Twiggy

My hair drives me crazy. At this moment I need a haircut like NO other! I'm trying to think of what I want to do with my hair...I'm just having a little trouble. I'm tempted to let it grow, so I can pull it back into with a rubber band....I won't call it a pony tail...that sounds like I have a long tail bouncing back and forth! I just want to have it long enough to pull it back and not do a thing with it. But then, I remember how I get headaches when I pull my hair back. Maybe this time I won't. Maybe I'll just get it whacked off! When I was in the 8th grade I had long hair. It was down to my waist....my mother loved my long hair....long hair was all I knew. But back in 1968 there was a new star on the horizon! Her name was Twiggy. I decided that I would cut my hair like hers. It was a short cut...very short! I'm not sure why my mother gave in, but she did. I had my hair all whacked off (I found my 1968 curly pony tail in my cedar chest a few months ago!). I loved it....but what would my friends think? Now for those of you who have a memory of being 13, you know that your friends can at times be blunt. I still remember walking into the gym the next morning before school....that's where we gathered before school started. All the girls were sitting together and shouted in unison, "Cheri looks like Twiggy!" I was so embarrassed. I don't know why it bothered me....that was the person I modeled my haircut after. The truth was....my hair and parts of my body did look like her! (Not my face!) She was known for her short hair and flat chest. I had not blossomed in the breast area one bit...in fact I didn't even wear a bra. My mother said I didn't need one...my best friend would bring one of her bras to school each morning and I would change into it in the bathroom and then out of it before I went home! So there I was in all my glory...flat chest and short hair. So....I'm back to square one...WHAT DO I DO WITH MY HAIR???? I know that the Twiggy cut is out of the question!

Signs of Aging 13/Fatigue

I've probably already written about being tired, but too bad...here I go again. I was exhausted today. Fatigue sat in with a vengeance. I left school early enough to go to the Post Office and check my mail. I'm expecting a package so I needed to get there before 4:00. Once I checked my box (no package) I raced to Sonic for my Happy Hour Coke. (Love them!) I pulled into my garage and hit my garage door remote control. I guess there was something about the hummmm of that crazy garage door closing that just lulled me into a nap. I put my head on the back of the headrest and thought...."I'm just gonna sit here a minute." Before I knew it, my head hit the steering wheel! Scared the pee out of me! I had fallen asleep. It was pitch dark in the garage and I really wasn't sure where I was! I grabbed my Rt. 44 Coke and ambled into the house. I glanced at the clock....it was 4:25! I had dozed for 25 minutes......IN MY CAR!!! Luckily there is no sign of bruising where I hit my head! It will be an early bedtime tonight...hope I make it through Dancing with the Stars!

My friend, Gladys

When I moved to this house 3 years ago, one of the first things I remember was being startled by a noise at my living room window. There, pecking away was a female cardinal. She wasn't too pretty compared to her male counterpart who was a beautiful bright deep red...She was brown with just a bit of red on her wings and a beautiful red beak. That first morning I assumed that she hit my front living room window by accident. After about 5 minutes of ceaseless hits, she stopped only to move to my side living room window. That first summer she tried to visit each morning. She has continued to return. She usually comes around 9:00 a.m.....so on school mornings I don't hear her. But weekends, holidays and summers she's there....perpetual....round-the-clock she is! Even visitors comment, "Did you know you have a bird trying to get in?" I've grown quite fond of her. I've named her "Gladys". She has lots of desirable qualities....and a few that some may think unfavorable.

1. She is sort of a "plain Jane" but so am I....


2. She is quite stubborn.


3. She is persistent.


4. She knows what she wants (that's in here).


5. She doesn't give up on getting in (I think she likes me!).


6. She must have a good sense of humor because she keeps running into that window!


7. She's happy.

If I could, I would ask her in....offer her a cup of tea and maybe an English muffin. I like her!

