Category: Uncategorized

It’s Been a Year

I have always loved this song since I was a little girl!:

Even though what I am going to write has nothing to do with this song, I just wanted a reason to post it! Today marks a year that my Mom has been sheltering in place with me in my house.

This song is a far cry from my Mom coming into my house before I was awake to strip my bed to wash the sheets. I was still asleep when she walked into my room that I had to take my mouthguard out as she was getting ready to take the sheets off of my bed. She helped me into my chair where I fell asleep and Sean woke up confused about me sleeping in the living room in my wheelchair.

My Mom and I never had the mother-daughter angst when I was a child/teen and I lived with her and my Dad until I was 23 and Sean was three. I lead a very small life anyway and my day is pretty much scripted. I’ve written before about the fact that being quarantined and sheltered in place hasn’t really changed my life.

Maybe things will change pretty soon and I will finally be able to get my eyebrows waxed and a haircut but it hasn’t been that bad with my Mom here! There are so many things that I can no longer do for myself and my Mom steps right in to help and doesn’t make me feel guilty about it!

Yesterday was the 4th Friday of Lent

AND my birthday!!! I enjoyed my FAVORITE Christmas cookies from my aunt Lola as I watched Jesus Christ Suerstar and had a large glass of milk! As I watched it, I thought about Caiaphas’s hat. That is so cool and I thought about The fact that if I was still, “High school Jenny” I totally would have rocked it! We’re talking about the person who had Cookie Monster purses and bow biters for her school shoes that I used in wore every day!

But, thinking about the events of yesterday, and being my 39th birthday, I am too old for that now! I bought Cheeseheads for me and Sean that we DID wear while we’re watching the Packers when I was 28 but 39 is a little too old!!!

I told my Mom that I feel 39 this morning but I think that feeling comes from having MS for 20+ years. Sean brought my mint chocolate chip ice cream cake that I was excited to eat and he also brought Red Robin which he ate in the kitchen and I ate in my bedroom.

He also brought me presents that he showcased from the couch as I sat at the edge of the room in the doorway. He did a great job and choosing my presents!!! But before he showed me that, I realized yesterday that I have been low carbing it for a very long time! So, yesterday with the cookies, milk, and my guacamole burger and just a few fries. It proved to be too much! For all of my low carbing peeps, you know what happened! My birthday ice cream cake is still in the freezer and perhaps today I might have a sliver! We will have to see!!!

Random Tune in my Facebook Feed #5 OR Gauges

I came across this song in my Facebook feed at 1:54 this morning! Sleep, as usual, was evading me at that point. I saw what song it was and I clicked on it and thought to myself, “That’s Kevin‘s favorite band.” I met Kevin my freshman year of college. I haven’t seen him in 20 years!:

As I watched the video, I noticed the gauges in his ears. I noticed that particularly because I actually helped Kevin change his gauges in his ears to the next larger size.

I remember during my freshman year of college that gauges in your ears for guys and girls was really cool! I never did it though because I saw myself as a professional teacher one day. I opted for a cartilage piercing instead.

So, Kevin asked me to change his gauges and I figured that was easy enough so I agreed. What I did not know is what it exactly entailed! Let me just cut the suspense and tell you that it is really gross!

So, Kevin had gauges in his ears and he had a slightly larger pair in a little baggie in his hand and told me that I just needed to put them in. Because they were in his ears, he couldn’t do it by himself. He explained to me what I was going to do and I was just going to push they bottom of the gauge into the hole and then pop the top of the gauge into the hole so it was snug. But, they were slightly larger than the holes that were already in his ears. This meant that I had to really force them into the hole with my fingers. I never thought I wouldn’t be able to control my hands but I was grateful I could do it back then. That is, until I actually did it!

I used my fingertips to force the top of the gauge into his ear but that slightly larger size was difficult to put into his ear! But, here’s the grossest part, the holes in his ears bled as a forced the larger gauge into them! I think we were sitting on the floor in my room as I pushed them into his ears because my wall mate, Marissa, had class.

