I'm sorry you can't be bothered to file paperwork. Not my problem.

I read Runner’s World magazine. Yeah its a little pleasure I have. I read like a fiend. I'm reading this month's issue and it has an article about a track team.

Now I read Runner’s World for tips and stories and silly things shoe reviews etc. This article is about two coaches at an Arizona high school. One of the coaches has been in the states 20 years illegally. He was pulled over, had no license because of a DUI in 2002, and they figured out he was illegal. Now, the team is protesting his arrest and people are very upset about the whole issue of his arrest. The article talks about the ice cold holding room and the hundreds of other men he had to share the cell with.

I don’t feel sorry for him. He’s been here 20 years and had all that time to file his paperwork and receive a resident alien status at minimum. Actually the kicker is he’s been married to a US citizen for 5 years and never initiated the paperwork for citizenship.

Why should I feel sorry for him? He has had 20 years to file his paperwork and get his ducks in a row.

Now, I’m not mean and I think that we need to offer more H1B visas and more options for people who may be here illegally. 20 years though? I don’t feel sorry for him.

I beat you evil sun!!

Just thought I'd share a little.

It's been very hot in Florida the past few days. During the day over 105 with the eat index!! (I feel for everyone in the NE right now who is going through that heat wave!)

I usually run at sundown, 8ish usually around here. While it was hot it was usually bearable and usually a bit of a breeze coming off of the manmade lake. Well, the past week it's been in the 90's at 10pm at night. Heat and I don't get along that well and when I ran last week in the heat I almost puked.

For those who don’t know heat sensitivity is a very common side effect of MS. It’s different for everyone but for me when I get overheated my old symptoms come to the forefront. My right side gets funky I get nauseated, dizzy and vertigo can set in. If I don’t watch myself I can get overheated pretty easily (like on a hike to a waterfall) so I try to listen to my body and rest if I need it.

I’m usually ok on my runs because I can immediately come inside and jump in a cold shower and as long as I’m dressed in running clothes I don’t get to hot. However, with the crazy heat and humidity this hasn’t been the case.

I decided that I needed to do something and usually that something means moving it inside. I go to the gym to do weight training and toning but I really hate running on a treadmill. My legs are a little funky and the treadmill forces your stride (how you run) so it always hurts my shins. Trying to avoid shin splints I did the elliptical. Not only did it hurt my shins but my right knee was protesting and it gave a little while exercising.

Needles to say I was getting a bit annoyed. lol

So today I get up early. 5am to be exact and figure I will run before the sun comes up. Now, I don't do this! Not normally but I think maybe this exercise is becoming an addiction for me.

But… I ran and it was great! Yes, it was still 90% humidity and 80 but it wasn't bad with no sun!! I think now I am going to have to run at the crack of dawn with my mace and hope for the best! lol

Living the dream!

Florida has some cool things. We have Disney, Universal, and Sea World which are all great for families. We have some interesting wildlife like Florida Panthers and Florida crocodiles (not gators those are common). We also have flying cockroaches. Yes, I know they’re “palmetto bugs”. Just because you call it that does not mean that changes what they are. They look like roaches, they act like roaches, and they live in your house like roaches. They are cockroaches that are huge and can fly.

Guess what new and cool thing you can get in Florida now? Dengue fever! For those who don’t know dengue fever is a disease — ranging from mild to severe — caused by four related viruses spread by a particular species of mosquito. Mild dengue fever causes high fever, rash, and muscle and joint pain. More-severe forms of the disease — dengue hemorrhagic fever and dengue shock syndrome — can additionally cause severe bleeding, a sudden drop in blood pressure (shock) and death.

The mosquitoes that carry this special present will bite you at anytime, even during the day. Unlike the traditional Florida mosquitoes who are most active at dusk and dawn.

People always ask me what it’s like living in paradise. I’m living the dream everyone. Living... the... dream!

Being a hermit looks better every day.

I’m a little concerned about the quality of worker we have extending the road outside of my home. The main roadway that leads into my subdivision is being widened. Two weeks ago they accidentally hit one of the water lines and the whole area was without water for a few hours. Today I leave my complex and realize that the whole road is shut down. I find out why - seems this time the workers cut the gas line. Now, call me crazy but you would think they have diagrams where all of the utilities are. Gas lines, power lines, water lines, cable…What did you say? OH they DO?!

I can’t even dig a hole in my back yard to put in a fence unless I have them come out to mark the lines around my house. How is it that these geniuses not only cut the water line but have now also cut a gas line that could blow us all to bits?

I’m really considering buying land in the Pacific NW and just becoming a hermit. Seems safer.

I don't need to know your story - I need you not to hurt me!

