So, What Exactly is Going on in My Life?

One Word: Amazing

Climbing back on the blog saddle

It surprises me as to how fast life is flying by!   It is hard to believe that May and June have come and gone, July is well on it's way to being over and Micheal Jackson is dead.   

OK, so it does not surprise me that he is dead but I can say I am over all the media coverage!    Great musician, loved Thriller and even burned a CD for my car about 3 months ago and retired it to the house about a week before he died. Leaving it in the house for another year or so  - I am so over the guy at this point.   Maybe next year I can stomach it again.   

Life has been so hectic lately but I have missed updating the ol' blog...    Here is a quick montage of the last few months and what has been going on...

A quick trip down to San Antonio with Clay, His friend Dave and a girl friend of his.  We had a great time at River Walk eating and drinking and a lot of relaxing!  

Mom, this one is for you!

Oh, I have not mention Clay yet have I?  Well, we have been dating for the last few months and having a grand time!    We took the plunge recently and took the crew over to his house for the 4th of July weekend, I think he is still traumatized or maybe I am?   They are a bit overwhelming  - all three of them. Along with his dog Rex, it made for a crazy stressed out dog weekend!  By the end of the weekend they all seemed to have it sorted out, thankfully.    I have to admit I was more then excited that he even entertained the idea.   I'll keep you all posted as to if we adventure down that road again! (thank you Clay for putting up with the all the dog drama)

The next adventure was  trip back to Tampa for work.  I was able to catch up with a few friends: Doug and Alex.   It was great to see them, although was to short as we were only able to fit in a quick dinner.  I did finally get to meet Alex's little doggies Sabastian and Isabella - two cute little Chi wa wa's! 

Alex, Victoria, Kristen, Doug and me - Dinner at Tony and Chiccios - Sushi...    Who knew there was Italian Sushi?

 

We did a dinner at Dianna's house.   Gae, me and Manny relaxing on the 20th floor condo over looking the water - such a relaxing night!

Have to admit we did do a bit of drinking - Tequila... need I say more?  L-R: Christina, Me, Matt, Sheila, Kevin and Melissa.  
Fun was had by all, thanks to Dianna for letting us use her condo for the get together!

A dinner with Clay and his daughter at the Melting Pot.   It was the strangest dinner I think any of us had in a long time.  The waiter was way to talkative, the managers was rude and they decided to run the vacuum cleaner during our dinner...  It might be the last time we go there!

 

 

Another work trip!   This time down to Houston for a group meeting.

 

L-R: Me, Clay (yes another Clay in TX believe it or not!) Laura, Vicki, Amanda, Carrie, Catherine, Kristen, Wayne and Rhonda - GO TEXAS TEAM! 

Part of the "Texacagolina" Team: L-R:  Will (Chicago), Rhonda (San Antonio), Laura (Dallas) and Penny (NC).  the bestest Peeps in the world! 

More of the Bestest Peeps - Kristen and Pam! 

And More!   L-R: Penny, Rhonda, Jill and Victoria! 

The next adventure is a quick road trip with Grover to Clayton Lake (there we go with Clay again) to camp with my parents. It will be good to back in the car and doing a bit of traveling.   I am excited to see my parents and spend a few days with them in the great outdoors.   I'll report back on all the fun! 

PS for those who asked for an update on the Wyoming road trip  - it is still in the works  but may have to be put off until next year.  I have about 3/4 of the destinations mapped out and a Realtor or two waiting in the wings!  See you all soon! 

Desitination: Cabela's Partner in Crime: My Dad

The fun weekend came and went all too quickly (back in March!)      A quick trip to Love Field brought my dad to Dallas for his 1st visit since I moved here.    What a great time we had.

The 1st evening brought a quick tour of the neighborhood, an ever exciting 1st visit with the three little ones.  They behaved surprising well (I think it might have to do with the fact that he is so tall) Jet behaved like a champ and Ellie was insistent on getting as close to him as possible.      I think on a few occasions I spied Grover getting most of the loving - they made quick friends!

Destination Day: A quick breakfast at iHop and we hit the road for CABELA'S!    Excitement was in the air.  My dad is an avid outdoors-man and to finally after, all these years of buying through their catalog, get his hands on to real thing(s)!    

Of course we did the ever important photo ops of our arrival.    I must admit, I was just as excited to see Cabela's with him.  Who better but Mr. Outdoors? 

