I finally made it to Thursday (which is my Friday). I am so HAPPY! It has been an extremely busy week for me at work. Every day, we have had to work through our lunches and breaks because we have been so short-handed. The money will be nice, but it sure is tiring. Since today is New Year’s Eve..eve….many of the people who work here have taken the day off. The radios are all very calm this morning, which is nice for a change of pace. Hopefully, this will be a very slow day…..we need a break.
Since I have been working so much at work this week, I have not had much energy to do much after work, except to go home and rest. Monday, I worked a 13-hour shift, which really wiped me out. I got home Monday night and almost went straight to bed. Tuesday I was off work at 4 pm, but I had to give a light bar back to one of our REACT members. I had been using the light bar because we had not seen this particular member in about 6 months, so I figured she would not miss it. Monday, however, she wanted her light bar back, so I met with her Tuesday after work and gave it back to her, making me light bar less. My truck looks a little funny without a light bar on top. I do have a blue strobe light bar that is suppose to go to another member, so I am keeping it in the truck with me. It is magnetic, but I can’t have it on my roof when I am on the highway because the magnets are not strong enough to hold it on. If I drive the city streets, I can put it on my roof. Unfortunately, though, most of my driving is on the highway.
Yesterday evening was uneventful. I had dinner and then went to our music minister’s house to watch the OSU/Arizona football game. I had a good time of fellowship and watching the game, but the game did not start until 8:30 pm and half-time wasn’t until around 10:15 pm. Since I had to be at work early this morning, I left at halftime and went home to bed. I found out this morning that OSU did win the game.
I ordered a part for my new light bar, which I purchased with my Christmas money. The part is a bracket I needed to install the full light bar permanently on the roof of my truck. The part should be in today, so if it does come in…..tomorrow, myself and another REACT member will be installing it on my truck. If the part does not come in today, I will just have to wait until next week to have the light bar installed. Either way, I am real happy I am off tomorrow. This evening, we are suppose to have a REACT Board meeting at 7 pm. During this time, the new 2011 Board of Directors will assume their new positions (I am the new treasurer).
Even though this day will be slow, I hope it goes by fast!
http://www.neighborhoodlink.com/OCFD_Citizens_Fire_Academy_Alumni_Association/home
CERT Training
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Monday, December 27, 2010
Christmas was Good.....
Another Christmas has come and gone. It was a very enjoyable Christmas, despite the fact that it seemed like I drove all over town Christmas Day. Wait a minute….I did drive all over town. In all actuality, I drove and I rode…..let me explain. Christmas morning is when members of the CFAAA deliver the fixings for breakfast to all the fire stations in Oklahoma City. We deliver the groceries to the stations and let the firefighters decide when they want to cook. I adopted fire station #21 this year to deliver to, but as president of the CFAAA, it is my responsibility to make sure breakfast is taken to the 911 center and to fire station #1 (The CFAAA Board always takes care of 911 and station #1, since there are more people to buy for).
This year, myself and Gayla both went to make the deliveries…along with one other member of the CFAAA…and her husband. We rode with the member and her husband and made deliveries to 911, fire station #1, station #21, station #13 and station #28. Station #13 invited us to stay and eat with them, so we delivered to station #28 and then came back to station #13 and had breakfast with them. Afterwards, Gayla and I headed to my sister-in-law’s house to have Christmas with them. Normally, my immediate family has Christmas on Christmas morning, but since Gayla and I were delivering to the fire stations, we did not have time. We had Christmas at my SIL’s house, ate lunch and then headed home to have Christmas at home. Then, it was off to mom and dad’s house for Christmas. Needless to say, it made out to be a very long day.
One of my favorite parts of this Christmas season was Christmas Eve. Even though I had to work all day, when I did finally get off work, I went to a low-income neighborhood where firefighters from two different stations were delivering toys to children. It was great! Words can’t express how I felt when I saw these poor children receiving so many unexpected gifts from the firefighters. Their eyes lit up and their parents were in tears, standing in disbelief that someone would care enough to give toys to their children. The fire engines drove up and down the streets, sounding their siren and getting on their PA’s, announcing the free toys. I was in the very back of the convoy and I was running all my emergency lights as well. This lasted for a good two hours. There were so many toys to give away, that once the firefighters had finished giving toys to one neighborhood, they went to another low-income neighborhood and started giving out toys there as well.
Once they finished, I headed on home. Karla and I went to Midwest City to have Christmas Eve with my dad’s side of the family. Since it was Stephen’s birthday (yes, Christmas eve), Gayla had taken him to a movie, so neither she or Stephen made it to Midwest City. After spending some time with my dad’s side of the family, we headed back to the south side of town and spent the rest of Christmas Eve with Karla’s family.
Yesterday was a rest and relaxing kind of day. We had church services at 10:15 am and then went home. There were no services planned for the evening, so I had lunch, watched some football and napped. That was all I did all afternoon. Yesterday evening, I met up with some of my REACT team members at Pearls and they ate seafood, while I ate a burger. I am not much for seafood, but I wanted to spend time with my buddies.
http://www.neighborhoodlink.com/OCFD_Citizens_Fire_Academy_Alumni_Association/home
This year, myself and Gayla both went to make the deliveries…along with one other member of the CFAAA…and her husband. We rode with the member and her husband and made deliveries to 911, fire station #1, station #21, station #13 and station #28. Station #13 invited us to stay and eat with them, so we delivered to station #28 and then came back to station #13 and had breakfast with them. Afterwards, Gayla and I headed to my sister-in-law’s house to have Christmas with them. Normally, my immediate family has Christmas on Christmas morning, but since Gayla and I were delivering to the fire stations, we did not have time. We had Christmas at my SIL’s house, ate lunch and then headed home to have Christmas at home. Then, it was off to mom and dad’s house for Christmas. Needless to say, it made out to be a very long day.
