TheCyberWriter

Not this weekend, but last weekend I was invited over to my friend C's house. He lives about 25 miles from me and I think due to the distance, we don't get to hang out as often as we would like. We have known each other since kindergarten and after we finished 9th grade, he and his folks moved to Texas. Towards the end of high school, we reconnected and resumed our friendship. He would come up to visit during summer breaks when we were both in college. When we were in school, a lot of kids picked on him because he was somewhat of a sissy - sorry, but he was! LOL But I just liked him and thought he was great fun to be around. So I guess you could say I was always his friend :-) He told me a number of years later that I was one of only a few people that were actually kind to him in school. As much as this made me feel good, it also sorta broke my heart. I think this is because people judged him based on his feminine side, instead of getting to know him for who he really was....Well in 1998, he and I got into a nasty fight. It was over something really lame, but as a result of it, we didn't speak to each other for several years afterwards. Fast forward to 2005 when it was time for my 10 year high school reunion. I was surprised to C at our reunion! He didn't graduate with us, but as I said, he did attend school with all of us until 9th grade. It was great connecting with him! And you know, as the night went along, we were talking like we had just seen each other. You never would have guessed that it had been 7 years since we last spoke to one another ;-) That night, he told me that he lives in the KC area now and that he finally realized that he is gay. The gay part didn't come as a surprise to me at all. In fact, I was glad he came to this realization. I had a feeling he would try to live a straight life, only to end up being miserable. As we talked, I got to see how successful he had become. He has a great job with a major company and he even earned his Master's degree. I always knew he would be successful at anything he tried because not only does he have a good head on his shoulders, he is also very smart! The night of the reunion, he told me he had a boyfriend and that his boyfriend was from the area of Texas in which he lived - and he also happened to be quite a bit younger than us. Ever since the night of the reunion, we have in ways, been inseperable. We hang out together from time to time, plus talk on the phone and what not.....Well the other day, I had made plans to go to his house on Friday after work. The day I made these plans was the day of my doctor's appointment, plus it snowed here that afternoon. When I got out of the doctor's and saw that it was snowing, I was feeling really tired, plus I wasn't up to fighting the traffic to go over to his house. So this past week, we rescheduled plans and I decided that I would go over on Friday. As I was driving over to his house, I was feeling excited, as I always do - he and his bf are a lot of fun to hang around, you guys! :-) When I pulled into his driveway, I saw a strange sight: a realtor's for sale sign in his front yard - C had put his house up for sale :-( At first, I had to make sure I was at the right house LOL But no, I had the right one...So I walked in his house and I was like, "So what's up with the For Sale sign on the house? You moving to Johnson County? LOL" (and really, that's what I thought, that he was just moving to a different area) He said he had put his house up for sale about 3 weeks ago and that he was requesting a transfer at his job! :-( His company is nationwide and has a branch in the Dallas area. I was floored, you guys!....So what started out as a fun evening, was somehow overshadowed with this news :-( I told him that I would support whatever he decided to do - be it staying in KC or moving back to Texas. Seriously, with the job market being as weird as it is, you have to do what you have to do. His company is laying off and he is just worried, so I understand why is looking. I guess I was just surprised he would seriously consider moving back to Texas.....You guys, I'm sad! :-( He hasn't even moved yet, and I already miss him :-( I guess there is a chance he won't move and may find a job up here if he loses the one he has. And again, I want him to be happy...I guess part of me doesn't want him to go, you know? Any thoughts or suggestions as to how to handle this???

