Art and Entertainment

Ricci Milan, one of the founders of Feet Don't Fail Me Now, has me thinking today. This required a serious blog post. He asked, "What is the difference between art and entertainment?"

I can take this at face value.

If I go to Merriam-Webster, art, as a noun, has six distinct definitions.

1) skill acquired by experience, study, or observation
2) a branch of learning; one of the humanities
3) an occupation requiring knowledge or skill
4) the conscious use of skill and creative imagination especially in the production of aesthetic objects; also works so produced; ibe of the fine arts; a graphic art
5) a skillful plan; the quality or state of being artful
6) decorative or illustrative elements in printed manner


Then, entertainment has three distinct definitions.

1) The act of entertaining
2) maintenance; provision; employment
3) amusement or diversion provided especially by performers; something diverting or engaging as a public performance or a usually light comic or adventure novel.

It seems that, if trying to take the question literally, it only causes more confusion.

Ricci is a tap dancer. Is tap dancing an art? Is tap dancing entertainment?

I love tap dancing. I don't know how to do it, but I love it. I love watching tappers perform, what I consider, to be an art. Is is entertainment? The fact that I enjoy watching it would make it entertainment to me. However, it is not entertainment to somebody that does not enjoy tap dancing.

I still haven't answered the original question and I don't know if I'd ever be able to answer the original question.
v I enjoy writing. Writing is known as an art. It is somebody creating something for an enjoyment and usually for others to enjoy. However, is writing entertainment? The fact that I enjoy writing does make it entertainment for myself. Sure, it is not fun for people to sit and watch me write. However, my writing is an art. Is my writing "a performance?"

My first answer would be that it is not. Then, I could expand my thinking to the fact that people read my writing. If I included the act of reading in my writing, perhaps it could be a performance because my work was created for others to enjoy.

So, overall, I guess art is the action of creating and entertainment is the result of art. Yet, it still leaves large gaping hole of confusion because it may not be exactly those things. The definitions seem to overlap. How do we decided what is art and what is entertainment?

Discuss.

This Blog is Still Alive

This blog is still alive.  However, due to having a few family emergencies this week, I need to focus on writing for profit.  Hopefully by next Monday this blog will be back in normal function to have entries appearing no more than with two days between them and preferably entries every day.

I need to make money, though, and this blog doesn't do it.  Therefore, hopefully, a week on hiatus.

For Want of a Fridge

Our refrigerator badly needed replacing.  This might not have been an issue if the electricity had not gone out while we were in the hotels waiting for our air conditioner to be fixed.  It may have been an issue, but I don't know.

The old refrigerator currently has maggots and gnats in it.  Of course, it is not plugged in right now.  However, we had those when it was plugged in, too.

My sister and I suspect that gnats were flying up the ice maker and water dispenser.  It was a more expensive fridge and we got it when we had a bit of money that we had to spend from my Daddy's insurance as some of it was supposed to be spent to take care of us right off and then the rest needed to be invested.

Anyway, now, we didn't have the money for a fancy fridge, but we didn't really want one, either.

My mother insisted on first trying to go to C and C Audio, Video, and Appliance.  It was not open an dis not open on Sundays.  She then went to Home Depot.  I said that it was a place that might have refrigerators.  They reneged on their promise of delivery and haul away service if a fridge was bought in store.

I looked online at some of their stuff in their store and there was nothing that was as good as the fridge we had found.  I was ready to pay, even for a warranty, if they would deliver and haul away the fridge.

They had promised to do this, but the guy who had "placed" the order was an idiot.  He wasn't supposed to even "place" the order on their website.  Then, they said that the model was discontinued!  I finally got them to cancel the order.

I suggested going to Lowe's, but my mother refused to go there.  I told her that I just wanted to go home.  I have no idea what her problem was, but she wanted to stay out longer (she had been gone since 8:45am and it was now past 3pm).  She finally dropped me off at home and Briana came in the house with me to look at refrigerators.

I later checked on the Internet to find prices and a lot were not great.

