Life in the Fast Lane

Have you ever felt like you were living life in the fast lane? I mean all this technology was supposed to slow us down, but I honestly think I have sped up. I don't know how I used to do all the things I used to do, I can barely keep up with the things I am doing now.

I feel like I am zooming around from the time I get up til the time I go to bed. I zoom around in the bedroom making up the bed, cleaning up everything, getting a load of laundry in, taking it out, folding clothes, putting them up. Then I zoom around the kitchen, wash any dishes left in the sink, then zoom around the living room vacuuming. I then go run any errands I have. I come home feed the dogs, take out the trash, water the yard, when all of a sudden I realize it is time to get to work. So I have to jump into my uniform then zoom off into the sunset to work, as soon as I get there, I have to zoom into Squad meeting before the night starts.

What is the saying, time flies when you are having fun. Yippee! I must be having loads of it, because time is passing me up. I am trying my best to outrun it, but to no avail. By the time I get a chance to blog and read the blogs I love to read, then I am out of gas. I get off work... zoom home, pet the dogs, close the gate, run to jump in bed, lay my head on the pillow knowing tomorrow it starts all over again!

I was wondering if anyone else feels like there is not enough time in the day to do all the things you need to do and all the things you want to do? I had planned to go work out today at the gym and ride my bicycle, but didn't seem to get it done, tomorrow I will have squeeze the time in to do those things and also to call my friend, she called today and I never got to return her phone call. I think there is less than twenty four hours in a day!!

This is a Long Blog about Our President!

I was thinking about July 4 and what it means, I was thinking about 9/11 when war was declared upon us, when innocent people died in our streets. We didn't start this war, it came to us. We all thought Sadaam was a threat, we knew he was!

I remember watching President Bush being interviewed on one of the talk shows, I remember him saying to the interviewer, " it doesn't matter how many times you ask me or how many ways you ask, I will tell you the same thing, Sadaam Hussein was a Weapon of Mass Destruction, he murdered his own people, he was a terrible man and he needed to be removed from power." The interviewer began to question the president's popularity and what if he lost it, he then made the statement, "sometimes a man has to stand alone to do what is right."

I remember thinking he had an enormous amount of courage, he was standing up for what he believes is right! Even now with all the things that are happening he still does not waver. Mistakes have been made, but we are humans and that's what we do, we make mistakes and we learn from them.

We are blessed in America, our freedom has come at a high price. Someone laid down their life for what we enjoy today.

Some accomplishments of the Bush Administration:

The Bush Administration 2001-2004
Abortion & Traditional Values
1. Banned Partial Birth Abortion — by far the most significant roll-back of abortion on demand since Roe v. Wade.
2. Reversed Clinton's move to strike Reagan's anti-abortion Mexico Policy.
3. By Executive Order (EO), reversed Clinton's policy of not requiring parental consent for abortions under the Medical Privacy Act.
4. By EO, prohibited federal funds for international family planning groups that provide abortions and related services.
5. Upheld the ban on abortions at military hospitals.
6. Made $33 million available for abstinence education programs in 2004.
7. Supports the Defense of Marriage Act — and a Constitutional amendment saying marriage is between one man and one woman.
8. Requires states to conduct criminal background checks on prospective foster and adoptive parents.
9. Requires districts to let students transfer out of dangerous schools.
10. Requires schools to have a zero-tolerance policy for classroom disruption (reintroducing discipline into classrooms).
11. Signed the Teacher Protection Act, which protects teachers from lawsuits related to student discipline.
12. Expanded the role of faith-based and community organizations in after-school programs.


Budget, Taxes & Economy
1. Signed two income tax cuts, one of which was the largest dollar-value tax cut in world history.
2. Supports permanent elimination of the death tax.
3. Turned around an inherited economy that was in recession, and deeply shocked as a result of the 9/11 attacks.
4. Is seeking legislation to amend the Constitution to give the president line-item veto authority.
5. In process of permanently eliminating IRS marriage penalty.
6. Increased small business incentives to expand and to hire new people.
7. Initiated discussion on privatizing Social Security and individual investment accounts.
8. Killed Clinton's "ergonomic" rules that OSHA was about to implement; rules would have shut down every home business in America.
9. Passed tough new laws to hold corporate criminals to account as a result of corporate scandals.
10. Reduced taxes on dividends and capital gains.
11. Signed trade promotion authority.
12. Reduced and is working to ultimately eliminate the estate tax for family farms and ranches.
13. Fight Europe's ban on importing biotech crops from the United States.
14. Exempt food from unilateral trade sanctions and embargoes.
15. Provided $20 million to states to help people with disabilities work from home.
16. Created a fund to encourage technologies that help the disabled.
17. Increased the annual contribution limit on Education IRA's from $500 to $2,000 per child.
18. Make permanent the $5,000 adoption tax credit and provide $1 billion over five years to increase the credit to $10,000.
19. Grant a complete tax exemption for prepaid or college tuition savings plans.
20. Reduced H1B visas from a high of 195,000 per year to 66,000 per year.