Cracks

I'm tired of seeing cracks. And I'm not even talking about teenage or adult cracks...I'm talking about kid cracks. At school I'm exposed to about 5-6 cracks a day. I think baby cracks are cute. In fact there is nothing cuter than a babies bottom BUT once you get in school...I'm not much on cracks. I even see them during lunch....talk about losing my appetite....ewww. If I could just eat one meal without feeling compelled to put a quarter in the "jukebox", I'd be happy!

Some cracks are bigger than others but at this point it doesn't even matter the size. It's the beginning of someone's butt....I just want to walk by and pull up their britches or give them a wedgie or yank down their shirt....but I won't do that. I would really get in trouble!

I adore my students...even those whose cracks I view on a daily basis....I just am not sure I wanted to get to know them that well! Even some of my students are offended by the crack exposition and they "report" about the crack show. It makes it hard to do group work and play games on the floor when someone's crack is exposed.

I realize it is impossible to find high waisted jeans for kids...but there are things such as LONG shirts. Maybe that should be part of the dress code...I think one of our old rules was to tuck in your shirt. So we could add more rules.....Rule #192 Don't show your crack. Wear a long shirt to cover your crack.
But then they would probably have to write another rule.
Rule #193 You can wear a long shirt if your crack shows, but if your crack doesn't show you must tuck your shirt in.

I guess there isn't much I can do about it....Oh well...gotta go....It's the butt-crack of dawn and I've got to get busy!

Teresa...Teacher of the Year

Tonight Kayla and I were M.C. for the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce. We performed as "Pearl and Ruby". We had a wonderful time, but we were also there to honor our dear friend and teaching partner, Teresa Collett. I love Teresa. She is a wonderful friend, mother, grandmother, daughter, sister and TEACHER! She so deserved this honor. She has been so helpful to me as I teach. Summer before last....just a few weeks before her daughter's wedding, she found out she had breast cancer. When she shared the news, we were in shock..denial...not OUR Teresa! We prayed and prayed with her....right there in the classroom or even in the car or in her home! She spent half the next school year at home while taking chemo. We missed her so much! She adds such spark to our team...she has the most wonderful humor and shares amazing stories. She takes such time with her students and cares for them all. Teresa made it back to school after Christmas last year. She has been an example of strength and stamina and faith. Thank you God, for blessing our school with a wonderful teacher like Teresa. Thanks for blessing our lives with a friend like Teresa and thank you for allowing her to come back to teach with us!

No Dancin' in Anson

My youngest, Dillan is going to the PROM with Megan Massingill. Now growing up in Anson, Texas in the Bible Belt of Texas....20 miles north of Abilene where three Christian Colleges made their home, I was not privy to dancing. There was "no dancin' in Anson" and that meant there were no proms. That's right...none...zilch...nada...zero! There was an actual city ordinance that stated there would be no dancing within 100 yards (or feet I don't recall) of a church. The First Baptist Church shared the high school parking lot and the Church of Christ was across the street from the high school. Even though we had a Jr./Sr. Banquet, we were not allowed to have a prom. I had no idea how to dance...it was a sin! It was against the law! We always had our banquets in Abilene and it never occurred to us to have a PROM in Abilene! Once I moved to Hamilton, I realized there were REAL LIVE PROMS!!! These came complete with the Grand March where everyone within a 20 mile radius of Hamilton came to see who wore what and who went with whom! It was beyond my small town no-dancing belief!

Tonight Holly brought Megan's prom dress over so we could decide what type of tux/shirt/vest/tie Dillan should wear. It took me back in time to when my oldest kids started wanting to dance. It was quite a shock to me and I had no experience in the dancing process. So, I'll share my stories...........
My first experience with my child being tempted with dancing was when Derek was in the 7th grade. He had been invited by an older, taller, more developed (in my eyes) 8th grader. I wasn't ready for my little boy to go to these dances....my momma always told me that dancing led to sex and I wasn't at all ready for Derek to be tempted with sex! All I could imagine was my little 4ft. 9in. boy dancing with a 5ft. 4in. girl and her having her breast in his face as they danced the two-step. What would I do???? I couldn't allow him to be tempted this way, and much to my relief, he came to me one night telling me he really didn't want to go anyway. Such relief...he would not be tempted! I told him to tell her, "My mother wants me to wait until I'm in the 8th grade to go to the dance." Surely next year when he was an 8th grader there would be someone closer to his own height at least to dance with and part of the temptation would be diminished!

