A Lesson in E-Mail Etiquette: Undisclosed Recipients or Blind Carbon Copying (BCC)

I used to grow frustrated with my older brother's somewhat preachy tones in some of the e-mails he'd write, especially when he would throw in " (sigh) ". It got a little irritating. And yet, I'm the one who is BURDENED with the need for such a HEAVY SIGH, I can barely stand it!!!

I am seriously considering looking up, on the Internet, ways to sell people's e-mail addresses for money. Y'know, for people who want to SPAM. No joke! Do you have any idea how many people's addresses I could sell? All the time, I'm getting e-mail forwards from friends, acquaintances, relatives, all who just forward the e-mail from the last schmuck--never taking the time to erase all the previous e-mail addresses in that got sent along with the e-mail, never taking the time to Blind Carbon Copy (BCC) all the addressees .... So not only am I gaining access to ALL SORTS of e-mail addresses, but there are jerks out there who now have access to mine!!!

Please, PLEASE, do yourself and your friends a HUGE favor: Part One would be to erase all the e-mail addresses when you forward your joke or spiritually uplifting message or political witticism.... Once you hit "forward", you can do anything you want to the message, including hitting the delete button over the addresses or backspace button, or (here's a tough one) holding your mouse down and highlighting all those addresses, then deleting them all at once! Part Two would be to either put your own name in the "To" line and then everyone else's in the BCC line, or you can create an Undisclosed Recipients address (go to Contacts, select "New", type in Undisclosed Recipients in the name area, then fill in your own e-mail address), and use that in the "To" line--again, put everyone else's address in the BCC line.

Folks, if you want to help me and everyone else out by doing this, that'd be great! If you don't know how to use or find your BCC line, comment on this blog, or e-mail me, and I'll help you find it.

This has been a Public Service Message from one very irate e-mail recipient.
Thank you!

New Pictures--Halloween, etc.

I haven't been on my blog for AGES, and I really need to do some personal writing. However, I feel like I ought to catch up on pictures first. So hopefully tonight I can post some recent pictures, and then I'd like to come back in another day or two and update my thoughts. (I really do feel like blogging helps keep me grounded, and I REALLY need that right now!)

We got to go to Vala's Pumpkin Patch during the day on Halloween. The girls and I were there for our third time, but Jim had never been there before, and I honestly don't think I took Donovan last year. (If I did, I've blissfully forgotten the event!)

Look at the bunnies, Donovan!

I didn't do it, I swear! You can't prove anything!

Lindsay, Jim, Donovan and Josie in a GIANT rocking chair.

Okay, trick-or-treating pix. Lindsay and Josie were easily talked into being witches, using last year's costumes, plus new hats and brooms and make-up. Donovan was easy--he LOVES Elmo and the costume was right in front of me one day at Target. It was about $16 and that's about as cheap as I can ever find them. Too perfect!

Scary faces!

Donovan doesn't like the "hood" up.

Okay, hood up, as long as I've got candy!

Lindsay, Josie and Donovan--Halloween '08.

Now, the last thing I need to update on, real quick, is camp. Josie's troop (which includes me as one of its four co-leaders--there are 16-ish girls in the troop) went to Camp Catron last weekend. Catron is just outside of Nebraska City--it's a Girl Scout owned location, and they often have sponsored weekends or day-camps there. However, as the troop went (sans Josie and me--we were in Riverside, CA at the time) this summer for a sponsored event and nearly starved to death, we decided to go it "alone" this time. We brought our own food, drinks, snacks, etc. and planned our own activities. We barely had a moment to spare for potty breaks--it was that jam-packed of a weekend. And did we ever eat! Josie loved it so much, she cried off and on for about two hours when we got home--"I miss Camp Catron! When can we go back?" (Not until we raise more money, dear! After we sell cookies in the spring--hint! hint!)

Making "Hobo Meals" for supper.

Eating s'mores.

Troop 159, "crazy pose".

"A circle's round, but has no end, that's how long I'm going to be your friend."

My "sub-group" within the troop. Elisabeth, Brady, Austen & Ciera (and me).

The "sub-group" Josie is in. Aaliyah, Jordyn, Eileen, and Katie (and Josie).

We didn't take any pictures while we were outside--it was super cold. But we did go on two hikes, and on one of those, some of us even got to see a WHITE SQUIRREL!!! It was the neatest thing ever--he had brown hands and feet, face and tail, but his body was completely white! Bizarre! Anyway, Camp Catron was really beautiful and fun, and we'll be sure to go back again soon!

My Poor Baby!