His ears bled as I stretched out the holes! I was not prepared for that! His earlobes were bright red and I asked him if it hurt. He said it did a little but a few days later they looked like they did when I met him. That was absolutely disgusting and I will never put gauges into someone’s ears again!

This all happened 20 years ago but I still remember it! It was really gross!

“Birthday Month” Day 6

Yesterday was, “Birthday Month” Day 6. Going along with my Irish themed movies, I watched Far and Away last night. I hadn’t seen it since Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman were married and I felt like I was watching it for the first time last night. It fit in with my LOVE of Irish accents and greenery so I dug it. But I’m feeling rather, “MS-y” today. I may have to watch my tried-and-true movie that I watch when I don’t feel well, Sense and Sensibility.

I ABSOLUTELY have NO problem watching the same five movies over and over again until Saint Patrick’s Day but I am open to any suggestions! My movies are: The Quiet Man, Laws of Attraction, Leap Year, Darby O’Gill and the Little People, and Far and Away. Since my birthday month falls during Lent, I watch Jesus Christ Suerstar on Fridays but my criterion are: Irish accents, greenery, and I would love traditional Irish dancing and castles if possible. Anyone have any suggestions?

Skinny Jeans

A Facebook friend of mine posted this a while back and it made me laugh!;

I didn’t know that skinny jeans weren’t a thing anymore but I laughed as I thought of a student of mine back when they just got big. She had already known that purple was my favorite color and told me that I should wear a purple sweater and skinny jeans and that would be really cute!

I remember smiling at her when she told me that and she said it to me a couple more times. It was the third time that I looked at her and told her that, “Honey, in order to wear skinny jeans, you have to be skinny!“. I was teaching from a manual wheelchair then and I told her that it may not look like it because I am sitting down but I have LOTS of junk in my trunk! She laughed at that and I think I got a, “No, Miss!”

I did think of her when I wore a purple sweater and my purple chucks on a date even though I was wearing boot cut jeans. I saw this post on Twitter not too long ago and figured that I should write this post today because it is the final Saturday thatI will be 38!;

I also thought of that student after reading this tweet. I don’t remember her name but I can still see her face.

“Birthday Month” Day 2

I really feel that I am killing two birds with one stone! Because it is my, “Birthday Month” and Saint Patricks Day is drawing closer, I figured to watch Laws of Attraction.

I love this movie because it is jam packed with Irish accents, Irish dancers, castles, and greenery! I have seen this movie so many times but I still LOVE it!

I was thinking of this song because it is in the movie as well and it reminds me of my friend Marilyn because it’s her wedding Song!

My Mom actually sat down and watched this movie with me today. She told me that she has never seen the entire movie and I laughed because I have seen it SO many times!

#MyGirlL: “Oh, You Nasty Girl!”

Okay, this was Leia’s first winter of her little life.The rescue we got her from could not tell me her actual birthdate. This picture was her first attempt to maneuver through the big snowfall we got:

It was too deep for her to get through successfully so that is why my Mom shoveled her a trail.

The “March Meltdown” has come sooner this year and this is what my yard looks like now:

Leia likes to sunbathe so my Mom put her outside bed in the yard next to a mat left behind from the previous homeowners to give her a choice to be on them while the sun was shining.


My Mom set her bed up to let her enjoy the sun and she watched her through the kitchen window. But, Leia was NOT laying on either one of those things but instead was laying on the muddy grass. My Mom opened the back door and called her in by telling her to, “Get in here! Oh, you nasty girl!“ Hearing her say this, I immediately thought of this song:

The saddest thing about it being so muddy was that she could not play with her friend, Sado:

The 1st Friday of Lent

After watching Ben-Hir yesterday, I felt very much into the Lenten season. So much so, I thought I would watch Jesus Christ Superstar. I started watching it this morning before my Mom washed my hair. Once this song came on though, my thoughts shifted and I was reminded of auditioning for a play in high school. I was in the A-B rooms just above the gym and I was going to sing for the Director. There was a piano in that large room with two doorways.

