With Hubs (whose bloodwork came out CLEAR…Thank you God!) down with a nasty upper respiratory infection (another side effect of the meds he is on for his Arthritis) it came down to me.

We could wallow around the house being down and wishing Dad felt better…or we could just do it.

Go for it.

Keep in mind…believe it or not I am not the planner in this family.

Sure I plan the long trips, the meals etc… but for day trips my only job is to pretty much be in the car ready to go at the appointed time.

Husband makes the plans. Husband packs the snacks, drinks and gets everything together. He packs the car. He does it all.

This weekend it was all me.

I found the Drive-In movie schedule. Googled the directions and figured out all the timing…

So….I packed the cooler. Packed the chairs. Made sure I knew how to turn off my running lights….and off we went.

We arrived minutes after the gate opened. Because I wanted a good spot.

Being who I am…I just followed the car in front of me…and parked.

The kids objected.  “We’re SIDEWAYS…we can’t even see the screen” but I was content.

Until Little said “You gotta think like DAD!”

That did it. I backed out of my crappy spot and sure enough down about 10 cars I found another spot. A FRONT ROW spot.

Sure there was a trash can in it…so what. Easy fix.

Think like Dad….I thought…. “hey, go move that trash can 3 feet to the left”. Little bounded out of the car while I manuvered into the closest to the center spot…right next to the lantern lit path down the center….one of the two best spots in the whole lot. FRONT ROW!

All by myself.

Once the movie finally started I had to work a bit to figure out how to get sound without my lights staying on..but did it.

And when my neighbors boombox failed…they were glad I did…and I turned it up even louder.

We saw Percy Jackson Sea of Monsters and Grown Ups 2. I have to say Percy was great. Worth the money…but Grown Ups was a disjointed No plot waste of time.

Our plan was to go to splashtown today but the vote was (yeah we are that family)…that the boys wanted to wait for Dad to feel better. That left me clueless.

What to do….what to do….

A few internet searches later I stumbled on the coolest thing EVER…..

I grew up here in Houston. I’ve heard rumors of this for more years than I care to admit but I can assure you I never believed this was REAL…

I had a couple ideas….if that didn’t work out…but I HOPED it wouldn’t be cheesy or boring…or just plain not fun…but WOW!

This place was soo cool.

How this has stayed under wraps for all these years I have NO idea…but it by FAR the coolest place I think I have ever visited.

And no….we never even entered the building.

This isn’t for everyone…it isn’t all pretty and perfect. It isn’t set up for a formal showing…it seems to be a progressive work of Art. As a WHOLE it is amazing.

We came down the road and I looked to the left and VOILA!  I really did choke…it was just amazing.

THIS is the lot across the street from David Adickes Sculptureworx Studio.

I cannot say enough about this place.

I couldn’t even include all the photos. I counted 34 “Presidents Heads” in that giant yard.

I heard that sometimes the gates are closed and you can’t really access the area we visited but there are a few on the side of the building as well….but I can’t tell you how awe inspiring it is to stand at the feet of a Beatle and look up. The shear size of these works of art just takes your breath away.

If you DO plan to visit make sure to be respectful of these works of Art.

We were careful to stay on the graveled area. We avoided all equipment and vehicles on the lot and short of leaning in for a few photos did not touch or climb on any of the sculptures.

There are lots of weeds, ladders and other hazards…so WATCH YOUR KIDS.

This really isn’t a little kid kind of place. This is a more Tween and teen outing.

I would imagine if visitors come and show disrespect for the Art the gates will be locked all the time so be cautious and respectful when visiting.

We finished with a great pizza lunch at my ALL TIME FAVORITE PIZZA PLACE: STAR PIZZA!! And it was about 10 min down the road from the President Head exhibit.

Now for the real question….from the minute we were seated the waitress was acting really weird. Like we had somehow committed some kind of faux pas or something….even when we ordered….2 deep dish pizza’s…she was like
“well it’s gonna be 25-30 min….”  Uh yeah…that’s pretty much normal for ANY sit down meal. It was just strange. My Little even asked..”what did we do wrong?”

