Creepy and chilling!

Can I just say this is one creepy and chilling guy. He is a psychology gradaute like myself dream to get inside his head and try and figure out what the hell is going on in there. I just think that the more we end up knowing about him the sicker he becomes. He wanted attention and with all the media he is getting now he sure is getting what he wants. This is one sick man.

Carmen

Back to school!!!

Today Dominic and I both started our first day back to school/work. It was a hard morning to get up but once we all got up it was so nice to know that we are starting our new life here in Santee, CA. Dominic started his new school as a fifth grader and already made 2 friends. He seems to enjoy his school much better than the one he did last year. Last year when he started he didn't make friends for atleast a month and would come home and complain that how he didn't like it here and wanted to go back to CT. So today when he came home and smiled and told me he liked his classroom and he already met Victor and Ryan, I was relieved to know that he had adjusted so well.

As for me, I started my new job today and really really enjoyed it. I so missed working in the school district last year when I was in the office at the accounting firm. I'm a people person not someone that can get stuck behind a desk all day long. So it felt good to be in the school and working. Everyone that I met today was super nice and I think I am going to enjoy the school a lot. It's a very small school. Only one teacher per grade so its a close family there. The drive sort of sucks going to work because I'm in the middle of morning traffic so a 20 minute normal drive is taking me 45 minutes, but coming home was a breeze. I have to get used to getting paid once a month again but payday falls right when our mortgage is due so it'll be nice having that to pay the mortgage off.

So today was an awesome day for the Manning family. I'm tired though. I'm gonna eat dinner have a glass of wine and hit the hay.

Happy Monday to you all,
Carmen

my new job!!!

I just wanted to let everyone know that I accepted a position at the school district. I will be working as an office assistant at Barnard Elementary School in Point Loma. It's a part time job which I wanted and the pay is pretty good. The great thing is I will have the same days off as Dominic (mostly give or take a few days) and it gets my foot in the door for other positions within the school district that I have been trying to do for the past year. I am so excited, I just had to share my news with all of you. I start this Monday for training but the kids wont be there until Sept. 5Th. Just thought I share my news.

Carmen

I created a Slide Show! Check it out!

friends in low places

I have a job interview tomorrow at 11:30pm. It's for a receptionist position. It doesn't pay as well as I'd like, but its only 3 miles away from my home, so the save on gas balances everything out. Also its part time Mon-Fri 10-3pm which is my ideal hours that I want to work. So wish me luck. I'll be sure and write tomorrow after my interview to tell you how it goes.

We had a pretty uneventful weekend. We didn't have any get togethers and we didn't go out but we did get the garage all cleaned up and are going to finish the balcony and add lights to the patio. So looking at it now, it seems like we actually had a pretty busy one. I should finish the touch up painting but I am so over painting, that I just keep putting it off week after week.

My friend Michele had her baby boy Connor. He is so adorable. They live back in CT. but the photos she sent me, I just want to eat him. I'm going to look for baby clothes to send him this week. I love shopping for babies. I guess its because I'll never have anymore but its still fun to shop and play with babies and then be able to give them back to their owners (hee hee) when they poop their diapers or cry.

We were talking in bed this morning about how this duty station is probably the best other than Key West due to the weather and so much to do but the worst when it comes to friends. We haven't met any friends like we had in CT. Well I take that back we have Jenny/Art and extended family out the wood works, but nothing compares to all the friends we had in Key West or Groton. I really miss both places because of that. I think the main reason that is (our lack of friends/support) is one Mike command exist of like 8 single guys and also because San Diego is so damn big. Key West is like 3 miles by 5 miles big and Groton is just as small. I think our town of Santee is bigger than the whole city of Key West so we are living in a big city, which I am still adjusting too. I guess looking back I always thought I was a big city girl but now that I'm getting older I'm starting to enjoy the small town atmosphere. I wouldn't change things. San Diego is awesome, I just wish more of our friends would get stationed out here. Unless we get Kings Bay, GA. or Cape Canaveral, Fla. we will pretty much stay here if the Navy lets us since we bought a place and all.

