Real Estate Hell

Well, as you know we got an offer a couple of days ago . . . or was it yesterday. Honestly, the past 24 hours have felt endless! I know I kept some of you hanging by going all day today and not posting any outcomes. That is because it took ALL DAY to get some news from my agent. I truly don't know WHAT I was thinking when I started house shopping. I completely lost my mind. This is the most stressful, unpleasant ordeal - EVER.

I'm not going to bore you with all the frustrating details. Let's just say that I'm not happy with real estate agents right now. And to think I used to want to be one. Ick the thought of it gives me shivers right now. I'm sure these evil feelings toward agents will go away with time, but right now, if you're an agent, don't come near me.

So I just faxed the signed contract to my agent. It's not even close to the way I demanded it. But as usual, I backed down and gave in. I just can't take the pressure and the future regrets if I didn't go for it.

And now the hell really begins. First I have to endure the 7 - 10 days of waiting for the inspections. Provided all that goes well, then we will have approximately 2 weeks to pack up the entire house. I still think this is an impossible task for Karlo and I do in that time frame. Karlo thinks anything is possible and to him, it's no big deal. To me, it's the end of the world.

I am overwhelmed with the generosity that friends have already poured out. Tina wants to help us move and Lisa has even offered to let us LIVE with her. Yes, me and Karlo and the two stinky hounds. In case you all don't know Lisa, the woman is an angel with a saint's heart.

I'm still not sure exactly where we will live during our period of transition. We will probably start at Dad's. Any excuse to continue on my cleaning rampage in his house. He won't be able to stop me if I live there!

I plan to continue to write semi-daily blog entries (despite the fact that we may be homeless). For sure my stories will get more interesting over these next few months.

Time to go, American Idol is starting. Thanks for listening.

News for Today

Two big pieces of news for today . . . First, The Police are officially coming to Hartford! This means I get a second chance at tickets. Perhaps it was a blessing in disguise not getting tickets for Fenway. Oh please Lord, let me get them this time!!!!

Second piece of news . . . I guess our real estate agent was right about the purple bedroom. We had our first showing on Saturday since the repainting and we got an offer yesterday! Now I can't get too excited just yet. The offer came in $20,000 under asking price and they want to close in 3 weeks. Hello!!!! 3 weeks? Are they nuts. It would take at least 7 days to complete the inspections, leaving us 2 weeks to pack up a 2,700 square foot house. And did I mention we need to schedule professional pool table movers? Oh and did I also mention, WE HAVE NO PLACE TO GO?

Hmmmm, this is sure to be an exciting week. Hopefully we will get some sort of word on the counter offer today. And the Police tickets go on sale on Thursday. Let's hope this is a good luck week for me!

Early Idol Pick

Do any of you guys (besides JoAnne) watch American Idol?? If so, I'm curious who your favorites are. If not, what are you waiting for? I've been addicted since the very beginning. I just can NOT believe some of the undiscovered talent out there. How on earth can kids sing so good without training? Makes me sick.

Anyway, I'm making my early Idol prediction. If this is truly a singing contest and not a beauty contest, this chick has it in the bag. Boy can she sing. Check her out:

De-purpleification

Yes, that's a new word. It's my blog and I can make up words if I want to . . .

So are you intrigued what I will talk about with that title? It seems our purple bedroom was a little too over-the-top for most common, unimaginative folks. Our real estate agent gave us the advice that we should probably tone it down. So we took the advice. Seeing as we finished the major project at my cousin's place, then finished Dad's kitchen, we found ourselves without a home improvement project . . . and we couldn't have THAT.

Last weekend we started the process of removing the purple. This was a multi-step process and it took us all week. First we repainted the very loud dark purple trim. We did the door trims in white and the chair railing in the same green as the baseboards. That was a hell project because it took tons of coats. Next was the ceiling. We returned it to the standard white. Then came the walls. That was a bit of a disaster. First I picked the wrong color and it was too light. I HATED it. But I took Lisa's advice and recycled some other old paint we had. That seemed to do the trick. Thanks Lisa!

So tell me . . . here's the old purple room.



And here's the new more boring room. Is this one better for the masses?




Now we are all ready. We had a showing this morning and I can't wait to see if this will make a difference.

The Joy of Job Lots

I was talking to Tina yesterday and she mentioned that she just went to Ocean State Job Lots for the first time! She told me what a ball she had and all the bargains she found. I couldn't believe that yesterday was her first time there. Karlo and I are addicted to that place. When we are bored we go and browse around. We always end up spending too much money on things we don't need, but it's just plain fun.

