Another Chance Ranch

Having Flashbacks?

2006-10-20T15:29:00.000-05:00

What are you smokin'?

Hmmm....

Well, here is the deal! I have moved! Yep! Got the heck of out Dodge! Ok, globber. Anyway, if you want to see the new me head on over to the new Another Chance Ranch!

Hope you like it! Don't forget to change your bloglines, or link to my new site.

Hope to see you all there.

Emeril's Spicy Nuts

2006-10-20T07:33:00.000-05:00

Okay, this has nothing to do with Emeril or his spicy nuts, but Mrs. Ca had a funny post about watching Emeril one morning. Reading that post reminded me of a funny little story.

As a kid we used to do our grocery shopping in "the city." There is a Crest Foods there. Crest is like a warehouse grocer. Anyway, we had made a trip up to get groceries and Mom decided that since we had behaved while shopping, she would get us a treat at Sonic. I honestly don't remember what I got but, my sister wanted a hot fudge sundae. She ordered it and then said, "Do you have nuts?" She wasn't old enough to realize what she had just said. We couldn't hear the teenage boy's response over all of our laughter. I guess he did have nuts because when the carhop brought our order out, her hot fudge sundae was covered in nuts.

Just a few funnies about this post that didn't make it in the previous paragraph. They just didn't fit.

Every trip to the grocery store Mom would have to turn around and tell us to shake a leg. Meaning hurry it up. But what do you think we would do? Yep, stand there in the middle of the aisle and shake a leg. Oh, the good times at the grocery store.

And at the Sonic, the carhop wore roller skates. Speaking of Sonic, has anyone seen the Sonic commercial about blogging? It is too funny! I laugh everytime I see it. I am trying to get the look down so I can use it on McD. HA! Anyway, Brian, the guy in the commercial with his wife, really does have a blog. If you check it out be sure to look at his About.

Quotes of the Day, Oct 18

2006-10-18T09:04:00.000-05:00

Yes, you read that right - Quotes instead of just the quote of the day. I have several sources now. Pam does a great job of sending out Thoughts for the Day to my email box, as she does to several others, I assume. I have also mentioned that I downloaded a wonderful little widget that gives me a quote of the day. And, last but not least, Swampwitch gave me a wonderful gift when we met. I will share more of the gift later, but this part of the gift was a great book called, "Illuminating Wit, Inspiring Wisdom - Proverbs from Around the World" by Wolfgang Mieder (The world's top proverb expert.) Just in case any of you like books like this. I will tell where each quote came from.

Failure is success if we learn from it.
--Malcom Forbes
(from my wonderful little widget)

Life is full of beauty. Notice it. Notice the bumble bee, the small child, and the smiling faces. Smell the rain, and feel the wind. Live your life to the fullest potential, and fight for your dreams.
--Ashley Smith
(from Pam)

The accountant is clever at numbers, but he is ignorant of his own accounts.
--Indian (Tamil) Proverb
(from the book from Swampwitch)

Studying for the accounting test might be what made me pick the last one. But it is pretty funny. I actually know some people in that situation.

A Shout Out!

2006-10-17T10:52:00.000-05:00

Hey Everybody! I found a new blog, glob for SW. Her name is AJ and her Grass...is Blue. Go by and say hello!! She has an awesome blog template! I love it!

Rambling Randomness

2006-10-17T10:17:00.000-05:00

This is a photo P3 took of the first snow there in Creede, CO. Keep in mind this photo was taken in August I think. So they have had more snow since then. I am so glad that we gave him that camera. He has used it and shared the photos, well some of them. Now that his baby girl is here I hope he shares even more.

Today one of the coolest things happened. I was walking across campus under a bunch of trees and the leaves started falling. The breeze was very gentle but strong enough to send a few colored leaves down in front of me. Then I walked past a man filling his pipe with tobacco. MMM! Gotta love the smell of that. I was headed to the library to grab a computer and do some studying. In front of the library is a very nice, large water fountain. Last week it was spewing suds. Someone had put some sort of detergent in the fountain. There was foam everywhere. But I have to admit, it looked pretty cool. This week? Well this weekend is our homecoming game, so someone has put something orange in the fountain. I would have thought they would have done it for "Orange" Peel, but they waited until homecoming. It looks like of cool too. I wonder how much food coloring they have to use to keep that water that Orange. It is really really orange.

This is what I drove through this morning. Fog! Frog! Soup! Whatever you want to call it. I have heard more words for fog today than I have heard in a long time. What do you call it?

Here is some more of that fog stuff. Only I don't think I would want to be on that sailboat. Makes for a good kodak moment though.

Cadillac Ranch Chili

2006-10-16T07:35:00.000-05:00

This here is a recipe that I found while shopping for a friend. She loves to cook and loves cookbooks. It is a western cookbook and has favorite recipes from lots of country & western singers, actors, television personalities, etc. As we were on our way home from shopping I was thumbing through it and found this recipe. Then I had to write it down before I wrapped the book. (Wrapping consisted of a gift bag and tissue paper. Ha!)

This recipe didn't just sound good, it just happened to be one of our favorite singer's recipe. Chris LeDoux. We saw him several times in concert, read his book, have lots of his older music and his new. He was a good guy. It was sad to hear of his passing. This chili is named after one of his songs, Cadillac Ranch. And here it is:

2 lbs. hamburger
1 garlic clove, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1/2 c. chopped onions
1 - 16 oz. can tomato sauce
1 Bay leaf
2 to 3 Tbsp chili powder
1 to 2 - 15 oz. cans chili beans

Fry hamburger, garlic, green pepper, and onions on medium heat until meat is browned. Drain off excess drippings. Add tomato sauce, bay leaf, chili powder, and beans. Cook for 30 minutes to 1 hour and eat. Makes 8 to 10 servings.

Hope you all enjoy!

Dang - Tagged Again!

2006-10-15T00:25:00.000-05:00

Don't you people know I am busy? Tehee!

I was tagged again. I will be honest, I don't remember who tagged me or who else was tagged. I just remembered I was tagged and thought I better get it done before I forget.

I am supposed to tell 5 of my oddities. This made me really think. Because everything that I came up with, well, everyone does them. So I decided to go the Food Route. I do have some strange habits in that area. Or so I am told.

1. I eat ketchup on my pizza. Have since I was a kid. I can do without it but I have to put something on it whether it is ketchup, ranch or ground red pepper and cheese. Don't knock it till you try it. Seriously.

2. I drink pickle juice. Yes, out of the jar. Have since I was a kid. LOVE IT!

3. Sour Lemonade is one of my favorite drinks. Water, real Lemon juice, and salt. Yum-o! Have been drinking it since I was a kid. (See a pattern here?) My Mom got me started on it.

4. I would rather eat brownie dough than the baked version of brownies. Same goes for cookies, oh and cinnamon rolls. Have you ever had a raw cinnamon roll? Delish! I bet you guessed it this time. Have been doing all of the above since I was a kid.

and last but not least,
5. This one isn't about eating the food it is about smelling it. Milk. Milk, it does a body good. I love milk. But I have to smell it every single time it comes out of the fridge. I even have other people doing it. If someone is going to pour me a glass of milk they have to, HAVE to smell it first. One good thing about that is that I never take a swig of sour milk. And yes, I have been doing this since I was a kid. I guess you could say I am just stuck in my ways.

Now I guess I am supposed to tag someone, but I am going to just say that if you feel like sharing your oddities do so. Just let me know so I can come and see that I am not the only odd one in the bunch.

She's Here!!

2006-10-14T22:56:00.000-05:00

I don't know if I have mentioned that we had a new grandbaby on the way, but we did. And now she is here! She was born at 3:32 p.m., weighed 6.5 oz. and was 19.25" long. She has a bunch of dark hair, ten very long fingers, and very long feet with 5 toes on each. Momma and baby are doing well. They haven't settled on a name just yet. They want to spend a little more time with her. They had one picked out and then when she got here they decided they wanted to spend a little bit of time with her before they labeled her for life. We can't wait to see her. It really stinks when they live over 10 hours away. Oh well! Don't know when I will get photos but will certainly share some when I can.

The Traveling Carnival

2006-10-14T21:59:00.000-05:00

How fun is that?!?! The Blogging Chicks Carnival has traveled to Suspension of Disbelief. Lindsey is hosting this week's carnival. The theme is New Year's Resolutions. Did you have any and did you stick with them?

New Year's Resolutions? This year I took the easy way out. My list was really lame. Graduate and find a job. I think everyone here knows I graduate in December, I know you are tired of hearing it & I probably won't mention it again. I only mentioned it because of the Carnival. But I have a few leads on jobs and have resumes' floating around town already. Keep your fingers crossed for me.

Next year's list is going to be full of the normal stuff. Get into a routine with things like losing weight and working out. Yadayadayada.

So I guess you could say that I kept my New Year's Resolutions this year, but it will be the first year ever that I did. I hope next year I will do the same.

My Look-alikes

2006-10-14T11:53:00.000-05:00

I don't know if I agree with this or not. I did it again with another photo and a few of the same people on it. I just didn't think you would be interested in all of that.

Willowtree - I would like to see yours. See if Charlie Daniels shows up.

Harassing Horses

2006-10-12T10:34:00.000-05:00

Not pictured: Dandy

Here are the horses (from left to right): Hickory, Ruby, and Babe. This is what they do every chance they get. They come up to the yard and harass the dogs. It is like they are saying, "Look at us, we aren't penned up." Little do they know, they are penned up it is just a much larger pen. Hoss and Mia play right along. Barking and growling until the horses think they have harassed them enough, or get hungry.

Hickory must really love to taunt them. He will take a little nap while the dogs are going nuts. I have to say, this is really very annoying for McD and I. We yell at them to stop but it does no good.

Animals are so much like people. These horses are just like the kids in school that taunt the others. What personalities they have!
===================================

On another note, Babe (the one that got stuck in the mud), is still a bit lame. And around here it is not what you know, it is who you know. So I called my friend the doctor and told him what the deal was. He is the previous owner of Babe and still has horses of his own. He told me that he would call in some steriods for her to get rid of the inflammation. He called it in to our local pharmacy and McD went to pick it up. He walked in and they said, well we are going to need to get some information on Babe since we haven't filled any prescriptions for her before. McD just laughed. Luckily he knew one of the pharmacists and told him that Babe is actually a horse. The man just giggled, that is what McD said, he giggled and said he would just put that Babe is a horse on her records. Poor Babe. She had to have 30 pills yesterday and I think it is 15 for the next few days. She takes them quite well.

Quote of the Day, October 12

2006-10-12T10:25:00.000-05:00

"Try and fail, but don't fail to try."
~Stephen Kaggwa~

My Traveling Granny

2006-10-11T08:42:00.000-05:00

My Grandparents

My Granny is a world traveler. I might have mentioned that before. She is in China as I type this, she left yesterday. She is 75 and he is 78. Grandad doesn't care to travel. He does it when he HAS to, but usually Granny can find someone to go with her. It helps that we usually get to travel with her for free. She takes care of her friends and family when it comes to traveling.

They really aren't the "western" types. This photo was taken at one of their conventions. They own a nutrition store and were being recognized in their company as being one of four couples that had made Senior Nationals (the highest level in that company). The trip to China is a perk from their job. So is every car they have ever owned in the past 15 years. I am telling you, they hit it just right.

I thought you might like to see a photo of my travel partner. She is the one that took me to Europe, Canada (Vancouver & Vancouver Island), Bahamas, and several states here and there.

Here's to Granny having a great time in China and a safe trip!

Quote of the Day, Oct 10

2006-10-10T08:42:00.000-05:00

You are remembered for the rules you break.
~~Douglas MacArthur~~

(This is certainly true in sports - take Pete Rose for instance.)

Are you linked?

2006-10-10T08:32:00.000-05:00

I can't remember where I found this but I did and it is kind of fun to check out every now and again. Sometimes when I don't have a whole lot of time I go here to see if anyone has linked to me so I can drop by their site.

So check it out and see if anyone has linked to you.

IceRocket

I also have a link on my tabs so if you need it.

Talk About Spoiled

2006-10-09T21:33:00.000-05:00

Mordecai getting a drink.

This is one spoiled kitty cat. When I am getting ready in the mornings he thinks he needs to get a drink. Not out of his water bowl, out of the bathtub faucet. I am not really sure how it all started because he is just like all the other cats. He hates water. But he will get in the tub, meow until someone turns on the faucet and then drinks until he can't drink anymore.

What is really bad about this whole deal is that we actually turn the water on for him. I keep telling him he needs to learn to shut the water off when he is finished, but he doesn't listen.

My Moon

2006-10-09T16:36:00.000-05:00

Claudia took some moon shots and I told her that I would post a couple of mine. So here ya go.

I sure wish I would have gotten off my lazy butt last night and taken a photo of the moon, it was beautiful!! Oh well! If you guys decide to share some moon shots let me know. I would love to see yours. I've shown you mine, now it's your turn.

The Fall Carnival

2006-10-08T06:00:00.000-05:00

(The above photos are not mine. I tried to link to the page but the link no longer works.)

To see these photos of different colorful leaves Click Here. There are some really great photos of the changing leaves and what each kind of tree leaves look like.

Fall Colors are everywhere. Be sure to check out where the leaves are turning near you.

Our weather hasn't changed enough for the leaves to be changing, so I don't have any photos of my own.

Fall means it is time for chili, hot chocolate, sitting around the fire, and the holidays are coming. I will be posting a really good chili recipe this week so come back to get it.

Hope everyone is enjoying the Carnival.

The Have You Ever List, Part 2 - 5

2006-10-07T11:06:00.000-05:00

Well, you will learn I am a very impatient person. So instead of waiting, I am finishing the list. Keep in mind, this is not a list that I have compiled to do before I die. This is just some list I found at Anne's and am following suit. I am not tagging anyone, but if you do decide to let us know what you have done - drop a line in my comments so I can go and check out your "done" list.

Now you will see why I thought it should be broken up into 5 parts. It is long! Again, mine are highlighted.

26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse
34. Ridden a roller coaster
35. Hit a home run
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer
40. Visited all 50 states I am working on this one.
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk
42. Had amazing friends
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44. Watched wild whales
45. Stolen a sign
46. Backpacked in Europe
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Midnight walk on the beach (beach at the lake count?)
50. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Ireland
52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger's table and had a meal with them
54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow
56. Alphabetized your CDs
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day
60. Posed nude in front of strangers
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69. Toured ancient sites
70. Taken a martial arts class
71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight
72. Gotten married
73. Been in a movie (home movies, hee hee)
74. Crashed a party
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch
78. Won first prize in a costume contest No, but I should have!
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice
80. Gotten a tattoo
81. Rafted the Snake River
82. Been on television news programs as an "expert"
83. Got flowers for no reason
84. Performed on stage
85. Been to Las Vegas
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark
88. Had a one-night stand
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one/both of your parents
93. Been on a cruise ship
94. Spoken more than one language fluently
95. Performed in Rocky Horror
96. Raised children (helped with stepsons)
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn't stop when you knew someone was looking
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an accident that you shouldn't have survived
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Petted a stingray
110. Broken someone's heart
111. Helped an animal give birth
112. Won money on a T.V. game show
113. Broken a bone
114. Gone on an African photo safari (No, but I wanna!!)
115. Had a body part of yours below the neck pierced
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse
119. Had major surgery
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Seen the Grand Canyon
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours - was in the hospital
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper
129. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about
130. Gone back to school
131. Parasailed
132. Petted a cockroach - ZoBot I really liked my teacher, and he liked the BIG bugs
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad - and the Odyssey
135. Selected one "important" author who you missed in school, and read
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
137. Skipped all your school reunions
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146. Dyed your hair
147. Been a DJ
148. Shaved your head - part of it a long long time ago
149. Caused a car accident
150. Saved someone's life

What have you done?

