Foul! Foul! I call FOUL!!

I just need to talk about Scrabble. What better audience than this one? (probably literally one)

So there is this person. I will not name any names but their initials are T.H.E.D.E.V.I.L. We have played Scrabble together for quite some time. We had a little hiatus when this person was away from the desk for a couple of months, but when they returned, I started a fresh list, showing who won and who lost each and every game. It was important to me because I am insane and I needed to win more than I lost and the obsessive/compulsive portion of my brain needed desperately to keep a record separate from my other Scrabble opponents. I'm posting a picture here of my little list, started on an Amitiza note pad, which, by the way was free, given to me by a friendly drug rep.
When the first page got full, I taped another page to it. If you can tell at all, down at about the 16th game, when the score was 12 to 4 in my favor, T.H.E.D.E.V.I.L. started naming the games with the score, but started at 7 to 0. Beej 7 and T.H.E.D.E.V.I.L. 0. What the what?? No, no, no. I don't think so. I told this person that was incorrect. They did not care about my thoughts in the least. I was mortified and still am.

All of this was to say that I need to add a new page to my list, but the more I think about it, the more I think I should just bow out gracefully. It's making me mean and angry. I don't think I'm normally a mean and angry person. On the other hand, maybe it's building character. But hey, I feel like I have plenty of character without being called a heifer or being forced to look at a score that I know in my heart of hearts is just baloney. Madness!

"What to do? What to do?" she said as she taped another page to the bottom of the list and started drawing lines. I'll guess I'll just go ahead and fill in this next line with the name of the new game T.H.E.D.E.V.I.L. just started. "Gonna Catch Up 15-11" (my big fat hiney! it's 21-14!).

(Click the pic for a big version. I did erase some stuff to keep the identity of T.H.E.D.E.V.I.L. a secret.)

February Miracles in the Deep Deep South

The south was laughed at this week. People looked to us and snickered about how pathetic it is to shut down everything for a little snow. I'm aware that nearly every state north of me (there are none south of me) sees snow on occasion and may even find it annoying or mundane. I get it. But realize that we don't even own winter coats down here. There is just no need. How do you drive when there is ice on the road? We have no idea. Why? Because it NEVER gets cold enough for any ice to form on our roads. Again, there is just no need for snow chains or lessons about wintry road conditions.


But let me tell you MY side. Friday morning I got to see my children's faces light up as they saw the very first snow they have ever seen in their lives. I got to walk out in it with them and experience it with them. It was nothing less than pure magic. We got nearly NO accumulation. There were no snowmen, no snow angels and no snow ice cream. It didn't last but a few hours, but those few hours were miraculous and beautiful and memorable. I have experienced snow only two other times in my 43 years. Once in high school in Pearl, Mississippi and once before I had kids in Meridian, Mississippi. Seeing it fall with my kids was like introducing them to an old friend. Point and laugh if you must, but also be aware that something mysterious and otherworldly happened here on Friday. No, they can't take that away from me.