She was all weird about us asking for a to go box…and I asked that she bring us to go cups as we all had FULL drinks we hadn’t drank during our meal.  I didn’t ask for new drinks, and we didn’t get any refills…just the original glass we were served so I just needed…to go cups to pour our existing drinks into…she came back with TWO….um there was Four of us. Weird….really weird.

I just don’t know. It was REALLY weird. I don’t think we will be visiting THAT location again. We tipped her well despite her strange behavior toward us. I ALMOST talked to the manager but I didn’t want to embarass my kids.

I have now been declared as the COOL parent!

Woohoo!

Nice change from the one always on their ass about chores.

I am alittle bit nuttier than usual right now.

The reason: STRESS!

There is lots of talk about how stress is a silent killer. It causes high blood pressure. It can lower your immune system and literally MAKE you sick.

So I am nutty.

Thanks to a good Doctor I am listening and following her directions.

the least of which is maintaining a nice solid dose of Xanax in my system.

I believe Xanax is a miracle drug. I took 1/2 a pill and I was calm and collected most of the day. Took the other half and REMAINED calm and collected and even had a nice peaceful night sleep…without nightmares and waking in a panic.

I am not a fan of meds….never have been. I don’t even take vitamins on a regular basis but this…..this helps SO MUCH….it makes my life better and easier and will keep taking it as long as it works for me.

and it DOES work.

I sleep. I eat. I am no longer feeling panicky and unbalanced.

I don’t blurt out the first thing that comes in my head. I am able to slow down and really respond with thought behind my statement.

It’s a nice change.

It feels good to feel back in control.

Yesterday was a big day at the Possum house.

It was husband’s big 3 year “birthday” of AA.

It was a normal day.

I went to work.

I came home.

He went to see a friends band…I declined because I’m still getting over Strep.

He saw them play.

He told me he wanted to “hit a meeting after…” and maybe his buddy would go with since it was his “birthday” too…

Did he?

I don’t know.

I was fast asleep.

What I do know is that this gift.

The gift of sobriety. It has been earned by many meetings, many people who supported him, a lot of forgiveness and tears.

It is THE pinnacle of what CAN BE…

It is the proof in the pudding…

Living a full life without alcohol isn’t easy. The “oh I can just have ONE” thoughts remain even years …three to be exact….but he still fights the good fight and knows it would just be a matter of time before one became two and two became 8 and we would be back where we started.

I love this man with every fiber of my being.

Through the good and bad I have always loved him.

They say when you meet THE ONE you know.

I did know.

Because I knew….and know now… I could stand next to him. Until the day came when I realized that drinking was only a symptom of the problem.

I almost left. He wasn’t drinking but continued to act as though he was.

I had never known him sober. I worried that this imposter was my THE ONE and I had made a mistake.

A big terrifying horrible mistake.

Then I looked again.

And I saw the man he COULD be.

I had faith that he WOULD be.

and I devoted myself 100%. Not 80% not 50% but 100% to being his wife and allowing him to be my husband.

With that came change.

HE changed.

Through the Grace of God….he changed.

WE changed.

I changed.

After three years I am happy to say we are happy. We are good. We got a do-over.

Many aren’t so lucky. Many decide it’s just too much. Many can’t make that change.

We didn’t celebrate yesterday.

Not outwardly.

I did kiss him deeper and hug him tighter and he knew.

He is my everything.

Yesterday We lived.

Everyday. We choose to live in the Grace of this awesome and powerful gift.

And today I will make his favorite cookies, for no reason.

But he knows why.

Ok, total lie.

I am totally political and VOCAL when it comes to the War on Women.

I followed along last week as Wendy Davis held the Texas Senate floor for 13 long hours to protect Texas’ women’s right to make their own choices. I tweeted. I stayed up getting updates as my older boys followed along online through the Texas Tribune live feed. I gave up precious sleep to stay up til 1 am watching and waiting to see if they would let her finish.

I was appalled that not ONE TV station covered such an important and historical event. I am not over it. It was pure cowardice.

