Football!!!!! I'm ready for some football. My son
has begun his middle school season and I've been busy feeding his bottomless
pit of a stomach,running him to practice, and washing those funky uniforms at
the end of the night. He is off in the distance practicing as I write this
blog. I hear the smashing of helmets, the QB calling the plays, and the
whistles blowing. Oh the excitement is in the air as the new season begins.
I"m amazed how the little guys can take such a beating, catch their breath and
line up for the next play. They ice their injuries and soak in Epsom salts
with hopes that tomorrow they can get back in the game. We could all learn
something from these kids. They have a special something that gives them hope
to endure and to pick themselves up despite the odds being against them. I'll
never forget the time when Joey came to me after his first football
practice. He stuck his elbow in my face and said "Look, Mom, my first bruise
from football." He was so proud of his football wound. He had earned that
bruise. At that point in time, he didn't want a mommy kiss to make it better.
He wanted the reassurance that he was tough and could withstand anything
those boys dished out. I can't believe I told him his bruise was cool.
Little does he know that football can be compared to life. When life hands
you a tough defensive line, dig in your feet and push as hard as you can to
get through the challenge. When life hands you a painful blow, take time to heal
and then get back in the game. When life seems to offer only losses, have
faith, don't quit and keep playing to win.
As I wrote this blog the players had to move
indoors because a small storm was passing through. Their noisy little selves
are beginning to emerge from the barracks where they huddled during the
rain. I glanced at the sky to see how it looked since the players were back
on the field and to my surprise...a beautiful rainbow.
The rainbow is a gift that represents a
promise. Funny how a mom can take the manly sport of football and turn it into
life lessons and rainbows of promise. HA!!
I guess I'm in this mood because my Aunt Mary from Georgia is visiting us. Aunt Mary is a cancer survivor. Life dealt her a painful blow, she persevered,
took time to heal and is back in the game of life. Hopefully my son will some day apply the lessons
learned in football to his life. We shall see....until then....3,19,
hut,hut,hut.....Joey get your man!
Postal Free- The feeling achieved while on annual
leave when a postal worker is able to forget
about the daily fleece job , the daily nag job, and the daily news of the USPS'
demise. I'm feeling postal free about now after being away for 9 days.
Nine days of freedom spent in the deep forests of
Hocking Hills/Old Man's Cave state park. I made friends with a few stray deer
and a tame baby raccoon that I'm pretty sure stole my pink lady apples from the
cooler. He didn't take the lemons or tomatoes. I've had no cell phone,tv, or
internet for a while so I may be a little slow getting back into
my routine.
Tomorrow I return to "the place" and of course I'm not looking forward to it. I am looking forward to the month of August. My garden is bursting with vegetables and fruit
that I will spend the whole month preserving. I got everything
from blackberries to zucchini. I enjoy living the country life and the natural remedy it offers the soul if one takes the time to enjoy it. I don't know how the city gals do it with all their silicone,
botox, collagen injections, and liposuction. I think I'll stick with my
steady diet of wilderness, dirt digging, sunscreen, bug spray, and smores.
I spent today at the
Dayton Air Show. It was in the 90's, I'm fried to a purple red, but I
leave the air show with great memories. My son, husband and I paid
$150 bucks to take a 10 minute ride in a Huey. I have to say that is
the most awesome thing I've ever done in my life and it was worth $50 a piece. You all know I'm a
crazy roller coaster freak but the Huey ride was quite the thrill. The
pilot did a couple nose dives and sharp turns that left us feeling
weightless. Joe and I sat in the gunner seats. We were literally
sitting in the seat on the side of the Huey . It was us and the ground
below inches from where a tiny seatbelt held us in. The feeling
was emotional. While the flight was more of a thrill for me I was sad
in my heart because the pilot explained that the exact Huey we flew on was in service during Vietnam and transported soldiers-three of which received the Congressional Medal of Honor.
The F-22 Raptor was the featured performer. I don't have the vocabulary to describe what the aircraft can do. OMG!!! What power and precision and speed that the US keeps classified. I filmed a fly by of the Raptor using my cellphone
and the Raptor fly by scrambled my phone. I had to remove the battery
and reset the phone. Incredible. The jet engines roar and you feel
the force deep in your chest while staring at the afterburners.
I know air shows are hot and crowded but if you've never experienced
one you really need to. If you are in the Ohio area you can see the Dayton air show tomorrow.
For example..... today I
delivered a priority click and ship with Refused written on the label.
The returning customer dropped the package off in a blue box, it was
sent back to our post office and I returned it to sender today; however, when
the lady came to the door I said"Hello, I'm returning this package to you
because the person you shipped it to refused it" My customer who answered the
door became furious and said the package had been opened,but the customer
repackaged the item and used the original label to send it back. All she did
was write REFUSED on it, dropped it in the box and back through the mail stream
it goes. If I had not spoken to my customer today, I would not have found out
that the returning customer did not pay postage. She opened the item and
therefore she must pay proper postage to return it....not just reuse the
original label with new tape.
My customer called consumer affairs and is filing a report
about the returning customer's mail fraud. How
often does this kind of thing happen? Who verifies postage on these click and ship
items? I'm a carrier, I don't know about weight and rates. I also deliver
hundreds of parcels a week and don't have the time to look at postage on all
these packages and verify that it matches the weight. There are times when I
deliver a click and ship and it feels like it weighs a ton but the label says $4
postage. How many clerk's hands did that package pass through before getting to
me? Supposedly they checked the weight and postage paid .....Right? I'm
not so sure. With package pick up.... I just pick up the package, drop it in the
priority cart and off it goes. Does anyone verify postage for click and ship? It seems there
are too many loopholes in the click and ship system. The USPS is delivering
parcels at times for free and other times collecting pennies for postage when
they should be collecting dollars. I vote for a new position....Click and ship sleuth, how about using all those light duty people to weigh these items and
check postage.....but then again why should I care......I'll just get back to carrier stuff..... like making sure I scan all those bogus click and ship labels.
America celebrates Independence Day each year on July 4, commemorating the day in 1776 when the colonists declared their freedom from British rule. Thomas Jefferson drafted the Declaration of Independence, which was approved and signed by members of the Continental Congress of the United States of America.
O beautiful for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
America! America!
God shed his grace on thee
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea!
I pledge
Allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all.
May
God bless all those persons serving in our military forces who risk their lives in order to preserve and defend the God-given rights of all "that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness"
When gazing at the firworks this evening sing the verse proudly!!!!!!
The rockets red glare, the bombs bursting in air, gave proof through the night that our flag was still there.
I have a patriot's heart and got a little carried away with the copy & paste feature. Have a great Independence day everyone!!!!!
