Forty...fun, frugal and feisty

I had a birthday this week, a big one...and no one really razzed me about it.   I was so ready for it too!  But maybe the only one who thinks it's a big deal is me???  So what if I am 40?  Age is all about your mindset.  I don't feel 40, at least not mentally.  I'm not sure what age I would say I feel like really.  All I know is that the more candles I put on my cake, the younger my parents seem.  (Ha!)

I had a pretty good 40th birthday.  I was surprised with a very practical, but welcome gift - my very own shop-vac with super cool attachments.  We have a really good one, but it's such a hassle for me (and Jay) to try to use it.  If it's in the barn, most likely it has been sucking out hog waste and I really don't want it touching my car or blowing any fumes into my house!  We do wash it out every now and then, but it's not the same, you know...

For lunch, my court reporter friend, Traci, came up to eat with me at the Mexican restaurant.  Not knowing she would buy, I invited Jay to eat with us...and we both got a free meal.  You can't beat that!

Then Jay surprised me with two lovely pots of bright red geraniums.  If you don't know whose favorite flowers those are, you missed out.  Grandma Great bought 19 bright red geraniums every spring to put in her flower bed on her porch.  (I think the number was 19, it was definitely an odd number.)  Later in the evening, my friend Beth brought over two more pots with geraniums.  I was delighted.  I can have some in the front and some in the back.  She also brought some delicious gourmet cupcakes which I have been enjoying all week...(ouch!)

I also got a brand new spiffy bicycle.  Last year I rode my bike quite a bit with Jay while he ran, and although my bike wasn't that old and was exactly what I had wanted at the time, I learned quickly that doing any distance on a bike with hills and dips in the road requires gears.  My beach cruiser was perfect for cruising, but it wasn't built for hills.  Although that had been my excuse for walking my bike two spots at Lincoln Trail Park, and now I won't have one...I'll just have to walk in shame...unless this new bike came with special powers as well.

And to top off an already great day - our sweet baby kitty Boots (now we're calling baby kitty mama) had her baby kittens!  We had been watching her so close for a week now.  And I said last week that maybe she would wait and have them on my birthday...Tuesday morning I told the family she sure was chatty and restless, maybe today would be the day...and it was!

I got some nice cards in the mail, my mom dropped off a birthday card (as I was being rushed away for baseball practice by my impatient son) and my father-in-law slipped me a card too.  I felt a little spoiled when it was all said and done.  As I was getting ready for bed I thought about how truly blessed I am.  I know that phrase is over-used sometimes, but I can't help it.  I have good health, a great family and friends, an awesome little community, my salvation and overall safety.  What more could I ask for?

One of my favorite skits on SNL is one with Molly Shannon. "I'm Sally O'Malley and I'm Fifty." And she usually says something like, "And I can kick!" and then she throws her leg up in the air.  It just cracks me up.  (Honestly at this point, I would pull a muscle if I tried that.)  A coworker brought me a couple pieces of Dove dark chocolate, the kind that comes with sayings on the inside wrapper.  My first one said "Be proud of your age."   Hmm, why not?

My mantra this year is I'm Sarah Wilhoit and I'm 40.  I am fun, frugal and feisty...

The Pampered Ambush

Last Monday the softball game cancelled due to rain so Madolyn and I took the opportunity to go and get her nails fixed up for prom which was Saturday.  I made her an appointment, dropped her off and went shopping to kill time.  She was having a manicure and pedicure so I figured I had at least an hour or so.  I came back once to check in and she was fine so I took off again for a little more shopping.

When I returned, she was in the beginning stages of having fake nails put on so I sat down beside her.  Immediately the flattery began.  One after another, the employees would comment on how we must be sisters, there is no way I was her mother, blah, blah, blah.  I thanked them, of course, but figured it was a ploy.