Oh I have some exciting news. I found a friend from high school, that I lived with for a little over a year after I graduated. Her name is Emily. We were extremely close and lost touch after she moved back to AZ. and I moved to Miami. Her brother is in the Navy and he recently made Chief and so I saw his name on the list of promotions. I didn't think it was the same person being that it had been so long since I heard that name and all. Well it ended up being the same guy and I got in contact with her after 13 years. Its awesome. I really missed her. Yesterday when Mike and Dominic were cleaning up the garage we came across all the old photos from back then, so I sent her a bunch. It was so funny seeing some of those old pictures. Man what dorks we were. If I ever get the nerve to post a few of them on her I'll show you just how silly we were back then.

Well I'm gonna sign of and step away from the computer today. I feel that sometimes the computer is a tumor attached to my hand. LOL!!!

Until I can think of something else to write,
Carmen

P.S. Oh Michael and I watched a movie called "The Family Stone". It was a bit sad but a really good movie. I'd recommend it if you haven't seen it yet.

Things I've noticed while on O2

• my cough is gone. Well I have it once in awhile, but my morning cough that would last forever. GONE!!!
• I can walk up the stairs with out stopping. I still stop out of habit but am getting myself used to not stopping in the middle of the stairs, pretending to look at the pictures for the millionth time.
• I can clean with out stopping for about 30 minutes. I think that is just my ADD causing me to get bored and start something new.
• I can walk around town, like the grocery store, to Dominic football practice and get the mail with out getting to winded.
• I can EXERCISE again. Tried it for the first time today. Just Yoga, but hell its something.
• I cook more often instead of giving Michael that chore. Man I missed cooking most of all.
• I have more energy.
• I can take a shower not a bath and I don't have to sit down in the middle of the shower because I'm getting light headed.
• People look at me and wonder why, but never ask.
• The few people that make eye contact with me when I have it on, instantly look away. I'm guessing its because they don't want to be accused of "staring", but I kind of miss the eye contact I used to get.
• my ears hurt more now because of the tubes resting on them.
• I never have a runny nose anymore since it is constantly getting air forced into it.
• I can't run and hide from my family because all they have to do at home is follow the cord and they know where I am.
• I can walk Caya for short walks which I know she likes.
• Dominic isn't embarrassed of his mom wearing her oxygen out in public. If he is, then he's a good actor because he sure doesn't act like it does.
• I don't take as many cough drops, cough medicine or even valiums (for my anxiety when I cough in fear I'm going to collaspe my lung again) anymore.
• my friends and family have been very supportive with my new accessory. Even my niece has seen me in it and didn't even question me. Also my friends 2 year old daughter who is going on 21 I swear, didn't even ask me what was up my nose when she saw me wearing it.

So life is pretty good now. I'm not about to wear it into a job interview, but I am hoping that when I do find a new job and the day comes where I need to wear it, that they are as supportive and understanding as everyone else has been to me.

until I can think of something else to write,

Carmen

feeling: perky for the first time in awhile and I don't mean because I'm wearing some new wonder bra. LOL!!!

Summer days!!

Rather I am enjoying the summer days too much or I simply don't have much to write these days. Sadly I think its that last one I mentioned. With Dominic in football and Michael coaching our once before fun summer nights have been replace at a football field two hours a night 5 days a week. So we have been extremely busy with football again this year. I forget just how time consuming it is after the season ends and every summer I cringe when I remember just how boring our evenings become because of practice. You do what you have to do to keep your kids active I guess and if it means you sacrificing your evenings then that is what a proud parent does.

I also lost my job finally. She kept me one for awhile two days a week but I knew in my heart that that wasn't going to last for too long and so I got an email telling me not to come back. Yep that's right an email. I think that is pretty unprofessional of her but what do you expect these days. The world is revolved around emails and IM'ing. The only good thing about that if you can look at the good side at all is that I have finally worked long enough in this lovely state of CA that I qualify for unemployment to help me out until I find a job, and she promises to give me a good reference to boot.

