I Graduated! later edited with "things"...

I received my first Professional Certificate from Cornell! Human Resources studies - yawn, but useful. They do things good! The certificate came pressed in a solid wood plaque - no framing necessary, thank-you very much!

I'm two classes into the Change Leadership program with four more to go. Then I'm done. I'd recommend the programs, for sure - but I'm done.

I'm looking for a job. Yeah, that's my outstanding timing for you - looking for a job in this market. Bad timing. No wonder I have three kids.

I'm in debt up to my eyebrows so I feel a little stressed - but I'm keeping the faith.

My kids are going on a cruise with their dad and grandmother for Christmas. It will be the first time in three years that I will be alone, except for the week my mother died in 2006 - which is just a blur in my mind. I plan to get a massage, have my nails done, clean my house completely, continue on my much needed diet, and relax. I'm also considering remodeling my bathroom - but haven't decided to commit to that much yet.

On the diet subject, I'm trying something very new and different. I won't go into it until I know it is successful - just to save myself the embarrassment. Let's just say it is expensive and strange. I'm desperate at this point. I'm heavier than I've ever been. It's time to deal with this, damn it.

Thanksgiving was great. My pumpkin cheesecake was a delicious as ever this year. Ahem, that was before my diet.

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I started this post a long time ago. Now it is December 9. The time just marches on... or is it sprinting along?

I have so little to post about that isn't just darn mundane. I mean, when you don't post for awhile you feel pressure to post something worth reading! Oh well, I'm trying!

I've been cleaning the garage. By cleaning I mean CLEANING. I have cleared everything out and have been hanging those racks that hang from the ceiling for storage. I also put up shelves and I plan to epoxy the floor, if I can beat the rain that is expected this weekend.

Cleaning the garage is one of the final chapters of dealing with all the "things" that have been haunting me for over three years. I posted about the "thing" phenomenon in the very beginning of my old blog, which is gone. That's where I concluded the only "things" that really mattered to me were my kids, who where from then on lovingly known as Things 1, 2, and 3.

I got more than 50% of the "things" when I divorced in 2005. It cost me nearly $15k to move the "things" here, only to have a huge number of items broken and damaged.

Then my house couldn't hold all the "things", so I moved some stuff over to my mom's house since she hadn't really settled in her house yet. She sold most of the furnishings with her old house on the lake, but she had a lot of old "things", too.

Then mom died. Lord. Not only did I have to take a bunch of "things" back, but I got more. Thank heavens my brother was there to work on the "things" because I was unable to deal with the stuff as fast as he was. In fact, I'm just able to deal with what I had put in the garage in 2006.

Two weeks ago I had a garage sale. After the sale I had the salvation army come and they took a huge amount of stuff, but not enough. The guy that came said he didn't have enough room on the truck. I also rented a dumpster.

I threw a lot of stuff away. It felt bad and good at the same time. There were toys that didn't sell in the sale that my little ones played with. I had to throw the very first baby toy I ever bought for Thing 1. Each toss felt a little melancholy - yet liberating at the same time. I just kept telling myself a couple of things that kept me going:

1. The stuff will be gone, not the memories.

2. Out of sight, out of mind.

I was able to sell enough "things" in the garage sale to pay for the dumpster. I filled the whole thing! I trimmed all the trees on the property and the kids helped by hauling all the trimmings to the dumpster. Talk about teamwork.

I still need to get rid of the crib. Yes, the crib. I hauled that silly thing all over since the kids stopped using it. I even sent it via UPS from Connecticut after the divorce because I forgot to get stuff out of the attic before the moving truck left.

The crib was a special "thing" to me because my dad bought it for Thing 1 when I was pregnant. Dad died before she was born.

I always thought that I would pass the crib on to the kids - but it is time to let it go. It takes up space and it isn't my dad - it is a "thing". The crib has become an albatross. It was soaked in the flood in 2007, it has been in my way.

The salvation army wouldn't take the crib because I set it up for the garage sale and they wanted it broken down, so I'm putting it on Craig's list - probably for free. I hope some needy family gets it and loves it for their new baby. It is beautiful and needs more use.

The last of the "things" that I must handle are related to my mom. I have several unfinished antique quilt tops that she loved. I don't quilt, but my mom would want me to have them finished. Actually, when I saw the medium in 2006 the medium told me that my mom wanted me to get the quilts finished - and the medium didn't even know that my mom was dead, much less a quilter! Freaky, huh?

Then there are the few "things" I saved for my sister. The longer time passes the less I think she would even care if she gets them. Furthermore, I saved a bunch of cast iron pans and roasters for her... the freight on that stuff will be insane! Hopefully she will read this post and tell me what she wants me to do.

I have to get the baby chicks out of the garage an into their pen, but I still have to build the pen. Ugh. I might have to put them in the shed temporarily.

There are a few more albatross out there, but I'm getting closer every day. My goal is to have two cars in the wickedly clean garage, and a place for everything and everything in its place.

With a few more days of hard work and some tight reins on my emotions my "Things" will be dealt with. I still have four or five more courses to take and I'll graduate again.

Time is sprinting along.