Vacation Bible School

Vacation Bible School is a pretty new concept to me. Growing up Catholic, I never attended nor even heard of VBS. Now that I am a Protestant, I come to find out that VBS is big business. Companies make programs and churches can "shop around" in the spring for the program they want. And BTW, the weekly programs are pretty cool. Lots of singing, crafts, videos, snacks, and of course, bible stories. The kids have gone to Vacation Bible School for a few years now, but this year I decided to use some of my vacation days and actually help out. Whew! I am craft leader, and after yesterday's 2.5 hour session I was ready to sleep the afternoon away. So much activity! The kids were good and the craft was pretty easy, but I'm just not used to that many kids at once. I have a whole new appreciation for teachers. Now to muster up the energy for the rest of the week...

High School Reunions

In a few months my high school class is having its 15-year reunion. Since I'm now on Facebook, many of these classmates have tried to "friend" me. Being the tough person I am and having my own ideas of what friends and "friends" are, no dice. This, however, could make for an awkward reunion if any of these folks are there and think I dissed them. It's nothing personal, just that if I didn't keep up with you over the years, why would I be interested in your daily news feeds? I like to keep my group of FB friends small and meaningful.

Anywho, it is interesting to check out the (public) photos of these classmates. Some are the same as I remember them, and some I barely recognize. I know that people change over the years, but why do I still imagine them as though they were in high school? For example, when I look at pictures of a guy that was kind of nerdy and annoying, I still feel annoyed with him. Maybe he's changed. But maybe not. I guess I'd have to go to the reunion to find out.

Why Can't I Let It Go?

I work with a certain someone who used to be a good friend of mine. Notice how I use past tense. We started at the company around the same time, sat near each other, and eventually struck up long conversations and went to lunch together. When I was pregnant with my first child, she orchestrated a surprise baby shower for me. She even gave me her used crib since her boys had outgrown it. During this time she was going back to school to get her bachelor's degree part-time since she never finished when she was younger. I always admired how she was able to balance it all, with two little kids, a husband, work and family life. Shortly after she finished her degree she started looking elsewhere for work. I couldn't blame her, and in fact encouraged her since her current position held no promise for a promotion of any kind. Lo and behold, she found another position and left the company. For 4 months. That's right, it wasn't all it was cracked up to be and our big wigs asked her back for another position that was now vacant. Apparently in four months she was really able to gain supervisory and advanced experience that qualified her for this position. If you can't tell, I'm being sarcastic. Nonetheless I was happy for her. That is until she actually came back and acted like she was better than me. Keep in mind that in the way of totem poles, I was above her before (though I never cared) and in her return she was maybe my equal. Maybe. Anyway, she started treating me differently. She only went to lunch with people at or "above" her, didn't ask much about my personal life and was clearly trying her hardest to claw her way to the top. I found myself avoiding her since a simple question would be met with hostility at the most or shortness at the least. Suffice it to say we have grown apart.

The situation has only worsened over time. Whenever I hear her voice I cringe and swear under my breath. If I need a certain piece of information and my boss suggests that maybe she has it, I will do everything in my power to find it elsewhere. I am currently planning a small get-together at my house and intend to invite some work-folk, but have decided to keep her off the list. After all, my free time, my house, my choice. Why do I feel guilty about it?

What is really troubling me is that I still have all of this anger. I feel betrayed, and maybe I'm stuck in that anger stage of mourning her loss as a friend. We will never recapture the friendship we once had. Heck, maybe she was playing me all along and I only fell for it. Whatever the case, I'm fine with losing her as a friend. But why can't I get rid of the anger? Why can't I just let it go?

Charged

I'm beginning to think I carry a mysterious electromagnetic charge.

Case #1: This morning I tried to close the garage door and it kept re-opening. I got out and examined it and then realized that one of the "eyes" near the bottom of the door was not lit, thereby causing the problem. Since I had to get going, I called Aaron on the cell and told him the situation. When he got out to the garage the light was on and the door closed just fine.

Case #2: Yesterday when I turned on the radio in the van I noticed that the screen was going crazy. I could hear music OK, but the display kept scrolling and showing weird characters. When I turned off the radio and then on again, it still happened. Later I shut off the car and parked, and the next time I turned on the radio it was fine. Weird.

Case #3: Twice in the past several weeks the living room light/fan has gone out without warning. I went down to the breaker box to check things out when I heard Aaron promptly shout "It's on!" I didn't touch a thing. Again, weird.

Maybe I'm just paranoid, or maybe I watched too much Lost over the years. You be the judge.

Christmas card list

This weekend I made a decision. No longer will a certain acquaintance from high school be on our family Christmas Card list. I'm not exactly sure how she got on the list in the first place, but said person faithfully sends us a card each year. Do we have much, if anything, to say to each other? No. Do I care about what is going on in her life? Not really. She is known to be a person of gossip, and I sneakily suspect that she uses our annual letter in conversations with town folk at her leisure. I saw her at a wedding over the weekend and she didn't even say hello. I'm sure the alcohol consumption on her part didn't help, but I am no longer making excuses. If she chooses to send a card each year fine. But don't expect me to reciprocate.

It's a start

My good friend from college inspired me to start a blog. I'm sure she doesn't realize her part in this yet, but she regularly blogs, and I truly enjoy reading her posts. I feel closer to her, if only in thought. Then I realized that she doesn't have such a tool to read my thoughts, hence this blog. I've never been one to consistently keep a journal - mostly because I'm lazy and don't like to write. Typing is another matter, though, and since I spend so much time in front of a computer, I have no excuse not to utilize this medium. Will anyone read this blog? Hard to say. But if it helps me get things off my chest and try to reconnect with the English language, the purpose will not be lost. To my unknown audience - welcome to my random thoughts!