I also today got my mini-bag of O2. It looks like those camel backs that you see runners or bike riders wearing. Its so much smaller and I will feel better about going out in public with it when needed. I've only used it once outside the house and then I carried that big scuba tank around and thought it wasn't so bad but it takes up a lot of spare room and well energy lugging it back and forth from the house to the car. I am very please that I got the smaller one and that my lungs are in good enough shape that I can still suck in O2 with out help.

I read a book in three days. It was my first Chick Lit. and it was great. It is called The 2nd Assistant. My sister in law bought it for me for my birthday and well at first I didn't think I'd like it because we are SO opposite but I couldn't put it down. Imagine that, her picking out a book that I would end up loving. I guess I've seen stranger things happen.

So that is my life in a nutshell these days. So you haven't missed too much. Lazy days watching movies, reading or hanging out by the pool (oh and looking once again for a job) and evenings spent at a football field. Have a great weekend if I don't get on here again soon.

God bless,
Carmen

Feeling: great (I have now for 4 days).

Happy Birthday Baby!!!

Today is my husband 35th birthday. I am so happy to be a part of his life. Some people thought we wouldn't make it past the first 6 months being together, not because of anything serious like cheating or anything; we both just had a lot of growing up to do and were selfish with our own needs and wants. I'm glad to say we have lasted and that we have proved them all wrong. LOL!!! Mike has grown up a lot in the past 10 years (as well as me) that I've known him but he still is a kid at heart, (Peter Pan syndrome), but if it wasn't for him I wouldn't be where I am today. Not just out of Key West and seeing other things that life has to offer due to his career but I think he's taught me to be strong when I thought I couldn't and not to worry about the future and just enjoy today. I can't imagine my life with him not in it. He's my other half and I don't think I'd be complete without him by my side. He's my best friend and soul mate. I love you baby.

Happy Birthday,
Carmen

In Memory of aunt Rita

When I came back to San Diego from visiting Groton I wrote a post about being sad because I knew that some of the people I befriended I wouldn't see them again. At the time I was referring to myself one day passing and knowing in my heart that, that was the last time I'd see some of them. Or at least see them all together in a group. Well I got a disturbing call the other day that Aunt Rita had died. Aunt Rita is not really my aunt. It's actually a joke that Mike made up awhile ago. She was the aunt of our friends and her husband was Mike also so to not confuse my Mike with the other Mike we all called him Uncle Mike. Her name really is Maria but again there are to many Maria's that we know so Mike in a drunken stupor said "You look more like a Aunt Rita to me." and the name has stuck ever since. Everyone called her Aunt Rita that we knew, she herself starting to call herself Aunt Rita when she call for get togethers. Aunt Rita and I also had an agreement that we would prearranged our children marriage. Dominic would marry her daughter Victoria, that way we'd still be friends for ever and then we'd be family and she'd be our Aunt Rita.
What's so disturbing to me is that she was in really good health so we all thought. Her husband on the other hand was not. He had a heart attack recently and just had open heart surgery around the 4th of July. So when we got the call we assumed it was Uncle Mike never even thinking it saw Aunt Rita who by the way was only 34 I believe. They say she had a blood disorder or something that just caused all her organs to shut down. She went in on Wednesday to the doctors because she was having something like a bad period and then Died Saturday afternoon I believe.
She was such a joy to be around and so much fun. She was always the laugh of the party and simply just a great person to be around. I can't ever recall not having fun when she was around. I worry for her children she has two one boy Chaz that is going into the 9th grade so I guess he's 13 or so and a daughter Victoria who I believe is going into the 7th grade. They are at such a tough stage in their lives already that losing your mom at this age is only going to make it worse. She will surely be missed and she touched everyone's life that had a chance to meet her.

I will surely miss my Aunt Rita, I love you girlfriend and I will see you again one day up in that great place and we will party again.

Carmen

Feeling: deeply sadden to have lost a friend.