20 minutes to go

2006-10-06T18:45:00.000-05:00

Ooohhh!! I am so excited! And I just can't hide it! Okay, I know I can't sing. But there is just 20 minutes to wait until MeerKat Manor comes on. I have to thank Tiggerlane for bringing it to my attention.

Hope someone else is watching too. I have to have someone to chat with about it.

The Have You Ever List, Part 1

2006-10-06T09:26:00.000-05:00

I found this over at Dakotablueeyes' . She found it over at Kelli's. And it is a really, really long list, so I am going to divide it up into five parts. Yep, five! Hope you enjoy, and if you decide to do it too let me know so I can learn more about you.

(Mine are highlighted.)

01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink
02. Swam with dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08. Said "I love you" and meant it
09. Hugged a tree
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game (and survived the crush afterwards)
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
20. Changed a baby's diaper
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower
23. Gotten drunk on champagne
24. Given more than you can afford to charity
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope

Telling Secrets

2006-10-06T09:22:00.000-05:00

Don't you hate it when people share secrets right in front of you?
I wonder what he is telling her.

Ta-Da!

2006-10-05T19:49:00.000-05:00

Here it is!

How do you like the look of my place now? I like this one a whole lot better! It felt like I spent hours looking for a template, but it really didn't take too long to find one. I did find where a few of you got yours though. :) Very nice! The thing that took the longest was getting all of my info to work just right on this template. It still isn't perfected, but I will work on it here and there.

I won't be changing on ya again for quite a while.
_________________________________

WOOHOO! Fall Break is here!
I intend to enjoy it. I will do my homework and study for my tests, but I am going to sleep late and watch Rachael Ray every morning. Why? Because I can!
_________________________________

Quote of the Day

I not only use all the brains that I have, but all that I can borrow.
~~Woodrow Wilson~~

Momma Mia

2006-10-04T14:29:00.000-05:00

Mia in the September Sun.

Look at that fat belly! Oh my goodness! Mia has gained quite a bit of weight. She is fat and sassy! HA!

I took a little que from Willowtree and did a pet post. My animals, at least Hoss and Mordecai, go under the blankets and then back up to the pillow so their head is out of the blanket. They are such funny animals.

Another trip to the Zoo

2006-10-03T22:55:00.000-05:00

The guys on lookout.

Back in August we went to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado Springs. It was Poohs & Punky's first trip to the zoo. It was really a great day. Just too short!

These little guys are some of my favorites. I don't know why really, but they are.

Oh, have you noticed that I LOVE zoos? I hope to go sometime soon when the weather cools off. It got up to 95º here today. It is October isn't it?

Do you think they are just watching the freaks go by with those weird black things up to their faces?

I took all of these at about the same time, maybe all within 5 minutes. To me they all looked dead until...

This little guy popped his head up to see what the crap I was doing!

There Are Enquiring Minds Out There

2006-10-02T21:41:00.000-05:00

SillyHily wants to know who I know and how. Please read Yes, I know Ree!

I have gotten to know Swampwitch a bit from helping her with her "glob." We have spoke over the phone several times and we are planning to meet face to face next week. Hopefully one of us will have a camera with us.

And last but not least, Shauna. I met Shauna in Elementary Calculus class when I attended the junior college here in town. She and I studied together. I decided to take that class here because I have heard horror stories about some of the math professors over at the big school. Most of them are foreign and it is hard to understand them. That's it for the bloggers I know in real life.

Pete wanted to know how classes are going. Well, I have officially flunked my first test. There have been times that I thought I had flunked one after taking it, but this time I really flunked it. I have a meeting with the professor tomorrow. I don't really know why at this point but I will go anyway. I even studied for this test. Oh well. On a better note, I aced a quiz today. :)

And I did get your email Pete. I am sorry I haven't responded, I have fallen behind on my emails, blog reads, comments, etc. I hope everyone understands and bears with me. I will get on track somehow. Thanks for your patience.

Time for a change

2006-10-02T20:56:00.000-05:00

Well, it is time for a change. I have spent most of the day unable to get to my blog. I could get to my dashboard but I could not view my blog. I figured out that it had something to do with all of my Flickr photos, so they are gone. I already miss them, but change is good. Right?

I will just post more photos, and make up for them being gone. I hope to find a better template, but until then this one will have to do.

There are several of you out there that have great templates. SillyHily has a great one and I think she made it herself. I will learn how to do that one day. But until then, if you know of any where I can go on this world wide web to find a new template, let me know. Just leave it in my comments. Hopefully I will find one I like, and who knows some of you might just find one too.

Quote of the Day & Some History, Oct 1

2006-10-01T19:05:00.000-05:00

The future has a way of arriving unannounced. ~George Will~

This day in history:

Free rural postal service began in the U.S., 1896.
First Model T Ford put on the market, 1908.
Jimmy Carter, 39th U.S. President, born 1924.

Another Anniversary

2006-10-01T18:53:00.000-05:00

Happy 12th Anniversary Swampwitch & Hans!!

Sure hope you had a wonderful day!

My Day means what?

2006-10-01T09:10:00.000-05:00

I wasn't going to do this little deal. But if Tiggerlane can do it AND tell her story, then I can do it too. If you haven't read her story, you need to high tail it over there and read it now. It is an interesting story.

Your Birthdate: April 23

(I don't think this thing is right!)

You're not good at any one thing, and that's the problem.
You're good at so much - you never know what to do.
Change is in your blood, and you don't stick to much for long.
You are destined for a life of travel and fun.

Your strength: Your likeability

Your weakness: You never feel satisfied

Your power color: Bright yellow

Your power symbol: Asterisk

Your power month: May

What Does Your Birth Date Mean?

Another Adorable Stray

2006-09-29T08:42:00.000-05:00

What an adorable face. I love big dogs. The bigger the better. As a kid I had a St. Bernard, Cindy. One of my best friends had two Great Danes, not at the same time though. Now I have my Rottie and Weimaraner.

This guy walked up to the house in August. He was so friendly and loving. He got some water and some rest. He hung around for quite a while. I called several people trying to find an owner and couldn't find one. McD said that he would probably just go home. I had errands to run so I took off and when I returned he was gone. I know that we didn't need another dog, but this one McD would have wanted to keep. And I would not have been able to say no.

I sure hope he found his way home.

Quote of the Day, Sept 28

2006-09-28T19:09:00.000-05:00

We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men. ~~Herman Melville~~

The Dip

2006-09-28T10:43:00.000-05:00

Corn Dip that is.

Barngoddess asked if I had any dip recipes. This is one I got from a friend and it is delish!

2 - 11 oz cans whole kernal corn (drained)
1 c. sour cream
1/2 c. mayo
2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp Tabasco
2 Tbsp cilantro (dry or fresh)
1 - 4 oz can green chiles
2 Tbsp jalapenos
salt

(There weren't any directions with this recipe, but I mix it all together and chill for a couple of hours before serving.)

Enjoy!

Quote of the Day & This Day in History, Sept 27

2006-09-27T08:46:00.000-05:00

All truth, in the long run, is only common sense clarified.
~Thomas Huxley~

This Day in History:
Samuel Adams, American patriot, born in 1722. (Hmmm, did ya know that? It must have slipped my mind.)

Sock It To Me

2006-09-27T08:09:00.000-05:00

The Cake

Here is the recipe I had mentioned in my 2nd meme. I wanted to make it and take photos, but who has the time?

1 Duncan Hines Golden Butter Recipe Cake Mix
1 cup Dairy Sour Cream
1/3 cup oil
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
4 eggs

Filling: 2 Tbsp reserved cake mix
2 tsp cinnamon
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1 cup finely chopped pecans (optional)

Glaze: 1 cup powdered sugar
2 Tbsp milk
1 tsp butter
drop of vanilla

Preheat oven to 375º.
Combine ingredients. Beat on high speed for 2 minutes. Put 1/2 the cake mix in a floured bundt cake pan. Then add filling and cover with the remaining cake mix.
Cook for 45 minutes.
Leave in pan for approximately 25 minutes.
Remove from pan and cover with glaze.

Now, if you make this cake take a photo and share it with the rest of us. I may do the same thing this weekend. Let me know if you like it. (Quick note, I do not add the pecans to mine.)

Enjoy!!

Needed Details

2006-09-26T17:00:00.000-05:00

Okay people. Apparently some are not paying much attention. So I need to clarify something. Ruby and Babe - are.not.mules. Got it? Okay. Sorry to be so blunt with it, but Ruby and Babe would be hurt if they knew they were mistaken for mules. I am not going to tell them, but you never know about McD.

Ruby and Babe are Percheron HORSES. Draft horses. (Everyone should know, McD was quite upset with the mule comments as well.) Sorry, hun.

One more thing. I failed to mention in my post about Susie that she belonged to Ree for 4 years. Then she went to her father-in-law. She was nice enough to point out in my comments that I failed to mention that. Thanks Ree. I just wasn't thinking. :)

Quote of the Day, Sept 26

2006-09-26T10:56:00.000-05:00

Too many people overvalue what they are not and undervalue what they are.
~Malcolm Forbes~

(Thanks to Pam even while I am at school I can post my Quote of the Day!)

Our Working Girls

2006-09-25T22:22:00.000-05:00

Ruby & Babe

These are our working girls. We usually just play with them, but occasionally we make them work. When we cut down trees - they pull them out of the canyon. When we take wagon rides - they pull us. We have plowed with them, and as soon as I can get to those photos I will post them. They are really amazing.

Ruby is on your left & Babe is on your right.

This is the team that sometimes gets asked and/or volunteered to be in parades. You can see McD driving them, well actually he is waiting for me to get on the wagon. This was taken this past weekend right before I got onto the wagon. We took the dogs for their first wagon ride. They did pretty good. Mia loved it, Hoss just wanted to harass the horses. They harass him when he is penned up in the yard, so I guess he thinks he should have his turn at them too.

Quote of the Day Returns

2006-09-25T10:08:00.000-05:00

Our knowledge is a little island in a great ocean of nonknowledge. --Isaac Bashevis, singer

(I got a new widget over the weekend and it gives me a new quote for each day. This way I can save a little time.) Enjoy Pam!! I know you were waiting for this to return. :)

A Man's Best Friend

2006-09-24T20:19:00.000-05:00

Everyone, meet Susie. She belongs to a friend of ours, Chuckles. In fact, you can also find her on Ree's post about a long day on horseback. I have even mentioned her in my post Monday Monday back in August. She is a very loving dog. Spoiled! Talented. (How many dogs do you know that can ride a horse?)

I love Jack Russells, but I only want one if it acts like Susie.

Road Hazards

2006-09-24T18:50:00.000-05:00

While on our way home from Creede last time this is what we found on the side of the road. Actually, what caught our attention were the two vehicles pulled over on the side of the highway. There was a white suburban with one of its passengers standing on top of it with either a camera or binoculars. The other vehicle was pulled over and the passengers just looking out the window, if you are wondering it was a red Grand Am, 4 door. I can remember silly little things like that.

We were passing those vehicles mumbling something about they probably see a buffalo or something. Yadayadayada. Then I glance over and see the bear. "STOP! It's a bear," I yelled. McD pulled over quickly. He loves bears! I am shaking while I am trying to get my camera out. Then, I have to change lenses. I don't think I am ever prepared. I am standing out on the side of the road watching for the bear because he had gone over a small hill. The antelope were running everywhere. They must have caught wind of this big guy and were getting the you know what out of dodge. Finally, I tell him that I am going to have to get on top of the Jeep if I want to get any shots of this guy. He didn't want me to. Why? I dunno. I took probably 25 photos, after I got on top of the Jeep. :) You didn't think I was just gonna stand on the side of the road did you? I even had him cruising on the shoulder of the road while I was on top of the car. We were going slow. Yes, I know how dangerous it is. But there was a bear on the side of the road. This is only the second bear I have seen out in the open. (Not counting zoos.)

This second photo is one I was playing with in Photoshop. I Y Photoshop! Anyway, I thought this shot looked good as a watercolor. What do you think?

I guess I should say that we were about 100 yards from the bear. We were at a safe distance. I wanted to cross the fence and get a little closer, but McD put his foot down on that one. He said he would go but I couldn't. How much sense does that make? I am the one with the camera.

A few firsts for me

2006-09-23T12:00:00.000-05:00

I will try to keep these in chronological order.

Tuesday, as I was cruising home from school, my odometer in my Jeep Grand Cherokee turned over to 100,000 miles. This is the first time I have ever had a vehicle with 100,000+ miles on it. I knew this day was coming and had hoped McD would be with me, but he wasn't. I did call him so we could be talking when it happened. I know, this is something silly to get excited about, but didn't you know? I am entertained. :) He was in the middle of telling me something and then it happened. "Ew, oh, it did it! It turned! There is 100,000 miles on my car." Then I had to tell him exactly where I was, etc. HA! Oh well, it was a bit of entertainment for the afternoon. My first thought after hanging up the phone with him (I know, I didn't literally hang up - I just still say that) was Crap, the trade-in value just went down even more. Oh well. I am gonna get a really good job and not even worry about it. :) (Yeah, right!)

Wednesday, spent most of the day trying - keyword is trying - to study for a test on Thursday. I sucessfully helped Swampwitch do things with her blog. We are still working on it so please don't judge it just yet. Give us a just a little more time. So, this was the first time that I really did not study for a test. I did read all I needed to read (I think it helped a little), but I am just not interested in this class so I don't feel like I am retaining much. Oh well! I am trying to get a headstart on the next chapter. Yes, I am a nerd.

Thursday night. I got home from a long day at school. Changed out of my jeans and into my sweats. Got all cozy in my recliner in front of the tele watching Survivor. I heard a sound that I really shouldn't have. Unless, of course, someone was loading my horses in a trailer without me knowing it. So I look out the window, from my recliner, and see Babe standing in the trailer. Ruby was right behind her wanting in also. The first here, you ask? This is the first time that these girls have loaded into a trailer without coaxing or leading them in. Crazy girls! I guess they wanted to get the heck out of dodge.

Friday, I got a new friend. Normally I would be sitting at the dining room table using the computer. But not today! Today I am sitting in my recliner posting this. I was out on the porch earlier today surfing the web. And this afternoon I am going to test this new Wireless Router and see just how far I can go and remain connected to the Net. I am hoping that I can make it to one of my favorite places and sit at a picnic table to do homework, blogging, etc. How relaxing would that be? I can't wait.

Oh and Friday night I made French Dip Sandwiches for the first time. I love Rachael Ray, and this is one of her recipes. Oh you should check it out. They were delish! They were Yum-O! I am getting ready to have another for lunch! Yum!

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Interesting, very interesting...

2006-09-22T10:18:00.000-05:00

Your Linguistic Profile:

45% General American English

25% Dixie

15% Yankee

5% Midwestern

5% Upper Midwestern

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

Yes, I know Ree!

2006-09-22T08:50:00.000-05:00

Wow, I didn't realize that knowing Ree and Marlboro Man was going to make me famous. :) She has turned into the biggest internet celeb I know. Okay, the only one I know. Who else gets 68 comments on one post? I don't get 68 comments on 4 posts.