Today was intersting at work. Since there are three people in my department, the work is typically divided into thirds. My 6 month review is coming up towards the end of the month and I'm trying to make sure I'm doing my third of the work. I know in some areas I do my fair share, but there might be a couple of areas where I'm lacking. This would mostly be because I didn't learn how to do certain things until recently. Well today we had a set of plans to work on and get ready to send to the state. I realized I hadn't done one of these in a LONG time, so I picked it up to work on. Well I had to dig out my notes and refresh my memory as to all the steps I needed to take to complete this task. I started to get a little flustered and I think my supervisor started to feel sorry for me. Rather than just help me, she came over and practically started doing the work for me. This is her thing though, and I should be used to it by now. She is real good at not explaining something, but rather just jumping in and doing the task for you. Well shit, how am I supposed to learn anything if she's always there to do it for me??!! I don't know, it just really annoyed me!....I found out the other day that the county is requiring all employees to take a mandatory class on harrassment in the workplace. Their claim is that they want all employees to "feel comfortable in their working environment." I don't have a problem with attending this class, but I had to chuckle; do you guys remember me writing a while back about the guy who's always touching me at work?? Well he still does it! So when I found out about this harrassment class, I was like, "Good, maybe K will get some useful information about inappropriate touching in the workplace." LOL.....On a much lighter note, the weather here has really been warming up lately :-) Hope all is going well for you guys! Will write back later...

Well I haven't had a chance to get in for the test the doctor wants me to have. We have sorta been crazy busy at work, so really, I haven't been able to be on the phone much. I'm shooting for next week to get the test appointment set up - don't let me forget, you guys! LOL....Let's see, what else? Oh! Today we had Mardi Gras luncheon at work. I normally wouldn't make a big deal out of something like this, but this was the first time I have ever had Cajun food. We had jambalaya (with chicken and sausage), red beans and rice, hushpuppies (thanks to Long John Silvers, LOL), a few different desserts, as well as soda to drink. I must say that it was quite nice! :-) I have noticed lately that I haven't had much of an appetite when it comes to food. I don't know what the deal is. The doctor even asked me in my appointment last week about my eating habits - mostly if I had noticed a change in my appetite - and I told her I had. I told her it felt like I wasn't hungry that much, or as much as I should be. It's weird...I almost hate going to a restaurant because I never know if the food will be appetizing to me or not, you know? Do you suppose this can be why she wants me to have my thyroid checked? At any rate, it's still very weird......Hope all is going well for you guys! Sorry I haven't written for a few days; I guess I haven't had any exciting news to report LOL :-)

Well yesterday was my doctor's appointment. The doctor gave me a whole series of physical tests to check my reflexes and all that good jazz. I didn't find the tests to be difficult, which is a good thing. She didn't really want to give me a diagnosis until I have some tests done. The first test she wants me to have is for my thyroid. From what she said, if your thyroid is messed up, it can give you symptoms similar to those of neurological conditions (which is what I have been having). SO...she wants to rule my thyroid out at this point in time. That's about all the news I have right now...I hope to get this test done ASAP so I can get closer to a prognosis......

Hi everyone....Well this Friday is an important date for me. I made a New Year's resolution and I'm actually going to follow through with it. I promised myself to make a doctor's appointment to get checked out. I have been having some neurological problems for the past several years. They started when I was about 22-23 and instead of getting better, they have just gotten worse. When I first started having symptoms, I just brushed them off to stress. I also convinced myself that they couldn't be anything serious because I was so young, you know? I mean shit, when you are 22, you never think anything bad will happen to your health. As I have gotten older, my symptoms got worse....to the point where they are now a daily occurance in my life :-( So I felt like I was at a crossroads: continue having problems, or get them checked out and take charge of my health. Naturally I chose the latter of the two scenarios. I spoke with a friend of my mom's, who is a nurse, and told her what was going on. She seemed to think I didn't have anything to worry about but that I should get checked out. I made a doctor's appointment the very next day...SO...I have - so far - been true to my New Year's resolution.....As it gets closer to Friday, the more anxious I get. I guess maybe anxious is an understatement; I'm also really scared....I know this can be a really good appointment and I will be given a clean bill of health. OR...I will be faced with bad news :-( I'm an optimist, so I'm leaning towards good news!!....Well I need to run, but I'm going to be back before Friday to post more...I have a feeling my mind will be swimming in thoughts by the time Friday gets here and even in the meantime. If you all could spare a few positive thoughts and vibes for me, I would greatly appreciate it. I will also keep you all up to date...Thanks everyone!!

