I'm here.....

Well - it's been a whirlwind week and a half, chock full of activities, emotional ups and downs, and everything in between.

I'm surviving, but I'm realizing that life kind of takes you by surprise and makes you sit up and take notice once in a while. The death of our good friend and neighbor - Ron - hit us hard. T took it especially hard as he grew up with Ron they were great hunting buddies. Although he had been battling cancer for the last year, it didn't make saying goodbye any easier.

Will write more later when I have more time as there is much more to write about. My life - as I know it - is CRAZY! ~LOL~

A better place

I learned of the passing of our friend and neighbor, Ron. Please, say a prayer for strength for his wife and sons during this difficult times.

Sounds familiar

This sounds quite familiar. Going to the vet with Boris is a traumatic experience. God forbid I should have to give him medicine! (shudders at the thought) Reading this made me howl with laughter. I'm particularly fond of #11! Enjoy!

HOW TO GIVE A CAT A PILL -- THEN A DOG

1. Pick up cat and cradle it in the crook of your left arm as if holding a
baby. Position right forefinger and thumb on either side of cat's mouth and
gently apply pressure to cheeks while holding pill in right hand. As cat
opens mouth, pop pill into mouth. Allow cat to close mouth and swallow.

2. Retrieve pill from floor and cat from behind sofa. Cradle cat in left arm
and repeat process.

3. Retrieve cat from bedroom, and throw soggy pill away.

4. Take new pill from foil wrap, cradle cat in left arm, holding rear paws
tightly with left hand. Force jaws open and push pill to back of mouth with
right forefinger. Hold mouth shut for a count of ten.

5. Retrieve pill from goldfish bowl and cat from top of wardrobe. Call
spouse from garden.

6. Kneel on floor with cat wedged firmly between knees, hold front and rear
paws. Ignore low growls emitted by cat. Get spouse to hold head firmly with
one hand while forcing wooden ruler into mouth. Drop pill down ruler and
rub cat's throat vigorously.

7. Retrieve cat from curtain rail, get another pill from foil wrap. Make
note to buy new ruler and repair curtains. Carefully sweep shattered
figurines and vases from hearth and set to one side for gluing later.

8. Wrap cat in large towel and get spouse to lie on cat with head just
visible from below armpit. Put pill in end of drinking straw, force mouth
open with pencil and blow down drinking straw.

9. Check label to make sure pill not harmful to humans, drink 1 beer to take
taste away. Apply Band-Aid to spouse's forearm and remove blood from carpet
with cold water and soap.

10. Retrieve cat from neighbor's shed. Get another pill. Open another beer.
Place cat in cupboard, and close door onto neck, to leave head showing.
Force mouth open with dessert spoon. Flick pill down throat with elastic
band.

11. Fetch screwdriver from garage and put cupboard door back on hinges.
Drink beer. Fetch bottle of scotch. Pour shot, drink. Apply cold compress to
cheek and check records for date of last tetanus shot. Apply whiskey
compress to cheek to disinfect. Toss back another shot. Throw Tee shirt away
and fetch new one from bedroom.

12. Call fire department to retrieve the damn cat from across the road.
Apologize to neighbor who crashed into fence while swerving to avoid
cat. Take last pill from foil wrap.

13. Tie the little bastard's front paws to rear paws with garden twine and
bind tightly to leg of dining table, find heavy-duty pruning gloves from
shed. Push pill into mouth followed by large piece of fillet steak. Be rough
about it. Hold head vertically and pour 2 pints of water down throat
to wash pill down.

14. Consume remainder of scotch. Get spouse to drive you to the emergency
room, sit quietly while doctor stitches fingers and forearm and removes pill
remnants from right eye. Call furniture shop on way home to order new table.