Education & Employment Training
1. Signed the No Child Left Behind Act, delivering the most dramatic education reforms in a generation (challenging the soft bigotry of low expectations).
2. Announced "Jobs for the 21st Century," a comprehensive plan to better prepare workers for jobs in the new millennium by strengthening post-secondary education and job training, and by improving high school education.
3. Is working to provide vouchers to low-income students in persistently failing schools to help with costs of attending private schools. (Blocked in the Senate.)
4. Requires annual reading and math tests in grades three through eight.
5. Requires states to participate in the National Assessment of Education Progress, or an equivalent program, to establish a national benchmark for academic performance.
6. Requires school-by-school accountability report cards.
7. Established a $2.4 billion fund to help states implement teacher accountability systems.
8. Increased funding for the Troops-to-Teachers program, which recruits former military personnel to become teachers.

Environment & Energy
1. Killed the Kyoto Global Warming Treaty.
2. Submitted a comprehensive Energy Plan (awaits Congressional action). The plan works to develop cleaner technology, produce more natural gas here at home, make America less dependent on foreign sources of energy, improve national grid, etc.
3. Established a $10 million grant program to promote private conservation initiatives.
4. Significantly eased field-testing controls of genetically engineered crops.
5. Changed parts of the Forestry Management Act to allow necessary cleanup of the national forests in order to reduce fire danger.
6. Part of national forests cleanup: Restricted judicial challenges (based on the Endangered Species Act and other challenges), and removed the need for an Environmental Impact Statement before removing fuels/logging to reduce fire danger.
7. Killed Clinton's CO2 rules that were choking off all of the electricity surplus to California.
8. Provided matching grants for state programs that help private landowners protect rare species.

Defense & Foreign Policy
1. Successfully executed two wars in the aftermath of 9/11/01: Afghanistan and Iraq. 50 million people who had lived under tyrannical regimes now live in freedom, (we will prevail!).
2. Saddam Hussein is now in prison. His two murderous sons are dead. All but a handful of the regime's senior members were killed or captured.
3. Leader by leader and member by member, al Maida is being hunted down in dozens of countries around the world. Of the senior al Qaeda leaders, operational managers, and key facilitators the U.S. Government has been tracking, nearly two-thirds have been taken into custody or killed. The detentions or deaths of senior al Qaeda leaders, including Khalid Shaykh Muhammad, the mastermind of 9/11, and Muhammad Atef, Osama bin Laden's second-in-command until his death in late 2001, have been important in the War on Terror.
4. Disarmed Libya of its chemical, nuclear and biological WMD's without bribes or bloodshed.
5. Continues to execute the War On Terror, getting worldwide cooperation to track funds/terrorists. Has cut off much of the terrorists' funding, and captured or killed many key leaders of the al Qaeda network.
6. Initiated a comprehensive review of our military, which was completed just prior to 9/11/01, and which accurately reported that ASYMMETRICAL WARFARE capabilities were critical in the 21st Century.
7. Killed the old US/Soviet Union ABM Treaty that was preventing the U.S. from deploying our ABM defenses.
8. Has been one of the strongest, if not THE strongest friend Israel has ever had in the U.S. presidency.
9. Part of the coalition for an Israeli/Palestinian "Roadmap to Peace," along with Great Britain, Russia and the EU.10. Pushed through THREE raises for our military. Increased military pay by more than $1 billion a year.
11. Signed the LARGEST nuclear arms reduction in world history with Russia.
12. Started withdrawing our troops from Bosnia, and has announced withdrawal of our troops from Germany and the Korean DMZ.
13. Prohibited putting U.S. troops under U.N. command.
14. Paid back UN dues only in return for reforms and reduction of U.S. share of the costs.
15. Earmarked at least 20 percent of the Defense procurement budget for next-generation weaponry.
16. Increased defense research and development spending by at least $20 billion from fiscal 2002 to 2006.
17. Ordered a comprehensive review of military weapons and strategy.
18. Ordered a review of overseas deployments.
19. Ordered renovation of military housing. The military has already upgraded about 10 percent of its inventory and expects to modernize 76,000 additional homes this year.
20. Is working to tighten restrictions on military-technology exports.
21. Brought back our EP-3 intel plane and crew from China without any bribes or bloodshed.

