news, gossip and lies

Change of Address

2006-04-13T18:17:00.000-07:00

Let's face it...

2006-04-09T19:59:00.000-07:00

I'm moving…

I've packed my boxes, moved my posts, I've even been moving my haloscan comments over there so I've still got those…

I think it's time to ask for a change of address:

http://todaysaddiction.wordpress.com

If you haven't been there yet, I'm here

While I won't be posting here anymore, I am keeping my blogger account open so I can still post comments to blogger comments, so no worries!

The Pro's & The Con's

2006-04-09T00:01:00.000-07:00

I spent some quality time on wordpress today working on this. There are advantages and disadvantages.

The things I don't like:
Lack of control over the template and side bar.
On the template I like, my links are not visible (but that is not true on all the templates).
Limited template choices.
You can use Widgets to customize (if template supported), and they are limited. You cannot download other plug-ins.
No access to tweek the template.
The stat counter records only limited info.
No Haloscan

The Things I like:
The templates are super easy to use as is the dash board.
I can change the template in one second, no need to know, use or figure out any html.
My entire blog transfered over easily.
Because the links are hidden, I can keep my "hidden" friends there.
I like being able to catagorize my posts.
I have as much control over the comments as I do on Haloscan (w/o pictures).
It has spell check!
I can turn off or on the comments for specific posts if I choose.

All in all, I think I like it... I'll double post here and there for a few days and get the feel of it... I may switch.

Edit: Nailed the link problem!!! Ha!

Moving... maybe

2006-04-08T12:39:00.000-07:00

So tell me what you know about wordpress...
I just set up an accout over there and it has a few things that I like better than blogger... a few that I don't. I plan to double post at both for a few days and then deciding which I like better.
Go check the new place out and tell me what you think... also I'm open to anyone's comment about wordpress in general, good or bad.

But we really needed new lamp shades...

2006-04-07T22:16:00.000-07:00

So I went shopping while husb was at work tonight because I decided we needed new lamp shades...
When he went to work the bed looked like it did in the previous post, I wonder what he'll think when he gets home???

(same bed, different cat)
*

Supersize me!

2006-04-07T17:25:00.000-07:00

Husb is 6'5" and we have always had a queen size bed... We just bought our first king and I just love it! There is so much room, I feel like I can swim in it :)
It's difficult to tell from the picture, but it's got a huge, deep mattress, when I stand next to it, the bed comes up to my navel...
There is absolutely no way for a naked, middle-aged woman to look even remotely sexy while climbing into that thing...
But I love it anyway!

The new messiah?

2006-04-06T23:32:00.000-07:00

This just seen on the local news, I tried to find a link for you, but so far, no luck.
A baby girl born in Portland Oregon at 2 minutes and 3 seconds after 1am on 04/05/06.
So her birthday is 01:02:03 04/05/06.
I hope they're doing something alphebetical with her name!

Phish Food

2006-04-06T12:39:00.000-07:00

AKA... "Why I love 2 year olds"

#5 is a vegetarian. She and the Grandmonster are currently living with us, and we recently cleaned out my "hobby room" (Yes, Brico... you should see it now!) and turned it into a play room for the kiddo. In that room is his TV, DVD player, his toys, books, a small fish tank with one fish and a futon. The other morning the Grandmonster was watching an Elmo DVD as his Mommy dozed on the futon. Suddenly there is the sound of water spilling and a groggy Mom trying to figure out what had happened...
The Grandmonster is holding the small fish tank, lowering it from his wet lips and now soaked jammies... he was thirsty.
With fish poop beginning to settle back into the rocks of the tank, #5 is frantically asking if it will hurt him or make him sick... No, he may poop extra if he drank a bunch, but I doubt he did.
After stripping the baby from his wet clothes, #5 begins looking for the fish and he is no where to be found, we look in the tank (which is very small, one of those plastic 3 gallon things), on the floor where the water has spilled... no fish. She turns to her son, the apple of her eye, and asks,
"Did you eat the fish?" and by now, my vegetarian daughter is beginning to lose all composure.
The naked kid looks at her, pats his tummy and says,
"Fish! Yummy!" without missing a beat.
He was in the shower, with freshly scrubbed teeth, as she was muttering something about 'discusting' over and over again under her breath, just as the fish finally imerged from the tank, safe and sound.
I was walking into the bathroom to tell her he had not had fish for breakfast as I hear her sternly telling him,
"Baby, we do not eat our pets!!"

PS... I quit taking a prescribed sleeping med a few months ago because I was gaining weight quite rapidly... we switched the pills and as of this morning I've lost 22 lbs, and am about back to my "normal" self!

2006-04-04T23:43:00.000-07:00

The Three's of Me
I was tagged fair and square by Minta!

3 Names U go By:
Mom
Nana
Hey, could you hand me that?

3 Screen Names U Have Had:
Addict
Let’s Go
Emily

3 Things U Like about Yourself:
My sense of humor
My butt
I am strong

3 Things U Don’t Like about Yourself:
My over bite (my smile in general)
My tummy (the stuff one gives up for their children)
My temper (on the rare occasion that I lose it)

3 Parts of Your Heritage:
Scotch
Irish
Dutch

3 Things that Scare U:
Heights
Snow
Snakes

3 of Your Everyday Essentials:
Coffee
Grandson
Blog

3 Things U are Wearing Right Now:
Toe ring (except for an MRI, it hasn't been off in 14 years)
Anniversary ring (it's huge and I earned it!)
Socks

3 of Your Favorite Bands or Musical Artists:
Jimmy Buffett
Mary Chapin Carpenter
Dwight Yokum

3 of Your Favorite Songs:
Barefoot Children (Buffett)
The Hard Way (Chapin-Carpenter)
Step into Christmas
(Elton John… it always gets me into the Christmas mood)

3 Things U Want to Try in the Next 12 Months:
Get some relationships back on track
A girls weekend with the daughters
A tropical vacation (again)

2 Truths and a lie
I fixed the clutch on my volkswagen bug with a garlic press
For a time I battled anexoria
I've never had a moving violation
(answers in my "100" if you're not sure which is the lie)

3 Things You Want in a Relationship:
Trust
Independence
Humor

3 Things about the Same Sex that Appeal to U:
Self confidence
Expressive eyes
Strength of character

3 Things U Just Cannot Do:
Cook edible food
Eat green peppers
Tell a lie (unless I really plan it out, even then I suck)

3 of Your Favorite Hobbies:
Reading
Walking
Blogging

3 Things U Want to do Really Bad Right Now:
Eat a guilt free bowl of chocolate ice cream
Take a bath (we have a huge loft, but only a shower)
Be on a beach

3 Careers U are Considering:
Retiree
Millionaire
World Traveler

3 Places You Want to Go on Vacation:
Europe
The Carribean
New York City

3 Kid’s Names:
Octavia (I heard it yesterday and loved it)
Lee (was almost Isaiah’s name in honor of my father, Gilbert Lee)
Hannah (would have been Audra’s name had I thought of it then)

3 Things U Want to Do Before U Die:
Retire
Own a home (out right)
Relax

3 Ways U are Stereotypically a Boy:
I fix things
I think boobs are sexy
I wear tennis shoes with almost everything

3 Ways U are Stereotypically a Chick:
I cry at sappy movies
I love being pampered
I PMS (and I milk it for all I can)

3 Celeb Crushes:
Michael Douglas
Morgan Freeman
Dwight Yokum

3 People U Would Like to Complete This Quiz:
I usually don’t do this, but… you know, if you want to:

Mom
Tommy Gunn
Anyone else please... this was really was a fun one!

*

The T is tattooed!

2006-04-03T20:06:00.000-07:00

Stolen from:
Bricotrout
Tommy Gunn
And a bunch of other people!

'Scuse me... I'm with the band.

2006-04-02T18:37:00.000-07:00

So late, late, I went down to the shop to say "good-night". Ryan and Phillip (I believe) were kind enough to hold me up... I was dead tired!
Brian went with them to Washington today to do some more tattooing and will be back soon (I hope!)...
They did a walk through video last night of the shop that may perhaps end up on their Web site as a video post one day... I'll watch for it and let you know!
Well that was fun, now back to real life!

Altered plans...

2006-04-01T23:58:00.000-08:00

So the bands didn't make it in this morning as they had to meet with Nike at 11:00 am and we opened at noon. They decided to defer until tonight after closing. Story of the Year made it in, but Deftones didn't make it because of the time. Adam is getting tattooed as I type this, boy what a little cutie pie!
They did like the shop though and want to shoot some of a video down there later in the year!
I'm on my way down to get some photos for ya right now, I should get them up tomorrow night after work.
It's been a busy day, I'm getting too old for this...

While I'm Braging...

2006-03-31T23:13:00.000-08:00

We will be closed for a few hours tomorrow for a "Private Session" at the shop.
Story of The Year and Deftones will be in the shop for tattoo's...
Yeah, Brian is doing them...
He does everything!
Pictures to follow in the next day or two.

Louis Vuitton Cake Art...

2006-03-30T13:36:00.000-08:00

Brian is one of our talented artists, he left us briefly to work at Hart & Hunnington (A&E's Inked) and was touted as one of the best tattoo artists in the world. Brian designed last years remodel in the shop, which has made us one of the nicest, cleanest tattoo studios I've ever seen.
Brian is an amazing artist in just about any medium.

A year or two ago, all of the girls in the shop (and wives) got really into Louis Vuitton purses. Yesterday was the birthday of one of the wives... this is the Louis Vuitton cake that Brian made:

Everything, even the "hardware" is edible. The rivits are even stamped just like the real deal.
I liked it so much that I actually volunteered my 'real' birthday to Brian so I could get a cake too... he says they've already been planning it!

Now there are tests about WHY we take tests!

2006-03-30T01:37:00.000-08:00

Snarky
You scored %82 quirkiness, %72 nerdiness, and %72 coolness!

You just can't help yourself can you?

You try really hard to be yourself, but you find that, on occassions, people look at you as if you've just grown another head.
It's not your fault that your head is jam-packed with all sorts of useless knowledge.
Yeah it is.
Stop taking these stupid tests!

My test tracked 3 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:

You scored higher than 99% on quirkiness
You scored higher than 99% on nerdiness
You scored higher than 99% on coolness

***(so I gather this means I am the only person "MY AGE" who took this test)***

Link: The Why do you take these tests Test written by brujahboy on Ok Cupid, home of the 32-Type Dating Test

Urrgggg... part two.

2006-03-28T20:39:00.000-08:00

You guys are wonderful, thank you for just listening and offering support...
I've been in the person's shoes, that is the most difficult part, I know what lies ahead.
But then again, this person knows better as well.
It's a different instrument this time, but the song is the same...
I've also found that having been in those shoes has greatly decreased my patience for such self destruction.
To me, these actions are selfish and attention seeking.
I'm not such a good co-dependent anymore.

Urrrg...

2006-03-28T00:14:00.000-08:00

I have been depressed the last couple of weeks...
I've been going over a situation over and over again in my brain trying to decide what to do or if there is anything that I am even able to do.
I can't really blog any details... it's just the level of my patience until it passes that is in question.
I'm worried about someone.
That someone has a problem and I cannot fix it.
Watching it is difficult because I've seen a hobby become a habit and that habit has become an obcession, one that I think might be difficult for the problem bearer to get past. The problem is becoming more and more appearent to everyone surrounding the person... but the person doesn't see it and the person thinks it's basically a secret. It is something that can wreck the persons career and relationships. It has caused the person financial problems... the problem is that I think the "problem" is more important to the person and that the person wouldn't care so much if relationships and jobs were lost because of it...
I feel sick tonight.
I've tried talking to the person, it becomes a fight where things are twisted to where I am the person with the problem for being worried and that the problem is not a problem at all...
I know this doesn't make much sense to someone reading it... but it helps me to write it...
If you know me IRL, please don't ask me about it, I won't talk.
I just needed to write tonight...

I need a hobby...

2006-03-26T23:44:00.000-08:00

Tonight we taught the bird to dance:
View the video dancing bird hosted by Myzine.org
It takes a while to load... and the bird isn't very good yet, but s/he's working on keeping a beat...

Is it weird that I think that it's weird?

2006-03-25T19:15:00.000-08:00

So...
Everyone get's the attention of a stranger from time to time, married or not. I'm trying to figure out why I find it so weird on those (rare) occasions that someone flirts with me.
I think I have a fairly good self-image and I think the years have been kind to me...
but it *always* shocks the hell out of me when someone flirts with me.
Thank God I'm not single, I'd never survive out there...

Playin' tag!