I hate arrogant know it all's who do not listen when you tell them something. Don't you? Today I had to have some blood drawn for some routine tests. I’ve become an expert of where you can and cannot take blood from me. I’ve had some horrible experiences with blood draws (flashback time):

Picture this, a cute curly haired Korean/White girl with reddish hair (yes it was reddish) sitting happily in the blood draw chair kicking her legs. Then the person who is going to draw her blood comes in with a person who is learning how to draw blood (insert tense music here - end of flashback).

I don’t remember how many times she did stick me, but blood was running down both of my arms. I also couldn’t bend them for two days because they hurt. As I got older I turned my fear around and decided that I will know where people can stick me to get blood. Which brings us to today…

She takes my left arm and decides she wants to go for the vein that runs down the outside of my arm closer to the elbow then the middle. I tell her “That one is really hard to get. The one in the middle is much easier.”

“Don’t worry hon I’ll get it.”

“I’m telling you I’ve had to do this a lot. It’s hard to get.”

She ignores me wipes it with alcohol and sticks me. Ok…so of course she doesn’t hit the vein. She just digs the needle around digging for the vein. “Oh, it moved on me.” Yeah yeah. She continues to move the needle around.

“Are you ok?” she asks. Because I think she can see the annoyed maybe pissed look on my face.

“Yep, I’m fine” she digs for another minute or so.

She takes the needle out and decides to try the other arm. I say “The one on this side that you can see blows very easy.” Which means the vein breaks.

“Oh, we’ll try it anyways.”

Me: (sigh)

“You must have deep veins.” which is code for I messed up so I’m going to make up excuses.

“No, I don’t actually.” and she ignores me.

She sticks the weak vein and gets enough blood out of it before…it blows. Now I’m going to have this cute bruise on my right arm. Yay!

If they would just listen to me we could avoid ME being harmed.

But at least I found out that today was her birthday, (she’s 51) that her son is back on R&R from Afghanistan (he’s in my prayers), that her older son is in Afghanistan as well, and is going to make the Army his career. The youngest one has killed 5 people and really hates the military, will be in on tour until January, and then has 3 months left before he’s done. OH, and don’t forget that on the Fourth of July her son helped her move because he decided he should help her while he’s here.

I know crazy people like me but is there a way to request a not crazy phlebotomist next time?

My mother makes me laugh.

I was talking to my mother this morning and on the TV cartoons were on. Now for some random reason my mother always has her TV on something she doesn’t watch. Like cartoons (but I know she watches Family Guy even if she won’t admit it) or one of the Spanish language stations, which I know she's not watching, unless she has learned Spanish and hasn't told me.

As I've said in my about me section my mother is Korean. She's been in America since the 1960's and is pretty Americanized. Oh don't get me wrong, she's still 100% Korean she's just pretty ingrained in American culture. A few things she's not but...we'll talk about that later. She also may be one of the funniest people I know.

As I was saying cartoons were on. This cartoon was Ni Hao, Kai-lan. For those of you who don't know Ni Hao, Kai-lan is a cartoon like Dora the Explorer except this is a little Chinese girl.



My mother looks at the TV and asks. "What is that?" I tell her what I've told you here. She pauses and looks at the TV for a moment.

"She's Chinese?"
"Yeah."
"She can't be Chinese. Asian people's eyes aren't that big!"

Then she looks at me and starts laughing.

I love my mom.

Five tips for better living

I was flipping through TV stations and came across a show called “I didn’t know I was pregnant.” Now…I know I can be a bit slow on the uptake but last I checked growing a baby isn’t a subtle thing. So, in order to help others, I’ve decided to make of list of things you should do if certain OTHER things happen.

First - Your stomach grows to 3 times its normal size and you vomit every morning. You should go to the doctor. Either you’re pregnant or something else is going horribly wrong.

Second - A person with a gun walks out in front of your car - Duck down, gun the gas, and hit the person with your 3000 lb car. Then drive to a police station to tell them about the car-jacker/rapist/serial killer/insert whatever other horrible title you can think of, you just killed with your car. The little weirdo probably can’t shoot through an engine block. He also probably isn’t a marksman and couldn’t hit a moving target to save his life. Now if he has a scoped M15 eeeh maybe your time is up. Other than that scenario, just run that person over.

Third - If someone grabs you and tries to force you into a car or take you away from where you are, fight. Fight scream kick scratch bite rip claw. I would rather die right then and there then die three days later after the serial killer had me in his white serial killer van for three days.

Fourth - If a friend ever tells you “If I die, my husband did it.” or “I think my husband is going to kill me.” you should call the police. Have you watched TV? Do you know this is how all the shows start? “There were no signs. Oh, except for the past three years she was telling her sister that she though Bob might kill her.”

Fifth - Don’t pick up hitchhikers

Those are my five tips for better living. Please use them wisely.