Pretty soon one of the employees approached us and started in with the comments and then she said to me, "I can fix up eyebrow, yes?"  I laughed and said, oh no, I'm fine.  "No, no, I make you pretty. It be quick.  No problem.  " Hmm, okay, I could see it was going to be a while so I figured, what the heck?  But first I made sure they weren't going to leave me with NO eyebrow at all.  I had noticed that the female employeesall had painted-on eyebrows so it made me a tad nervous.  I was reassured they would not leave me brow-less.

Now, let me preface this by saying, I'm a hairy girl.  I have thick dark hair and it likes to grow and flourish.  My eyebrows are thick and bushy.  (I think my mom calls them the Young eyebrows, an inherited trait.)  I know this, but I also know that what you take out will grow back.  I had had my eyebrows waxed one time before and didn't really notice a big enough difference to have it done again.  I pluck with my tweezers every now and then.  I guess some people are big on proper eyebrow maintenance, others are not.  I would fall into the "others are not" category.

I lie down in this back room and she starts in on the eyebrows.  It was pretty relaxing actually and quick.  It wasn't bad at all.  I could have fallen asleep.

And then it came..."You have hair on lip."  Yes, I realize that.  I always have.  (She said that as if it were a surprise.)  "I take that off too?"  Sure, why not?!  And so she does her magic on my upper lip. Pretty soon, she pulled out a magnifying lamp and had it over my face...then came the scissors.  She was snipping away in my nostrils!  I tell you, I felt like an old man.

Before it was all said and done (2.5 hours later, I was so glad Lane had stayed at Grandma's), I had gel polish on my nails and a fire red face from waxing, Madolyn had cute toenails, snazzy fingernails and waxed eyebrows.  I realize now that the flattery may have been a sales pitch.  They knew what they were doing.  I was suckered in and then ambushed.  Cha-Ching.

Friday Night Fun

Last Friday our plans had consisted of a softball game, but it was cancelled which left the evening wide open.  Jay was off and I asked him what he wanted to do.  He had a great plan - head to an Amish Auction down in southern Indiana.  He baited me with Syd's tacos, I know it...but I took the bait and Lane, Jay and I headed south.

We ate those yummy Syd's tacos on the go and arrived about two hours after the start time for this auction.  I have never been to this kind of an auction and I was dumbfounded at the crowd right off the bat.  It was packed.  There were a couple huge barn/sheds that were filled with people carrying items out.  We went to watch the animals auction.  It never occurred to me that there might be various items being auctioned off.  I would guess there were about six different auctions going on at the same time.  It was madness.

We finally made our way to the animal auction area.  Again, a little shocking for me.  I consider myself pretty country and even redneck-ish at times.  And without sounding too judgmental or snotty here, I was at a loss and felt strangely out of place.  It was obvious that the people there LOVED the auction and probably came every Friday night.  Everyone, but us, seemed to know what was going on, where things were located and how everything went down.  I'm pretty confident we stood out like three very sore thumbs.

I caught myself several times trying to adjust my facial expression.  Shock, amusement, confusion, disgust, uncertainty, anger were just a few of the looks I wore at various times throughout the night. The large animal auction seemed pretty standard, and maybe because I have some experience in that area, I was okay with how everything went down.

The smaller animals, however, were a different story (at least for me).  We walked into that arena/auction area and stood watching from the back for quite a while.  We quickly realized the stacks and stacks of cardboard boxes (some Luv's diaper boxes) contained animals, mostly poultry but some rabbits, in various stages of life.   One diaper box contained three, just-weaned piglets crammed inside! Many of the boxes were just plain boxes, with the top criss-crossed to keep it shut and/or tape wrapped around it.  There were also some boxes that had the top off and chicken wire fastened across it.  I felt a little better about those rigged-up boxes than the ones that were sealed shut.

Jay and Lane loved it and decided they needed a number...so I went and sat down in the stands while they went off to find a bidding number.  I swear they were gone no less than 30 minutes...and honestly, I began to wonder if they hadn't left me.  It was the longest 30 minutes ever.  I felt like people probably thought I was from some animal activist group because I sat there all alone, looking around wide-eyed for Jay...