I am going to digress for a moment...   The weekend visit got me to thinking about the what I love about my Dad and the things that mean most to me about him. In thinking back through the years I found that there are many wonderful memories.  The most memorable moments (there are many more then this of course) of My dad coming into my life are: 

1. The Circus in Portland Oregon.  Just the two of us, no brother, no mother.  It was wonderful!   It made me feel special, like I was the most important person to him.    I don't remember having ever gone to the circus before that time, and only once after that in my early 20's.    The specifics of the day are gone but how I felt that day has stayed with me forever.   

2. Flying to Seattle.   My Dad, My Mom, Me and a really really really small little itty bitty plane, flown by him.  

3. My 1st Horse.   Zephyr.  who all but tried to kill me every chance he got.  Mean ass horse.  But my dad took me and we picked him out together.  He was a beautiful horse, just a real ass.    What more could a daughter want?   Nothing, a horse and a chance to live in the country.   I may have pissed and moaned about it as  kid, but I loved it.  I loved the snow, I loved the seclusion and the space. Building fences, chicken coops and all the fund stuff that comes with it.   The smell on a fresh snow day waiting for the school bus before the sun came up listening to the stillness in the air.   Collecting eggs in the mornings from the nasty chickens and experiencing the strange things that happens with fresh eggs when you have chickens.  Two funny Canada geese Poncho and Lefty.  My dad made up for the mean ass horse and when he got a wonderful big ol' horse for himself, Luke.    So damn big that I had to crawl up the hitching post to get on that sweet ol' horse.   

4. Camping.  One trip to the NW with My Mom,, Dad, Brother and Step Sister Barbara and two dogs...  in a bronco.   We did survive and I am here to tell about it!  The other memorable trip was just with my mom and dad up to the continental divide.  

So in the end, my dad gave me a childhood and a foundation that I will be forever grateful for.  I am also thankful for my mom (not only just for this); for making such a wise decision to fall in love with such a wonderful man.  The father that I did not know I needed so much until I grew up and look back on my childhood.

So, here we are arriving at Cabela's!   Just the two of us for a day of fun at the outdoor mega destination.   What a destination it was!   Made me want to pull out my gun, boots, buy one of everything and pack up for the middle of nowhere!     - ok, as long as there is internet connection to Zappos and delivery truck that can find me once I get to wherever "nowhere" might be.

We had a great time this weekend and I am still forever grateful that he is my Dad!   What a lucky girl I am.

      

Aruba Time!

  The month of February brought a fabulous trip with several of my co-workers!     I was invited to join the President's Club this year in Aruba and wow, what a beautiful island.     I am still sorting through pictures as well as I still need to gather a few more from my co-workers but here is a small taste if the fun we had. 

Of course there was plenty of drinks to be found on the island!    The celebration kicked up a notch on our last night in Aruba and we ended up going a little overboard.    Above is the tame picture of the night with Sheila, Allen, Amanda, Barbara, Rick and of course Me!  Poor Rick spent the entire day on Saturday subjected to female hormones starting with a snorkeling/sailing adventure that included more drinking with Christine, Sheila Barbara and myself that ended in a night of drinking surrounded again by a group of crazed women.  I am not sure he will ever be the same again but I must admit he was a trooper.   Sheila ended up the with all funny over-the-top photos and I hope to get my hands on those soon.

I will write more about Aruba and the adventures we had (well, at least the ones that are suitable to share!)  that include bull riding at a local bar, acrobats, rope swings and  more out of control women, one un-named  Rick the trooper.  I was an awesome trip with an awesome group of co-workers and friends.      I just can not say enough about the Island and highly recommend everyone figure out a way to visit Aruba for a vacation.  

This is from one of our free night dinners at the resort. From Left to Right
Billy, Linda, Bill, Cheryl, Christine, Mike, Perry, Me, Sheila, Barbara and Jada.

Dinner Again!    Me, Amanda and Sheila all dressed up for the awards dinner.

 

3900 Saturdays

A wonderful story about what is important in life that I received from www.simpletruths.com I have about 1850 marbles left, how many do you have left?

It's called 3900 Saturdays:  The older I get, the more I enjoy Saturday morning. Perhaps its the quiet solitude that comes with being the first to rise, or maybe its the unbounded joy of not having to be at work. Either way, the first few hours of a Saturday morning are most enjoyable.

