Home Sweet Home - More apartment pictures

There's something inviting about an adult-only pool area.

One of the many BBQ areas

There's about a dozen or so swings or bench areas to sit and read:

The back side of the complex next to the road/gate area (not my back yard area)

Another BBQ area - bring your own gas container

Community Herb Garden :)

A pond area - apparently they haven't clean it out for the summer yet:

The road entrance to the complex

Side road that leads to the back gate. The neighborhood beside us is filled with duplexes that look like ranch homes. An elementary school and more private ranch-style homes built in the 50's.

Garden patios where people grow all sorts of plants, tomatoes, strawberries and many other items.

Back of the Clubhouse/office

Walkway to the pool and tennis court (only one but hey, that's all you need, right?)

Why don't you come visit and sit a while?

Home Sweet Home - New Apartment Pics So Far

We moved into the new apartment this weekend. I'm exhausted. Mike is fried and the oldest son and his two moving buddies are sore as all get out. Those guys did a fantastic job of getting us moved in. So, here are the new pictures of the apartment so far. I walked the grounds a little bit today but still haven't seen all of the complex. I'll get more pictures tomorrow when I'm out and about. Let me Introduce our movers :) First, there's our son, Big Un

Then there's Ryan

And now Justin

Oh, and their mascot, Memphis

We enter from here (4-lane very busy road)

The Side street - beautiful private homes as well as very nice duplexes!

Welcome!!!

My Desk - Where Genius Happens

Mike's Desk - Where Genius Naturally Lives

We have a fireplace!

And a built-in bookshelf!

The Kitchen - we actually have an ice maker in this refrigerator. Our last place was too cheap to install one. Modern cabinets and countertops and an ISLAND! *sigh of happiness*

The Back Door - sliding glass door (with a screen) leading to a private patio.

The Patio Gate leads to a parking area in the back that is incredibly convenient!

Well, that's all for now, folks! I'll show you the bedrooms later (we made one of the bedrooms into our TV room and the "living room" into our office). The master bedroom is a mess so I'll show it later. Oh! Also in the master bedroom, there's another bath with a shower and a separate utility closet that has our washer/dryer hook-up. I'm telling you, when we get another house of our own, the laundry room is going right there in the bedroom with us. SO CONVENIENT! You guys take care!

Changes Are A Good Thing

I wrote more on my book series last night. Like I said, it will probably never get published but who cares?

This is my project and my adventure and I'm really loving the characters so far. Fun and mysterious. Classy and determined.

Journeys are subtle changes. These books are taking "change" and making that something real and unique for me. I'm feeling more alive and willing to embrace new ideas than ever before.

I've come a long way, baby. I'll definitely keep drinking from that cup, for sure.

Reflections In The Rear View

I'll bet you thought I was going to write something longer than one sentence, huh?

I did. I wrote three.

(I took this from Mike's corvette as we were going to get something to eat at Sonic)

Darkness Calms The Chaos

Normally, when you think of darkness completely enveloping you, your natural instinct is to be afraid.

Very afraid.

For someone with migraines and ADHD, the darkness is a welcome relief.

It's an overcast, yet oddly bright day here. We've just gotten back from taking my husband to a job interview. I sat outside the building and waited in the car for him and, while I was there, wrote some more notes about Book One of my series. I don't know where all these characters come from but I get a boatload of inspiration just by watching strange-ass people. That's always a welcome respite from trying to think up unique characters all by myself. :)

The brightness took its toll on my eyes and I walked in the house feeling completely and utterly drained. My head is about to pop yet my mind is going 100MPH thinking about my characters. My brain tells me to give it up and stop encouraging a No-Win situation. Go to the Lazy-Gurl chair and relax, it says.

So what am I doing at a computer, you ask?

Easy. My eyes have to stop but I can't stop the raging noggin junk. So I'll have to think out-of-the-box and find a solution.

