Monday, March 22, 2010

hmmm

Well, you know how I said i was miserable at work with Kitty. I don't need to worry about that anymore, her daughter called me yesterday to tell me that she passed away this weekend. They are thinking it was another heart attack. As much as i didn't like working for her, i definitely didn't want anything like this to happen. The visitation is tonight, so I am going to go and say goodbye to her.

I lost 3 pounds in the past like 2 weeks, the main reason for that is being sick, and nervous from working for kitty. When I get nervous/stressed/upset I can't stay out of the bathroom, so hey if nothing else it helped me to lose some weight. 5 more pounds to lose and I will be down to my "happy" weight and if I could lose 10 more pounds I will be at my WOOHOO weight!

On Saturday night we went to Ameristar casino, I had never been there before and I like it so much better than Harrahs, its just much nicer looking. I still need to go to River City, maybe this weekend.

Mark and I are going to be spending all weekend together because he gets Friday off, so he ahs a 3-day weekend! I can't wait it'll be nice to just spend time together.

I still need to upload my pictures from the St. Patty's day parade last week and when I do I will make a post with it. I had a ton of fun even though it was cold!

Monday, March 15, 2010

EEKKK

Mark and I are looking at another house, we went out yesterday just the two of us to walk around the house and property and look. We both still like it so tonight I am taking my parents out there, and if they like it we are going to be calling our realator. Its a 3 bed 3 bath house on 5 acres in the middle of nowhere. I'm kinda having a minor freak out about this! Like is this really going to happen?! So keep us in your thoughts as we figure out logistics and money and everything...

Friday, March 12, 2010

Mish mash

I know I just posted about Jamaica but now you are going to get a post full of stuff that has happened since then til now, so I can finally be caught up on my blogging.

  • There have been a few times in the past month where my group of friends has gotten together, and my best friend, who got married last year, has been acting not himself. I see him slowly drifting away from me and there isn't anything I can do about it. He has left me out of important things in his life. He is ignoring texts and facebook messages. I don't know what to do about it, and it hurts so much. It's a big part of why I have been in such a dark funk lately I think.
  • My dark funk is putting a ravine between me and Mark. The first and worst week of this funk Mark was here Saturday and Sunday and saw it, on Monday when it was the worst, he asked me if I was ok and I had been saying yeah, I'm fine whatever. Finally on Monday when he asked I looked at him and just said no I'm not ok, and you know what he did? HE LEFT, he F-ing went home. I was so pissed! I admit something is wrong and he leaves. That was two weeks ago and I still don't think I am over it. I even hinted in status messages about wanting flowers to cheer me up, or just wanting to feel better, did he do anything, nope nothing. I just want to feel like he cares, ya know?
  • I went to one of my good friends new boyfriends concerts. He plays in a metal band, not my type of music but I'm there for support, it was actually pretty good, not as bad as I thought. There weren't many people there, it was at "The Library" in Soulard and they have a little shop thing in there with a penis pinata! We were in shock, awe and knew we had to have it. Unfortunately it wasn't for sale, so needless to say we will be going back just to see it.
  • I'm going to the St Patty's day parade tomorrow with the same friend. It should be fun, I'm ready for some green beer and feel I may not remember alot of what happens tomorrow, but for how I am feeling I think that is ok.
  • I have been studying but not as much as I would like and I know as I need to. I just want to be sure that this time and energy will pay off in the end.
  • I am working for a new lady who is mean, hateful, and makes me miserable and sick pretty much everyday I am there. I need the money though so i can't quit. I suffer through and put my check in the bank each time thinking I am closer to having the money to pay for this test.
  • And to end on a happy note my kitty is getting so big! He came to us last July, his mommy had been hit by a car and he was hiding out at my dads shop. He will be 1 in may and I can't believe it! I am going to add some happy kitty pictures to end with:
My baby boy with his favorite toy

Jasper trying to figure out why he has a pink bed. (It's because we thought he was a girl)

Jasper enjoying the sunshine as a big boy
Helping up to clean up the garage

Jamaica

I am finally going to get around to my Jamaica mission trip:

the hotel owned by ACE called the Galina Breeze

I went on a mission trip to Jamaica with the college aged and 20 somethings group from my church. it was amazing. We went with a group called ACE or American Caribbean Experience. While there we tutored students, the first student I had was a first grade girl, she could read anything I put in front of her, even big words she could sound out. Next I had a sixth grade boy who couldn't even read the word "go". I was in shock, how has he made it through, ends up they just pass kids through and that's it. In sixth grade they have to take a test and this test tells them whether they go to university or to trade school. Can you imagine that, in sixth grade your life is decided for you. My church sponsors a few of these kids, that gives them the tutoring, food for lunch, uniforms to wear to school. They kids families are so poor some of them sleep on dirt floors, and when it rains they sleep in mud. It was so sad. We were at the schools 4 of the five days we were there, we also did PE with the students because they don't have it as part of their curriculum they also don't get science very often. Entire curriculum's are missing from these kids schooling.

One of the schools we worked at 1st-6th grade

Besides the schools we also went to something called the infirmary. This is basically the "poor house" when you have no money and no family to take care of you this is where you go. It's a giant room with beds all along the perimeter, all these people did was lay in bed all day, until ACE came in. Now they get juice, and fresh water and food at least 3 days a week, they get music, and they are coloring and playing dominoes, and messing with play-doh. Many of these people are older and you may think that's not a big deal, coloring, woohoo, when ACE first started going there most of these people couldn't even get out of bed, its huge that they are now able to do this. These people get basically no vegetables, no fruit and little meat, rice is their main food. One male there, was probably about 19 and he lived in this place because nobody else could handle him, why was he so hard to handle? Because when he was a boy he got "passed around" the males of the town, the only way he could handle it was to act out, now he is drugged up all the time that he can't do anything, because he never had the chance for counseling or the chance for a real life because nobody took him out of the situation he was in. This all sounds sad and hard but let me tell you, this was the chance of a lifetime and i will be going back.

It wasn't all work, we did have some relax time while there. We got to see the football team play that is sponsored by ACE. That was an experience, football is a religion to Jamaicans and so much fun to watch. We had a water volleyball tournament in the pool, great devotions at night with the group. I learned how to play dominoes, the unofficial game of Jamaica. We spent a day in Kingston seeing the only Lutheran church in all of Jamaica, the pastor from that church actually spent the week with us as my church is "unofficially" teamed with him.

The football team sponsored by the Galina Breeze hotel


I am actually going to ask you to click the link above for ACE and see if it is something you would maybe talk to your church about. They need people down there to help, the kids need your tutoring, the people in the infirmaries just need you there visiting with them, talking to them, and making them feel alive again. And Marla just loves it when groups come down!