Globalization & Internationalism
1. Challenged the United Nations to live up to their responsibilities and not become another League of Nations (in other words, showed the UN to be completely irrelevant).
2. Killed U.S. involvement in the International Criminal Court.
3. Told the United Nations we weren't interested in their plans for gun control (i.e., the International Ban on Small Arms Trafficking Treaty).*
4. The only President since the founding of the UN to essentially tell that organization it is irrelevant. He said: "The conduct of the Iraqi regime is a threat to the authority of the United Nations, and a threat to peace. Iraq has answered a decade of UN demands with a decade of defiance. All the world now faces a test, and the United Nations a difficult and defining moment. Are Security Council resolutions to be honored and enforced, or cast aside without consequence? Will the United Nations serve the purpose of its founding, or will it be irrelevant?" We all know the outcome and the answer.
5. Told the Congress and the world, "America will never seek a permission slip to defend the security of our country."

Government Reform
1. Improved government efficiency by putting hundreds of thousands of jobs put up for bid. This weakens public-sector unions and cuts undeserved pay raises.
2. Initiated review of all federal agencies with the goal of eliminating federal jobs (completed September 2003) in an effort to reduce the size of the federal government while increasing private sector jobs.
3. Led the most extensive reorganization the Federal bureaucracy in over 50 years: After 9/11, condensed 20+ overlapping agencies and their intelligence sectors into one agency, the Department of Homeland Security.*
4. Ordered each agency to draft a five-year plan to restructure itself, with fewer managers.
5. Converted federal service contracts to performance-based contracts wherever possible so that the contractor has measurable performance goals.

Homeland Security, Border Enforcement & Immigration
1. *See Government Reform above. Under President Bush's leadership, America has made an unprecedented commitment to homeland security.
2. Has CONSTRUCTION in process on the first 10 ABM silos in Alaska so that America will have a defense against North Korean nukes. Has ordered national and theater ballistic missile defenses to be deployed by 2004.
3. Announced a 9.7% increase in government-wide homeland security funding in his FY 2005 budget, nearly tripling the FY 2001 levels (excluding the Department of Defense and Project BioShield).
4. Before DHS was created, there were inspectors from three different agencies of the Federal Government and Border Patrol officers protecting our borders. Through DHS, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) now consolidates all border activities into a single agency to create "one face at the border." This not only better secures the borders of the United States, but it also eliminates many of the inefficiencies that occurred under the old system. With over 18,000 CBP inspectors and 11,000 Border Patrol agents, CBP has 29,000 uniformed officers on our borders. 5. The Border Patrol is continuing installation of monitoring devices along the borders to detect illegal activity.
6. Launched Operation Tarmac to investigate businesses and workers in the secure areas of domestic airports and ensure immigration law compliance. Since 9/11, DHS has audited 3,640 businesses, examined 259,037 employee records, arrested 1,030 unauthorized workers, and participated in the criminal indictment of 774 individuals.
7. Since September 11, 2001, the Coast Guard has conducted more than 124,000 port security patrols, 13,000 air patrols, boarded more than 92,000 vessels, interdicted over 14,000 individuals attempting to enter the United States illegally, and created and maintained more than 90 Maritime Security Zones.
8. Announced the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), an internet-based system that is improving America's ability to track and monitor foreign students and exchange visitors. Over 870,000 students are registered in SEVIS. Of 285 completed field investigations, 71 aliens were arrested.
9. This week, the US-VISIT program began to digitally collect biometric identifiers to record the entry and exit of aliens who travel into the U.S on a visa. Together with the standard information, this new program will confirm compliance with visa and immigration policies.
10. Eliminated INS bureaucratic redundancies and lack of accountability.
11. Split the Immigration and Naturalization Service into two agencies: one to protect the border and interior, the other to deal with naturalization.
12. Signed the workplace verification bill to prevent hiring of illegal aliens.
13. Established a six-month deadline for processing immigration applications.
14. Information regarding nearly 100% of all containerized cargo is carefully screened by DHS before it arrives in the United States. Higher risk shipments are physically inspected for terrorist weapons and contraband prior to being released from the port of entry. Advanced technologies are being deployed to identify warning signs of chemical, biological, or radiological attacks. Since September 11, 2001, hundreds of thousands of first responders across America have been trained to recognize and respond to the effects of a WMD attack.