2006-03-23T18:06:00.000-08:00

Tagged by Mom, here's the rules:

List seven songs you are into right now. No matter what the genre, whether they have words, or even if they're any good, but they must be songs you're really enjoying now. Post these instructions in your blog along with your seven songs. Then tag seven other people to see what they're listening to.

Having just bought an ipod (which I love), this will be easy!
Here's a variety of the most listened to ones, alphabetically.
Don't laugh :)

1. Alice's Restaurante Massacree by Arlo Guthrie
2. Blister in the Sun by Violent Femmes
3. Come on Eileen by Kevin Rowland
(and Dexy's Midnight Runners, Yeah, I'll admit it)
4. Follow Me by Uncle Kracker
5. Never been to Spain by Three Dog Night
6. Raise your Hands by Bon Jovi
7. Your Man by Josh Turner

I didn't mention any Jimmy Buffett songs because those are just gimmee's, lately Barefoot Children has been my favorite JB.

Since I run a tag hospice program (here the tags pass on comfortably to tag heaven), you can leave a comment if you want to "adopt" this tag and we will check out your answers!

So... Why is it than when someone yawns, it makes me yawn, but when someone snores, it keeps me awake?

2006-03-22T01:37:00.000-08:00

Yes... these are the things I wonder about.

Good news in the paper about parking posted below...
Yeah, good news. Crazy huh?

This Just In...

2006-03-21T21:04:00.000-08:00

Today's front page news!

SALEM CITY COUNCIL

City delays action on downtown parking
Plan to set 2-hour limits is put on hold until after a study

DENNIS THOMPSON
Statesman Journal

March 21, 2006

Salem will perform a comprehensive study of the demand for downtown parking before considering whether to put a two-hour limit on parking there, the City Council voted Monday.

The council also voted to delay completing the study until after the Marion County Courthouse reopens so its impact on downtown parking can be considered.

"Nobody seems to have an answer, but everyone has a concern," Council President Jim Randall said, agreeing to the delay suggested by Councilor Brad Nanke. "We need to get this right."

The study will provide a comprehensive assessment of downtown parking, including how much turnover takes place on the streets and how long cars park there.

In delaying the decision about two-hour parking, the council heeded the advice of both the Downtown Advisory Board and the CAN-DO neighborhood association. Both groups voted against imposing a two-hour limit without first proving that it was necessary and would work.

"I think it would be good to have someone from outside come look at it and give us some ideas," Mark Shipman, the chairman of the Downtown Advisory Board, told the council Monday.

Sylvia Dorney, the owner of Greenbaum's Quilted Forest and an advisory board member, told councilors that the two groups plan to hold their own parking forum in April.

The city initiated a two-hour parking limit along four south-downtown blocks in November, after business owners complained that people going to the Salem Conference Center were using all of the on-street parking.

The two-hour limit is in effect from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays.

Councilor Frank Walker said he has walked the two-hour limit area and has found support for the policy.

"My own conversations with many of the business owners in that area is this program is working. The parking study is warranted, and we should proceed with it," Walker said.

He later added, "I don't think there's any high-level dissatisfaction with what we've done so far."

However, a staff report assessing the current two-hour limit noted several businesses that had concerns about the policy.

For example, two counselors with offices on High Street said they were worried about being able to complete psychological evaluations within the two-hour period.

Owners of salons, tattoo parlors and other establishments also have voiced concerns.

---

The delay give those of us with serious concerns a chance to continue to organize and put together a working plan...
I've gone to and spoke at all of the city council meetings (the first speech was quite memorable as in nervous chatter I accidently stated {into a microphone and on CCTV} that I was picturing the city council and mayor naked, but that's another post, anything to make an impression I guess!) when parking was on the agenda....
Limits are fine, but a concession needs to be made for long term customers and/or paid parking w/valadation from retail establishments for "all day wanderers" need to be considered as well.

Yay for delays and studys and Horray for Can-Do and the Downtown Advisory Board!

Break's Over! (I think...)

2006-03-21T00:52:00.000-08:00

So I need some input from you, here's my dilema:
My business is located downtown, obviously I am very vested in downtown and feel that I am part of the local "flavor".
Downtown is growing so fast that parking has become a problem.
The city's proposal is to limit all on street parking to 2 hours and to limit parking in parking structures to 4 hours (leaving no parking for all day, which is f*%king stupid cause some folks just enjoy wandering around downtown).
Most of my clients spend anywhere from 1-3 hours on average and luckily we are located directly across the street from a parking structure.
Occasionally we have customers for large pieces who may spend 5-8 hours and of course they also spend several hundred dollars (so we love those customers).
My choices are to:
1. Wait it out and see what happens (with my thumb in my butt) :)
2. Move to a different location (there is a current tattoo shop that is moving, we could easily get into their place, but I would have to remodel, buy a car because I can walk to work now, and potentially lose customers in the transfer, but I would also be picking up some of the customers from the previous studio... overall though, it would be very expensive and time consuming)
3. Offer our long term customers a "ticket free guarentee" so if a customer is with us for more than 2 (or 4) hours and they receive a ticket, we would pay it (I'm guessing perhaps 4 or 5 ticket monthly at $15 each)

I'm leaning towards #3 as it will get some press (and yes, I believe any press is 'good press') a few other business are also on board with similar plans to not lose their long term customers and to avoid moving... also it's a perfect way to let the city know that "we" think of the parking (proposed) changes and they they cannot chase our customers away just because coming up with a workable parking plan seems like too much trouble/expense...

Fight or flight?

Other businesses that will be affected will be day spas, hair salons and bridal shops, just to name a few....

So whadda think???

Quiet Lately...

2006-03-18T13:30:00.000-08:00

I came back from vacation to a couple of personal challenges...
Not of the busy nature, but more occupying brain space and putting my actions into neutral...
Bear with me...
I'm here
Just not all the way
yet...

Living Downtown...

2006-03-17T13:06:00.000-08:00

The last few days have been kind of crazy, I'll be a better poster next week :) I promise!
So today the article I told you about a couple of weeks ago came out, they did a good job!
You can see it right HERE
And then they did bio's on four of the downtown residents, ours is right HERE!
Pretty cool huh?

I know you...

2006-03-14T12:46:00.000-08:00

I know you like the back of my hand
From the moment we met, I knew you
I know how you think
I know when you are being honest
I know when you are lying
Knowing you has always felt like home.
As the years pass
We drift like boats on the ocean
Sometimes closer together
Sometimes farther apart
Yet I still know you
When we drift apart
I know the waves of life will
bring us back together again
I am patient because I know you
Some days you are way off on the horizon
I can barely make out your image
Why are the waves taking so long this time
I remember you
I miss you
I want to know you again
I tell myself that I know you
and that you will drift back again
I am patient because I know you

added later:
Relationships of every kind,
if the relationship survives long enough,
go through seasons...
If after every winter, you know there will be a spring,
you have found Love...

*

Perhaps I'm a Pasta-a-tarian

2006-03-12T21:30:00.000-08:00

The restaurant is beautiful... dim lighting, candles on each table, couples intimately seated.
The waiter with the exotic accent pulls out my chair, places the linen napkin across my lap and hands me an open menu. The smells from the kitchen are amazing and the meals on other tables look wonderful, I give the menu a once over while the waiter tells of the day's specials and recommendations.
Lobster.
Fresh lobster, today special.
I love seafood!
I tell the waiter I think I'll go with the fresh lobster; he points out the lobster tank and offers me my choice.
I'm looking at the tank, searching for the perfect one, trying to pretend that the lobsters are not looking back at me. Their eyes, meeting with mine, pleading...
"Please lady, just have the salad"
Two of them are claw wrestling in a corner. Another is running back and forth across the front of the tank, it appears he in almost running on his tippy toes, lobster ballet.
I'm now wondering if the lobster are friends, are any of them related to one another?
We are seated in clear view of the tank, will the other lobster watch while I eat my dinner?
"Ma'am? The lobster?" The waiter patiently questions...
"No Sir. I think I'll take the pasta instead"
The kind waiter escorts me back to the romantic table; he is far too polite to roll his eyes....

I think I could be a vegetarian if it were not for having to eat all of those vegetables, perhaps one day being a carbotarian will become vogue...

Honey... I'm home!

2006-03-10T12:20:00.000-08:00

Well we got home last night. It still feels like we are on the ship... our inner ears are swaying to compensate for the movement of the ship still... weird. It's a little like being drunk, without the buzz.
Last night we arrived to find snow?! In March, in Salem Oregon. It's supposed to go between snow and rain all weekend long. It never snows here this late in the year.
Well, I've got a ton of catching up to do on your blogs... I didn't get to read them while I was away, and it looks like I've got a million e-mails to sort through as well. Somehow I seem to have lost all of my bookmarks while on the ship, I was hoping they would come back once we got home (you know, by the magic of the internet), but like the Cabo pic's, they're gone.
If I have a secret blog address for you, could you e-mail it to addict@myaddictions.com...
Now I've got some restoring to do, some unpacking to do and some blogs to read!

Last Day...

2006-03-08T21:04:00.000-08:00

Today was very cloudy and cold... our plan was to sit by the pool, work on the tan and take pictures of the topless girls for you... but alas it was far too cold for that.
It has been a very bumpy ride back up the coast, last night and some of today we had gale force winds coming from the north... we are heading north. Some of the swells topped 12 feet... cool to watch from the bow end of the ship!

We'll be at the Portland airport in 24 hours...

This is what I have today.
Pictures from the chocolate buffet... it was amazing!

Out our cabin:

The entrance to the theater:

The Atrium:

A seat in the sports bar (one of several different types, but the view here was particularily beautiful)

OK... Pack it up baby, we are headed home!

A few things we've learned this trip:
* Never pay the asking price at an open air market.
* Buy Fire Opals south of Puarta V. I bought the most beautiful ring for $13. US
* People are amazing, no matter where you go...
* Heed the signs that say "watch your step". Husb broke the little piggie that "had none" yesterday... I should have gotten a picture of that, the colors in that toe are amazing today!
* Leave your wallet in your room when going to the casino.
* If you pass a long line of people, you are supposed to be in it.
* Sit back, relax... even though there is lots to do, it's a vacation!
* Never re-format your memory card if it has a days worth of pictures on it!

See you all at home...
I'll catch up with you over the weekend!
Thanks so much for coming on vacation with us, it wouldn't have been the same without you :)

Last Port: Cabo

2006-03-07T20:47:00.000-08:00

How do you say Fuck in Spanish? Not the verb, but the exclaimation...
I took some beautiful pictures in Cabo and while editing I accidently re-formatted my card and lost every-god-damn-picture I'd taken. Piss, I guess we'll just have to come back again.
I can tell you about it though.
Cabo San Lucas is near the tip of the baja pennisula. It sit's in the alcove of a bay and water is what it's all about. The air is acrid and amid the palms is a generous sprinkling of cacti. The tropical gives way to desert, yet is surrounded my crystal ocean. Much of the coast line is in beach and while it is very commercialized, I think it retains it's authenticity better than Mazatlan. Areas are of course tourist oriented, but only a block off the main street... it is Mexico.
I took some pictures from the ship after we returned (we were anchored out a ways and boated to shore via a tender), thank God for a good zoom or I would have been empty handed tonight.

Click to enlarge... see if you can find the boat!

The towel pet waiting for us after dinner!

I miss you guys! I haven't been keeping up with you this week at all. Internet is slow because of the satalite and I am already near the end of my second 250 minute round of air time.
Tomorrow we are at sea all day and Thursday am we will be back in LA. By Late Thursday night we will be home again... I miss the kids and the grandmonster terribly, but I could also stay here a few more weeks.
More pics tomorrow of the ship (hopefully some bikini action for my fine friends, I mean afterall, that is part of the fun of a cruise too!).
Tonight is the chocolate buffet, I'm bringing a bib and the camera, if I get anything good, I'll put it up too!

See you tomorrow night :)

Third Port, Mazatlan!

2006-03-06T20:26:00.000-08:00

Hola` mi amigos! (See, I think I'm getting it, I could totally make a go of moving to PV... I'd blend in in no time!)
We woke up in port this morning... this was our view off the balcony:

As always... there is a welcoming committee:

As we head farther north, the cities are becoming more and more tourist oriented. The number of shops increase in the 'golden district' and the merchants are more 'salesmanie'. Everyone remains very friendly though and makes us feel very welcomed!

I'm stopping here... I just love Day of the Dead Dolls and I have to find one to take home!
Go on ahead, I'll catch up in a bit!

No matter what you like (unless it's electronic's... I see very little of that here), you can find it! The farther away you go from the tourist areas the less expensive it becomes. Dickering for a better price is not only expected, but it's part of the fun of shopping, don't you think?

