Improving with time

I think that most of us try to become better people over time.  We work on getting rid of distasteful habits and develop new habits that will improve who we are. It takes work.  It takes time.  It takes failures.  But eventually we can become better people if we try.  Unfortunately, when we go back in time and visit past situations, we are judged to be the same person we were before.  All improvement is discounted.  And we stand naked based on our past.  It hurts.  It smarts.  And it is unfair.  If you feel it necessary to point out other people's past flaws, thinking they are the same person (unimproved), hope to your God in heaven that no one else knows yours.  You will deserve the same treatment.  Amen.  (I have no idea why I wrote this....but I appear to be pretty angry.)

Really?

I can usually sit through most TV shows.  So I ran out of recordings today and thought, what the heck, I can watch this random show.  It was called "Camp."  Stupidest show ever.

Blessings in disguise

Sometimes I am a little slow on the uptake.  I don't catch things as quickly as I should have.  Sometimes, too, I completely forget about things, which I think makes other people rich.  Years and years ago, I am thinking maybe about 10, I was struggling with my SMUD bill.  It seemed to run between $600-800 in the summer.  I had such a hard time paying it or keeping it low.  It seemed like a miracle if I ever got it below $500.  At one point, they threatened to cut off my electricity unless I made a deposit payment of $840.  I vaguely remember the pain and anguish and anger that might have caused.  In the ensuing years, of course, I completely forgot about it.  I've moved to another location, and it has been a year.  Who would ever imagine that I had some deposit somewhere that was owed to me. 

Sometimes I forget to pay my bills.  So when it gets out of control, I just pay 2 payments to get ahead.  This is what I thought happened in April with my SMUD bill.  I figured I paid twice and so my April bill said "no payment due."  Strangely as it may seem, the same thing happened in May and June.  However, I still didn't get the clue.  My mind was so busy with other stuff that I just assumed, "oh, yeah, I already paid that."  Again and again.  Finally last night I got a new SMUD bill.  I said to myself, "Wait a minute, something fishy is going on here."  So I looked it up.  Yes, I found the $840 refund of my deposit oh so many years ago. 

Thinking back on my financial situation then, when $600 was a normal electric bill, and now, when a $75 electric bill breaks my bank, I can only think of how far ahead the Lord must be watching over us and blessing us along the way.  AMAZING!  I think that $840 will finish paying all the electricity for my whole school year next year.

Krocs, hippos, and clown shoes

Ha! The title was just to make you want me to comment about hippos again.  I have read 3 novels recently and became extremely bored after I finished the last one.  With nothing left to do, I hopped on the internet, reading all news, all facebook posts, all anything I could find.  Wandering around I happened upon the National Geographic site.  And of course, that took me to videos on hippos.  I won't bore you with the gory details, but yes, they are still the most dangerous animals out there.

But back to the real reason for the post. . .Standing on your feet all day results in a frantic search to find shoes that won't make your feet and the bottom of your legs ache by the end of the day.  I have several pairs of very nice shoes that don't hurt my feet, Dansco, Merrill, Born, Tom's, etc.  Still, by the end of the day, just the sheer weight of my body resulted in pain on the lower extremities.  Paul came home one day with some Red Krocs.  Red because of the Target colors of Red and khaki.  I smiled at him sweetly, thanked him profusely, and set the shoes in the back of the closet only to be used when I took out the trash and needed to slip something on.  Everyday he asked me if I was going to wear the Krocs that day.  I made excuse after excuse, until I finally had to fess up and tell him they looked like clown shoes to me.  They are huge, wide, comedic looking.  I finally conceded to wear them one day.  I figured it was a short day, and it was after a holiday so there wouldn't be too many customers.  When I got the the pharmacy I apologized to my boss for such funny looking shoes.  It was totally embarrassing.  Every time I went out into the aisle to help someone they commented on how cute my shoes were.  Cute!  Yeah, right, I know they really meant "wow, those are SOME shoes."  But, miraculously, there was absolutely NO leg pain, foot pain, or fatigue in my back after wearing these shoes.  I have worn them now for 3 full work days.  It is AMAZING!  That whole "better to look good than to feel good" phrase just doesn't hold water.  Yes, I look like a clown now, but I am certainly a happy clown.  Go Krocs!  Yes, Paul gets all the credit on this one.