My good deed

I don't even know if it's a good deed or not. This is so unlike me. I was given a $25 gift card to Shell by my company two months ago which I have been slowly whittling down buying bottled water, snacks, Subway today, etcetera. As of today at lunch, it has about $10 left on it. Today I was stopped at a stoplight in front of a Shell and there was a skinny homeless guy standing there with one of those cardboard signs with his skinny Rottweiler. I felt so sorry for this hungry dog (not so sorry for the guy who wouldn't get a job) that I rolled down my window and gave him the card with stern orders to march across the street and get himself AND his dog something to eat. His reply was a meek "yes, ma'am". (I've been getting a lot of that "ma'am" stuff lately. What is THAT all about? I know it's a term of respect and all that down here in Texas, but all it manages to accomplish is to make me feel old. Same thing when I'm referred to as "Mrs. Last Name". I hate that.)

I don't know why I did it...it was a split second decision that I made in a second and I did feel better giving it to him. At least he could get something to eat and wouldn't spend the money on drugs!

And then my husband reminded me that they sell cigarettes and beer at Shell stations. Oh, well. Rain on my warm fuzzy feeling, why don't ya! At least I feel better. And later that afternoon when I drove by the intersection again, he wasn't there, so I can tell myself (even if it's not true) that he is somewhere eating and sharing his dinner with his dog. Granted, I think panhandling is disgusting and I wish people would just take the initiative to help themselves, but not everyone is as fortunate as I or had the home life that I did and I need to remember that. There are some truly sad situations out there.

Today was a busy day. I was out in the field all day looking at roofs again. PLEASE, will someone just leave their stove on!? I'm kidding of course...I wouldn't wish a fire on anyone...but I'm dying for a fire assignment. I get so bored with storm claims when I do them for this long of a stretch like this. My thumb is rubbed raw from checking roofs for hail. I'm tired of explaining over and over again that insurance doesn't cover it when your roof just wears out and starts leaking. I'm even more tired of hearing the complaint, "Why am I paying for insurance if you won't cover this?" HELLO, you're paying for your house to be covered if fire burns it down/tornado takes it away/washing machine hose breaks/drunk driver drives through it in the middle of the night! Homeowner's insurance is not a maintenance or a redecorating policy! Queenie even said today when I called her to check in that she's anxious for things with me to get back to normal and for me to start doing again what I'm supposed to be doing. I think she's bored too with nothing to look at. All the claims I'm paying are within my payment authority, the denials are clear-cut, and T and E aren't here anymore to keep her busy with complaint calls and file problems. These storm claims are fine, but it's kind of a waste to send me on them when my experience and skill level dictates that I handle more challenging assignments. Not to mention, it's very unsettling for us to be going this long with no fire assignments. Anyway, I didn't get home until eight, so no gym tonight. Just too tired and pooped. I did make myself go last night, and I'm going tomorrow night, so that's a good thing. I paid for one roof and denied two, so it was a productive day. Tomorrow I plan to get my butt out of bed at a reasonable hour and work at the office for the day. I have lots of stuff to do there...just random errands and things.

We watched The Girl Next Door last night. Honestly? I thought it was fluff. My husband was so entertained by Elisha Cuthbert though that I think the movie could have been in Swahili and he wouldn't have cared. He thinks that girl is just adorable. But it did have some entertaining moments.

I am feeling a little better, but only a little. I'm still incredibly stiff. Every time I bent down to mark a hail hit or moved my legs to climb my ladder, it hurt. I just don't understand why every time I work my legs, they are still this sore every time. It just doesn't make any sense to me.

But at least tomorrow is Friday and it's a three day weekend approaching! Yay! I'm sure SOMEONE will set their house on fire with their barbeque grill or something this weekend. It's inevitable! And I'm ready. Bring it on.