So if any of you have not yet experienced Job Lots, you gotta go. You never know what you may find there. Karlo loves to shop for tools and "guy things." They have great deals on pet stuff including toys, beds, treats, leashes, etc. I recently found a bunch of Physicians Formula make-up at incredible prices. And I scooped up my favorite pair of suede Lands End slippers for $8. If you need an area rug, that's the place to be. And come Spring they will have a large assortment of gardening things and outdoor furniture. I'm telling you, you can almost never go and NOT find some irresistible bargains.

If you haven't already been there and you go because of me, be sure to tell me what you bought!

Happy bargain shopping!

Introducing "California Christina"

For all of those that know "California Sue" . . . I would like to introduce her daughter Christina. Isn't she cute? Sue has reported that Christina is doing well. She is learning how to crawl, despite her awkward lunges and face plants. She also loves Happy, the family cat. Too bad Happy doesn't share the same feelings back. Shouldn't a cat named Happy be happy about the new baby? I guess not!

So who does Christina look like? I still can't figure it out. Here's her parents:

Sad and Depressing

I'm not a happy camper today. I tried for an hour to buy tickets online for the Police concert. I am convinced that they sold 90% of the tickets during their pre-sales events. Since I didn't pay the $100 for the pre-sales privileges, I was left out in the cold. :-(

I tried every ticket price, in any available seat, on both concert dates. I even tried MSG tickets and I HATE NYC, but was willing to go. No worries there, I couldn't get those tickets either. So sad. So it seems my dream will never be lived out. Well, not unless I want to spend between $500 - $1,000 for tickets.

I figured Karlo would be happy at this bad news, but he surprised me. What a guy . . . he actually offered to still take me to Boston that night. He said we can walk around the parking lot, buy me a t-shirt and still hear them play. I was in shock when he suggested that! That made me so happy. So that is what we will do. We will spend the day in Boston and when the concert starts and the crowds are gone, we will sneak over to Fenway, get me a shirt, I'll hear the distant sound of Sting's voice, and then boogie on out of the city before the millions of people pour out of the stadium. Works for me!

This just in . . . . CA Sue also suggested that I scalp tickets. She wants public credit for her idea! So everyone out there listening . . . if I get to see the Police this summer, I have Sue to thank.

Goodbye 70s

After much arguing and arm twisting, I finally got my father to agree to let me redo his kitchen. I would like to redo his whole house, but I'm taking baby steps here. Maybe after the kitchen project, he will see the light and realize he should trust me!

My Dad has this crazy idea in his head that his house holds his memories. Memories of my mother, I assume, because he wants to keep everything exactly as it was when she was alive. But at this point, the house hasn't been updated in nearly 30 years. It's time to let go of the 70s and clean out that house!!! My father needs to realize that he will still have his memories (in his head and in his photos). The old nasty wallpaper doesn't hold the memories.




So I started in the kitchen. Here are a couple of pictures of the "before" kitchen with the tacky wallpaper and dingy yellow floor. Last weekend we ripped down the wallpaper (thank GOD) and I primed the walls. Even with the just the primer on the walls, it was an improvement. The next day I went back and added the pretty color to the wall. Dad was hesitant about the color (maybe too girly for him). But when it was all up, he admitted that he liked it.

Next we went and found a few pictures for the wall (with an Italian theme of course) and I was in my glory buying new window treatments and a tablecloth. This project came at the perfect time for me. I'm not supposed to shop and spend any of MY money . . . so I'm shopping and spending Dad's money instead :-)

And this weekend Karlo and I went back to Dad's, this time with his new floor. In just a few hours we had his shiny, new, CLEAN, floor installed and what a difference it made.




Now if he will just let me tackle the rest of the rooms . . . Maybe in time he will come around.

I hope you like it Dad!!

It's great to have Karlo back -- NOT

Well Karlo is back home now and I can finally sleep peacefully with him at my side . . . or NOT. Can you imagine sleeping soundly and peacefully and being awaken to incredible pain as you realize that you have just been punched square in the nose??? That's what happened to me last night. Karlo gets up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night. . . . comes back to bed and some how PUNCHES me in the nose! How on earth??? I was jarred awake like it was a nightmare and I hear Karlo saying "Baby, I'm soooooo sorry. I didn't see you there." He didn't see me there??? Is it a surprise that I'm on the same side of the bed, laying in the same spot that I've been laying for over 5 years? Where did he expect that I was? And why was he picking up his pillow and slamming it back down on the bed. Yes, he is a great handyman, a true gentleman, an all around great guy, but my goodness is it painful to live with him.