People would just toss around these boxes, one right after another.  They would fall over, slide, bounce around...and then they would tear open the top and pull out a chicken or duck or rabbit. Plop it down on this spinning table (puke) and start taking bids.  Then they would jerk the animal off the spin top and throw them back into a box, push the lid down and stack them in another pile.  It was a process and men of all ages were focused on it.  It was the craziest thing ever.  I'm not saying they were technically abusing the animals, but they sure weren't being gentle either.  (I do not believe anyone was intentionally trying to hurt any of the creatures.)

Jay was hoping to get a couple ducks (what in the world for, I do not know) and we missed those (dang).  But Lane bought himself a couple very fat, high-dollar rabbits.  Jay wanted him to experience the bidding process so he gave him the card and let him go.  He didn't win the first rabbit he was bidding on and tried again.  Quickly raising his number at the starting bid - Jay giving him a little nudge to the side, No, never take the first bid!  Thankfully, one of the Amish gentlemen who was taking bids took over and announced he had a $5 bid!  It all happened so fast, I'm not sure who was bidding against the Bud, but when it was all said and done we had the top bid of $17.50 and Lane was tickled pink that he had a huge fat rabbit - except we didn't realize we had to take both of them.  Lovely.

At one point, a young man reached up to one of the top shelves behind the auctioneer table and grabbed a diaper box.  They pulled out a very large guinea pig.  All three of us just starting laughing.  It was crazy!

And let me tell you, if you're a hand-talker (like myself, the Quackdaddy and the Bud) sitting amongst bidders at an auction is VERY dangerous.  Both Lane and I came very close to bidding on some poultry a few times!

The only thing I saw worth bidding on were hanging flower baskets.  They were lovely, and of course, we missed them.  I was afraid we might come home with a couple fishing poles once Lane laid eyes on that particular auction, but we moved him right along...

We arrived late but did not come home empty-handed.  I had a full belly from my most favorite tacos and we survived the experience unscathed.  Jay and I both commented that the whole scenario was like something you would see in a movie.  Just plain bizarre.

It's always fun to try something new.  I actually enjoyed our Friday Night Fun.   And in this particular instance, there is no need for me to go back anytime soon...

Clovis the #1 guinea pig

About a month ago, Lane saved up his money and purchased a guinea pig.  He had been asking for one for quite a while.  I/we caved and bought a black and white one from a chain pet store.  I was rather excited about the new addition as I had had fond memories of my little pig from years past.

I had a handsome fella named Floyd for a couple years when I was going to college and early in our marriage.  I loved that little guy.  He was cute and had personality.  He was big enough you could actually get him out and hold him.  He would snuggle up on me and take a nap.  He liked to whistle or 'sing' when he was happy or mad (I think).  As soon as he heard the crinkling of plastic, he thought it meant he was getting a carrot and he would whistle away.

My mom has a great picture of Floyd wearing a miniature sombrero.  It is hilarious, but we did things like that and he would let us.  Funny thing - my grandma hated rodents, but never forgot about good old Floyd.  To the day she died, every now and then, she would bring him up.  I took her to her house once - it either scarred her for life, or she actually liked him.  I like to think Floyd made a good impression on her.

Floyd was a good pig but passed away long ago.  Jay likes to remind me that I killed Floyd by feeding him a green pepper, but I've since learned their life span is about three years...I'm thinking he could have died of natural causes that just so happened to coincide with my attempt at introducing him to a new vegetable.

When we purchased Clovis, he was being held in the back room as part of a mandatory waiting period of being released for sale.  For some people, that might cause alarm.  For Lane, and his parents not wanting to suffer through a tantrum (yes, nearly 11-year-old boys still throw them), we thought little Clovis looked fine and brought him home.

