Did you send e-cards this year?

I did.  Not because I'm "green" or thrifty or anything like that. I sent some paper cards, too, with the family update and all.  But I was very late getting started and didn't get the first batch mailed out until Monday.  So the rest were e-cards.  Very good for procrastinators.

Online shopping rocks!!

Even a procrastinator like me just got some great discounts & free shipping.  All items in stock & promised by 12/18/09.  K-Mart/Sears saved me tax, too.  Their free shipping offer calculated the shipping, deducted it from the total before calculating tax & then added a lesser shipping charge on the new total.  Sounds convoluted, but it resulted in additional savings.

Another Curves franchise closing

I haven't always been consistent, but I like exercising at Curves.  The equipment is hydraulic, designed for women, and doesn't require adjusting or setting weights.  The one I belonged to changed locations in 2006, then closed this summer.  I transferred my membership to another location, and now it is closing too.  I can transfer again, but will probably just drop it and try to motivate myself to use the Gazelle.

Cable TV

I have been very frustrated by my cable TV provider, which is also my internet & phone provider. The VOIP phone system has always been a problem, but it is cheap and we have cell phones.  The current problems started last month when their website for online payment was shut down for upgrades.  I called to pay my bill by phone and got hoodwinked into signing up for Broadstripe forever.  A couple of days later, I noticed I had lost all of my premium channels.  I called support, and they sent a tech to troubleshoot, who told us we were no longer enrolled for any premium channels.  I called support again, and told them to switch me back to my old plan.  We got the premium channels back on one box, but not on the other.  I called again, and they sent a tech to replace the boxes.  Then, we had the premium channels, but were still missing EWTN, which I had before all this switcheroo.  I called again, they resent the signal, and now we had EWTN, but lost the premium channels again.  Finally, after about the 6th call, I have all the channels I had prior to being hoodwinked.  In the middle of all this, I got a cable bill for $254.  No way do I intend to pay that much for cable TV.  After a few more phone calls, they found the billing error.  I've had the same cable provider for over 20 years, but they've changed hands 2 or 3 times.  This last change has me thinking of switching to FIOS or Comcast - both are available in my area.  The price for FIOS is about the same.  Comcast is slightly less, but didn't offer the Western channels that hubby likes except in their most expensive package.  I could live without cable TV - could get me a digital converter for broadcast TV, sign up for Netflix, and be happy with it.

New grandaughter

Daughter & son-in-law have new baby girl.  Lily, 6 lb, 2 oz, 18 inches.  Born 6:59 am Oct. 9, 2009.  That makes 6 grandchildren.    

Star Wars in Concert

http://www.baltimorearena.com/event-more-info.shtml?e_id=246

I might want to go to this.

Musical Thriller

Went to Toby's Dinner Theater in Columbia, MD last weekend with my daughter to see Sweeney Todd.  I had not seen the movie with Johnny Depp, and I wasn't familiar with the story, so I didn't quite know how they'd pull it off in a musical.  It was a twisted tale, but they made it more funny than scary.  Not your average musical.

Red Head

I decided to go red.  I've had my hair red before, but usually I get blonde highlights.  I let the highlihgts grow out so I could get a perm and I decided I liked the curls more than the highlights.  My hiar doesn't take both perms & highlights together - gets very dry & looks like straw.  But lately, my hair has been looking very drab, so I wanted to spice it up.  The red color is non-peroxide, so I can use red on top of the perm without damage. 

VCR, DVD & DVR

I have 2 working VCRs - one built into one of the TVs and another stand alone.  I recorded with the first one I got in the 80s, then just used them to play VHS tapes bought or borrowed.  I never tried to record with any subsequent VCR models - whenever I thought I might want to record something, I didn't have a blank tape or couldn't locate a manual.  I also have 2 DVD players, though the one built into the one TV broke rather quickly. I have a few movies & series DVDs, and have thought about getting Netflix or similar service through Blockbuster, more for series DVDs rather than movies.   I briefly had DVR service through the cable company, but I didn't use it often enough to make it worth the extra cost.  I decided to re-learn how to use the VCR to record.  Several things led to this decision.  Most of the shows I like are on at 10:00 and I'd really like to go to bed before 11.   I don't like Jay Leno well enough to watch him every night at 10:00 - I would only watch his 11:30 show when I couldn't sleep.  The 10:00 NBC shows either changed networks or moved to earlier time slot.  I'm often not home for shows I like that come on at 8:00 or 9:00.  I bought some blank tapes yesterday - they're realy cheap now - and found some directions online to set my VCR and record a movie while I was out.  It worked great.  I found the remote for the stand-alone VCR and will try recording some shows that come on at times I'm not usually home, or that come on opposite something else I like.  I know this seems like something old & outdated, but it works for me.

Textbooks

When I took college courses in the 70s, I don't remember the college bookstore offering used textbooks.  Maybe they weren't much cheaper than buying new so I just bought new books, and kept them thinking I'd use them for reference someday (but never did).  They were left behind when I moved, though I have a few books from various addictions courses I've taken over the years.  This time, I've bought used books from the college bookstore with the intention of selling them back, but twice, they were not buying back my particular books.  Thanks to my daughter, I've discovered half.com.  She sold my algebra book for me, and now I've sold a couple of books, and bought another for my upcoming course at a significant discount compared to the college bookstore's price for a used copy.  Sometimes, the college bookstore offers a better deal for a bundled package, so I still check both places.  

