A Change For The Better--Day 1

Day one:

This may be called day one but it really is day two going back to talk about my day one. That makes sense, right? J Well, you know what I mean.

So far it’s easy going. I don’t want to go too fast or hard, not that I am lazy, but I need to move slow to adjust to a new routine. Let’s not just up and change your life overnight. No. That ain’t happening. I still want to text my friends and family, call people, play games, be on social medias, read, WRITE, and manage the home. . . Okay, most of these things probably could be managed a bit better and shortened time wise and honestly, by the sounds of my life, it does feel like I could use more movement. So this is what I decided. YOGA!

No, laughing. I’m serious. Yoga.  I know some people might say start with adjusting your diet but I can’t do it. I don’t even eat like a regular person so managing my meals is too daunting of a task. I don’t feel in control of it. So I figure the easiest thing I can do is add an hour of Yoga into my mourning routine.

The great thing about Yoga, that I have heard and read, is that it helps to reduce stress, helps with sleep, regulates breathing, helps you to become healthier, and I also read it was good for your sex life. No joke. So if you’re in a slump sexually and are overall stressed, this should do the trick. Wink. Wink.

So now my schedule looks like this: wake up before eight, have coffee and a small snack and then by nine I am ready to do yoga. Granted, I look kind of funny doing yoga and trying not to fall over, but oddly enough it is soothingly and kind of energizing.

I will let you know more about how I am doing in Yoga next time.

-Brenda Franklin

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A Change for the better

A Change for the better, I think I will turn that into a Hashtag. That's the new thing now, right? Everything's a Hashtag. #ACFTB . . . I don't know how I feel about that... I"ll come up with somethings. Maybe I need to change the title. What do y'all think?

Anyway, I have gone years with back pain. And I don't mean I pulled a muscle or it’s a little uncomfortable pain now and again. What I mean is that there is constant tension on my lower Lumbar support which makes certain tasks, such as bending, turning, sometimes even walking, difficult. Not just difficult, downright painful.

My doctor gave me an anti-inflammatory med to assist me in functioning, but it isn't a cure. I also take pain killers when it's flared to the point of pinching a nerve causing a whole new set of issues, the worst being a restraint on my breathing. It's scary!

Now, some people have asked me “Have you thought about surgery?”

Yes I have thought about it, but no I won't do it. I don't think I am at a point where surgery is my only option. I think I am still capable of changing my life, but not entirely on my own. It will take struggles, time, and yes, pain pills on occasion, but I think I can do it. I don't want to risk my future with an unnecessary surgery or owe lots of money to the hospital for the next several years.

I need to change my life. And I don't mean I am gonna move across the world, become a priestess, become a vegetarian tonight!, or decide that rituals are the way to go. If that's your path, cool. But I plan to take it a bit slower and change my day to day routines.

I can manage not only my health, my money, and my time, but my LIFE for the better. Each Week I will post about my struggles, my failures, my successes, and my overall day to day happenings about how I am trying to change my life while giving suggestions I have discovered along the way. I am not a professional, so I can’t promise that what I do will work for you, nor, do I promise I will be doing this a year from now, but maybe with this blog, and the support from you and my family, it will push me into continuing this. Everyone needs a cheering squad.

So here we go. A brand knew start to a brand new way of life. :) I can do this!

-Brenda Franklin

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Rebirth of an old Blog

I have not used this blog in a long time. And when I mean long time I mean the last post I did was back in October 2012! WOW!

But it’s time for a rebirth. Yes, you heard me. IT’S ALIVE!

I am going to take my old blog and start it back up. This time with much more gusto. I like that word, gusto. Makes me wanna smile with sass. Am I the only one? Well, regardless, I am back with a new found passion that will knock your socks off! Unless you aren’t wearing socks then I advise you to get socks so they can be knocked off. Everyone needs the experience once in their life. I will wait.

Do you have socks?

BAM! Socks are knocked off! Heck yeah!!

:) As I was saying, My Rambles Blog is back up and running with new content posted daily and much to come. There has been a lot of changes in my life and plenty of things that I have seen I can’t wait to share. Some of which might be censored. I didn’t say this would be a kid friendly Blog, did I? Well, for the most part it will be safe, if at any point I think something is said within my Blog that isn’t appropriate I will have a warning at the very top. No worries.

But for the most part this will be family friendly. Mostly.

See you on the next post.