One of my favorite parts of this Christmas season was Christmas Eve. Even though I had to work all day, when I did finally get off work, I went to a low-income neighborhood where firefighters from two different stations were delivering toys to children. It was great! Words can’t express how I felt when I saw these poor children receiving so many unexpected gifts from the firefighters. Their eyes lit up and their parents were in tears, standing in disbelief that someone would care enough to give toys to their children. The fire engines drove up and down the streets, sounding their siren and getting on their PA’s, announcing the free toys. I was in the very back of the convoy and I was running all my emergency lights as well. This lasted for a good two hours. There were so many toys to give away, that once the firefighters had finished giving toys to one neighborhood, they went to another low-income neighborhood and started giving out toys there as well.
Once they finished, I headed on home. Karla and I went to Midwest City to have Christmas Eve with my dad’s side of the family. Since it was Stephen’s birthday (yes, Christmas eve), Gayla had taken him to a movie, so neither she or Stephen made it to Midwest City. After spending some time with my dad’s side of the family, we headed back to the south side of town and spent the rest of Christmas Eve with Karla’s family.
Yesterday was a rest and relaxing kind of day. We had church services at 10:15 am and then went home. There were no services planned for the evening, so I had lunch, watched some football and napped. That was all I did all afternoon. Yesterday evening, I met up with some of my REACT team members at Pearls and they ate seafood, while I ate a burger. I am not much for seafood, but I wanted to spend time with my buddies.
http://www.neighborhoodlink.com/OCFD_Citizens_Fire_Academy_Alumni_Association/home
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
It is beginning to look a lot….and feel a lot like Christmas. The closer it gets to Christmas, the less personnel we have in our office. Most of the management in our division are off this week and aren’t due back until next week, or after the first of the year. Tomorrow will be a skeleton crew day. We will be short one clerk and three dispatchers. Our mid-shift dispatcher is working the day shift, which leaves no one to assist the night shift person. I have already decided to go ahead and plan on staying until 8 pm to assist our night dispatcher. I am off work Thursday, but work Friday (Christmas Eve). It doesn’t bother me because it is all overtime and the money will come in handy. The kids will have a couple of gifts to open for Christmas, but Karla and I aren’t buying anything for each other. There is nothing I really need, just a few things I would like to have.
This week, I have no meetings of any kind, or any obligations. All the Christmas parties are over with…even though I only attended one (which was our youth Christmas party). I missed our adult party because I worked last Saturday evening. No big deal.
Last evening, Karla, Stephen and I , worked on the garage door opener. Last week, Karla had disconnected it because it would not stay down…the sensors kept making it come back up. Unfortunately, we have been unable to use it, so last night all three of us worked on it, but we still could not get it to work right. It will go up by itself when you push down the remote, but you have to hold down the remote button until the door closes. Hopefully, I can get one of my friends to come over and repair it for us.
Since I have had nothing planned this week, I have been staying in touch with the other REACT members that monitor the police and fire calls during the day. I am prepared to respond and assist in traffic control on any accidents or fires. Yesterday was suppose to be an extreme fire danger day because of the wind, but we had very little wind, so there was not much of any fire danger to speak of. I kept myself available to respond after work, but nothing ever happened.
This evening, I have no plans, so I will be on stand-by once again for any emergencies that come up.
This week, I have no meetings of any kind, or any obligations. All the Christmas parties are over with…even though I only attended one (which was our youth Christmas party). I missed our adult party because I worked last Saturday evening. No big deal.
Last evening, Karla, Stephen and I , worked on the garage door opener. Last week, Karla had disconnected it because it would not stay down…the sensors kept making it come back up. Unfortunately, we have been unable to use it, so last night all three of us worked on it, but we still could not get it to work right. It will go up by itself when you push down the remote, but you have to hold down the remote button until the door closes. Hopefully, I can get one of my friends to come over and repair it for us.
Since I have had nothing planned this week, I have been staying in touch with the other REACT members that monitor the police and fire calls during the day. I am prepared to respond and assist in traffic control on any accidents or fires. Yesterday was suppose to be an extreme fire danger day because of the wind, but we had very little wind, so there was not much of any fire danger to speak of. I kept myself available to respond after work, but nothing ever happened.
This evening, I have no plans, so I will be on stand-by once again for any emergencies that come up.
Friday, December 17, 2010
A Great Day!
Well, I finally made it to Friday….
Last evening, our new CFAAA Board of Directors met at Chili’s to plan our monthly meeting schedule for next year. We had a good meal, a good meeting and got lots accomplished. I emailed our new schedule next year to the fire chief and his secretary. They have to approve it before we can officially post it. Once it is approved, I will post it to our website and send it out in an email to our membership. After our meeting, I headed home and hopped on my computer to do some work. My laptop is still on the kitchen table with a broken lid, but it works. I am still waiting on word from a friend who said I might be able to take the mother board out of my laptop and use it in Gayla’s laptop (the mother board in her laptop is no good, so her laptop is no good). That way, I can still have a laptop without having to go buy another one.
