Making Every Minute Count

     Can you believe it's September 10th already? I can't, the time is just flying by. It has been really busy around here, and I thought I'd just write a little bit about what's on my mind this week.
     Just when I was used to seeing "Breaking Bad" every Sunday night, it's over now until next July.  I heard that one of the reasons they broke the season in two was so that the show would be eligible for two Emmy cycles, and give the writers more time to come up with a better ending.  I was expecting a more exciting cliffhanger, but it was good. At least now I don't have to plan my Sunday night around watching a TV show,and I have something to look forward to next year.  
     We hired a new per-Diem at work (in the activity dept) so now I am able to take some time off. Hooray! I have a lot of hours of PTO (paid time off) that I'm trying to use up in order to get to some older hours from the previous company. So I'll be off until next Tuesday. That's where the title of this post comes in: making every minute count.  
     Whenever I have unstructured time, I tend to waste it, and it drives me crazy.               Sure vacations are to rest, but I have so much to do, and it's the perfect time to do all the stuff I never get around to.
      Mostly I have lots of yard and housework to do, and I still have to make that buttermilk cake! I want to go shopping (for new shoes) and maybe get my hair styled differently.  Then I want to take pictures, organize my old pictures into my albums, and write letters to my patient pen pals.  Then I have appointments to make, and finish registering for my certification (If I can't find my high school transcripts in my desk, I may have to contact the school. But after 25 years, I'm not holding my breath that they still have my records.)  Anyway, I plan on making the  most of my vacation.
    This week marked the 46th anniversary of the TV show "Star Trek". That's a long time!  When I see that show, it reminds me of being young. The great sound effects and theme song, cheesy as they may be, take me right back to the early 70's, when life was much simpler.  The show is still on, and I try to watch it, but I never make it through an entire episode. I always think to myself, this was before William Shatner played crackpots, or seemed like one in real life!  I never would have known it was the anniversary if not for the "Google Doodle".
    I had a nice experience this past couple of weeks, doing something I never did before: raising butterflies!  At work, we ordered a butterfly pavilion, which is a house for the butterflies.  You send for the caterpillars, and they arrive in a plastic cup equipped with food. 
     They eat the food, grow, and then they attach themselves to the top of the container and transform into cocoons.  After about a week (during which time my boss kept on teasing me that they looked dead) they hatched! I wish someone had been there to see it, it happened on the weekend.  When I returned to work I gave them some fresh flowers, and sugar water.  
     It was fun showing them to the residents as they underwent their metamorphosis. We planned on releasing them with the residents,But since it was the weekend and I was working alone, and it was too chilly to bring people out anyway, I did it myself.  I brought them to the far parking lot where there is a nice flower bed. When I unzipped the top, three of the six painted lady butterflies flew up and out, into the trees. It made me feel good.
      Even though I don't think they were exactly suffering inside the roomy housing, I'm sure they needed their freedom. The next two butterflies were resting on the flowers, so I reached in and took them out into the flower bed. The last one flew out.  
     I had a lot of fun observing them, and watching them eat with that long curly tongue (I don't remember what it's called). I was actually getting attached to them. I few times I put my hand in, and was happy when they landed on it, so I could "bond" with them.  I felt guilty keeping them cooped up when they flew to the top, and kind of sad when I read that they only live for 2-4 weeks. We kept them for eight days.  I took some pictures but don't have them ready for this blog. They are pretty. Now I want to buy my own set for home. We'll see. 
   I'll end this post with a salute and prayer to those who died on 9/11, and their families, and all the rescue workers. No more needs to be said from me about this tragedy. Rest in Peace.