I found it appalling that even Anderson Cooper who I LOVE….and is active in political events wasn’t front and center reporting and giving a non biased opinion.

This was taken on July 1st.

Austin, TX
July 1, 2013

Do you see that sea of orange? No, It isn’t UT appreciation day….that is a controlled demonstration of women, FOR women and those who believe women can make their own healthcare choices without the Texas Government interfering.

While it is evident that the lawmakers of Texas didn’t expect this kind of reaction I can’t help but wonder if we weren’t just a diversion tactic.

While all this has been happening in Texas….while we were busy cheering Wendy on and wondering how Governor Rick Perry could have turned his back on Texas women….other states were rallying quietly and getting a number of changes signed into law…all without anyone even realizing.

North Carolina brought about their own changes to their abortion laws and are ready to vote. They too are playing the “let’s make it safer” backdoor shady game to close and limit how clinics can operate.  You can read all about that here.

Montana’s new parental notification law went into effect on July 1st. This requires that girls under the age of 18 must get parental permission to seek termination services. You can read the round-up of changes in Montana laws that went into effect this week here.

Kansas - One brave Judge, Judge Rebecca Crotty has blocked measures to restrict and redefine termination services based on biased and narrow limits. Had she not done so there would be changes in effect to the Kansas abortion laws. You can read about it here.

Ohio: Governor John Kasich signed a bill that severely limits abortion and funding for Rape Crisis centers and Planned Parenthood WITHOUT any public debate. Read about that here.

Here’s the deal.

No one is FOR abortion. No one wants this to be a normal everyday practice. We just feel that the government should not be making decisions based on what THEY believe for women, ALL women.

Is it really THAT unbelievable that WE, WOMEN….really are smart enough and capable enough to make these difficult decisions without government intrusion. This is a decision that is between a woman, her Doctor and her God. It is not okay for a bunch of middle-aged white, rich men to decide what is best for ME….or my family.

Does that mean I am pro-abortion?

I don’t think it does.

It means that I am not less than my male counterparts in this world. That my body is just that. MINE. I should have the right to make my own healthcare choices. ALL of them. Not just the choices for the parts that don’t create life.

I have three children. I love each and every one of them.

But if I had been told…that one of my babies would not survive childbirth but I was required BY LAW to continue that pregnancy even though it was causing me to risk my OWN life….I would have been on my way to Mexico, or Louisiana, or wherever I needed to go to terminate. My OTHER children shouldn’t need to sacrifice their mother for a sibling that would not survive.

Unfortunately that is EXACTLY what these new laws are going to do. They are going to send women into unsafe situations to obtain abortions any where anyway they can get them. The days of back alley coat hanger abortions are going to make a comeback. I have no doubt.

It is essentially going to be a crapshoot. Every pregnancy…every woman. We are being PUNISHED for becoming pregnant. If something goes wrong…oh well too bad. You CHOSE to become pregnant is the lawmakers stand. That is EXACTLY what is happening!

We are being sacrificed.

The funny thing is ….that most women…WOULD give their own life for their children. If there were any chance…they would risk it. But at what point is it acceptable for the Government to take that decision away from us.

Worse the people making these laws and writing these Bills do not seem to understand the basic mechanics of how the female body works. The steady stream of ridiculous and UNTRUE comments about rape and pregnancy proves this.

It makes me wonder how their wives can look them in the eye. How can they keep quiet? How can they turn their backs on their sisters of the world?

If my husband said something so heinous and wrong…I would be holding his hand while he made a public apology but he WOULD be making that apology and would NEVER speak publicly about something he knows so little about or be involved in a Bill of that nature.

These women…the wives, and daughters….must be so ashamed. And if they aren’t they should be.

Some big some small…

But the fact that I have an online persona and a Blog is one of my biggest. EVER.

At work I am the non-tech savy nurse…who calls for help if she can’t connect to her email.

At Home I am figuring out WordPress and doing making excel spreadsheets…because I can.

I have treaded cautiously in sharing what I know and what I do while at home…at work.