Senior Frogs... Let stop and get a drink. Mine's a virgin margarita... boy to they give you funny lookes in Mexico if you want any kind of drink without alcohol... The guy at Senior Frog's was confused for a moment...

In the middle of a seeming concrete jungle, we find a small jungle of another sort...

Hey, check it out! Beach access! Let's go check it out :)
Even here, you can buy almost anything small enough to carry... and I do mean anything!
How about a doughnut?

The view across the bay...

The taxi driver said this is a disco! Imagine that on a Saturday Night!

The children playing on the beach are just so sweet!

This little boy made me ache to see the grandmonster... We will have to bring him next time...

The entrance to another outdoor market...

It's almost time to catch a taxi and head back....
Did you notice those white lines down the middle of the road? Yeah, I think they're called suggestion lines... I'd ask, but this taxi driver doesn't speak English, and I guess my Spanish isn't very good either!

One last set of shops at the pier...

Back to the cabin just in time to catch yet another beautiful sunset!

This place is magic!

Tomorrow is our last Port of Call. Cabo San Lucas.
We have been waking up at 11 or 12 lately (shut up, it's a vacation!), but Cabo is an early call and we leave Port to return to LA at 1:00. There may not be as many pictures because of the limited time... that is unless you set your alarm and come by and wake me up!
See you tomorrow!

Second port... Puarto Villarta!

2006-03-05T20:34:00.000-08:00

Seriously... I think I want to retire here! It is beautiful.
A little more urban than Manzinillo, there is even a Wal-Mart just off the Port.
Really this is heaven, husb has 8 more years till retirement and this looks like as good of place as any to spend our golden years...
Look, I already found a place to work!

I've made a few new friends...

The market on the boardwalk (the golden district) is amazing. The guys above told me they dance and party out here at night.

There is a Corona Beer church... I worshiped there faithfully for years!

This is one of my favorite shots:

Driving is a little scarey... no seatbelts in our taxi and the concept of lanes is merely a suggestion. Yet we've seen no accidents nor heard any sirens.

This was taken from a bridge partially under construction... currently being used as a footpath a block off downtown... amazing.

Street markets everywhere, this one was a little off the beaten path.
"hey, hey, hey amigo! My tattooed friend, come-in, anything you like? Today for you, almost free! Come in!"

Selling packets of chicklet gum for 10 peso's

Muy beautiful!

All of the streets were cobblestone... We didn't not see any paved ones.

When I retire down here, perhaps this can be my house?
You'll come to visit right???

Another favorite...

A lovely bunch of coconuts! Speaking of which, I'll try to get you some boobie shots on our last day at sea... all of the boobies are off the ship during the day while we have port calls...

Tomorrow Mazatlan...
Adios amigos!

First Port, Manzinillo Mexico!

2006-03-04T17:21:00.000-08:00

I hear Manzinillo is a beautiful town, full of contrasts and wonderful people...
Grab your walking shoes and let's get off the ship for a while!

Shopping of every kind... some stuff I'm not familiar with...

Hey! Take a look at those buildings over there!

An open air market...

I fell in love with these gals... They are so pretty

Just beyond them is the water's edge... be careful, there's no fence and that's quite a drop!

I'm not sure what this says... but I won't do it!

Let's stop for a bite to eat!

Ooh... now those are nachos!

It must be time to leave... that tug is our escort out of the port...

Um.... so was this....

Tomorrow, Puarto Villarta!

First night at sea and the second morning...

2006-03-03T20:24:00.000-08:00

I'm back in the library again... told you it was my favorite spot! Dinner was amazing, last night it was French, tonight: Pacific Rim. The food is amazing and everywhere!
I've got my sea legs at last, yesterday I couldn't walk a straight line, I kept bouncing off the walls as I walked down corridors. Yesterday you couldn't tell those who had had too much to drink from the rest, tonight it is more appearent.
Let's see, we left off yesterday evening, right?
Well, let's go for a walk and stretch our legs some...
Be careful by the cabins the halls are narrow. The wild carpet doesn't help with sea sickness at all. Today that's all good now!

Looking up from the Atrrium... did you see that stained glass ceiling?
Here, let's get a better look...

I just love the glass elavators!

At night, the pool is lovely, don't you think? Man, it's getting a bit chilly out here!

Now this is a little better, it's protected from the wind at least...

Dinner was amazing! With so many speciality resturants, it's hard to choose!

On the jogging track, it's almost cold. Here, lemme see that sweater. Thanks!

The pool again, from the other side... this is great at night, we practically have the whole place to ourselves! The sweater isn't quite enough this late, let's go back in...

Ah... the casino! It's much warmer in here! Let's stay here a while... Stay away from the quarter slots, I didn't win a damn thing in those last night.

It's been a full day and I'm sacked... no, you can stay at the casino a while longer. I'll see you in the morning!

I could wake up and look at this every morning! Water, as far as the eye can see (and not in the form of rain!)

Feel free to look around a while, I've got a 1:00 appt at the spa again... a facial this time! The spa manager already knows me on sight by name... I think I've been spending too much time here. Meet me in an hour or so... we'll go to the fitness club. There is another Pilates class, we can do some laps in the pool and unwind in the hot tub. Oh did you see the sauna in there? It's incredible, you've got to give it a try!

I heard there were whales at the bow of the ship... Oh look! You can see the water spouts. I tired to get a picture, but that didn't work out too good.

See the lounges? Did you bring your swim suit? Let's spend the afternoon right here and catch a tan...

Back in the cabin, just in time for another beautiful sunset!

Tomorrow we will be in Manzanillo from 10 till 6. I'll bring the camera. We had planned to go on a deep sea fishing trip, but the staff on the ship said it was cancelled because of the boat didn't pass inspection... just as well. I get sea sick. We will just wander around, we always find the best stuff that way anyhow!
Pictures of Manzanillo tomorrow night!

Let's hear it for pictures!

2006-03-02T21:33:00.000-08:00

Tonights broadcast is coming from the Library on the 12th deck... I think it's my favorite room so far... My feet are up on a comfey sofa, shoes are off, music playing softly in the background as the ship gently rocks. It's like being in a womb.
Let's see, now that blogger is cooperating, where did we leave off?
Oh My! We had just had breakfast clear back in Portland...

Here we are on the plane, somewhere between Yreka and SanFrancisco... Still a ways to go before landing:

As we come in over LA:

On our way to grab the luggage before catching the shuttle to the Port:

Damn! We missed the shuttle and the next one isn't for three hours...
Let's take a cab!
(P.S. I own all of my children apologies for my bitching at their driving... you kids drive wonderfully and safely and I probably won't bitch at you for a while!)

Ahhh... we made it to the Port in plenty of time! Bags are tagged and a series of long lines await!

We made it to the cabin, here we have a balcony of our own, I can tell already, this will be a favorite spot!

The luggage hasn't arrived yet, being as we are pulling out of Port, I'm hoping it's somewhere on board!

This morning, kicked back, enjoying a cup of coffee. Oh did I say morning? I meant around 12:30 when I woke up:

Yeah... when I tourist, I do it all up!

Down by the pool... This is the "Men's best leg's contest"

An afternoon at the spa. First was acupuncture... I was missing needles. It was actually pretty cool! After that was a pilaties class, the lap pool, hot tub, sauna and a shower.
Tonight we dressed formal and had the best meal I've had in years at the French Bistro. It was heavenly.

Tonights sunset off the balcony:

Tomorrow we will be at sea all day again, I plan to take the camera on a walking tour of all of the decks to show you around the ship...
Right now?
Let's go hit the casino for a while!

Grrr...

2006-03-01T22:57:00.000-08:00

I've been trying to upload some great pictures, but either something is up with blogger tonight or the wireless server on the ship is messing it up somehow. I suspect blogger because I can post...
Anyway, We are asail and I'll try again tomorrow!
G'Day Maties!

G' Morning!

2006-03-01T08:17:00.000-08:00

This is what I found when I woke up this morning!

Comon', I'll buy you breakfast at the airport while we are waiting for the plane...

Day 1/2... Day 1 is really tomorrow

2006-02-28T23:25:00.000-08:00

Tonight...
We are spending the night in a hotel near the airport in Portland so we don't have to get up at Oh My God O'Clock in the morning to get to the airport on time.
We left right after I got off work so we had dinner at the hotel. The hotel is not near anything... no stores (feel sorry for me yet?), no resturants. Hotel resturants are always an arm and a leg for dinner (well an arm), they are remodeling the resturant here though, and seating was in a converted conference room... it was, well kind of weird, especially giving what they were charging. But such are vacations.
Next:
Airport first thing in the morning
LA around noonish
Shuttle to ship at one
Set sail at 4
After boarding, our bags will be kept and searched and with doggies roaming around, then they are delivered to our cabin.
We will have a lonnngggg orientation to learn the emergency protocols and about reaching and boarding life boats (women and children first, right?) and then we can return to the cabin.
Tomorrow will mostly be spent waiting in line without our bags (and computer), so it may be late before I can start the virtual part of the vacation.
Internet access is limited to the internet cafe on board and can get spendy... I'll post daily (hopefully), but really won't be able to get out and look at what you've been up to, other than a quick glance. Unfortunatly I may not be commenting a bunch.
So tonight is the "official" start...
Here we are in the hotel, kicking back and enjoying the quiet!
See you again tomorrow night!

Waxing legs...

2006-02-27T11:47:00.000-08:00

Legs waxed.... check
Piece of cake!

Shoppers Rage...

2006-02-26T19:01:00.000-08:00

The equalivelent of road rage for those of us who do not drive often, but shop alot.
It's that feeling of wanting to strangle the impossible customer ahead of you in line, and slap the clerk for letting him get away with it.
You know the guy at the store, late at night when the customer service desk is closed and there are only two clerks. One has an impossibly long line, the other line is for 10 items or less.
Ahead in line is a guy in the "express" check out, returning 4 items that he does not have a receipt for, chatting with the clerk like she has nothing better to do than listen to his long boring story about why he has to return them and has no receipt. The clerk, working the closing shift started working there three days ago and has to call the supervisor who is asleep somewhere in the stock room. The sleepy manager finally arrives to issue a gift card (no receipt) and of course the guy argues and demands to see the bosses boss. Idiot. The Seventeen year old manager is all that is available and the guy is invited to return his items during the day when people with experience work.
He finally takes the gift card and proceeds to dig fifteen lotto tickets out of his pocket to cash in. Finally he leaves.
My turn. The clerk smiles sweetly and asks, "So how's your night going?" and I just want ask her why she let that jerk take an hour in the express line, all the while hoping she hurries with me so that I get to the parking lot before the smart guy who was ahead of me leaves, praying he parked next to me so I can ding the side of his car with my door before leaving...

Shopping rage... tomorrow's headline, it's only a matter of time before the public discovers there are more shoppers out there like me.

Baby if you're good to go... We'll go down to Mexico

2006-02-25T19:21:00.000-08:00

Have you started getting ready yet?
I'm working on my check list:
Buy shoes.... check
Do laundry.... check
Pack cat.... check
Have legs waxed professionally... Monday
Pack daily essentials (computer, camera, toothbrush)... Tuesday night.

I always feel like I'm forgetting something, if I do, do you mind if I run over to your cabin and see what you brought???

Word Cloud

2006-02-24T14:12:00.000-08:00

I saw this at Tommy Gunn's and of course I had to give it a try. You can get your own right Here... Be warned, they are going to try to sell you a t-shirt.

On a lighter note...

2006-02-23T13:41:00.000-08:00

This morning (not last Thursday like I thought) the newspaper reporter and photographer showed up for the photo shoot. We are one of I think three families (there are only a handful of us) being featured in a newspaper layout on downtown living.
They took tons of photos of the loft, of the grandmonster and kids (#1,2 and 5) and of husb and I. We talked about the history of our loft as well as the advantages and challenges of living downtown. We got pictures of us walking the dog, taking the grandmonster to the park, of us taking out the garbage (yes, they asked us to do that so they could get pictures).
I am hoping this sparks an interest in downtown living to the point that the beautiful upper story areas above businesses are converted into living space thus increasing the quality of our downtown, which in turn effects the quality of the entire city.
What a cool thing to get to be part of :)
The article runs March 17 and I'll be sure to link it so you can check it out!

One thing I know...

2006-02-22T23:46:00.000-08:00

You're collective love, support and energy is felt by Shane, where ever he may be, it is felt by his family and by the Mother I spoke of in my last post.
Thank you!
The love and support of family and friends is almost required, but to those I posted about, we are strangers.
The love and support of strangers means even more because it is a gift that is not expected.
I am certain they are feeling an unknown warmth everytime we hold them in our hearts.
YOU are amazing.