DISTRESS CALL

Talk about embarrassing moments. It was around 3 am things were pretty quiet around the city. Not too much going on. Dispatch is pretty much kicked back with their feet propped up, waiting for the phones to ring.

A call comes in, it's a young man, fifteen years old, he is talking extremely quiet. The dispatcher can barely hear him. He is home alone and wants to know if we can send a paramedic to his house. The dispatcher asks him what the problem is, he says "can't you just send a paramedic?"

The dispatcher gets his address, name, telephone number sends the call to fireside and they dispatch. She then proceeds to question the boy, "Are you hurt, is anyone injured there? The boy then tells the dispatcher he has something stuck in his zipper. She replies..."you have something stuck in your zipper?" He quietly answers, "yes", she asks, "is it your private part?" He responds, "yes mam." The comments are recorded.

Long story short, they arrive at the boys home, can't get it unstuck, so they cut his jeans off except around his private area, then transport him to the hospital.

You never know what kind of calls are going to come into the PD. Poor Kid. Just thought I'd share an interesting call with you guys!!

SHOPLIFTING AT THE MALL, THEFTS IN GENERAL

Daily, people go to the mall, they steal. Some are adults, some are juveniles, some are parents with their juveniles stealing whatever they can get their hands on. What are they thinking? I am amazed at parents who teach their children to steal, it's a way of life, they think nothing of it, when they get caught, we arrest them, take them to jail, turn them over to juvenile, most of these people are repeat offenders, they get a slap on their hand, they get out, they go back to what they know.

An example of one of these calls ... one night we have two females in their twenties who go into a mall restroom, put on five pairs of panties each and then try to leave the store. They are apprehended by store security, we get the call, go out and upon further investigation find out they have a criminal history that is pages and pages long. One of the subjects when asked if she had any history, claimed only hot checks, of course we later find out, she is out on bond for a capital offense. People not only steal, they lie.

Another example was a lady who had three children with her, filled a shopping cart full, then had her child push the cart out to the car without paying for a thing in it. The same night a man and his wife, put their baby in a stroller and rolled it out of the store and started walking down the street.

It never ceases to amaze me what people will do. I mean really, did those girls need panties that bad or was it just to see if they could get away with it. Have they ever paid for panties or were all their panties stolen property. Probably the later.

In working with incarcerated juveniles, I have met some young men who stated they had never paid for clothes. One young man in particular said his mother and aunt would go steal clothes for he and his cousin, later they began to steal their own.

Theft affects all of us, it's a downhill slide. When someone steals something, the cost of that item has to be accounted for in some way and usually prices are raised so those of us who are not stealing panties have to pay more for our panties to offset the cost of the ones that are stolen. Criminal Activity costs all of us in some way.

I'm not sure why I started ranting about this tonight, I guess I am just venting.

A LABOR OF LOVE

My mother is staying with me right now. She is seventy nine years old, she has a blood clotting disorder, she can barely walk and is unable to make her own decisions anymore. It is so sad to see her in this condition, she was always so in control and so dominating. After three days of being here in Texas, her mind is clearer and she is getting along pretty well with a cane or her walker. I don't take any credit because only God could help her get better so quickly. And of course being in Texas would make anyone feel better. lol!

Right now, we cannot leave her alone in her own home, she doesn't remember to take her medication, blood thinner, seizure meds, etc. She sometimes doesn't know where she is and can give a good tongue lashing now and then. She thinks everyone is stealing from her and she gets confused sometimes where she is. She wants badly to stay in her home, so desperately I am trying to find live in care for her. I know she can't take moving from place to place much more, and she is not ready for a nursing home yet, that would surely devastate her at this point.

My sisters and I are sharing in taking care of her. She is with me for a week or more if she wants to stay, but she never does. Chuck and I work so we can't be there 24/7, so my stepdaughter Tamara takes care of her.

Tamara is a different breed, she usually gets on everyone's nerves, but she is like an angel sent from God when she is with my mom. She is gifted in being able to take care of the elderly. I could never be a nurse, but my sister Debbie and Tamara both should have went to school for nursing, it's just a natural thing for them. Not me! No way Jose. I can do what I need to and it is a definate labor of love.