I have eliminated a few posts here and there because I knew eventually someone would stumble on one and it would lead to my demise at work…

Unfortunately my workplace is so far into “political correctness” that you can barely say Hello to someone without being reported for not smiling enough when you said it.

Seriously…it’s ridiculous. Therefore, I have become UBBER careful about what I say and to whom…infact, I don’t say anything to anyone about online life, twitter etc… the place I work would be allllll over my ass and watching everything I do…something NO one wants.

SO…I have a friend there. She is awesome. I like her alot. She is a good woman. She is doing more than what any other parent would do to help raise her grandbabies (and she has a whole gaggle of them..).

Awhile ago she was showing me something online…and I mentioned yeah I LOVE that site….but didn’t go further.

I didn’t ask for her user name. I didn’t offer mine.

I thought about it …I really did. I wanted to…but my Pinterst account is under Play Possum

If I followed her…she would follow me….put two and two together….cuz she is smart like that…and my secret would be OUT.

So….we are planning a shower for my boss.

I have found soo many great ideas on Pinterest for it and the girl who is heading the committee seems to not really have it under control or if she does is not communicating that with the rest of us,  so my friend and I have kinda gone on our own and discussed some plans. Very simply we are running out of time…and we want it to be nice…not a thrown together last minute thing.

I decided. Of everyone I work with she is probably the MOST trustworthy of the bunch.

Seriously. Most of the people I work with would sell out their grandma for a buck. OR throw anyone else under the bus to take the spotlight off their own mistakes….

I did it.

Let her in on my secret.

It feels good. REALLY good to not have to hide it from EVERYONE.

I mean besides my mom, and hubs….no one else really knows.

Not even my closest friends.

So while I know there is still links to the real me online….

you can never truly be anonymous online…I totally know that.

There can be some degree of it if you are careful.

I’ve proven it by keeping my secret all to myself since the day I started.

I don’t use my blog to bash people or be unkind so I don’t really feel there is anything to be ashamed of or hide from the world.

My main reason was just to protect my family’s privacy.

You just can’t be too careful when it comes to that.

When he was first diagnosed…his Dr walked in the room and told him

“I can’t treat you …You have Hepatitis C. You need to see a GI Dr.” and walked out of the freakin’ room without another word.

Completely freaked Hubs out.

Sent me over the edge since I was in Nursing school and knew that would effect my career….

I did some quick research and found out that NO he did NOT have hep C. based on the labs he brought home to me.

He has the antibody for Hep C. So while he had a Hep C infection at one time…he does not have the CHRONIC version that would keep Dr. ASSHAT from treating him. This is pretty common with Alcoholics.

My tests were 100% fine. Considering we’ve been married for 15yrs that would be unlikely if it were the chronic type.

Sooooooo…….

Hubs went BACK to Asshat armed with information and he admitted that yeah, it was the infection but not chronic…  (How nice of you to admit your mistake ASSHAT!) and he COULD treat him.

But would continue to monitor his liver function and bloodwork.

I wanted Hubs to switch Dr’s right then but he wouldn’t because he had already jumped through all this Asshat’s hoops of getting a GI Dr’s clearance and all the labs….REPEATEDLY I may add..

Finally Dr. Asshat put him on some Arthritis meds.

He was on a med that he injected every week and it worked great for about 2 yrs then just stopped working.

Dr. Asshat puts him on another med…that he tried for 6 wks with NO results.

They want to put him on another…a big gun type of med that I am less than thrilled about. ACTUALLY it is the freakin’ insurance company that has decided that he needs to be on it…we really want to try one that is similiar to the first that worked really well with few side effects but apparantly they won’t “approve” it til we try this one first…How nice that the insurance company gets to decide over the doctor (Asshat or not) what treatment you should get)….

so he goes for his standard blood work and liver function tests. These meds are really hard core on the liver and makes you more immunocompromised than you already are from the freakin’ Arthritis.

One blood test. His white count is high. Not TOO high but high. No meds for him this time….

Redraw this week…

Still high.

So Dr. Asshat says he is sending him to a Hematologist.

