According to Cindy

Starting next year, they said on the news, you will be able to take a trip into space. If you can cough up the 300,000 to pay for it.
Yes, the future is here. Travel outside the earth's atmosphere. Doug asked me this morning if I wanted to do that. I told him no. Unfortunately, just leaving the earth's atmosphere is not my dream. I don't want to hang out in the black airlessness just outside out ozone. My brain is up there most of the time anyway. What I want is to touch the soil, or whatever it is, rock perhaps, of a whole other world. I'll wait until they offer trips to Mars.

It's Monday, all over the place.
Not a lot happened over the weekend. I watched Mean Girls, cute but I liked Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen better. Also watched Scooby Doo, the new one. I think Sarah Michelle Geller had padding on her butt! I know she's much skinnier than she looked on that movie.
Speaking of skinnier, I have to get on my diet, serious like. I'm starting again, today. A lady just walked in with a big box of Krispy Kremes and said it was a peace offering. I just turned my head and thought, "No, it's a declaration of war!" I know Thanksgiving and Christmas is on the way and I can not, REPEAT NOT afford to add 10 lbs to what is already here! I know part of it is crappy medications I have to take bloating me, but it can't all be that can it? I saw a commercial over the weekend for Meditrim and I'm sooooo tempted to go buy it. I know the diet products are mostly bogus, but they still tempt.
I went to Winn-Dixie last night to get groceries. Brandi saw a fairy costume and she wanted it. I couldn't resist. I had to get it for her. I told Doug we'd wait until the last day before Halloween and stand outside Party City and try to sell her Scooby Doo costume from last year. I'm sure with all the desperate people searching for a good costume, we could get a good price for it. So, any takers out there????

I'm tired and achey and can't concentrate to save my life. I just want to go on to pick up dinner and head home. Going to watch Mean Girls and Scooby Doo tonight.
ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

Thong Thursday is celebrated at a bar somewhere in Birmingham. Women who prove they are wearing thongs get in free on Thursday night. I think they also have a contest.
Last night we went to the Shelby County fair with the kids. I was glad Brandi's finally able to ride most all the rides now. In years past, we had to take turns at rides while either Doug or I took Brandi to a kiddie ride. I was afraid to let her go on the spaceship ride, because I was scared the little skinny bugger didn't weigh enough to stick to the wall. She rode it fine. Paul won a Yu-gi-oh frameable picture and I bought him a sword. Brandi won a Hawaiian Lay, a beanie dolphin and Doug won her a gold-fish. This is her first pet. She named him Nemo. She also had a head on colision with a little boy on the boucy blow-up thingy that kids play on. She actually has a bruise on the side of her face this morning. I felt so bad, I bought her a sword just like Paul got. I swear, if she keeps on, their going to call child services to check us out!
Thong Thursday! That means Cindy has to get the bulletins ready to run off, and various other projects that I am unable to procrastinate on.

Hump Day is half over. It's been a light workday for a Wednesday. I'm not sure what's up. I need to get started on the Messenger I suppose.
Yesterday, Susan came to my office saying she heard a low moaning sound. It sounded to her like it was coming from the walls or something. I went to her office and listened for it. Sure enough, in about 2 minutes or so, I heard it. It sounded almost like a plane flying low over the building. But not too low, because it wasn't very loud. We couldn't hear it from the hallway or any of the other offices. I sat down in a chair in front of her desk and leaned on it with my elbows. We started talking about this and that and I wasn't even really thinking about the noise anymore. Then suddenly it happened again. I felt the desk vibrate a bit when it happened. I said, "That sounds like a pager going off." Sure enough, she had about 3 old pagers in her desk that had been turned in and they were going off. Another church office mystery solved!
Tonight we will probably go to the Fair in Columbiana. That will be fun.

I just got out of staff meeting. I found out that my favorite restaraunt in Florida, Hamilton's, where they cook a steak darn near as good as mine, was blown away by hurricane Ivan. The good news is, they are going to build it back. I hope it's built before I go back next year and that it is as good.

http://www.hamiltonspcbeach.com/

The sentiment was the same up and down the battered Gulf Coast. Cranes lifted debris all day, and power tools whirred. Someone spray-painted "Hurricane who?" on the plywood protecting the windows of a motel in Panama City Beach. A boat was turned upside down on the side of the street. At Hamilton's Restaurant and Lounge there, Ray Pettis vowed to rebuild even though shreds of his roof were found two miles away.
"We've survived 11 different hurricanes," said Pettis, who has worked at the restaurant for more than half of his 37 years. "We've been here too long to just let it go."

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/09/18/MNGN78R6PR1.DTL

It's Monday again. Wah wah.
Didn't do much over the weekend. Worked with Paul on a project for school that I am about to print out and did some reading for Brandi's Top Dog program. Didn't rent movies. Read some James Patterson books. Ate too much junk food and got a tummy ache. Doug made a Halloween cake and put up decorations. I know Halloween is over a month away, but we are H'ween freaks at my house.
This morning I was fixing my hair and Doug asked me if I was trying to be Brittany Spears. I asked him if he thought I looked like Brittany. He didn't answer.
Brandi didn't want to get up this morning. Actually, I don't blame her.