A few weeks ago, I was shuffling toward the garage with a steaming cup of coffee in one hand and the morning paper in the other. What began as a typical Saturday morning turned into one of those lessons that life seems to hand you from time to time. Let me tell you about it:

I turned the dial up into the phone portion of the band on my ham radio in order to listen to a Saturday morning swap net. Along the way, I came across an older sounding chap, with a tremendous signal and a golden voice. You know the kind; he sounded like he should be in the broadcasting business. He was telling whomever he was talking with something about a thousand marbles. I was intrigued and stopped to listen to what he had to say.

Well, Tom, it sure sounds like youre busy with your job. Im sure they pay you well but its a shame you have to be away from home and your family so much. Hard to believe a young fellow should have to work sixty or seventy hours a week to make ends meet. Its too bad you missed your daughters dance recital, he continued; Let me tell you something that has helped me keep my own priorities. And thats when he began to explain his theory of a thousand marbles.

You see, I sat down one day and did a little arithmetic. The average person lives about seventy-five years. I know, some live more and some live less, but on average, folks live about seventy-five years.

Now then, I multiplied 75 times 52 and I came up with 3,900, which is the number of Saturdays that the average person has in their entire lifetime. Now, stick with me, Tom, I'm getting to the important part.

It took me until I was fifty-five years old to think about all this in any detail, he went on, and by that time I had lived through over twenty-eight hundred Saturdays. I got to thinking that if I lived to be seventy-five, I only had about a thousand of them left to enjoy. So I went to a toy store and bought every single marble they had. I ended up having to visit three toy stores to round up 1,000 marbles. I took them home and put them inside a large, clear plastic container right here in the shack next to my gear.

Every Saturday since then, I have taken one marble out and thrown it away. I found that by watching the marbles diminish, I focused more on the really important things in life.

Theres nothing like watching your time here on this earth run out to help get your priorities straight.

Now let me tell you one last thing before I sign off with you and take my lovely wife out for breakfast. This morning, I took the very last marble out of the container. I figure that if I make it until next Saturday then I have been given a little extra time. And the one thing we can all use is a little more time.

It was nice to meet you Tom. I hope you spend more time with your family, and I hope to meet you again here on the band. This is a 75 year old man, K9NZQ, clear and going QRT, good morning!

You could have heard a pin drop on the band when this fellow signed off. I guess he gave us all a lot to think about. I had planned to work on the antenna that morning, and then I was going to meet up with a few hams to work on the next club newsletter.

Instead, I went upstairs and woke my wife up with a kiss. Cmon honey, Im taking you and the kids to breakfast.

What brought this on? she asked with a smile.

Oh, nothing special, its just been a long time since we spent a Saturday together with the kids. And hey, can we stop at a toy store while were out? I need to buy some marbles.

Turkey Weekend Fun

Turkey Fun was had by all!     We had a great Thanksgiving weekend in Denver this year.   The previous few months were tough on every and Mom had a great suggestion - Spend Thanksgiving in Denver this year at the Finley Home.      What a great idea, the excitement was contagious.     

My Mom (Grandma), Dad (grandpa), Owen, Austin and Susan (fabulous mom to Owen and Austin) packed in the truck for fun filled road trip to Denver and a quick flight for me from Dallas landed us all in Denver at the Finley Family home (Kathy, Ren, and three great little kitties; George who rules with an iron fist, Snowshoe & Zoe who spent the weekend in hiding, peeking out once or twice.

We had a wonderful weekend together and I am in hopes that we have created a new family tradition.   It's been ages since I have been able to relax with my family and it just what the doctor ordered!      Family, Food and Fun.   

Owen spent the 1st part of the trip building an engine, which he quickly completed!   Engine Education from Ren,  even I learned something new!  From Left to Right: Austin, Susan, Dad, Ren, Owen and Me.

Espresso Education - what a treat and no trip to the coffee shop needed! 

 

Meet The Proud Mr. Duff, dressed in his Thanksgiving finest! Way to cold to be in a skirt in my opinion!  But he looks great!

 

Breakfast with Owen (left) and Austin - Mmm more food -

 

Dad and Kathy - I forget just how tall he is!  

I am in love with Wii - Austin was hands down the Boxer of the weekend - By the end of the weekend he had knocked us all out - even my Mommy (aka Grandma).

On top of the Wii fun there was plenty of time to play on the computers - Both Owen (below) and Austin are computer whiz's... Along with Ren, the ultimate Computer Master!

Cupcake Baking - really, we needed more food

Ren's coming to the end of a very long (and painful) tattoo - It's quite amazing!

Ren and Tony (ok, so it's not Tony, that's Owen behind the birthday plate!)