"AUSTIN, Texas - Some conservatives and parents’ rights groups worry that requiring girls to get vaccinated against the sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer would condone premarital sex and interfere with the way they raise their children. By using an executive order that bypassed the Legislature, Republican Gov. Rick Perry — himself a conservative — on Friday avoided such opposition, making Texas the first state to mandate that schoolgirls get vaccinated against the virus. Beginning in September 2008, girls entering the sixth grade will have to receive Gardasil, Merck & Co.’s new vaccine against strains of the human papillomavirus, or HPV. Perry also directed state health authorities to make the vaccine available free to girls 9 to 18 who are uninsured or whose insurance does not cover vaccines. In addition, he ordered that Medicaid offer Gardasil to women ages 19 to 21. Perry, a conservative Christian who opposes abortion and stem-cell research using embryonic cells, counts on the religious right for his political base. But he has said the cervical cancer vaccine is no different from the one that protects children against polio. “The HPV vaccine provides us with an incredible opportunity to effectively target and prevent cervical cancer,” he said. Opponents say Perry should have let the Legislature decide whether to impose a mandate. “He’s circumventing the will of the people,” said Dawn Richardson, president of Parents Requesting Open Vaccine Education, a citizens group that fought for the right to opt out of other vaccine requirements. “There are bills filed. There’s no emergency except in the boardrooms of Merck, where this is failing to gain the support that they had expected.” Texas allows parents to opt out of inoculations by filing an affidavit objecting to the vaccine on religious or philosophical reasons. Conservative groups say such provisions still interfere with parents’ rights to make medical decisions for their children. The executive order is effective until Perry or a successor changes it, and the Legislature has no authority to repeal it, said Perry spokeswoman Krista Moody. Moody said the Texas Constitution permits the governor, as head of the executive branch, to order other members of the executive branch to adopt rules like this one. Bankrolling state laws The federal government approved Gardasil in June, and a government advisory panel has recommended that all girls get the shots at 11 and 12, before they are likely to be sexually active. Merck could generate billions in sales if Gardasil — at $360 for the three-shot regimen — were made mandatory across the country. Most insurance companies now cover the vaccine, which has been shown to have no serious side effects. The New Jersey-based drug company is bankrolling efforts to pass state laws across the country mandating Gardasil for girls as young as 11 or 12. It doubled its lobbying budget in Texas and has funneled money through Women in Government, an advocacy group made up of female state legislators around the country. Perry has ties to Merck and Women in Government. One of the drug company’s three lobbyists in Texas is Mike Toomey, Perry’s former chief of staff. His current chief of staff’s mother-in-law, Texas Republican state Rep. Dianne White Delisi, is a state director for Women in Government. The governor also received $6,000 from Merck’s political action committee during his re-election campaign. A top official from Merck’s vaccine division sits on Women in Government’s business council, and many of the bills around the country have been introduced by members of Women in Government. Merck spokeswoman Janet Skidmore would not say how much the company is spending on lobbyists or how much it has donated to Women in Government. Susan Crosby, the group’s president, also declined to specify how much the drug company gave. © 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed." I saw this article on MSN.com today and found it to be very disturbing! I think PARENTS should be responsible for making a decision like this for their daughters, not the government. I think this whole mess is a load of crap! :-(

Today was payday for me and one of the things I did when I got off work was stop by the bank - wanted to deposit my check plus withdraw some cash from my savings account. I have been banking with the same bank for 10 years and I must say that in that time, I haven't run into any serious glitches with either one of my accounts. Well tonight, I deposited my paycheck into my checking account, no problem. I then went to make my withdrawal from my savings account. For some reason, my transaction failed. The little slip that printed out said something about me not being authorized to withdraw money from this account. I thought maybe there was a glitch in the system, so I reinserted my card to try again only to get the same error message. At first I was pissed and then I had to chuckle to myself. I thought, "That's funny, I have been making deposits and withdrawals from this account for 10 years until tonight." LOL The last withdrawal I made was about 2 weeks ago and I didn't get any weird messages like this, so I'm very confused as to why I got the message tonight.....So I will have to contact the bank on Monday to find out what's going on...and YES, there is money in the account (more than enough to cover the amount I was going to withdraw)!! hahahahaha :-) So my question is this: has anyone had something like this happen before???? Any folks out there in the banking industry know what something like this could mean?? I'm just really sorta perplexed, to say the least LOL