When Derek was a Junior in high school, he was dating a Senior and they went to the prom. I had no idea you had to order a tux! Luckily, I overheard someone talking and we got one ordered. What I didn't order was the corsage.....The day of the PROM, I happened to be in the flower shop and noticed that people were picking up corsages....Oh...crap....what had I NOT done??? I begged Jill to please whip up a corsage for Derek's date....which would have been just hunky dory if his date's mom hadn't come in to pick up Derek's boutonniere! Now this lady had grown up with proms and she had triplet daughters and lots of experience with PROM rituals! She was not happy with us because of our ignorance of the proper procedures of proms!
He made it and hopefully was not tempted!

Once Hillary got to High School, the girls all went to the "beauty shop" to get a makeover and an updo! I went to the beauty shop to check on her progress and before I left, I asked how much I owed....I could have sworn she said $15.00 so I left a check with Hillary and left. Moments later I got a call from a horrified Hillary...."Mom....it wasn't $15.00, it was $50.00!" Oh...crap...I thought again...I'm just not good with this prom stuff! I was terribly embarrassed!

By the time Cari got to High School, I had the prom procedure down. By this time Cari had figured out that you could order dresses off the Internet and that is just what she did. However, once her dress arrived, it was too big. We took it back to True Value so FedEx could ship it back and Holly told me she had a closet full of prom dresses that Cari was welcome to....Cari wasn't tempted. I'm thinking Holly was in High School in the late 80's and this was almost 20 years later! Hillary reminded me that Holly's mom, Della May had also offered Holly's prom dresses to her!

So, when Dillan came by telling me that he was taking Holly's daughter, Megan to the prom, the thought crossed my mind....Would Megan wear one of her mom's prom dresses???? I was told that Holly offered! But Megan found a beautiful black dress with a white halter top! So now we just have to get Dillan all duded up....black tux, black vest, white shirt, white tie and WHAT KIND OF SHOES DID YOU SAY DILLAN? Black Converse???? I'm sure they'll look great when put together...along of course with red rose wristlet for Megan and a red boutonniere for Dillan.

So...needless to say this momma has come a long way. And I've learned that dancing DOES NOT lead to sex!

Signs of Aging 12/Mom-Nana

Usually I write about the negative signs of aging, but today I will be POSITIVE! I absolutely love being Mom and Nana! I have 4 wonderful kids and 4 amazing grandchildren...soon (in June) there will be 5 of the little critters!
I was able to spend my Spring Break with most of them. Derek, Hillary and Cari are all married and now have their own little brood to raise. Dillan is still in high school and he is sooo busy. Derek took him to Houston last week to show his steer in the Houston Stock show. Gina and I were able to watch the show on the Internet...it was great. Dillan's steer placed 12th and he made the sale! I took this picture of Dillan over my computer! I was really proud of him. If he isn't working with his steer, he is playing sports. Right now he is playing baseball...so I spend my Tuesday and Friday nights at the baseball games. Most of Dillan's friends' parents seem to be a bit younger than me...but hopefully that will keep me younger since I am a Nana!
Grandkids may be the best part of getting older. I loved my time with them over the week. They don't stop for a minute and keep me on my toes. When Donald is here he really loves to entertain them. He is great with them! Denver is 7, Averi is 5, Madilyn is almost 3 and Tristin is almost 6 months. Hillary is due in June and is in the process of moving Maddie out of the nursery and into her own "big girl" room. Now Miss Maddie is not too sure of moving into her new room...it is now the guest room and Maddie's main concern was "Papa (Donald) won't have a bed to sleep in!" Isn't that sweet??? Grandkids are great for loving and spoiling and we can't wait to spoil and love another one!

10 Great Adventures on Spring Break

Spring Break has been wonderful! Here is my recap of my week of adventure!

