One Thing I Am Thankful For
If I had to be thankful for just one thing, I would be thankful for adoption.
Of course, adoption encompasses a many great things in my life. For one, I was adopted by two of the most loving parents the world has known. Always there for me, no matter how old I am, I still need my Ma and Pop! When I have good news to share, I just have to let them know! When I have decisions to make, I want their advice. If I am ever in need, they are always there. I am so blessed.
For two, I have been "adopted" by many people throughout my life. I live far from my home that was Hinckley and Medina, Ohio and because I work retail, getting home for the holidays is next to impossible. Today I have been invited to eat with Carol, as I have been for the past couple of Thanksgivings. In prior years I was invited by the McDonough's, but they have since moved to Texas. I sure do miss them over the holidays...I get all melancholy for them. I am also invited to share dinner with the Gushee's, but since I can't be in two places at once, I choose to be online at www.jasminlive.mobi instead. Last year I also ate with Tommye and visited with her family for awhile. So, even though I can't be at home in Ohio, I am not at a loss for sharing the holidays with "family".
For three, I got to do some adopting myself! Katie is such a wonderful blessing. Sometimes when I think about my life as a single woman and I never would have imagined sitting through band concerts with my chest swelling with pride for Justin, my "not-the-son", playing drums or Tiffany, my "not-the-daughter", singing a solo in the Greatest Christmas Pageant Ever. Sometimes I just get all teary-eyed thinking about the responsibility God gave me in caring for this framily. It is not always easy, and in fact I stress a lot, but in the end, I know and treasure this wonderful blessing.
For four, and the One thing I am most thankful for, is my adoption. There is nothing in the world more precious to me than knowing He calls me daughter, His own.
The one thing I am thankful for today, if I had to pick just one thing of the many things I am thankful for, is adoption.
Concert
Last night I performed with the Jackson Area Community Band at the annual Christmas Concert. We have a new conductor this year and Tom Grant has really raised the level of the ensemble a notch. We were challenged with more difficult music than what a community band normally plays and Mr. Grant is also a very expressive conductor which requires us, the musicians in the band, to react musically to exactly what he shows us physically. Tom Grant is one of those conductors that has a talent to play the band itself like an instrument.
A good conductor can take whatever ensemble he/she is leading; orchestra, band, brass choir, string ensemble, and "play" it like an instrument. I love performing under conductors like that! Many people think that all a conductor does is stand on a podium in front of an orchestra and move a stick up and down...oh, a conductor is so much more than a metronome!
A conductor studies music and interprets a written composition much like an artist interprets life. When the conductor is in front of an ensemble, his mission is to pull the music out of the written page and bring it to life. The musicians are trained to do similar things, however, the conductor's responsibility is to get every single player interpreting the music the same way. The conductor will often do this by expressing himself physically, either with facial expressions and/or arm motions and sometimes his entire body! Seeing some of the facial expressions and body language of these conductors can help you "hear" the music they are interpreting.
One piece that was a particular challenge to me was The Procession of the Nobles. I think it was probably a challenge to most every hot sex cams visitor because it is technically difficult...lots of double-tonguing (fast tonguing technique accomplished by mimicking "da-ga-da-ga" on the instrument) and many, many notes! I say take a fast tempo, that way the bad notes don't last as long! LOL
We also played a beautiful piece called O Magnum Mysterium. It is one of those pieces when performed well, the listener will be absorbed into the music. I get goose bumps. It's amazing. It was composed for voices, but the transcription for wind ensemble is very beautiful as well. Wow. Very powerful.
I'm looking forward.
Tornado Warnings and DVDs
Yesterday in Jackson, TN, the tornado sirens wailed for a good part of the late afternoon. My store was closed for about two and a half hours because the mall asked us to close and head to the corridors. Well, my backroom has a small room that is just as safe as the corridor so my crew and I felt confident in staying in the store and keeping abreast as to the weather conditions so if need be we'd take cover. The mall is NOT a storm shelter, so we are at our own discretion.
