The Beatles

Welcome to Rock 'n Roll Fridays. Today we picked The Beatles

1. HARD DAYS NIGHT :  Have you ever supported another person?
When I was married, my exhusband went 2 1/2 years without a job of any kind. Then he went 2 years working part-time. I had to support him financially during our entire relationship

2. ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE: What 3 things do you need besides love?
I'm going to be logical here... Air, food, water

3. BACK IN THE USSR: What is the most unusual place you have visited?
 When I first started dating my current fiance, his bedroom was quite unusual and very very untidy. It's a little better now

4. DO YOU WANT TO KNOW A SECRET?: What was the last secret you heard?
 My coworker told me she wanted to destroy another coworker's cell phone by pouring soda on it

5. DRIVE MY CAR: When was the last time you drove someone else’s car?
 I drove my brother's car last week

6. EIGHT DAYS A WEEK:  What was the longest week of YOUR life?
 It seems like the last week has been really really long

7. GET BACK:  Where do YOU belong?
 Sometimes I feel like I belong in a cave by myself for the rest of my life. Strike that... I need to have my dogs with me in the cave, so I wouldn't be all by myself

8. GOOD MORNING GOOD MORNING: What is your morning routine?
 You say that like you think I'm awake in the mornings.... I don't get up until afternoon

9. HELLO GOODBYE: Who was the last person you said goodbye to that you look forward to saying Hello to again?
 My mom & brother

10. YESTERDAY:  What was the best event of yesterday (the day before today)?
 Yesterday sucked, there weren't good events

11. WITHIN YOU WITHOUT YOU: Spiritually, do you believe in afterlife, reincarnation or nothing at all?
 I believe in God, but I'm still on the fence on what really happens after death. Honestly, I lean more towards the idea that there is no life after death.... like you die and that's just it

12. WHEN I’M 64: What was your favorite age to be?
 17 ... I was still a teenager and could use that as an excuse to be immature

13. WE CAN WORK IT OUT: What is the most drastic thing you ever did to try to save a relationship/friendship?
 I took my exhusband back after he was arrested to assaulting me because I didn't support people getting divorced, but I wised up eventually

14. THE NIGHT BEFORE: Anything change drastically just overnight for you?
 When my mom finally decided to leave my dad in 2008 after 25 years of marriage, that was an overnight change for us all

15. FOOL ON THE HILL: Were you ever teased or bullied in the past?
 I was teased for being bisexual back when I was in high school. I normally didn't let it bother me

16. SHE’S A WOMAN:  What was the last gift your significant lover gave to you?
 He gave me several Christmas gifts... including the first season of "The Vampire Diaries" on DVD, one of the "Vampire Diaries" books, "Despicable Me," and more

17. SEXY SADIE:  What is sexy about your significant other?
 How good he treats me

18. REVOLUTION:  What would you change about the USA right now if you could (besides war)?
 I'd start punishment system of castration for all convicted child molesters and rapists

19. PENNY LANE: Tell us about your favorite street.
 I grew up on a circle drive. It was basically a short street with a circle at the end. My house was in the circle part. The circle made for a great baseball field during the summer months, well that was until you fell down cause you'd be falling hard on the road and get all scratched up

20. PAPERBACK WRITER: What would your book be about if someone advanced you money to write one?
 I'd write a memoir on my struggles with mental illness and being abused

21. NOWHERE MAN:  Who do you feel is clue-less?
 I feel like 99.9% of people are utterly stupid

22. NORWEGIAN WOOD: What piece of artwork or furniture are you most proud of?
 I found these two framed paintings of women at a thrift store earlier this year, and I still love them. I paid about $15 total for the both of them

23. MICHELLE: Have you ever dated a non-US born person? 
 I didn't "date" one, but I did have sex with one once

24. MAXWELL’S SILVER HAMMER: How would you like to die if given a choice?
 I'd have Damon from "The Vampire Diaries" suck my veins dry. He's the sexiest vampire of all time. So yeah, that's not realistic at all, but you did say it was my choice

25. MAGICAL MYSTERY TOUR: What was the last tour you went on?
 I toured an art museum. It wasn't magical or mysterious

26. LADY MADONNA:  How do you feel about public breast feeding?
 URGH... I don't even want to think about it. Breast feeding creeps me out. Even the thought of me doing it is creepy. Stuff shouldn't just come out your nipples like that