1. Last Saturday I went to Waco to spend the day/night with Hillary and Madilyn. What fun! Dennis was gone so it was a girls' day! We shopped and played and then on Sunday I helped Hillary paint her bedroom. Donald stopped by and napped while we painted!
2. On Sunday afternoon, I met two of my best friends from Anson and we stayed at the Gaylord Texan. We laughed so hard....it was just like high school minus all the drama that comes with teenagers!
3. Monday morning after breakfast, Kathy, Debbie and I went to Grapevine Mall to shop! Did I mention we had a blast????
4. Tuesday was reserved for Nana! Denver, Averi and Madilyn all spent the night with me! They rode trikes/big wheels, played basketball and watched Ice Age (about 5 times). They were sooo good and I love to watch them as they play.
5. Wednesday was a beautiful day and we had a picnic out in the back yard complete with peanut butter sandwiches, bananas and root beer!
6. I left Wednesday afternoon for Austin to see Cari, Kevin and Tristin. On Thursday morning we went to IKEA and then met Teresa and "her" Cari for lunch at The Domain. Cari Hawn is due in just about 3 weeks, so "my" Cari filled her full of lots of good new mommy information. Tristin was amazingly adorable and perfect during our lunch!
7. The weather was still beautiful on Friday, so we gathered Tristin up for another shopping adventure. We shopped for birthdays...Madilyn, Gina, and Kevin...and for baby goodies for Denton...who will join Hillary, Dennis and Maddie in June.
8. After shopping and getting lots of baby sugar from Tristin, I left Friday afternoon for Bruceville-Eddy to watch Dillan play baseball. Once again I met Hillary and Maddie at the game. The boys won and Dillan even scored a run for the Bulldogs.
9. Saturday we awoke to freezing temperatures. Donald and I enjoyed the day piddling and then braved the wind and cold to go to Kool Beans in time for a coffee and oatmeal-raisin cookies. We worked at Crossfire Saturday night. It was good to see all my working buddies and to make a little money to pay for all that shopping!
10. Today was Sunday...and the last day of my adventure. Dillan came over and he went to Stephenville with us to watch Alice's great adventure in Alice in Wonderland. I loved it! We topped it off with onion rings and a chicken-fried steak dinner at Montana's. Of course, I had to stop by Chi Hua Hua's for a Dr. Pepper before we returned home.

So now I'm exhausted but very happy. However, I still need to unpack and pick this house up before I get back into the swing of things. I'm feeling very blessed to have had such a great week full of adventure after adventure with my family!

The First Day of Spring????

I think Mother Nature is a little confused about the weather! Yesterday was lovely...Cari and I shopped in Austin at the San Marcus outlet. We wore jeans, t-shirts and flip-flops and Tristin wore a cute little baseball onesie. We ate lunch OUTSIDE at the Red Robin cafe! We were loving the weather and were even concerned that Tristin might get blistered from the sun!

I drove from Austin to Bruceville-Eddy to a baseball game that I thought started at 7:30 but instead it started at 6:00....I made it by the 4th inning. Hillary and Maddie were there....the sun had set so the temperature was beginning to drop to the 60's....but still was great weather for a baseball game, especially one we won!

And then this morning we awoke to freezing temperatures! And what was with that wind??? It was blowing like crazy! I guess it went with the saying...."March blows in like a lion and out like a lamb"....but I'm thinking it's time for the lamb part of March! Anyway, as I was driving in from Crossfire tonight at 11:00, the temperature was 33 degrees! On top of that, I was told we had snow flurries three different times today!

I'm ready to wear my new Spring clothes. I'm tired of my sweaters and heavy coats and scarfs and boots. I want to wear my new shirtdresses with leggings, my new floral tops with skirts, and my lightweight cotton sweaters and t-shirts and khakis from J.Crew. I'm ready to walk in the mornings and not have numb fingers and toes from the low temperatures.

So....Mother Nature....look at the calendar and let's get with the program! It's time for bluebonnets and yard work. It's Springtime! And I am officially ready for it!

Signs of Aging 11/The "M" word....