Loving a grieving teen... not always "cool", but parents aren't known for being "cool"

2006-02-21T23:39:00.000-08:00

Tonight there is a loud knock at my back door...
No one who belongs here knocks before entering, we have an "open door". Our back stairs are especially creepy, particularily after dark. It's at the top of an old iron fire escape that wobbles somewhat as one walks it's step. It is located just off of a downtown alley and is made of iron grate, therefore at the top, you can look down a full floor to the dumpster below. It's creepy and even I avoid it after dark.
But someone is knocking at the door.
I am surprised to find a middle aged hispanic woman, she looks tired.
She asks about other apartments or lofts in the building as she is looking for her teen age son.
I tell her about the loft on the corner and give her directions to their door, I describe the buzzer they have as the door is far from the living area and they are unlikely to hear a knock.
I thought that would have been the end of the conversation. But she was worried about her 17 year old son who was at the apartment of the boys who live on the corner. I reassured her that they were "good boys" and have never been a problem as neighbors. They were quiet, they were not "partiers" and were always polite. I reassured her that if her son was there, he was with above average kids.
She asked if I knew their names and if I possibly had a phone number for them, I did not have a phone number but I know both Josh and Shane, the longest two of the three roommates.
Her eyes welled up as she asked if I'd known that Shane has been in a car accident. I hadn't heard. I asked if Shane was OK, but he was not. Shane was 20 years old, a month shy of 21, and he had passed away in the single car accident. Josh was driving the car and was completely unhurt in the accident. The other roommate was in the accident as well, uninjured.
I was shocked as her words sunk in.
I invited her in...
She declined, standing there on the dark fire escape, looking very small. She explained that her son and Shane were good friends and that he called home to let her know that he intended to spend the night in the apartment to be near his friends and to grieve Shane. The Mother was very concerned that her only son would fall in with these boys, the boys who were driving the car that Shane died in. She did not want her son to get into a car with these boys and go the way of Shane. A huge single tear dropped onto her cheek, though she refused to cry outright.
I was not sure how I could help, nor why the pained Mother was still standing here, talking to me.
And then it dawned on me.
She was not sure if she was doing the right thing.
She was looking for her son to be sure he was safe and sound, to be sure he was equipped with the sense to rebuke peer pressure for a late night car ride. But she did not want to push him further away by chasing him down. She was unsure about going to find him, and didn't know if it was OK for her to act like a worried Mother. She wanted to let her son know that she loves him, and how much more important that it was that he knew she was concerned. Being "uncool" IS what parents sometimes have to do, so that kids know someone cares, so they know they are loved.
We talked a few more moments and with resolve, the tears dried, she decided to go to the apartment and make sure her son was OK, she didn't necessarily want to pull him home, she knew he needed to stand on his fragile man legs and deal with this emotional blow in his own way. But she also needed him to know that he was loved by his family and that his Mother was willing to risk being a "Mom" to show him that.
Loving teenagers enough, but not smothering them, a difficult task indeed...

Rest in Peace my dear young neighbor Shane, you are heavy in my heart tonight...

To the Mother I met tonight, may you always have the courage to show your young man child your deep love, no matter how uncool you feel that may make you, your love means far more to him than how cool you are.
May he always be safe.

Have you been working on your tan?

2006-02-20T23:55:00.000-08:00

Start hitting the tanning booths.
Find your bathing suit, the sexy one.
Dig out the luggage...
The tickets for Mexico finally arrived!
We're taking a virtual vacation!
March 1st.

Moments that make a parent proud...???

2006-02-19T23:39:00.000-08:00

So every parent anxiously awaits the day that their grown children look out for one another, independent of their parents.
It's a sign of success.

Here's the run down:
#1 doesn't drink... perhaps one in a blue moon, very rarely.
#2 drinks occasionally on special occasions.
#3 likes to go out and have fun with friends, she has lots of friends
#4 mostly has it all out of his system from his wayward youth and is too focused on school to party
#5 doesn't drink at all, she take medication that doesn't mix well with alcohol

Today, the twins (#'s 2 and 3) turned 25. #3 lives in Hawaii but is here to celebrate her birthday with her twin before flying off to Germany for a couple of weeks (ah... the life of the young and single).

All four girls (#'s 1,2,3 and 5) went out together with a large group of friends to celebrate. It sounds like they had a blast as #1 had to drive #3 home and #5 had to drive #2 home. The twins got trashed... I'm glad I'm not going to have their headache in the morning...

They had fun, they worked together, everyone got home safe...
I guess this is considered one of the moments that make a parent proud.
I think...

Reasons why I love being a woman...

2006-02-18T18:17:00.000-08:00

I would not trade being a woman for anything!
Why?

1. I don't have to be strong all of the time, but when I am, it's considered a good trait.

2. I can express my feelings and emotions in just about any form and it's acceptable.

3. I am no longer locked into a gender role, men still are to some degree.

4. I can be anything I want, when I grow up.

5. Independence is a good thing, but it is not manditory 100% of the time.

6. I can lead, I can follow... and I know when to do each.

7. Women change the world, through their own actions, by working with their partners and by raising healthy children.

8. Pressure on women is largely self imposed as opposed to being inflicted from the outside world.

9. Women are passionate.

10. I can still blame being bitchy, crabby and out of sorts on being hormonal.
*

BRrrr...

2006-02-17T09:04:00.000-08:00

Now that it's almost spring, it's finally decided to be winter...
The predicted temp H 32 L 17
This just isn't how Oregon usually does late Feb.

#5 is taking Bricotrout to the airport...
It was a great week, they really seemed to have a good time together! I didn't get to hang out with them very much, husb only saw them in passing, damn work schedules... speaking of work, check this out! He got a tattoo while he was here!

Here is what you thought...

2006-02-16T11:16:00.000-08:00

Pretty cool! Thanks for taking the time to play!

Arena

(known to self and others)

accepting, complex, independent, kind, wise

Blind Spot

(known only to others)

able, adaptable, bold, brave, caring, cheerful, clever, dependable, dignified, extroverted, friendly, giving, idealistic, intelligent, knowledgable, logical, loving, mature, modest, observant, reflective, self-assertive, self-conscious, sentimental, silly, sympathetic, trustworthy, warm, witty

Façade

(known only to self)

searching

Unknown

(known to nobody)

calm, confident, energetic, happy, helpful, ingenious, introverted, nervous, organised, patient, powerful, proud, quiet, relaxed, religious, responsive, sensible, shy, spontaneous, tense

Dominant Traits

55% of people agree that Addict is accepting

All Percentages

able (5%) accepting (55%) adaptable (11%) bold (11%) brave (22%) calm (0%) caring (27%) cheerful (11%) clever (27%) complex (5%) confident (0%) dependable (5%) dignified (5%) energetic (0%) extroverted (5%) friendly (11%) giving (27%) happy (0%) helpful (0%) idealistic (5%) independent (38%) ingenious (0%) intelligent (38%) introverted (0%) kind (16%) knowledgable (5%) logical (5%) loving (38%) mature (11%) modest (11%) nervous (0%) observant (27%) organised (0%) patient (0%) powerful (0%) proud (0%) quiet (0%) reflective (27%) relaxed (0%) religious (0%) responsive (0%) searching (0%) self-assertive (11%) self-conscious (5%) sensible (0%) sentimental (5%) shy (0%) silly (5%) spontaneous (0%) sympathetic (5%) tense (0%) trustworthy (27%) warm (16%) wise (16%) witty (5%)

Created by the Interactive Johari Window on 16.2.2006, using data from 18 respondents.
You can make your own Johari Window, or view Addict's full data.

To my Valentine...

2006-02-14T21:56:00.000-08:00

Who doesn't read my blog...
And yet..

(Insert Pat Green video here)

Happy Valentines Day my sweet Sir...
I Love you and when I say those words, it means so much more than it did when I first told you that so many years ago.
It's completely different really.
It's so much better...

My Johari Window...

2006-02-11T22:28:00.000-08:00

I stole this from Osbasso, I usually steal the good stuff from him :)

It's a personality-mapping tool. I put in my description of myself, then you pick the traits you think describe me best. And then it maps self-perception and the perceptions of those who know me to see the crossover. Interesting idea. Begs the question of whether perception is reality, and if so, who's perception is reality.
Please visit My Johari Window and tell me what you think! Be honest, you can even be anonymous!

PS... Bricotrout made it safely! I only got to spend a few moments with him today... he and #5 are spending the first couple of days in Wilsonville (up I-5 a little ways), and the rest of the week in Salem. Unfortunatly #5 moved back home, and while the husb is basically cool with most stuff, he is making them hotel it at night... it's the "Dad" thing to do... Brico and #5 seem to be pretty cool with that, plus it does give them some alone time away from the parents. Don't tell him I said this, but so far, I'm impressed! He and #5 really seem to be a good fit, and he is just as awesome (don't repeat this) in real life as in blog life...
I'm looking forward to grilling him, ummm I mean spending some quality time with him later in the week ;)

Now go do my damn test (please)
*

How do I spend my Saturday night?

2006-02-11T22:07:00.000-08:00

Cleaning...
Yuck.
It's really the first chance I've gotten all week tho. It will still be comfortably messy by the time Brico gets here. But by Thursday it's got to be presentable.
Who could be more important to clean for than Bricotrout you ask?
The newspaper!
They are doing an article on "Downtown Living" and a photographer is coming in on Thursday. They are going to get some shots of the shop too!
I'll do a link when it comes out, the reporter said it would be a couple of weeks... Probably the Sunday paper in the Homes section. No pressure...
I guess there will be three families featured, all are also downtown business owners as well. The idea is to interest more people in the economic benefits of living downtown as well as the community benefits of having a 24 hour presence down here. I'm also hoping it will help the city plan better for increased loft type housing, the parking challenges et al.
For those who don't know, I live in a 2800 sq. ft. loft in downtown proper above other downtown businesses. It was once a dance studio and our living room was the main dance room. It has hardwood floors, huge rooms, high ceilings and constant free entertainment just outside the front or back windows. My favorite part are the two skylights, one in the library and one in the kitchen.
I really do love living downtown... in our "yard" are some of the most beautiful parks, the best resturants and my personal favorite, shopping. There is a childrens museum, a mall, a post office, two parks and my job, all within walking distance...
Well I've procrastanated long enough... back to the dirty work!

GUEST POST...

2006-02-10T12:55:00.000-08:00

Some words just want to be spoken...
Sometimes there are reasons why you can't say them on your own blog...
There is power in positive thoughts and the energy we send via our words, share your power with your friend and mine, the author of this guest post...

"I'm very proud of my daughter.

She's in the middle of a situation I'm supposed to know nothing about. What I see is that
she's sleeping at odd hours or for 14 hours straight. She's still getting most of her
schoolwork done, and she'd still hanging out with her boyfriend, and her personality is
pretty much the same, but there's a deep weariness that she carries at all times.

It turns out that several weeks ago, her boyfriend started a new medication for his ADD
that made him very suggestable. Along with two other boys, some gay-curious flirting
proceeded over the course of a few days to a full homosexual experience, with penetration
of some type. During the flirting, he told my daughter that he thought he might be gay,
and she told him that she could deal with that, as long as they were still friends.

It turns out that the instigator boy, who is also a friend of my daughter's of several
year's duration (and from a good family, too, I like them) is nearly an adult. He's more
than 2 years older than the boyfriend. The story takes an uglier turn: the boyfriend's
meds got to the right dosage, and he became horrified at what had happened.

My daughter encouraged him to tell his parents.

Things snowballed. Instigator boy got arrested, the State is trying him as an adult who
raped a minor. Everyone has been into the DA for statements. The entire senior class
hates my daughter, because the boyfriend had been so embarrassed he was going to try to
pretend the whole thing never happened, but instead "ratted out" the older boy. She has
supported her boyfriend at every turn as he comes to grips with these events.

Instigator boy gets out of Juvey... today, I think. I can't even imagine what it's like
at his house. I think he got arrested right after Christmas.

I CAN imagine what it's like at the boyfriend's house. It sucks, since his parents are
furious and are pushing for Instigator boy to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the
law. Boyfriend refuses to allow this, apparently taking the (more mature?) view that
sometimes shit happens.

I can't imagine the pressure my daughter is under.

God, what have we done by over-sexing our culture."

My thoughts go out to your daughter, she is very strong. She did the right thing by incouraging him to talk to his parents. May the hearts of all involved find some peace.

Am I just getting old?