This will be an interesting weekend, to say the least. This evening, I am working until 8 pm (I can use the overtime) and tomorrow, I am covering the 4 pm – midnight shift. I actually have no plans for Sunday afternoon, except to rest. Tomorrow morning, our office is giving away 300 turkeys to families that are less fortunate than we are. Many employees pitched in financially and we were able to buy 300 turkeys to give away. Yesterday, some of our crew workers went door-to-door in the neighborhood around our office and gave away coupons for free turkeys. All the residents have to do is bring the coupons to our office tomorrow, between 11 am and noon and we will give them a free turkey. Whatever turkeys are left over after noon will be given away on a first-come, first-serve basis. I will be here just to see the happy expressions on the faces of those that get the free turkeys. This is the first time our office has ever done anything like this, so we will see how it goes.
It’s only a week and one day away from Christmas. It’s hard to believe it’s almost here. Due to our finances this year, we are just buying for Stephen and Gayla…..Karla and I aren’t buying for each other. To us, this is our year to really focus on celebrating the birth of Christ and spending time together as a family. Gifts aren’t important to us anyway. We have been short-handed at work, which has made it somewhat easy to get some overtime in. Myself and another co-worker, are usually the ones that volunteer to work, but since her mom passed away last week, she is off work until after the first of the year. That means I can get all the overtime I want. The extra money will come in handy.
Last evening, our new CFAAA Board of Directors met at Chili’s to plan our monthly meeting schedule for next year. We had a good meal, a good meeting and got lots accomplished. I emailed our new schedule next year to the fire chief and his secretary. They have to approve it before we can officially post it. Once it is approved, I will post it to our website and send it out in an email to our membership. After our meeting, I headed home and hopped on my computer to do some work. My laptop is still on the kitchen table with a broken lid, but it works. I am still waiting on word from a friend who said I might be able to take the mother board out of my laptop and use it in Gayla’s laptop (the mother board in her laptop is no good, so her laptop is no good). That way, I can still have a laptop without having to go buy another one.
This will be an interesting weekend, to say the least. This evening, I am working until 8 pm (I can use the overtime) and tomorrow, I am covering the 4 pm – midnight shift. I actually have no plans for Sunday afternoon, except to rest. Tomorrow morning, our office is giving away 300 turkeys to families that are less fortunate than we are. Many employees pitched in financially and we were able to buy 300 turkeys to give away. Yesterday, some of our crew workers went door-to-door in the neighborhood around our office and gave away coupons for free turkeys. All the residents have to do is bring the coupons to our office tomorrow, between 11 am and noon and we will give them a free turkey. Whatever turkeys are left over after noon will be given away on a first-come, first-serve basis. I will be here just to see the happy expressions on the faces of those that get the free turkeys. This is the first time our office has ever done anything like this, so we will see how it goes.
It’s only a week and one day away from Christmas. It’s hard to believe it’s almost here. Due to our finances this year, we are just buying for Stephen and Gayla…..Karla and I aren’t buying for each other. To us, this is our year to really focus on celebrating the birth of Christ and spending time together as a family. Gifts aren’t important to us anyway. We have been short-handed at work, which has made it somewhat easy to get some overtime in. Myself and another co-worker, are usually the ones that volunteer to work, but since her mom passed away last week, she is off work until after the first of the year. That means I can get all the overtime I want. The extra money will come in handy.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
HUMP Day!
I made it to hump day and so far, this week has been extremely busy for me.
Last Sunday, we had a training exercise for REACT at the OZ Safe Rooms office. We learned more about how to read radars during severe storms. It was rather interesting, even though many of the ones that attended were pretty knowledgeable about radars anyway. I had my laptop with me, trying to keep up with what they were teaching, but I ran into a little problem. One of the other REACT members was walking behind me and got tangled up in my laptop power cord. I grabbed my laptop before he could jerk it off onto the floor, but in the process, I broke the hinge that holds the lid up when the laptop is open. For the rest of the class time, I had to prop something up behind my laptop to keep the lid from falling backwards. I was so upset. I talked to a few of the guys that were in the class and they informed me I would probably need a new laptop.
When they told me that, an idea popped in my head. Gayla’s computer is a Dell and so is mine. Her motherboard went bad on her laptop, so I could possibly see if I could install the mother board off my laptop onto hers and then just use her laptop. I don’t know if that will work or not, so I have sent an email to a friend of mine to see if the two mother boards are compatible. Needless to say, my laptop is sitting at home on the kitchen table. I can’t carry it with me anymore since the lid is broken, so I have just left it plugged in at the kitchen table and use it when I get home from work.
Speaking of the house…..we had a little problem with the garage door sensor last weekend, so Karla disconnected it temporarily. The problem is, she doesn’t remember how to reconnect it back. Because of that, we can’t use our remotes to get the garage door open, so we are having to go through our front door now to get into the house. To top it all off, somehow or another, a stray cat has made its way into our garage. I have no idea how it got there because we have not had our garage door open for several days. I could hear it last night, but when I opened the back door, it took off and hid. I finally decided to open the back door of the garage (that leads to the backyard) in hopes it would leave the garage during the night last night. When I got up this morning, I noticed somebody had shut the back door, so I bet the cat is still in the garage.
Yesterday, I had to change shifts with my co-worker and work 11 am – 8 pm. I did this because our City Hall Carolers were going to sing Christmas carols before the City Council meeting Tuesday morning and we were so shorthanded at work, the only way I could go was to find someone to cover my shift. So, we sang at City Council (which was televised live on Cox Channel 20) and then sang at the 420 W. Main building, the 100 building and then the credit union. We were done by 9:30 am, so I had an hour and a half to kill before I had to be at work. I drove home, changed shoes and shirts and then headed back to work. I worked until 12:45 pm and then myself, my supervisor and another co-worker, headed to a church on the south side of OKC to attend the funeral of a lady that worked here at Line Maintenance. Her daughter works in dispatch with us, so we attended to give her moral support.