Sunday afternoon, I met two of my best high school friends, Kathy and Debbie, in Grapevine at the Gaylord Texan. We had hoped that LaBecca could join us, but she lives in California and wasn't able to make it. (She doesn't know this yet but we are planning a trip there to see her at some point!!!!) We had a wonderful time...but it seemed that much of our conversation revolved around the "M" word...menopause!!!! None of could imagine being as "old" as we are! We laughed until our sides hurt! It seemed we all had our own stories of "M" and they weren't all pleasant, but certainly worth a lot of laughs! All three of us are now school teachers and mothers and grandmothers....but once upon a time, we all spent countless Friday and Saturday nights "riding" around the square in Anson or driving to Abilene to ride around Mac's! We talked about High School romances, our children, our crazy lives and the conversation always seemed to get back to "M"!

Kathy was able to get us a fabulous room on the 9th floor overlooking the atrium....we had our very own little balcony! We ate a delicious meal at the Texas Sports Bar. Our only upsetting event was when we returned to our room, Debbie couldn't find her camera! I referred to Signs of Aging/Forgetfulness...which is a sympton of "M". We called but no one had turned in a camera, so we fled back to our eating spot and luckily found the camera on the stool where we were sitting! We laughed all the way back to our room and found our way out to the balcony with our cokes and diet cokes where Kathy shared her Fiber One bars with us! This made us all laugh to realize that we even needed FIBER!!!! We watched people scurry around on the bottom floor of the atrium....just enjoying themselves as we were!

We stayed up until 2:00 a.m. until we finally fell into a deep slumber (all but Kathy!). This morning we ate breakfast and drank coffee and then shopped in the boutiques in the Gaylord. After we packed up we headed to Grapevine Mall and shopped some more! I found two adorable shirt dresses and my favorite find...elle perfume!

It was wonderful to spend time with two beautiful friends.....it was great to share pictures of our children and grandchildren and to share stories of grownup women....who were all dealing with "the menopause"! Hopefully, LaBecca can join us on our next adventure and we can reminisce more events! I was reminded of one of my favorite lines in the play "Dearly Beloved"...."You are going through the change! Look at you...mood swings, weight gain, and that unsightly facial hair. You're having "the menopause". What's the big deal?" Well, it is a big deal and luckily we had each other to laugh about our "M" stories as well as our past stories.....our future is ahead of us! I can't wait to see them again!

Elle....finally found!

I'm sooo excited! I finally found my favorite perfume! It's elle by Yves St. Laurent and it smells divine! I bought my first bottle about a year ago and I quickly went through it. I wanted more for Christmas but Dillard's and Macy's had discontinued it. I was shocked and upset! I finally found it today at a Perfumia shop in Grapevine...and I got it at 1/2 price!!! I had found some on Amazon two days ago and ordered that, too...so now I'll have two bottles of this amazing perfume and also a bottle of the elle lotion! I have just sprayed and sprayed myself today! Yummy....I smell good!

Signs of Aging 10/Gray Mare

The Old Gray Mare...she ain't what she used to be! That's me! I'm just exhausted! Is it because I'm so darn old??? I don't even know why I'm blogging...I'm so tired. But these have been some exhausting past few weeks!

1) I was in a play last month and we practiced like crazy! Night after night....and then we had seven performances. We sold out 3 of the performances and added an additional one on Tuesday night. I wouldn't get home til 11:00 on the night performances. It's always a little depressing after the play is over because you develop such great friendships and I always miss my "new family". But it was lots of fun and maybe I'll be rested by the next time I decide to be in another play.

2) Monday morning, Tracey Bullard and I decided to start walking AT 5:30 IN THE MORNING!!! So we walked Monday, and dumb a$$ me thought we were walking Tuesday morning, so I got up at 5:15 and about 5:45, after Tracey didn't show up, I remembered we weren't gonna walk that morning. Ugggggggggghhhhhh! I put on a pot of coffee and watched some scrapbook show on HGTV! So, this morning Donald and I were up before the roosters and walked with Tracey (wearing her Bucky Beavers)....So now I'm tired cause I had to work at Crossfire tonight!