New Year's

 Thursday Thunks: The New Year's Edition

1. What did you do in 2010 that you’d never done before? 
Being in a relationship for over 10 months without having sex... Yep, still waiting for that wedding night

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
My resolutions normally last one week and I then give up

3. Did anyone close to you give birth? 
I had several coworkers give birth and a cousin had twins. Several people I know from school also had babies

4. Did anyone close to you die? 
A former teacher/close family friend committed suicide this year, and the younger brother of a former best friend also committed suicide

5. What countries did you visit? 
I didn't leave the U.S.

6. What would you like to have in 2011 that you lacked in 2010? 
More money

7. What dates from 2010 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? 
I have moments that are etched in my memory, but I honestly have no clue what date they happened on

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year? 
Surviving it

9. What was your biggest failure? 
Not seeing how depressed my younger brother had become before he had a breakdown

10. What was the best thing you bought? 
New laptop

11. Whose behavior merited celebration? 
My fiance... he's so sweet and considerate

12. Whose behavior made you appalled and disgusted? 
My exhusband... but I'm not going into that

13. What song will always remind you of 2010? 
"Whip my hair" by Willow Smith, but that's only because of this video ...

14. What do you wish you’d done more of?
Go to church

15. What do you wish you’d done less of? 
Work

16. Did you fall in love in 2010? 
Yes, I did

17. Who did you miss? 
My grandfather who died in 2008

18. Who was the best new person you met? 
I'd have to say my fiance's mom... she's been so welcoming

Sick with an upper respiratory infection

I'm sick... I mean really sick... with an upper respiratory infection. I get them several times a year, but this one is extremely bad. It started Thursday night when I was working, but the symptoms didn't seem too bad that day. Friday, which was Christmas Eve, started with me suddenly feeling light-headed then having a massive nosebleed. The rest of that day I was coughing up a storm and my throat was so sore. I'd sneeze and tear up from pain. My tongue had lost all color on the top, and was totally covered in a white coating, and it's still that way now. Christmas Day I started having severe pain in my jaw on the right side, and my sore throat got even worse. My nasal passages became so dry and scratching that I was bleeding bad out my nose. The day after Christmas, I woke up with my right cheek swollen as all hell. It felt like my throat was so closed off that I couldn't breathe without pain. The gums around two teeth that are really weakened still from last year's gum disease were swollen also and hurt so bad I wanted to cry.

Turns out that it's an upper respiratory infection that's much worse than the ones I normally get. The infection apparently creeped into my gums, and that's what's causing the gum/teeth pain. I'm still not quite sure why my cheek was swollen, but it was right around where the infection got into my gums, so I guess that's probably related.

Here it is Tuesday night, and I'm still just lying down all day. Mostly I've just slept all day every day since Saturday. I have left home only when I absolutely have to. Every time I cough I want to cry because it hurts. I keep sneezing and each time it feels like I'm just a step away from another nose bleed. I'm afraid to be around anyone because I know I'm contagious. I'm so drugged up on pain medicines and heavy-duty cold medicine that I probably shouldn't be out driving anyway or out in public at all. I'm severely hoping tomorrow will be better, but who knows. Off to bed ....

Keep or Regift...

Monday Mayhem - Keep or regift? 

* You have received the ugliest sweater ever made. What do you do with it?
Donate it to a charity. Some poor person will be happy to wear it

* Your aunt Mabel gave you a $25 gift card to coffee joint that is far away from your home. Do you regift it?
I'd probably keep it in my purse for a while and use it if and when I'm ever around it during a mystery shopping trip

* Your sister in law sent you a gift card to a store that isn't in your town or online. What do you do with it?
Trade it on a coupon message board for a card I'd actually use. I prefer the A Full Cup message board

* What is the oddest gift you have ever received from someone?
My dad's mother gave me "sexy panties" when I was 11 or 12 years old. She said every girl needs sexy panties. My mom was furious with her

* What did you do with it?
They went in the trash

* Did you ever wear a sweater, or something else, that was given to you just because of the person who gave it to you and not because you liked it?
Not that I recall, but I'm sure it happened at least once when I was a kid