The Boys are Back

I am happy to report that my boys are back home with me. Bentley got home yesterday afternoon to a very cute reunion with Peanut. They were so happy to see each other and they have not left each others side since. How cute is that?

And Karlo (barely) made it back home too. His journey was an interesting one. It went something like this . . . at noon on 2/14 his 8PM flight from lovely Detriot to Bradley gets cancelled. However, the first leg of his trip, from wherever the heck he was to Detroit, was not cancelled. So Karlo decided that he should get himself to Detroit and see what happens. I advised that he just gets a hotel in Detroit and take the afternoon flight back home the following day. But of course, that wasn't good enough for Karlo. He decided to switch his flight to Boston, which for some reason the airport was not shut down like Bradley was.

So Karlo calls me at 7 PM from Detroit with his brilliant plan of flying to Boston. My first question, of course, is . . . "How do you plan on getting home from Boston?" and his response "I was hoping you could come and get me." WHAT? He thinks I'm gonna drive to Boston in the middle of an ice storm when I'm too afraid to drive to Tolland to rescue my poor dog? He's nuts and I told him so. Then of course I get the guilt treatment of "It's OK, I'll take a bus." Uuuuugh. I told Karlo that I will arrange for a rental car that can be picked up in Boston and returned in Hartford. No problem.

Then the phone rings an hour later . . . "My flight to Boston got cancelled . . . can you cancel the car?" uuuugh. I knew this would happen. And I could have been on my way, driving in the ice to Boston by them. So while we are on the phone, the PA comes on and the lady says "For those of you travelling to Boston, looks like we are going to board you . . . and see what happens." So what are the chances that plane is really going to take off and land in Boston that night? Who knows. That was the last I heard from Karlo that night.

Tossing, turning, tossing, turning, feeling guilty that I flat out refused to drive to Boston when Karlo would have crossed the country for me if I asked him too. Of course I'm too logical to ever ask him to, but that's another story. I didn't sleep a wink and finally at 5:30 AM Karlo comes in the door. He told me his exciting story . . . the roller coaster plane ride in the 50 MPH wind gusts, the aborted landings, the 2 frozen gates and the 2 hour wait just to get off the plane. Then another hour wait to get the rental car and the amazingly scary drive home on the icy highways with completely a frozen windshield. Then he finally gets home and can't get the truck up the driveway.

So I asked him . . . "Was it worth all that just to come home a day early?" and he said "of course." He's crazy.

And to anyone that thinks all the business traveling that we do is glamorous . . . this story is the reality of what it's really like! NOT FUN.

I take back any complaints about my car

I have a confession to make. Since the day I got my new car home this past September, I've already been thinking about and shopping around for a different one. I don't even know why. My car is perfectly nice and I even scoped it out and drooled over the brochure before it was out. I thought I would enjoy owning a Saab, but when I got it home, it was nothing different than any other car. I like my little Mazda just as much. I think my big problem with the new car was the boring color. Gray! I'm just not a gray car kind of girl. Yes, this coming from the girl that owned a bright pink, white and black Suzuki (and did I mention the purple motorcycle?) I tried spelling gray "grey" to remind me of my poochies, but that didn't help either. Gray is just plain boring and I can NEVER find the stupid thing in a parking lot. I look like a complete idiot walking around, listening for the alarm beeps as I press my keychain. It's times like these when I think I want a bright yellow H3 or FJ Cruiser. That seems to be more my personality.

But this morning I took back all my complaints about my boring car. It rocked driving to work on the snow covered and icy roads. I was so impressed! Way better than the Mazda. And to further impress me . . . Karlo came home last night in some sort of big SUV. (oh that's another long story that I'll save for tomorrow). It took him MULTIPLE tries to get this so-called SUV up our driveway. And this SUV wasn't an "all wheel drive." It was a real "4 wheel drive" with 4 low and 4 high. It still had a world of trouble getting up our not so steep driveway. Then to make matters worse, I needed to simply move it from my side of the driveway to Karlo's side. Would you believe I got the thing completely stuck in the driveway? Some SUV that was. So I have a new found appreciation of my little, grey, boring car. I came home at noon today and drove up that driveway like it was flat and dry. I'll take it over that American made SUV any day. I hope my car forgives me!