-Brenda Franklin

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Halloween Spirit

The month of October has finally come and I have already begun to get into the Halloween spirit! My husband and I carved our first pumpkin together. I’m shocked we haven’t done this sooner. Amazingly enough we still have all of our fingers and toes. The first aid kit wasn't needed though I did have it standing by. You can never be too careful I say.

After carving a pumpkin--and yes it is so simple looking, but it's my first--I decided that the inside of a pumpkin is gross and that I can’t believe I will still eat pumpkin pie and pumpkin bread. And to all those that have never had pumpkin bread you have no idea what you are missing! I demand that you go out right this instant to buy it, bake, and eat it. Whenever we get some made I’ll take a picture and write more on it.

Now Halloween isn't the only thing to prepare for there is Thanksgiving the month after and so you don’t have to spend too much money you could always get items that are fall festive or do what I do. Keep the Halloween things out as long as you can before they get booted to the side by Christmas, but having a house of fall things can even stay up till Christmas depending on what it is, your home, and the people in it. Just shop smart.

But in the end the important thing is to have fun!

Brenda Franklin

Puzzle Addict

I’m a Puzzle Addict!

My sweet husband Shawn heads off to work between three and five in the morning depending on the what day of the week it is. I have been waking up a lot with him and staying up. i don't know what it is about the early morning hours that get the blood pumping but it feels great...most of the time.

If I’m not writing, catching up with friends, sorting through the endless amount of picture files I have on the computer, or working on organizing the house you can find me leaned over a thousand piece puzzle until my eyes pop.

My mother and I enjoy killing time working on puzzles and my little brother finds it amusing to give us seven days to complete it. Mind you we can do them a lot faster than seven days, but if I’m feeling bored it’s the perfect thing to do. Pour me a cup of tea and I’m set.

We try to work on colorful puzzles (like the one to my left which is the latest one at 1500 pieces). I myself really love sea life. It's not the easiest to work on because of the blend of blues and blacks, but I love it.

We work on any number of sizes from the simple 100 piece to the 1000 piece ones and recently we completed a 1500 piece one. I want to go bigger but that will have to wait. Mom has six knew puzzles awaiting our attention and I can't wait to start them.

What is it about puzzles I love?

The thing about a puzzle--or at least how I go in about it--is once you connect the first two pieces you're hooked. I have to finish it. I need to get to the end I tell myself and next thing I know I'm walking pass it to do something when I start to see the puzzle come together on the table. I know what the picture looks like, but I want to form it. I want to finish the whole thing then and there! I can't help but love that feeling you get after putting in the next piece. And then the next one. And so on! It's exhilarating.

Though, there are some puzzles like the one to my left here where the colors blend so well that at one point we sat in utter terror and frustration wanting nothing more but to tear what little we had done to pieces and hide the box. But we slowly pushed on for countless hours and many nights trying to find every piece. It’s worth it. Once you get it together. That last piece goes into place there is a rush of joy and accomplishment that burst within my chest. Something which had been slowly building the entire time we have been working on it and finally it came be released. It is this feeling that makes me consider starting another puzzle. The need of satisfaction and knowing that we had triumphed and all are hard work was a success.

And thus I am a Puzzle Addict and I will be such for many years. I don't see myself stopping anytime soon.

B. Franklin

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Top ten things I am scared of:

Mind you that this list varies in order for some items depending upon the situation, the size of the issue/animal, and if someone else shares my fear (in which case I find that I have to muster up courage to fight the obstacle. We can’t both be incapacitated).

1.) Spiders

They are creepy and crawly with eight legs and they always know where to find me. Read my next blog to understand what I mean.

2.) Needles

To show you how much I hate needles let me tell you, the reader, that when I was younger I overheard mum and a doctor talking about having to give me a shot. Well, the moment I heard I took off out the doors to the building and into the parking lot where there was traffic driving around. Almost getting hit I turned on my heels and climbed the only tree available but I wasn’t fast enough. Mum grabbed me by the ankle and pulled me down. I was terrified! I hate needles. I even get weak in the knees at hospitals.

3.) The dark

I think my fear comes from the fact that I can’t see anything. I used to have my TV playing all night to keep me company and now I’m married and thankfully I have a person in the bed with me now. But the mind is a terrifying thing and it comes up with some of the most horrific things. It doesn’t help when you grow up seeing things and you believe that there is more out there then what you can see.

