Kontan.

Hours of stress filled excitement and a great game to watch. Auburn vs. Alabama was certainly not the UA blowout that was predicted. In fact, AU was up 14 by the second quarter. UA rallied and tied up the game, but AU was able to advance their lead yet again. Meebo chatters on AL.com were calling AU’s playing a gimmick and nothing but tricks. I think they were embarrassed. This was supposed to be an easy in. As UA struggled to obtain the lead chatters were calling foul and proclaiming that refs were paid off by AU. Really?

I only saw one individual with a Tide box and toilet paper taped to his head, but then I wasn’t at the game and the media didn’t pan the crowd often enough to see more. Yeah, that’s hot. It was a heated game with emotions running high. There were personal fouls called, and some not that probably should have been, but over all I think it was a well played game on both sides. I have to commend my husband as well. In all the years I have known him he has never rubbed an Auburn win into anyone’s face. He shows true class. That is so much more than I can say for some. They simply seem to drop the ‘cl’ and show it. Some of the things I read on AL.com chat were offensive.

To shop or not to shop, that is the question. In just over an hour stores at the Mills will open for Black Friday business. I have perused BF ads and am not impressed. If I’m going shopping at midnight or getting up for early bird deals at the 5 AM openings there had better be ultra good buys. Unless you are buying big ticket items I am just not feeling the good deal love. Maybe the best deals aren’t advertised, but that doesn’t make much sense. The stores want as many people in as possible. Maybe I am simply looking for the wrong items.

Recently I was listening to NPR and a discussion of the widening socio-economic differences in America. There are proclamations that more needs to be done to lift the impoverished out of their plight. Let me first establish that I am in no way suggesting that the impoverished should be ignored, however I grew increasingly frustrated as I listened to Talk of the Nation. Yes, people need a living wage, but I do not think raising the already inflated $7.25/hr minimum wage is the answer. No, one cannot live on 7.25/hr, but that is why it is important to improve yourself enough so that you do not have to work at the local fast food place as the only economic support for your family. Where is the incentive to improve if you keep raising the minimum wage? It only serves to undermine small business. NPR guests/callers also discussed the availability of welfare/food stamps/wic and how it needed to be increased for those making below the poverty line. OK, I understand that. Really, I do. Why isn’t there a limit on how long someone can receive assistance and what they can purchase with it? Exclude junk food, that would help the obesity issue since obesity and poverty tend to go hand in hand. A caller stated the crux of my frustration. She, a teacher, could not support her family on her income alone. With her husband unemployed her teacher’s salary barely got them by. I totally get it! That same teacher’s salary did not qualify her family for any type of assistance so she was stuck struggling just to buy groceries and keep shelter each month. What is wrong with this picture? She would have had it easier if she didn’t work. Why is it that “the system” does not encourage people to pursue something better? No wonder there are individuals perpetually stuck in the poverty cycle. It is not always that they necessarily want to be there, it is more likely that they can’t bridge the gap between living on assistance and subsistence. There is a gap and it is the middle that is hanging on trying not to fall in it. This past year corporate giants were being bailed out left and right. Government assistance was expanded in order to increase benefits to those who qualified. The middle? Ignored. Simplistic thought ramble, but there’s truth in it.

I took the preteen to see New Moon.  Wow, the acting was terrible.  There really isn’t a ton that someone could do with book two, but the acting…really?  Even witty Jacob was brought down to Bella/Edward quality.  That isn’t a compliment.  Alice was as cute as ever and nice of the rest of the Cullen coven to make a cameo.  There were a few witty moments, but for the most part it was the same bring ya down as the first.

In better news, wow what an Ole Miss victory!