Jim left for Chicago Sunday evening... had this work thing going on all week. The girls and I figured we could tough it out, as long as we didn't mention the "D" word (Daddy) around Donovan.... So far, that's been going well..... Except.....

Monday evening, just after I'd put Donovan in his PJ's, he had an accident. I was downstairs, getting ready to bring up some laundry, so I didn't see it. But I sure heard it. SMACK! .... Waa-aaa-aaaahhh! I didn't run up the stairs, because so many times, I've done that and found it's been no big deal. But I did drop everything and head up quickly. The girls were just gathering around Donovan when I got to him, so I interceded and picked him up. (Alright, basically, I just about shoved them out of the way to get to him.) He was SCREAMING! I asked what happened, but the girls faces were both white with shock. Just then, I felt something dripping on my neck.

"Oh shoot!" (Of course, I imagine I probably didn't actually say "shoot", but that's how I WISH it had happened.) I took Donovan right to the counter by the sink in the kitchen, got a washcloth wet with cold water, and I started wiping at the right side of his head. It was COVERED in blood, trickling down behind his ear, etc. I couldn't tell where the cut was or how bad it was. I was shaking. Normally, I stay calm in crazy situations like this until the storm is over, but this one time, I knew it was potentially serious.

However, I realized pretty quickly that the more I freaked out, the more the girls would freak out. I sent the girls into the living room to sit quietly together and pray the "Hail Mary" over and over again. And I assessed the situation: Donovan was screaming, crying, moving his head away from the cold washcloth. So, OK, he's not catatonic... he probably won't have a concussion. That's good. So let's wipe the blood off and see how bad it is. I noticed Donovan was pointing up at the container of M&M's I have on our Baker's Rack, so I called Lindsay in to get some other M&M's from the freezer and put a handful in a dish for him. He didn't ever eat a single one, but he wouldn't let go of that dish, either. I sent Lindsay (and Josie, who had followed her and was now hugging Lindsay in sadness and fear) back into the living room to pray some more. I finally got his head cleaned up enough to see the cut.... it was pretty deep, but only an inch or maybe an inch and a half long.

I was still shaking, trying to figure out what to do. Who do I call? Where do I go? How did this happen? I called the girls in and asked them to get me the phone. They brought it over, and without taking it, I walked away. I went to the living room and said, "What happened, Lindsay?" She said, "I don't know, I didn't see it." So I said, "What happened, Josie?" And she said, "I think he was climbing on this chair, and he fell and hit this wall... right here." She pointed to the corner, where two walls meet. I went back into the kitchen and again asked someone to hand me the phone. I put it down, and I walked to the hallway. "Okay, girls, let's get your shoes on. We're going to the Emergency Room." They went to get their shoes on.

Then I stopped. What if it's not bad enough for stitches? The bleeding has pretty much stopped now. But, eww, that cut is pretty deep. It might bleed again in the night. Hmm.... Would I take him to LinCare? Or St. E's ER? Hmm.... Didn't we get a letter from LinCare saying that they don't take our insurance anymore? Wasn't the co-pay there horrendous last time anyway? And don't they close at 10pm? (It was about 8:50 at the time.) Who knows how long of a line there'll be. Better go to the ER, and skip the hassle of LinCare. But does he really NEED stitches?

"Somebody get me the phone, it's on the counter, over there." Again, the phone is brought to me. This time, I hit the speed dial for Henry & Lewis, the neighbor boys two doors down. I assumed their Dad or Mom would answer--I'd bought popcorn from them earlier that evening. Jerome answered, "Hello?" I stammered, "Hi, um, J- Je- , um, Jerome. This is Tracy. Um... Donovan hit... Donovan fell and hit his head. He's got a cut. Can I bring him over and have you... um... will you take a look at it and second... um, give me a second opinion... um. I just need to know if you think he needs stitches." Jerome said, "Tracy. Do you want me to come over there and have a look at him?" I nearly shouted, "Yes! That'd be great! That'd be awesome! Do you mind? Oh, thank you!"

I turned on the porch light and waited by the front door. All this time, I'm constantly trying to keep the cold washcloth (which has been rinsed out six or seven times) on Donovan's head, but he's having none of it. He's spilling M&M's all over the floor, but I don't care. Jerome steps up to the screen door and he opens it. "Hi, buddy, can I take a look at you?" he says to Donovan. Of course, Dono won't hold still, but Jerome is able to catch a glimpse of the cut. He winces. "Eewww, yeah, that's going to need to be sewn up. Do you want me to bring the girls over to our house? Or do you want me to stay with them?" I told him I really appreciated it, but the girls won't be calm or be able to sleep, etc., until they know Donovan's okay. I said I was taking them with me.

