Jasper Jones

Cold weather has settled in over the whole state. It is 12 degrees colder than the normal temperatures for this area tonight. Glad I ordered the long underwear from that web site last night. It should be here waiting for me when I get back from the Thanksgiving holiday trip home.

Mom says it is very cold up there, too. Last night they even had snow flurries for a couple of hours, but no accumulation on the ground. We don’t usually have snow this early - I wish I could have been there to see it. As long as I don’t have to out on the road during a snow, I like the magical experience of watching the flakes swirl about and fall from the white clouded sky.

When we graduate in the Spring I have a lot of options. This week while I’m home for Thanksgiving I want to spend some of that time talking with my folks about my plans. They have always been a good sounding board for me and I respect their opinions on life choices.

Alex has a different family situation and tougher decisions to make. His dad wants him to go into the “family business” but Alex wants to break out on his own. Alex has been looking into new business opportunities and is thinking about buying into a franchise with the money he inherited from his grandfather.

I know a little about franchising and Alex has shown me a lot of the information that he’s gathering on the internet. He found a web site called Match Point that helps people interested in franchising. The site offers a free franchise consultation and an online test that helps you find the right franchise opportunity for your personality type, interest and skills.

Have you ever exchanged a meaningful glance with someone? You make eye contact with someone and barely change your expression, yet the other person knows instinctively what you are thinking. The two of you are communicating without words. I see that sometimes at the hospital, at nightclubs, and at school. The last time I remember exchanging a meaningful glance with with a girl in my class. We were flirting for a couple of weeks and then suddenly, with that glance, we were on.

Mom called this morning to check with me on my plans for Thanksgiving. I have to work at the hospital on Monday and Tuesday, so I can leave here after I got off work Tuesday night and drive home. Then I have to be back here for Saturday night. Short vacation for me but it will be good to go home and enjoy my mom’s cooking for the Thanksgiving dinner.

She says they had a problem a few days ago with the basement flooding. That was a rude surprise to walk downstairs and find that. Thankfully, the next door neighbor told her about the company to call for help - Water Restoration 911. This company answers the phone 24/7 and can help with the most dire home emergencies, like flooding or water damage, fire and smoke damage, or even mold and fungus remediation.

At least mom’s problem was just flooding and not sewage backup . That would have been even worse. But Water Restoration 911 can help with both, so now she has their number by the phone for emergencies.

The price of gasoline continues to drop. There is plenty of gas available now, although after Hurricane Ike hit southern Texas we had terrible shortages the whole month of September. Thankfully my job is not far from the school campus, so I can get back and forth on less than one tank of gas if I don’t drive anywhere else.

I just filled up again this afternoon for only $1.59 a gallon at the BP. That is a huge savings over what we were paying back in August. The worst I saw was at $4.21 a gallon right before Labor Day. Being able to fill up now, just 2 months later, for under $25 is a great relief.