Thursday, January 29, 2009

BTDT

Now I can say, I gave it my best shot, and it will be a while before I go back....it was a very busy night at BioLife. The beds were full, people were waiting in the lobby to take there turn to give the "Gift of Life" and I sat down, got my ipod all set up, listening to "Mama Mia', they hooked me up, and after 20 minutes I noticed something....ummm..should blood be coming out of the needle?????

NOOOOOOOOOO, so, they moved the needle around, and the technician asked me "tell me what you are feeling? Explain to me how this feels?" uhhhhh, "It feels like you have stuck me with a HUGE NEEDLE and are digging around inside my arm trying to find the vein!" 5 minutes later...I was done...and yes....it hurts...and I won't be able to go back and put myself through another fun filled hour of "GIVING THE GIFT OF LIFE" until my OTHER arm HEALS!!!!!! (stupid kids!) next time I want someone with experience! and YEAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH it is swollen and sore.....but the plus side is.....I still got $30 put on my BioLife VISA card! whoopeeeee!

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

"Gift of Life"?

ok, before anyone thinks I am doing this for the money.....lol yeah! I am! A friend that I work with talked me into giving the "gift of life" so like a trooper, I went through the exam, and believe me....they ask you everything...and I mean everything about yourself....and much much more, not that I have anything to hide...
and I guess it is a good thing because now I know my name (which they ask you several times you are there) and my SS#'s last four digits without having to repeat the whole SS# in my head before giving the last four, AND 3 different time before you actually donate, you place your finger on a fingerprint thingy to make sure you are who you say you are!.....so...as the story goes, I went and I gave, but not without them blowing out a vein and bruising me! I even got a BIO LIFE VISA CARD, YEEEAAAHHH, they put $25 on it for my first visit, tonight when I go I will get $30 added to the card.

They only let you come in twice in a 7 day period. Hey, it bought lunch today....don't laugh....so the gift of life....yeah, NOT PRICELESS. Bottom line folks, it should be called "Blood sucking money" lol but..I will contine to go until I just can't go any more. You see, they seperate the red blood cells from the other stuff and that is called "Plasma" and that is the "Gift of Life" I am giving. My husband thinks I am crazy and I am a little but it's NOT SO BAD...if you have nothing else to do...