Anyways today, I had a meeting so I had to leave at 9:30 this morning, I had to be at work at 2pm and I work until 11pm unless I have to stay over for an emergency situation, so today I was hardly at home at all.

No prob, Tamara to the rescue, she not only comes to sit with mom, she cuts and dies her hair, waxes her chin and eyebrows, tomorrow she is going to wax her armpits and legs, then on Sunday she will give her a manicure and pedicure. Now who does that? Only an angel sent from God.

It is truly an amazing thing to see this side of Tamara. She has always remembered any small infraction her dad ever had. I remember one time he asked her if he had ever done anything right at all. I wonder if it is because she feels needed that this side of her is so different.

I don't know really all the reasons why...but I know I am thankful to have Tamara and to know my mother is taken care of. I am also thankful to be able to sit back and see that sometimes we don't always see the other side of a person, no matter how we may perceive them, I guess everyone has their good and bad side. I tend to think I don't have a bad side, but I probably do.

I have made mistakes in the past and would do alot of things different if I had the chance, but I can't, so I try to do unto others as I would have them do to me. I try to show my children how much I love them and how they mean the world to me.

I am always learning something new, God is still teaching me and showing me I have a long way to go and a whole lot more to learn. So I continue to labor and if you have any spare prayers please send them up for mom and for my family, sisters and brothers, we can use a few extra these days.

Back to the Real World, I Mean the Blog World

I am back! Wow did I ever have fun, that is why I have not blogged in over a week. I had the most wonderful time. I have been to South Padre many times, but never have I swam in the ocean as much. The water was beautiful and clear. The beaches were clean.

We stayed in the Holiday Inn Sunspree. They had two beautiful swimming pools, a grill out by the pool where they served burgers, tacos and hotdogs. There was also a bar where they served drinks. (I don't drink so the bar wasn't something I was interested in.) However everytime you came or went at the hotel, they served you Ice Cold Pineapple Juice by the front door.

The room was beautiful, king sized bed, balcony overlooking the pool, couch and table. The only negative I had was I could not get my wireless connection to work on my laptop, so I am not sure if it was there problem or mine. Gotta check that out.

I will post some pics later. Haven't had time to stop and even think about blogging, much less anything else.

Thanks to everyone for visiting my site, I am looking forward to catching up on all of yours!!

SOUTH PADRE ISLAND

I am headed for South Padre Island. I need a break from the real world, how about you? I am going to go sit in the sun, play in the waves, walk in the sand, eat lots of fish and shrimp and play the time away. So if I am not blogging for a few days, you know why.

I will do my best to post some pics and to keep everyone abreast of what is going on. I am going to sign off now, hopefully be back blogging in a few days.

MY MISSION TRIP TO RUSSIA

Nine years ago I went on a short term mission trip to Russia. It took seventeen hours by airbus. It changed my life. While I was there, I realized how blessed I am to be an American and how much my freedom means.

Upon arriving at the airport, it was dark and the military were everywhere. The restrooms were dirty, no seats on the toilets, water leaking everywhere, no type of toilet paper to be found. Standing in line declaring our money, I had time to thank the Lord for being born in America and to ponder on how blessed we are and how much we take for granted.

We walk outside of the airport, it's cold and damp. We board a bus that must've been twenty years old, the curtains were hanging in shreds on the inside. We are on our way to the hotel and see homes that are over a hundred years old, they looked like shacks.

Most of the Russian people live in apartment buildings, heat and air are controlled by the government. It would be so hot when we were visiting, they would have all of their small windows open trying to cool it down so it was bearable. They were eager to show us speakers in the walls, they told us when the Communist Government was in power they could listen in on their converstations. Very few Russians own cars, they walk everywhere.

When we arrived at our hotel, we could see Red Square and the Kremlin in the distance. The hotel is supposed to be one of the best in the world. The lobby was beautiful, lots of marble, the rooms were a different story, they were small and had two small twin sized beds on each side with foam rubber mattresses. The bathrooms were stained with rust, a water hose came out of the wall in the bathtub instead of stainless steel faucets. However the toilet did have a seat on it.

When we were there, minimum wage was five dollars a month. Some of the people worked in factories and didn't get paid, but didn't want to give up their jobs because they might start paying again one day. Most of them wore the same clothes everyday for a week. The elderly and little kids slept in the underground tunnels and in doorways.