Dr Asshat LOVES sending his patients for specialty consults….which of course are pricey…and then, of course, he charges for your visit, your return visit and the results visits…this guy is a TOTAL ASSHAT.

Ok…no big. I still think it’s the respiratory infection. His numbers aren’t really THAT out of bounds to be concerned.

TIL Hubs calls up the Dr. that Dr. Asshat recomends and they answer

“XXXCancer Center”

WHAT THE FUCK is that about…

so not only does Dr. Asshat not TELL him anything about why his numbers are high or even COULD be high….he sends him blind to call a specialist that handles Cancer patients.

Hubs is FREAKING THE HELL OUT.

I am saying… “Look we already knew the Dr is an Asshat. I don’t trust him with your care at all…I want you to try another Arthritis Dr.

Hubs won’t do it.

He says he likes the staff there.

Well I don’t….

If I am going to tell a patient to go somewhere or call somewhere and it will scare the beejesus outta them I warn them…ALWAYS.

That’s just good nursing.

Hell, that’s just COMMON COURTESY!

So hubs is freaking out. I am not far from it.

I told him 2 1/2 wks is too long to wait for his appointment.

He needs to go see his PCP….Monday!

As for ASSHAT…I promise I will be making a not so pleasant phone call to his staff on Monday about how they treat their patients.

Meanwhile….

If you can wrap your head around all that…..and say a prayer or two for my family I would appreciate it.

I’ve walked through hell and back with this man and I’m not about to let him go down for the count on my watch!

Here’s the tally:

$141 at Sam’s (because you know with three boys I NEED industrial sized boxs of chips, cookies, fruit rollups, applesauce).

$48 at HEB

$22 at Aldi’s (which after all the hype I was hearing I was dissappointed. I will not be returning there.)

$148 at Walmart.

Keep in mind we spent $200 LAST WEEK on food.

And

Hubs went back to HEB and got the premade hamburgers we LOVE..and I forgot this morning…to grill tonight.

I took Middle and Blondie back to walmart and waited in the car while they went in and got cool whip for the 3lbs of strawberries that Blondie is making for dessert.

of course they also got a jumbo bag of skittles, milk duds, choc. milk, a 6 pack of crappy fruit drinks too. That’s another $14.

Best part? I have to make their dang lunches….

If I don’t I am guaranteed to hear about how they ate bags of chips, sleeves of oreos and juice  boxs for lunch.

This is NO BUENO.

I don’t even like making MY lunch.

So along with paying daycamp tuition every week…the higher AC bill because someone is home during the day and it needs to be knocked down a few degrees…and all this food….

Holy Moly….

and they don’t go back til the END of August this year?!

I’m gonna be broke.

Broke and hungry because I doubt this food will last more than 2 wks tops.

Nope not a joke.

I wish it were.

Let’s recap.

I live in a suburb of Houston.

SUBURB. As in lots and lots of houses. Residential area.

There is not a nice sized field, farm or forest even remotely close.

I have a giant raccoon that has been coming in my garage and eating the cat’s food.

My family swore I had lost my mind and was seeing just a very large stray cat.

You know, kinda like that Eye glass commercial where the lady is calling “here kitty, kitty” and letting a raccoon in her house because she’s blind as a bat….

Then they saw it.

It didn’t even flinch. She just looked up and kept eating.

Seriously?! So now I realize not only is she huge…scary…possibly rabid (okay probably not but STILL)…she is accustomed to being around people…and that freaks me the hell out.

Hubs had to throw something at her to make it leave the garage. (For all the PETA people I assure you he didn’t hit her..just threw it near her to scare her away).

This thing is enormous.

It’s like the mother of all raccoons. Larger than my full sized cats. More like a medium sized dog.

So…after a bit we realized she has torn down a vent cover under my soffit and is getting in the attic/crawspace area.

Now THAT freaks me out.

Raccoons are not cute and cuddly. They are disease carrying. Even after they have long gone any feces left behind can dry out, turn to dust, be churned up by your AC and spread clouds of parasite eggs into your living areas.