Along with Turkey day came another birthday - at least the intentions were there!  After this many birthdays I feel confident my family knows my name  - even if the cake is a little bit off.    The cake itself was fabulous - red velvet and ice creams -- it just does not get better then this! 

Mmm... Cake and happy kids! 

 

I love my Mommy!

 

This one's for my Mommy!    Somehow Susan was able to stay away from the cake (other then a bite or two) more then I can say for myself!

 

Christmas - we're not even through Turkey day! 

 

I could go for a big piece of this cake now!

I just love thanksgiving and was sad to see it come to an end, but I am looking forward to next year.  Thank you Kathy and Ren for hosting such a great weekend for all of us!

Cissy Update! aka Cassie

I am so excited to have an update on our little Cissy!       

Here is the email update from the new family:

Cassie is doing great!!!  She chews things up but she is the sweetest.  Here are some pictures of her!!

Thank you for taking such great care of her.  She is totally potty trained and loves going on walks.  We have gone through a few leashes but she has fun.  We are still working on nipping but she means no harm.  

We love Cassie and she has been a great addition to our family.

Sincerely,

Danielle

I just can't tell you how happy I am to see Little Cissy growing up with her new family!    What a change from the flea covered little bitty thing she was.   I am so thankful that the previous owners had enough sense to hand her over to me.     She deserves to have a wonderful forever family of her own.      What more could a little puppy ask for then a new pink dress and pink bed to boot!     She has grown quite a bit from the day I gave her over to her new family...    but still has that cute little face and soulful eyes.      

Here's our little girl!

 

What a great start to the new year! 

Inspiration for the Day

Paul Dateh and inka one
One word, Wow!

Hip Hop Violin 

At the End. Yet at the Begining

As the year comes to an end I find myself deep in thought.  About the year gone by and the year ahead.   

I am struggling to wade through 1059 emails for work, have a desk and an office that is a disaster, clients and employees who need attention and  desperately wish that I had the time to dream of a tomorrow.  I know it is coming and I long to be able to dream of it.

They (whoever "they" are) always say we should live in the present.   I live in the present, the here, the now, the crisis of the day, the morning the afternoon, the hour and the minute.  In this day and age how can we escape the present?   It rings in on the crack'berry and the email ding that never stops.   They come in at 7pm, 9pm, 11pm, 6am, they never stop.  How's that for being present?   I got a call at 3:34am the other day, called 4 times; enough to get me out of bed thinking it was an emergency only to be hung up on.   I can remember what happened 10 years ago but so often forget the last 10 minutes of my life.  Then magically at 11pm I remember the 10 minutes that I has so easily been forgotten earlier in the day.   In the background of music I hear the ring or ding of the crack'berry, the computer email ding.   I often think I hear the crack'berry ring when in fact it is not.   

Is that an addiction?   Have I surpassed an alcohol addiction for one of crack'berry?     Is it plugged in?   Is the sound on?  Did I turn it off before I walked into the meeting?  Did I turn the sound back on after the meeting?   Did I get a new email?    Did I get a call?   Who was it?  Is is good news or bad news?  A happy client or a mad client?   Is it another crisis or is someone happy today?   Oh it's a fucking telemarketer, calling me on my cell phone.    Along with all the other calls and emails that came in on the damn thing.     I am addicted to it, I can't put it down or turn it off.  I never leave the house without it, matter of fact I treat it with as much care and love as I do for my dogs.   I clean it, charge it, love it, and hate it when it does bad things. 

A year of crack'berry and my personal addiction to it.  

We have an EAP at work, I wonder if there is a support group for Crack'berry addictions?   Would they deem me crazy?   How many of us are addicts?    

Hi, My name is Christie and I am an addict, a crack'berry addict.   This is hard for me to admit this now, in front of you, today.  I am also addicted to work.  It lives with me.  Day and night. It lies in wait, behind every door, in every drawer.  I feel guilt if I walk past it.   If I take a few minutes to water the plants, pet the dogs... it calls my name lying in wait around every corner.    

Ok I said it.

Is this what it is like to be addicted to something?  A pull so strong that you can't stop?   An urge to take one last look at it?   Check it just in case?   

That is what I am thinking about tonight as one year ends and the next soon begins.     I am not sure that is what the end of the year should be remembered by.   So I sit and ponder how I ended up here in crack'berry hell?    Is it something I can over come?  Has anyone else been able to overcome the power of it?  Am I alone?  Are there more of us out there?  Are they seeking treatment yet? Was it successful?