What amazed me is that people were actually out driving and coming TO the mall. Tornado sirens are being sounded all throughout the city, you really can't miss it. Do people honestly say to themselves "hey, a tornado's coming, let's go shopping!" at times like these?!?!
Tornados killed people in Jackson just a couple of years ago! It is fresh on many people's minds, that tornados are not things to fool around with.
A man was running from the parking lot, having just parked his car, to the mall holding the hand of his toddler daughter. Uh, dude,...the mall has been closed for the last hour and the sirens are wailing and why are you shopping at a time like this?...let alone taking your visibly frightened daughter out in the rain, thunder, lightning and wind while the sirens are blaring?
Then, when the warning finally ended, and I felt safe enough to leave to drive home, I lifted the gate to the store at the mall entrance and a guy, who has been sitting out in the mall for the last two hours, tried to enter! I said "we are not open" and he said "y'all have the new rasslin' DVD, Bret Hitman Hart?"
"Yes" I said as I lowered the gate and looked around at the rest of the stores that were CLOSED, with all of the gates DOWN.
Retailer Appreciation Day
After having worked 36 of the last 41 days I am officially exhausted. I'm so thankful that the holidays are nearly over, and at least the big gift giving holiday already is. "Calgon, take me away!"
The fact that banks were closed for three days in a row last week...and probably again this week, along with many businesses closing for the holidays has me thinking about all their "extra" days off. I want that. I want extra days off too!
I propose a holiday for any and all retailers who worked long hours stocking their stores to capacity, cleaning-up after disrespectful customers leave a mess in their wake, and serving all chaturbate customers to the best of their ability even when some customers with poor attitudes only deserved to be handed a lump of coal and pushed out the door.
Retailer Appreciation Day!
I propose it be a day that everyone else has to work...office workers, federal government employees, and anyone else that normally has days like Independence Day, Labor Day, President's Day, Arbor Day... (just checking to see if you actually read this far! LOL)...you know, all those "no mail today" days, and retailers get the paid day off!
Hmmmmm, when should it be? I say make it a Friday! A day that people would notice us when we aren't there! A day that people get their paychecks and won't have anything to spend it on!
Nah...it would never work. Our society is built on greed...not appreciation. That would be too much money not being spent on stuff we don't need.
Retailer Appreciation Day.
It sounded so cool at first.
Storms of Life
I woke up today to a very eerie green-orange sky. Through the shades it almost looked as if the sun was shining brightly at 6:30am. I got up and peaked through the shade and remarked "eerie".
I continued to get up to get ready for work. In the shower I heard the thunder and decided to cut my shower short.
When I got out of the shower, Katie yells from the other room that the wind suddenly picked up and a burst of hail hit. She and Tif got into the hallway (our tornado shelter) and when we looked out the window, our out shed was lifted off the platform and crashed into the fence surrounding our yard. Everything in the shed is now exposed to the elements.
The lawn mower was tipped on its side and leaked gasoline all over the tent. The fence needs repaired where it is now damaged.
Looks like I will be calling the insurance company this morning.
Ha! Just What I Thought!
Raise 'em like and they will grow up to be wimps!
Maybe this is why I have such trouble hiring people who want to work!?!
I am all for being encouraging and promoting self-esteem, but not necessarily when it isn't deserved.
Trophies for simply participating? C'mon...what does that say to the team that worked hard and deserves that first place trophy? Getting that raise just because you stuck around long enough? What about the people who diligently completed their assignments and excelled at their position? They are the ones who deserve the raise!
I'm wondering, is this where all that graduation ceremony stuff for pre-schoolers and kindergartner started? What's with that anyway? Let's celebrate a REAL accomplishment...earn that diploma, then have a graduation ceremony! Now that's something!
Life is hard. You have to work to achieve something. Awards and recognition have a place only for those who work hard and deserve them. If everyone is rewarded because they participated, the accomplishments begin to lose meaning.
Awards and recognition, regardless, are meaningless. I prefer to look to my reward in heaven.