* What was the best gift you got this holiday season?
Just having the weekend off to go spend with my family and fiance was the best gift I could ask for

* What was the 'most regiftable' gift you received this year?
Six makeup kits from my sister-in-law. I don't wear makeup at all. It's all on eBay already

* Did you keep anything that you had actually purchased with the intent of giving it to someone else?
No

* If you could give me one gift, what would it be?
Cold hard cash... that's the best gift

* What is the one gift that I can give to you?
Same answer as last question

My Post Secret favorites of the week

Quick 2010 Fandom Meme

Sunday Stealing: The Quick 2010 Fandom Meme

1. Your main fandom of the year: "The Vampire Diaries" ... that show is like crack


2. Your favorite Film this year: "Despicable Me"

3. Your favorite Book read this year: "Loose Girl" by Kerry Cohen

4. Your favorite Album or Song this year: "The Breath you Take" by George Strait

5. Your favorite meme site of the year: I am going to say Sunday Stealing cause if I don't, I may get beaten up

6. Your Fandom that you haven't tried Yet, but want to: I'm drawing a blank

7. Your best new Fandom Discovery of the Year: CW's new show "Nikita"

8. Your biggest Fandom Disappointment of the Year: "Eclipse" ... I was very disappointed in that movie


9. Your TV Boyfriend of the year: Stefan on "The Vampire Diaries"


10. Your TV Girlfriend of the year: Caroline on "The Vampire Diaries" post-becoming a vampire

11. Your most Missed Old Fandom: "Buffy the Vampire Slayer"

12. Your Biggest Anticipations of the New Year: Right now I'm anxiously awaiting the return of new episodes of all my favorite TV shows... I hate when shows go on hiatus

13. Your favorite post (of yours) of the year: I have a policy of not looking back at what I've written in the past. I live in the now, so I don't really wanna go back and look through them all

14.Your favorite new blog (to you) of the year: Deal Finding Chik ... It helps me save money

15.Your favorite new website of the year: New Dress A Day

16. Your favorite news story of the year: Ryan Reynolds and Scarlett Johansson ending their marriage ... It means I still have a chance to get with him... LOL ...


17. Your favorite actor of the year: Ryan Reynolds, of course

18. Your favorite drama TV show of the year: "The Vampire Diaries"


19. Your favorite comedy TV Show this year: "Big Bang Theory"

20. Your favorite cartoon of the year: "Despicable Me"

Christmas Songs

Welcome to Rock 'n Roll Fridays. Today we picked Holiday Rock 'n Roll Christmas Songs.

1. BAND AID: Do They Know It’s Christmas -- What is your favorite charity?
In Oklahoma City, there's a place called Infant Crisis Center. It provides formula, food, diapers, and clothing to families with babies and toddlers who can't afford to buy them

2. BRENDA LEE: Rockin Around the Christmas Tree -- What do you consider “rockin” about Chrismas?
Well it's "rockin" that I actually don't have to work this Christmas. I've worked the last 4, if I remember correctly

3. JOHN LENNON-YOKO ONO: Happy Christmas/ War Is Over -- What major world event/change would you like to see happen on Christmas Day?
Does me winning the lottery qualify as a "major world event" ?

4. PAUL McCARTNEY: Wonderful Christmastime -- What is your favorite Christmas memory?
When I was young, we used to drive 50 miles to my aunt's house on Christmas Eve each year. We'd end up getting ice cream at McDonald's. It was a simple tradition, but it was nice

5. BEACH BOYS: Little Saint Nick -- Have you been to California, Florida or some other warm weather place for the holidays?
Nope

6. STEVIE WONDER: Someday At Christmas -- What would like for a future Christmas for yourself and your family?
I'd like us to all be debt free some day

7. WEIRD AL: Christmas at Ground Zero -- Have you prepared your family home for a catastrophic emergency?
Not at all

8. THE PRETENDERS: 2000 Miles -- What is the furthest away you have traveled for Christmas or other holiday?
Um, about 175 miles

9. ELVIS PRESLEY: Blue Christmas -- What is the saddest Christmas memory you have?
Last year there was a Christmas Eve blizzard in Oklahoma and no one could really go anywhere. Everyone was depressed because most everyone's Christmas plans had to be canceled. However, people apparently took the opportunity to get down and dirty because 9 months later there was a baby boom

