Spooky randomness

I think "Randomness" is by far my favorite style of posting because I can neatly wrap up a week's long of events in one tidy blog entry. There isn't much about life that is neat and tidy, but at least my blog life can be right?

So, yes... the sickness is gone from my house. Elisan still have a cough, but the dr. said a "flu" cough can last up to two weeks. Poor child sounds like she smokes a pack of Camels a day. Speaking of cigarettes... have you checked out the price of a pack of cigarettes lately? Okay, that doesn't sound good... let me state for the record that I DO NOT SMOKE, however, there was a time in my life that I enjoyed a cigarette or two while I was in early 20's. I was what they call a "social smoker," much like a "casual drinker." Anyway... moving along... So, yes, the price of a pack of cigs is over $5.00/per pack. Let's do the math, shall we?

• 20 packs (per carton) x $5 = $40.00 per carton (and upwards depending on brand, etc.)
• One cigarette equals $.25/each
  
• A "pack a day" habit can run an average smoker approximately: $1825.00/year
• If you and your spouse smoke, we're talking $3650.00/year (minimum!)

And this is assuming the cost is not hiked during the year due to "sin" tax - which, who are we kidding... it usually is. I think I'd kick the habit just to save money! But, I realize it is not that easy to do, considering I watched both of my parents kick a 20+ year smoking habit many, many years ago!

Okay, I know for a fact that there are some folks there that have a "Starbuck A Day" habit or a "Sonic A Day" habit, but wow... you can at least brew coffee at your house or buy a six pack of soda. If you are addicted to smoking... you are pretty much at the mercy of the tobacco companies.

So, yeah... that was indeed random, wasn't it?

We bought Elisan new "new to me" bedroom furniture at the Salvation Army several weeks ago. It is adorable and I can't wait to get her room updated and painted. I bought two sample quarts of paint yesterday and applied various patches of paint in her room to decide which of the two I liked the best. Well, let me rephrase... which of the two Elisan liked the best. Thank goodness of the two, she picked the color I can live with the best. I realize it is not MY bedroom, but I can at least steer her in the color choices, can't I? So, hopefully in a week or two, her bedroom will be nearly complete. I'll post pictures then.

Meanwhile, yesterday I got the spooking of my life. I was looking for a bedframe on Craigslist and I found an ad for a solid oak bed frame for $50.00 in a neighboring community. The lady gave me directions and I mapped it out and it was about 18 miles away. But, around here, that isn't that far because of a lot of people live out in the middle of nowhere around here.

So, anyway, I load the girls up in the pick up and we head out. We drive and we drive and we drive. Finally when (according to the directions) we are almost there, I get a weird feeling in the pit of my stomach. We are out in the middle of NO WHERE. Literally. According to the directions, the "next left" is actually a dirt road only wide enough for one vehicle. We continue on that road for at least a mile, then we veer left and go through a gate (like a horse gate, not a fancy gated entry) and travel down a winding dirt road. We come up to the residence and I honestly can not tell which of the two buildings is the barn or the house. Then I see a fellow (who, upon meeting, was missing a front tooth) lean out the door and wave me up to the house.

I left the girls in the truck with the doors locked and the cell phone. I didn't want to scare them, but I didn't want to bring them in with me.

As I walked into the house, not a single light was on inside. The house was dark, musty and smelled like cigarettes. (Is this the second time I've mentioned cigarettes in ONE post?!) The floor was sinking in several places and there were boxes everywhere. Clutter and trash was stashed in the corners of the house and cardboard led the way through the house to avoid tracking the piles and piles of mud from outside. Cats (plural) and dogs (plural again) were running in, out and around the house.

Y'all... my good sense told me to just run away, but being the nice Southern girl I am, I helped collect the bed frame and load it up into the truck. As we finished getting it into the truck, we chatted for a few minutes. The people were pleasant folks. Just hard on their luck. And on one hand, I felt terrible for fearing for my life, yet on the other hand, I felt terrible for them because of their circumstances.

Truthfully, the $50 I paid them for a bed frame, that unfortunately is in disrepair, will probably help them more than it could help me. It just goes to show you, you just never know about people. Some of the nicest people you meet are those you might not ever typically look at twice and the people who tend to trample all over you, are the people we oftentimes clamor to be their friend.

This morning, I stopped by my local Goodwill on the way home from the gym. If I've said it before, I've said it a thousand times... I {heart} Goodwill! Anyway, I scored a set of bed risers for $2.99. I've priced them all over town (Bed Bath Beyond, Wal-Mart, etc.) and I haven't been able to find a set of four for less than $15.00. So, yay me!

I think today I'm going to spend my time finishing up odds and end projects I have spread out across the house. I will probably clean Elisan's walls and baseboards in preparation for painting over the next few days.

Yes, I know you are jealous, because my life is thrilling! Oh, wait, it really IS thrilling... if you count my experience yesterday! Yep, you don't wish you were me, now do you?