When I Grow Up.

First of all, please know that I am only writing a post so that I can reach my goal of 2 posts per month.

Lofty overachieving is the name of my game.

Here is my obsession for the minute: I am always amazed when people are so SURE about what they want to do with their lives. I have no clue. I started at college going for an education degree. Then I switched gears and got my graphic design degree instead because the classes were a lot more fun. Student teaching vs photography class? Easy Decision.

And then I tried to get a job. And who knew that the graphic design industry was rather saturated?! So I've been doing admin work for the past 10+years.  

Sometimes I think about painting furniture for a living. Or getting my interior design license. Or becoming an expert gardener and selling produce in the summer. Or maybe I could have a water restaurant on my pontoon and sell burgers and hotdogs to all the summer fishermen and recreationists. Or maybe work my blog more.

And then I remember that I need to make more than "tens of dollars".

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We leave for vacation soon. And yes, I'm bragging. I just got a reminder of our reservation at one of the B&B and the instruction was to "bring a flashlight and your directions". Jealous? I also know that our "hut" has no bathroom which means I will be hiking through the jungle to find a toilet. Screw you 5 star resorts! We LIKE to be uncomfortable. Which leads me to our house updates . . . . .

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We have a stove! And it works!

Now for walls.

And to finish all the floors.



This is after Boyd tore up linoleum.  Then we scraped the glue (black stuff)



This is the finished product.

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Basketball season is over which is a bummer because now we have to TRY and be sociable. 

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Boyd and I have gotten quite a bit of snow shoeing and cross country skiing in. I find this makes winter tolerable.  We also volunteered at the Bryant Cinema recently and thoroughly burned the popcorn.

We suckered some friends to help us out.  Tx Lance and Carissa!

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I know the greatest people.  Here is an example:  my friend Shawna (from Minnesota) was telling me about her weekend (we are devoted email buddies). She and her cousin rescued a dog running down the middle of Interstate 169 in the Twin Cities. After running after it and having several people also pull over and help them, they finally captured this dog.  After about 3 hours of dog duty, they got a call from the neighbor of the dog's owner who was checking messages for her neighbor, who was in the hospital with her dying husband. Ugh. Today Shawna emailed me and said she received flowers with the following note:

Dear Rescuing Guardian Angel Girls – Thank you with all my heart for rescuing and taking such good care of my dog on Saturday.　I’m not sure if you’re aware that my husband passed away that same day.　 I’m not sure I could have handled another loss.　I can’t even express how grateful I am in words that are strong enough.　I hope someday when you’re in need you’ll find angels along your highway too.　
Love, Linda and Dash

I love it when people actually CARE. Shawna cared about a dumb dog running down a highway. That dumb dog happens to be giving comfort to a woman in pain. I wish it were more common to hear "Good Samaritan" stories. I know there are people out there doing good things . . . . why don't we hear more about them?

Then Shawna told me the story of how she received a bottle of Steak Sauce from Wells Fargo as an apology for taking so long on her refinancing.  

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Here is proof that I probably am not a Good Samaritan:

Nice.  Sav age 7; Me age 14

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I meant to send out Christmas Cards.  Fail.

Then I was all on board to send out Valentine's Day cards.  Fail.

So.

Happy Late Winter Everyone.



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Dr. Oz can kiss my . . . .

We have moved into the new house. Its not "comfortable" as of yet but its ours. For example: the toilet works (one of my "hard" conditions) but the bathroom sink does not. So I have the dilemma of either going downstairs to wash my hands or nixing personal hygiene.
At this point I’m pretty much 50/50.

We have a fridge but no stove.

We have a furnace but no duct work.

I’m freezing. All the time.

Then I got a letter from my compassion child in the mail where she tells me about how they get water through a pipe and wash their clothes in the sink on Sundays.

Spoiled brat.

I’ve recently decided I should start exercising.

But that seems like a lot of work. The personal trainer that works there always gives me a weird look when I walk through the door. ALMOST as if she is questioning my dedication to the exercise.

What I really want to say is:
"I’m just here to take a shower. Its way too cold at my house."

Seriously though . . . . does anyone else have the problem of what follows mentally when you start to exercise??? Not only do you start to weigh yourself every week, but it is as though an AVALANCHE of other "good things" to do start to raise their ugly heads. Gosh. Well . . since you are exercising you should really know that berries fight cancer. So eat GOBS of berries. Don’t eat carbs. Ever. Except when they are good for you. (Wait a minute . . . ) Don’t eat meat - but get enough protein. Unless you read this article where it says you should only eat meat. An apple a day keeps the doctor away. But not apple juice - that is dangerous. Crossword puzzles keep you sharp, along with the color purple (maybe this is a connection to the berries?!). Red wine is good for your heart. But watch those calories!

Do your devotions. Stretch every morning. You really should get more organized. Get that meal chart made. Start using a chiropractor and don’t forget the massage. And maybe start plucking your eyebrows. But not your gray hair - apparently that is a big fat no-no. You need to go in every 6 weeks to keep your hair healthy and good heavens what do you mean you don’t color your hair?! You don’t want to actually look like you are in your 30s do you?! Get on the botox train you silly girl.

I now feel a lot of anxiety.

Hello comfort food and nice soft bread. And yes, I would also like to order 2 large caramel rolls but sprinkle some bacon bits on top for the all important protein. A girl has to eat her breakfast - after all, it is the most important meal of the day.