefeated. The final score 35-14.

While I still don't quite understand all the rules of this game, I do know that it feels pretty good to be cheering for a winning team, never having been able to do so before. I don't get all the 1st and ten, stuff, or the fourth and goal. There is much I don't get about this game, but I do get that it is pretty fun to watch, when played at this level. No slow motion replays, no taking forever to set up the next play, just those boys out there, playing their hearts out, doing their best to achieve something, an intangible something, the glory of being part of a winning team. There are no big bonuses for winning, no pay checks, just the thrill of the game. I would imagine that this morning our players are all walking a bit taller than usual, feeling a pride in a job well done, and basking in being on a winning team for the first time.

I find myself feeling a bit of the same. I don't know any of the pro teams, but I know this team, small and fierce, playing with heart and grit, and turning me into a huge fan. The next two games are away games, so the band will not be playing. I need not go to support my daughter or the band, but I think I may be going anyway, to support the team. They have a new fan, one I never thought they would have, and I fell pretty good about that.

Hope you are all having a great weekend with lots of fun and maybe a bit of adventure thrown in.

later...

Hey all, hope you are having a great week. I am at the end of my Thursday and practically counting the hours until the weekend...but a bit more about that later.

First, it has been 13 days since my last blog, but it somehow seems much longer. I apologize for not being around the last little while, but some times life just seems to get in the way of what you would like to be doing. I have tried to blog, written several drafts actually, but none was really what I wanted it to be. I don't like to blog purely to gripe and my father did always teach us that if we had nothing nice to say, we were better off keeping our mouths closed, (or in this case my fingers off the key board.) I guess I took those lessons to heart. My mind has been humming with things that need to be written, but there are times when the words just don't flow and this has been one of those times. It isn't like I don't have things to say, but rather, I don't know quite how to word them. This stumps me, as words are usually my friend and a way to clear the cob webs. Oh well, eventually it will all get written and for now I am content to wait for inspiration to come, for the words to fall into place, and for my mind to finish processing all the stuff that has accumulated there over the last almost two weeks.

Second, hurricane Gustav came and went and my family was thankfully unscathed by this one. Making landfall only a day after the third anniversary of Katrina, people were quite worried about whether or not the levees would hold. Most of my family lives a distance from the greater New Orleans area, but they were still in harms way as their homes are within reach of the storm surge and high winds that go along with a major hurricane. They were under a mandatory evacuation order, but the storm took a slight turn at the last minute and spared them any damage.

The hurricane season is off to a big start though as Hanna is headed toward the Carolinas' and right behind her is Ike, who's path remains unclear, but who's strength is growing. After Ike is Josephine, waiting in the wings, her path not defined yet, but posing the next in a long line of threats to the coastal areas.

Now on to some good tidbits...

OK, so a huge cheer for our football team who are now undefeated. Keep in mind, they have only played one game, but the score was 33 to 14, which is awesome for them. They scored almost as many points in this game as they did the entire last season. We are all basking in the glory of the undefeated status, as it will probably change, and quite quickly. Although, we do have a new coach and the team does look much more together than ever before. I have my fingers crossed that we can get through the season without embarrassing ourselves. The boys do work very hard and a good season is long overdue.

Another good one is that there is a new addition to our extended family.

Her name is Marley and she is six weeks old. She is my sisters new puppy and an absolute cutie by any standard. She is a Miniature Pincher and the entire family is in love with her already.

Prison Break has had their season premier and it was outstanding, as those of you that watch the show already know. I am waiting patiently for next Monday to see what will happen next. It is amazing just how much awesome stuff and suspense they can shove into only 45 minutes...the fastest 45 minutes on TV.

Last but not least...and not on a good note, but some observations from the last two weeks. Just a few things I have realized about the work place and a new fellow employee. He is one of my new bosses and a bit of a waste of space in my humble opinion. To add a twist to this scenario, it turns out that he is the nephew of one of my oldest friends, someone I go all the way back to high school with. He tried to play the "but you and my aunt are old friends," card...but it failed to move me. His aunt is the best, but he obviously fell very far from the tree. So here are my thoughts on the new boss:

1. If you don't know how to do something, ask instead of making an a$$ of yourself.

2. Don't suck up to the employees until you know which ones can help you and which ones can hurt you.

3. Work as hard as your employees. Delegating is fine, but it better not be to cover for you while you are off doing nothing.

4. Learn from those that have been playing on this field for a long time. Keep in mind I used to do your job and know much more about it than you do.

5. Do not share so much of your personal life so soon. There are things about you I really do not want to know.

6. If a piece of equipment is not working properly, do something about it...don't leave it for the next person.

7. You are the manager...so manage...you dumb a$$.

Whew...got that out of my system...thanks for reading, but seriously, I think they got this guy from the managers bargain basement shop...at a discount, no doubt. My 15 year old daughter could probably do the job better. L

So that's it for today's tidbits. I do hope you have all had a great week and are headed for an even better weekend.

later...

First, hope you all had a great week. Mine was a bit worrisome, as my car went from the first shop, that couldn't fix her to the second shop, that could.J She is now sitting in my driveway and I don't really know if she is happy to be home, but I know I am delighted to have her back.

This week my sister loaned me one of their cars, or I should say, a truck. This is no small truck either, but the type you have to kind of climb up into and jump down out of. It is a man's truck through and through, no frills other than the very comfy seat. Sure, it does have power windows, door locks, and a radio, but everything about this truck screams "property of a man." I quite liked driving it, sitting up so high I could see over everyone else, and I found myself grinning as I looked down at the other drivers, feeling somehow a bit superior by the height and the power I had.

When I went to pick up my van yesterday, I paid, retrieved the keys, got in and drove away and the funniest feeling was upon me. After a week driving this huge truck, suddenly my car felt small and very low to the ground. It felt as if I were sitting on the road, not cruising over it. My body, accustomed to the truck, needed a bit of time to readjust. It did, and as I drove off to work today, it was with a smile at having my car back where she belongs and me back where I belong, behind the wheel.

I discovered something about my love for my car this week and it is not just because she takes me where I need to go and all that. I discovered that she is not only my car, but my purse. I quit carrying a purse years ago and everything that you would normally carry in a bag is now carried in my car. I went to mail a letter, no stamps, there are on my visor. A girl at work asked me for a paper showing all the parks and discounts available, no problem, only it was, because it was in my car. I needed to train a new person at work, but my training book was, you guessed it, in my car, so I had to wing it. Seems like everything I have needed and didn't have this week was in my car, my rolling purse, my home away from home.

As to the cost, it could have been way worse than it was. The total came to nearly $600, (that's 4,602 Rand or 2,086 Shekels) and a bargain, considering a whole new transmission would have run around $2,000! However, if I was going to spend $600, I can certainly think of many other ways I would have chosen to do so. Vacation, a great outing, something special for the kids, the list could go on for a very long time, but I am happy with the ending to this story, I have my car, who still has no name, back and all is suddenly much brighter in my world.

I hope you all have a terrific weekend, I will be spending a good deal of it catching up and running around town in my car...how nice, my car, like music to my ears.

later...