I remember one night we found a McDonalds in Moscow. We were eating a Big Mac and this little elderly lady was going from table to table begging for scraps. I asked my husband what she was doing and he said she's hungry, so I told him to give her some money, he gave her some and she started crying,then buried her head in his chest, went to get some coffee, stood by the trash can and weeped. As we were leaving I told him to give her some more money, when he did, she followed us outside crying saying over and over Spaceba (thank you). I couldn't take it, it was so sad. I wouldn't go back if I didn't have alot of money to give away.

The Russia people are beautiful people. We were there sharing the gospel of Christ. When you give them a bible, they will cry and they will kiss it and thank you over and over. Sometimes they only get to read the bible every two or three weeks, because they have to share them with other Christians. It is so precious to them, we take it so for granted. In America we have so many blessings, we don't realize how blessed we are.

Anyway, I tell you all this to tell you the reason I volunteer today is because one of our interpreters, a young college student asked us what we were doing eight thousand miles away from home when our youth in America had so many problems. She asked..."What are you doing to help your youth in America?" We felt like God was speaking to us through this young girl, so when we returned to America and our Pastor asked for volunteers at a maximum security facility for juveniles, we went there and have been volunteering ever since.

At present we are the Chaplains at a minimum security facility for boys ages 13 to 18. It has been a very rewarding experience. At times I get weary in well doing, but then I remember I am only the one planting seeds, telling them there is a better way, that they are loved. God has a special plan and purpose for their lives. I have seen God's hand move in many ways, especially in my own life, in my own heart, He is changing me daily into the person He created me to be.

I am very blessed, I am thankful I live in America and I have the freedom to share the gospel. Hopefully I can make a difference in someone else's life, whether it is on my job, where I volunteer or even with a stranger, I don't want to look back and have wasted a minute. I want to make the most of every opportunity to give someone else hope, because this life will one day end and I believe there is an eternity, I believe I will face God one day and I will have to give an account for the life I have lived.

THE POWDER ROOM

The powder room, ladies room, or whatever you want to call it, is usually a place where you can go for a moment of solitude, or it's also the place where women go to talk amongst themselves, to put on fresh cosmetics, brush our hair, change clothes etc. That's why in nicer ladies rooms there is a sitting area complete with a couch, chair, tables and perhaps a small basket of toiletries, lotions, curling iron, hair dryer and the like.

Usually the powder room is a safe place to chit chat and have small talk, then we females return to our places at restaurants, work, shopping etc. Unfortunately nowadays, we have heard so many stories about strangers peering through the holes in the wall, or the vents or having a camera filming whatever, that we tend to be much more careful and look around alot while we are taking our beauty break, which brings me to the story I am about to tell you.

Many years ago, I was merchandising for a grocery chain, when I had to take a powder room break. On this particular day I went by myself, leaving my coworkers to finish the display we were building.

If you have ever been to the bathroom in a Grocery Store, you have probably noticed they are dimly lit. This one had two stalls, it was a nice enough restroom. The store was new and wasn't opened yet, but many venders, employees and distributors were coming and going. I was in a hurry and went into the stall, sat down and started to glance around. In the next stall, I could see a pair of size 14 wing tip men's dress shoes and a trench coat! This was not my day!!!!

I jumped up and nearly tore the stall to pieces getting out of there. All day long I could not concentrate, I just kept looking at all the men's shoes in the store to see who was in the women's restroom. I never saw who it was, but now I make sure there are no men's shoes in the stalls when I take a powder room break. I am not into coed restrooms, that is not for me.

ONE OF MY SCARIEST EXPERIENCES!!

It was in early December, the temperatures were in the twenties, ice and snow covered the acre of land we lived on. The seven foot shrubs encircling our property were completely coated in ice making a quiet and beautiful winter wonderland as I looked out the window early this Monday morning. It was five am and everyone was still asleep in our house. It was that time again, time to get ready to go drive a bus for the school district in our small town.

We lived in a quiet little town, not much happened there, especially back then, before we had the growth we have seen in recent years. I have always disliked having to get up early before daylight and go into town by myself, but this morning I had to be extra careful because the streets were icy and in the winter it always seemed so much darker. It was so quiet.

As I arrived at the bus barn, I had this morning ritual of driving up behind my bus, then I would put my vehicle in park, leave it running and get into the bus, start it to let it warm up , make sure the air brake was on, then go get back in my vehicle, park close to the building and go inside.

