Just when you think that 2020 can’t get any worse, Mother Nature decides to send not just one hurricane to Louisiana, but two. What the heck! The school I work at has only been in session since 05 August, and we face being shut down for an entire week to weather the storms. Marco arrives sometime on Monday followed by Laura on Wednesday. Do you think it’s possible that the storms could take out COVID when it rolls in and out?
On a happier note, a good friend of mine has started a blog. It’s called Kelsi Explains It All. She’ll be writing about her passions which include: the 90s, Halloween, horror movies, cartoons, TV show binge-a-thons, and much more. Her first post features a Halloween movie marathon list that she created, and it includes some helpful links and resources to help other folks create their own marathon lists. I have already subscribed to Kelsi’s blog and plan to use her Halloween movie marathon list starting in the fall. Mwahaha!
For my dear readers who enjoy podcasts, I have two new recommendations.
Desert Island Discs is the first one. Guests are invited to the show as a castaway and choose eight recordings, a book, and a luxury item that they would like to take with them on a desert island. While discussing their lives with the host, a snippet of each recording is played and the guests explain the reason it was chosen. Before the guests are cast off to the imaginary island, they are given the Complete Works of Shakespeare, the Bible (or other religious/philosophical work), name their luxury item, and indicate one of the eight songs they would save above all if the discs are swept off the island. I’ve absolutely enjoyed learning about the guests and listening to some terrific music. I’ve even added some new tunes to my playlist.
The Gratitude Diaries is the second one. The host, Janice Kaplan, provides practical tips on how to add more gratitude to your daily life. She touches on gratitude in every aspect of your life. I find listening to this podcast on my way to work helps me to get in the right mindset to tackle whatever craziness will happen that day. School life amidst a pandemic is difficult even on a good day, so having a little pep talk about facets of your life that you can be grateful for prior to facing the day helps immensely.
Even though all of my plans have been cancelled in 2020, I will soon be embarking on an unexpected adventure with my Daddy in a couple of weeks (unless the two storms interfere). He asked me to drive him to Kentucky to see his older brother. He has been wanting to visit my Uncle Manuel for quite some time, and with my uncle’s wife passing away a few weeks ago, his desire to visit has become more urgent. Therefore, on 03 September, our journey to the Bluegrass State will begin. I’m sure the road trip will be exciting, albeit terrifying and arduous at times; however, I’m up for the challenge (I think).
In Other News:
Good News! My BFF Shelly does NOT have cancer. It has been determined that her damaged heart is the culprit that caused the pleural effusion on her left lung. She is not completely out of the woods and will eventually need to have surgery to repair her heart; however, NO cancer is awesome news, and she is feeling terrific. Sophie’s tail is healing properly, and if she continues to cooperate with her wound care, her tail should be back to normal soon. As for my dental issues, I had my barrier removed this past Monday afternoon. I have been pain-free all week. My next dental appointment is in early November and will likely be the start of the implant process.
Before logging off today, I want to express how grateful I am for all of you, dear readers. The Kat Files: Finding Adventure in Everyday Life has turned 10 years old. I’m in the process of thinking about how I want to celebrate this momentous milestone. A HUGE thank you to everyone who has been on this ride with me. Happiness!
“Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.” ~ Melody Beattie.
Photo by Brandon Randolph on Pexels.com
I met my hubby for dinner during the week, and we ate at Kirin in downtown Hammond. We love eating at the sushi bar. Surprisingly, the restaurant was not too busy, and the sushi chef created the most fantastic dragon roll for me. Not only was it delicious, but it was beautiful. This was the first time in my sushi eating life that a roll was presented to me in this way. Angus, the sushi chef, actually made the roll look like a fire-breathing dragon.
On Tuesday, I ordered a few more scrapbook supplies. I pulled some pictures from Andrew’s trip to Ireland, set up my Scrap’n Easel, assembled a laser die cut, and semi-laid out the page. Now that my room is set up specifically for scrapbooking, I can leave everything out and leisurely work on my pages. After lunch, I met a friend of mine, that I had not seen in a few years, for coffee. It was a nice couple of hours catching up with Angie. Visiting with her made me realize that I want to carve out more time this summer to connect with my friends that I do not get to see on a regular basis. Friendships bring an enormous richness of joy to one’s life; however, they need to be cultivated in order to flourish.
The Kat Files 