15. Arrange for SPCA to collect mutant cat from hell and call local pet shop
to see if they have any hamsters.


How To Give A Dog A Pill:

1. Wrap pill in bacon.

2. Toss it in the air.

Silent Treatment

A man and his wife were having some problems at home and were giving each other the silent treatment. Suddenly, the man realized that the next day, he would need his wife to wake him at 5:00 AM for an early morning business flight. Not wanting to be the first to break the silence (and LOSE), he wrote on a piece of paper, 'Please wake me at 5:00 AM.' He left it where he knew she would find it. The next morning, the man woke up, only to discover it was 9:00 AM and he had missed his flight. Furious, he was about to go and see why his wife hadn't wakened him, when he noticed a piece of paper by the bed. The paper said, 'It is 5:00 AM. Wake up.' Men are not equipped for these kinds of contests.

A lovely weekend

Hey folks. You might guess, that it is once more a Sunday afternoon adn I'm catching up on things around the house. I am kind of lazy today but trying to get the essentials done so that I don't get caught with my shorts down on Monday morning. (now isn't THAT a visual you wanted to go to! Ha!)

I caught up on some yoga bookwork (finally!), did a little laundry, sent out an email to my yoga students regarding the November schedule (and specials - go to Better Life Through Yoga to check out the information), started supper (baked chicken, smashed tators, vegetables with cheese sauce - YUM!), and am now thinking about packing my yoga bag for my wellness Yoga Basics class at a corp. here in town.

So, what have I been doing you ask? Well, hubster and I met up with some friends and went the bull-o-rama in town! Peeps - you really MUST check this out next year! It's a lot of fun (well, not if you're the poor schmuck who gets his face full of dirt as he's tossed head-over-tea kettle in to the dirt from a 1800 lb bull). I mean, MAN! these guys deserve a metal - or a trip to the funny farm to have their head examined. Now, some of them are older adrenaline junkie freaks who SHOULD know better - but then there are these cute lil cowboy kids (I swear, I have shoes older than some of them!) that DON'T know any better. Here they are, tied on to the back of this 1800lb slab of muscled meat that can't wait to git rid of the pesty human sittin on his back. They have one goal and one goal only - pain! YIKES! We had a good time though and I said a few thank you's to the c'boys who managed to hang on the whole 8 seconds without gettin hurt. They put on a good show and we had a good time. Laurie, if you're lookin at this, I just NOW got the circulation back in my leg (from you grabin on to it so tight!) ~L~

Yesterday was to a friends house to help her do some stuff for her entertaining next week (daughter is getting confirmed). I couldn't stay long, but managed to help her with a few things before I had to go.

From there, home to do my own house shoveling - errr, I mean...Cleaning! Yeah, I hate it too. Much more fun to clean someone elses than to do my own.

My family had a momentous occassion last night in that my sister Judy and her husband celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary. Their children (five boys and spouses) surprised them with a get together at this quaint little place called "Friends." They were surprised as all get out. All of his brothers, and all of our family were there to share the night with them. It was good fun! My sister cried and hugged me so tight. She's such a wonderful soul (and godmother to me) and I said, "Oh my Judy, don't cry...you is s'posed to be happy." She said, "I am, my whole family is here to share our happiness." Isn't that sweet?

Well, guess I'd better go get my Yoga bag packed and my clothing selected for tomorrow. It's my long/short week ~L~ (Long days, short week with me being off on Friday!) so I like to be as prepared as possible for Mondays cuz Mondays really suck bigtime when you are caught with your shorts down! (Theres that visual again!) ~LOL~

Words of Wisdom:
That man is richest whose pleasures are cheapest. - Henry David Thoreau:

Saddened

Was anyone else saddened by the exit of Abby Lockheart on ER last night? I was. I cried. I'm a soft touch, I know, but I cried.

I'm going to miss ER.

Powerful Stuff...

Those who read my blog know that I have a nephew who is mentally disabled. He's 28 and making a life on his own. He works at Wal-Mart, has a gal-pal, and loves to be part of the "Jimmies" teams by handing out water to the athletes. He's a Special Olympics Hall of Fame Athlete, Man of the Year, and all around athlete in his own right.

I found this story on the net and it made me cry. Blaine has so many wonderful people supporting him - not only family, but friends who take an interest in what he is doing, and how he is doing. Matt, who is helping him train for the World Games (Idaho) in February, Jeremy who plays football with Blaine and treats him like a regular guy, the coaches and college athletes that have taken him under their wing. They all have helped Blaine on his journey through life. To see the huge smile he gets when he runs across friends and people who ask him, "How are you doing Blaine" or "Good to see you Blaine" makes me get a lump in my throat. They don't see "the disability", the see the man and his heart. They see Blaine.