Stay tuned tomorrow for the story of Karlo's trip home. That will be amusing . . .

Sad and Lonely Valentine's Day

OK, this sucks! The photo above pretty much sums up my day today. Karlo is travelling and not only left me all alone on Valentine's Day, but also for the nasty "snice" (that would be snow and ice) storm. How nice. I "worked from home" today and I think I redefined the term. Not only am I working for my job, but I'm busting my tail shoveling the driveway. So far I've been out there 3 times and I'm losing the battle. I wanted to try to keep up with it so it's not a solid block of ice when Karlo gets home. And by the looks of the flight cancellations, he will be lucky to get home tomorrow night. He was supposed to be home tonight :-( boo hoo

So I'm sitting here sad, sore, and lonely. I think I killed my back and if it hurts this much now, I fear what tomorrow will bring. And that's not even the worst part. The worst part is the loneliness. There are no boys in the house! As if not having Karlo around isn't bad enough, I had to drop Bentley off at the vet last night. He was supposed to have one of his toes amputated. God, I hate that word. It broke my heart to leave him there last night. Lately his paw has been great and here I go, dropping him off to spend two nights in a cage and get ripped open. I just didn't feel good about it and it killed me.

Boy was I surprised when the vet called me today to say that she decided NOT to cut his toe off just yet. She agreed that he seemed to be doing much better and changed her diagnosis about the toe having a tumor in it. We decided to wait until his next flare up to cut him open. Why make him miserable when he's doing good? So now it's sleeting and I'm afraid to drive and go get him. For positively no good reason, my poor dog is alone in a cage when I'm home missing him.

So here we sit . . . me and Peanut . . . missing Karlo and Bentley (our Valentines). sniff sniff

It's Starting All Over Again

The obsession with Sting and the Police. Am I 16 again? It feels like it! I thought I could watch the Grammy's, see the Police, be happy, and be done with it . . . but it didn't work. Now I'm obsessing over the concert dates, completely stressed that I won't be able to get tickets and miss this once in a lifetime chance to see the Police on tour. Life was easier before the official tour announcement was made. I heard rumors months ago, but they were just rumors and I never dreamed that Sting would agree to a tour.

But it's not a rumor . . . they are coming to Boston in July. Can anybody imagine a better birthday present than THAT for me?? Tickets go on sale this month and I will be a nervous wreck until I have them in my hand. Or course it's not good timing for me . . . the one month where I'm not supposed to spend a dollar on any unnecessary item. But I would consider this purchase necessary. I have seen Sting in concert more times than I can remember, but I missed my big chance at seeing the Police in high school and I can NOT miss it again. Please keep your fingers crossed for me that I get tickets!!

And for your viewing pleasure, here's Sting with his ex-trumpet player Chris Botti . . .

Today is a Big Day!

Not only is today Tina's Birthday . . . HAPPY BIRTHDAY TINA!!!!! Hope you had a great day and I'm sorry I didn't catch up with you today.



But tonight is also the long awaited reunion of The Police, my childhood obsession. I have awaited this day for more years than I can count. Can you believe they are finally getting back together to perform? OK, I'm sure this isn't nearly as important to anybody, as it is to me. But this is big for me!! Now, if Karlo will cooperate and not ruin my 5 minutes of bliss, tonight will be a mark in history.

Roxanne . . . . .

Addicted To Shopping

I am trying really hard to quit my shopping addiction for the next couple of months. Our disaster in Maine has been quite expensive so far and the money going out-the-door since Christmas has been down right frightening. I decided that we need to take some drastic measures to tighten the reins and stop the spending for a while. And now that I'm very conscious of my spending, I'm realizing just how much spending I do . . . or how often I'm tempted to shop.

I thought just not going out to the stores would be the easy solution. That certainly helps, but the lure of online shopping is always there. And since I spend most of my day sitting in front of a computer, I'm constantly tempted to shop. Last week a bought a new computer online! Hmmm, so much for no spending this month. But that purchase didn't really count because that is my "business money" which of course, is not "real" money.

I'm receiving shopping counseling from Lisa, who so cleverly asked me yesterday . . ."What are you buying? And what is the purpose of these things?" Gee, those are tough questions. Just like the "Why are you moving to a new house?" question . . . impossible to answer. So I made a list of the things that I was very tempted to buy (just this week).