The most notable effects the hurricane had on the Buchanan household is that rain started blowing in our front door. We had to tack up a garbage bag around the crevice at the top of the door to keep the rain from blowing in around it. Also, the wind kept sucking the water out of the commode. It was a weird thing to see.
Other than that, we lost our power and everyone got hurricane fever. What is hurricane fever you may ask? Well, that is when everyone runs out and buys up all the food like armegeddon was coming. I remember being in Walmart Friday trying to stock up on non-perishables. There was no bread on the shelves whatsoever. All the tuna was gone as well as most of the other canned goods. It was funny seeing people walk by the bread shelves. They would stop and just stare at it. Like if they looked long enough bread would magically appear. Then after the storm hits, everyone (read everyone male) wants to get out in the crap. Even though there are advisories out and that if you have an accident, you are very much on you own, Doug wanted to drive over to 280 first thing. Before it got "too bad" of course. Needless to say, I pitched a fit and he stayed put. Then here come the boys from the other apartments. The wind is blowing them so badly they can barely walk. Where are they going. Just around to each others apartments. I couldn't figure out why everyone couldn't just settle in, read a book, play a game or take a nap. That is proper hurricane activities. But, well, what do I know? Brandi was happy just trying to waste as much food as she could, since of course she saw all the bright packages laying on the table. She wanted to open them all. No sanity in my house what so ever!
Well, here I am back at work. Brandi is here with me. I am finished with all my work, unless Nancy brings me the new members to send letters to and add to the computer. Otherwise, I will do those next week. I am ready to go back home. And settle in, read, play a game or take a nap. Leave the hurricane fever to the guys.
Bye for now!

Everything is still standing... but for a few trees.
I got lucky and still have power. I am so glad, most people aren't so lucky. 2/3 of Alabama is out they said.
I am back at work today, hope everyone else in this area has fared well.

Here come's Ivan. I am such a procrastinator. Here I am, about to attempt a trip to Wally World. Gotta stock up on... Well whatever is there.
Be back shortly!

Yes, I'm back and the trip went well. Panama was lucky as far as Frances was concerned. There was no storm damage. The lady at the check in said that they didn't get much of the hurricane. I'm sure they were glad.
I read "The Bride Wore Chocolate" on the way down. An excellent book, fun to read. I highly recommend you get it!
Once there, we checked in, settled in and went to the beach. I, of course, forgot my towels. I had to send after one. We stayed on the beach until about 5:30 and got ready to go to dinner. We ate at the Bayoo Grill. After dinner, we had a short meeting and then 5 of us played cards (countdown).
I was lucky and had a room of my own. I got the small one near the front door. I liked having my own room, because I could stay up late reading and not worry about keeping anyone awake.
The next morning we had our meeting and then lunch. Around lunch time the rain came so we went and napped until 3:30. After that we played volleyball. Steve screamed at me a lot! I'm not much of a volleyball player! I need to practice. After volleyball, we got ready for dinner. We went to Hamilton's -- the absolute best restaraunt in the world! I ordered steak and shrimp. It was awesome. After dinner, we went bowling. I didn't get as many gutter balls as I usually do. That is something else I need to practice.
I didn't do any writing down there. I did read all of the BRIDE book. I started on The Maker's Diet. I can't read through non-fiction as fast as fiction. It's just not as enjoyable to me. I haven't even gotten to the actual diet part of the book yet, I'm still on the backstory behind the diet. I think it involves natural foods and some supplements. I wished I could afford to buy my groceries in an organic food store. Not many of us can though.

And there is a bit of rain but that is about all. Nothing big yet. I hope it stays that way.
We leave for Florida day after tomorrow. I hope we miss Frances and Ivan. I will need a lotta luck and a lotta prayers to miss both storms! Otherwise I will sit in my room and read and write while I am there. Not my idea of the way to spend time in Florida, but well, make the most of it!
I had steak twice over the weekend. My perfect rib-eyes! They were on sale, what can I say?
Went shopping yesterday and got the wrong size swim suit! I'm thankfully not a triple x yet!
I will be working really hard today and tomorrow to get all my work done.

I just heard on the radio yesterday that the guy who came up with the idea for MST 3000 was born and raised in Anniston, AL. Right in my backyard! Now I'm thinking of making a list of all the famous people from Alabama. We have HIM (can't remember his name) and the guy who played Spider Man, Linda Howard and who else? I am thinking of starting a list of famous people from Alabama.
Not a lot going on right now. Paul goes to his dad's this weekend. I hope to get some writing done. Shirley Jump emailed and said my autographed copies of her books were in the mail today, or maybe it was yesterday, since it came late yesterday. I was hoping to get the books in time for staff retreat so I would have them to read on the long trip down there.

The most bizarre thing happened to me last night. I woke up at 4:00 AM and had to go to the bathroom. I realized my husband was not in bed and I assumed he was in the bathroom so I waited a while and waited and finally got up. He wasn't in the bathroom, I found out... He was in the living room. And I was totally shocked at what he was doing. I couldn't believe it! He was................. WRITING. He looked up and saw me and said, "Hey, do ya want to write?" and with my eyes half closed, I said, "No, I want to go back to sleep. What the heck are you doing up writing?" He said he had a dream that he wanted me to turn into a story.
The reason I was so shocked, is this is way abnormal for him. Of all my stories, he's read a total of one of them. He's not a reader or a writer.
But, I have to admit, I think there was a good skeleton of a story there that I could flesh out. It's about a world that is flipped like a coin.
I believe I may be getting Brandi's strep. My throat is barely sore this am, but it feels like it could be beginning.
I watched a review of The Passion of the Christ last night. I don't think the bit controversy about the movie has to do with the graphic depiction, but rather, the fact that it was done by Mel Gibson. Of course the Jews are saying it is Anti-Semitic, but I don't think so. God planned for he crucifixion to happen back at the beginning of time, so we can't blame the Jews. Actually blame is a bad word for it. The Jews are responsible for bringing about God's plan. Even though it wasn't pretty how it came about and we don't really understand why it's that way. Oh well, politics and religion, so I'll hush now.