Several of you have asked how I know Ree. Well, there really isn't a huge story here. I met her at a Ranch Rodeo that her then boyfriend, Marlboro Man, was participating in with his family ranch. She was very friendly and we all liked her right away. She was very inquisitive. I believe it was her first Ranch Rodeo and they are a bit different than just your plain ol' rodeo. She has a great post over on her blog about her studly husband and the rest of the guys winning the Ranch Rodeo. Finally!! There were a couple of years that we just knew we won, but it ended up that we didn't. One time we won. Celebrated. And then they took the win away after further review. Oh well, it was one heck of a party.

I say "we" because for one we have been attending these rodeos with them for at least 13 years. We sit in their box, with them and cheer for their cowboys just like we were one of them. It is funny to sit and think about the early days with this family. Chuckles would drive me crazy calling at all hours of the night. McD went completely bald dealing with all of his crazy antics. :) Okay, I am just kidding. He was already bald. But it has been a ride. McD and Chuckles, M.M.'s dad, started it all with a business relationship. The business included working with Tim, Ree's pesky brother-in-law, and Marlboro Man, not to mention most of the cowboys. He got to know them all. Then he brought me into the picture. I got to know each of them and have spent time with all of them. And then the girlfriends showed up. Then they turned into fiances, and then they married these girls. Which is a good thing.

Early on when Ree & Marlboro Man were newlyweds, and pregnant at the next ranch rodeo , I think she felt like she had to entertain us because of the business relationship. She did a great job. She sat there and had some 7-up, I believe, while we all had our alcohol fix. She was very entertaining. She saved the belching and raising legs over her head for a bit later. :) Man, that girl is limber. Now, although there is still a business relationship, I consider them friends.

See, not much of a story here. WT - sorry I didn't get this posted last night like I told you I would. Can you say pooped!? I collapsed in the recliner and didn't do much of anything.

Happy 10th Anniversary

2006-09-21T10:42:00.000-05:00

Ree & Marlboro Man!!

And many, many more!!!

(Sorry, I don't have any photos of you all so I had to rob some from your sites.)

I can't believe 10 years ago today we were watching you two lovebirds get married. Oh and then the spread afterwards. Yum!!

Congrats on 10 years!!

In Honor of Pirate's Day

2006-09-19T23:01:00.000-05:00

My pirate name is:

Bloody Jenny Cash

Every pirate lives for something different. For some, it's the open sea. For others (the masochists), it's the food. For you, it's definitely the fighting. You're musical, and you've got a certain style if not flair. You'll do just fine. Arr!

Get your own pirate name from piratequiz.com.
part of the fidius.org network

I wonder if that is why they had a pirate family on Wife Swap last night? Hmmm. It was an interesting one.

My Second MeMe

2006-09-19T10:14:00.000-05:00

Robin tagged me. Well, tagged me then un-tagged me, and then re-tagged me. So here goes!

Four jobs I have had in my life:

1. Fritter girl at Catfish Round-up
2. Waitress at Catfish Round-up
3. Buyer's assistant for a Farm/Ranch Chain
4. Admin. Assistant @ Doctor's office

Four movies I could watch over and over:

1. Pretty Woman
2. The Santa Clause
3. Monte Walsh
4. Lonesome Dove
(I have many more I could list though.)

Four Places I have lived:

1. Shawnee, OK.
2. Seminole, OK.
3. Summers, AR.
4. Enid, OK

Four things I like to do:

1. Cook - sometimes I like to eat what I cook
2. Spend time with McD
3. Spend time with Poohs & Punky
4. Do you really wanna know #4? Nothin' says "lovin'" like lovin'...... ;)(Ditto)

(notice I didn't say blogging; since it's obvious I do that and rather often, why state the obvious?)(Ditto to Robin again!)

Four of my favorite foods:

1. Steak
2. Southern prepared veggies (fresh corn, fried okra, sauteed squash in a pound of butter)YUMMM!
3. Fruit
4. Sock-it-to-me cake or popcorn balls (both made by mom)

Four places I would like to be right now:

1. Home (I am in the library on campus)
2. The beach
3. The lake
4. In the Mountains

Four websites I visit daily:

1. Weather sites (especially during the school year)
2. okstate.edu (for classes)
3. iTunes...I get free music for being a college student (ipod is getting full)
4. B L O G M A T E S, but actually, it changes day to day...too many good ones to read 'em all in a day, so it's a weekly kind of thing (Leaving this here but don't have time to put links to each blog right now.) Great idea by the way Robin.

Four places I have been on vacation:

1. Europe
2. Bahamas
3. Tennessee - Graceland twice. Opryland, etc.
4. Atlanta, GA - 2000 All-Star Game activities

Four friends I think might respond—-hmmm

1. Willowtree, because he tagged me on something before.
2. SillyHily just because I think she would have some good answers.
3. Pamela because she seems like the adventurous type. I want to hear where she has been & what her fave movies are.
4. Tiffany because we have got to get Pee, Poo, and Ebola Virus on down the page. :)

Thanks to Robin for re-tagging me. Although it was mighty considerate of her to de-tag me because she was concerned about me getting all my homework done. :) Thanks! I really wanted to do this though. I was beginning to get Globbers Block. :)

Oklahoma - Where the West Remains

2006-09-17T09:23:00.000-05:00

R.W. Hampton

Last night we went to a great concert - Oklahoma, Where the West Remains. R.W. Hampton teamed up with our local Symphony Orchestra to celebrate our great state turning 100 next year. It was a premiere concert. They plan on taking this show around the state and possibly even taking it to the Kennedy Center. It was amazing. Every time I hear R.W. sing I walk away knowing that I did not just waste that hour or two of my life. It is certainly time well spent. His voice is amazing. And he is such a nice man. We have been fortunate enough to get to know him a little bit.

Our day started with the Cherokee Strip parade. We were kind of roped into the deal. I do not like being roped into anything, but we went along with it but next time it will be a different story. At first people organizing this whole thing wanted McD to drive our team of horses and pull our wagon. But our girl Babe was a bit lame from a hoof injury. She is fine, it was just sore and we didn't think she needed to be pulling in a parade. Another thing is that they haven't been in a parade in three years, so I wouldn't be comfortable torturing them like that. I guess I should say, I do not like parades. Never have.

We ended up riding in a wagon with McD's bank banners all over it. We had the wagon full of friends , and R.W. McD's bank contributed quite a bit of moula to make this concert possible. I do have to say, it was money well spent. The mules that were pulling our wagon had not been in a parade before so we were a bit scared at first. We had two outriders.

007

Slick

They did a really good job as outriders, and most importantly, I think they had a good time doing it. The team settled down, and did really well. We didn't lose anyone off of the wagon, came close to losing R.W. once but I reached out to him just in time. Let's just say I got to know him even more on that little wagon ride. :) The kids had fun. Even the adults had fun.

I was lazy that afternoon though. I layed on the couch watching football and napping for most of the afternoon. Karmyn asked who I was going for between the Sooners and the Ducks since I am a OSU Cowboys fan. Well, I happen to be one of the few people that will root for both teams from Oklahoma. So, to answer your question Karmyn, I was going for the Sooners. And we got robbed!!! I'm telling you that those zebras need glasses. :) Bad, bad calls towards the end of the game. Oh well. It happens. But my Cowboys won!!

Then we went to the concert mentioned above. I just have to say this. If you like cowboy music, poetry, or just to hear excellent entertainment go to an R.W. Hampton concert. You can go to his website and see the upcoming concerts that are scheduled. And if I hear of anything I will let you all know. I know this. He will be here in town again this afternoon with our Symphony Orchestra and I am telling everyone I know that they need to go. :)

Celebrity Look-Alikes

2006-09-15T09:49:00.000-05:00

Have you ever noticed that celebrity look-alikes are everywhere? Well, they are.

Last semester I had Napoleon Dynamite in my Management class. No lie, he looked just like Napoleon. He even sounded kind of like him.

This semester I have an Econ class with Screech. Remember him from Saved by the Bell? Now, in real life he is broke and trying to save his house by selling t-shirts. But the Screech in my class is nothing like him. He is much taller and does not sound like the Screech on television.

Before going back to school, I worked at a doctor's office and he had a patient that looked just like Ed McMahon. Every once in a while we would tease him about bringing us a big check. He acted like it made his day, but we didn't push it.

People tell me I look like Angie Harmon. I dunno. McD, (who is going to kill me when he sees this), was mistaken for Richard Dreyfuss one time. It was hilarious. I know I had more people in mind when I started this, but I seem to have forgotten.

It is really funny how people look so much like each other. Or so I think it is. Oh yeah, Willowtree looked like Charlie Daniels back in the day. :)

Well, to add more to my busy life, I have traveled to my Grandparents home and am getting ready to start my new job with them. I will be doing their billing for them once a month or so. :) After work we will get to go shopping though. :) Fun Fun!

Everyone have a great weekend!

One Wild Bull

2006-09-13T09:12:00.000-05:00

(Finally Blogger is cooperating. It could be because I just downloaded FIREFOX! And I LOVE it!) So here is the post I wanted to publish earlier.

This is the wild one.

Yesterday I received a call from McD telling me that the Longhorn bull was out again. This is not our bull. This bull belongs to some numbskull living in our area. I am not sure why he even has this bull.

The first time the guys were called the bull was in another man's pasture. The Animal Control guys had been out there in pick-ups chasing the bull, trying to catch him. OO7, Slick & McD used horses and ropes. And they got the job done in record time.

Here is the standoff between OO7 & the bull.

As you can see there were several tries at roping the wild beast. Slick did rope him, but had to let the rope go. This bull was jumping fences trying to get away from them. They eventually drove him to the pens and then loaded him in the trailer. I wish I would have gotten a photo of OO7 working his bull whip to drive that bull in the trailer but I didn't. He cracked that whip and the bull when right in the trailer. It was a sight to see that is for sure.

The guys after the job was done.

So when they called yesterday saying the bull was out again, the guys were ready to go. I wasn't able to go this time, but McD said the bull jumped 3 fences and eventually ended up in his pasture on his own.

Dear Blogger

2006-09-13T08:44:00.000-05:00

Dear Blogger,

I had a really great post this morning. It was full of photos and a nice little story. But you refuse to allow photos today. WHAT.IS.YOUR.PROBLEM?

Stay tuned everyone. I am trying to wait patiently for blogger to pull its head out, if you know what I mean.

Places I Have Been

2006-09-13T08:35:00.000-05:00

create your own visited states map
or check out these Google Hacks.

Here are a few places I have been. This does not include my trips out of the country, but they don't amount to much so I don't want to mess with them just yet.

Sorry, I can't figure out how to make this smaller. Any hints?

Alan Jackson said it best...

2006-09-10T21:51:00.000-05:00

Where were you when the world stopped turnin'
that September day?
Out in the yard with your wife and children;
Or working on some stage in L.A.?
Did you stand there in shock at the sight of that black smoke
Rising against that blue sky?
Did you shout out in anger in fear for your neighbor
Or did you just sit down and cry?

Did you weep for the children
that lost their dear loved ones?
Did you pray for the ones who don't know?
Did you rejoice for the people who walked from the rubble
and sob for the ones left below?
Did you burst out in pride for the red white and blue
And the heroes who died just doin' what they do?
Did you look up to heaven for some kind of answer?
And look at yourself for what really matters?

(Chorus)
I'm just a singer of simple songs;
I'm not a real political man
I watch CNN, but I'm not sure I can tell you the difference
in Iraq and Iran
But I know Jesus and I talk to God
And I remember this from when I was young
Faith, Hope and Love are some good things He gave us
And the greatest is Love.

Where were you when the world stopped turning
That September day?
Teaching a class full of innocent children;
Driving down some cold interstate?
Did you feel guilty 'cause you're a survivor
in a crowded room did you feel alone?
Did you call up your mother and tell her you love her?
Did you dust off that bible at home?

Did you open your eyes hope it never happened;
And close your eyes and not go to sleep?
Did you notice the sunset the first time in ages;
Or speak to some stranger on the street?
Did you lay down at night and think of tomorrow;
Go out and buy you a gun?
Did you turn off that violent old movie you're watchin'
And turn on "I Love Lucy" reruns?

Did you go to a church and hold hands with some strangers?
Stand in line and give your own blood?
Did you just stay home and cling tight to your family
Thank God you had somebody to love?

(Chorus)
I'm just a singer of simple songs;
I'm not a real political man
I watch CNN, but I'm not sure I can tell you the difference
in Iraq and Iran
But I know Jesus and I talk to God
And I remember this from when I was young
Faith, Hope and Love are some good things He gave us
And the greatest is Love.

I'm just a singer of simple songs;
I'm not a real political man
I watch CNN, but I'm not sure I can tell you the difference
in Iraq and Iran
But I know Jesus and I talk to God
And I remember this from when I was young
Faith, Hope and Love are some good things He gave us
And the greatest is Love.
And the greatest is Love.
And the greatest is Love.

Where were you when the world stopped turnin'
that September day?

-------I know that I will never forget where I was and what I was doing on Sept. 11, 2001. I also know that I am not alone. Please keep each and every family affected in your prayers.

Edited to say I should probably say where I was, and what I was doing. I worked for a doctor's office and he would sit in his office listening to the radio sometimes in between patients. It was a pretty slow day and he was listening. He literally ran into the front office spewing out all that was going on. We didn't understand or couldn't comprehend it all. We moved our weather radio out into the front and began listening to all the reports. We didn't have a visual on anything until we all made it home. McD was out of town and I was panicing. I called him over and over asking the same thing. Are you okay? And where are you? Most of our patients didn't even come in that day, they cancelled their appointments or just didn't show up. It was the quietest day ever in that office. I will always remember.

Practical Jokes

2006-09-10T08:13:00.000-05:00

(This photo has nothing to do with this post. I just like it - Following WT's lead.)

I like practical jokes. Really, I do. I just like doing them on someone else. I am not too fond of them being pulled on me. But usually I am a good sport. Usually. My McDreamy's job sends him to several meetings every year. Sometimes his board of directors are at the meetings. These guys are a hoot. One of them, Cochy, is a jokester. When we get together we sometimes pull pranks. I think we were in San Diego. There was a store that had magic tricks and jokester stuff, and Cochy went & purchased. No one, except McD and I, knew about it until it was too late.

Picture an elevator full of people. I mean FULL. He did have the decency to wait until most of the people we did not know had gotten off. He took a package out of his pocket, dropped it on the floor and stepped on it. Nothing happened. So he stepped on it again. Keep in mind, McD and I know what he is doing so we are facing the other way trying not to let our inside laughter out. Then it happened.

The smell of rotten eggs filled the elevator. People were gagging, covering their noses and looking like they were afraid to say anything. All three of us were rolling with laughter. We just couldn't hold it in any longer. Luckily he stepped on it right before our floor so we got out and left the smell behind. It was hilarious. What made me laugh even more was thinking about the poor souls that were going to get in the elevator next.

What fun! I know there are some practical jokers out there. What has been your best? This one isn't mine but I have to say that post for a another day.

Pet Peeves

2006-09-07T21:11:00.000-05:00

Everyone has pet peeves, but how many people can say what their biggest pet peeve is? It is tough.

I would say my biggest pet peeve is people smacking. Smacking their gum. Smacking their food. Just smacking when they talk. Smacking. When I was a kid and we would all be sitting around the dinner table my Dad would tell us that we would have to get up from the table if we kept smacking our food. If we were chewing gum, and we were smacking - you guessed it. We had to spit the gum out. I didn't notice it too much as a kid but my Mom smacks all the frickin' time. I can just look at her and she will stop. It drives me bonkers!!!