I am very worried about my grandmother right now. She is in Orlando, which is supposed to be hit very hard by Hurricane Frances. I talked with my dad briefly tonight and he is going to try to reach her tomorrow. My sister is also there visiting at the moment. I hope everyone is okay. This is just all so scary.

Okay, meme time...I'm ready to go crash on the couch with some hot tea and my stitching. My manicure didn't make it through the roofs today, so I need to do them before bed. No problem now that I have that lightning drying coat!

First meme of the day...the Daily Dirt! Subject: Dating.

1. At what age did your parents allow you to date? Depends on your definition of dating. I was allowed to go to the movies with boys when I was fourteen...as long as a parent dropped us off and a parent picked us up. No car dating (defined as one of us driving to and from) though until I was sixteen.
2. Group date or one on one? Either, as long as the above-referenced rules applied.
3. Would you rather go to the local hangout than a fancy restaurant on a first date? Fancy restaurant or just any restaurant, really...as long as it was somewhere that we could relax and be ourselves and not have to worry about seeing anyone from school.
4. Do you kiss on the first date? I usually did, yes.
5. What's your most unforgettable date? P and I went to Ruth's Chris for an anniversary dinner a few years ago...and it was a very romantic evening. Not to mention that Ruth's Chris serves the best steak in existence.

Second, Thursday Tattle...which deals with pets, a subject covered in my blog already last weekend, I believe, but some of the questions are a little different...

How many pets do you have? Five.
What are their names? Katie, Simon, Gabrielle, Moira and Taylor.
What are they? Katie and Simon are Labrador retrievers, and the other three are cats.
What is the best thing they have ever done? I'll just cover the dogs on these answers. The best thing Katie ever did was to train Simon so he didn't drive me crazy the way that she did. Everyone told us that she would be like a little mommy to him, and they were right. The best thing Simon ever did was to earn our trust early with chewing and potty training. He had free rein of the house and was out of his crate before he was a year old.
What is the worst thing they have ever done? Before we got Katie, P and I spent a lot of time plowing a vegetable garden. We got Katie, and she promptly wrecked it. The finishing touch was when she chewed a banana pepper plant down to a nub in the space of about five minutes. Simon was much more expensive. One weekend he got ahold of P's glasses and chewed them up...and the following weekend, got ahold of MINE and chewed them up.
Do they do any tricks? Simon and Katie can both shake hands with either paw, can sit and lie down on command, and will stay as long as we tell them to in one spot. Simon will go in his crate on command. Katie can eat a cookie off the tip of her nose.

Three, Theater Thursday.

1) What is your favorite movie about some type of 'animal gone wrong'? Jaws (even though it terrifies me)
2) Do you end up feeling sorry for the animal, or just scared to death? Scared to death.
3) Do you think there is a movie about a 'killer animal' that went way too far or was just a ridiculous movie? I thought Anaconda was just stupid. It had potential to be far better and just fell short.
BONUS) What kind of killer animal movie would you like to see made? Scary squirrels anyone? Killer animal movies just scare the crap out of me, so I honestly can't think of a type of animal movie that I'd like to see made.

And finally, the Thursday Threesome! (I think this meme is SO cool!)

Onesome: Three- What do you think the T3 should be next week? Just toss three words together; we'll do the rest! *g* How about Whole Wide World?
Twosome: Ring- Are you a jewelry person? Is there any one item you wear every single day? Do you have any piercings? Where are they and did they hurt? I do like jewelry a lot, but there's only a few things I wear every day. I wear my engagement solitaire and my wedding band on my left hand, and one of my other four rings on my right hand. I always wear a watch and a pair of earrings, and I always have a navel ring in, which answers the question about piercings. I have my navel pierced. Having it pierced didn't hurt as much as the healing process did, and that wasn't that bad either. It just required a lot of diligence in cleaning it.
Threesome: Circus- Do you like the circus? What's your favorite act? Or is your life enough of a circus for you? I do like the circus...my favorite act is the trapeze artists.

Okay, enough for tonight. I'm off to relax!