• PS2 games - I found two (by accident) that I must have!
• New TV - to play the new PS2 games in the basement
• books - Lisa told me to go to the library - brilliant!
  
• MP3 player - mine just crapped out so I figured I needed a new one.
• Pocket PC - since I'm never getting the one owed to me (long story)
• New Phone - the whole new MP3 and new Pocket PC made me look at the new high tech do-it-all phones (somebody please stop me)
• Camera - still itching and looking for a small new camera for our big vacation
• Scrapbook goodies - never can get enough of those
• Computer gadgets - the new computer is begging for new accessories. (I did break down and buy one thing, but I REALLY needed it.)

The good news is that I was strong and resisted the temptations, but now that I look at the list of what I was going to buy I realize that I must have a problem. Isn't that an awful lot for one girl to want or need in one week? Yikes.

Mind Bending

Last night we watched a fascinating documentary called “What the Bleep Do We Know?” I added this movie to our Netflix que a couple of months ago and found it curious that it came last night. For the past week I have been really making a conscious effort to be more positive. The past few weeks have been challenging, to say the least, and it seems we are in a cycle of getting more bad luck than good. I decided that all these negative dramas were caused by me constantly stressing and worrying about them. I need to just get them out of my mind and make room for positive things happening.

So on our drive to and from Maine (to deal with the latest major disaster in our lives) Karlo and I listened to a lecture from our favorite speaker, Dr. Dyer. I will surely blog about him more in the future . . . But this lecture made me remember the importance of positive thinking and how your thoughts can change your life. So I have been saying my affirmations every day. One of them was centered in my “dream collage” . . . “Positive energy surrounds me and all good things will come my way.” Now the movie last night was along this same line of thinking. But it was even more thought provoking and more mind bending.

In order to read on, I ask that you have an open mind and not think I’m a complete nut job . . . I Googled the name of the movie this morning and found all sorts of information about the movie. I’m going to copy bits and pieces here to give you an idea of what it’s all about. If you do have an open mind to the wonders of science and physics, I highly recommend you rent the movie!

So what did I learn last night? Everything "out there" is a projection of our mind's elaborate theater. If we can be addicted to heroin, we can be addicted to any emotion. Is stress an emotion? Because I seem to be addicted to that. Another scientist asserts: We know physiologically that nerve cells that fire together rewire together. If you practice something over and over, those nerve cells have a long-term relationship. In other words, if you get angry on a daily basis, you are literally re-wiring your neural net to the point of creating an "identity". The good news is that every time we interrupt the thought process that produces a chemical response in the body, they start breaking the long-term relationship.

So what does this have to do with the nature of reality? It comes back to choice. We create scenarios that meet our emotional needs. This is why many fall into the same type of relationships and dramas: there is a chemical addiction to them. What is thought of as "reality just happening to us" is really a result of consistent choices producing specific chemicals which result in specific emotions that have become a habit.

Contemplating a new way of thinking or seeing is tricky, however. A fascinating story that was demonstrated in the movie was that of Christopher Columbus visiting the people of South America. Because clipper ships were totally out of the realm of their reality, these people could not see the ships on the horizon. One day, the tribal shaman realized there were ripples coming towards shore. He knew that something must be causing those ripples...but what? Day after day he strained to see, until one day, he finally saw the ships approaching. His people couldn't see them, until he described to them what he saw. Because they trusted him, they could now see the ships with their own eyes.

This story illustrates the principle that we can only see in our brain what we're able to see. In fact, we only see what we believe is possible. Perhaps this explains why mystics can see angels and other realities: for them, believing is seeing. Biologically, the brain processes 400 billion bits of information per second, but is only aware of 2,000 bits at any one time-usually information about our environment, body, and time. Just what is the brain perceiving that we are not "seeing" or integrating?

This movie will make you contemplate an alternative perspective. It will offer ideas and theories for your consideration, making way for ideas you many never before considered possible.

My Wishes

Last week I was talking to Tina about dreams and wishes. In talking to T she mentioned that she didn't really have any dreams for the future and that made her sad. I told her that it's never too late to start dreaming. Dreaming is easy! I do it all the time.