But then there are always other pet peeves that seem pretty big when they happen. I am on the road all the time it seems. It drives me crazy when people don't use their blinkers. Oh, left lane drivers!! Don't they know that the left lane is the fast lane. Not lollygagger lane. I saw a pick-up one time that had a bumper sticker saying, "I hate left-laners."

Just a couple more. Lack of respect. Moochers. Liars. Wafflers. I really can't think of anything else. You have to understand. I had to make a list of things that bug me each time something bugged me. I could not think of any the day the question came up. So I worked on that one for a little while.

One thing that I do like. (I could go on and on about stuff I do like!) :) Today as I was driving home from class I was passed by a really nice 2006 Ford Mustang. I was going the speed limit because I am a chicken and I can't afford a speeding ticket. I can't get a small ticket, it is either all or nothing and I will go with nothing for now. Anyway, this person passed me like I was sitting still. I looked at them and thought, "I wish you would get pulled over." It seems like everytime someone flies by me there isn't a cop or a Hi-Po around. Well today there was! I literally laughed out loud when I passed them stopped on the side of the road with the officer getting his information. :) HeeHee

Another good thing that happened today. Now remember that I am a non-traditional student, meaning I am an old person (to the typical college student) and I am trying to go back to school so I can get a real job. Anyway, last semester I happened to see a guy that I went to school with, high school. We graduated the same year, but he moved and did not graduate from the same school. We caught up last year and then I never saw him again. Today I heard some one yell, "Julie." I didn't want to turn around because, what if they weren't yelling at me. So I didn't. I just kept walking and thought to myself I would look at the reflection in the window and see who it was. It was Brian! Now Brian was born with a deformity. I guess that is what you would call it. He is just a normal guy, size and all, but his arms are really small. I don't know what it is called and to be honest I am not sure what I would search for on Google to find out. So that is my description. It was hard not to know who he was immediately when I saw him last semester. He is a great guy. I always liked him. Drivers Ed wasn't too much fun with him, scary actually, but after we got used to his driving we all settled down. We did the typical thing of putting HELP signs in the window and stuff. He knows, he laughed. :) We live in the same area now, he lives in town though. He just got married, but I haven't met her yet. He went to school, graduated with a Masters Degree in Electrical Engineering and couldn't find a good job so now he is studying to be an Architect.

So I really had a good day. Now I just wish McD would hurry back home from Colorado. He made a mad dash up there tonight and I wish he was home.

You Asked - Round 6

2006-09-06T22:52:00.000-05:00

MJ, you mentioned that you didn't ask certain questions but guess what. Jessie asked them. Here they are: (WT, you may want to pass on this whole post. If not, I warned ya!)

1) How old were you when you got to shave your legs for the first time? I was probably in the 7th grade. I think the rule was I had to be a teenager, but I couldn't swear to it.

2) How old were you when you were allowed to wear make-up? This one is a hard one. I was, and still am, a Tom-Boy. Me and make-up did not mesh. So, I probably could have worn make-up sooner than I did. I do not remember wearing make-up until I was 15, almost 16. And that was just because I liked Jared.

3) How old were you when you got your first period? (WT - I warned you!) I was 12 when I got my first period. I remember the day. I had some friends over and we were playing in the water (sprinkler, etc). I had on my yellow bikini. I went to the bathroom and couldn't figure out what was wrong with me. I wasn't warned about this. In fact, my parents never gave me any of "the" talks. It was kind of a learn as you go kind of thing at my house. So, I just knew something was wrong. Most of my friends were guys so I didn't know of this happening to any one else. Oh well. I went and told Mom. I took off my bikini and put on panties and shorts. That honker of a pad she gave me would have shown with my bikini bottoms, and I didn't want anyone to know what had happened. Why is it that we don't want people to know? I am sure they had an idea that something had happened. Since I suddenly didn't want to play in the water anymore.

4) How old were you when you went on your first date? I was 16 when I went on my first date. There was no way my parents were going to let me go on a date before then. My sister on the other hand was able to go when she was 15, but not me. My parents were very strict with me and a lot more lax with my sister. You know how it is - they were figuring out the whole parenting thing with me. But honestly they should have been more strict with her. I was the good child. :) Really!

5) How old were you when you had your first kiss? I was 15, his name was Jared (see Round 2). In Round 2 I forgot to say whether it was good, bad or ugly. I really don't remember. I know then at that time I thought it was good.

6) How old were you when you got your first bra? LOL! Oh my! Well, you see, I didn't want to wear a bra. I didn't want boobs. I am telling you, I was a bigtime Tom-boy. Big time! I started with a training bra when I was 13 or 14, then I went to sport bras. I didn't want them showing. By the time I was 15, there was Jared. LOL and I wanted him to notice me so I went back to the regular bras. Oh, aren't we girls silly. :) There ya go. That's the truth!

Now, I was asked about my biggest pet peeve and I responded with a quote from one of my favorite movies. Okay, Tommy Lee Jones is one of my favorite actors, and Capt'n Call is one of my favorite characters. Anyway, the reason I used that quote is because I couldn't come up with just one pet peeve. Tomorrow I will post about that.

You Asked - Round 5

2006-09-05T20:13:00.000-05:00

There is actually going to be 6 rounds. But they should not be near as long as Round 4.

SillyHily asked:
1) Tell us about your family. Do you have children? I do not have children of my own. I will go ahead and answer a few questions that might come up here. I can't have children of my own. I have two wonderful step-sons! And I have two wonderful twin grandkids. (I just got home from seeing them and am missing them pretty bad.) I love them all like they are my own. And would do anything I could for them.

2) Any brothers, sisters? If so, are you close? I have one sister. And we aren't that close. I have tried and tried, but I guess we just won't be. Oh well.

3) Do you live near your family or are you scattered all over the country? I guess you could say our family is scattered all over the country. My sister stayed in our hometown. I moved away and now live approx. 160 miles away. My grandparents live approx. 130 miles away from me, and approx. 160 miles from my parents. And then we live 10 hours from the kids.

MJ asked even more questions. And I know she is sitting on pins and needles waiting for my lame answers. HeeHee So here goes:

1) Which one of McD's friends would you marry? You are being forced to choose someone here, non of that "I was made for McD talk," even though I know it's true. hehe Tell us who it might be and why. Hmmm! You have to know that this is a very difficult question. McD has pretty high standards for friends, so there are just a few true friends. McD said, "What about MM (Marlboro Man, Ree's husband)?" But he is married to Ree. He is a great guy, don't get me wrong. But, I really like Ree and so I just can't say that. He is a hottie though, isn't he girls! So I am going to say Mark. And why? Well, he is a really good guy, he is a nice looking man, has a great job and he calls me Beautiful! You gotta love that.
2) What is the one big regret you have in life? I caused someone I love with all my heart a lot of pain. I am pretty sure I have been forgiven by this person, but forgiving yourself is harder to do. I certainly learned from my mistake though. And, no - I won't be going any further. Don't even ask. This person reads my blog and would be hurt all over again if I wrote about it. And I won't do that.
3) On the flipside. What has been the highlight of your life? There happens to be two highlights of my life. Poohs & Punky, our Grandbabies. 'Nuff Said.
(I would have added photos, but Blogger is being
a big Butt!)

Stay tuned~ tomorrow night will be the last Round.

Crikey!!!

2006-09-04T21:43:00.000-05:00

I will be taking a night off to mourn the loss of Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter. (Really I am working on some homework.) But it was a tragic death. I can't imagine being stabbed in the heart by a Stingray barb. I guess he died doing what he loved. It is just so sad.

You Asked - Round 4, Part 3

2006-08-31T22:11:00.000-05:00

McD was a high school wrestling coach, not a teacher just a contract coach. He also coached the PeeWee wrestlers too. He started wrestling in the PeeWee's and finished his wrestling career in college. He was even a State Champion! Yes, I am proud! The boys wrestled too! I watched friends wrestle before we met and I loved it. I really loved learning more about it, the moves, the holds, the Cross-Face!! If you are a wrestling fan you will know that is pretty much an illegal move now, but then it wasn't. The three-in-one hold always got me out of trouble. (That is not a "real" hold. Just one I named when "Uncle" wouldn't work.) So most of our dating life we were wrestling, day and night.

Right before Christmas McD proposed, December 19th, 1991. We had only been dating 9 months, but I knew he was the one. I said YES! I was excited, my parents were excited, but my Grandparents were not excited. Actually, they were against it - completely against it. My Grandad made a really rude comment about our engagement, "Why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free?" Well, I found out. McD was with me when I found out. We called my Grandad on the phone to ask him about it and it got a little hairy. He asked us to come to the house to talk about it in person. So we did. When we got there, they had company. He had invited us to finish the conversation in front of company. McD didn't want to go in the house to hold the conversation in front of an audience so he asked me to bring my Grandad outside. I went in the house and told my Grandad that McD would like to talk to him outside instead of in front of everyone. I said it kind of quietly because I didn't think anyone needed to know our business. But I am sure they already knew. Grandad says, quite loudly I might add, "I'm not going out to the yard so some young whippersnapper can beat me up." I asked him what he was talking about, and told him that McD didn't want to fight him. Really, McD wanted to kick his old arse but tried to be the bigger person here. I ended up getting kicked out of the house, he took my keys, and told me I could pick up my stuff the next day and we left.

I immediately called my parents because I knew as soon as their company left my Grandad would be on the horn to my Dad. And sure enough. My Mom and I were discussing the whole ordeal and he beeped in. (I can't stand call waiting by the way.) So she clicked over, told him my Dad wasn't there right now and she would have him return the call. We talked for probably two hours or more, and he beeped in several times. Mom never told him that we were on the phone, but the last time he beeped in she told him that she had already talked to me.

During our conversation she asked me why McD and I didn't just go ahead and get married since we were going to get married later anyway. So much for a long engagement. I didn't want to tell McD what Mom had said, but somehow it got brought up and he agreed. So we planned our wedding. Since he had been divorced we had to go to the preacher so he could determine whether McD was right in getting his divorce (he was), and then went over the vows we wanted and set up a date and time.

Setting the date was pretty easy. It was the only day we didn't have something going with Wrestling. January 8th, 1992. We picked our best man and bride's maid, and they were happy to stand up with us. Then we started calling everyone. We didn't even have invitations, it was kind of a word of mouth kind of deal. But the grandparents were not invited. They weren't even told about it. My parents got off easy on my wedding, they paid the preacher $40. WooHoo! Hey, the preacher said that was the norm.

I told you all about the wrestling thing so I could tell you about McD's bachelor party. The night before we had a dual to go to. The wrestlers decided that they would have his bachelor's party on the bus on the way home. So they stopped at a convenience store and bought him some goodies. Pop and candy, it was a school event you know. I didn't get a bachelorette party, hmmm. Think I can throw one in now? The day of my wedding I woke up with the Flu! Yep, I coughed and hacked all the way through my wedding. I leaned on my Dad while he walked me down the aisle. Then I leaned on McD while we stood in front of the preacher and congregation (about 20 people). I didn't have a wedding dress, I wore jeans, a sweater and cowboy boots. He wore about the same thing just not a sweater, a regular button-down shirt. Our best man's son, the one that noticed me in church, and his sister shoe polished my new pick-up. Had to get a new ride since he wrecked my Beretta (that's for you SW). The boys shoe polished the glass on the screen door of the house and windows. Crazy kids! We were pulling in the driveway and there was Granny driving by our house! She honked like she was happy for us, but she was lucky we didn't flip her the bird. We were still pretty sour about the whole thing. Our wedding night, I slept on the couch and said, "Don't touch me!" several times. I always followed it up with, "I'm sorry."

That is the story about how we met, dated and got married. If you have questions about it feel free to ask. I might answer, I might not. LOL Just kidding. I will!

But I wanted to make sure you all know that all the problems with my Grandparents just went away. I don't think my Granny ever really started liking McD, but he never really started liking her either - but you couldn't tell. They get along mainly because they have to. Everyone is okay with it, and everyone acts like they like each other. LOL This is one of the things that floated under the bridge. We are all fine, and happy. Forgiveness is a great thing. Forgetting is the hard part.

You Asked - Round 4, Part 2

2006-08-31T21:27:00.000-05:00

If you are just joining us you should at least read the previous post to kind of catch up. On we go.

At our church we had these groups called Brothers Keepers Groups. And our group did Pie Ministries. We would pick a person to go and visit that might need encouragement or support and take a few pies to their house. While we were there we would eat pie, duh!, play a little game that someone came up with to kind of help get to know different things about each other. I am reaching here, because for the life of me I can't remember the game. Sunday evening came around and we were supposed to be doing a pie ministry that night but the people we had chosen were not home. Right then a little light bulb went off above my head, like in the cartoons. :) I thought, I am sure McD needs a little encouragement since he is going through a divorce and all. Plus I wanted to see where he lived. I know, sneaky, but it got me in the door. He lived in an apartment above one of our friends' Funeral Home. Really!

My birthday was a few days away. And guess who showed up to my birthday party, my 20th birthday party. Oh and he bought me a card. The cheesiest card ever! With all kinds of glitter. It was such a "girly" card, I thought, "Wow, this guy has a lot to learn about me." LOL And he did. I am so NOT a girly girl. He played all the lame games and even smiled and laughed, and acted like he had a good time. He wore his Levi's, a red long-sleeve Nike t-shirt (the nike and swoosh were navy blue), and Reebok tennis shoes (it wasn't cool to call them athletic shoes back then).

After the party we started talking on the phone more, seeing more of each other, yada yada yada. You know, the typical dating stuff. Going out to eat, movies, baseball games, football games, concerts, etc.

After the Joe Walsh concert he totaled my New car. Then I cut my really long hair off. I am talking shaved in the back. I loved it! But I knew my Dad wouldn't. And my Dad hadn't met McD yet, seen my hair or been told about it, but HAD heard that he had totaled my car. My Dad was not the friendly sort. He was a pretty buff man, and I am not just saying that because he is my Dad. He was pretty scary looking, that is what McD said. But with all that stuff mentioned earlier going against him, he met my Dad anyway. I am a Big Daddy's Girl! I just knew Dad wouldn't talk to him, might acknowledge him, but hold a conversation - No way! We were going to meet my family at a restaurant, so everyone could meet him. When we arrived they (he and my Dad) said hello, shook hands, sat across from each other at the table and then it started. The stare down. No, not really. The conversations! I was shocked! This is the first time my Dad had "talked" to a guy that I brought around. I dated a guy for almost 3 years and Dad hardly ever spoke to him. So I knew that this one was special. I knew I had to keep him around, for a little while anyway.

Okay guys, don't hunt me down and kill me! Please!! If you do how will you ever be able to read Part 3. I have to get to bed. We are leaving to go see the kids in the morning and I will try to get up early enough to post the Rest of The Story (I love Paul Harvey).

Good Night! Or G'Day to you WT!

WOOHOO!!! HAPPY DANCE TIME!!!

2006-08-31T21:08:00.000-05:00

Check it out!!! I got Blog, or Glob, of the Day ON BlogDay!!! WooHoo!!! Okay, I never win anything! So I HAD to toot my own horn! Pat myself on the back! You get the idea!!! Check it out!! Blog of the Day

Cheeky - sing something for this special occasion!!!

Blog Day 2006

2006-08-31T19:14:00.000-05:00

I almost forgot to publish my Blog Day 2006 post.

Here's my list of Five Blogs:

1) Anne Nahm is one funny chick!! She goes from talking about babies to putting altoids in between her buttcheeks. How could you not want to head to her site and check it out?