I finally found one that said it was at Lowe's.  It turns out that this model was not at Lowe's, but the guy on the phone was extremely helpful.  He said that he didn't have that type of refrigerator, but he had a similar model. I asked the price, and he told me.   I asked if they would still do the delivery and haul away service, and he said that he had to check.  However, he came back, and in a reasonable amount of time, and told me they would do it.

Briana and I headed off to Lowe's and we bought that model fridge.  I even got the four year extended warranty that starts after one year warranty.  I know that American Home Shield is supposed to cover refrigerators (as far as I know), but why bother taking the chance that they won't when we can have good coverage from Whirlpool and Lowe's?

I think the fridge was a 9.7 cubic feet and is considered "an apartment fridge,"  However, being we are all 5r' or under, we needed a smaller fridge.  We can easily reach the top of this fridge by standing on a step stool.

It also doesn't have any external ice dispenser or water dispenser. This means that no gnats or other bugs can fly into the fridge or freezer unless the door has been opened.  There may be some bugs, but there shouldn't be that many  bugs.  They should be easily cleaned from the fridge if it they get into it.

I have no idea what my mom and Briana refused to go to Lowe's in the first place.  I told them that Lowe's was nice.

I am happy that the fridge will come on Thursday afternoon.

The Future

I am 30 years old. I did not think this is where I would be when I was 30.  For a bit, I thought maybe I didn't belong in Lake Charles. I love Youth Ministry and did tons of interviews where they flew me to different places.  None of them were much to my liking, other than Edmond, OK.  It seemed a lot like Lake Charles, minus the really good food.  However, there were still the main restaurant chains there.

I really do like Lake Charles.  I don't like the heat in the summers and I don't like when the winters are gray, but the cooking and the friendly people can't be beat.  If I went anywhere else, I'd definitely want to be in the south or up in Minneapolis where there are tons of Lutherans.  However, I think I'll take the south as I couldn't handle shoveling snow.

I am a freelance writer, and I know there is nothing wrong with that.  However, I would definitely like to do more with my life.  There's a few things that I can do now by bracing down and writing enough to have time to work on my children's books that I want to write myself and write with Briana - and then create my webpage to sell them.  I also need to make designs to put on my SpreadShirt shop so I can try to sell T-shirts.

Anyway, there are a few things I'd really like to do.

1) The MFA at McNeese. 
2) Teach English (at Sowela is fine and at McNeese would be awesome).
3) Write for Coastal Living (they are lacking in the area where I want to write).

Of course, I could never completely give up writing for Yahoo! Voices.  I do like putting writing there, having people be able to find my writing on the web, and then also the community of people that I've found from there.  I wouldn't know a lot of my friends if it wasn't for Voices (formerly Associated Content).  I know some people look at it as a "content mill," but I've seen ones that really are content mills, and they never were truly one since the time I found them.

Teaching English doesn't have to be completely an "English" class, either.  I'm not an SEO expert, but with my degree in Mass Communications from McNeese and writing for Yahoo! Voices (AC) for years, I've certainly learned about formatting, fonts, SEO, and web writing.

I'd love to teach a beginner class on that stuff.  I'm definitely not versed enough for anything advanced, but it would be really cool to teach that type of stuff at Sowela or McNeese.  My HTML class at McNeese was a joke.  The only thing I did in that class that I didn't know how to do was make a stupid pop up window, and really, who wants those?

So, I'm sure that my class would not be a joke.  I'd want people to learn and learn what tools are available to be used.

Hamburgers

I was trying to think of a topic for my next blog post, so I was also looking on the Internet for ideas.  I saw one that said "hamburgers."  I'm pretty sure that it meant for a whole blog, but why not write a post about hamburgers?  Specifically, I think I'll write about the hamburgers I can get at restaurants in Lake Charles.

Of course, there's always the fast food hamburgers.  There's McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's, Checker's, and more.  My favorite fast food hamburger is from Checker's.  I like the Cheese Champ, plain.   However, the best part of going to Checker's is the french fries.

I love Cotten's Famous Hamburgers.  When I want a good, thin, hamburger, I'll go get a cheeseburger, plain, from there.  Sometimes I'll get the bacon cheeseburger or an eggburger, but just the cheeseburger is good, though I like to put salt on it.