When I was in high school, I did not know all of the words but I knew most of them so I sang The ones that I knew and just kind of sang, “La, la, la” to the melody. As I listened to this song, I got lost in my memories of being in high school so I had to stop before my Mom washed my hair.

After my hair was washed and dried, I continued watching the movie. It was the passion of the Christ and I was reminded of taking Sean with me to Stations of the Cross at DC. He was in grade school and he went with me every Friday during lent even though he went during school. He knew that Stations meant something to me so he just went with it. I remember being on crutches for most of those but I think I did go a couple of years in my wheelchair.

As my strength and mobility worsened, I was not able to go and now that I have pretty much been excluded from my church (because of my health) I have not gone to Stations but I consciously thought of going there and taking young Sean with me every week.

Over the years, it has worked out that I have purchased both movies that I have watched since it is Lent. I think I will have to watch it again, maybe in Lou of going to Stations of the Cross. I don’t think I can hear Mary Magdalene’s first song without first thinking of high school but I think that God will understand.

MyGirlL: The Things You Do for Love

Okay, I first need to preface this post by saying that I have WONDERFUL neighbors, and I am reminded of this every single winter I have lived here! My neighbor around the corner (we share a fence) will bring his snowblower around the corner and snow blow my walkway and if he does not do that, my next-door neighbor will come over and shovel the walkway for me! Sean will come over before or after work to shovel as well.

So, since my Mom does not need to shovel, she has done some thing for Leia now that it is so cold outside and she doesn’t take her for walks because it’s too cold and it can be icy if someone doesn’t shovel and salt and Leia’s paws is NOT good. So this is what my Mom did after she saw Leah’s attempt at playing in the yard. Her little body couldn’t Was too little to get through the snow. My Mom decided to make a track for her around the perimeter of my yard. Leia likes to do her business on the Fenceline. So she dug a trench in the entire perimeter of my yard. In the morning, she goes out and will pick up any of her business that she leaves there.

My Mom took a video to show me what the trench looks like and I think it’s adorable! The things you do for love! And my Mom loves her! We all do! I will post that video on Twitter as well as Facebook. There are actually two videos. The first video was too long so I was able to post the second one that shows Leia Liking it. My Mom says that sometimes Leia will run around in circles really fast for a while.

Another Technical, “#SuperBinge”

Based on so many of my Facebook friends telling me to watch Bridgerton, I finally started watching it late Wednesday night. My Mom is not a fan of series and I didn’t want to take over the TV. I just watched it on my phone in my bed.

I posted on Facebook when I would see an episode and people told me that they couldn’t believe how disciplined I was just to watch one episode a day. I was told that they had binged it in one day.

I am a huge fan of and have done a few, “#SuperBinges” of my own! Game of Thrones in 10 days was a lot and the first 13 seasons of Grey’s Anatomy and one summer was also a lot. I just really didn’t want to binge this in front of my Mom.

Well, I saw episode three the night before last and my Mom took Leia for a walk, so I watched episode four on my phone in my wheelchair in the living room. Many of my Facebook friends had talked about the Duke as being so attractive but I really wasn’t feeling that until three episodes in.

After I was ready for the day, I put my glasses on and told myself I was just going to watch episode five. NOT a GREAT episode to watch with your mother in the next room! But then I was hooked and HAD to complete my, “#SuperBinge!” So, yeah, these scenes were uncomfortable to watch knowing that my Mom could hear them but I lowered the volume but completely got swept away with the storyline!

So, now I have to wait for season two to come out but I think I may have to forgo sleep one night to binge it without inconveniencing my Mom or making me uncomfortable!

I DEFINITELY would recommend the show but be sure to be mindful of who you watch it around. Even at 38, it was a little uncomfortable to know that my Mom knew that I was watching it! AND I am DEFINITELY into the Duke now!!!