In fact, they helped keep ME calm. I obeyed the speed limit the whole way. Josie said she felt like she might barf or pass out, so I told her to put her feet up on the seat and put her head between her knees. I think Lindsay was praying in the backseat. Donovan, by this point, had calmed down and was looking over at Josie like, "What's YOUR problem?" It was actually kind of funny, but I couldn't really laugh just yet.

We got to St. E's, had no wait, got paperwork filled out, and they got us in a room. The nurse numbed up Donovan's head with this gel he just rubbed on the area. The doctor came in and looked at it, and he said he'd be back in about half an hour (when the numbing stuff had kicked in), and he'd put in a couple of staples. "STAPLES?!?" He looked at me like I was an idiot and calmly said, "They're faster." Oh, duh. Donovan's not going to sit still, even for that, but it'll be easier than trying to sew in a straight line...

So Donovan and I got to watch "Little Bill" on Noggin (kids' TV station) while we waited. The girls hung out in the waiting room.... that had been their choice, and I was kind of glad. However, they did try looking for me at one point, but Reception gave them the wrong room number and they went to an empty room. They went back to the waiting room. (I'm sure if they'd have REALLY needed me, they'd have known to ask around a little more persistently.) Soon, the doctor came in with two nurses, and the three of us held Donovan down while the doctor stapled his head twice. OUCH!!!

I asked if Donovan should have Tylenol or Ibuprofin, and the doctor ordered some Motrin to be given right there. Of course, it took the nurse so long to find some Children's Motrin and get the dosage right, that by the time he tried to administer it to Donovan, he (Dono) was OVER the whole thing... most of it got spit out. I think the nurse was over it, too.

Finally, Donovan and I were able to go out to the waiting room to gather the girls and head home. It was about 10:30 when we walked in the house. Donovan had fallen asleep in the car (the doctor had assured me not to worry about concussion--Donovan wasn't exhibiting any of the symptoms), but when I was getting him out of the car, I accidentally hit the "panic" button on my key fob and set off the alarm. HONK! HONK! HONK! HONK! Donovan woke up and wrapped his arms and legs tightly around me as I tried to figure out which button to push to turn that off. Whew! So I had to rock with Donovan a bit after all, once we got upstairs, since the horn had woke him up. But he slept fine through the night, as did the girls. I didn't fall asleep for a long time--last time I checked the clock, it said 3:28.

Donovan's fine now, though. Once another day had passed and I washed the crusty blood, iodine and numbing gel off his head, he was as beautiful as ever! He'll get the staples out on Monday.

It's OVER... and I'm actually a little sad about it.

After spending the past month planning, sending out eVites and actual postcard invitations, washing the walls (YES--washing the walls--just sweeping away cobwebs wasn't good enough for me, folks!), having the carpets steam-cleaned, and spending a day and a half cooking, I FINALLY had my Southern Living at HOME party, this past Friday. And do you know what? I'm actually kind of sad that it's over.

It's kind of like getting ready for a wedding... (okay, anyone recently married who's reading this will probably want to kick my a**, 'cuz it's not at ALL like getting ready for a wedding!) I mean, you spend all this time (and yes, money too) getting everything to be just perfect, you slave over the invitations and follow up on all the RSVP's. You even pray that everyone will come and yet wonder if you'll have enough space/chairs/food... not to mention figuring out how to deal with this person sitting by that person and keeping the peace. Ha! Ha!

So when the appointed hour finally arrived, I wasn't even nervous. Just excited! I had so much fun, and everyone got along fine. There was more than enough food. There was even plenty of alcohol--and nobody got so wasted that they had to have, as Molly called it, Tipsy Taxi Service.

See how my house was transformed?

Sue and Jenny help "model" some products!


Cori's browsing the catalog, checking out what few items aren't on display.

And when I woke up Saturday morning, I was excited by the prospect of raking in scads of good loot, courtesy of all my fabulous guests... But I was surprised to find that I was also feeling a bit let down.... "It's over already?" I found myself thinking.

This was, by far, the best hostess party I've ever had! I'm getting about $400 worth of stuff for the low, low price of about $115 (not including tax)! Plus, I didn't even have to pay shipping and handling--which saved me at least ten bucks!

I think I've finally overgrown my fear of having people over. I had so much fun getting ready for this event!!!

Check out all the great stuff I'm getting! (One item I wasn't able to copy and paste is the Savannah Beverage Server, but if you check out the 3rd picture from the top, at my party, you'll see it full of Sangria, pieces of fruit floating on top.)

Galveston Two-Tiered Tray--a versatile necessity for entertaining.