Afterwards, I came back to the office, went to lunch and then worked the rest of my shift until 8 pm. It was not an easy shift because we were rather busy.
This evening is our youth Christmas party at church. We are suppose to play dirty Santa and eat pizza. I will be very busy after work, buying some extra gifts and picking up the pizza.
Last Sunday, we had a training exercise for REACT at the OZ Safe Rooms office. We learned more about how to read radars during severe storms. It was rather interesting, even though many of the ones that attended were pretty knowledgeable about radars anyway. I had my laptop with me, trying to keep up with what they were teaching, but I ran into a little problem. One of the other REACT members was walking behind me and got tangled up in my laptop power cord. I grabbed my laptop before he could jerk it off onto the floor, but in the process, I broke the hinge that holds the lid up when the laptop is open. For the rest of the class time, I had to prop something up behind my laptop to keep the lid from falling backwards. I was so upset. I talked to a few of the guys that were in the class and they informed me I would probably need a new laptop.
When they told me that, an idea popped in my head. Gayla’s computer is a Dell and so is mine. Her motherboard went bad on her laptop, so I could possibly see if I could install the mother board off my laptop onto hers and then just use her laptop. I don’t know if that will work or not, so I have sent an email to a friend of mine to see if the two mother boards are compatible. Needless to say, my laptop is sitting at home on the kitchen table. I can’t carry it with me anymore since the lid is broken, so I have just left it plugged in at the kitchen table and use it when I get home from work.
Speaking of the house…..we had a little problem with the garage door sensor last weekend, so Karla disconnected it temporarily. The problem is, she doesn’t remember how to reconnect it back. Because of that, we can’t use our remotes to get the garage door open, so we are having to go through our front door now to get into the house. To top it all off, somehow or another, a stray cat has made its way into our garage. I have no idea how it got there because we have not had our garage door open for several days. I could hear it last night, but when I opened the back door, it took off and hid. I finally decided to open the back door of the garage (that leads to the backyard) in hopes it would leave the garage during the night last night. When I got up this morning, I noticed somebody had shut the back door, so I bet the cat is still in the garage.
Yesterday, I had to change shifts with my co-worker and work 11 am – 8 pm. I did this because our City Hall Carolers were going to sing Christmas carols before the City Council meeting Tuesday morning and we were so shorthanded at work, the only way I could go was to find someone to cover my shift. So, we sang at City Council (which was televised live on Cox Channel 20) and then sang at the 420 W. Main building, the 100 building and then the credit union. We were done by 9:30 am, so I had an hour and a half to kill before I had to be at work. I drove home, changed shoes and shirts and then headed back to work. I worked until 12:45 pm and then myself, my supervisor and another co-worker, headed to a church on the south side of OKC to attend the funeral of a lady that worked here at Line Maintenance. Her daughter works in dispatch with us, so we attended to give her moral support.
City Hall Carolers
Afterwards, I came back to the office, went to lunch and then worked the rest of my shift until 8 pm. It was not an easy shift because we were rather busy.
This evening is our youth Christmas party at church. We are suppose to play dirty Santa and eat pizza. I will be very busy after work, buying some extra gifts and picking up the pizza.
Friday, December 10, 2010
TGIF......again!!
It’s hard to believe, but I finally made it to Friday.
I was sick all day Sunday and Monday with some type of stomach bug. I went back to work on Tuesday with no appetite and with little energy. Since then, my appetite has really come back and my strength is much better. Gayla was sick Monday and Tuesday and Stephen was sick yesterday. The only person who has not gotten sick is Karla…….so, maybe she will be the lucky one and miss out on all of it.
Last evening was my first evening all week that I had nothing planned. It felt weird not having to be somewhere, but it was ok because I had plenty of housework to catch up on. The dining room table that belonged to Karla’s mom is finally gone. Monica came by and picked it up last week. The table from our old house was still in the garage, buried under a bunch of stuff. None of us have felt the energy to pull it out, so we just haven’t had a table in our house all week.
Last evening, I got real energetic and decided to go ahead and pull some of the stuff out of the garage and find the kitchen table. When I finally found it and started pulling it out, I found out that part of the wood on the table was split….so, I had to be real careful with it. I moved it in the house, swept the kitchen and the living room and picked things up in the living room. It’s amazing how much you can get done in an hour when you continuously work. It looked great.
I decided I needed a reward, so I went to Long John Silver’s and bought some fish. Karla was at a meeting and Gayla was at work. Stephen was at our house, suffering from the illness I had earlier in the week….stomach problems. Anyway, the house looked good, so I spent some time on the internet (as usual) and goofed off. I also listened to the fire calls on my laptop to see if anything exciting was going on……but nothing exciting happened.
When I come up on an accident or motorist assist, safety is the first thing that comes to my mind. If I can safely assist, I will. If me helping puts me in danger, I will not stop.
This evening, the family and I are going to put up a few outside lights. The inside is already decorated, so we have to do the outside this evening. Tomorrow, we have choir rehearsal from 9-noon, for the musical the choir is presenting Saturday evening and Sunday morning at the church. At the same time, I will be on call for REACT because of the possibility of grass fires. Tomorrow is a high fire danger day, so I have to be prepared to respond with the other REACT members in case we are needed to assist police or fire with traffic control.
http://www.okcentralreact.org/.