2) Cheeky and I see a lot of things in the same light. Storms, make-up, music, grits. I can't go one day without checking out Cheeky. But beware, she doesn't do a lot of blogging on the weekends. And Teenage Daughter just turned 14, drop by and wish her a Belated Happy Birthday!

3)Mocha is probably the best looking Literary Coach in the whole world wide web!!! If you aren't sure what a literary coach does you need to head over there. This girl has great takes in clothes and shoes, but do not buy the same thing she does - BIG No No! And she has the sweetest story about her daughter, Mallory, and her new tattoo. It is the coolest story!

The next two are new globbers. And they aren't half bad. :)

4) SwampWitch is a former teacher. She makes assignments and you will be tested. :) She has a hottie for a husband, Hans. Beautiful photos. And More! Check out the buff blonde driving the motorcycle. You have to check out SwampWitch, you will be missing out if you don't.

5) The Nekkid Lady, I mean the Nekkid Lizard Lady. She and SW are quite new so it won't take too terribly long to catch up. You have to read Nekkid Lady's - Nekkid Lizard Ranch story. Here's a teaser - she lived in Ohio put an ad in a Colorado newspaper and found Mr. Right. Head over there and read the rest of the story.

Hope you all enjoy these blogs.
Be sure to come back for the Rest of My Story.

Do you know?

2006-08-31T11:23:00.000-05:00

In Round 3 of You Asked, I answered Shauna's question with a quote from a movie.

Can any of you tell me 1)What movie it was? and 2)Who said it? (Can be either character or actors name.)

I am just curious.

You Asked - Round 4

2006-08-30T21:50:00.000-05:00

First of all I need to apologize. Earlier today I posted Round 3. I was in a bit of a hurry and I forgot to add links to you guys. I do apologize.

Now, last time I said I would answer Mrs. CPA's question:
How did you meet your husband? I was afraid this one might get a little lengthy so I wanted to give it it's own post. Plus is it just, you know, special! :)

After I graduated high school I went to college, met a guy, dropped out of college, moved out of state and in with my fiance and his family. I just knew that we were meant to be. My grandparents kept asking me to come and see them. So I did. They lived 5 hours away so it wasn't going to be a day trip, I had planned to be there for two weeks. When I arrived my Granny, the world traveller, asked me if I would like to go on a cruise with her. Ummm, Yes!!! So I called him and told him that she had asked me to go on the cruise and I wanted to go. The cruise was going to be in October and this is all happening in January. I told him that I was going to help them out at their store while I was there, all in all I was just excited as all get out. (Let me just say, I wasn't around my grandparents when I was a kid so I really wanted to catch up. I thought he would understand.) A few days later he called and told me that he was coming to see me. I was thrilled!! He showed up with ALL of my stuff! Not ALL of it but most of it. (I went back and got the rest - that is another story!) He reason for bringing all my stuff - he thought I might want it. We are talking about everything from all my clothes to the entertainment center and television I had. I didn't want to argue so I just went on and enjoyed his company. On Sunday he left. On Monday, the Dear Julie letter came. (Here is where the other story comes in, so I won't go there.)

I was devastated. My grandparents told me that I could just live with them and work for them at their store until I decided what I wanted to do. About a month after the Dear Julie letter, I spotted McD. Okay. I spotted McD's Levi's. Yep. Right in church. It was a Sunday evening. We came in a little late and didn't get our regular pew. (My Granny and I were in a play and we had to practice on Sunday afternoons.) So we snuck in and grabbed the first available pew. It just so happened to be right behind McD and his boys. I nudged my Granny and asked, "Who is that?" She said, "Oh it is the saddest thing. That is McD (okay just pretend she said McD). His wife left him for another man. But he makes sure he and his boys are at church everytime the doors open." My response. "Look at his, um, Levi's." Then we giggled. For some reason we stood three times during that evening service. I was just glad I knew all the words to the songs we sang. I was not looking at the hymn book. The second time we stood I leaned over to Granny and said, "I am going to go out with him." She just looked at me and laughed. Later I got the spill about how he is older than me and he has two boys AND he is going through a divorce. I just listened.

McD had seen me in church but didn't really "notice" me until one night when he brought a friend of the family to church with them, Newt. Newt was just a kid, but he was a few years older than the boys. Newt noticed me and asked who I was. That is how McD really "noticed" me. He asked one of our mutual friends about me and she filled him in. My name, where I lived, where I worked, etc. Then she decided to hook us up. Her family owns a business and the home and garden show was going on that weekend. So she asked me to register to win something, I don't even remember what it was. I filled it out and then she asked me to fill out another one. After I wrote down my name, address and phone number again she took it and put it in her pocket. She just grinned from ear to ear and said, that one is going to McD (pretend she said that instead of his name). I just laughed and told her how sly she was. Then I left.

Mazzio's was the big hangout for our church crowd. So every, yes every, Sunday night after church we would go to Mazzio's. He didn't usually go with the dinner crowd, but he didn't have the boys that night. He asked me if I would like to ride with him to dinner. I said yes, and calmly went and told my Granny in a very laid back kind of way that I was riding with McD to dinner. Whatever! I nearly skipped over to my Granny and then could hardly get the words out that I was going to dinner with him. She got the jest of it, and then we showed up for dinner. Then he drove me home. Awww!

That was really the first time we did anything. (Get your minds out of that gutter!!!)

Crud, this is going to be longer than I thought. It does get better. Or to me it does. So stay tuned, Round 4 - Part 2 will be posted tomorrow sometime.

You Asked - Round 3

2006-08-30T08:49:00.000-05:00

Round 3 (Ding Ding) (the bell at a boxing match)

Shauna asked:
What is your biggest pet peeve? I hate rude behavior in a man. Won't tolerate it.

CPA Mom asked:
What is the one thing that you want to accomplish before you leave this earth? I am working on it right now. I wanted to go to OSU and get an education. I am doing that. After I graduate I will come up with something else. I don't think I could ever just have one thing I want to accomplish. Sorry, I know it is a lame answer.

Has that changed since your near-death experience? No, it was my main goal. Go to college. I will be the first person in my family to graduate from college with a Bachelor's degree.

Where in the world do you want to travel? Hmm. I have been many places in my life, thanks to my Granny. I think I am going to be lame again. Sorry. I don't have much time here. I hope you don't feel short changed. I want to go to New York. I want to take my Dad. And we will go to as many Yankees games as possible during our stay. I would also love to take McD to Europe. I loved it the first time but think it would be much better with him. Oh and he said something about taking me to Costa Rica. How can I have just one place I want to go?

Where is the most exciting place you've been? I guess Austria or Germany. I don't know how exciting that would be for other people. But I loved it. Being German I loved being able to see where my family came from.

How did you meet your husband? Were you ever married before? Well, I am going to answer the second question here. Again. LOL As noted in Round 1, I have not been married before and do not ever plan on being married to anyone else. I have told McD the same thing. I just wouldn't want to have to train anyone else. :)

I will answer the How I met I husband question tomorrow in Round 4!

You Asked - Round 2

2006-08-29T21:24:00.000-05:00

Everyone ready for Round 2?

Pamela asked:
Do you remember anything while you"died" that day? This is a hard one. Have you ever been told a story so many times that you don't know if you are remembering the event or just the story? That is how it is for me at this point. Believe it or not I am still learning about things that happened. I "think" I remember us driving to OKC. But I know a lot of people told me that later. I guess it is best that I don't remember the events of that week. I do remember getting my hair cut after I got home from the hospital. It was nearly a flat-top. I loved it! What really stinks is that after that "episode" I have problems remembering a lot of my past. If someone helps jog my memory I can remember some things, but others are lost forever. Oh well, I can make new memories. Right?

Has that experience changed your personality? or just your outlook on life? Well, I don't think it permanently changed my personality. (One day I will share my Dad's story, his personality changed.) McD says that it did for a little while. I became super sweet. I am talking sweeter than any person should be. Then one day I just reverted back to my old brazen hussie ways. :) My outlook on life? My outlook on life has changed. I decided to quit "thinking" about going back to college and just went. I don't put off stuff like I used to. Gosh, if I can think of more I will add it later. :) Sorry, going blank.

MJ asked:
Who was the first boy you kissed? Was it good, bad, or ugly? The first boy I kissed. I think the first boy I kissed was a guy named Jared. He was a skateboarder and BMXer. He was HOT, or so I thought. I don't remember the kiss, memory issues noted above, but he was my first boyfriend.

What movie do you watch over and over? Marnie, you silly girl! There are too many to name! But I will name a few. Monte Walsh, if you haven't seen it - you need to; Tombstone - I'm your Huckleberry; Lonesome Dove (nuf said); Dirty Dancing; Grease, Pretty Woman, Sweet Home Alabama, Shrek (both), The Santa Clause. Enough? Or do you want more? Men in Black (Both). Okay I will stop. I love movies!!!

Lets just assume that molecular transport has been made a reality. Where in the world or universe would you have Scotty beam you? Man Marnie, I hate to break it to ya but Scotty beams me up all the time. Where have you been? Okay, okay! That is a hard one. I would love to beamed to Creede, Colorado so I could see the kids and G-kids without having to drive 10 hours. But on the other hand, I would love to have Scotty beam me to Stillwater everyday so I wouldn't have to drive 3 hours a day just for school.

SillyHily asked:
What is the one thing that McD does that wrecks your last nerve? I am being completely honest here, it will be hard to believe, but I am. McD and I get along great!! There isn't too much that he does that gets on my nerves. I can tell when something is bothering him and when I ask him what it is he tells me, "Nothing." Sometimes to try to convince me that nothing is wrong he will say, "You asking me what is wrong is bothering me!" I am like WHATEVER! Then a little later if I ask him again he will tell me. He just has to do it in his own time. But I worry that I did something to upset him until he tells me, and I HATE that feeling.

Debs asked:
Since you are so busy, what do you do to relax? Okay, if you are the Debs I think you are you probably already know one of the things I do to relax. Cross Stitch. I make things for other people. LOL I have been stitching for probably 16 years and I have not made myself anything. But I am a giver, what can I say? I also read, ride horses (which I will be doing more of now that McD has relaxed a little and thinks that I can ride by myself again - no one in my family wanted me riding by myself after my "episode"), FISHING - I love to fish, watch movies, etc. I could go on and on. Just getting on the four-wheeler and riding around our place with McD is pretty relaxing too.

Last one for this Round.
Swampwitch asked:
How do you have time to do this? Oh, you know that is a good question. I use time management, I guess. I am on the road a lot, at least 3 hours a day, so I have a lot of time to think of things to blog about (I make lists) or make phone calls, go through catalogs (only once in a while), study (from notecards), eat, etc. I make time for things I want to do, and just make it work. Like this weekend, we are going to Creede. Leaving Friday and coming home Sunday. Where is Scotty when I need him? I will do my homework and projects on the road. Read to McD. Probably finish Angels & Demons (I can't believe it has taken this long). You just do what you have to do! I get tired of hearing how busy some people are, you know the ones that go on and on about what they have to do. Like we don't have things that we have to do. So I won't dwell on this one. any. more. (Oh wait, that one was a bonus. You didn't ask about that now did ya?)

Okay! Time for a little homework. See you tomorrow for Round 3. Looks like there will be 5 Rounds.

You Asked - Round 1

2006-08-28T21:41:00.000-05:00

Here we go. I want to let everyone know that there are quite a few questions and more coming in (Marnie) so I will answer the questions in the order in which they were received. There will be a few rounds because I don't want the posts to be too long (just for you Pete). So here goes:

Willowtree asked:
Where did you grow up? I grew up in Seminole, Oklahoma. Not really IN Seminole, but out in the country.

Is this your first marriage? YES!!! First and last.

Who is your oldest (longest time) friend? My oldest (longest time) friend would be my friend Gertrude. Not her real name, but we met in the 5th grade and have been friends ever since. She was Gertrude and I was Hildegarde, that way if any of our notes were found no one would know who we were. hee hee

Karmyn asked:
Who was/is your favorite animal/pet and why? Wow, that is a hard one. Do I have to pick just one? I would say my baby Hoss. I got him when he was 4 weeks old and this is the longest I have ever had one pet, he is 10 years old. Yes, I know when his birthdate is - April 27, 1996 and he gets pancakes with butter and syrup on most of his birthdays. He won't eat them without the butter or syrup. I really liked my St. Bernard that I had when I was in kindergarten, Cindy, she would follow me to school and wait for me to leave if they didn't call my Mom to come and get her. :)

What is the last thing you do before going to bed at night? I take my eyes out. Yep! I wear contacts and I wear them up until I am headed to bed. I take that back, I wash my face right after I take my eyes out.

Songbird asked:
Where did you and McDreamy meet? Heehee. Church. You know, I rarely hear about couples that meet at church. But we did. I will go into more detail in another round when I answer another question. Stay tuned.

What movie is the quote about Elvis from? Men in Black. Tommy Lee Jones says it as he is playing Promised Land.

Okay! That is all for Round 1. Can't make these posts too long. See, I am not as interesting as you thought. :)

Weekend Wrap-Up

2006-08-28T09:34:00.000-05:00

What a weekend! We got rain!! WooHoo!!!

Saturday we worked hard, and then we laughed hard. We started the day gathering and sorting cattle. Then we took some calves to sale. I did some homework, catching up on a class that I just added and will attend for the first time this afternoon. Then we went to see Bill Engvall! Oh. Man. He was funny! We had heard some of his stuff before but it was still funny. Then he did some new stuff that was even funnier. There were a few times that he cracked himself up. He was laughing so hard a couple of times that I wasn't sure if he was gonna be able to get it out. It was great!! If you don't know who he is look him up on iTunes. He is cleaner than most, but he.is.funny.

We have a friend that really, really wanted to see Bill Engvall. So we all made sure she made it there, (Slick & his wife Slickess and McD & I). She was told last week that she has a couple of years to live. I have only known her for a little more than a year, but this is the sweetest lady I know. She is an amazing woman. She has lung cancer. I will rarely ask for prayers, but I hope each of you will pray for her. I will only refer to her as D. God knows who she is, that is all that matters. D had a great time.

Sunday, it rained some more. YEAH!! McD took advantage of the rain to watch a movie or two. I had to work on the homework I mentioned earlier. Then, after watching BB-Allstars I asked McD to flip it over to the Emmy's. Isn't that what the awards were that were on last night? We came in on it right as Simon Cowell was introducing Dick Clark. I have to just say this.

I.Loved.American.Bandstand! I soo wanted to dance on that show!!!

Anyway, Dick was there. I seriously almost cried. If I knew he had a stroke, I had forgotten. Oh, that was the saddest thing. When Simon announced him he said that there aren't many people that all generations know. But he is one of them. Thinking about that still makes me tear up. Now the American Bandstand theme song is stuck in my head!!! Oh well!

Speaking of Songs...The contest is going to be Lyrics! I will post the first contest next Tuesday. Details to follow.

Thank you to everyone that has left questions for me. This is going to be so much fun! I will begin answering them this evening when I return from school. Oh how I am dreading that drive. Oh well, it's almost over.

Hope everyone has a great week!!!

You Have Got To See This

2006-08-26T10:19:00.000-05:00

Kellyf has a post that every woman should read. And, men should read so they can get an idea of what women go through to look good. Oh, and I guess the men will like the whole woman having her hands all over another womans hoo-ha too. This post will seriously make you laugh. If you don't, please seek professional help because something has got to be wrong with you. So check it out: Kelly's Wax experience.