10. THE WAITRESSES: Christmas Rapping -- Have you ever hooked up on Christmas Eve?
I'm always working on Christmas Eve, so no I haven't

11. ELTON JOHN: Step Into Christmas -- What is your favorite snow-related activity?
Watching puppies and kittens try to figure out what snow is when they see it for the very first time

12. WHAM: Last Christmas -- Do you have any lovers or friends you have lost touch with and want to reconnect with?
I've actually reconnected with several long-lost friends in the last year through Facebook. I can't really think of anyone else I want to find

13. BOBBY HELMS: Jingle Bell Rock -- Have you ever been on a sleigh ride?
No, but I have been on a horse-drawn carriage in freezing temperatures

13 songs stuck in my head lately

1. George Strait - "The Breath you Take"



2. Matthew West - "My Own Little World"



3. OneRepublic - "Secrets"



4. Maroon 5 - "Misery"



5. Bruno Mars - "Just The Way You Are"



6. Bruno Mars - "Grenade"



7. Kings of Leon - "Sex on Fire"



8. Katy Perry - "Firework"



9. Tenth Avenue North - "You Are More"



10. Jeremy Camp - "Jesus Saves"



11. Chris Tomlin - "Our God"



12. Stone Sour - "Say You'll Haunt Me"



13. Cee Lo Green - "Fuck You" (This video is so damn stupid, but the song is fun)



Thursday 13 meme

Thursday Thunks - The Christmas Version

Thursday Thunks - The Christmas Version

C- What color/flavor candy cane should I put in your stocking?
I'd prefer chocolates or caramels to candy canes. I've never liked candy canes of any sort

H- If Santa really comes down the chimney of people's houses and he busts out the bricks on the way down, do you think that is covered by his Christmas insurance? 
With the way my insurance company works, I doubt anything he does would be covered by insurance

R- Did you know that rabbits eat their own poop to get the nutrients from the food that they didn't get from it the first time they ate it? 
Eww... 

I- Have you ever sucked on an icicle? 
Sure, who hasn't?

S- Do you think there is too much sex on tv? 
Nope, I think there should be more, much much more

T- We're eating tacos. Taco sauce - hot, medium, mild or OMG my butthole is going to hurt tomorrow! ? 
Very very mild

M- Are you sick of Christmas music yet? 
I was sick of it by December 5th

A- Add up the number of windows in your house, subtract that number by the number of doors you have in your house, multiply that by the number of hallways you have in your house and then add the number of light switches. Whats your answer? 
10 - 3 = 7 * 1 = 7 + 12 = 19

S- You build a snowman (yes you really do), what color hat do you have him wear? And now you are going to build a sand castle (yes, shut up, you do that too), does it have a moat? 
Leopard print hat with furry trim on the snowman, and of course my sand castle would have a moat

Weeks of Post Secret favorites

I'm so far behind posting my favorite Post Secret cards. Don't ask me which week any of these are from cause I honestly have no clue, but I've been saving them on my desktop as I see them.

 

The Ninja Meme

Sunday Stealing: The Ninja Meme, Part Two

26. Whose responses to Stealing do you want to read the most?
I like reading them all

27. What color shirt are you wearing?
Chocolate brown

28. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets?
No, I sweat too much for satin

29. Can you whistle?
Not very well

30. Favorite color(s)?
White (the color of purity)

31. Could you be a pirate?
Arrrgh, probably not

32. What songs do you sing in the shower?
I have never once sung in the shower. It never seemed like the thing to do

33. Favorite girls name?
Izzabella

34. Favorite boy’s name?
Ian

35. What’s in your pocket right now?
Nothing at all

36. Last thing that made you laugh?
A coworker

37. Best bed sheets as a child?
I just slept on plain colored ones

38. Worst injury you’ve ever had?
My exhusband slit my wrist once

39. Do you love where you live?
It could be better

40. How many TVs do you have in your house? How many HDTVs?
Just one normal TV

41. Who is your loudest friend?
I'm normally the loudest in the crowd

42. How many dogs do you have?
I have two that live with me and one that lives with my mom and brother

43. Does anyone have a crush on you?
I hope my fiance has one on me

44. What are the most fun things you ever did?
Playing with baby tigers was really fun

45. What are your favorite books?
I love mental illness-related memoirs

47. Favorite Team?
For the most part I hate sports, but if I had to pick, I'd say the Chicago Cubs

48. What songs do you want played at your funeral?
I don't want to have a funeral when I die. I just want to disappear... no obituary, no death notice, no funeral, no grave... just disappear