Of course, there's the hamburger at MacFarlane's Celtic Pub.  I like to get just a plain cheeseburger with the provolone.  Sometimes I'll get the Swiss (I think that's one of the other two cheese they have) when I want a hamburger.  That burger is very good and it is difficult for me to eat in one sitting!  I often have to bring half of it home or I'll bring part of it home for my mom to eat.   I love to get it on the sourdough bun.

There's a restaurant that is actually in Sulphur called "You Don't Know Jack" and the cheeseburger there is delicious.  Once again, I get it plain.

I get everything plain because I have an issue with cellulose intolerance and I'll admit that I can be picky.  However, lettuce is definitely one thing that I wish my stomach would tolerate.  I feel really bad and am running for the bathroom after I eat it, so it's better not to eat it.

The best places to get a hamburger in Lake Charles have changed since this article was written, but all of these places still have good hamburgers and good food.   That is, except for Backyard Burgers, because that place no longer exists in Lake Charles.  However, we now have a Five Guys.

The Best Places to Get a Hamburger in Lake Charles.

Messy Muffins

For years, I have been looking for a recipe called "Messy Muffins."  I know that there are plenty of recipes called "Messy Muffins."  However, this is a special recipe.  It is not one of the many found online (though it may be online somewhere).

When I was in third grade (I'm pretty sure it was third grade), I was sent home with a math worksheet about fractions.  In order to answer the questions, we had to figure out the things from the recipe.   The recipe was called "Messy Muffins."

We were not sure if the recipe would work, but in order to finish the worksheet, my mom and I made the muffins just like the recipe on the worksheet.

The muffin recipe worked.  In fact, the muffins were delicious!  I loved them.  My mom loved them.  My sister loved them.  My Daddy really loved them.  These muffins were gone very quickly.

I don't remember why at the time we didn't copy the recipe.  We probably thought that it would be easy to find in a math book or a recipe book later.  It turns out that we were wrong.

I know the math book was an orange Addison Wesley math book.   However, I don't think the recipe was actually in the book.  It was on a worksheet that went with the book.  I have not been able to find the recipe and I would love to make and taste those muffins again.

Do any teachers out there have this worksheet or recipe?

The book is the one that is at this Amazon link.

It looks like this:

If you can find the Messy Muffins recipe, I'll be forever thankful!

Tough Noogies

This morning, Briana put Woofles on the bed where I have been sleeping in the hotel.  I was still tired because I couldn't get to sleep last night.  However, I did not want to be under any blankets, so I was just laying there.

Woofles started pawing at me because he was not under any blanket.  I told him that I was not going under a blanket, and then I told him "tough noogies!"

I know that I noogie is when a person makes a fist and rubs it on the head of another person or at least another being.  I started giving Woofles "tough noogies."

Of course, he enjoyed them.  He liked being "pet" in that way.  It was cute.  He'd put his head against my leg and want me to give him more noogies.  I think my knuckles would've wore down before Woofles got tired of getting "tough noogies."

I think I'll try to remember to use the phrase "tough noogies" more often with people.  I like that phrase.

Trivia

Who voices Bart Simpson?  She also voiced Todd Darling in the cartoon "The Replacements" and Rufus (the naked mole rat) in the cartoon "Kim Possible."

Sticker Head

It is something I know my parents started when I was young.  They may have started it before I was born.    The reason that I know these things is that I don't remember when it started.

However, today, I played "Sticker Head" with Woofles. The game sounds exactly like what it is.  I put a sticker on Woofles' head.  Then I called him "Sticker Head."

Woofles didn't seem to care.

We used to do this to Cinder and she would sometimes give us a nasty look.

We also did it with Marbles and it would depend on his mood if he cared or not.

Of course, we also did it with Micron.  Then we do it with Niblet and Woofles.

It's not the first time I played "Sticker Head" with Woofles, but I hadn't played it for quite a long time.

We don't use a new sticker for this game.  The sticker usually comes from junk mail (that's the case of when it is "new") or from fruit.  The sticker can also be a price from a garage sale item.  The only time a sticker has been "new" is when it is one of those stickers for writing prices to put on garage sale items that happens to be coming off of a label.  Oh, and of course, sometimes the address labels, especially when they have the wrong information - yes, we've even gotten address labels with the wrong information sent to the correct address!