You Ask - I Tell

2006-08-25T19:03:00.000-05:00

Thanks to SillyHily the You Ask - I Tell posts have begun popping up on other blogs. Silly has invited everyone to ask her whatever questions they would like answered and she will answer them, honestly. And there are some pretty good questions and really good answers.

Silly has also asked others to do the same thing. I am going to do just that. So - if you have a question or two or three, however many you have - ask and I will answer. I hope it is as much fun here as it has been on her blog.

Thanks Silly!!!

Oh and I think What the Hell is This? is doing this as well. Join in! It should be fun!!

You Ask - I Tell

Lyrics or Photos?

2006-08-25T18:14:00.000-05:00

It looks like it is going to be a Name That Tune kind of contest. Lyrics are ahead by a couple of votes. There is a little more time to vote if you haven't voted yet. You can vote here or on the original post. I will announce what and when the first contest will be. I will not be announcing the prizes though, they will be surprises!!

This IS an equal opportunity contest! :) So join in the fun!

Decisions Decisions

2006-08-24T22:09:00.000-05:00

My "Baby" Cousin got a new ride. Whatcha think about that?

My family has a thing about Vettes. Corvettes that is.

Although they strayed for a bit and drove the other Vette as well. When we just thought gas prices were high, they started driving CheVETTES.

My parents picked my first car and then I paid for it. It was a 1985 Red Chevy cheVETTE, two door, with AC and a radio/cassette player. I was uptown!!

We, of course, called it the Vette. I made good memories with that car! The best memory being the day I sold it to a family of Mexicans. I always wondered how they were all going to fit in that little car.

Now that I pick my own cars/vehicles I do not go for the economy sort. Give me a gas guzzler and I am happy! One of these days, when they pave our road, or I turn 65 whichever happens first - I will have a real Vette. Mine will be Red though.

Now my cousin, Darsha, has to decide every morning which car she should drive to class. The Trans Am or the Corvette? Decisions, decisions. (I guess she could color coordinate her outfits with her cars.)

Why We Love Cats

2006-08-23T22:10:00.000-05:00

1. Noses that twitch
2. Supersoft pink paws

3. Their love affair with open boxes (or luggage)...

4. ...and rubber bands
5. Their vigilant surveillance of the front walk
6. Rhythmic purrs
7. Full body stretches
8. They curl up on your chest-and-even put a paw to your cheek
9. Their slow eye blinks
10. Their ability to find the only square of sunshine on the carpet - and fall asleep in it
11. "Pet me now" nudges or nibbles
12. Their haughty independence...
13. ...combined with their constant need to be near you
14. Their attention-seeking stunts
15. The way they curl their tails around their feet so tidily
16. The warmth of their bodies
17. Sandpaper kisses
18. Their cranky meows when you keep them waiting
19. They daintily step all over the newspaper you're reading (he is on my econ book)

20. Whenever you look up, they're there.

Too Many Tomatoes?

2006-08-23T08:16:00.000-05:00

Do you have too many tomatoes? This is a true story.

This past weekend I was cleaning house and I went through all my old magazines that I kept meaning to go through. Here's what I do. I go through each magazine and tear out any recipe I like, or anything that I think I might like to put in the new house (you know, to add to my notebook). I was going through all the magazines (Better Homes and Gardens, Martha Stewart Living and Real Simple) finding all kinds of goodies when I found a recipe for Ancho Chile Tomato Sauce. As soon as I read the recipe I thought of Jessie and Ree with all of there tomatoes.

Then this morning I read Jessie's blog this morning and she needs recipes.
So Jessie, this one's for you!

Ancho Chile Tomato Sauce

Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 15 minutes

2 1/4 lb. tomatoes (5 or 6)
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tablespoon Ancho Chile powder
1/4 cup snipped fresh basil or cilantro (Basil in your case Jessie)
3/4 teaspoon salt

1. Core tomatoes and cut in half; squeeze out and discard seeds. Cut tomatoes in chunks. One-third at a time, place tomato chunks in food processor bowl or blender container. Process with several on/off turns; tomatoes should remain chunky. Transfer to medium bowl. You should have about 3 1/4 cups tomatoes. Set aside.

2. In a medium saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion; cook and stir until tender but not brown (3 minutes). Stir in garlic and chile powder; cook and stir for 1 minute. Stir in tomatoes. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer gently, uncovered, about 15 minutes or until sauce is thickened. Stir in basil and salt; heat through. Makes 3 cups.

Test Kitchen tip: Double the recipe and make several batches of sauce to store. Cover and refrigerate up to 1 week, or freeze up to 3 months.

Each serving (1/4 cup): 40 cal, 3g fat (0g sat. fat), 0 mg chol, 150 mg sodium, 4g carbo, 1 g fiber, 1 g protein.
Daily Values: 17% vit. A, 16% vit. C, 1% calcium, 2% iron.

(Taken from the Better Homes and Gardens September 2006 Issue.)

Enjoy! And let us know how it turns out, if you decide to make it.

It's Over! I Made It!

2006-08-22T22:23:00.000-05:00

WOOHOO!!!!!

As you can see. I have less than 4 months to go before graduating! Gotta love those tickers!

I made it through my classes today. I wondered about the first two. I was a bit concerned, but now I feel much better. Here are my classes with a brief bit about today.

1) Cost Accounting. Dr. LiLi Eng, from Thailand.
She speaks English fairly well. Have heard her class is fairly easy. Lots of homework! But each homework is only worth 5 points.

2) Futures & Options - and for a couple of readers out there - NO! I am not going to invest in the soybeans! You know who you are, and there is no need for further explanation. No more Beans! (Especially if they do to you what they do to Willowtree!) (I know, I know - different kind of bean!)

Now this professor walked in wearing deck shoes, khaki pants and a peachy orange linen shirt unbuttoned to the middle of his chest (maybe an inch above his man boobs). Not an attractive guy. We thought he was gay. Seriously. Then we saw his ring and thought maybe he is straight. Then he announced he is married and has two kids. He is Portuguese. The only way to describe him is to say that half the time he sounded Portuguese. One quarter of the time he sounded Scottish (he lived there for three years). And the other quarter of the time he sounds like Julia Childs. Yes, you read that right! My friend Mrs. S and I tried really hard not to laugh. He is kind of hard to understand. This guys homeworks are only worth 1 point each. And the minimum is three questions per homework.

3) General Insurance - Funny American Professor. Big Guy. Likes to laugh! Gotta love that.

4) International Finance - Nice, nice lady. This is the first semester she has began making her classes write a term paper, instead of taking POP quizzes. How cool is that? I would much rather write a paper.

5) Health Insurance and Social Security Issues. This is an Economics class and it sounds really, really interesting. I am being serious here. He is an older guy, very short (has hair), but you can tell he was a looker in his day! Sweet man, and funny too!

I think it is going to be a good semester! Everything seems to be fairly interesting so far. So I know when I complain about how uninteresting it is or something like that, I am going to look at my little ladybug ticker (Did I mention I love ladybugs?) and see that I am almost out of there. And then I will probably read several comments telling me to shut it. I am counting on those comments. :)

You Get to Decide

2006-08-21T22:50:00.000-05:00

For weeks I have been trying to come up with a (creative) fun contest to change things up a bit. I will be taking votes until next Sunday night (August 27) at 8 pm PST. The contest will be either on Tuesday or Wednesday (29th or 31st) depending on which contest is chosen.

Here are your choices:

1) Name that Tune (Lyrics only, sorry no tunes).

2) Photo Contest - Name the object or Where's Waldo type of game.

Okay, a bit of info on each contest.
First of all - I do NOT sing. Yes. That is a fib. I do sing, but only in the car when I am by myself. The reason I only sing when I am in the car by myself is because I sound SO much like the original artists that I am afraid people would swarm. That could cause a lot of problems. Okay. I guess that is a story too. I can't carry a tune in a bucket. (Who came up with that saying anyway?) Also, I do not have a microphone hooked up to my computer. There is a reason it is not hooked up. I. cannot. sing.

Second - The photo contest could be a Where's Waldo type thing one time and a What the heck is this kind of thing the next time. So this one would keep you guessing what will be next.

And if it makes a difference to you which day the contest is going to be held.
Name That Tune would be on Tuesdays.
Photo Contests would be on Wednesdays.
(Will explain all of that later. If I can come up with something creative. I am not the most creative person. It might take a while.)

So get your votes in while you can.
There will be prizes. They won't be nearly as good as Ree's prizes, but there will be a little something.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PETE!!!

2006-08-21T22:35:00.000-05:00

Everyone sing-a-long!

Happy Birthday to you!
Happy Birthday to you!

Happy Birthday Dear Pete (WT)!
Happy Birthhhhhdayyyyy tooooo yyoouuuu!!!

And many more!

(I honestly do not know Pete's exact birthdate, but it has to be close. But we might sing it again tomorrow just for kicks!)

Some Helpful Information - Really

2006-08-21T22:27:00.000-05:00

Before you place a call to customer service, let your fingers do the walking on the Web. The free database at www.paulenglish.com tells you how to reach a real person quickly when you dial a business, such as a cell-phone provider. (The site it updated weekly, but company information can change without warning.) Follow instructions like "Ignore prompt for Social Security Number and enter ###" and you'll get all the benefits of curring the line - without getting the evil eye.

A Comment - A Question - & - An Achievement

2006-08-20T22:32:00.000-05:00

A Comment
My summer is officially over. My final semester of my college years is here. I think most of you know, but for the newbies I am a student at Oklahoma State University majoring in Finance and minoring in Accounting and Economics. GO COWBOYS!!! I am taking 15 credit hours, 5 classes, all of which are supposed to be very challenging. Oh boy! I hope to keep up on my blogging regularly. If not, contact me and give me a good (proverbial) kick in the seat.

A Question
Am I the only one that wonders about Willowtree and his wife living separately. Hmmm, why is that? It really isn't any of my business, but I do wonder. He is beginning to open up a bit, so maybe he will indulge us one day.

An Achievement
We finally finalized our house plans! I am so excited. I put together my notebook full of the plans, items I want in the house (lights, refrigerator, etc). We are meeting with the builder tomorrow to kind of make sure we are all on the same page. I am sure he will think I am a complete freak when I show him "The" notebook. I just like to be organized.

Extra
And the song that has been stuck in my head all day is: Whip It by Devo.

Crack that whip...Give the past the slip...
Step on a crack...Break your momma's back
When a problem comes along...You must whip it
Before the cream sits out too long...You must whip it
When somethings going wrong...You must whip it

Now whip it - into shape - Shape it up - Get straight - Go Forward - Move ahead - try to detect it - It's not too late
To whip it - Whip it good

Adventures with Granny - What fun!

2006-08-18T22:34:00.002-05:00

Granny and I always have so much fun! No matter what we do!

Yesterday I decided that I was going to take the two and a half hour drive to see my grandparents one last time before school starts. It starts Tuesday for me, so I am trying to squeeze in as much "fun" as I can. I arrived here at their house (I am still here) at around 9:45 am. Granny fixed me some bacon and tomatoes for breakfast. Then she received a call from my Grandad saying that she had an appointment waiting on her. (I will explain her job in a later post.) When I called and told her that I could come down I told her that I would have to bring my laundry with me so I could get it done. So she left for her appointment and I got the laundry started.

I met her at their store so we could visit some and I could see my Grandad. We were headed out to lunch and guess what she did. LOL She walked out that door with all kinds of determination. I think she was hungry, and we were headed to her favorite restaurant, mexican food. She took off. I barely caught her. She was about to get in the wrong van. Now this would be the second time, but I caught her in time. We chuckled about that for a while.

We ate. We had our nails done. I got a manicure. She got a color change and a pedicure. Then we went to our favorite place to shop. Wall's! It is a store that gets name brand stuff and sells it at a great discount. Sometimes their stuff if damaged, but most of the time you can find some good stuff. Today I got some earrings that were originally from Macy's. I will take a photo when I get home. Granny bought me a new skirt too! $13. How can you beat that?

Then we went to dinner with my Grandad. We went to a restaurant that is right off of one of the main interstates in our state. I promise you they knew everyone in there. And there were a lot of old people there. My grandparents are only in their 70s so they aren't that old. But some of the people there.were.old. It was a blast. I told them about my blogging addiction and about some of the things people blog about, including myself. Some how the fart stories came up. I had to tell them some of the stories some of you had written. Of course, Granny was staying with me telling stories of her own. This brought up stories about me that I had forgotten about. Then as we were leaving, it happened. I needed to let one go. Sorry, but I couldn't hold it in. You know it gives you Crappy thoughts if you don't let them go. So I did. It was another SBD. But not near as bad as my other SBD I have posted about. The funniest thing about it all was that we were in Granny's brand new HHR and she isn't too familiar with the windows. She was trying to find the button to roll down the window while we were all laughing. I, of course, began laughing right after it happened and it smelled!

The only other thing that happened is when my Grandad came out from taking a shower he turned on the television and put it on Grease!

My 100th Post!!!!

2006-08-18T22:06:00.000-05:00

I am not really sure why I felt I needed to announce this, but it could be because Willowtree had the special OUAB awards for his 100th post. So I guess I am here to tell ya that you aren't getting any stinkin' awards here!

The reason you will not be getting any awards here is because I am not that creative. Ree aka Pioneer Woman has wonderful Name that Photo contests. I am not that creative either. I am working on a contest though. But have a lot of work yet to do. I can't explain. MJ will even send you to another site if she isn't feeling creative one day. Or could it be that she just didn't have anything to say. Jessie aka Mrs. Ca steals stuff (memes) from other people when nothing is happening around her place. But with two homicides in a month (or so, I don't remember) how can she say nothing happens there. I should clarify, Jessie steals stuff from other's blogs. Not actual stuff. Sorry Jessie. Oh and I cannot forget the nice photos Pamela has posted. I really like her new water feature and the photo of the hummingbird perched on a limb. Good job Pamela!

These are just some of my creative friends. Sorry to all of those creative people that I have left off. I am at my grandparents house and don't have access to my favorites list. I had to change my password just to get in to post. AAGGGHHH!

So if you have not had the chance to check out some of these peoples blogs - get busy! They are pretty darn good!!

My McDreamy

2006-08-17T22:17:00.000-05:00

I guess this is post photos of family time now. Willowtree has posted an old wedding photo - Hubba Hubba! What a good looking couple!

Here are a couple of photos of my McD. It is true, he has Alopecia Areata Monolocularis. As you can tell in this next photo. Punky says she likes his soft head. My nephew, who is now 11, wanted to be bald just like his Uncle. Nowadays he is pretty fond of his hair, my nephew that is. McD has hair, just none on top. I have told him time and time again. If he ever feels the need to get a rug/toupee it will be grounds for divorce. But I don't have anything to worry about, he doesn't want hair.

So there ya go Pamela! I do like bald guys. You must have missed my story about the HOT cop in AZ. He was bald too. Don't get me wrong, there are some pretty good looking guys out there with hair. I could name a few if I had to, but let's not go there.

Random Thoughts

2006-08-17T15:48:00.000-05:00

Yesterday McD and I spent some time with Chuckles, Ree's FIL. He is one of my favorite people. That whole family is gold, really. I am not sure how Ree's name came up but it did. Chuckles just beamed! He said he didn't know how Ree does everything that she does. He listed off a bunch of stuff that she does and then he listed off some things I did not know she does. He sat there for a minute like he was just thinking of her and then he said, "She does our newsletter too!" Earlier that day he had given me one of their newsletters to look over. It is a really nice newsletter. Very well done. Good job Ree!!! It was pretty touching to see him beam like that when talking about his DIL.