Anyway, this morning was different, you know how you just have that eerie feeling, like the presence of evil is in your midst. I just couldn't shake it. So here I am going through my morning ritual, getting into my bus, it is very dark because the windows are iced over, it's cold and the overall feeling was just like the feeling of being all alone and someone is watching you. You know what I am talking about...you can feel their eyes burning through your very being, but of course you know there is no one there, it's just that aloneness you are feeling, so you go through the motions and try not to think about it anymore.

So here I am starting the bus, checking to make sure the air brake was intact, heater on, etc, when all of a sudden, I didn't hear anything but out of the corner of my eye, I see a man in gray clothes move from the rear of the bus, to the seat behind the drivers seat and sit down. I see his shadow in the rear view mirror.

My blood ran cold, sweat popped on my brow, my heart was racing, I gasped for breath and let out a blood curdling scream that pierced the darkness and all in a moment's time, I almost tore the steering wheel and the door off of that old bus getting out, I was falling out of it backwards and managed to land on my feet. I was running and falling all over myself trying to get to my car and trying to look behind me to see if a rapist was after me, I must've looked like the road runner burning rubber that morning, I never realized I could run on ice, but I think I could've walked on water that day if I'd had to.

Fear had taken over my very being, I was acting totally on instinct, I was going full speed ahead to the nearest getaway vehicle, I was going to drive through the walls of that bus barn before I got out. No one and I mean no one was going to get me that morning!! or any morning for that matter.

Then I hear it. Laughter!!!! Uncontrollable laughter, out of the corner of my eye I see him again. It's my supervisor, laughing his rear off. My fear turned to rage, I turned and ran after him, he took off, I was throwing anything I could see and screaming at him. He was laughing so hard he was crying. I began to laugh too, but I was mad at the same time, talk about mixed emotions, relieved to know it was him, but furious he had scared the pee out of me. I almost had a heart attack. If I could have gotten ahold of him, it would not have been pretty!

When I look back now, I still laugh, but I also realize it could've been serious, I am alot more careful now than I used to be. I pay attention to what is going on around me and everyone else these days. Thank God it was just a joke, unfortunately there are people who are attacked everyday in our city, I am thankful I wasn't that night, I am thankful it was just a prank.

A PAST 911 STORY

This is a story from the past, Eddo wanted me to tell some of my 911 episodes when I was dispatching.

It was a quiet night as we arrived at the PD. The air was breezy, dusk had just begun to settle on the city. I used to always wonder what the night would hold, would it be quiet, would there be a foot pursuit, or would it be one of those nights when all of the wierdos and perverts decided to come out.

As I entered the building, the place was buzzing...this night I was assigned to work B side. The responsibliities of B side include entering warrants, answering multiple phone lines, dispatching animal control, answering officers on traffic stops, running drivers license checks, license plates, checking criminal histories, checking for local warrants, running teletypes, and primary call taker for 911. The intensity of B side can sometimes be overwhelming at times depending on how busy the night is.

Anyway, everything was going pretty smoothly, 911 rings, I hit the button and all I can hear is a lady screaming at the top of her lungs, "SOMEBODY HELP ME!!!, over and over she kept screaming. I kept repeating to her that I was trying to help her, but she needed to calm down enough to be able to tell me where she was located. She continued to scream, I finally got her address. I asked if she needed an ambulance, she is still screaming at the top of her lungs. I put in the call, Fire side dispatched a medic and an engine, then PD side sent two patrol cars to the scene.

My nerves were shot, I was answering the radio. letting officers know I was on 911, the lady is still screaming, I keep reassuring her help is on the way. I asked her to try to calm down so she could tell me what was wrong. She continued to scream, I asked her if she could unlock the door for paramedics, I had to continually repeat myself in a calm even tone and reassure her we were going to help her. I tried to find out if anyone else was with her, if she was hurt, no luck, she just continued to scream over and over ..... "SOMEBODY HELP ME!!!"

Medics arrive, patrol units on scene, the scene is secure, apparently nothing serious, the engine moves in. We are anxiously waiting to hear, what is going on, what is wrong. Then I hear an officer take the phone, the lady has somewhat calmed down, but still frantic...the voice on the other end says...no emergency here, the lady was screaming about her dog. I was like "WHAT??!! You have got to be kidding me!!!" This woman had almost caused me to go deaf, my patience was getting short and my stress level was at an all time high. The lady's dog had eaten a chicken bone and a piece of it had gotten lodged in its jaw.