2006-02-09T23:06:00.000-08:00

Since when did people stop being polite on the phone?
At work, I've noticed that it is rare that people say "good-bye" on the telephone anymore. They stop talking and hang up. It's as though they are thinking: "I'm done talking now and there is no need to listen." I mean I realize we are a tattoo studio, but still... I feel like a dork saying "good-bye" into a dead line.

The wrong numbers crack me up. Our number is 588-6688. Salvation Army's number is 585-6688. Around Thanksgiving, the calls start, they begin to slack off when electricity bills drop in the spring. My three favorites are the while I've got you on the phone group and the one's who argue and those who just hang up.
Those call go like this:

Us: Addictions
Them: Hello! I need help paying my electric bill. It's getting turned off tomorrow and I've got 4 kids. The baby has a cold. Oh and do you have any food boxes left? I lost my job last Tuesday.
Us: No ma'am, you want to call 585-6688 and they can help you.
Them: Oh, who did I call?
Us: A tattoo and piercing studio. Our numbers are close.
Them: Oh! How much are belly button piercings?

Or

Us: Addictions
Them: Who?
Us: Addictions Body Piercing & Tattoo
Them: Isn't this Salvation Army?
Us: No sir, you'll want to dial 585-6688.
Them: That's what I called!
Us: No, you dialed 588, you need 585.
Them: I know what I called, what is wrong with you people?
Us: You're right, sorry... This will be easier if you just come by in person.
Them: OK, now?
Us: How about 2:30?

The hang up's go like this:

Us: Addic, (click), we hang up. To customers in the store it sounds like we are saying "A Dick!" then we promptly hang up the phone...

Oy....
Well that's all that is on my mind tonight.
Good-bye!

HNT

2006-02-08T23:05:00.000-08:00

So I'm going to move to the ranks of the HNT part-time posters...
There's lots going in IRL, but I will be posting HNT's a couple of times a month or if something inspiring or a special occasion comes up... When I play, I'll leave a tag at Os's, even if I'm not playing, I'll be checking in on my HNT friends!
Happy HNT to the players, the part-timers and for those who just enjoy Thursdays in general!

I'm back, with a story of my travels, sort of...

2006-02-06T22:34:00.000-08:00

tap, Tap, TAP!

The butt of a flashlight against the glass woke her from a thick fog. Shivering in the front seat of a car she doesn't recognise, she tries to clear the cobwebs of a pain induced sleep. God, her head feels like shit. There is partially dried blood by her temple, it feels like corn syrup, thick and sticky.

tap, Tap, TAP!

She squints out the drivers side window, but she is blinded by the mag-light flash light. She feels around the side panel of the door, finds a knob and rolls down the window... she asks: "Can I help you?", feeling kind of stupid as it dawns on her that she is the one in need of help.

"Step out of the car Ma`am."

Feeling the door panel again for the latch, she nearly tumbles out of the car. It's cold, it is mostly dark, she is on a dirt road... there is nothing but pithy dusk, trees and dust for as far as her slowly adjusting eyes can see. Nothing looks at all familiar. The cold mist of a light rain starts.
Two men are by the car she came out of. Both dressed in dark business suits, one in black, the taller one in what looks like dark blue. The man in black quickly flashes a badge and askes what she is doing out here. The taller man walks back towards the Lexus that presumably belongs to the two men. It looks like he is on a phone.

Stunned. She doesn't remember anything since walking to the parking garage after burning the midnight oil at work. Tonight? Last night? She just isn't sure. She turns to look at the car, it isn't her's. This is an older white Lincoln, the trunk and drivers door open wide. She drives a Jetta.

"Ma`am, what's going on out here?" Asks the short one. The taller man steps back away from the Lexus, he moves quickly towards her with something shinny in his hands, handcuffs. Without saying a word, the tall one expertly turns her around and before she even has a chance to open her bruised mouth to ask a question, her hands were cuffed behind her back. She was being steered in the direction of their car. She shakes her head in an attempt to wake from this crazy dream, but the lightening bolt of pain underscores the fact that she is not sleeping. Before her head clears, she is in the back seat of the Lexus and the engine is starting. What kind of cop drives a frekkin' Lexus?

"What is going on? Who are you and what the hell is going on here?" She croaked through swollen lips. Her voice sounded authoratative in her head, outwardly, it was weak, pathetic even. The demand for an answer lost it's desired effect.

The front passanger, the shorter man in black responds: "We've got some questions for you, let's start with the easy ones... Where did the car come from and how did a dead hooker end up in the trunk?"

What the hell is he saying? "I... I have no idea what you are talking about, I want a lawyer!"

Both men laughed in sick unison. "A lawyer can't help you sweetheart, we aren't the police... You're going to pay for that bitch in your trunk though."

Blink, Blink... What the fuck is going on?

Except for the rhythmic drone of windshield wipers, the ride was absolutely silent. The dirt road gave way to pavement and eventually they reached the outskirts of the city. They exited the freeway towards the seedy warehouse district by the railroad tracks that run along the rivers edge. With the press of a button, a garage door on a large, unmarked steel building opens.
The Lexus pulls into a large open storage room like a plane in it's hanger. There are nothing but file cabinets, hundreds of them in tidy rows.

"We're with the government, the Oregon Department of Revenue to be exact. You've got to pay for what we found in that trunk back there."

"I don't know what you're talking about... I don't know anything about a body, and that's not my car!"