49. What were you doing at 12 AM?
Working

50. What was the first thing you thought of when you woke up?
The dogs barking

'Chilled Out' People Have Higher Obesity, Depression Risk

By LiveScience.com

People who seem to face stressful situations without blinking an eye may have an increased risk of health woes such as obesity and depression, according to a new study.

These results mean that when the body underreacts to stresses in life, it can be just as bad for your health as overreacting, said study researcher Doug Carroll, a professor in the School of Sport and Exercise Science at the University of Birmingham in England.

Over-responding to stressors can increase the risk of hypertension and atherosclerosis, but under-responding to stressors may be associated with obesity, depression, poor immune functioning and poor overall health, Carroll said.

The finding doesn't necessarily apply to all people with relaxed personalities, Carroll said.
"It's important to distinguish between two things: First, the outward appearance of 'being chilled' and what your biology is actually doing, [and] second, between the resting biological state and how that biology reacts to stress," Carroll told MyHealthNewsDaily.

"Obese individuals tend to have high resting heart rates, but low or blunted heart-rate reactions to stress," he said.

Researchers analyzed health data collected from 1,300 people during a 14-year period.

When participants were asked to complete a short stress test, those who did not have large heart rate or blood pressure changes were more likely to become depressed and obese over the next five years, compared with those whose heart rates and blood pressures increased in response to stress, the study said.

The people whose heart rates weren't affected by the stress test were also more likely to say they were in poor health than people whose heart rate and blood pressure increased during the test, according to the study.

Past research has linked low blood pressure with depression. A 2000 study of more than a thousand people in the British Journal of Psychiatry found that low blood pressure was a risk factor for, and not a consequence of, depression.

And a 2006 study in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health found that people with low blood pressure are more likely to suffer from anxiety and depression than people with normal blood pressure levels.

Carroll and his colleagues are now looking at the effects of a blunted reaction to stress in other studies. Next, they hope to look at the relationship between cognitive ability (reasoning and speed of reaction) and reactions to stress, because people who have high reactions to stress may have better cognitive abilities than those who have low reactions, he said.

The study was published online Dec. 15 in the journal Biological Psychology.

Light at the end of the depression tunnel?

Where, oh where, do I begin to update you guys on what's going on in my life? It seems like so much has happened lately. I may be just cursing myself, but I think I'm starting to finally see a light at the end of this depression I've been stuck in for more than a year -- knock on wood.

Since my former teacher/friend committed suicide a while back, I've been really questioning the meaning of life and why I survived my past suicide attempts when so many other people don't survive. I couldn't figure out how to recover from his suicide for a while. Well, I don't think you ever really "recover" from that kind of thing, but I decided I'd learn from it and make some changes in my life. I'll explain much more about this all in the coming weeks (I promise).

My boyfriend and I got engaged on November 17th, exactly one month ago. We're planning a wedding for September or October, but we haven't got a specific date set yet. We have to talk to the church to arrange a date with them. Everyone seems to be really excited for us. This time it's right... second time's a charm. More on this later too.

My mom had her surgery on Tuesday. It turned out pretty well. The doctor ended up finding a lot more damage internally than she expected, but she was able to do repairs. Apparently along with her "female" parts falling out of her body, her bladder had damage and the doctor had to basically stitch it back where it's supposed to be. The mass that showed up when they did a CT scan turned out to not be cancer, so that's good. Her kidney infection has cleared up and it seems like her white blood cell count, potassium level, and iron levels seem to be back in a safe range.

I started having severe hemorrhaging again because apparently my birth control pills stopped working. I was having 2 week "periods" again that were so heavy that it was preventing me from living normal daily life, and I felt sick all the time. I went to see my doctor a couple weeks ago, but wound up having to see her physician's assistant instead. She changed my medicine again, which so far is working, but I really wanted to talk to the actual doctor about removing my ovaries. I'll have to go in again sometime to talk to her about that.