(LATER)

I now have a sleep mask on and am in total and complete darkness as I'm typing. The spots are beginning to fade and I'm not being at all distracted by the cats, the computer screen with all the countless browser tabs I have going across the top, my husband's tank game which is really cool to watch or the TV which is playing a very interesting movie, Malcolm X.

Of course, there's nothing I can do about the multitude of sounds coming at me but, as I smell the cinnamon rolls baking, I get a sense of well-being amongst the chaos.

I think about my characters and their reactions to smell, sight and sounds. I think about their interactions with everyday life - cooking, cleaning, even having a cup of coffee or tea - and it brings my characters to greater substance.

It brings them to a breathing, living life.

The chaos is turning into something positive.

I read somewhere that if you pass a tree when your angry, does the tree bark change because of your anger? Does it become more joyful if you pass it by in a elated frame of heart? What chaos do you carry past the tree that REALLY changes it?

On the surface, nothing. The bark stays the same. The leaves don't turn brown and wither and die because you curse at it or pass by with the foul stench of worry or stress.

If you think about it a different way, the tree actually benefits from your anger. You produce more carbon dioxide - the stuff of life for any green thing. The more you produce for the tree, the greener and stronger it becomes.

Alternatively, if you die of stress and worry, the only benefit you've left in this world is a greener, healthier tree and not much else.

So, what do you do to control the chaos? Do you go anywhere? Do you let the chaos control you or do you turn it around and produce something constructive?

Share your thoughts!

I Heard From A Friend Today

I'll call her "R".

She is a wonderful person and I worked with her for well over 14 years at Sprint in Atlanta. I miss her smile and warmth and her upbeat attitude.

She reminds me so much of all my sisters rolled up into one person. Her ready laughter, her focus on the task at hand, her humongous heart.

It made me sad to hear that she almost lost her husband a few months ago to high blood pressure but happy to know that he's doing much better now. Always a good thing to never look a second chance at making a life change in the mouth and doing something good for yourself like getting the medication your body craves at a time you really need it.

I looked over at Mike who is happily playing a tank game on his computer (which, oddly enough, sits right next to mine). He's healthy as a horse, as they say, and I'm so glad for that.

I thought about how many hours he has sat in front of a computer playing one game or another and, for a while there, it really annoyed me because he wasn't paying attention to me.

I'm an attention-hog, don't cha know.

As I looked at him, I thought about all the laughter and play-acting we've done with all the games that we've played over the years. We have Nerf-machine guns for our "battles" in the house, we sometimes converse in World of Warcraft speak, and a lot of times, we're laughing at some stupid storyline or a stupid quest that we were required to do to get a stupid prize - like a flying mount or mechanical squirrel.

Life would be dull and lifeless without him in it. I'm sure "R" feels the same way about her man, too. It makes all the difference in the world when you find someone you hardly ever argue with, laugh at just about everything and wake up feeling good about the person you've become because of the person you're with.

Not too many people can say that, can they?

~~~~ Lynita

Dealing With Worry - The Sordid Truth

It was an interesting week. I have been offered a job and am filling out the paperwork now.

I don't have mixed feelings about the offer - it's a good one and I'm blessed to have the opportunity presented to me. Then why do I feel like my heart is missing?

I'll tell you why.

It's because while I have an offer for a full-time, permanent position with a good company, my husband will be out of work in less than a month. This hurts my heart.

Do I feel guilty? Yes. Yes, I do.

Do I want to choose joy instead of this feeling of trepidation like the other shoe is about to drop? Of course, I want to choose joy.

But how? How do I open my heart up to this and accept the goodness God has brought to us? I finally have benefits and can see a doctor. I have a matching 401(k) plan again. I have worked for a year as a contractor with with good people who have supported our search in ways you can't even imagine. Such good people!!!

God has given us brains and opportunities if we just look a bit closer and think about how we can get ahead again.

I honestly believe that so now I just need to learn to let the worry teach me to look for opportunities that work for our benefit.