I was sick all day Sunday and Monday with some type of stomach bug. I went back to work on Tuesday with no appetite and with little energy. Since then, my appetite has really come back and my strength is much better. Gayla was sick Monday and Tuesday and Stephen was sick yesterday. The only person who has not gotten sick is Karla…….so, maybe she will be the lucky one and miss out on all of it.
Last evening was my first evening all week that I had nothing planned. It felt weird not having to be somewhere, but it was ok because I had plenty of housework to catch up on. The dining room table that belonged to Karla’s mom is finally gone. Monica came by and picked it up last week. The table from our old house was still in the garage, buried under a bunch of stuff. None of us have felt the energy to pull it out, so we just haven’t had a table in our house all week.
Last evening, I got real energetic and decided to go ahead and pull some of the stuff out of the garage and find the kitchen table. When I finally found it and started pulling it out, I found out that part of the wood on the table was split….so, I had to be real careful with it. I moved it in the house, swept the kitchen and the living room and picked things up in the living room. It’s amazing how much you can get done in an hour when you continuously work. It looked great.
I decided I needed a reward, so I went to Long John Silver’s and bought some fish. Karla was at a meeting and Gayla was at work. Stephen was at our house, suffering from the illness I had earlier in the week….stomach problems. Anyway, the house looked good, so I spent some time on the internet (as usual) and goofed off. I also listened to the fire calls on my laptop to see if anything exciting was going on……but nothing exciting happened.
I sure do enjoy being a part of Central Oklahoma REACT. So many of our team members keep me up to date during the day on what kinds of calls are being dispatched through the police and fire dispatch. That’s how we find out if the police or fire needs assistance from REACT. Plus, since I am on the interstate a lot, I come upon lots of accidents and motorist assists. As a matter of fact, I am the one REACT member that probably stops the most because I am on the road more than the others. Because of all the assistance I have provided for the police, fire and OHP, I received the “Public Safety Award,” at our REACT Christmas Party/business meeting last Saturday. It was the first time that type of award was given out, so I was ecstatic about it.
When I come up on an accident or motorist assist, safety is the first thing that comes to my mind. If I can safely assist, I will. If me helping puts me in danger, I will not stop.
This evening, the family and I are going to put up a few outside lights. The inside is already decorated, so we have to do the outside this evening. Tomorrow, we have choir rehearsal from 9-noon, for the musical the choir is presenting Saturday evening and Sunday morning at the church. At the same time, I will be on call for REACT because of the possibility of grass fires. Tomorrow is a high fire danger day, so I have to be prepared to respond with the other REACT members in case we are needed to assist police or fire with traffic control.
http://www.okcentralreact.org/.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Winter Safety Tips...
Half of my weekend went great and the other half was terrible!
We had a great time at the REACT Christmas party last Saturday. We had quite a few people there…..several of our members brought their spouses with them. They gave away door prizes, but, once again, I didn’t win anything. Each of the team members received a Letter of Appreciation from our President and I received an extra award…..the first of its kind….the Public Safety Award. This was presented to me because of all the times I assisted police, fire and OHP on traffic control, due to accidents, etc. I was excited to receive it. After our Christmas Party, I went home for a while and then headed up to one of our members’ apartments to watch OU play Nebraska.
It was after the game that things went downhill…….fast. I was up most of the night Saturday night because of my stomach. I spent all day in bed Sunday, running a fever, being weak and having no appetite. I never did throw-up, but I sure felt like it. Everything came out the other end. I was like that Sunday and most of yesterday. Today, I still don’t feel real well. Still a little nauseated and still weak, but I am drinking lots of liquids.
In other news….
Winter Safety Tips
With precipitation approaching Oklahoma, the Oklahoma City Fire Department would like to offer the following winter weather safety tips to help keep Oklahomans safe.
Walking in Ice and Snow
• Use a melting solution or rock salt to clear all walkways of any ice and snow.
• If you shovel your walkways or driveways, pace your work and take frequent breaks.
• Wear rubber-soled shoes or boots to get better traction.
• Take slower, shorter steps when walking on ice and snow.
• Use a handrail when walking on stairways or inclines.
Winter Driving
• If possible, avoid driving while streets are covered in ice and snow.
• Have your vehicle winterized by a qualified mechanic.
• Make sure your tires have adequate tread for the conditions.
• Assemble and carry a "survival kit" for your automobile with items such as:
o Blankets
o Bottled water
o Flashlight and extra batteries
o First aid kit
o Jumper cables
o Snow chains
• Allow extra time to reach your destination.
Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
• Carbon monoxide (CO) alarm popularity has been growing in recent years. It is very important that we recognize the hazards of carbon monoxide poisoning in the home. Often called the silent killer, carbon monoxide is an invisible, odorless, colorless gas created when fuels (such as kerosene, wood, coal, natural gas, propane, oil, and methane) burn incompletely. In the home, heating and cooking equipment that burn fuel are potential sources of carbon monoxide. Vehicles or generators running in an attached garage can also produce dangerous levels of carbon monoxide.
• According to the National Safety Council, 200-300 unintentional injury and/or deaths a year are due to carbon monoxide poisoning.
• The dangers of CO exposure depend on a number of variables, including the victim's health and activity level. Infants, pregnant women, and people with physical conditions that limit their body's ability to use oxygen (i.e. emphysema, asthma, heart disease) can be more severely affected by lower concentrations of CO than healthy adults.
• A person can be poisoned by a small amount of CO over a longer period of time or by a large amount of CO over a shorter amount of time.
• CO enters the body through breathing. CO poisoning can be confused with flu symptoms, food poisoning, and other illnesses. High levels of CO can be fatal, causing death within minutes.
