I think I'll play it safe...

Back to the issue of spending other people's money...

I could list some specifics, but for fear of what might be read, I'll just keep it in general.

My question to you is this: How careful are we when we spend other people's money?

One specific (because I am no longer teaching) way back when I was a teacher (which I don't know why it shocks me so much that it was over a decade ago that I started teaching, but that is besides the point) teachers got some money that was intended to be used for the classroom. At the time it was $200 that was just given to you. When handed to you it was explained that you were to spend the money on things for your classroom. You didn't have to turn in receipts or show any proof on what you bought, but that you perhaps should keep receipts "just in case" you were audited for that money, but no one had EVER been audited for that money so don't be too worried.

Some people I knew, used the money for their classrooms, others though thought of it as just a little pay bonus that they could do whatever the heck they wanted with it because teachers got paid so little anyway and they felt they earned it. I even knew of some teachers who would use it to by their "work attire" saying that it was being used in the classroom. Somehow, I don't think that was the 'intent' of the money.

So now when I see money being spent, I wonder just how careful people are when it comes to money they have been entrusted with. How much effort do people take to spend the money in the best possible way. It really bothers me when I hear people say that a certain amount of money has been budgeted and you need to spend it all because the next time you won't get as much. Well why not? Maybe if we could actually spend less and have just as great of an activity as we would have with more money, why shouldn't we do with less money the next time? People are pretty creative, and I bet given the chance to do more with less money, they could come up with something. And I still subscribe to the opinion that you don't always need money to do something fun. Just a really good imagination.

Of course, I am not opposed to every once in a while spending a little more for a really great activity, but that should be the exception, not the rule. And maybe if people didn't expect such huge elaborate things all the time, they would be so disappointed all the time.

And really we should be this way with our own money, but even more so when that money is entrusted to us by someone else be it church or school. Especially in this economic down time. When you have someone who is tightening their belt because they have taken a pay increase donating to the school because they think that their childs education experience is a worth while thing, then I think we ought to treat that money as if it is a huge deal and truly use it to make their childs education experience better. And that's all I'm sayin'...

I'm in a funk...

I think that my life goes in circles, and right now I would say that I am at the bottom. I am in a complete funk. I have so much I could/should be doing right now, but I don't. I just go through my day, do the bare minimum and mostly waste a bunch of time. Sooner or later, something will kick me back into gear and I will get to all of those things that I could/should be doing. Until then, I bought me some Dove Dark Chocolates with Almonds. They seem to actually help quite a bit. And you know, there is a chocolate company that seems to understand women. You look on the back at the nutrition information, and some chocolates put one or two pieces for a serving. Not Dove! They give you a whopping 5 pieces! Nice...

Sometimes I wish I had the guts...

I just put together this real nice post about how responsible are with other people's money, but I just don't have the guts to post it. It's like those times when someone does something to really tick you off and you have the perfect comeback for it, but just don't say anything because you just can't bring yourself to be mean (at least not in public). I don't know if this is a strength or a weakness, but for now I will just keep my rant on people spending other people's money under wraps (until I get the guts). I'm just sayin'.

There's more to be said...

So aparently my last 'regurgitating' post where I purged what was on my mind worked. I haven't had anymore "mountain climbing" dreams, and I have actually slept 'crazy dream' free for the last little while. Which is saying a lot since I dream quite crazily quite often. So, in order to continue with my peaceful slumber, I thought I would purge some more of what is on my mind. And yes, this post is going to be very random.

While watching Conference this last weekend, I heard someone say, (and no I don't remember who because quite frankly I wasn't paying THAT much attention) "Things that happen in your life is a result of choices that have been made, not destiny." And who knows, maybe that wasn't EXACTLY how it was said, but that was the gist, and maybe I even dreamt that part. But, it has kind of stuck with me. Kind of puts all of the responsibility back to us on what goes on in our life.