It is always fun to see a dog's reaction to "Sticker Head."   Some dogs love it.  Some dogs don't mind at all.  Some dogs hate it.  Some dogs act like they can't tolerate, but they know it is a fun game that the owners play.

Sandy, the Hotel Dog

This week, we've been staying at the Days Inn in Sulphur off exit 23.  There is a dog at this hotel that is the hotel dog.  Briana had met her when we were staying at the Studio 6 because the hotels are in the same area.   It's like a huge parking lot with a gas station and a truckers area.

Anyway, when I checked into the hotel, I saw her in the lobby and asked if that was Sandy.  The gal working at the front desk asked if I knew Sandy and I told her that Briana had seen her when she took Toggle for a walk.  It took a few times to explain that we did not have Toggle as he was at the vet, but that was not a huge deal.

Sandy has decided that she likes us.  She likes to come to our door at the morning when we're awake and come visit us, including Niblet and Woofles.   She likes to come say good night to us, too.  She'll come in the room, visit Briana, visit me, and then visit our mom.  Then she'll ask to be let of the room.

Sometimes she'll want to play with Woofles.  Those two love to play together.   Sandy is not a small dog. However, she is a huge sweetheart and she behaves.  She is extremely gentle with Woofles.   They will wrestle, but in general, Woofles will roll around on the floor and she'll nose him and he'll roll around and then she'll nose him around some more.  Sandy will even let Woofles act like he wrestled her into submission.  Woofles climbs over her back when she's laying down and then she turns over so her belly is in the air.

It's adorable to have the hotel dog come visit us.  I would always love to have a hotel dog that visits.

Toggle the Doggle

Since my sister's dog is named Toggle, we often call him Toggle the Doggle.  I'll even say to her that her doggle needs something.  It seems to fit him perfectly as he is silly but sweet.  This whole late week while we were staying at the Studio 6 Extended Stay, Toggle would wake me up by jumping up on the bed and giving me tons of kisses.  

However, at this time, while we are now at the Days Inn (all of a few feet from the Studio 6), we don't have Toggle with us.  He is kenneled and at the vet because he needs to be neutered and then after that, he is supposed to rest.  He won't rest at home or in a hotel (which is where we are).

It's not like it would've cost less to not have him, but it is easier and he needed to be neutered.

We are still in a hotel because our air conditioner part has not come in YET.  We are extremely irritated with Maratherm.

If they don't get the part in, we will HAVE to go buy fans to put in the house, but I don't know HOW we will set them up since my mom and sister have made such a huge mess in the house.  

Yes, at very first, when we first moved in, the movers did not help.  My room is not great, but admittedly, I've been lazy about cleaning up the mess the movers made, though I did put a few things away.

My mom's room used to be clean, but my mom and sister have made the entire room a mess.  I'm tired of seeing them throw their trash, and I really do SEE it happen.  My mom has thrown soda cans and other trash clear across the room.

My Daddy used to do this and it drove me crazy.  It drives me crazy that my mom does it, too.

Why do they think that's acceptable behavior?

Yes, this does go back to Toggle the Doggle.  Since there is trash all over the place, Toggle thinks everything is his.   I don't mind Toggle playing with trash.  However, it should stay outside for him and then be thrown away. If a dog is given trash to play with while inside, the people need to pick it up and then throw it away!

I used to let Marbles play with trash, but yeah, I THREW IT AWAY!

At least we know that Toggle is scheduled to be neutered tomorrow and that he should get rest as he is kenneled at the vet.

Taking the Dogs for a Walk

I would love to be able to walk all over, but my back gets sore and my legs get sore.   Back and leg problems are both genetic.  My Daddy didn't have leg problems until he was a bit older, but I didn't have leg problems when I was 19, either.  I was pretty good at walking everywhere until I was about     22 or 23.  My  Daddy walked more than that, but it was soon that he would have to sit or get up to walk.

As most people know, I have scoliosis and had to wear a brace for three years to keep it from progressing.  It can hurt lots just like it did when I wore the brace.