• Some symptoms of CO poisoning include:
o Shortness of breath
o Nausea
o Dizziness
o Light headedness
o Headaches
• Install CO alarms (listed by an independent testing laboratory) inside your home to provide early warning of accumulating CO. CO alarms should be installed in a central location outside each separate sleeping area. If bedrooms are spaced apart, each area will need a CO alarm.
• Test CO alarms at least once a month and replace CO alarms according to the manufacturer's instructions. CO alarms are not substitutes for smoke alarms. Know the difference between the sound of smoke alarms and CO alarms.
• If your CO alarm sounds, immediately move to a fresh air location and call for help. Remain at the fresh air location until emergency personnel say it is safe to re-enter.
• If the audible trouble signal sounds, check for low batteries or other trouble indicators.
Fueling Automobiles
• Maintain at least half a tank of fuel in your vehicle during colder weather.
• Static electricity can ignite gasoline fumes; therefore, when fueling during cold, dry weather, touch your vehicle with your hand before touching the fuel pump to dissipate any possible static electricity you may have in your body.
• Do not re-enter your vehicle during fueling since sliding across the seat and floorboard can generate static electricity.
• Do not use a cell phone while fueling your automobile.
• Turn off the engine while fueling.
• Extinguish all smoking materials before fueling.
Safety Tips in the Home
• Make sure you have working smoke alarms properly installed in your home. Smoke alarms should be installed in a central location outside each separate sleeping area. If bedrooms are spaced apart, each area will need a CO alarm. Test your smoke alarms monthly and install fresh batteries annually.
• Have fuel-burning heating equipment (fireplaces, furnaces, water heaters, wood and coal stoves, space or portable heaters) and chimneys inspected by a professional every year before cold weather sets in.
o Give space heaters their space; keep combustible material at least three feet away from the heater.
o Keep all combustible materials off of floor furnaces.
o Remove any combustibles from central heater closets.
o Be sure to inspect and clean your fireplace chimney annually.
o Use a metal grate to hold the logs inside the fireplace.
o Use an approved metal or glass screen in front of the fireplace to prevent embers from flying out of the firebox.
o Remember to open the damper before lighting the fireplace.
• When purchasing new heating and cooking equipment, select products tested and labeled by an independent testing laboratory.
• Never use your oven to heat your home.
• When buying an existing home, have a qualified technician evaluate the integrity of the heating and cooking systems, as well as the sealed spaces between the garage and house.
Safety tips outside the home
• If you need to warm a vehicle, remove it from the garage immediately after starting it. Do not run a vehicle, generator, or other fueled engine or motor indoors, even if garage doors are open. Make sure the exhaust pipe of a running vehicle is not covered with snow.
• During and after a snowstorm, make sure vents for the dryer, furnace, stove, and fireplace are clear of snow build-up.
• Only use barbecue grills – which can produce CO – outside. Never use them in the home, garage, or near building openings as a heat source.
General Safety Tips
• Dress warm and in layers if venturing outside during cold weather.
• Assemble a "survival kit" for your home with items such as:
o Battery operated radio and extra batteries
o Flashlights and extra batteries
o Bottled Water
o Canned food and a manual can opener
o Blankets
o First aid kit
• Check on your family, friends, and neighbors during winter storms to make sure they are managing well.
We had a great time at the REACT Christmas party last Saturday. We had quite a few people there…..several of our members brought their spouses with them. They gave away door prizes, but, once again, I didn’t win anything. Each of the team members received a Letter of Appreciation from our President and I received an extra award…..the first of its kind….the Public Safety Award. This was presented to me because of all the times I assisted police, fire and OHP on traffic control, due to accidents, etc. I was excited to receive it. After our Christmas Party, I went home for a while and then headed up to one of our members’ apartments to watch OU play Nebraska.
It was after the game that things went downhill…….fast. I was up most of the night Saturday night because of my stomach. I spent all day in bed Sunday, running a fever, being weak and having no appetite. I never did throw-up, but I sure felt like it. Everything came out the other end. I was like that Sunday and most of yesterday. Today, I still don’t feel real well. Still a little nauseated and still weak, but I am drinking lots of liquids.
In other news….
Winter Safety Tips
With precipitation approaching Oklahoma, the Oklahoma City Fire Department would like to offer the following winter weather safety tips to help keep Oklahomans safe.
Walking in Ice and Snow
• Use a melting solution or rock salt to clear all walkways of any ice and snow.
• If you shovel your walkways or driveways, pace your work and take frequent breaks.
• Wear rubber-soled shoes or boots to get better traction.
• Take slower, shorter steps when walking on ice and snow.
• Use a handrail when walking on stairways or inclines.
Winter Driving
• If possible, avoid driving while streets are covered in ice and snow.
• Have your vehicle winterized by a qualified mechanic.
• Make sure your tires have adequate tread for the conditions.
• Assemble and carry a "survival kit" for your automobile with items such as:
o Blankets
o Bottled water
o Flashlight and extra batteries
o First aid kit
o Jumper cables
o Snow chains
• Allow extra time to reach your destination.
Carbon Monoxide Poisoning
• Carbon monoxide (CO) alarm popularity has been growing in recent years. It is very important that we recognize the hazards of carbon monoxide poisoning in the home. Often called the silent killer, carbon monoxide is an invisible, odorless, colorless gas created when fuels (such as kerosene, wood, coal, natural gas, propane, oil, and methane) burn incompletely. In the home, heating and cooking equipment that burn fuel are potential sources of carbon monoxide. Vehicles or generators running in an attached garage can also produce dangerous levels of carbon monoxide.