Re: Beware of the SBD post.
Okay people. I stated that I do not snort when I laugh. I just thought it would be funny to add it. That is why I stated at the end of the post that I don't really snort. I am surprised Shauna, you know me and I have never snorted in your presence. We have laughed pretty hard at some things too. Sorry to disappoint. I don't snort!

Another thing about that post. My McDreamy brought it to my attention that when I was luring him in for the smell I was laughing the whole time. I had forgotten that part. Another part I had forgotten was that he told me to tell him the next time I farted. He really did ask for it. Really!!

Today was my buddy PM2's first day of school! I hope to get a photo of him sometime to put up here. He is adorable, as is his sister. Why do I think it is harder for the parents to send their kids to school than it is for the kids to go? I called him Mom to check on her and she said she was literally sick, stomach cramps and all. This is Slick's family, for all that have been with me for a while.

Oh. I almost forgot. I went to the post office today to pick up some mail. For some reason our mail never fits in the PO Box, so I have to go get the bundle. Anyway, I was standing in line behind a man who was also there to get a bundle. He had the same piece of paper I had, I did not ask. The first thing I noticed was his brand spankin' new tennis shoes. Is it tennis shoe, tennie shoe, or what? Sorry, back to the story. This man had no hair on his body. None! Zilch! Zero! Okay. Wait. He had hair on his head and he had clothes on so I can't vouch for there. But he was hairless. I have seen hairless men before. I even know a man that used to shave for bodybuilding competitions, so it wasn't completely weird. What was weird was that he was in no shape, no shape whatsoever for a bodybuilding competition. Eeewwww!

That is it for my random thoughts of the day.

Changing my ways

2006-08-15T22:06:00.000-05:00

Well, not really. I am just going to post more at night instead of each morning. That way when classes start I won't be late getting to class because I am blogging. I can honestly see that happening. So evening posts start now. But you never know, I may throw some in during the day too. Gotta keep you all on your toes!!

Beware of the SBD!

2006-08-15T22:01:00.000-05:00

Okay, I wasn't going to go there. But Pamela is working on a fart post, Willowtree has already posted one, and Ree just doesn't do it!! Really, honest. She said so! Why do we find so much humor in farts? I don't know but I am giggling just thinking about this post!

Several years ago McD and I traveled to Colorado for one of his meetings. I can't remember for sure where it was in Colorado, I think it was Vail. Not that it matters. Anyway, we had been married for quite a few years and we had this big discussion on the way to the meeting about how I hadn't ever farted in front of him. I tried to tell him that I just didn't do it. I think he kind of believed me. giggle. snort. giggle. Silly man!

I hadn't been feeling very well that day. Gut issues. But I hadn't said anything. McD was laying on the bed watching a little television before we had to go down to the reception and dinner. I was getting ready - changing my clothes, fixing my hair, yada yada yada. When I felt it coming on. I clinched my butt checks hoping that it would muffle the sound. lol snort lol It worked!! It was a silent one. Silent But Deadly!! I told McD that he had to come over there so I could show him something. And to hurry! He jumped up off the bed, not realizing what was awaiting him. I can't believe the air didn't turn green from the putrid smell! He got right up to me and it hit him! The smell almost knocked him off his feet!! It was HILARIOUS!!! I almost died laughing!! LOL snort LOL Oh, I am laughing so hard right now as I type this that I am tearing up. Oh. My. Heck. He cursed and cursed again! He could not believe I could produce something that rank!

Okay, I don't really snort when I laugh, but typing it in this post made me laugh even more! LOL

Remaining Tidbits of Not My Day to Die

2006-08-15T10:28:00.000-05:00

After reading my two previous posts Part I and Part II I realized that I left some little things out that should be said.

First of all, Frank is my HERO!! I have had people ask me, "So, who would your hero be?" Well, I have a hero and his name is Frank. The day I dropped dead Frank was right behind me. Things happen for a reason, I believe this. If we had left the farm show we would have been on the road going to my birthday party and I wouldn't be here today. If Frank had not have been there I believe I wouldn't be here. The other guy that helped with CPR had to run to his car to get his little CPR mouthpiece. I know he ran, but I could have been a vegetable by the time he got back. Frank had taken the CPR training. Frank had used CPR on two other people before me. Both of them died. One of them was his Uncle. They said he left the booth at the farm show and went to the hospital. He was pretty shaken up. We now have "Our Anniversary." I will never forget April 17, 1999 and the man that saved my life. Every year I at least send him a card. The first 5 years I made sure he received a gift of some sort. Sometimes I send a plant but it will probably be cards for the most part. It got to be kind of hard to come up with creative gifts for him. (If you have a good idea, please comment.)

The day I left the hospital was my 29th birthday. Oh no - I guess you all know how old I am now! Please don't hold it against me Pamela. Apparently, while we were cruisin' the farm show I found a bracelet that I really liked. McD told one of the people I worked with to get the bracelet so he could get it without me knowing it. While I was in the hospital he, my whole family, and friends had a blast giving me that gift. I call it cruelty but I guess I played right along. But I wasn't playing. Here is how it went (or as I was told):

McD: Happy Early Birthday!!! Here's your gift. (I don't know if it was in a box or gift bag or anything.)

ME: Oh I love it!!! Thank you!

(Less than 5 minutes later...or when another person arrived that had not witnessed the cruelty.)

McD: Happy Early Birthday!!!! Here's your gift.

ME: Oh I love it!!! Thank you!!

I couldn't remember crap! If someone walked out of the room and then back in I greeted them like I hadn't seen them yet. :) Needless to say, they had too much fun with that and today they still laugh about it. Of course how could you not laugh at that. I do. I shouldn't say this, but since McD already knows this (although he will act like he didn't) I can't figure out what I liked about the bracelet. When I recovered I asked him if I REALLY wanted it, or if I was just being nice when I said I liked it. I hardly ever wear the bracelet, but will keep it forever!

My life now with my heart condition. Since I do have the implanted defibrillator I have to go in every 6 months for them to check the battery, wires, and to see if I had any more episodes aka shocks. After years of wondering I was finally told that "more than likely" it was a virus in my heart. They actually said, more than likely. Oh my! I was told that my battery would last around 8 to 10 years. It depends on how many times it shocks me. I will probably have it for 9 or 10 years. Hopefully they are smaller next time. I have an exact replica (minus all the wires and computer chips) that I will take a photo of so you can see one. I am not on any medication, thank goodness! The only thing that is a pain is the airport thing I mentioned in an earlier post. And magnets! I cannot wear magnet nametags or get a magnet close to my chest or my chest starts beeping. It is just one constant beeeeeeeeeeeep, but it is embarrasing. I am not supposed to ride roller coasters (which I love) or anything too adventurous. That is okay. I will take the life or roller coaster trade off.

And since I received emails and comments on how I shouldn't start posts about something like this and then stop midstream. I am finishing this one. I apologize in advance for it being too long. WT - I understand if you don't read it all in one sitting.

The Shock of my life! Cheeky commented that she knew someone in school that had a defibrillator and that they could tell when he got his little shocks. I know nothing of a little shock. Apparently they had my settings different than his. A few months after everything happened McD and I went to the lake with his family. I LOVE going to the lake!!! I was raised going to the lake. McD and I took our SeaDoo and away we went. We cruised the lake several times before I finally told him that I wished he would at least drive the thing. He was putting around like an old person. Inner tube floaters were passing us!! Okay, it wasn't that bad, but it was slow. I like going fast! Doing 360ºs. All of it! He decided that I should drive because I would know better what I could handle. My wound was still healing, and I think he was just afraid he would hurt me. (I was pretty thin and fragile looking, but felt okay.)

I jumped at the chance to drive the SeaDoo. I hadn't been able to for months, this was our first trip back to the lake. I kicked it up to about 45 mph and hit a 360º. As the nose of the SeaDoo was coming out of the water (coming out of the donut) my defibrillator shocked me. The shock knocked me to the back of the SeaDoo (a three-seater) and McD was having to hang on. It nearly knocked him off of it, he was on the edge. He felt the shock through both of our life jackets. This was the first time I realized that there really was something wrong with my heart. I couldn't remember any thing that happened to cause me to get the defib. So this was my eye opener. The shock took a lot out of me. Probably because I was so weak still. McD left me in front of him and I was just kind of limp. I was bent over with my head resting kind of on the handlebars. Then I remembered that McD's oldest brother was there. He had just lost his son in a car wreck. I didn't want him to see me all limp laying over the handlebars so I leaned back against McD. I tried my hardest not to lose it (cry) but when I saw his face I couldn't hold it in. He was white as a sheet. I felt so bad for scarying him. But I was okay. We went to the doctor the next day and they just had my settings too low. They increased the settings so now my heartrate has to get up to 214 beats before I get a shock, or it has to get really, really low. I haven't had a shock since. Thank goodness. It felt like I was kicked by a horse, I hope I never get shocked again.

Again, sorry this is so long!

Tag - I'm IT

2006-08-15T09:27:00.000-05:00

Thanks WillowTree!! I wondered how long it would take for me to get tagged!

Here goes:
1. A friend who has blessed me: Muncy. She is one of my bestest friends. I can't even go into how she has blessed me. We are exactly one year apart in age, she is the year older. We are closer than we are with our sisters, sad but true. We even think alike, scary I know!

2. An unexpected gift: Being a "Step"mother I never expected any type of Mother's day gifts. I get them every year and I truly never expected to. I love and appreciate each gift.

3. A kind word shared with me recently: On our most recent trip to CO the kids drove over to see us and got to the zoo. The night before the zoo trip we met for dinner. As we were leaving for our hotel rooms Punky yelled, "Grandma Julie, I LOVE YOU!!" Of course I yelled back! "I LOVE YOU TOO!!!"

5. Something I'm looking forward to: December 16! Graduation, baby!!

6. A particular part of me I'm pleased with: My Smile. It's a habit! I smile a lot. I sometimes don't even realize I am smiling, until some pervert smiles back with a hubba hubba kind of look.

7. Something in my life that I wanted but never expected: Oh, I have a few. A successful almost 15 year marriage to an amazing man. A college education from Oklahoma State University. Go Cowboys!! And a little bit of land to call home.

8. A place that moved/moves me: I don't really have just one place that has moved me. I could be anywhere and find a reason that it moves me. Okay, almost anywhere.

9. One thing/person that always makes me smile: There isn't just one person that makes me smile. a) My Dad - if my Dad is laughing you have to be dead if you are not laughing with him, his laughter is so contagious. I would love to bottle his laughter and keep it with me always. b) Poohs - his laugh is also contagious. It is the best kid laugh ever. c) my McDreamy - what is it about people laughing that I love? I love to hear him laugh, or just to see him laugh. He knows when to tell me I am beautiful, or reach for my hand and kiss it. He just always makes me smile. A thing that makes me smile? My furrbabies - all of them - Hoss, Mordecai and Mia.

10. Most recent "love note" from God: ??? My Second Chance at life. WillowTree - you can't be serious that I am the most religious person you know. PL-EASE!

11. Do I win anything? (OK, I know that WT added that one, but do I?)

I'm tagging: Ree (she hasn't been tagged yet that I know of, and her answers are sure to be good), Cheeky (who is always good about being tagged, and I love singing along), and Jessie (just because I love her blog).

(Yes, I realize #4 is missing, but this is how it was when I received it!)

Not My Day to Die - Part II

2006-08-14T09:36:00.000-05:00

If you are just joining us, you will want to read Part I to catch up.

I finally woke up in the emergency room at the hospital, but had no clue where I was or what had happened. McD said he had never seen me so scared. I tried and tried to re-make the face but it never worked. Apparently when I am really, really scared I thrash about. As I was thrashing about I kicked my Granny in the head, flashed my whole family (all of my clothes were gone at this point), and tried to remove the tubes that were down my throat. Needless to say, they had to restrain me. It took 3 or 4 people to hold me down. I don't know for sure, because I don't remember any of this, and I have heard it both ways - 3 and 4. When the restraints did not work completely, I still tried to pull the tubes out of my mouth, they gave me an injection to induce a coma state.

I was taken to the Critical Care Unit and stayed there in a coma state for a few days. During all this time the doctors are running tests and trying to figure out what happened. My chart says I had a Sudden Cardiac Death. Basically, I just dropped dead. That happened on Saturday. Thank goodness I don't remember anything. My medical chart says I had several blood gasses, where they test how much oxygen is in your blood. They are really, really painful! But I don't remember them. On Wednesday they moved me to a regular room. Then on Thursday they took me to surgery and implanted an internal defibrillator. If you are not familliar with the defibrillator they are what you see on television on like ER on the crash cart. It has the paddles that they put on you and yell, "Clear" and then shock you with volts of electricity. Mine is smaller and is implanted in my chest on the left side. It has two leads that are connected to my heart and if my heart rate gets too high or too low then it will shock it back into a normal rhythm. It also has a pacemaker, but mine is turned off.

They determined that my heart began beating so fast that it stopped pumping and was basically quivering. Thanks to this little device, I call it my battery back-up, I don't worry much about it happening again. I cannot go through metal detectors or have the wand used on me at airports. So I am frisked each time. People wonder why I would rather drive, now they know.

The day after my surgery I was able to go home. It was my birthday, and the best birthday present I could ever receive. Although McD gave me a nice gift while I was in the hospital. I will touch on that another time. This is getting rather long again, so I will tell ya about getting shocked another time.

Cheyenne Mountain Zoo

2006-08-13T22:40:00.000-05:00

I completely forgot one of the best parts of our trip to Colorado Springs was our trip to the zoo. Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is supposed to be a really neat zoo. It was a good zoo. But I think my expectations were kind of high since we had just been to San Diego Zoo earlier this year. We still had fun though!

One of the best parts of the whole day was getting to pet the 6 month old Kangaroo. Yep! I got to pet it! So did Poohs and Punky, and their Mom and Dad. I don't think McD did. I was too busy trying to get photos of the kids petting the little baby, but those other annoying kids wouldn't get out of the way! So no photos of that. Sorry! Then as we were leaving the Kangaroo/Wallabee area a Wallabee came right at me. None of us realized that they were hopping loose (running loose, hopping loose - get it?). It was kind of neat too.

I even got to feed a giraffe and pet one of them too! I had to be kind of sneaky about it because the giraffes would not let you pet them if you weren't feeding them. And I had my camera in one hand and the cracker in the other so I asked a little boy if he would feed the giraffe the cracker so I could pet it. He did it. One bonus for him, he was with two other kids so their mom or whoever was with them had only given them one cracker each, so he got to feed the giraffe again. I think he liked feeding it as much as I liked petting it!

Not My Day to Die - Part I

2006-08-13T09:35:00.000-05:00

April 17, 1999 was not my day to die.

Here is a little background information to set the scene. At the time I worked for an ag related company and this company had a booth at the big farm show in the big City. Being a loyal employee, I wanted to go by the farm show and see some of the people we did business with. I was a buyer's assistant and our suppliers were going to be there. Some of them I had only talked to on the phone and I was anxious to put a face to their names. This was also the day that my family had decided to have our big "celebrate all the April birthdays" party. Mine just happens to be in April.

McD and I get ready and head to the City. I don't remember much about this day. I remember having an argument with McD on the way to the city but I don't remember what about. I remember what I was wearing that day, but only because it hung shredded in my closet for years. The rest of this story are details I have obtained from McD and the rest of my family and friends.

