Help Wanted!

A few years  ago I heard about Hilary Weeks.  Another mom at my church was talking about a particular song that was sung by Hilary Weeks.  I honestly didn't think much about it at the time.  Later that same week I was on itunes purchasing another song and decided to see if this Hilary Weeks lady had any songs on itunes.  I was surprised to find that she had quite a few songs available.  I purchased the one song that the other mom reccommended and my life changed. Seriously. 

Rewind.

I was having an awful year at school.  I had a class that I couldn't control, I didn't feel like I was an effective teacher, I took several "sick" days that year (something I had never done before in 8 years of teaching), and wondered if I was cut out to do the only thing I ever wanted to do. I cried more than once on my way home from school that year.

Enter Hilary Weeks and "He Hears Me." Something about this song spoke to me.  I felt reassured and more confident.  I still struggled.  I was still confused about what I was doing wrong. But I did not feel alone.  I remember feeling grateful for CD players.  I played this song so often I can't imagine a cassette tape would have lasted!

What can I say?  I believe everything happens for a reason.  I believe He did hear me...whining, crying, pleading.  And doors began to open.  I was accepted for an interview at the school where I always wanted to teach.  It was for a middle school language arts position.  During the process of interviews and hiring, the school board approved another position...middle school reading.  I was offered this position and accepted with tears in my eyes and a HUGE smile on my heart (and face).  Things DO happen for a reason.  We just can't always see the big picture.

Last year I had the opportunity to attend Time Out For Women, a christian women's conference.  There I listened to and personally met Hilary Weeks.  I have since purchased many of her CDs and have not been disappointed with any of them.  Why am I sharing this with you?  Just in case you want to help her out.  Here she is explaining how...



If you would like to preoder her CD you can go here.  Mine is already ordered!

Incompetent, Crazy, Psychotic, Over-reactive

Personally, I prefer "prepared."  Especially since we're talking about me!  I mean really...

So here's the story:  It got a little chilly here this weekend.  Saturday evening Rodney turned the heat on just to take the chill out of the house.  We went to dinner and when we returned a wall of heat greeted us at the door.  It was so hot inside - like I-could-barely-breathe hot.  So Rodney turned the heat off and played with the thermostat a little.  He turned it all off and opened the windows.  On Sunday, he played with it again.  When he turned the heat on, it would not go off.  I was stripping my clothes off left and right (maybe that was his plan! Hmmmm???)  Then he would turn the air conditioner on (just to see if it worked) and it would not go off!  So I put my clothes back on and shivered.  This went on for several hours.  You know - because trying just once is never enough.  Finally he decided that it was the thermostat and we would need to replace it.  He turned the thermostat to the off position and headed out the door around 5:30 pm.  He had to go to work to help his guys. At 6:15 I noticed that it was getting really hot in the house again.  I checked the thermostat - it was off;  so I checked the vents and they were blowing hot air.  I called Rodney and he told me to turn off the breaker switches that are on the furnace. 

So I turned them off (this pictures was taken later so they are turned back on).  I then waited a little while but it was still hot and hot air was still coming out of the vents.  This didn't sound normal to me, but what do I know about furnaces.  I called my dad and he told me to find the main breaker box and turn the switch for the heater.

I was excited when I realized everything was labeled.  This should be an easy job.  I found one labeled heat pump, so I flipped that baby and felt very domestic.

The only problem was...the furnace was still humming a high pitch sound, the copper pipe going into the furnace was super hot and there was still hot air coming out of the vents.  It was like a very bad nightmare.  How could the furnace still be working after I turned it off at the main circuit?

I quickly called Rodney and told him everything.  He said he would call someone.  20 minutes later I called him back only to find out that he had not called anyone yet.  I yelled at him and accused him of not caring if our house burned down.  I think this is when he realized how psychotic worried I was.  So he made some phone calls while I sat on my steps and cried.  I prayed that we would be safe and that there wouldn't be an explosion.  I closed the doors downstairs, confident that the fire would start in the furnace and maybe I could contain it in the basement hallway.  I then packed up the things that I would definitely not want to be without.  Have you ever truly thought about this.  You should.  It's a very humbling experience, knowing that everything you own is going to be ash in a matter of time.  Here's what I packed:

Are you surprised that I only packed two backpacks?  If you really know me, you shouldn't be.  Here's what's inside:
My laptop with all my pictures on it.

My external hard drive with even more pictures saved on it.

My camera bag, because I would need to take pictures of my house as it burned.  My camera was in the bag, I just needed to take it out to take these pictures.

And my well-worn, much-loved scriptures.  I have nicer looking, newer ones, but these are the ones that I would miss the most, so I grabbed them and shoved them in my computer bag.  I received them for my 8th birthday from my parents and they are the ones I read the most.  I figured as I watched my house burn, I may need some comfort that I could only get from a few verses.  (Like Ephesians 5 where it says wives should love their husbands no matter what - even if they don't care if the house burns down).

Once I finished packing these few things, Shawn asked if he should pack his X-box.  I said "No honey, we won't have a TV to hook it to.  But I could take a picture of it for you to remember it."  He declined my offer and decided to just go play it until it burned up. 

At some point Rodney decided that he need to come home to help his hysterical very prepared wife.  I can't tell you how happy I was to hear the loud rumble of his diesel truck in the driveway.  He came in checked the furnace switches and walked over to the breaker box and flipped a switch.  The furnace stopped humming immediately.  I ran upstairs and there was no longer hot air coming from the vents.  I asked him which switch he flipped...because I knew I flipped the right one!  He showed me that there was another switch labeled "outside unit" that needed to be turned off as well.  WHY DIDN'T HE JUST TELL ME THAT EARLIER????

Today the HVAC man came to fix a relay switch and everything seems to be working just fine.  I guess I won't complain about the $250 bill...it could have been a lot worse!

Weather Forecast

Hurry!  Buy a snowblower and some heavy duty shovels!  Inspect your gloves and scarves.  Put the liner back in your winter coat.  Shake the stink bugs out of your boots.  What's that?  You're laughing?  Have you heard the weather forecast?  Let me share...

This weekend is going to be in the low 40s and it's still September!  What?  You're still laughing?  Isn't that cold enough for you? 

Well...I have the inside scoop.  I saw a Woolly Bear Caterpillar this week. You know - those fuzzy little bugs with big eyes that cover the roads every fall.  Some people  (like Elmer Fudd) call them Woolly Worms.  And I bet you didn't know that in North Carolina they hold an annual Woolly Worm Woad Wace!  Here's a picture of a cute little guy in case you think I have gone crazy and don't know what I am talking about:

These little fellas are well known for their weather predicting abilities.  The wider the middle brown section, the milder the coming winter will be.  Conversely, a narrow brown band is a predictor of a harsh winter.  Well, what happens when there is NO brown band?

This guy was lurking in my driveway when I got home from school Monday.  He definitely is not as cute as his brown striped brother.  If you ask me...he reminds me of the Snow Miser!