Briana was upset because at this hotel, she didn't think there was a large area to walk the dogs.  She loves taking Toggles for walks and sometimes she likes to take Niblet or Woofles along with her.  Sometimes she likes to go alone and sometimes she likes to take my or our mom to go walking.

I showed her that she can walk along Dennis Ave. all the way to the Comfort Inn and around the gas station.  She can get water from the gas station for free if she brings her own container.  The cup costs 25 cents.  They gave her one today, though.

We took Woofles and Toggle for a walk and now they are worn out and sleepy.  That is good for the dogs and for us.  It is especially good for Toggle.  He loves his mom, but he is not a mama's dog like Woofles.

Maybe after the air conditioner part comes, I'll have journal prompts or subjects.  I'm thinking perhaps things that I miss from my childhood or food.  The 80s and 90s and food are always popular things.

Naming Dog Anatomy Parts

I name dog anatomy parts.  Why?  There's no real reason to do such a thing other than the fact that it is cute.  However, it is cute, so why not name dog anatomy parts?   It's obviously a common thing since picture of dog anatomy and cat anatomy can be found on the Internet.   There's a picture that has an arrow pointing to a cat's tail that calls it a "dandle."  It says that it is short for "da handle."  I think that works well for dogs, too.  At least, it works for Toggle and Woofles.

The dog anatomy that comes to mind today is a snout.  Woofles was the first dog to have special name for his snout.  I wrote about this earlier.  We decided that it was too cute to not have its own name so we called it a "Schnufle" or a "Schnoofle."   (It's said the same way, the spelling just sometimes changes.  The second one is obviously spelled closer to how it is said.)

Toggle doesn't have a special name for his snout.  We call it a snout.  However, sometimes, I called it a snoggle.  This could get him confused with his command, "no swoggling," though.

Niblet's snout is so little that the other day my mom decided that his also needed a special name.  Because of this,  his snout is a snoutette.

Do you call any of your dog's anatomy or cat's anatomy special things?  Let me know!

Hotels

Hotels can be nice at times, but it does get tiring staying in them if you are not in them for a vacation.  Of course, the one (Crossland in Sulphur, LA) before the Studio 6 in Sulphur was horrible.

However, the part that was supposed to be in yesterday to fix our air conditioner was still not in today when I called the air conditioner repair company.  I'm not angry with the repair company.  I am angry with  Maratherm as this is taking too long.  We would stay at home if  it weren't too bad to stay there, but it is too hot in the house to stay there.

Yes, when I manage to save up some money for things other than general expenses and we have the rooms switched, I'd want to get some window air conditioners as long as a power source is near them and some of the tower fans, too.

Of course, our house needs to be clean for that.  I'm thinking about when it is cooler, if I have money for general expenses, that I am going to have a "lazy relative sale" like I saw a person online having an "ex husband sale."

Maybe that will get their butts in gear and if they don't get in gear, I get the money for general expenses, bills, or whatever.  Those two really don't understand what it is to HAVE to work to get money.  SSI comes no matter how active or how lazy they are.

I am the one doing the budgeting and I have to keep telling them that they can't tell me what they can and can't get now.  That's MY job.  We're not going to go out to eat all the time like they always want when we're at home (and I get sick of doing).

Thankfully, at this hotel, Briana has actually wanted to cook!  I'd cook, too, but she actually WANTS to cook.

I'd cook at home if Briana cleaned the kitchen and if I didn't have to take time to work, clean up  after my mom and my sister, take care of other things around the house, run my sister to school and pick her up, and a lot of other things.

If you are wondering, my dog actually gives me relaxation!

It looks like we'll need another week in this hotel. Hopefully they won't make us pay the dog fee again, though. That's what is so bad.

Dealing wioth a Possessive Dog

Today, we found out that Toggle is both friendly and possessive.  He's protective of his whole family, but he is also easily accepting of people when we are comfortable around them.  However, I'm not sure how to deal with a dog that is possessive of people when trying to work.

Yes, Toggle, if he is near me while I am working, is extremely possessive of me.

Thankfully, I was actually finished writing and submitting the current article and was looking for something else that had to do with Briana registering for school for the summer session when he started acting possessive.

I would try to type, and he would come up and snoot my arm away from my keyboard.  I would try to move my mouse and he would come up and snoot my hand away from my mouse.