There are so many other parts of my life that are far more important, they deserve more attention then they are getting.    Is that how New Year Resolutions are born?    I don't usually make resolutions but this year may be different.    I am back to making a list. So far it is a bizarre list.  I have a notebook that I add to when things interest me.  It is full of a year of notes from things I read, heard, saw or just thought of.  I pulled a few things from it to remind me of a year. 

Some of them may make sense to you others only to me and Grover ate a few along the way.

• Family, Friends
• Carolyn Myss
• Negative to positive
• Birds
• Ellie, Jet  Grover
• Brain Tanning
• Are horrible things good things?
• Camera
• conscienceness, Quantum Physics
• Side roads
• Decisions made based on fear?  What compels me enough to break through fear? Am I afraid? 
• F Stop - a good explanation of it? 
• Nerite Snails
• Bamboo fiber
• 1295 a day
• APD
• Downsizing my life, my belongings: Simplify, less complicated, less stuff
• Tomatoes, blueberries, potting bench, Raised beds
• Giving 
• Alaska
• Tomorrow
• MC
• Primal Pet Foods
• Hampshire Timber Frame cottage 1400
• Dig deep and move forward
• Measure 100 times, buy once
• South Dakota
• Thankful everyday

I have to admit that there is one great thing over the last year I have done for myself. I took the time each day to focus on it.   I did not realize how important it was to me until I started getting close to the end.   It gave me back a power and belief in myself that I had somehow lost along the way.   I now wake up feeling like a new person, embarrassed that I grew so far away from myself and did not realize where I had ended up.  But even with my crack'berry addiction I managed to find a very important part of myself that had slipped away.  

Me.  I found me, the old me.  The me I know I am.  The me that drives me.  The me that even drove me to my addiction.  But it is me I found.   I am not sure I know me any more, but I found me.    I think the new year will be spent figuring out just who that me is.    It may have to wait patiently as the crack'berry rings in or the email dings again but it will not be forgotten, not for one day or one minute.

So as the year closes, I am me again.  And for 2008 and for me; I am thankful.

My Blood is Boiling this Morning & no its not Tequila!

I am sitting here contemplating the US auto maker bailout debate watching my blood pressure raise with each article I read.    If, as a US citizen, I am expected to be financially responsible, pay my bills on time, pay my taxes on time and in the proper way then I wholly expect that my fellow citizens including the US auto makers do the same!    

Is it my responsibility that they did not have the for-sight to be competitive?  Did I not have to make financial decisions based on my income?   Did I not skip buying the big fancy Hummer H-3 that I have dreamed about for years?    Skip the kitchen re-do that desperately needs to be done, the plumbing Issues that have cropped up over the last few months?     I work my ass off every day and do a lot of planning to ensure that tomorrow there is enough money to pay bills, buy food and have a few pleasures along the way.     I do not expect that anyone will come save my ass if I over do it and spend beyond my abilities.     I too have to stay competitive in my job, think about today and then plan for tomorrow.     I get that what I do is on a smaller scale but at the end of the day I have my own business - me and as I have to plan so do they.   

I am livid that my representatives would even consider that a short term bail out is the answer.     Then we have the United Auto Workers (UAW).     I'd like to see the concessions they are making to help the problem, of which high paying wages are one of the problems that keep the US Auto Makers from being competitive.   What are they willing to do?        Not a lot from what I can see.    So as I sit and watch my 401k tank, plan for my business strategy next year, my blood continues to boil.   

So...   I am off to dream of more interesting times and give my blood pressure a rest.  I have managed to sort through the rest of the pictures from my trip home.  

I found a very interesting ghost town on the way home.    About 2 hours or so outside of Albuquerque is a tiny little town called Cuevos New Mexico.   The Highway runs smack dab down the middle of the town.   One side of the town has life to it (not much: gas, a little store) and a few uninhabited buildings.

The other side of the the highway holds what for the most part appears to have some life - not much but at least a stopping point in the middle of nowhere!  

The little ghost town was amazing!    The old homes and business of days gone by made for quite a fun morning.   It was very cold and windy and at the end of my time there I spent about 20 minutes pulling cactus thorns out of my feet.  But well worth it.  Here is what I found that morning.

Here is the culprit for the cactus in my feet - note to self - don't wear mules when trekking around an old over grown ghost town. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Interestingly, the church appears to be used from time to time.  The grass is manicured and the all windows appear to be in good condition with a lock on the door giving hint that there is life around this area.