"Don't you know ANYTHING about the tax laws in Oregon, you dumb bitch? There is a dead hooker in the trunk tax in this State. Where the body came from is a police matter. The tax is our concern and you were the last person with that dead hooker... you've got to pay the tax!" The taller one goes on: "The dead hooker tax is $10,000 per hooker, you're lucky there was only one, those old Lincoln's have pretty damn big trunks. Payment is due immediatly, if you can't pay it tonight, we will freeze your assets, put a lein on your business and garnish a large portion of your husbands wages.
Good thing you've got that gash on your head, all signatures need to be in blood. We take major credit cards, so whadda want to do?"

~~~
OK so it wasn't a dead hooker tax that kept me away, despite the rumors, there were no FBI agents at all. There were no handcuffs.
It was the Dept of Revenue... we had to straighten out the matter of taxes owed after last year's audit. They meant business and had me scrambling for a few days, but it's worked out, kind of... at least I'm not hysterical anymore.
If you've ever dreamed of self employemnt... call me first ;)
By the way, does anyone know anyone who has ever been audited and not found to owe thousands upon thousands of dollars... why do they never find that they owe the auditee?
Seriously folks, try to avoid being audited, it's not as much fun as you hear...

Maybe I can sell the "Dead Hooker Tax" novel for 10G.

Oh and I'm back!
*

Time Out...

2006-02-04T01:00:00.000-08:00

Some shit is hitting the fan... it's not bloggable just yet. I'm taking a couple of days off to figure it out. It's nothing terrible, I just need to develop a plan to fix something quick and I need to focus on that right now. I'll be back in a few, anyone who needs to reach me has my number, use it if you need to, I'm still here. If anyone is infinatly wealthy, e-mail me (j/K)...
See y'all in a few!

Edit: There is a new poll up on the playdate site... If you don't yet know what this is, but you want to... e-mail me for details!
*

I always thought Brico would be the first...

2006-02-01T23:51:00.000-08:00

But today we did our first "blogger tattoo"!
Decker was the first. I met Decker several posts ago and I have been poking around his blog too, he found himself in the area (well close enough) and after a couple of e-mails back and forth, he took the plunge and got his very first tattoo!
It was a piece of his own design, I think designing it yourself is an excellent idea.
We took tons of pictures and I'm pretty sure he'll be doing a post on it as well!

*Decker... The pleasure was all ours, thanks for stopping by my humble home! If you need anything just let me know :)

That's Decker's back and my tattoo guy, Rob. Decker left with a ton of pictures and hopefully he will show them off pretty soon as well!

Tagged! (I secretly like these!)

2006-01-31T23:47:00.000-08:00

I haven’t been tagged in a long while, but MamaK got me

1. Four jobs I've had:
Waitress
Retail Clerk
Nurse
Body Piercer/Business owner

2. Four movies I can watch over and over:
It’s a Wonderful Life (I watch it every Christmas)
50 First Dates
Rocky Horror Picture Show
Forest Gump

3. Four favorite books:
Illustions by Richard Bach (Totally changed how I look at life)
Anything by:
Stephen King
Dean Koontz
Or either of the Kellerman’s

4. Four places I've lived:
Spokane Washington
Port Angeles Washington
Keaaeu Hawaii
Salem Oregon

5. Four TV Shows I love:
E.R.
The Apprentice
Extreme Home Make-over, Home edition
Forensic Files (you never know when that kind of knowledge will come in handy!)

6. Four Places I've Vacationed:
Lahaina Maui
Mexican Riveria
Orlando Florida
New Orleans LA (no... I can't spell LA, bite me!)

7. Four of My Favorite Foods:
Pasta
Seafood
Chocolate
Green Chili Stew

8. Four Sites I Visit Daily: Only four?!?!
Even when I don’t have time to peek in on everyone (rare), I always peek in on:
Bricotrout
Late Bloomer
Osbasso
Sis B
And many more!

9. Four Places I'd Rather Be Right Now:
Anywhere in Hawaii
Cabo, Mexico
Visiting Sis B
Anywhere warm

10. Four People I'm Tagging:
I’m not a tagger… so maybe four people will volunteer and leave a comment saying you played along.
(But this is going around, perhaps everyone’s already done it! OMG, what if I’m last!?)

Ooh I love toys... shinny, shinny toys!

2006-01-29T20:17:00.000-08:00

I think I need one of these...
We have a Dish Network system at home. This is called a pocket dish. Television and Movies can be downloaded via the main system and viewed anywhere! It also holds photos and Mp3's.
Rather than renting Dvd's, movies can be downloaded from HBO for trips, music is always handy and favorite TV shows can now be watched at work!
It's not like I watch lots of TV or Movies, or listen to Mp3's everywhere I go... it's not like there is anything on Dish that I just can't live without.
But it is shinny, cutting edge and I'd be the first on my block to have one!

*Edit... as you can see, the poor impulse control remains, it's just been redirected :)

The rise and fall of an alcoholic part 3... Breaking the myth

2006-01-28T15:40:00.000-08:00

By now, most of the decade that was my 20's lie in the bottom of a bottle; the kids are getting older and more aware. I can see them taking on the same parental role I took with my Father... something has got to give; I can't drag them through the same stuff I'd gone through... I didn't realize it at the time, but I already had.
I did go back and see the counselor, if for no other reason than to prove their assessment wrong. But like an accident waiting to happen, I could already see what lie ahead; I challenged myself to quit drinking for 24 hours, just to see if I could. I could not. I needed inpatient treatment but because I was a single parent and was unwilling to make other arrangements for the kids, we did daily outpatient treatment instead, followed up by daily AA meetings.
There is a myth that when a drunk stops drinking the sun begins to shine, birds sing and all is right with the world. Nothing could be farther from the truth. While I was drinking, life was good; I knew how to manage it. I had no idea how to live without it. I left the guy (again) because all we had in common was drinking. I was always the person who left, yet I always resented being alone.
I had no social skills, no coping skills and no support. Creditors called daily for unpaid bills, I'd written a string of bad checks to make ends meet. I was running out of employment options because I'd routinely changed jobs every 6 months or so. Sober people did not trust me because I'd already lied to and used most of the ones I knew; the drunken ones didn't think I was much fun anymore.
I had a huge mess to clean up and now CPS was taking an interest in my parenting skills so I didn't dare drink. Life was much worse once the party ended; all I wanted to do was drink just to make life "normal" again. Without any numbing agents I routinely beat myself as I became more aware of what my life had become, my self esteem was at an all time low. For the first time, I had no escape.
Once treatment was over I thought I was equipped to handle the outside world, I was so sadly mistaken. I needed a sense of security so despite the advice of those who had successfully gone down this path before me; I turned the other direction and attached myself to yet another guy. He was sober and within a month I'd married him... I was desperate and could not bear the thought of turning 30 without some sense of having support. In another month we were separated, I was on the run actually. He was crazy. That marriage was soon annulled. He was extremely delusional and thought the police were following him everywhere, he thought the neighbors were spying on us and that our apartment was bugged. I panicked and fled one day while he was at work. He gave chase and I ended up coming back to Oregon to hide in a round about way.
I finally broke down and realized that while I was not drinking, I had created a mess I could not get out of, I was being chased by a crazy man, my car had finally been repossessed, the bills caught up to me. 6 months after I quit drinking, I finally hit bottom. I was broken. I started going back to meetings and this time I listened...
My biggest challenge was in giving up the idea that I was not a complete person myself, I thought I needed someone to complete me. I had to learn to trust myself. I need to learn to become a parent to the kids. I had to relearn everything I'd previously done as a drunk.
The kids and I spent the next 18 months or so bonding, just the three of us, no men, no drink. Finally there was light at the end of the tunnel. Finally we began to heal as a family and I slowly became a whole person.
Once my spirit began to heal, once I could trust myself again... I began to make different choices.
It has been a long up hill walk, and I am still climbing, it's been nearly 14 years now and yet it feels as though this was written about someone else... like it could not have possibly been me. I did have one "slip", such a cute word for an impending disaster. I just couldn't let my life slip away so easily now, I finally had something to lose.
It feels like a bad dream.
It feels so good to finally be awake
I have come to realize that some of us are born with holes in our souls, often we plug them with what ever is handy; sex, drink, drug. I've had to work hard at finding other ways to plug the holes. I've poured myself into my family and my business. I've worked hard these last years to make up for the first years and although nothing can give back some of the things I have taken, on an initially shakey foundation, a fine sturdy home has been built.
At last, I have something to offer...

I know this sounds cliche` but changing your life begins by changing your mind...
*

The rise and fall of an alcoholic part 2

2006-01-27T20:06:00.000-08:00

Taking up from where we left off... I am 23, I've got two small children. I started college a couple of months before the divorce, mostly because husband #1 was against it. I mean what a waste of money if I was going to stay home and raise babies, right?
I was alone, none of my family lived in the state, I had no friends since most of them were church related and sided with the husband. I was unemployed. I lived in low income housing. Except for college, I was one step away from spitting out a few more kids and becoming a welfare statistic. I had made myself quite a mess in a very short time. Perpetually seeking the father figure, I was always attached to one guy or another, right off the bat. Being a bargain shopper, I seemed to always choose the guy right off the discount sale rack. At this time in my life I was an odd combination of attributes, independent yet clingy, insecure yet stubborn, free floating yet with some sense of direction. My self esteem was horrible and worse yet, I was too dumb to know it at the time. If I were a weather pattern, it would always be storming from the conflicting temperatures.
In college I found myself once again trying to find acceptance. The first guy I found lived in my apartment complex, life with him was a party, all the time. We went out every weekend and often hosted week day parties at one of our apartments. Between parties, weekends and school, the kids were always with one sitter or another, usually a teenager, which ever one I could find at any given moment. I rarely saw them unless the party was at my place. I was completely mystified when this first guy broke it off with me because he soon became tired of taking care of me once the party was over. I had no ability to drink and stop, once the drinking started I could not stop until I'd passed out, often leaving my date to find the sitter and my kids and tuck all of us into bed. The next boy was a paramedic student... I was a nursing student, it seemed perfect. He gave up on me after staying up with me all night after a party. I blacked out part way through the night and he took me home. He went door to door in my apartments looking for the kids and when he got to the apartment of the previous guy I'd dated, he got a sympathetic pep talk... after finding the kids and bringing them home, I was passed out and choking on vomit... he kept me alive that night, but left in the morning, never to return. I just didn't get it. It didn't even dawn on me that this was not good. Through out the rest of school, I had Adele, my best friend. I decided it was time to take a break from guys and just have some fun and Adele was the ticket. She was a cop's wife of all things. He worked every weekend so we took my car out to the clubs so he wouldn't spot her and we played into the wee hours every weekend. Life was a series of phone numbers never called and of one night stands. We were having a blast and yet I was not with any one person long enough for anyone to be too concerned. I drank myself pretty, I drank myself funny, and I drank myself smart...
Adele was the first person I'd ever done drugs with (other than pot) and we actually made a game of trying new things... while studying we would chose one drug and see how our weekly test scores faired on Friday. We tried it all, my first time skiing we were drinking and high on crank, I actually thought I could ski and went down the "black run" on my first time up. Everything was a competition and that was the only reason I think I made it through school at all. Safety never occurred to either of us, I became so accustomed to driving drunk that I thought I drove better after drinking than I drove when I was sober and often drove the kids home at 3:00am after a night out.
Towards the end of school I hooked up with a wonderful guy who dealt coke from work. I can't even begin to tell you how badly that went. I graduated from school and soon started work at an area hospital where I routinely stole halcion and valium just so I could catch some sleep every couple of days. I finally walked out with a gun pointed at me after my daughter (then 3) asked my best friend if she could live with her after mommy was dead. The kids saw it, but I did not...
I continued to drink, but was pretty burnt out on drugs and violence. Rather than drinking till I passed out, I had perfected a technique of drinking all day, every day. By this time I was non-functional unless I was drinking.
I met the next guy in a bar, I thought it would be another "pick up" but he called back... we spend a couple of years and moved through a couple of states together. His drinking habits were much like mine, mandatory for a "relationship" with me. Beer was like soda and really didn't count as "drinking" at all. At a 7-11 one night a clerk mentioned the amount of alcohol I bought, so I started stopping at different stores on my way home from work every night. We felt OK about our drinking because we never drank hard alcohol until after 5:00pm except for weekends. We frequented several bars on a regular basis and again never thought twice about driving home afterwards. I remember running a red light at a major intersection and we just thought it was funnier than hell... thankfully the kids were not with me that night. Thankfully God watches out for drunks.
Because the kids were now older (5 and 8), babysitting was not so much a problem, we just tucked them in bed and after they were asleep, we went out. The thought now strikes terror in my heart, but I didn't give it a second thought at the time.
We were close friends with another couple; we saw them every day, had dinner and drank every night... One day, out of the blue I asked my friend: Do you ever wonder if you have a drinking problem? She laughed at me. But my mind set was beginning to change. I was feeling guilty; feeling like there must me something more. Drinking at home was no problem, but I was calling in to work a lot, I was on my last warning. One day at work a nurse offered me gum, I declined, but she insisted... she could see I was still somewhat drunk from the night before. My secret was getting out and rumors were starting. I was growing uncomfortable, even a little paranoid. I decided this discomfort was not from drinking itself, nor from my need to stop. I decided that I was growing uncomfortable due to some childhood issues I was carrying around and perhaps some counseling would soothe my spirit while allowing me to continue the lifestyle I'd become accustomed to. I made an appointment.
At my first appointment I was asked to fill out some paperwork and included in that is a questionnaire. I answered the questions honestly except for the drinking part. Writing it down, it did seem like a lot of alcohol, and I could no longer remember the last day I didn't have anything to drink, if you counted beer, which I did not. I deleted much of the beer and cut the hard alcohol in half when answering questions... I knew I wasn't an alcoholic, I had a job, I had a relationship, I didn't beat the kids and I'd never been arrested.
They declined to work with me unless I was in treatment.
I was pissed.

Herein lies hundreds of detailed posts, this is just the "quick" overview.
It looks like there will be one more part...

Sometimes you're the bug, but not always...

2006-01-27T10:45:00.000-08:00

I began a story a few days ago (down two posts) called 'the rise and fall of an alcoholic'... I plan to write part two tonight or tomorrow morning. Before getting into the "meat" of the story I just wanted to share some experience with you...

I write about this for a few different reasons:
1) Because it happened, because it is part of who I am and a large part about how I arrived at this point in my life.
2) Because others have either been there and think they are alone, or are there right now and don't know if they can get out... hopefully sharing this will help.
3) Because if you stick around life long enough, roles can change. Some times we are the abuser, sometimes the abused. Some times we are the helper, other times we need help. We all justify things, but we are not the good guy nor the hero in every scene in our life. And as much as we would like to deny that... it too, is part of life.

When I first decided to write about parts of my story (sidebar for other parts), I told readers that there were parts of my story that may disappoint the reader, that didn't show me in the best light... that may even piss the reader off at me, and yet those are all part of who I am today, I just took a path that was not the most effecient, but I am here nonetheless.