Clovis was pretty calm and seemed okay for a while.  He loved to be scratched on his back down near his rear and would purr almost like a kitten.  All was well until...I read that guinea pigs need timothy hay on a daily basis and I bought a bag of it at Walmart.  (Yes, I realize it is probably not cost effective,but hey, I wasn't exactly in a position to seek out a full-sized bale.)

Again, it could have been a coincidence, but a day or two after I started dropping pieces of timothy hay in the cage, Clovis developed a sniffle, which quickly turned into a major respiratory problem. Madolyn tried hard to doctor poor Clovis, but he went downhill fast and passed on.  He had come with a 14-day warranty or guarantee, but of course, we were a few days past the window.

Stay tuned for more to our guinea pig saga...

Simple Pictures Are Best

Anyone ever read that book as a child?  When I was thinking about writing a post about taking pictures last week, this book instantly came to mind.  My mom read this book to me and my brother many times when we were younger.  It's about a shoemaker and his wife wanting their picture taken for their anniversary.  Although the photographer keeps repeating the same thing over and over, "simple pictures are best," the couple continues to gather items and pets to put in the picture - cluttering up the picture, and the photographer gets very frustrated.  It is a really funny book with a good message.  If you haven't read it, you're missing out.

Can't we all relate to the basic principle of that children's book?  We spend too much time cluttering up our lives with unimportant items and even people that take our mind off of the real picture.

I don't like hearing anyone being called stupid, but the phrase, "Keep it simple, Stupid," is one I can imagine God might like to use on me every now and then...simplicity seems to apply to more than just a photo.

Although, I must say, cluttering up any picture of me with items that can draw attention away from my un-photogenic face is probably a good idea.

The Eleventh Hour

In keeping with our great state's motto, this post is a little late, slightly later than the eleventh hour, which is when our bill fixing the budget issue for court reporters was passed.  Last Thursday, the last day the Senate and House would be in session until mid-April, mid-afternoon our bill was passed - barely, I might add with a vote of 32-26.  We were assured it would pass by those in the know...and I'm told that by the time it gets to a vote, there are no surprises.  Such was the case for us.

Thankfully, all the layoff notices and furlough orders were rescinded.  Everyone gets to stay fully staffed...at least until July.

It just so happens that our annual seminar was on Friday.  I dreaded it all week because if the bill did not pass, it would have been VERY unpleasant.  Turns out, it was the exact opposite.  Everyone was in good spirits, the sessions were very informative and it was actually one of the best seminars I have been to in 18 years.  It would have been a totally different story had the bill not passed.  No one would've been able to focus on anything other than the gloom and doom.

The gal over court reporting services in Springfield filled us in on how everything unfolded and told us that we will be fine through the end of this fiscal year.  They were told to make a 10% cut on their request for the next fiscal year, but she said they will most likely ask for the same amount they asked for last year, and have no reason to believe they won't get.  Even if our budget is slightly reduced, it should not require layoff's or extended furloughs.  The most likely scenario for a cut would be not rehiring for every new retirement position.  That is doable.  Most people can get by here and there with one less reporter for a while, if they had to.  And no one loses their job.

When I searched the phrase, "eleventh hour" I was somewhat surprised that its etymology comes from the Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard told in Matthew 20.  It relates to the workers hired at the end of the day.  Makes sense.  They received the same pay the workers hired in the morning received.   I especially like the last verse, "So the last will be first, and the first will be last."  Maybe the House and Senate were just saving the best for last...ha!

This crisis created a lot of stress and anxiety on many, and caused quite the uproar in each circuit as they tried to implement some sort of plan that would be feasible for continuing the court process and stretch the budget out.  Maybe it was a good drill for us all, maybe some of us needed the wake-up call.  I know I was thinking about every purchase and future purchase I wanted to make.

Although I was looking forward to a month of part-time employment, I am relieved that no one is losing their job or insurance.  I'll just look ahead to my vacation time this summer (and get paid for it).