This story is heart touching - but the quote at the end is especially true.

***************************************************************************
All The Way Shay!
Author Unknown


At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children, the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated staff, he offered a question: ‘When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the natural order of things in my son?’

The audience was stilled by the query.

The father continued. ‘I believe that when a child like Shay, physically and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people treat that child.’

Then he told the following story:

Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys were playing baseball. Shay asked, ‘Do you think they’ll let me play?’ Shay’s father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play, it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.

Shay’s father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and said, ‘We’re losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I guess he can be on our team and we’ll try to put him in to bat in the ninth inning.’

Shay struggled over to the team’s bench and, with a broad smile, put on a team shirt . His father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in his heart. The boys saw the father’s joy at his son being accepted. In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay’s team scored a few runs but was still behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shay’s team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be next at bat.

At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that a hit was all but impossible because Shay didn’t even know how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball.

However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay’s life, moved in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay. As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball right back to the pitcher.

The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been out and that would have been the end of the game.

Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman’s head, out of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started yelling, ‘Shay, run to first! Run to first!’ Never in his life had Shay ever run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and startled.

Everyone yelled, ‘Run to second, run to second!’ Catching his breath, Shay awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had the ball. He could have thrown the ball to the second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher’s intentions so he, too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman’s head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him circled the bases toward home.

All were screaming, ‘Shay, Shay, Shay, all the way Shay!’

Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, ‘Run to third, Shay, run to third!’

As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on their feet screaming, ‘Shay, run home! Run home!’ Shay ran to home, stepped on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the game for his team.

‘That day’, said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face, ‘the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity into this world’.

Young Shay would never forget what it felt like to be a hero that day.

Neither would the other boys.

"The decency of any society can be measured by how it treats its most vulnerable citizens."

Some days you got it....

Ever had one of those days when everything clicks in your brain? I mean, everything comes so fast you literally think you are Einstein?? Then, there are days when things are foggy and the brain feels bogged down in quicksand. Today is one of those days. I forgot where the keys to the truck were - couldn't find them anywhere. I spent 5 minutes looking for them only to discover that they were in the truck - where they always are!

Get to work and forget the password to my computer. Yep - had to make the dreaded phone call to the IT department to get it reset. Then, once I reset it and think of a new one, what do I do? Forget it, log in with the ORIGINAL password (that I forget 5 minutes before) and had to call the IT department yet again to have him reset my NEW password for me. I'm getting to know Josh intimately! (Ha!)

Yep, some days I have it, and some days I don't. Hmmmmm....Sounds like a "Mounds" candybar commercial, doesn't it? ~L~

I take nothing for granted. I now have only good days or great days.
Lance Armstrong

Good to Get Away!

Hey folks!

Sorry I haven't been posting for a while - life is getting a little hectic around here lately.

Hubster "T" decided to spring a last minute trip to "the cities" on me this last weekend. It was a whirlwind trip - leaving Saturday morning and returning late Sunday night. We had a great time though - as we were at an artifacts show at which he gave a "demonstration" on his flint knapping abilities. It's always good to see familiar faces at these things, and I've now deemed them "show friend" (as that's the only time I get to see them). A huge shout out to Tom and Greg for all of their efforts in putting together a archeology show of this caliber. We brought some of our Native American artifacts to show, and it is always nice to walk around and see some of the other collections present.

I had to be at a conference yesterday at 7:30 - which means I had to leave the facility with the state car at 6:00 am. I didn't arrive back in town until 6Pm and by the time I picked up a few things at the store and made my way home, it was 7pm. Up again this morning at 5am to start the grind all over again. Goodness am I tired. BUT, the bright spot is tonight is yoga night and that always perks me up when I can see my classes and feed off of their energy! :-)

Not much else to report - my brain is so foggy I couldn't remember if there was!

I'll write more later!

Namaste'