Grade - Finally

I had to wait a long time, but I finally got my grade (A) for the 1-credit writing class.  Now I can stop obsessively checking the class website 4-5 times a day. 

Losing Keys

I have my keys on a large keyring (actually about 3 rings linked together) with a leather fob made at Cub Scout Day Camp in 1991, all on a lanyard.  You'd think this would be hard to lose.  NOT. Yesterday, I went to Curves.  Had to get there by 11:30 because they close at noon on Saturdays. I was almost late because traffic was being diverted due to a terrible accident (motorcycle, van, utility pole, wires down).  Got there just in time, scanned my tag (which is on my key ring along with several other scan tags) and did my routine.  Just as I was finishing up, the power went out (due to the accident).  I completed my cool-down stretches, grabbed my purse and went to leave.  I needed to get a few groceries, so I walked to the grocery store to ask if they had power, talked to a couple of employees outside, then the power came back on.  I did some shopping, then went to the check out and discovered I didn't have my keys when I went to scan my tag for discounts.  Curves was closed.  I can't get my keys until Monday morning.  Hubby came to my rescue, and brought the spare keys.  While I was waiting in the grocery store, another woman left her keys at the check out, and had to come back in to get them.

Food Tracking & the Exercise Ball

I started tracking my food again with FitDay.  The free version has all the features I need except a recipe builder, and I just use Master Cook whenever I want to add a meal cooked from a recipe. Most of the time, I can just add from the food labels or the existing database. All my information was still there from last time, and I had a lot of custom foods already added.  I like the visuals - pie chart & graphs let you know if you've taken in more calories than you've burned,  I knew I needed to get some exercise in today, and Curves is closed on Sundays.  I've had the exercise ball inflated for over a week, and finally tried using the Denise Austin video.  There were some of it that I couldn't do, but I got a 30 minute workout and burned some calories. 

Missing Package Arrives

Around May 15, I ordered laptop memory from Dell.  I checked the order status & UPS tracking site which had my package "out for delivery" for over a week.  Each day the expected delivery was rescheduled.  Though they didn't admit it, it was apparent that UPS had lost the package.  I contacted Dell, and they re-shipped another memory module.  When I went to install the memory module, I was surprised to find both slots filled.  I checked the manual online and found that this model requires "matched pairs" of memory, so I had to order another one from Dell.  2nd memory module was delivered and both installed.  Laptop now has 2 gigs of memory.  Lo and behold, the missing package was delivered by UPS yesterday.  Since Dell did re-ship the order, and I didn't need a 3rd memory module, I contacted then for a return label, and will send it back tomorrow.

Interstate 83 Diner & Coffee

Rating:	★★★★★
Category:	Restaurants
Cuisine:	American
Location:	York PA

We stopped here on the way to a wedding this weekend and ordered breakfast. Couldn't believe how fast the service was.

Tuition Reimbursement

Don't know how long it will last considering the state's budget woes, but there is supposedly some tuition reimbursement money in the budget, so I will submit my request.  I have all my documentation ready except the recommendation letter from my supervisor.  I will see her Thursday, then I will hand carry the request to Headquarters.

Exercise

Last week I decided I had to get back to exercising.  I have a Curves membership, but hadn't been going regularly for some time.  When I went to exercise last week, I found that my Curves had closed.  I was able to transfer my membership to another Curves nearby.  It is not as close, but not far off of my route home from work.  I haven't been able to get there this week, since I have been off work.  I inflated the exercise ball, but haven't used it yet either.

College Transfer Credits

I got my official evaluation of transfer credits at UMUC.  78 of a possible 81 credits were successfully transferred & applied toward my degree plan.  The result was even better than the unofficial evaluation, and this is quite a difference from other colleges I had considered.  It seems that most have a tendency to deny transfer credits from other colleges unless there is a specific articulation agreement.  I applied to noe college that would only accept 22 of 55 credits from Davis & Elkins - which would have denied me an entire year of education.  

Now that I have the official evaluation, I know what courses I still need for the degree & for the major in Psychology.  I also want to enroll in the Prior Learning program to get credit by portfolio for learning outside the classroom.  Due to the residency requirement, I'm probably limited to 12 credits, and at least 7 must be upper level.  If I get 12 credits through portfolio, then I should complete my degree in 2011.   

Snowy is very sick

He hasn't been eating very well for about a week, and the past 3 days has been very lethargic - not himself. I took him to the vet this morning and it is not good. The bloodwork didn't give a complete diagnosis, but his red blood count is very low and he has a fever. The vet said this is either caused by infection or cancer. I'm giving him antibiotics at home. If he can survive the weekend, the prognosis is better. Basically I have to prepare myself to let him go.

Fancy - January 30, 2009

I decided not to wait, and went to the SPCA to adopt another cat. I thought about getting a kitten this time, but I am good with full grown cats. Kittens are cute, but they grow up to be cats anyway, and cats have "personality". There were only a couple of kittens there, and they were already spoken for. And so many cats that need homes. I picked a beauty. A 2 year old, all black female, long haired named Fancy. She is a real sweetheart, who had been tossed out & abandoned by her previous owner and brought to the shelter by a neighbor who felt sorry for her. I know these things often happen when people separate, particularly in domestic violence situations - but I can not imagine why anyone would have abandoned this sweet kitty. She has already adjusted to her new home.

Brandy is gone

I knew she was suffering and I had to make the decision. 18 years is a long life for a cat. She has now crossed the Rainbow bridge. Good bye Brandy.