All Things Terry Lee

hey y'all,

thanks for all the encouraging and uplifting comments (and emails) after my last post. this week has gone a bit more smoothly. in fact, i had a wonderful luncheon yesterday with some former colleagues and dear, old friends. uh, old meaning i've known them a long time. not their age. :-)

we hadn't seen each other in a while and had lots of catching up to do. four hours later, we were still sitting at our table. the lunch crowd had completely cleared and the restaurant was empty except for us.

what do four veteran school nurses have to talk about? i can't say. i mean, of course i could tell you. but then i'd have to kill you. and since one of them threatened me if i quoted anything she said (i won't name names, but her initials are BC,RN), i shall not reveal any of our top secret gossip. i mean, discussion.

i will say this. we had a blast. next to my beloved FAGs, these are some of the very best ladies i've ever had the pleasure to know, work with, and befriend.

it was good medicine for me. truly. women need the friendship and companionship of other women. and since we've all dedicated our professional lives to nursing, the bond is just that much stronger. i love these ladies.

they've seen me through the many trials (and joys) of school nursing, they loved me and prayed me through the death of my mother, the birth of my last baby, my divorce, my breast cancer diagnosis and treatments, my hysterectomy ... and well, you get the idea.

these dear ones are very special ladies whom i respect, appreciate and love. i'm very thankful to have worked side by side with them for many years and treasure their continued friendship.

what? no junking stories?! stay tuned. i plan to hit some yard sales this weekend!! but not before donning a baseball cap and dark sunglasses! haha (if you don't understand this comment, see previous post).

love and hugs,
terry lee

group picture!

three of the BEST school nurses in the world. CCISD, eat. your. heart. out.

hey y'all,

as much as i'd like to be upbeat, positive, cheery, isn't life grand, and all that jazz ... i refuse to placate the glass is half full optimists out there (and you know who you are).

this has simply been the Week. From. Hell.

after a lovely visit with our grandson harrison (see last post), i was tired but happy. then my computer started going wonky. and if there's one thing i hate, it's a wonky computer. just ask my husband.

i started scrambling to save important files (documents, pictures) on my cute little flash drives (one is pink!) because i don't have the sense or wherewithal to do a decent backup of my hard drive. blah blah blah.

anyhow, i got most of the important things saved and then ignorantly, restored all the settings on the damn thing and promptly lost all my stuff. how does one restore settings without realizing it? i don't know.

but i certainly wanted to smack mr. pimply-faced geek squad upside the head when he gave me that look. you know what i'm talkin' about.

"uh, yeah. looks like you restored the original settings."

"no, i didn't. i wouldn't have done that."

"it wouldn't restore itself. it was a user action."

(insert The Look here, translated: [eyes rolling] "geez. these people are sooooo frickin' stupid. hello?! this crazy woman wouldn't recognize a hard drive if it bit her on the ass.")

okay, so the upshot is that my hard drive was on its last leg and since the best buy geek squad is mighty proud of their $ervice$, it was less expensive to buy a new computer.

and this is where the fun really begins.

with a sick heart and without too much fanfare, i purchased another computer. after setting it up, i realized that it didn't have any sound. i spent the next day plugging and unplugging the speakers about, oh, let's say, a bazillion times.

it became painfully apparent that i was going to have to seek help. refusing to deal with the geek squad again, i called the manufacturer's help line. i'd tell you the brand, but i'd be laughed out of texas, i'm afraid.

anyhow, cutting to the chase, i was on the phone with a kind young man named nicky from india for over an hour. i couldn't understand half of what he was telling me to do, but somehow we managed to get the audio working.

woohoo for outsourcing! nicky was far and away a kinder, gentler (and more helpful!!) computer geek than the local best buy boy. hmmph!

and that, dear readers, was just part of my Week From Hell.

i'll leave you with my saturday yard saling experience. a perfect ending to my less than perfect week:

the first yard sale that i hit just happened to be at the home of some people from my past. i won't say how i know them, but let it be said that i've known them all my life.

against my better judgment, i got out of the car anyhow. it's not that i'm anti-social. honestly. it's just that when i'm junking, i prefer not to stop and chat with old acquaintances. it's best that they be forgot, if you know what i mean.

okay, so i'm doin' my best to fly under the radar, quickly perusing their junk offerings. keeping my head tucked so as not to attract attention to myself. don't ask any questions, terry lee. keep quiet and whatever you do, don't make eye contact!

"terry! terry! is that you, terry?!?!"

busted. so fricking busted.

i could've just backed away slowly from the tables and walked to my car, pretending i wasn't terry. i could've.

but i didn't. so i have no one to blame, NO ONE, but myself for what happened next.

blahblahdiddyblahblah, haven't seen you in years! blahblahblah, how's belinda? what church are you going to now? blahblahblah, where are you working? blahblahblah.

and on it went. the older lady was sooo thrilled to see me.

then, speaking to her daughter (who is a few years older than me), the older lady said, "don't you remember terry?"

daughter: "oh my goodness! terry! oh my! you used to be ... you were so ... you used to be so little and have such a sweet baby face!!"

me: "uh, thanks? yeah, well. i guess we've all gotten older."

daughter: "yes, but your face! it used to be sooo perrfect and babyish. i always wanted to have your face! and well, i just can't get over it. you used to be so little and baby faced ..."

***sigh***

are you getting the picture? used to. used to. used to. she just wouldn't let it go, even after her hubby nudged her.

when i finally escaped these folks, i turned once more to the daughter and said, "good to see you again. my apologies for not being little and baby faced any longer."

she finally realized how insulting she'd been and tried to backtrack. "oh terry. i didn't mean it like that. you're gorgeous. you look great now!"

i put my hand up (you know, like "tell it to the hand") and said, "too. late. don't bother."

as i got in my car, i glanced at myself in the rearview mirror. the unforgiving texas heat and humidity had melted what little makeup i was wearing and my mascara had given me the dreaded raccoon eyes. what a friggin' mess. i would've cried but i didn't have the strength.

all the wind had been knocked out of my sails. i drove to the comfort of my air conditioned home and to the people who love me enough to lie about how i look even when i'm a sweaty mess.

sadly, the house was empty.

oh well.

i grabbed a can of pink spray paint and went after an old wicker chair i'd bought at the GW bargain barn on friday. might as well be productive, if not gorgeous. haha

here's hoping y'all had a better week!

love and hugs,
terry lee