Galveston Serving Tray--way cool!

Astoria Flatware Caddy--a SLAH bestseller!

Filigree Iron Candle Stand--one of my favorites!SL Beautiful Containers--to give me ideas on what to do with my new items!

Plus, check out what my Mom's getting me for my birthday in November, and for Christmas! I totally scored!!!

Devonshire Lidded Trifle--another versatile item!
Estate Trivet Trio--these are going on my wall.
Parisian Luminaries--I can't wait to get these!

Okay, so now I feel like I should at least add the two items I got from Jenny's party a month ago... what started this whole thing!

I love making pies & have always wanted a stoneware pie plate (which this is, though it's glazed) - Hospitality Collection Pie Plate, Butter

Estate Collection Canister--this is awesome! I've got Halloween M&M's in it now, will put other candies in it, or candles, or maybe I'll move it to the bathroom and put cotton balls in it, or.... or....

All about me

Okay, so I feel like alot of the time, lately, I listen to what other people are saying about what's going on in their lives, but they assume that I'm the stay-at-home-Mom who just sits back and eats bon-bons while watching soap operas (or even Thomas the Tank) all day long.
This is so NOT TRUE. First of all, I have yet to buy A bon-bon, much less multiple bon-bons. I mean, sure, I eat chocolate, if the OBSESSION strikes, but it's not like I'm lying about on my couch while I do so. (Usually, I'm eating over the sink so there are no chocolate crumbs as evidence of my debauchery.)
But here's how an especially abnormal (but becoming normal) day goes for me... this was yesterday:
7am - Wake up to find Donovan awake and already in the high chair --Daddy got him out of his room, as he was awake and knocking on his bedroom door to be let out. So Jim got him breakfast--thanks, Daddy!
7:30 - make sure the girls are moving, up and eating breakfast, then on to get dressed....
8:00 - I've showered (hopefully) plus taken all my meds and vitamins for the day, and maybe even squeeezed in a small bowl of high-fiber cereal for breakfast!
8:40 - the girls are off to school, walking on their own for the first time this year.
9:30 - I'm catching up on e-mails and trying to pry a mechanical pencil out of Donovan's hand as he thinks it's a pen, so he continues to click! click! click! PBS is on, but he's only mildly interested.
10:10 - I've turned on a Thomas the Tank video for Dono and gotten him settled down with two packages of fruit snacks, so hopefully I can buy myself about 15 minutes of time.....
10:12 - I'm calling the Girl Scout Homestead office, leaving messages about new recruits and setting up dates for our troop to go camping this fall.
10:14 - Calling Dietz to see if they've got the piano lesson books I need for both the girls... they have to get some sent from downtown and will call when they're in.
10:36- Am running with Donovan to the Cathedral Art Show to see Anita and check out the cool exhibits (plus buy the Cathedral Cookbook--original price: $25, final markdown: $10!!!)
11:32- Stop at Chipotle for a quick to-go fajita burrito!
11:48 - Call Chipotle back ("fajita burrito" is missing the "fajita" portion!.... I just got rice, sour cream, cheese, and salsa), as Donovan sits down to the 1st course of his lunch (a string-cheese)
11:50 - Have gotten Dono two pieces of boloney ("b---on--ey!!!"), course #2, and am calling Homestead council again. Found out name of the camp contact.....
12:48 - Call from Dietz, piano music is in
1:30 - Have had lunch, but Donovan is not in the mood for a nap today... his cat-nap as I cruised the Art Show seems to have been enough. I call Camp Catron to set up camp dates.
1:52 - Received call-back from GS Homestead employee--they've got 3 new recruits and will get me more info ASAP.
1:57 - Change poopy.
2:10 - Talk to GS co-leader, she suggests change times at camps (arriving and leaving) plus a few other minor details.
2:18 - Talk to Camp Catron rep, update info.
2:32 - Snack for Dono and Mommy!!!
2:58 - Catch up on e-mails
3:14 - Start a Thomas the Tank video
3:50 - The girls are home!
4:10 - Get the girls a snack
4:30 - Try to get Lindsay to start Homework
4:52 - Start supper
6:01 - Push Lindsay towards Homework again
6:12 - Break up fight between Josie and Donovan
6:34 - Jim is home!
6: 48 - Take off to pick up piano music from Dietz
7:12 - Stop at Target for 3-ring binders and loose-leaf paper, as per instructions from piano teacher
7:40 - Get home to see Jim putting Donovan to bed
8:00 - Check e-mails
8:40 - Get girls ice cream
9:06 - Send girls to bed
10:57 - Wrap up on computer, head for bed
11:48 - Fall asleep!!!