On a Roll

I have to tell you about a new find. When you read this, you will think "Those have been around forever- this is nothing new". Well in the MY world these are new and a-ma-zing.

Okay, I will admit that I was introduced to them about 2 or 3 years, but did not think that they would work for me. I recently went on a trip and saw my travel companion using them. Then and there I decided I too could use them.

What am I referring to? Well, velcro rollers of course! Yes, those rollers that do not require heat or little pins to hold them in place. It had to have been a smart person to slap a piece of velcro on the outside of a roller!

Anyone with long or short hair can use these little marvels. True, shorter hair works better, but I love that I get smoother hair with a slight flip on the end without applying extra heat. Lord knows my hair can stand to have less heat applied.

Never tried the roller o' velcro? Maybe you should and you will be a believer too!



**Still waiting on a Granny update. Thanks for your prayers and thoughts!

Never Ending Wait

I have some news to share. News that is hard to share.

My grandmother has been sick a good bit lately. During the fall she was hospitalized twice for the same symptoms. The doctors never really could narrow down the conclusions as to what exactly was causing her to pass out or lose control of her movement. They were however able to increase her meds to where she was taking 21 pills a day. Even with all the changes to her medicine, she hasn't really been feeling like herself. To add to all the drama, she has acquired this rash of some sort.

With a trip to the dermatologist, a biopsy, and a few days of waiting, an answer finally came. A week ago today we found out that my granny has skin cancer. With a little more information, but not much, this is all we know right now. The biopsies have been sent for further testing. My mom emailed me this morning to let me know that the type of cancer is called Cutaneous T-Cell Lymphoma. We will know next week the stage and treatment options.

Not knowing what any of this means, I have done a little research:

This type of skin cancer is not caused by the sun, actually one of the treatments involves lying in the tanning bed. I found that ironic. If caught early, it can easily be treated. Because it is a lymphoma disease though, it has the possibility of spreading to internal organs (this all depends on what type of CTCL it is). This is the part that scares me the most. My grandmother also has some sort of blood cancer, but it was caught very early on. There hasn't been much concern over this, but I hope that this does not intensify the newly discovered cancer. The literature talks about isolated patches and widespread coverage. I'm pretty sure my granny is in the widespread coverage since she has areas from the top of her head to the tops of her feet. Waiting for more information seems endless, but hopefully soon we will know more.

She is an amazing woman in that she picks the positive out of the situation. She is thankful they are not on the bottom of her feet yet and her daily pill count is down to 8.

If you are the praying type, a prayer or two would be much appreciated. Not just for my granny, but also my mom. She lost her dad to cancer 4 years ago.

I am thankful for the support that I have around me though. My friends and family are the best I could ask for. The guy has been most supportive making sure I stay calm until we know enough to get worked up over.

For this I am thankful. For the wait, I dread, but I will learn patience one of these days.

More news hopefully sooner than later.

Miss America Pageant

Now you may have read that last post and wondered: "What in the world did she go to Vegas for?" No, I didn't have an audition for the Cirque Du Soleil (even though that would be a fun job... I'm just not quite flexible enough). Well I was recently presented with the invitation to attend the Miss America Pageant. Not because they thought I should be crowned, but because Miss Mississippi is a current student in the same scholarship program that I work for. It was an amazing experience to be able to see all the work and franticness that goes on during a live production.

Our beautiful Miss Mississippi won the swimsuit and fitness preliminary on Wednesday night. She did not place in the judges' minds, but in the heart of all her supporters she is the best. A group of us went and cheered our hearts out for her. I definitely woke up a few mornings with a feeling in my throat that I haven't felt since high school after a big game.

I am convinced that travel forces you to learn about yourself and also those around you. Luckily I was able to travel with some of the best people I know. i don't want to go into too much detail, but I have to say this: The board of managers that provide the scholarhip to students were able to attend also. These are all highly educated people, but work outside the realm of higher ed. I have never seen a foundation that is so committed to supporting their recipients as these are. They truly give me a model to look up to and admire. I am so thankful for the opportunities that my job affords me and all the lessons I am learning along the way.

Lights of Las Vegas

Last week was spent in the crazy environment of Las Vegas. This trip was my second ever to Las Vegas, and my opinion stands the same. There is only so much you can handle of Vegas.

I say that it is a crazy environment because of the extreme surroundings. Surrounding the lights and sights of the strip you have the most beautiful majestic mountains. We took one morning trip to Red Rock Canyon. I can say that seeing this made the trip. The most beautiful rocks and the most serene surroundings were seen. It's amazing how used to polluted smokey air you can get until you are placed in the middle of such pure air.

Even though I enjoy to gamble (in small amounts-- $40 is all I lost) a girl can only take so much. I do have to say that being raised in the South has made me a bit more modest than others, and admit that the open nudity of marketing shocks me still. I don't care how many times that 'Hot Babes to you in 24 hours' van goes by, I still feel a little exposed with all my clothes on.

The trip was complete with a trip to the Hoover Dam. Amazing what man can do, don't ya think? My personal favorite tidbit of information: The Hoover Dam is made of enough concrete to make a four foot wide sidewalk that would wrap around the equator. Now that's a lot of concrete!