I do not believe that we are the sum of the mistakes we have made, but we are the sum of how we respond to those mistakes. We are not the sum of how many times we have waded through the mire, but of how many times we've stopped, and reached our hand back to help someone else through as well.

It's Half Nekkid Thursday.... again!

2006-01-25T21:03:00.000-08:00

No words today...
Just a picture.

The rise and fall of an alcoholic part 1

2006-01-24T09:27:00.000-08:00

This post was brought to you by an idea from reading a post at Bricotrout's about drinking and not drinking. Several people have mentioned in comments that I'm a good Mom, and I am... now. That wasn't always the case for me, I am so lucky that my kids turned into happy healthy adults and that they don't hold my stupidity against me. It just goes to show you that no matter how badly one's mistakes in life are, children love their parents... Thank God.
Let's take another trip down memory lane...
My childhood was a bit non-traditional, my Dad was a very active alcoholic, my Mom was not physically around, through a turn of events I ended up in foster care and eventually reunited with my Mom and I moved in with her at the age of 15. A very difficult age to be, under the best of circumstances. At that age, in some ways I was very sheltered, in others I was pretty street savey, it was an odd combination. To my Mother's credit, she took on the responsibility of raising a child who until then had pretty much been raising herself. In earlier years, I had been overly responsible and when I moved in with my Mom, it was the first time I felt safe enough to just be a teenager... and I was, with a vengence. Some of this may come as a surprise to family as it was my job as a teenager to keep these things hidden... it was something I did pretty well.
Every family has it's genetic tendencies... Things that did not start with me, my parents or even their parents, some of these things are passed down from generation to generation for hundreds of years. In my family, it's addiction. If you add all of the family members on both sides, I can count the number on one hand that has escaped a personal battle with drug or alcohol addiction. Of those few not affected, fewer still are the ones that don't take a personal inventory occasionally just to be sure their habits are not getting out of hand. Because I was rather distant from family for many years... few had any idea just what my day to day life was like or how much I had lost control over my life.
I had always been surrounded by alcohol, it wasn't hidden from me nor was it kept out of my reach. I had seen my Father drunk on many, many occasions and on my Father's side, this was just all "normal" behavior. Alcohol was the center of every family gathering and drinking alcohol as accpeted at drinking water. I do not remember when I took my first drink, either I was too young to remember, or it was so accepted that it did not seem like a landmark in my life. While I knew I did not want to be like my Father on the one hand, the corralation between drinking and becoming an alcoholic completely escaped me.
I started drinking regularly as a teenager. Some my Mom knew about, lots she didn't. I so desperatly wanted to fit in somewhere with my peers, whom I felt seldom understood me that I tucked in with the first group who would accept me... the partiers. On weekends we played like many kids do, we were always at someones house drinking and smoking weed. I had made friends with some older guys, with their own apartment and it was party heaven as we never had to worry about parents. By my Junior year in High School, I was sneaking Mom's vodka to school for a little lunchtime boost. I'm pretty sure this is where I learned the skill of drinking just enough all the time to be buzzed and yet to function as though nothing was going on. I also learned how to hide things rather well. I loved the attention I got from my peers because of my ability to out drink almost everyone and still be functional, as a teenager, any attention is good attention... and I was (still am) quite competetive. I was very insecure, but while drinking I found that I was the life of the party, the focus of attention and of course my jokes were funnier, my antics more interesting, while drinking I was accepted and I thought that drinking brought out the "real" me, the funny me, the popular me that was hidden deep inside and that never showed itself when I was not drinking. I had every reason to continue.
At this point, I still don't think I was yet an alcoholic, I was just developing a problem... I did have a lull in my drinking in the following years and I really didn't miss it too much. It was the lull before the storm.
We ended up moving to Salem, my home today, between my Junior and Senior year of High School. I had calmed down some and was trying to settle in. Shortly after beginning my Senior year I met a boy, #4 & 5's father. He was a good kid and he thought he saw something good in me too. He went to church on Sundays and was a rock solid guy. He was quite the influence in my life and I was getting attention from this guy, positive attention, while I was sober. This was a good thing. He offered me the stability that I craved and potentially a future. Four months after my 18th birthday, we married. I looked up to him and did not want to disappoint him. We went to church together and I stayed sober. #4 came along after a couple of years. Soon I began to feel smothered. We had this child and his father had definate ideas about how he wanted this child raised. He had very "christian" ideas about that, many of which I did not necessarily agree with. I am not stay at home Mom material. I wish I were, but I'm not. As he got deeper and deeper into the the church, I began to pull away. I was rebelling I guess. He didn't want me to work, so I got a job. In hind sight, I realize that I looked at husband #1 as more of a parental figure than as a spouse, he looked at me as a project, something to fix. It was really doomed from the beginning. #5 came along and he really felt that with 2 children it was time to put his foot down. Three months after #5 was born, I filed for a divorce, my final act of rebellion.
By now I'm 23, a single parent of two and I have no local family or emotional support. I am emotionally back in high school, wanting to be accepted, wanting an escape from the difficult path I choose to walk.
Part two to follow...

Well shit...

2006-01-21T20:04:00.000-08:00

Time/Life info-mercial sales thing...
Greg Brady is selling a CD set from the 70's
I know all the songs
I like it
I bought it
Piss

Quiet time...

2006-01-21T12:34:00.000-08:00

For me, one of the only down sides (if you can call it that) to growing up as an only child is the development of the need for quiet time. Each and everyday, I have to have some time when the house is absolutely quiet. No TV, no stereo, no people. If I miss a day, I get very out of sorts. Having a large immediate family, for years this was a challenge, yet a priority...
Right now, my house is absolutely silent.
It's like a spa treatment for my soul....

HNT Re-cap and other news...

2006-01-20T10:38:00.000-08:00

Answers to a few HNT questions...
First off thanks for the comments on my love handle! I've got one on the other side as well... again, safety first :)
Those are my favorite jeans!
As for #5's lip piercing, Nope they really don't hurt, not if they're done right (and #5 is pretty tough, we didn't raise any weenies). No anestetic, not even topical.
And Brico, it's not torture, she actually likes it!

On to other news, #5 and the grandmonster are officially moving back in with us for a while. She was fired for the stupidest thing... she went to work with the stomach flu (they have a very strict attendence policy) and thought perhaps they would send her home ill, thus avoiding a write up for calling in sick. So she starts to throw up in the waste paper basket and her boss told her she would fire her if she went home. #5 hung in for another hour or so and told the boss "do what ever you've got to do, I'm going home". And they fired her.
This proves my theory that bull shit makes great fertilizer though because she's decided to go back to school (trade school for Pharmacy Tech) so she can get a job that's "real". She starts classes the end of the month, so the timing was really perfect and the circumstances leading up to this was enough to push her back into school... She's too smart not to do something better with her future...

Half Nekkid... back in the studio again

2006-01-18T15:51:00.000-08:00

This week I pierced #5's lip... somedays I'll do anything for a little quiet...

And if piercing is not your thing... here's a little Momma skin.
That is a love handle.
For safety reasons you've got to provide something to hold onto ;)

Chicago is the winner... frequent "the other site" for more updates!

Grandmonster Quote

2006-01-18T12:45:00.000-08:00

(idea shamelessly stolen from Bricotrout)

Daughter #5 gets out a deck of playing cards for the grandmonster to play with:

Daughter: "Here J... do you want to play with some cards?"

Grandmonster: "Cr-edit cards! I love it!"

Seriously, do you think we take him shopping too much?
*

And the winner is....

2006-01-18T10:03:00.000-08:00

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CHICAGO!

If you have no idea what this is about... e-mail me (profile) and maybe I'll fill you in ;)
You *will* want to know more about it if you are interested in getting to meet your blogger/HNT buds IRL!

I want to be a writer for the news...

2006-01-17T21:26:00.000-08:00

Today's news preview:
"Want to know if tomorrow's rain will effect flooding? Tune into channel 6 at 11 to find out!"

Do ya think?

*

I'm hopeless...

2006-01-14T18:14:00.000-08:00

It's a damn good that the way to my man's heart is *not* through his stomach...

People who know me IRL will recognise this one right away... yes, I tried to cook by myself.
Husb is at work, #2 is out of town and #5 is at her place.
So, yes... rather than going out to eat (like a normal retard) I ventured into the kitchen... alone.
It was one of those neat Trader Joe's things, you know, just add water and heat. I am amazed they've never been sued, the directions on the package need to be written more clearly ;)

**Go down one post to check out the vacation you're coming with me on!**

~

It's Booked!

2006-01-14T17:23:00.000-08:00

We are going on vacation, booked it today! The best part, I'm taking you all with me!
We will be leaving March 1st for an 8 day Cruise south of the boarder on The NCL Star!

I booked for wireless access while on board just so I could take you along, I've got a shinny new camera so you won't miss a thing! Watch for tons of pictures from the ship and from the shore!

Be sure to bring sunscreen... we are getting an early spring tan!

Back to the scene of the crime.

2006-01-12T21:20:00.000-08:00

It's amazing the tricks one's memory can play. I am surprised how our brains record and store information, and which files we place that information into. I am baffeled that we can remember things one way, but after a time those things can prove to be quite different. Sometimes we need to go through our file cabinet and clean up, re-label and file those memories in a different place.
Case in point:
I grew up in Spokane Washington, I moved from that city when I was 15, never to return again. Why? The memories. Spokane was not always the most pleasant place for me. I grew to feel unsafe there, I never thought of it as "home". If you've been around a while or if you've poked around in "The Parts of the Stories" in my side bar, you will remember that my first 15 years were not so traditional as far as child raising goes. It wasn't horrible, I've met many a child who has suffered trauma they just never got past while living in foster homes. But growing up wasn't "Father Knows Best" either.
As an adult, in my memory, Spokane was filed away in the back of the drawer. There are lots of dust bunnies, it is dark and rather chilly most of the time...
A few years ago, I got a wild hair and decided that I really needed to return to Spokane as an adult, just to poke around a bit. I wanted to go on a pilgrimage of sorts.
A short time after verbalizing this, a concert was making it's rounds, one husband and I wanted to see. It was playing in Portland, the Gorge and Spokane. He purchased tickets for Spokane and made reservations for the weekend.
Of all of the beautiful and wonderfully exotic places husband has ever taken me, this plain place was our best trip by far.
We pulled into the city from the West and the hill crested, just below us was the city, nestled like a jewel in the desert. The smell of the pine trees in the dry air brought back childhood memories of playing in the woods (at a time when such things were safe), of secret forts built, of snow ball fights, of jumping rope on the playground after school. We decended into the city and to our right was the "Batman Church" which could be seen on the south hill from almost anywhere in the city. Exiting the freeway, the underpass was covered in the same graffiti that was there 30 years ago, the same people huddled under the pass, chatting in a small group, deciding who would work which corner. Before going to the hotel, we drove around a bit, I found a few of the houses we lived in (we moved ALOT) and couple of the schools (lots of those too), we found my step-mothers house, my uncles house and the ice cream drive thru that had the hugest two flavor cones ever.
After checking into the hotel we walked down by the river and I remembered the time my cousin almost died in the river, tubing almost all the way down to the falls, he thought it was funnier than hell when they pulled him out. We wandered around the amazing park that was built on the old Expo '74 site as I recounted the placement and the wonder of many of the pavillians. We perused the shops downtown and found everyone to be wonderful, friendly and they all had an exceptional pride about their city.
The entire city was alive.
That was the very last thing I was expecting to find.
I expected to find the city staggared by the burden I had placed upon it.
The music at the concert was particularly sweet, the bed at the hotel was extra cozy, the air made my lungs feel as if they had never breathed air before.
I was healing.
I was home.
I learned that it is OK to challenge your own memories from time to time, no matter how real they feel, prospectives can change.
And that facing your fears after the danger has passed is one of the very best gifts a person can give themselves.

Happy Thursday!

2006-01-11T19:41:00.000-08:00

Since all I did was work, I dug into the "tattoo files" for this weeks HNT.
I am neither the tattooee nor the tattooer, but it's at my place and we were having a great time!

Boring....

2006-01-11T10:49:00.000-08:00

I've been all work and no play... all year long!
Thus my blog has turned into a drone.
After getting some home stuff caught up, perhaps the free time and lack of committment today will spark some type of intelligent idea that I can write down later tonight!
Thanks for hanging in during the dry spells!
(I've said those same words to my husband once or twice as well!)
*

I've been more of a reader this week...

2006-01-07T10:37:00.000-08:00

So I'm still suffering from a lack of time... my other piercer is out of town this week so I'm picking up her days. I'll get even with her in March though, we are planning a trip to Mexico.

I was going through my sidebar friends and family and realized how much I need to update it... perhaps on my next day off.
Aside from reading my sidebar and bookmarked family and friends, I have found the time to poke around a few new blogs, some I stumbled across here or there, others were "next blogs". A couple I've bookmarked, not because the blog owner and I are like minded, but actually the opposite... I've recently ran across a few that were the written equivelent of a car accident, you don't want to look, but you cannot look away. I'm all over free expression, this is why I blog, but every now again you have to wonder if people really believe what they write, or if they simply write for a reaction (not that there is necessarily anything wrong with that). It just facinates me though. Generally when people read my blog, and on those occasions that I write something meaningful (to me), I am sharing a deep part of who I am.
Written in some of the blogs that I do not understand, are pages and pages of hate and misunderstanding (in my opinion), of anger at the world in general and of extreme bias against mankind... I have to wonder if that is their reality as well.
Just out of curiosity...
What percent of what you write reflects who you are?
What percent of what you read (in blogdom) do you believe is reflective of the author's day to day reality?

Can it be Thursday (Wed. night) already?

2006-01-04T17:02:00.000-08:00

I am never more nekkid than when I am in thought...
Sharing those thoughts is like sharing my soul.

Why I would never want to be young(er) again...

2006-01-02T22:01:00.000-08:00

Some things just come with age, there are no shortcuts. I wouldn't trade these things if the chance were possible...

1. The hills are less steep. The greater life's highs, the lower the valleys. It is actually very nice to have a little less drama and a little more predictability.

2. Self esteem is less painful. I am what I am. I know what I see when I look in the mirror and I am far more concerned about my own opinion of me, and far less concerned about the opinions of others.

3. Invest well. Investments in people have a far greater pay off then investments in things.

4. Less trauma. Things I would have found devistating in my 20's are now challenges to work through. Very few things are truly devistating.

5. Wax and wane. Life has it's ups and down's, after going through many of both, you know that life will get better when going through a rough patch. This knowledge makes the rough patches easier.

6. Pros and Cons. With experience you can see the con jobs from a mile away... I used to allow myself to be manipulated because I wanted to be liked (loved, accepted), it pays to see the cons like a pro. Life is too short to waste on being used.

7. Slow down or you'll miss life's simple pleasures. Having indulged in many of life's pleasures, both small and large. The small pleasures are often the most satisfying.