So to encourage T to start to visualize her dreams, I thought it would be fun for both of us to make a "dream collage." I spent Super Bowl Sunday clipping things out of magazines and making mine. Tina is still working on hers (at least she better be) and I'm sharing mine with you. Everybody should do this fun little exercise to visualize their dreams. I have this sitting on my desk now and it just makes me happy looking at it. So what are you waiting for? Go get some magazines and a pair of scissors. You will have fun, I promise!

Oh Lisa . . . in case you are wondering . . . it's a Moto Guzzi . . . my dream is to own Italian rather than Japanese :-)

Almost a Band-Aid Free Day

I have been struggling with my famous, terrible and painful "dots" for over 2 weeks now. CA Sue likes to call me "Dottie" or is it "Dotsie"? But it's no laughing matter. This is my third winter trying to live with this bizarre skin disorder. It effects just about everything I do. For instance, my biggest challenge of the day is taking a shower. I know this doesn't seem like a difficult task, but any task without wearing a band-aid is almost unbearable. I have to wash my hair with one hand, I can barely touch the buff-puff with my inflicted hand, and touching the towel sends me over the edge. I can't get out of that shower quick enough to dry off and put my security blanket back on (that would be my trusty band-aid).

Can you imagine the worst cavity in the world . . . open nerve endings, at the tip of your finger? Touching a cotton ball is painful. The first winter that these things sprouted on my fingers, I had so many on one hand that I lost most of the use of my right hand for weeks. This was when I had the biopsy to figure out what on earth these things where. Now that I know they are caused by the cold weather and my poor circulation, I am very careful to wear gloves all the time. Well, most all the time. Obviously I wasn't careful enough this year.

I ventured out today without my band aid . . . this was a big step for me. I felt so brave! But it wasn't long before I was at the medicine cabinet. I guess I forgot that I spend most of day typing. ooops. All I got to say is:

1) Thank God for Band-aids
2) I think it's time for me to move to Singapore to ensure that I'll never get another dot again. Living with them is hell.

Winter Finally Arrived in CT

And the dogs were very excited. OK, that might be stretching it. More like "Paula & Karlo were very excited to drag the dogs out in the snow." Bentley was mostly freezing, but Peanut loved it. This was her first time wearing boots and she was a trooper. We just need a few more dogs and a sled and we would be all set!

Great Way to Start 2007

2007 marked my second annual Girl Gathering and this year was extra special. Six of us in the photo above have known each other since kindergarden. That makes an ungodly amount (we won't mention the number) of years of friendship. I think Oprah needs to hear about this one.

I hope to carry on this tradition of getting together once a year to catch up on all of our lives. It is so great to see everyone all in one place and laugh about old times. If you would like to see more photos of this fun event, click here.

The reason this year was extra special was because Regina came up from New Jersey. We almost never get to see each other these days, and not only did she join the party, but she spent the night. We got to sit down and talk for hours. I forced Gina to make a scrapbook page (and hopefully got her addicted), we talked about our childhood, our lives, and most importantly, I got to spend some great quality time with her adorable kids. If you know Gina and want to see some pictures of her kids, click here. It was a time that I will treasure for years to come.

Welcome to Paula's Brain

I can't even believe that I'm starting another blog. I already struggle to come up with postings for my YogaDudes blog, but somehow I think this one will be easier. Somehow I'm hoping that this one will be therapy for my over-worked and over-stressed brain.

Every year I write a Christmas letter that sums up my year. It is such a struggle for me to remember the whole year. I can barely remember what I did last weekend. Am I really getting THAT old or am I just plain losing my mind?

In the event that I AM losing my mind, I'm hoping that this new blog will help me remember both the important events, as well as the mindless rambling every day thoughts that cross my mind. At the very least, I know that I can't misplace this journal, like I seem to do with everything else I own.

I'm hoping to share this online journal with friends and family. Even my non-techy friends like Tina (who is still struggling to figure out what a 'bog' is) and family members like my father who always asks me "What's new and exciting?" and tells me that he hasn't talked to me in ages (even though we probably spoke 4 days ago). I guess 4 days is a long time to my father. To me four months is a blink of an eye.

I want to make a point to stop and take the time to share some thoughts with you. I don't write to all my friends like I should. And I really have no excuse. I sit at a computer all day long. I sometimes write a story to Lisa and then copy and paste the same story to Sue. I feel guilty doing that. Well now I can share it with everyone without the guilt. Because we all know that I have too much unnecessary guilt!

Please drop in when you can and if you do, leave me a note to let me know you were here.