wow. what a day!

Can I just tell you how much group night on American Idol cracks me up? It's like a microcosm of society.

What can I tell you about today? It started with snow and ended with snow and none of it piled up but it made me laugh out loud with excitement watching it fall. Especially driving home tonight with the blowing snow reflecting off my headlights. It's good stuff. I love the mountains. Even pumping gas in 12 degree weather this morning I grinned like the Cheshire cat because of the snow. Flurries. I was satisfied with flurries. I'm really easy to please.

My ear has hurt horribly at times today and at times it hasn't even bothered me a bit. When it hurts... I swallow a few advil and keep going, what else can I do? Lalalala life goes on.

Lunch. Mmmm. Let's just say I'm a sucker for a guy with blue eyes. It was nice. I will see him again. Don't want to show my hand too much here just yet... but it was good for me. I think he enjoyed himself too. There is potential. The good thing is that I have given him all the disclaimers, he knows what happened. He knows what he's dealing with... and so far... it's ok.

The afternoon was hectic as all get out at work. I know there is a recession going on but my business, at least the property and casualty portion of my business, is booming. People are looking at their expenses and pricing more carefully and that means that I have new customers calling for quotes and existing customers wanting to save money. It would be great if I could parlay some of that into commissionable business. Not so much. But it's nice to be busy when other people don't have enough work.

Around 3:30 I got a phone call from Angie. "My house is flooded". A pipe had burst on the third floor of their house. Water was streaming down to the first and second floors of the house. I may not have the resources to help in many situations but THIS... I knew how to handle. I called her agent's office (my uncle) and set up a claim. I called one of the restoration companies we use and got someone dispatched to their house. I was leaving work in a few minutes anyways so I rushed over to pick up Sarabeth and to see how bad it was...

It was bad. Water pouring from the light fixtures. Hard wood floors soaked through. Wallpaper bubbling. Water dripping from the ceiling... in lines going across the living room. Soooo much damage. We are talking about damage that will keep them out of their house for awhile. Almost too much to take in at once. Jim and Angie were going to stay and meet with the restoration company so I took Sarabeth with me... went to pick Jamie up from preschool... drove to our house to pick up Austin and the four of us went on to church.

Let me just say this... I hate that Jim and Angie are going through this. I deal with people on almost a daily basis who have their lives interrupted by these sort of things. I know the process. I know that they are properly insured. I know that my company will take good care of them and that their agent will take good care of them and the restoration company I picked for them will take good care of them (or else!) but it's an interruption of their already very busy lives. It's so hard to make the mental jump from that sort of damage to a home that is anywhere close to their idea of normal. I've had clients ask me, "will my home ever be like it was?". Yes. It may just take awhile.

I guess in a way that's like someone whose going through a breakup wondering if they'll ever fall in love again... if they'll ever stop hurting... if the anger will ever fade. I'm told it will. I feel a little more certain of this today than I did a week ago... and more then than I did a week before that. It sometimes just takes the "going through".

I hate that they're going through this but I loved having some extra time with my girls this afternoon! I loved that I was in a position to help. I loved that the girls have an Aunt Heather who is fifteen minutes away instead of eight hours away... who can move them seamlessly through their very normal activities despite the fact that their house is anything but normal. That is a huge blessing to me... to be here, to be able to be with them... to see Jamie's face light up when I walked into her preschool and have her proudly say, "that's my Aunt Heather!". To have dinner with the girls... to spend a few quiet minutes with Jamie before her class... the other kids were playing tag in the church lobby but Jamie want to play "hair fixer lady" with Aunt Heather. And I obliged... while answering the questions of our concerned church family whispered over Jamie's head, "how bad is it?" "bad". And Jamie says, "Hold still Aunt Heather... it will be just one more minute..." while she winds my hair around a book....

The girls went to their class. My class had been cancelled for tonight due to illness, but I didn't know - and it wouldn't have mattered, I still needed to be there. I had a nice long chat with two of the other ladies... it was good girl bonding time. Afterwards....I picked Austin up from his class... we picked Sarabeth up from her class... got Jamie from her class and got everyone bundled up for the bitter cold... and were ready when Angie came to pick them up. They're staying with a family from the church. They may be there for awhile. Right now they're saying until the weekend but... I can't see it being ready by the weekend. There's too much damage. Angie doesn't want the girls to see the house like it is right now. Sarabeth saw a little bit but after she left they starting taking down the wet ceiling... pretty freaky...

We got the girls buckled up in mom's car... as usual I had to go to both sides of the car to give them, "just one more hug"... and off they went to their temporary normal. God is good. Everything will be fine. I can't imagine any better place to be when your life is turned upside down. Trust me on this one! We have an amazing church family.

So here I am... curled in my nest with Stubby the 3Legged Buttlickin' Toilet Drinking Tea Stealing Wondercat licking my fingers as I type. My ear hurts. Still.

love and hugs, y'all!