• According to the National Safety Council, 200-300 unintentional injury and/or deaths a year are due to carbon monoxide poisoning.
• The dangers of CO exposure depend on a number of variables, including the victim's health and activity level. Infants, pregnant women, and people with physical conditions that limit their body's ability to use oxygen (i.e. emphysema, asthma, heart disease) can be more severely affected by lower concentrations of CO than healthy adults.
• A person can be poisoned by a small amount of CO over a longer period of time or by a large amount of CO over a shorter amount of time.
• CO enters the body through breathing. CO poisoning can be confused with flu symptoms, food poisoning, and other illnesses. High levels of CO can be fatal, causing death within minutes.
• Some symptoms of CO poisoning include:
o Shortness of breath
o Nausea
o Dizziness
o Light headedness
o Headaches
• Install CO alarms (listed by an independent testing laboratory) inside your home to provide early warning of accumulating CO. CO alarms should be installed in a central location outside each separate sleeping area. If bedrooms are spaced apart, each area will need a CO alarm.
• Test CO alarms at least once a month and replace CO alarms according to the manufacturer's instructions. CO alarms are not substitutes for smoke alarms. Know the difference between the sound of smoke alarms and CO alarms.
• If your CO alarm sounds, immediately move to a fresh air location and call for help. Remain at the fresh air location until emergency personnel say it is safe to re-enter.
• If the audible trouble signal sounds, check for low batteries or other trouble indicators.
Fueling Automobiles
• Maintain at least half a tank of fuel in your vehicle during colder weather.
• Static electricity can ignite gasoline fumes; therefore, when fueling during cold, dry weather, touch your vehicle with your hand before touching the fuel pump to dissipate any possible static electricity you may have in your body.
• Do not re-enter your vehicle during fueling since sliding across the seat and floorboard can generate static electricity.
• Do not use a cell phone while fueling your automobile.
• Turn off the engine while fueling.
• Extinguish all smoking materials before fueling.
Safety Tips in the Home
• Make sure you have working smoke alarms properly installed in your home. Smoke alarms should be installed in a central location outside each separate sleeping area. If bedrooms are spaced apart, each area will need a CO alarm. Test your smoke alarms monthly and install fresh batteries annually.
• Have fuel-burning heating equipment (fireplaces, furnaces, water heaters, wood and coal stoves, space or portable heaters) and chimneys inspected by a professional every year before cold weather sets in.
o Give space heaters their space; keep combustible material at least three feet away from the heater.
o Keep all combustible materials off of floor furnaces.
o Remove any combustibles from central heater closets.
o Be sure to inspect and clean your fireplace chimney annually.
o Use a metal grate to hold the logs inside the fireplace.
o Use an approved metal or glass screen in front of the fireplace to prevent embers from flying out of the firebox.
o Remember to open the damper before lighting the fireplace.
• When purchasing new heating and cooking equipment, select products tested and labeled by an independent testing laboratory.
• Never use your oven to heat your home.
• When buying an existing home, have a qualified technician evaluate the integrity of the heating and cooking systems, as well as the sealed spaces between the garage and house.
Safety tips outside the home
• If you need to warm a vehicle, remove it from the garage immediately after starting it. Do not run a vehicle, generator, or other fueled engine or motor indoors, even if garage doors are open. Make sure the exhaust pipe of a running vehicle is not covered with snow.
• During and after a snowstorm, make sure vents for the dryer, furnace, stove, and fireplace are clear of snow build-up.
• Only use barbecue grills – which can produce CO – outside. Never use them in the home, garage, or near building openings as a heat source.
General Safety Tips
• Dress warm and in layers if venturing outside during cold weather.
• Assemble a "survival kit" for your home with items such as:
o Battery operated radio and extra batteries
o Flashlights and extra batteries
o Bottled Water
o Canned food and a manual can opener
o Blankets
o First aid kit
• Check on your family, friends, and neighbors during winter storms to make sure they are managing well.
Friday, December 3, 2010
TGIF!!! Getting Ready for a Busy Weekend!
It’s Friday again! This has almost become my favorite day of the week (Saturday is still the front-runner).
Yesterday, I decided to take off at 2 pm, mainly because I was not busy and could think of other things I could be doing away from work. One of my co-workers approached me Wednesday and informed me she needed someone to rake the leaves in her mom’s yard. You see, her mom is suffering from cancer and has not been well for many months. Just recently, she fell in her house and broke her hip……so now, she is going through rehabilitation. My back and legs aren’t what they used to be, so I told my co-worker I would try to find someone to do it for her.
I know what my co-worker is going through….having a mom that is suffering from cancer. My mother-in-law passed away August, 2009, of cancer. It’s hard to watch a loved one suffer from this horrendous disease. Plus, my co-worker is the one that is basically taking care of her mom and making sure everything is in order. The more I thought about my MIL and her battle with cancer, the more I knew I needed to help out my co-worker’s mom.
Even though I have not felt real well, or been energetic this week, yesterday was a beautiful day to get any kind of outside work done. When I left the office at 2 pm., I went by my co-worker’s mom’ house to check it out and then headed home to get the tools I needed for the job. Then the work began. I raked and raked for 2 solid hours without taking a break. There were lots and lots of leaves. I had bought 18 trash bags and used all of them in no time. When my co-worker got off work at 4 pm, she came by to help me. After all was said and done, we had over 23 bags of leaves (after she went and bought some more bags). It was a tough and physically demanding job, but we got it done. NO CHARGE! I did not do this to make any money…..that would not have been right. I did it in honor of my co-worker’s mom and did it in memory of my MIL.