The free shows on the strip are always my favorite! The Bellagio fountains will always be the best in my book though!

All in all, a great time! I have to say though, a week in Vegas is probably the equivalent to a month somewhere else!

Keeping BUSY

whew... It's been a while. Almost a month I know! My readership of two has probably given up on me, but I am back. Hope everyone had a great holiday!

Recently, well not so recently, a good friend "tagged" me on her blog. I suppose the only right thing to do is to keep it going by posting 6 'interesting' things about myself even if its ever so slightly delayed. Some of these might be little quirks I have as opposed to being interesting. This should be fun...

1. I am a 'do it yourself'-er. I love to do make things, create things, modify things. You name it, I like to do it when I have the time. My sister and I usually joke about the projects my mom is forever working on, but I am just like her. I was brought up in a house where my mom was constantly changing the inside of house in some form or fashion. I guess its in my blood. My most recent project was decorating my room with canvases. I go through phases of liking my own painting abilities, and right now I'm in a not liking phase. Instead of painting the canvases, I found a fabulous fabric at Hancock's and covered the canvases with it. With one large canvas at the head of my bed, it looks like faux-head board. My next project? Slowly but surely I want to paint my own place setting at the local pottery painting place.

2. My absolute dream job would be something revolved around traveling. I absolutely love to travel! Well my current job does involve a little travel, I got to take a trip to New York City over the holiday break, and soon will be getting to see the lights of Las Vegas. Hey, I'm not complaining!

3. I'm all or nothing. When doing something, even small things. If I'm not fully committed, I'm most likely not following through. If I'm organized, then EVERYTHING is organized. If I'm not, then NOTHING is. A little extreme, I know but this is who I am.

4. I absolutely enjoy cooking, not so much the clean up though. If you ask the guy if this is true, he might disagree. Although I have only cooked about 3 times for him in the past 8 months, I do actually enjoy it. Currently I don't have ALL the cable channels, which I'm not complaining, but I do miss the FoodNetwork from time to time. The past holidays have been great being able to go home and cook with my grandmother, mother, and sister. Even though our conversations and tempers can get more heated than the oven, its always a lot of fun to get together in the kitchen with them.

5. I love planning. Nerd, I know. With my job, a little bit of planning is involved. From coordinating students throughout an important day on campus to planning a trip for students I love doing it. This planning has carried over into my 'outside of work' life. Or maybe I brought the planning with me? I don't know, but I do know I enjoy it. There's something about working hard on something and seeing it being carried out. I have to admit, I can go almost overboard with it though. My sister could only laugh at me when I brought a typed itinerary to her Bachelorette Party in Memphis. What can I say? I'm a dork.

6. If there is nothing on my schedule and USA catches me with a Law and Order marathon, I'm stuck. I can watch these types of shows all day long. I don't know if its the dun.dun. sound that keeps me in a trance or the twists and turns that keep you thinking. I will stay up way past my bedtime any night just to see who sexually assaulted Kandi, the hooker who was off duty. Absolutely compelling.

Well there it is. Six interesting facts or quirks about me! Hope you enjoyed!

Jerious- as in Best Birthday Present Ever...

November is a pretty special month. Not only is it the month that marks the opening for the holiday season, but three special birthdays take place in this month. This year I opened the month by turning 25. Somewhere around Thanksgiving, my granny turned 80. Then my dad wrapped up the month with a big 55 birthday.

You might be asking yourself right now, "Why is she jibbering about November when it's December?" Well, this past weekend we, my family, were able to celebrate my dad's birthday gift.

If you didn't know, my dad used to coach high school football. He has retired and now coaches junior high. Before he retired though, he was able to work with a lot of talented players. One in particular is now playing for the Atlanta Falcons. His name, Jerious Norwood. J-Rock as my calls him is a GREAT guy on and off the field. He has recently started a foundation. You can check it out here. My dad loves watching the games on TV and regularly sports his Jerious Norwood Foundation under armour gear around the house. So what better gift than tickets to see him play?!

Well luck would have it that the Falcons played in New Orleans this past weekend, and the rest of the family worked together to get everyone tickets, hotel rooms, and a car rental.

So off to the Big Easy we went as a family. The game was a lot of fun, my first professional game, but the best time was probably breakfast at Cafe Du Monde. The guy's first beignet experience. Lots of powered sugar and lots of laughs!

Even though dad didn't get to talk to Jerious and the Falcons lost (probably for the better, those Saints fans are anything but Saints) I think the weekend was a success with lots of fun! I've included some pictures from the weekend...

Insistant on the iPhone

I have officially crossed over. Giving into my urges I am now the owner of an iPhone and I love it. A little holiday buy for myself. I made the purchase over the Thanksgiving break and actually got to play with it once I got back to town. It was a constant struggle to gain power over the little device with so many possibilities. If my dad was not hoarding it in his room, my brother-in-law was playing. If it happened to be able to rest the guy would soon find it and then I would get it back once the battery needed a little charge. To say the least, my family liked the new buy.

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving! I'm pretty pumped about the holiday season that has crept up on me!