My older brother and his wife found out the day after Thanksgiving that she's pregnant. We should all be extremely excited, but everyone's worried because she had a miscarriage earlier this year, and everyone seems afraid it will happen again. They had an ultrasound last week, but they couldn't find a heartbeat, which of course, scared the hell out of them. They tried it again yesterday, and this time they were able to find a little heartbeat. It looks like the baby will be due in August. It will be their first child.

My fiance's younger brother and his wife are also expecting a baby. She is now 12 weeks along and will be due sometime in June/July. It will also be their first child, and it will be my future parents-in-law's first grandchild.

My exhusband's criminal trial was settled last week. He accepted a plea agreement that included a suspended sentence, probation, court-ordered anger management, and a fine. All my friends and coworkers were outraged that he got off without jail time, but I'm fine with the punishment. At this point, I'm not going to say anything more about it.

Paul Revere & the Raiders

Welcome to Rock 'n Roll Fridays. Today we picked Paul Revere & the Raiders.

1. INDIAN RESERVATION “They took the whole Indian Nation, Locked Us on this reservation And though I wear a shirt and tie, I’m still a red man deep inside.” Have you ever worn a uniform?
When I was in the junior high school marching band, I had to wear a band uniform a few times. It was gross. So many people had worn it before me

2. JUST LIKE ME “It’s just like me to say to you, love me do and I’ll be true. And what I’d like, for you to say, is you’ll come home to me each day.” Who was the first person you wanted to come home to you each day?
Other than my mother, I'd have to say my current fiance. I haven't gotten sick of him yet. :P

3. HUNGRY “Well I got this need I just can’t control and it’s driving me insane, because I’m hungry…” What did you eat the last time you were really hungry?
I made chicken and steak fajitas Wednesday night for my fiance and me

4. LET ME “But I know my love is going somewhere, But I’m sure, it ain’t being got by you.” Ever admired someone for their talent?
I admire anyone who has become famous for great singing talent

5. HIM OR ME WHAT’S IT GOING TO BE? “I can still recall when you told me I was all, everything you looked for in a man, but I know that it’s not true, I see the way he looks at you, and I think you’re gonna hang me up again.” Ever been dumped for another person?
I'm normally the one doing the dumping

6. KICKS “Girl, you thought you found the answer on that magic carpet ride last night But when you wake up in the mornin' the world still gets you uptight.” Ever fall for a scam?
Does falling for my exhusband pretending to be a good person when he turned out to be violently abusive count as a "scam" ?

7. LOUIE GO HOME “Well hah I can still hear my baby moan, Louie go back home, I’d better go home…” What is your fondest memory of being called home?
It's sad, but I can't think of any fond memories right now
:"
8. ACTION “Dance,dance, dance, let your backbone flip…let’s go to the place on the Sunset Strip!" How do you get your backbone to flip?
I don't...

9. DON’T TAKE IT SO HARD “And you shouldn’t take it so hard, no you, shouldn’t take it so hard…” What have you taken too hard recently?
My former teacher/friend committing suicide. Well actually, can you take that "too hard" ?

10. CINDERELLA SUNSHINE “Where do you go Cinderella Sunshine?” What is your least favorite fairy tale?
I'm not sure I like any of them really

11. TOO MUCH TALK “Too much talk and not enough action do you know anybody getting satisfaction. Everybody wonder’s bout the crowd reaction and the world gets better by a very small fraction.” Do you read tabloids? Which ones and why?
I don't really read any of them, but I occasionally pick them up in the checkstand at a store and look at pictures

12. TIME AFTER TIME “But ya’all have emptied my mind time after time”… What was the last boring speech or lecture you listened to?
A few weeks ago, there was a meeting at my job during which a certain person rambled on for what seemed like forever. I wanted to throw a pen at his head

13. I HAD A DREAM “I had myself a dream last night the same one. Havin it most every night now, since you’ve been gone…” Ever have the same dream more than once? What was it about?
I have a lot of post-traumatic stress nightmares about my exhusband. The dreams are always slightly different but follow the same general storyline... he hunts me down, tortures me, and then kills me