After doing my good deed for the day, I received a text message from my wife, informing me my daughter had run out of gas. She ran out of gas on her way to work, so one of her friends came by, picked her up and took her to work. I went by the house, got my 5-gallon gas can and went to 7-11 to fill it up. In process of filling up my can, I sprayed gas all over my jeans, my jacket and my shoes. The next challenge was finding her car. She had told my wife she had pulled into a parking lot across from Cambridge…which told me absolutely nothing. So, for 1 hour, I drove down SW 89, SW.104…down S. Western and S. May, trying to find a neighborhood called Cambridge. No luck. When my wife finally got the right directions, I went to where her car was at and put gas in it. Then, I drove it back to 7-11 to put more gas in it.
Since we were so close to the house, I decided to take her car back to the house and then pick her up from work at 8 pm (when she was suppose to get off work). I went home long enough to start a load of laundry and check my email on my computer. At 7:30 I left the house, went by Sonic for a half-priced burger and then headed to my daughter’s workplace. Well, when 8 pm rolled around and she did not come out, I figured she was running a little late. Then, when 8:30 came around, I finally determined that she was getting off at 9 pm instead of 8 pm. So, I waited over an hour for her in the parking lot. She finally got off at 9 pm and then explained to me she was scheduled to be off at 8 pm, but they needed her for another hour. I made it home by 9:15 and worked on my laundry as well as checking things on my computer. My right shoulder and arm was already very tired and sore from raking so long. I took some ibuprofen and went to bed, but still did not sleep well because my arm ached so bad.
Today, my co-worker is off, so I am working her radio. It hasn’t been too bad. Karla is feeling well, so I am sure we will stay in this evening. Tomorrow morning is prayer breakfast at church, followed by a work day (we will be decorating the auditorium for Christmas). At noon is my REACT Christmas party and then that evening, we are meeting at a friend’s apartment to watch football and have some snacks.
http://www.neighborhoodlink.com/OCFD_Citizens_Fire_Academy_Alumni_Association/home
http://www.okcentralreact.org/
Yesterday, I decided to take off at 2 pm, mainly because I was not busy and could think of other things I could be doing away from work. One of my co-workers approached me Wednesday and informed me she needed someone to rake the leaves in her mom’s yard. You see, her mom is suffering from cancer and has not been well for many months. Just recently, she fell in her house and broke her hip……so now, she is going through rehabilitation. My back and legs aren’t what they used to be, so I told my co-worker I would try to find someone to do it for her.
I know what my co-worker is going through….having a mom that is suffering from cancer. My mother-in-law passed away August, 2009, of cancer. It’s hard to watch a loved one suffer from this horrendous disease. Plus, my co-worker is the one that is basically taking care of her mom and making sure everything is in order. The more I thought about my MIL and her battle with cancer, the more I knew I needed to help out my co-worker’s mom.
Even though I have not felt real well, or been energetic this week, yesterday was a beautiful day to get any kind of outside work done. When I left the office at 2 pm., I went by my co-worker’s mom’ house to check it out and then headed home to get the tools I needed for the job. Then the work began. I raked and raked for 2 solid hours without taking a break. There were lots and lots of leaves. I had bought 18 trash bags and used all of them in no time. When my co-worker got off work at 4 pm, she came by to help me. After all was said and done, we had over 23 bags of leaves (after she went and bought some more bags). It was a tough and physically demanding job, but we got it done. NO CHARGE! I did not do this to make any money…..that would not have been right. I did it in honor of my co-worker’s mom and did it in memory of my MIL.
After doing my good deed for the day, I received a text message from my wife, informing me my daughter had run out of gas. She ran out of gas on her way to work, so one of her friends came by, picked her up and took her to work. I went by the house, got my 5-gallon gas can and went to 7-11 to fill it up. In process of filling up my can, I sprayed gas all over my jeans, my jacket and my shoes. The next challenge was finding her car. She had told my wife she had pulled into a parking lot across from Cambridge…which told me absolutely nothing. So, for 1 hour, I drove down SW 89, SW.104…down S. Western and S. May, trying to find a neighborhood called Cambridge. No luck. When my wife finally got the right directions, I went to where her car was at and put gas in it. Then, I drove it back to 7-11 to put more gas in it.
Since we were so close to the house, I decided to take her car back to the house and then pick her up from work at 8 pm (when she was suppose to get off work). I went home long enough to start a load of laundry and check my email on my computer. At 7:30 I left the house, went by Sonic for a half-priced burger and then headed to my daughter’s workplace. Well, when 8 pm rolled around and she did not come out, I figured she was running a little late. Then, when 8:30 came around, I finally determined that she was getting off at 9 pm instead of 8 pm. So, I waited over an hour for her in the parking lot. She finally got off at 9 pm and then explained to me she was scheduled to be off at 8 pm, but they needed her for another hour. I made it home by 9:15 and worked on my laundry as well as checking things on my computer. My right shoulder and arm was already very tired and sore from raking so long. I took some ibuprofen and went to bed, but still did not sleep well because my arm ached so bad.
Today, my co-worker is off, so I am working her radio. It hasn’t been too bad. Karla is feeling well, so I am sure we will stay in this evening. Tomorrow morning is prayer breakfast at church, followed by a work day (we will be decorating the auditorium for Christmas). At noon is my REACT Christmas party and then that evening, we are meeting at a friend’s apartment to watch football and have some snacks.
http://www.neighborhoodlink.com/OCFD_Citizens_Fire_Academy_Alumni_Association/home
http://www.okcentralreact.org/
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