YES! I am serious.

You can most definitely ingest these teeny tiny eggs and a real live giant worm will be living in your gut….slowly making you sick and can even kill you.

Before I was just pissed.

I mean I am living in a house that is half air conditioned right now because that $%^&*@ tore through the ductwork for three of our rooms. Hubs went up there. Clamped the ducts closed. Put up a trap. Repaired the hole in the soffit.

Yes we still need to do a closer investigation to make sure she didn’t leave any ick behind. As in I am going to have to like put on a mask, arm myself with a gallon of bleach and some old rags and do a complete clean up of any areas she was hanging out. Remove any surrounding insulation and replace it (that’s Hubs part).

But for now…we really can’t do much.

We are waiting for the ducts to be repaired. I don’t want to stir up any ick that could get sucked down into the house…and make us sick.

So…after all this ….

I am sitting here drinking my cold coke over ice when I hear noises from the attic.

ARE YOU FREAKIN’ KIDDING ME?

I think she’s smarter than we thought.

When hubs went up and looked around.

She hid.

She won’t go in the trap.

Now she’s stuck up there.

This is WAY bad.

I am seriously annoyed at this point and am seriously thinking about doing the whole “soak some tennis balls in ammonia and throw them around you attic” trick and leave the crawl space door in the garage down so she can climb out when the smell gets too much for her.

or

I will get smart and call the exterminator but last time they did what we are doing now.

Traps with cat food in them and they charged us a fortune and never did trap her……apparently since she is back.

We did get a squirrel last time….

It’s something I guess..

My Boric Acid V. Borax post continues to be the most viewed blog post EVERY.SINGLE.DAY.

It is the most searched and to be completely honest, some of the search terms scare the beejeezus outta me.

“Boric acid suppositories”

“Boric acid to kill parasites”

“Can I eat boric acid”.

Because this comes up so often….

and yes, in my real life job I have had to counsel patients that NO, you cannot treat yeast infections with boric acid

and NO you should NOT ingest boric acid to kill “bacteria” in your intestinal tract….

and yes…even NO you should NOT wash your clothes with boric acid

I have found that this is a topic that NEEDS to be revisited.

I just don’t know how much clearer I can be.

Boric acid is simply…. a POISON.

Borax is a CLEANING PRODUCT.

They cannot be used interchangably

and NEITHER should be ingested.

One will surely make you sick…if not kill you.

The other is far more dangerous and could very well kill you.

Does it matter which is which in that context? NO, not really.

DON’T eat or drink EITHER of them under any circumstance.

NEITHER will cure  your yeast infection…. go buy the 3 day kit at walgreens for $10. It’s in the feminine hygiene section. Stop searching the internet for “home remedies”.

Use this stuff for what it is intended.

Your health is too precious to make such a stupid and irresponsible decision.

If you have some weird parasite…see a freaking DOCTOR.

If they can’t cure you I assure you ingesting Borax OR Boric Acid won’t either…in fact it may very well kill you before the parasite ever gets close to that point.

Read all the fact about Borax and Boric Acid HERE

And please for the love of all that is holy…please don’t take medical advice from your Aunt, Cousin, Neighbor, Baby Mama’s cousin or Grandma…..OR the internet.

See a freakin’ Doctor. A real licensed to practice DOCTOR before you try anything you read online to cure some ill or disease you think you have.  You can do far more harm than good.

Had a quick lunch with Hubs and have returned home.

This is what I have:

These Oleanders were all supposed to be RED or Hot pink. I ended up with WHITE, Pale Pink and the last hasn’t bloomed yet…?

The smallest of the Hibiscus plants. Living happily in a giant planter next to my back patio

Front yard Hibiscus plants. Blooming daily!! They are small still but seem happy there.

Poor sad lily’s next to my gardening box of herbs, tomatos and strawberries.

I will be updating with photos often.

I love seeing how much they have all grown since I planted them.

and….My strawberries have actual berries on them! Ok half eaten berries…the squirels are getting a nice treat and the bird net isn’t doing much to keep them out.