8. Finding Mr. Right. Finding Mr. Right largely depends on my willingness to be Ms. Right. You can only change yourself, you cannot hope to change others, the closer you are to the person, the truer this is. When things are tough, look inward, improving yourself is much easier than trying to make someone else improve.

9. Speaking up, shutting up. With age you learn what to stand up for and how to speak your mind in a constructive, effective way... you also learn when it's best to just 'let it go'.

10. Breathe in, breathe out. There is no need to get stressed over every little thing, most things work themselves out with little interference from me.

It's funny... it seems only like yesterday when I knew everything, now I feel that I still have so very much to learn...
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Gee that was fun!

2006-01-01T00:14:00.000-08:00

Let's do it again next year!!!
The new years eve bash was a blast...
When we opened the doors at 11:00am we had 72 people in line, it stayed steady until about 10:00pm where we got our first lul (lunch).

What a great way to send off the old year and welcome the new!

At closing (11:00 pm) we still had people coming in...

I'm going to catch some sleep and spend the next couple of days checking in to see how your new years was!
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Happy New Year!

2005-12-30T19:08:00.000-08:00

Our big sale is Saturday, we finally got our ducks in a row for the big day...
I will be MIA until at least Sunday...
So everyone have a wonderful and safe New Year, may all of your hopes and dreams for 2006 come true!

In the meantime I leave you with this:
I think he's looking for a car!

My Fave HNT of 2005

2005-12-28T20:41:00.000-08:00

Um... yeah.... it's what you think!

And just so you know, the curve of a tea pot is like a fun house mirror, not the most flattering look over all, but it does make the boobies look bigger!

If you don't know what the HNT/Blogger Play Date is, but you want to know, E-mail me! (or see my complete profile for e-mail address)
I'm working on a button, but I'm kind of retarded that way, so I'm open to assistance!

Wishing everyone out there a happy and safe New Year!
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Ack!

2005-12-28T10:42:00.000-08:00

It's a good thing the New Year is just around the corner... I'm out of time this year and could really use a 'new year'.
This week in a nutshell:
*studio, busy
(getting ready for our new years eve sale/party. Helping people spend their Christmas money)
*grandson, stomach flu
*kids, enjoying having them around more
*house, disaster still
*blog, neglected

(even tho I'm out of time to post, or even put a post together, I am checking in on everyone, even commenting when I can't resist!)
*

Now that I'm done eating...

2005-12-25T22:11:00.000-08:00

Here is some of our Christmas!
This is just prior to the madness.

Daughter #2 and the grandmonster!

The grandmonster helping Papa

The boyz...

My "pet" socks...

I hope everyone had a delightful Christmas!

Be Thanks.... this one is for Bobby, where ever you are!

2005-12-23T15:46:00.000-08:00

In any City or Town, in any State, you will never find a more eclectic group of people than those found downtown. There are the workers, the shoppers, the residents, the rich, the poor and the homeless. They seem to mingle side by side in appearent peace, such is the downtown of many a city.
Panhandlers are a frequent site, some are in desperate need, others bind together and work corners with the organization of a corporation, some do it to get through the holiday, others do it to get through the day. Occasionally you will find an artist, or a saint made up to look like someone in need, beware that some who appear to be needy are cleverly disguised givers, even becons of kindness and light.
Meet Bobby.
Bobby could be found in a particular bus shelter just across from the mall, directly in front of the old Wells Fargo Bank, now vacant. His Crayon paintings spread on a bench for public display, custom art always available on request. Each work of art is a steal at only a dollar each and the customer can choose between a wonderful variety.
Bobby was always clean and cared for, if you didn't count the tobacco stained beard. He always had a kind word for everyone, especially those who could spare a moment to sit and chat, as we did, but now it doesn't seem that I took the time nearly often enough. He lived in some kind of group home and drew a small social security check, the proceeds from his art funded the extras like cigarettes, bus fare and art supplies.
Last Christmas the kids and I bought and wrapped art supplies as Christmas gifts to Bobby, he was so excited, and a tear sprung up to blur my vision of him unwrapping his gifts. He insisted we take a picture "on the house" and I put it proudly on my fridge which was often graced by Bobby's art.
Over the summer it was appearent that his health was rapidly deteriorating and he blessed the bus shelter less and less frequently with his art... in early fall, we heard that he had passed away.
I just wanted to give Bobby a big shout out this Christmas, I'm hoping he has an infinate supply of constantly sharpened crayons, and that his art still contains the words of wisdom that mine does. The one we got last Christmas that is still on my fridge.
Be Thanks...

This Christmas, I wanted to share a slice of Bobby with you and to ask that all of us take just a moment to simply "Be Thanks" during this holiday.
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Merry Christmas

2005-12-22T20:29:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas*.

*Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low stress, non-addictive, gender neutral, celebration of the winter solstice holiday season, practiced with the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasions and/or traditions of others or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all. I would also like to wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling, and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2006, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make the world a great place to live and without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith, or sexual preference of the wishee.

(By accepting this greeting, you are accepting these terms)

This greeting is subject to clarification or withdrawal. It is freely transferable with no alteration to the original greeting. It implies no promise by the wisher to actually implement any of the wishes for her/himself or others, and is void where prohibited by law, and is revocable at the sole discretion of the wisher. This wish is warranted to perform as expected within the usual application of good tidings for a period of one year, or until the issuance of a subsequent holiday greeting, whichever comes first, and warranty is limited to replacement of this wish or issuance of a new wish at the sole discretion of the wisher.)

Note:
These Seasons Greetings are not meant to imply unwillingness to greet or otherwise acknowledge at non-seasonal occasions.

I shamelessly stole this from urbanmuse while she wasn't looking...
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HNT Christmas wishes!

2005-12-21T18:28:00.000-08:00

On my christmas wish list is a new car for Deb, her current ride is giving her a bad time right now.

I would send Belly a pleasant diversion to take her mind off of everything else for a while.

And for Osbasso, a secure place to keep the private HNT collection in, you know, the one that doesn't exist.

For the scoop on this weeks Christmas HNT go see The Boss...

Edit: *deb* In virtual gift land, your wish is my command! I think they were having a two for one sale and his twin is waiting in the back seat of the car for you!

*brico* #5 is loaded up with IRL presents, but the AFLAC is an incredibly good idea (she's already double insured)
:)

*for everyone wondering about the combination to Os's gift.... I gave it to husb, who assures me that he put it in a "safe" place!
*

Santa Thoughts...

2005-12-21T14:54:00.000-08:00

Is it any wonder children are confused...
We force them to sit on the laps of old men, who in turn promise to give them gifts.
We thought about taking the grandmonster to see Santa until this thought occured to me on the way...
We bought a pretzel and some cheeze dip at the mall instead.

#36, Believe it or not, this is the short version...

2005-12-19T21:18:00.000-08:00

Sis B (my least expensive daughter, therefore, often my favorite) recently asked me about #36 on my 100 list. Part of the 100 reads like this:
34. I’ve never had a moving violation
35. I’ve never been arrested
36. I met my husband in jail
15 years ago I had a very VERY short, horrible mistake, marriage. It lasted about a month and was annuled, therefore it doesn't really count. "The guy" was a bit crazy, really. Like he thought the imperfections in the ceiling was proof the upstairs neighbors were spying on him for the police, who followed him everywhere, undercover (in his head) kind of crazy. I'm not proud of the way I left, but I packed my kids and what ever would fit in my Subaru Justy and moved from Washington via Missouri to Oregon to start over again, in hidding. I left while he was at work. My first profession was as a nurse, crazy guy thought I might end up in Salem and came here, trolling the parking lots of medical facilities looking for my car. He found it, broke into the facility and trapped me in a patient's room, police were soon involved, blah, blah, blah. This was early February. On Valentines day, he took out the creepiest sweetheart ad I've ever seen so I quit my job, started using my first married name and sold the car.
I applied for a job at the most secure place I could think of, the county jail.
Much to my surprise they called for an interview. I was interviewed by the admisistrator and the charge nurse... Wm was the charge nurse. I noticed him right away, felt a stur and did the normal chick thing, checked for a ring. There wasn't one. I passed the interview, but was terrified about the background check, their reputation is of being very thorough and I had applied using a name that was not legally mine. Somehow I slipped through the cracks and got the job. At work I was safe behind locked doors. The county jail shares it's location with the county sheriff's substation so I had cops around all the time. For someone not comfortable with cops, this seemed like the best solution.
I thought husb was a jackass at first, he didn't have two words for me because I was new. His instructions were to follow him, but to stay out of his way. That first day we had a "man down" in segregation, he heard it on the radio and took off running. It was a drug overdose. He didn't say a word to me, he just took off, so I ran after him, he barked out orders like a drill sargent. I was impressed with the skill that he single handedly handled the situation though. The first time we had to respond to a pepper spray incident, he instructed me to take a deep breath when we entered the pod, I couldn't breathe normally for a half hour after that, he laughed his ass off. Even though he didn't wear a ring to work he spoke often of his wife and kids. The first crush wore off, I aclaimated to working at the jail and after some time Wm eventually began to treat me like a person. Eventually we became friends at work... we did not socialize outside of work though. After about a year of working together, my life had finally smoothed out. Except for one scare, crazy man moved on. The scare occured soon after starting work at the jail and I was reading TB tests for a new batch of sheriff's. Another nurse mentioned my first name, he asked the nurse if my last name was "Mrs. crazy" and my heart stopped, the nurse however never knew me as "Mrs. crazy" and she gave the sheriff my psudo last name. The sheriff replied that they had been looking for me. I read the TB tests and never said a word that would give away that I really was Mrs. crazy. I never did find out what that was about.
We had been working together for just over a year and one day he told us that he was in a mood, his wife just left him. We talked a few days later, I guess they were not married, but they had lived together for sometime... I remember telling him that she would come to her senses soon enough and all would be well again soon. I had also been casually dating someone, I broke it off, if Wm was going to be single, I wanted to be available (women can be so manipulative sometimes). Eventually we began to flirt, then little notes were passed back and forth, cute little e-mails. I kept thinking he would soon ask me out. That never happened. One day he gives me this coupon for a massage after work (I worked eves) with a map to his house. I drove out there that night and I think it scared the piss out of him. He answered the door and asked "hey, what are you doing here?" I said "nothing" and headed back out to my car. He stopped me, and I spent the night.
And the rest as they say, is history.
For a weird convoluted way to meet, in the end we are just your normal average American family...
*snicker*

The source of my allergies...

2005-12-18T18:29:00.000-08:00

I am allergic to snow...
Now those of you who live where you get this stuff are laughing at me right now, but we really don't get much of the stuff... usually a day or two in Janurary, rarely ever before Christmas.

I live in a Valley on purpose, snow is pretty and all, but I can't drive in it (so I don't), and I worry to death when anyone else is out in it as well... So daughter just had to run to Mal-Wart tonight. I think she does it just to drive me crazy.
It warmed up just enough to melt it and froze again, turning the roads into an ice skating rink...
If you want to see how I really feel about snow & ice, just click on a picture.

I am not...

2005-12-17T19:23:00.000-08:00

i am not sick
I am NOT sick
I AM NOT SICK...

It has to be those damned Christmas allergies.

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Grandson... good imagination or psychotic break?

2005-12-17T14:50:00.000-08:00

So the grandmonster and I are playing with his brio train set... he loves trains. The grandmonster is also learning the concept of sharing, since he will likely remain an only child, he needs to have a grasp of sharing before preschool. He does have some cousins he gets to practice sharing with on his Mamo's (grandma on the otherside) side.
Anyway we are playing train, the brio box is nearby with a full color picture of a little boy playing with the same train set.
The grandmonster notices this picture on the box and immediatly wants the boy on the box to "share" the train set that he is playing with. At first he asks the boy on the box to "share, share, share"? The monster becomes so agitated that the boy on the box won't share that he's shaking the box and yelling: "Share, SHARE, SHARE"!! The only thing that would calm him was me putting the box into "time out". So now the box is sitting quietly in the corner, the boy on the box is still selfishly playing with the picture of the train.
I am certain the behavior is genetic from his father's side of the family...
No one I'm related to is that weird.

Play Date Bloggers

2005-12-16T22:32:00.000-08:00

The poll ended on the Play Date site in a dead tie of 16-16. There is an updated poll and hopefully this will be *it*!
If you are a blogger/HNT'er and don't know what I'm talking about, but would like to, drop me an e-mail, be sure to include your blog name so I know who you are!

Christmas Cold

2005-12-16T09:31:00.000-08:00

Everyone at my house is sick... if they are sick and they don't live here, they come over so they're not sick at home alone.
Yesterday I stopped by the house in the early afternoon to find husb, daughter #5 and the grandmonster all with fevers and coughs.
I'm trying my best to stay away from all of them. So far I'm the only healthy one around. Airborne rocks... tho son #4 thinks it's "hokas pokas".
The holiday season is such that not only have I neglected my HNT friends this week, but I'm behind on just my everyday blog family and friends as well... I'm hoping to spend some quality time with my computer over the weekend to catch up!
Why is it that the holidays seem to bring out the worst in people... is it the stress of finding the "perfect" gift? Is it the additional financial strain, or does one person's joy just piss off the next person?
I think it's the stupid drivers myself, I'm nice as pie while walking, wishing passers by a "Merry Christmas", but put me behind the wheel of a car and send me to the mall, and I turn into the "fucking move your dumbass" grinch.
I think I'll just stick with walking...

Merry Thursday

2005-12-14T20:42:00.000-08:00

Husb is the cook in the family... other than snacks, I cannot remember the last time I cooked.
This is his Christmas present!

To find more nekkidness, see the master

My favorite Christmas past-time...

2005-12-13T16:54:00.000-08:00

Children are one of my favorite parts of Christmas...
Some of my childhood Christmas's were less than ideal. In my attempt to give my children and grandmonster a "perfect" Christmas, I find that I too partake in the child-like wonder of the holiday.
My favorite thing so far this year?
Dancing with the grandmonster to Elton John's "Step into Christmas" as loud as our eardrums can handle, over and over again...

My holiday wish for everyone is to enjoy one moment of sheer child like delight.
.

Busy!

2005-12-12T21:06:00.000-08:00

The last few days have been so busy, I decided it would be easier to show you what we've been doing, rather than writting it all out! Besides, pictures are way more fun!

We've been decorating for Christmas

Jason is wondering where the presents are!

Daughter #2 and I (mostly daughter) baked tons of cookies and packaged them for neighbors, the mailman, the UPS lady and our respective vendors at work.

The big new though, today is the Grandmonster's second birthday! Look out Chuckie Cheese, here we come! We got tons of pictures, but the cake one's are the best!

Yeah... tell me this guy isn't going to be TROUBLE one day!

Last but not least, a photo of son #4. Much like Big Foot, he is often talked about but rarely photographed. He and his wife made it to the party too!

All that and we managed to take in our fab Christmas Parade as well!
Man... I just love the holidays!
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Fun Stuff!

2005-12-11T12:44:00.000-08:00

~OR~

Stolen from the Goddess, Femi-Mommy