Oh my goodness!!! I am thinking to myself, all that time, something really serious could have happened to someone else or one of the officers, because we thought a serious emergency was occurring.

So, I quietly get up and let everyone know it was time for a Mental Health Break! I had to get away for a moment of silence!

I can look back now and chuckle about it. Realizing she loved her dog like I love my kids, but hoping she doesn't have another emergency like that or at least if she does, that she can articulate to the dispatchers what is going on. I think her address will be forever imprinted in my memory in case we get any type of call from her in the future. lol!

MAKING A LIST OF PLANS FOR THE BABY!

My daughter, Precious is having a baby. We are all so excited!!!

So here is the plan…..
First we have to install a kiosk in my daughter’s living room so we can check the baby in and out. You know scan it in and scan it out or enter into the computer when you have the baby and when you bring him or her back. My son-in-law made the statement that his baby was not coming with a library card. Lol!!! How funny!! If they have quadruplets it would probably be less of a problem for all of us!! Lol

I mean we will all get our fair share of time that way. We want to make sure the baby knows how much he or she is loved and we all have all these things we want to teach him or her, so this way we can check him or her in and out!, so Eddo, Sam, Paula and Jim don’t try to hog him or her. Hmm, I wonder when it’s parents will get to see him or her??

My list goes like this….
We will pray for this child day and night for the Lord’s protection and guidance all the days of his or her life, that he or she will become the person God intended for him or her to be. We will teach him or her to share and to care about others, to be humble and sweet, to love others unconditionally, to love the Lord with all of his or her heart!
This baby will defiinately be entered in all baby contests because it will win them all.
We must teach him or her sign language early.
Of course we want to get all kinds of educational toys for his or her crib.
We will read at least one book to it every day from the time he or she is born.
He or she must have Spanish, English and French lessons, he or she will be fluent in all by the time he or she is five.
Art Lessons of course!
Dance lessons of course.
Piano Lessons, guitar lessons, drums, coronet, saxophone and any other musical instrument we can think of.
This baby will be fishing, swimming, camping, hiking and of course we will have nature walks, with binoculars to teach he or she about all the flowers and plants as well as any birds we might find.
And only the finest schools for this child!
Of course safety will be an issue, no talking to strangers, crossing the street safely, staying away from the swimming pool when an adult is not there…

Of course the list will go on and on and on……for now that’s enough until I finish compiling the list. Wow this is going to be so much fun!!!

ONE HUNDRED YEARS AGO

The year is 1902, one hundred and three years ago years ago ...what a difference a century makes. Here are the U.S. statistics for 1902.

(The average life expectancy in the US was forty-seven (47).

Only 14 percent of the homes in the US had a bathtub.

The average US worker made between $200 and $400 per year.

Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone. A three-minute call from Denver to New York City cost eleven dollars.

A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year, a dentist $2,500 per year, a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year, and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.

There were only 8,000 cars in the US and only 144 miles of paved roads.

The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.

Alabama, Mississippi, Iowa, and Tennessee were each more heavily populated than California. With a mere 1.4 million residents, California was only the 21st most populous state in the Union.

The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower.

The average wage in the US was 22 cents an hour.

More than 95 percent of all births in the US took place at home.

Ninety percent of all US physicians had no college education. Instead, they attended medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press and by the government as "substandard."

Sugar cost four cents a pound. Eggs were fourteen cents a dozen. Coffee cost fifteen cents a pound.

Most women only washed their hair once a month and used borax or egg yolks for shampoo.

Canada passed a law prohibiting poor people from entering the country for any reason.

The five leading causes of death in the US were:

1. Pneumonia and influenza 2. Tuberculosis 3. Diarrhea 4. Heart disease 5. Stroke

The American flag had 45 stars. Arizona, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Hawaii and Alaska hadn't been admitted to the Union yet.

The population of Las Vegas, Nevada was 30.

Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and iced tea hadn't been invented.

There was no Mother's Day or Father's Day. {Clearly, no Hallmark Card Company, either}

One in ten US adults couldn't read or write. Only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated from high school.

Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available over the counter at corner drugstores. According to one pharmacist, "Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind, regulates the stomach and the bowels, and is, in fact, a perfect guardian of health."

Eighteen percent of households in the US had at least one full-time servant or domestic.

There were only about 230 reported murders in the entire US.

Wow, times have changed!