3) This year we decided to complete Solar System projects IN CLASS.....so many of the kids don't have anyone to help them and sometimes other parents spend too much money on them. We just want to see something the kids do, so we worked on those this week. Now, mind you that's 32 projects in my class! But the kids did a great job and I loved seeing their creations. Some of them made posters and the rest used Play-Dough and made the Solar System. I'm just plum tuckered out though from bending over and cutting and pasting and hanging planets!

Those are just three things that have made me tired lately. Next week is Spring Break and I'm really looking forward to it! I think I'll go see Maddie and Hillary on Saturday! I plan on going to the Gaylord Texan on Sunday night and meeting two of my best high school friends. I can't wait to see them! Tuesday I'll go to Dillan's baseball game and then Wednesday I'll head to Austin to visit with Cari and Tristin for a few days. Then it will be back to H-town to work Saturday night at Crossfire. Maybe Denver and Averi can come over on Saturday or Sunday for some backyard baseball and tricycle races!!! Wait....just reading that makes me even more tired! But it will be a fun tired....a week of sleeping late...and playing with old friends and my grand babies! This old gray mare better eat her oats!

Acadamy Awards...

i'm feeling a bit underdressed as i sit watching the academy awards. unlike those on stage....i am wearing nike warm-ups and an old red hoodie that one of my daughter's "accidentally" kept from school many years ago. i've somehow managed to pull my hair back in a pony tail. i can't imagine sitting in that audience with all those people all dressed up in clothes that i can only in my wildest dreams imagine wearing! but IF i were there, perhaps waiting to receive an award from the film that i'll star in someday, i would wear BLACK. you just can't go wrong there...it's classy and slimming....i need both of those "sewn" into the dress i'll wear! but tonight i'll sit back and imagine what it must be like to walk the red carpet, wearing this Victoria Beckham black wool and silk blend.....i love it! not sure how it would look on me, but....i'm just dreaming! night-night...i hope this wool blend doesn't itch!

F.Y.I.

F.Y.I......Very good after a long week and a hard day at work.....F.Y.I....very good when you are with friends you love.....F.Y.I.....very good when you are needing a better outlook on life....F.Y.I.....very good. Period.

Poetry from a Jr. High Girl named Cheri

When I was a young girl, I, like many others was horrified of writing. Way back then, in 1969, I was a scrawny buck-toothed girl in the 8th grade. My English teacher decided to teach a poetry unit. Now I was just a West Texas tom-boy. I was only about 4 ft. 10 in. and barely weighed 80 pounds soaking wet! I had no desire to write a poem...my interests were in shooting baskets with my flat basketball! However...I had been given the assignment....WRITE A POEM. I was not a happy camper....what would I write about??? That very evening as I sat in my den watching "The Smothers' Brothers" show on TV with the family, I heard them sing the following song...

There is a season - turn, turn, turn And a time for every purpose under heaven A time to be born, a time to die A time to plant, a time to reap A time to kill, a time to heal A time to laugh, a time to weep To everything - turn, turn, turn There is a season - turn, turn, turn And a time for every purpose under heaven A time to build up, a time to break down A time to dance, a time to mourn A time to cast away stones A time to gather stones together To everything - turn, turn, turn There is a season - turn, turn, turn And a time for every purpose under heaven.

Once they finished, a light bulb went off in my head...(a dim light bulb)....I could write a poem about that song...I had never heard of plagiarism.... I went right to work...