I love that he protects us, but I don't need to be protected from my own computer or my own laptop. 

(Right now, I'm using  a computer up in Sowela's computer lab as we wait for registration for my sister to begin - which was supposed to start 21 minutes ago).

However, up in the hotel, I have a laptop and a USB keyboard (because my laptop's keyboard has gone all wonky) and a USB mouse (both because the touch pad is a bit odd and it is a bit difficult to use the touch pad wit the USB keyboard).

So, Toggle is a bit possessive.  I already knew Toggle sometimes tried to be possessive of Woofles (though Niblet is more possessive of Woofles).  Niblet is the alpha dog.  Woofles is the "beta dog."  Toggle is the "gamma dog."   They all get along with each other, though.

Toggle is also very possessive of his toys.  A few weeks ago, Niblet started playing with one of Toggle's toys that is in our backyard (it's a toy that's soft, looks like half a lime, and squeaks.)  Niblet loves toys that are like "balls" or flattened balls, so the lime was something he'd love.  Even though Toggle had two more of those, three toys squeaky bananas, three toy pineapples and other toys, he whined about Niblet playing with the toys!

Thankfully, the possessiveness isn't that bad.  It's whining and snooting. 

Overqualified

Overqualified is a word that I hate.  Ever since I started applying for jobs, I've been told that I was overqualified.  I didn't apply for a job directly after high school.  That's because I spent the end of my senior year and my summer applying for and getting ready for college.

I started applying for jobs when I was in college because I wanted to make more than I was making in my work-study job.  This is when I started hearing the word "overqualified."

How could I possibly overqualified if I had no work experience, but they were supposed to count schooling?   I could never understand the employers.  When I was in college, I was obviously younger and I could even get up to go faster and some further distances than I can now.  My back wasn't feeling as bad as it does on some days that it does now.  I didn't use a transport wheelchair at all  (I still prefer NOT using it when I don't need it, but sometimes my back is so sore that I need it.  Also, my legs aren't great - genetics - so I can't do anything about it).  Anyway,  things were more like employers would have wanted them.

The restaurants would tell me that I was overqualified to work at them.  I went to temp job places and took the tests at them. They never said anything, but they'd tell me that I didn't qualify for their type of work.

My mom says it is the "Conchis Curse."  (Her maiden last name is Conchis.)  I may be her daughter, but I am NOT a Conchis and I DO NOT believe in curses.  Believing in them only furthers them and makes things worse.

I know that overqualified is a real word.  Merriam-Webster even defines it as, "having more education, training, or experience than a job calls for."


Their example sentence is even, "They didn't hire her because she was overqualified for the job."


It says that the first known usage of "overqualified" is from 1954.


However, I don't think there should be a word such as "overqualified."  At least, if the word exists, it shouldn't be allowed for hiring people.  


If a person is overqualified for a job, the person is obviously qualified!  They have the qualifications and more!  It shouldn't be a penalty!


I'm sure that sometimes the word is used to mean, "You don't have the physical qualities that we want for our workers, so you can't work here."  I know it is stupid and it truly isn't legal, but I'm sure that is what some of the people who are hiring are really  basing a decision on when they use the word "overqualified."


I know that others use it in the way that it is meant because the first interview was over the phone.


I hate the word overqualified.  It's been a bane in my life ever since I started hearing it. 


What are some words that you hate?

Love and Supoort

People wonder why I don't just move out of the house.

I have thought about that, but I don't have a job that pays enough money to actually pay bills.  I can't even afford rent with what I make from freelancing.   I know it's pathetic, but people just don't respect writers unless they are in a huge market area and can get into television or something like that.

I've tried to find jobs, too.  I've put in so many applications at the mall.

There is a huge problem when people are biased against anybody with any disability.  I have scoliosis and  only now are they finding out the later problems a Boston brace can have on a person.  That's what I had to wear.  I can't walk for long distances or stand for a long time.  Because of this, I sometimes use a transport wheelchair.

People look at me like I'm helpless a lot of times when I use it when that is the furthest thing from the truth.  It's an aid to help me.  I could technically move without it, but not as well.  I'd be sore and out of breath.  I'd have to stop after a little bit of walking, the slow down, and it would probably be about after every three steps.

