Friday Shuffle - Final Shuffle Before Vacation Edition

Only a few more blogging days left before I go on my trip to the US. I'd like to say that I'll check in while I'm on my trip but I can't guarantee that I will. I usually only have time to check email and that's it but if I get the chance to pop in, I will.

Until then here a possibly final bulleted list of what's new and random.

• Pre-vacation preparations are coming along well and you wouldn't believe how much laundry I've managed to get done in the last few days. I can't claim I'll have all the clothes washed before I leave town but I'll certainly have everything that B will need to wear, towels and bed linens and of course all the clothes I'm taking with me clean, folded and put away. Now I'm down to things like last minute kitchen and bathroom cleaning, vacuuming, mopping, dusting and the sort. There is light at the end of the tunnel! A few days ago I wasn't even sure I was in a tunnel.
  
  
• I called my mother today and she informed me that my oldest nephew arrived in Iraq yesterday. He's a medic in the Navy but he wanted to specialize in trauma work since that's the sort of rescue work he wants to get into once he's out of the Navy so he volunteered to be attached to a Marine unit. By golly, I guess he'll get his trauma experience. I wish he didn't have to be there. I wish none of our troops were there. I'm so angry that we're there in the first place that I can hardly stand it. And I pray that my nephew stays safe and hope his services are needed as little as possible. And I pray that all of the troops come home soon. Soon like yesterday.
  
  
• On a somewhat lighter note I said to my mother - please let me take a moment to remind everyone that my mother has Alzheimer's - "Well when I get back to Mississippi we'll make him up a nice care package of things he might want or need." and my mother replied "You know, he doesn't have a computer there. I thought we'd put our money together and we'd buy him a computer!".
  
  I believe my mother has mixed up Iraq with Iowa.
  
  
• B has asked me to find some pictures of me from when I was a child/teen and get copies of them to bring back. I'm not sure where those old family photo albums are but I'm thinking that since my sister has moved my mother twice in the last few years, if my mother had them, Sister will know where they are. What I'm afraid of, however, is they didn't get back to my mother having been in my old house in Virginia. While speaking to my mom on the phone today I almost brought up the subject but thought the better of it. I was afraid that the answer would be "That SOB you were married to still has them and blah, blah, blah, blah.". Ugh. Nothing is worth her bringing up my ex around B and I detest it when she does. My mother can't remember what she had for lunch yesterday but by golly she can remember every damn thing my ex-husband ever did to piss her off.

Time for Bixente the iPod to treat us to a final Shuffle. He's going to be staying here to keep B company while I'm gone (read: I'm terrified of losing him on this trip.).

1. Sam's Town - The Killers
2. Turn Me Loose - Vince Gill
3. It's Too Late - Carole King
   
4. Don't Say Goodbye - Radney Foster
5. The First Cut Is The Deepest - Cat Stevens
6. Good Times Bad Times - Led Zeppelin
7. She Moves In Her Own Way - The Kooks
8. Solid Gold Easy Action - The Fratellis
9. Somebody To Love - Queen
10. Rock Lobster - B-52's.

Five more sleeps, y'all.