1-20-09 End of an Error

So I hopped out of bed this morning at the crack of dawn (well, 7:45 am, that’s the crack of dawn for me) just to stand on the porch in the cold and snow in my jammies to take a picture of the dawn of the rebirth of our country.

Now the funny thing is, even though I like Political Science, I had never been overly patriotic. Even in elementary school I refused to say the Pledge of Allegiance from kindergarten on forward.

I know that I took for granted what we have here. I just thought that our way of life is the way it is. But over the last eight years I saw how far down we as a country could slide and it started really scaring me.

First we made up fake reasons to pick on people around the world. Then we stuffed our pockets and our friends pockets with money while everyone else’s finances slip down the tubes and they lost their jobs and their homes.

The morale in this country has been at an all time low and I’m finally so happy to see the excitement in so many people for a change-because we’re getting a change.

Yep, I’m celebrating the rebirth of this country. And you bet that the gestation period was long and ugly and the labor pains were horrible and yes, we really did get screwed to get to this point but we’ve got an exciting future ahead of us now!

Another day in Paradise

Days like this I have to say I sure like my job. Fortunately I have a lot of days like this. But for today here is the reason….

First there’s the early morning drive through Newark New Jersey to get to the office. I love being able to visit different places and meeting new people and I get to travel all over the country.

Then I saw, for the first time in my life the real Statue of Liberty. I thought that was so cool that it will be the subject of its own blog.

And then the job itself, I mean here I am, little old Jeanie Turner walking around chatting with presidents of a Fortune 500 Company talking about pricing strategy. That part never fails to amaze me.

I worked all day installing software on laptops. There’s always little quirks that have to be worked out and I enjoy doing it and it makes me feel smart. Then there was a training session and I love training.

Then we all went out to dinner at a fancy restaurant. Yes, I hate fancy restaurants, I always have. I never know what half the words on the menu mean and I sure don’t know how to eat it once I get it. And I really can’t understand why you’d pay 50.00 for dinner when you could buy 25 TV dinners for that kind of money. But-this place had a great view of downtown NYC and the Statue of Liberty. In fact it was called Liberty Place.

All in all it really was another day in paradise.

The Best Year Ever

For me 2008 has been the best year ever and I have every reason to celebrate it.

Last New Years Eve I was in Michigan but had to drive back to Geneva, Alabama where I lived and worked. This was my fourth year in the south for work.

Yes when I first moved down south to Houston there was an excitement of opportunity and growth. In some aspects I think it was just a matter of proving myself to myself. And it was a good adventure, I ended up making a ton of new friends, made it going into a town and a company where I didn’t know anyone and feel that I succeeded. It made me feel strong in a way that I never felt before.

But the best lesson of all was one I already thought I knew. Family is the top of the list of what matters.

I am blessed with a great family. Somehow my kids ended up being more awesome than I could have dreamed of. They are smart, nice and show compassion and love. And they feel loved and self confident and that is the greatest achievement a parent can have I think.

Also I inherited a great bunch of friends and ex-relatives when I married into the Leppala family. After an amicable divorce I still kept the friends and family.

Somehow sitting in a group of people that you have only known a few months is nothing compared to sitting in a group of people with whom you have a rich history. Sure you can make basic conversation and joke around but without the deep roots it’s just trite and meaningless.

So finally when I returned after Christmas break last year I walked into my bosses office and informed him that I couldn’t do it any more.

Like Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz I just kept wanting to click my heels together and go home because I had learned how true it is ‘There’s No Place Like Home’.

These last few days this year of the New Years Eve Party and New Years Day dinner with friends and family was the great illustrator of what was missing in the South for me. Treats like Richie’s fudge taken from the official ‘Fudge Server’. The all important Air Hockey Tournament’. Getting together at Richie’s for Sloppy Joes and checking out the award winning needlecraft that his mom made. Taking Julia and Jenna to get their ears pierced.

These are the things that you can’t buy anywhere but make my life the beautiful adventure it is.