4.) Zombies

Call me funny but I don’t like the thought of turning into something slowly decaying nor being chased after by a decomposing corpse. And thank God to whoever decided to place signs up whenever they are filming a zombie movie saying, “Do not shot the Zombies! They’re actors.” And God forbid if I watch a zombie movie. I’ve been known to wake up from nightmares where my family is taken. It’s just sad. No one wants to watch their little brother be taken. So I’m scared of zombies.

5.) Dogs

No matter what people say I have a fear of dogs. They just don’t like me! I have been chased, bitten a couple of times too many, and growled out. My husband is loved by all dogs and says they can smell my fear. Well, heck! If they would lick me first before growling I might be okay, but they don’t. So until the day that happens I’m going to stay scared and packing a gun. Sorry, but protection first against anything that poses a threat.

6.) Large crowds

I need breathing space. In a large crowd I suddenly begin to sweat and need to rush away. I’m suffocating. This is about the point when Shawn takes me in his arms and makes me closes me eyes or he pulls me away to a quieter corner where I can get myself together.

7.) Being alone in an empty house

When I was younger I saw things. I listened to boxes moving under my bed, the feeling of someone in a room with you, and then finally I saw more than just a few shadows. So being alone in any home isn’t at the top of my list of favorite things.

8.) Trespassing

My husband likes to walk onto another person’s property and go walking in the woods. I like it to an extinct, but he wants to travel miles. I hate the thought of going too far in concern we’ll get shot. There are hunting leases around and I don’t know all the neighbors. Living where we do there are a lot of woods and animals. I panic and always wonder, “what if you get lost?” or “you get shot?”, but I’m a very overly protective person and I’m always thinking the worse. It bothers me so much that I could have a panic attack over the matter.

9.) Drowning

Who wants to drown? Honestly. I can swim just fine I just don’t want to go where I’m drowning. I don’t want to be aware of my demise as I struggle to get oxygen when there is none.

10.) Open water

Call me silly but I can’t stand the thought of Open Ocean or even rivers sometimes. I keep thinking about the movie Jaws or Lake placid. I mean come on. Being dragged under the water or having limbs remove isn’t so great a picture.

These are just ten things that I’m scared of and though there are other things that freak me out these stands out the most.

Thank you for reading.

B. Franklin

Bathtub and I

The Bathtub and I.

I must admit that when I place those two words “Bathtub” and “I” together in a sentence the thoughts tend to stray, but that’s not what I am going to type about.

I find that when I come to a road block in my thinking or a question I can’t answer. I want to take a nice hot bath. My intention usually isn’t to solve the problem but to understand what the problem is and to straighten out the kinks.

When it comes to a religious conversation between my husband and myself I can’t help but stumble around. I honestly can’t seem to process anything he says, nor do I study the topic. Religion and I aren’t the best of buds. That might have something to do with the way I grew up, but I drift.

After listening to Shawn tell stories for a while I’m more than a little confused and my head is hurting, but all I need to do is fill the tub with hot water and slid in. The water does the rest.

There is something to sitting alone in a bathroom and completely relaxed in hot water that gets the mind moving. The stories Shawn has twisted around in my head begin in make sense and even begin to play out in a movie fashion. Now most of the time I’m probably missing a vital point, but I begin to see a picture more clearly and so the next time he tells me the same story I’m closer to understanding him and seeing every detail that he sees. Or so I would like to think.

Another thing that makes me want to climb into a nice hot tub is writing. Writing is so much fun but can be stressful, hair pulling, and downright nerve raking. Whenever I come to a moment where I can’t figure what to do next I somehow manage to pull myself away from the screen--because at this point whatever I right I’ll want to undo later out of frustration--long enough to talk myself into a bath.

The vapors from the hot water work its way up my neck and releases the building pressure slowly. I don’t know how hot water can cool a person down, but it works. And man I love it if you play some hard rock in the background that really gets the mind thinking. Picturing different scenes to your book to match whatever song is playing in the background. Everyone should try it at least once.

But again, I may not come to an answer to my writer block, but I can ease my panic about what to write. I can spend several minutes focusing on what I have accomplished other than what is stumping me.

And my third reason for seeking comfort in the allusive bathtub would be for pain relief. Nothing says “Go away back pain!” like a bathwater at about a hundred two degrees. ^^

There are many other reasons to relax in a tub, but those are my main ones. Please share with me yours and keep it safe. Thank you for reading my thoughts of the night.

B. Franklin