Dear Diary (Journal),

 I will tell you why I think comedy writers should follow me for a day.

The day was Friday, my very favorite day of the week. The scene was set as I walked into my (technology) office past a line of servers and monitors and to my desk. That many machines produces heat - but there is air conditioning. Except Friday, there was no air. "They" had to turn off the air to the building in which I work, to install air in a new building on campus.  I didn't know this in advance or I would have dressed in cooler clothes.

I walked to the thermostat and it read 83 degrees.  I was pretty sure that was too warm for me in a windowless room.

I decided to dig out a little fan I had seen in the storeroom.  Fifty drips of perspiration sweat later, I found it and returned to my desk. On the edge of my huge desk is was an electric ceramic cup warmer that I sort of knocked off between the wall and my desk trying to plug in my only source of oxygen air - the fan. The warmer broke... in several jagged pieces. I put shoved my hand between the desk and the wall to grab the broken pieces. But, I must have pushed my luck too far because a very jagged pointed piece stabbed my palm, near where the rat chewed my hand. (Haven't heard that story?) Immediately, blood spurts like a little geyser only red. We have no running water in our office -bad decision making when the office was created. 

I headed back to the storeroom to grab a plastic bag compliments of the school's nurse (and very good friend) containing some kind of cloth thingy, bandaids and alcohol wipes. Techman (the "other" tech) had arrived and ran walked after me asking if he could do anything. By then I was cupping the blood in my hand. What else could I do with it? I couldn't open the package with one hand; he opened it for me. I put pressure on the wound and sat down. At some point he said, "that's a lot of blood".  I felt I should do something more before putting on a bandage. So, I opened the alcohol wipe and...wiped. OUCH.

So I sat there for the next few hours with a sore hand - wanting to end it all and pass out from the heat. That would show "them".

200th Post Prizes
Now, I need to announce the winner of the bird pillow and the winner is Corra McFeydon, historical fiction writer. After you are finished with me, travel over to Corra's beautiful blog where she shares her journey as a writer.

Now please don't hate me because I didn't tell you this previously, but I am giving away a second pillow. And the winner is Gail from At the Farm. You should go see what she is up to on her farm. If you love animals or if you want to see beautiful photos of nature, visit Gail.  Recently, I found out she is also an artist.

Congratulations to the winners.  Ladies, please email me your addresses.

The final prize is a Barnes and Noble $10 gift card; a little something to help you buy a book. The contest expires Saturday, at midnight. Comment on any post this week and you have an entry. Comment on every post and you will have that many entries.


Did you know that The Ruralhood is my blog about growing up in a rural area.  I talk about my childhood through young adulthood.  I plan on later, when I am 90 years old, to talk about this present day on my rural blog if I can find reader glasses strong enough to see -that is. You can find what I affectionately call my rat story there. Click on the link Articles and choose Article 1. The Ruralhood blog is where I put cherished stories for you and my family to read and then I usually add my two cents on how I think it is significant to me and how those experiences influenced who I am today. I post once a week on Saturday. I do it that day because it seems to me there is less to read on Saturdays. This week's article is titled Bubblegum and Tar. 

Next week, on Monday, I hope to interview my very interesting dad.

That's all I've got for youins.  So, what are you thinking?