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Christmas Vacation


Once upon a time in the land of real believe, there lived a King and a Queen. They had a wonderful life together and enjoyed the fun and laughter that their 3 children and 7 grandchildren had brought to them. As their beloved Princes and Princess grew and claimed kingdoms of their own, the King and Queen would visit them often. Joy and laughter would always accompany them on their journeys to distant lands where their beloved heirs lived. Christmas time was always such a joyous time of year and the King and Queen doted on the younger princes and princesses. The young ones were in awe of the wondrous presents that the King and Queen would present to them. Celebration was continuous, smiles were abundant and kisses and hugs were overflowing for the King and Queen. There lives were full! On such visits the Queen in charge of making memories would take lots and lots of pictures of her sweet little grandchildren, so that she could take the memories home with her and she wouldn’t be so sad when she was away from them. One of the long journeys took the King and Queen to a very far away land of their Princess daughter. The ride in the hull of the giant bird that flew was always a long and a fitful ride. Many others would accompany them and the giant bird was cramped! Although the Queen would sometimes bring treats to snack on for the King for the flight, the servants would be polite enough to give them a swallow of sweet drink to quench there mighty thirst. And even though the cost of the flight was LARGE the drink was not! The King wondered if there was enough of the liquid to go around and thought maybe he should give it back so that others could share in its sweetness! But the Queen insisted that he drink it and laughed at the King. I suppose that the servants on the flight of the bird didn’t know they were serving a King and Queen or they might have given them more than 3 swallows! They decided to not mention their status…..they didn’t want to bring attention to themselves! The Queen was amazed by the colors of the sky as they flew over the snowy clouds over the land of many sparkles and precious lights and coins. (Las Vegas). When they finally entered the inside of the second big bird in the land of many lakes and icy waters several squires had to de-ice the birds wings with special green liquid. It was all very interesting to the King and Queen as they patiently waited on the runway for over an hour in the land of Oprah thus having been delayed an additional hour because of the ice and snow. Once they landed in the land of many trees they were greeted by their oldest beloved Princess Madison and her father. Christmas was only a few days away and the King and Queen had shopping to do! While at the huge market place their oldest Princess granddaughter Madison decided it was time to show how grown up she had become by having a servant of a hair salon cut off her beautiful curly locks of hair. It was quite a shock to the King and Queen and dismay of her mother but no matter the length of her beautiful locks of hair she was still their sweet princess and she looked all of her 13 years of age. One of the special traditions that the Queen had was to make Christmas candy, so her beautiful daughter and her granddaughters set out to accomplish the task. While the Queen made, fudge, toffee, peanut brittle and white chocolate covered pretzel clusters, her princesses did there part of decorating gingerbread men and a gingerbread house. Of course the yummy frosting was always a treat and with giggles and smiles everything was accomplished with much love. The anticipation of Christmas morning was filled with a late eve. Santa was driven through the streets of the neighborhood by his special Fireman Elves on top of a Fire Engine which is a local tradition of the community and then rushed quickly to his awaiting sleigh to begin his rounds of dropping off the presents to all the children, good and bad. The morning of Christmas brought much excitement as the princesses opened their presents. Princess Brooklyn was thrilled with her make believe Rose Petal Cottage rooms. The King had a tea party and the Queen played make believe with her too. Princess Madison received gifts of a different nature, mostly grown up gifts, not make believe because she was 13 now! Christmas day will be remembered for a very long time. The Queen took many pictures of the days events to be looked upon as fond memories. The following day the King and Queen and Princesses and Prince Brad ventured off to another township where other family members and friends greeted them. Queen Glenda was delighted to have everyone come to visit and share in the festivities she had planned. Her castle was decorated beautifully and gifts were abundant once again. Queen Glenda is always a gracious hostess and would never hear of having servants do her cooking so she prepares meals for family and friends with much love. One of the planned events took the family to the countries great city capital of Washington DC. Everyone went to honor Queen Glenda’s fallen King who was laid to rest in Arlington Cemetery. Tears fell and only whispers were spoken in this sacred place. Christmas wreathes were placed upon thousands of graves of soldiers. The King and Queen were in awe of the beauty and humbled by the endless rows of white stones. They witnessed the changing of the guard at the graves of the “Unknown Soldiers” and stood at the foot of President Kennedy and his family graves where an eternal flame continued to glow. There is much to be seen in this distant land. It is full of history and much wonder. It was a trip to be remembered for a very long time and the King and Queen vowed to return again. Before departing from Queen Glenda’s castle the family celebrated in a birthday dinner for Prince Brad. The table was set for a King in the Princes honor. There was much laughter and joy as once again Queen Glenda prepared another feast. A day before their departure a small family gathering had lunch on Solomon’s Island. Princess Brooklyn was served a child’s platter of crab legs that everyone thought was a mistake! It was so large that everyone received a taste! The sea has a variety of delicious treats and the cooks prepared yet another tasty lunch for everyone in attendance. There is always sadness when goodbyes are at hand, but there is always the next visit to look forward to. Upon returning to the land of trees in North Carolina, the King and Queen had only a few days to prepare for their goodbyes so the Queen promised to help redecorate Princess Madison’s sleeping quarters. It was decorated in bright colors of purple and orange (something the Queen had done several years past) and then painted new colors of bright pink and black to match the new bed coverings the Princess received as a Christmas gift. Pictures and shelves were yet to be placed upon the walls and the Queen was promised that she would receive new photos once the decorating was completed. They were fortunate to spend the celebration of the New Year with their Princess daughter and granddaughters. Games were played and yummy food was consumed. The Queen also sang karaoke, played the drums and guitar on the magical TV screen. She wasn’t very good at it, but she didn’t care because everyone laughed and had a grand time none the less. Just before their departure on the 3rd day of the New Year many tears and hugs were shared. No other pictures were taken after their departure. The Queen decided that 393 were enough memories to have to sift through and she knew it would take her weeks to put some of them together on her blog. It was a wonderful trip and one to be remembered for a very long time. Another chapter has been written in the Queen’s book of memories and thus far everyone has lived happily ever after. THE END for now.