I get asked from time to time if a person that I have annonymously mentioned in my blog is them. And pretty much everytime I have been asked that question I have been happy to say that it isn't. In fact, I just might be talking about myself. However, if my blog makes you take a step back and look at how you view different things, or how you react to different situations, I don't think that is a bad thing. It is a good idea to have a little bit of self-reflection. I have noticed with myself that a lot of things that I truly don't like about other people are those things that I do that I really don't like about myself. Sometimes I think that why we find it so hard to think that people might actually like being around us because we know all of our flaws. Funny thing is, other people really don't care, they see all the good stuff about you and that's good enough for them.

Do my kids really know how lucky they are? Do they understand that they are pretty damn lucky to live where they live, have what they have and have the ability to do what they do? I think the only way for them to really know that kind of stuff is to take it away from them for a while. But how exactly does one go about doing that? Because lately they have been acting pretty selfish about a lot of stuff. And, I think 90% of the fights we have around here are centered around them being jealous about something. How do you help them to see that just because someone is good at something, it doesn't mean that they are not good at it? Or even if they stink at something that someone else is good at, why can't they be happy for the other person. Competition is good thing up to a certain point, it's what makes us strive to be better, but how do you teach them to be good losers if that's what happens in the end? It kind of bugs me that in church they ask you not to have any sort of game where there is a winner or a loser. Because honestly when I was little, I paid attention more in class if I knew there was a game because by dang I wanted to win! {I know I am all over the place in this paragraph, what's my point? There is no point, I am just purging my thoughts. Welcome to my brain...}

One last thought, and then I will go. Jenna is playing "Mouse Trap" and singing a song that goes, "She doesn't get any CHE - ESE! We get all of the CHE-ESE!" Over and over again. I remember those days of being able to just make up your own game, not have to play by the rules. I used to like to get the game of "LIFE" out and make the little people in the cars drive around and play with it more like 'house' rather than the game that it was intended. I miss those days, wouldn't it be nice to just make up our own rules and not have to play by everyone else's rules? I think for one day it would just be nice to have a totally unconventional day. You know, make some meatloaf for breakfast or something. Do something totally spontaneous and crazy. I'm just sayin'.

The "Downers" of vacationing...

Getting back into the "swing of things" - you know, having to get up in the morning and go to school... do "chores" around the house... make sure bed-time is strictly followed... actually planning and making dinner...

And the mound of laundry that you brought home with you...

Enough said...

Step up and Be a Parent!

I've struggled for a while about the whole trend of people who punish their kids 'nicely'. And by that, I am meaning people who... well for lack of a better way of describing it, let me give some examples. I have witnessed some child doing something naughty. The kid is three, but they are hitting another kid. Nothing out of the ordinary, typical behavior of a 3 year old who is learning right? So, the parent goes over and to get the kid to stop, goes over to the kid and simply removes them from the situation. That. is. it. Or, another time when I witnessed another kid being destructive to some property and the parent going over to the kid and just suggested that they find something else to do. It is something I see more and more. In a parents attempt to 'parent' they just get the kid to stop. Not very often do you actually see a parent actually tell the kid that what they are doing is wrong. You don't hear the parent actually say "No, that is not acceptable behavior."

I've also heard it said on numerous occassions parents say that if they just ignore their child's naughty behavior, the situation ends sooner because if they try and stop it, it turns into a tantrum and having to haul the kid off to their room or do time out, or yada, yada, yada. So seriously? You aren't going to tell your kid that what they are doing is wrong because it just means more work for you? Uh, OK, if we just ignore the guy who is stealing from a bank because it is so much 'work' to hunt them down, arrest them and go through a trial, it's OK because the situation is just going to end... Same difference...

And it doesn't just stop with our kids either. When you see someone else doing something wrong or harming someone else, do you just sit and ignore it, or do you say something? When you overhear someone saying something mean or degrading to someone else, do you stand up for the other person? More and more I don't think we do. I think that we just let them happen because it is too much work for us and we don't want to get involved. And shame on us. There was an incident a while back where I saw a kid doing something that I knew was not going to turn out well, and I didn't do anything (mostly because I knew the kids parent was seeing the same thing that I saw and I assumed they were going to do something about it) and I didn't stop the situation and someone got hurt pretty badly too. While I know that the situation wasn't my fault and such, but I can't help but feel a little guilty that I didn't do anything. I didn't step up and be the parent, but I hope to never say that again. I'm just sayin'.