I have been extremely sick. Short story here b/c my computer battery is running low and I’m about to take more meds and go back to sleep. Possible spider bite on my cheek bone and I didn’t want it to get bad bad. Had something similar before and it was awful. Got early morning doc appt and he gave me a shot of Rocephin (sp?) and Rx for strong topical antibiotic and oral Septra. Taught the rest of the day and was fine. Took Septra at 6, by 7:30 I felt very flu like. I didn’t think much of it. By 9 I was thinking it could be reaction to Septra. Jem came home early b/c the body aches were really getting to me. Went to bed, up ALL night. Could not get comfortable, everything hurt. I’m talking crying kind of pain. Started vomiting around 2. Lost the little dinner I had eaten. Thinking back I may have been getting sick at that point, before the Septra, b/c I wasn’t hungry at dinner. (I helped Lil Bit make pizza rolls using crescent roll dough. FYI tomato sauce burns coming back up.) The next three times there was nothing to come up except the Septra and ibuprofen. Went back to doc at 7. He thought reaction too. Gave me phenegren (sp?) and made me drink water to see if I could keep it down. I didn’t want IV and we were trying to prevent more shots since both hips were taken and my skin was hurting. Didn’t get better. Lower back pain was excruciating by mid day. Took a couple of baths and that eased it a little. The headache was REAL bad. Was going to go back to doc, but insurance will only pay for one doc visit a day. Went to ER. Still crying from pain. They got me back w/o too much wait. Doc didn’t think reaction to Septra b/c no rash, which is the norm. Ran various tests, good. Gave me an IV with saline, then more phenegren, and morphine. I was able to rest pain free. They kept giving me saline to keep BP up and rehydrate. (I had been drinking gatorade and water all day, but not tons.) BP got down to 87/45. I usually run 90-something or 100/ 70.

Thursday morning I am feeling better, but the headache is there and so is the lower back pain. Took meds and back to bed. ER doc thought it could be a virus that hit about the same time as my system was already weak. Flu test came back negative. Other tests look good, but could be corrupted by earlier antibiotics. Either way, pain Thursday was a 4-5 and Wed night a solid 10 with lots of tears.

Today is much better. I am pain limited and no meds to control it. Coughing has started and there is a little chest tightness. Hopefully on the mend. Whatever this is, I don’t want it again.

Student 1: “OMG your daughter looks JUST like you!”

Student 2: “other one does too”

Student 1:”wow, you’re like spawning an army or something”

Really?

Swine Flu article: Huffington Post

Several issues with this article.  #1 “experts say our brains simply aren’t wired to balance risk vs. benefit and make sound decisions.”  ‘Scuse me?!?! #2 ” it’s based on the same science used for decades in all kinds of vaccines” Is that the same science that had more people die from the vaccine than the flu in ’76? #3…just read it.  I found the exaggerations and wording offensive.

It’s not even 10 PM and I am ready to turn in. Boring me. It isn’t like there isn’t plenty to do. With a stack of notes beside me I would benefit most from working on tomorrow’s PowerPoint. I don’t wanna. I would much rather procrastinate by blogging. Am I usually this ready for school to be done for the semester? I don’t recall and will have to check my archives. I would venture to say probably. So many things going through my head these days. We are thrilled to be in NC and very thankful that opportunities have presented themselves. Now there is the desire for the next step. A year ago we were waiting for things to happen and so very frustrated that the economy caused a stall. It was a serious stall, but there is a tiny light at the end of the tunnel. Tiny. I hope it isn’t a train. I am ready to own our own home again. I have a strong desire for storage space, and use of my garage. I’m giving serious thought to PhD pursuit. There is so much that I desire for my family, my husbands career, and my own. There are way too many “I wants” in this paragraph and not enough I am so thankful.

I really am thankful. Really. Teaching in a non-traditional school there are not the headaches faced in the traditional classroom. We have other headaches. There are different problems, but I do not fear for my safety and am pretty much left alone to teach as I please. I am thankful that Jem has the opportunity to work in an industry that he loves and has the potential to achieve dream proportions. I am thankful that my girls are healthy and happy here. So, regardless of what I desire, it isn’t what is important. What is important is that we are a family that has many blessings and we need to count them…one by one. It is not our timing that is important.