We stopped at the farm show and then we were headed to my Grandparents house (another hour and a half drive) for the big party. We (McD and I) had looked at my office's booth and we decided to look around. We were in the Kitchen's of America building and were headed to look at some of the other buildings. As we were walking away from the booth I squeezed McD's arm really tight (he later said he didn't know I was that strong) and told him that I was dizzy and started falling forward. He thought I was playing around but realized I wasn't when he had to catch me before I hit the cement floor. A co-worker of mine, Frank, was approximately 10 steps behind us and he rushed to my side as well!

Frank immediately began giving me CPR and McD was feeling for a pulse. Frank had already felt for a pulse and did not find one. So when McD told him he found it and that it was really fast. Frank didn't have tell him that he was feeling his own pulse. Someone called 911 and the ambulance came, but they didn't have a defibrillator so they continued CPR until another ambulance came.

With this being a farm show there were lots and lots of farmers there. Just my luck. The paramedics cut my shirt and bra off and got to work. Yep, me in all my glory, or almost all my glory. Then they stuck the paddles to me and shocked me. Not just once, but three times. They were able to get a rhythm. Put me on a gurney and off to the hospital we went. Another of my co-workers thought he should drive McD because he was pretty shaken up. But he wasn't having that. He told Ken he could just ride with him. So he did. And they beat the ambulance to the hospital. Later Ken told me that they were flying low and running stop lights. He was praying for them to get there safely as well as for me to be okay.

This all happened before everyone in my family purchased cell phones. There was no way to get in contact with my parents because they were also on the road to my Grandparents house. I am not sure who called my Grandparents but they had to stay there at their house until my parents arrived. Then they all headed to the hospital.

For fear of this being too long of a post, I will continue it a bit later! That and McD just came in and asked me to go horseback riding with him. How could I say no?

A Recipe for Willowtree

2006-08-13T09:09:00.000-05:00

Corn Bread
This is just a simple recipe for corn bread. For some reason I am not able to find my cookbook with my favorite recipe but will post it when I find it. I might have loaned it out.

1 cup corn meal
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons baking powder
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup shortening

Mix it all together. Pour into a well-greased baking pan. Bake in hot oven (425º) for 20 to 25 minutes.

There ya go Pete! Next time you have beans try some cornbread with 'em.

If It's Not One Thing...

2006-08-10T18:00:00.000-05:00

it's another.

For some reason Flickr is not cooperating today so I will have to do posts with photos after we get home.
Just FYI, now on with the post.

Last night we, a friend and I, decided that we would join the group of ladies that were going on a tour of the hotel this morning. It started at 9 a.m. and was supposed to last an hour. It wasn't what we expected, but it was a lot of fun and we did learn some interesting things about the hotel and about some of the ladies taking the tour with us. Most of these ladies we have known for some time now but you never really know someone, lol.

(Just have to say - the band outside of my balcony is playing my song...Brown-eyed Girl! Yes, Cheeky, I am dancing around. I kicked the chair back (literally) and am dancing as I type. I want to just hang off of the balcony and help them out!)

Okay back to the post. After the tour we decided to do a little shopping. Red flags were popping up every where. Why? The only piece of clothing that had a price tag on it was a pair of the jeans I had bought right before the trip and the original price on them was less than the price back home. BUT, I bargained on mine and got them at a discount. A small discount, but it was still a discount. The dress I tried on was adorable! BUT, it didn't have a price tag and the lady was pushing me too hard. I just walked away. Walked right into a make-up store. I won't say names, but if you really want to know you can email me. I don't know what kind of make-up you all use, but I would be anxious to know because I am in the market for new make-up. Do you like what you use? My good friend had been by the shop yesterday and had told them we would be coming in to have our faces done. We walked in. Took our seats. Was offered glasses of water, accepted. Then the fun began. I love having someone put make-up on me. Why? I don't know.

Keep in mind this little girl is trying to sell the product. Everything from the cleanser to the brushes. Not that it was unusual, just setting the scene. When we were finished she decided to ring up everything that I wanted. Keep in mind that they did not discuss prices with you. They just assume you will leave your arm and leg there as you pay. They rang it all up. I had a figure in my head of what it would cost, but the total was much more. Just shy of $600. Make-up. $600. Those should not be in the same sentence. Well, after the small stroke, I asked them if I could think about it and come back later with my list. I told them that I refused to spend that much money on make-up today. That wasn't even everything she used on me. This crap better look good all night long!

After we left the make-up store we went back to the Bee. Well, we had lunch there and it was delicious. But there wasn't a piano player at lunch time. Then it was back to the shops. We didn't buy, just browsed.

Then it was time for the reception and the dinner. It was good. We started with Lobster Ravioli. Then a Spinach Salad with dried cranberries and golden raisins and a sweet and sour dressing. Next was the entree' which was steak, salmon, asparagus, carrots, and an interesting pillar of mashed potatoes. It was very good. I don't do dessert, so I skipped out. :) I believe they had several things but the only thing I can remember is the Creme' Brulee.

We were all going to go back to the Bee to see if the private party was over but we were not able to get it. We didn't try too hard though. Several of us went and hung out at one of the bars in our hotel. Now we are ready for bed! It has been a long day!

I am so glad that we get to go home tomorrow!!

The Golden Bee Part I

2006-08-10T00:04:00.000-05:00

We went to the Golden Bee tonight! It was so much fun! We all had a few drinks, some more than others but I will not mention any names. :) We sang, and sang, and sang!! We had so much fun! I could not believe that we left right in the middle of Proud Mary! But we did a small train out of the restaurant singing the whole way!

Oh and we are going back tomorrow and I WILL be taking my camera!

And the beotch wasn't there. Dang it. Just kidding, we had a blast. Will post more later!

The New Me

2006-08-09T07:50:00.000-05:00

Okay - so I don't look that different. Except for the fact that the first photo was done by my friend Muncy, the pro, and it has been touched up/air brushed whatever you want to call it. And the second one was taken by McD.

As you can tell, my hair is shorter. The main difference is that I am back to my natural color. It is amazing how close they can actually get to your natural color. I love highlights. On. Other. People. To me - they just wash me out. So far, I have had many compliments on going back to my dark hair. I love it! I am so glad I did it.

As for the length, I just wanted to do something different. It will grow out again. No worries here. This is nothing compared to my near flat-top. Hmmm, yet another story. :)

Cat Fight!

2006-08-08T23:51:00.000-05:00

Well, I wanted to post a photo of the restaurant/pub where this happened but nothing has gone as planned today. So, while I sit here waiting for Flickr to actually upload my new photo I am going to tell you about the near cat fight with the beotch at the bar.

A few years ago we were here at the breadwinner for one of McDreamy's meetings. There is a restaurant/pub called The Golden Bee. This place is great!!! When you sit down the waiter/waitress comes over and throws a Bee on you. Okay, not a real one but one could be sewn on clothing. It is an embroidered bee with sticky on the back of it so it will stick to your clothes. The first time we went there I could not figure out what that chick was throwing at me. I just happened to be the first to get attacked by the bee. It was great! The laughs we got out of where bees landed, etc.

Each table has a songbook on it. You can pick a song and ask the piano player to play the song. Then the whole bar sings that song. Oh it was a hoot!!! We did not request any songs but had a ton of fun singing along. (Cheeky you would LOVE it!!)

I don't drink a lot of alcohol. I just so happened to be the only person not drinking that night. Let me tell you the beer was flowing that night, along with a few stronger drinks as well. Our group had probably 3 full tables. We had been there quite a while and water flows through me like a river so I excused myself to go to the restroom. As I was washing up one of my good friends came in and said, "Get your butt out there." I said, "Why, what is going on?" She proceeded to tell me how there was a platinum blonde whore putting her hands all over McDreamy. I said, "Excuse me?" She just pointed at the door and out I went.

As I came out of the restroom McD was heading to the Men's restroom. He was bright red. I mean bright RED and he was pissed. All I said was, "Which one was it?" He told me and I went straight for her. Okay, not really. I had a few people telling me to kick her a$$ along the way, and I think I gave a couple of them high fives. I am telling you - the beer was flowing.

I walked over to her and told her she needed to keep her hands off of my husband. She seemed to have forgotten she was rubbing her hands all over him. She had been rubbing her hands on his back, chest, shoulders and his bald head. First of all, I am not the kind of girly girl that sits there and let's this crap happen. So I confronted her. Was pretty nice about it too. To keep this story short. I only had to ask her once if she wanted to go outside. She didn't feel it was necessary. She wanted me to know she was a Christian. I laughed in her face.

This creature came to the bar with another man. He was standing at the bar. Drunk. Watching her. I told her to stay with the guy that brought her. Oh I am keeping this pretty tame. I was MAD! I don't handle other people hanging all over my husband. And it had to be pretty bad for him to get up and leave the room. He said later that he knew if I had walked out of the restroom and she was still rubbing all over him that I wouldn't have been so nice. And I will admit it. I would have kicked her a$$. I would have gotten thrown out of the bar. (Yes, I am a big tomboy. Yes, I fought when I was a kid. Nothing to be proud of. But I don't hit like a girl. Just ask McD - not that I beat him or anything. I love my punching bag!)

I embarrassed one man, Howell. But his wife came up and patted me on the back and told me that she was glad to see me stand up for my husband that way. Think she was serious? I wasn't sure. But the next morning at breakfast the news had spread and there were several people patting me on the back. It got kind of embarrassing. Oh well!

I went to the gift shop and bought McD a beer glass that says "Golden Bee" Just so he will always have a laugh. :) It is funny now. But we are going back tomorrow and that beotch better not be there. bwahahahaha (Oh yea, she was a local!)

We made it!!

2006-08-08T18:46:00.000-05:00

I had such big plans about this trip to the Broadmoor. I wanted to take photos on the way here and have all kinds of cool things to blog about. But instead, I read a book. Outloud. When we travel a lot of the times I will read a book outloud to my McDreamy. The last trip we read the last Harry Potter book. This time we began reading the book Myths, Lies & Downright Stupidity: Get Out the Shovel - Why everything you know is wrong by John Stossel of 20/20. It is really good. One of those that you really don't want to put down. We are almost half way through it, so hopefully we will be able to finish it on the way home.

We are getting ready to go to dinner with the kids so I will post the "ME" post a little later this evening. (It really isn't that big of deal!)

Edited to say: Now I am sounding a bit like Mocha Momma.

I'm Leaving On A Jet Plane

2006-08-07T23:36:00.000-05:00

Don't know when I'll be back again.

Okay, so I'm not going anywhere on a jet plane but I love that song and we are headed out of town. McD has a business meeting to attend in Colorado Springs so we are hitting the road. It really is easier to drive there from here, only 10 hours (give or take).

I do plan on posting while we are there. Today was a "Me" day so I might, just might post some photos of the new me. Oh and feel free to print the photos and use them as scarecrows in your garden! Really, I don't mind.

I will try to take some photos and fill everyone in on our exciting adventure. It was really exciting last time. Had to tell a little be-otch whose man she was rubbing on. LOL One day I might tell the story.

Quote of the Day, August 7

2006-08-07T07:31:00.001-05:00

Cover me with axel grease and call me Slick!
-- Mater

What a Weekend

2006-08-07T07:31:00.000-05:00

We had fun this weekend! Now I know my definition of fun and yours may be completely different. But we had fun!

Friday we rented movies - The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada with Tommy Lee Jones and Dwight Yoakum. I really like Tommy Lee Jones, a lot! I know a guy that met him and drank a beer with him. He says he was kind of a dork. I still like him though. That was not a good movie. It was dumb. It is a modern day western and the whole story was kind of good but it would have been better as a book.

We also rented - Eight Below. You know, the Disney movie about the dogs getting left behind. It was an okay movie. I couldn't watch it all. I must be a wuss! It made me mad. I didn't like the fact that they left the dogs behind in the first place so I didn't have a good mindset when we started watching. So I did laundry and attended the BC Carnival. It ended okay though. Won't be watching it again that is for sure.

Oh and we got a sno-cone. McDreamy likes the sugar-free Sweettart, and I like cajun red hot with silver fox. MMMM!

Saturday McD had to go and help Slick doctor some cattle and I ran errands in town like going to Wal-Mart. McD cannot stand going there so I try to go when he is busy. When he got home that afternoon he asked me out on a date. Yes, he did!! He wanted to take me to dinner and to a movie. I hate HATE having to decide which movie to go see. I want to make sure I pick one that he will like too. I have girlfriends that love to go to the movies so the chick flicks are covered. I ended up giving him two choices - Cars and Talladega Nights. He chose Cars. (Sorry, Cheeky! Now that we have heard your review we are going to that one next! Thanks!) We liked Cars though. Doc Hudson (Paul Newman) was the best in our opinion. :) But we are Paul Newman fans.

Oh and we got a sno-cone. (Did I mention I have an addiction?)

Sunday we got up and went to check cattle, we are expecting quite a few calves and with this heat we are checking them a little more often. So we missed Sunday School Class, but made it in time for the worship service. The gentleman that gave the opening prayer almost made me laugh out loud - during the opening prayer. He read the prayer list during his prayer. At our church this is usually during the closing prayer. But he threw it in. He knew one of the people on the list and this is how he prayed for him. "So-and-so is not doing well, and he is a really good guy. Please be with him Lord." Okay - so he didn't say So-and-so, but he did tell God that he was a good guy. I thought to myself, wouldn't God already know he is a good guy. Then he did it again with someone else. I tried not to giggle.

You are going to think I am a horrible person but it was funny. There is a guy that we call Snaggletooth (I can never remember his name). Well, he doesn't have but one or two teeth and he is always messing with them. He uses his tongue to mess with them. One of the teeth is kind of loose and he will mess with it in front of you. It is gross!!! He is an old guy, and is kind of the annoying sort. But he is very faithful. I am sure he is a good man. He is the kind of man that sits in his pew looking at others with a look that seems disapproving. I don't even want to know what is going through his mind. He usually dresses fairly nice. But this time he wore a shirt that looked like a jersey. Athletic jersey. You know - that shiny material. He is kind of big, so the jersey was kind of tight. That was funnier than the guy praying. But again, we tried not to giggle. Now instead of Snaggletooth, he is Jersey Boy!!! I know that is horrible. None of this should be going through our minds while we are at church. But it did, and it was funny! We got a good giggle after we left.

Oh and we got a sno-cone. (McD is addicted now too!)

Hope everyone enjoyed their weekend.

Blog - Blog - Blog

2006-08-05T08:02:00.000-05:00

This week's BloggingChicks Carnival theme is "What I Love About Blogging." I really had to think about this one. This is what I came up with...

Blogging is like an internet reality television show. When a reality show comes on television I tell myself I am not going to watch it. Then I get sucked in!! Well, that is how I see blogging. I can go to all these different blogs and get a peek into other people's lives. How sick is that? But we all do it. If we didn't - there wouldn't be all those television shows, or magazines that tell what all the celebrities are doing or wearing. (I can't wait for the Amazing Race to start!!)

Sometimes it makes you feel almost normal because there is usually someone out there either going through what you are going through, or they have already written about it. Or you find that your family isn't near as dysfunctional as you thought they were. Because they are all like that.

I really liked my friend, Willowtree's post about why he likes blogging. (I thought it would be nice to put a reference here since he, well - HE can't join the blogging CHICKs carnival.) I would not have know there was this really cool bloke in the outback if I didn't blog!!! Now I have a new friend. There are a lot of other new friends as well, and a couple of old friends too.

I love blogging because sometimes it can be a bit of a release. Of stress, anxiety, or whatever. I am glad I joined the blogging world! Aren't you?