People don't hire me.  Even before I had my transport wheelchair, people didn't hire me because they said I was "overqualified" (which is a stupid word and gives me a blog topic for tomorrow.

So, I do freelance work.

I'd like to find the time for a few days to stop writing for a bit so I can take some time to writer and gather information and prepare an application for a magazine.  I really want to do two things:  work for that magazine and be in the MFA program at McNeese.  (I tried poetry at first - program was full - things came up with my Daddy's health - more stuff came up - I've been writing more fiction lately, so I'd like to try to get an application for the fiction - then if I don't get that, I'd try for poetry again.)

Anyway, my sister, my mom, and I all help each other in ways, too.  Since I don't make enough money to pay for a place on my own, I can easily live at home (which we all own outright - no payments need to be made on the house at all).

My mom gets SSI and payments from  my Daddy's life insurance policy.  My sister gets SSI.  My mom pays most of the bills.  Briana pays for the "at  home entertainment," meaning cable, internet, phone (ours is a bundle) and the cell phone.   (She has been paying my credit card bills as instead of me because then I pay other weekly expenses she used to pay like groceries).

My mom's money cover utilities.

I do all the budgets because I found out that my mom can't handle hers as she was always overdrawn and Briana and I were always scrambling to help her find how to make it so her bank account wasn't overdrawn.

Briana was already horrible with money and I've been trying to teach her.

Yes, my mom did make it some years before me, but honestly, not much.  She lived with her parents.  She got married to my Daddy (never lived on her own).  My Daddy did the bills and things were fine.  When my Daddy got sick and she started doing the bills, we had tons of problems.

Then, she got worse and we found out just recently that it was the Paxil.

However, she still doesn't make much sense.  She can't drive because it is dangerous because of her low blood pressure.  She's passed out at the steering wheel of the car at least three times.  My sister can't drive.

With my mom's low blood pressure, she would not make it on her own.  She'd fall and she'd hurt herself and that would be it.

No more words . . .

I need to think of another topic or get some journaliing questions or topics in general, but right now, I don't have much time to journal because I need to write to try to make some money.  I hate to beg.  I hate to ask for help.  I'm the one that likes to help how she can.  However, lately, it seems that I have needed help.  Just quickly, right now, I HATE to ask or beg for help.  It seems it is all I can do lately to take care of my mom, my sister, our dogs, and myself.  However, our air went out and the stupid company hasn't gotten the part in YET.  We can't get window air  conditioners installed because they need an electrical source and the house is way too messy.  Can anybody help out monetarily in any way?  My paypal e-mail is fuzzyguy1982@hotmail.com


I thank anybody and everybody so much.  You have no idea how much it means to me!

Trivia Answer

The last trivia question asked was "If a piece of music instructs you to play it "adagio," how should you play the music?"

Nobody replied.  The correct answer is "slowly."

Definitely

It's a word that I use fairly often, but not all time.  I prefer saying "definitely" rather than saying "yes."  I know in the south it is considered "polite," to say, "yes, ma'am" and "yes sir," but I had teachers that didn't like that and parents from California, so I never really said "yes, ma'am" or "yes sir."  I also never said "no ma'am" and "no sir" for the same reasons.

Sometimes saying "ma'am" or "sir" made people feel old. Other times, the teachers or parents didn't like the way it sounded because it would sound like other words or just sound strange to that person.

Anyway, with my mom and sister having Asperger's and having it difficult at other times for people to catch a one syllable word, "definitely" works better than "yes" because then the word "no" is the only one syllable word. 

Sometimes I say "negatory," but I usually don't.  At least it would still be easily distinguishable from "definitely."

Of course, sometimes I still say "yes."  The word "yes" isn't banned from my vocabulary.  I've simply found that a word that is longer than "yes" usually works better for people to understand. I still say "yes" when a short or quick answer is needed.

I also use "definitely" with the correct usage unlike how many people use "literally."  After all, if a person "literally dies" that means the person is dead. 

The Oatmeal has a great cartoon about the usage of the word "literally."

See The Oatmeal's literally cartoon.