To everything there is a season.
A time to love, a time to hate.
A time to be born, a time to die.
A time for war, a time live.
A time to laugh, a time to cry.

yada yada yada... it went on a few more verses....I can't really remember them all now. I was just happy to get that blasted poem written. I wrote it in my best cursive and even drew a cute little picture to illustrate my new poem. I went to bed that night relieved and quite proud of myself. The next day I turned in my poem. I just knew Mrs. Harper would love it....and what was that? She was calling me to her desk. I quickly approached her as she sat primly in her double knit suit...dark black bee-hive hairdo....wearing dark red lipstick that rubbed off onto her front teeth....She looked at me, smiling ever so slightly, her dimples were so deep set in her cheeks, I wanted to stick my finger in them to see how they felt....."Cheri, did you copy this?" I was shocked....had she watched "The Smothers' Brothers" show?? "Oh, no. I didn't. I wrote it." I hadn't "copied" it....I had merely heard a song and "used" the idea!!!! She looked down her nose at me and questioned me once more. Smiling at her I assured her I had written the poem and not copied it.......

Well, a few years later, I was reading the Old Testament. I got to Ecclesiastes 3 and I nearly fainted....there was MY poem....in the Holy Bible!!!!!! Well, no wonder Mrs. Harper thought I had copied that poem....there it was in the Bible, right smack in the middle of the Old Testament. She thought I had copied from the Bible!!!!! I always wanted to tell Mrs. Harper my story....but she died before I ever got a chance to! So....Mrs. Harper....if your spirit is floating around...and you can somehow hear me.....I really didn't copy from the Bible!!!!!!!

P.S.....Rachel Bottlinger made me think of writing about this today...she posted Ecclesiastes 3 on Facebook....Thanks, Rachel....thanks for the memory!

Signs of Aging 9/Falling

This morning was a bit dreary....it was cold and damp. When I first looked out my window this morning, it was so foggy it caught my breath....I have a problem with fog. I can't breath in it! Honestly, I can't drive in fog...when I see fog, I can't breath. So if I'm driving I have to shut my eyes to breath...so I figure that is really not too safe, so I just refuse to drive in fog! Anyway...I was so disappointed to see such a gloomy morning! However, I knew I had to get through the day. I had school to teach and another performance of "Dearly Beloved". After my English muffin and cup of coffee, Donald suggested I take his pick-up to school and he would take my Honda to J&J's for an oil change. Didn't really want to drive the pick-up to school...it's so high! I have to hike my leg up really high...it's so unflattering...and then hop up into the pick-up. I feel like I'm trying to get into a saddle on a horse! I suggested that I take my car to J&J's and he pick me up and take me to school...then he could pick me up at lunch and take me to pick up my car. So.....that was the plan....I taught math ( geometry...plane figures) and some science (solar system....Mercury and Venus)...had TAKS intervention and then took the kiddos to lunch. Afterwards, Donald picked me up for a trip to J&J's....in the rain....yes...it was still raining! I leaped into his pick-up....I felt like a high jumper trying to get up into that truck. We pulled in to J&J's and I got ready to dash to my car. There was a red pick-up parked next to Donald's....and like a gentleman, Donald hopped out of his pick-up to open the door to my car for me. I threw the door open and got ready to make a dash in the rain to my car....and wouldn't you know...as I put my right foot on the running board, I began to fall. My boot slipped right off that wet, muddy running board...only my mind and the rest of my body didn't realize my foot was slipping. It just kept going....I realized I was falling. I didn't think I would ever stop and the bad thing was, I couldn't stop myself. I had an umbrella in one hand and a Sonic cup full of Dr. Pepper in the other. I finally landed....flat on my rear....on the wet muddy ground. I looked to see if there was anyone in the red pick-up next to me and thank the Lord...it was vacant. However, that red truck did block anyone who was driving down the highway from seeing my "graceful" fall! In fact, Donald couldn't even see me! All at once I heard him shout, "Where are you?" He ran back to the pick-up...I guess he saw the umbrella bobbing up and down. He helped me up....I was laughing so hard, I could hardly get up! Luckily I wasn't hurt...just a little wet! Falling is not fun...especially when you are getting old like me! I made it to my car without any more falls! He wanted to know how I felt tonight...and I insisted I was fine....but I believe I'm beginning to feel a bit sore! I think that fall may have jostled this old lady more than I thought! So if you were driving down Hwy. 36 today about 12:20 and happened to see my grand performance (not the one in the play!) I hope you got a good laugh! I would hate to go to all that trouble and then not have anyone enjoy it!