Okay, if this isn't scary, I don't know what is. Apparently, this is how Elvis would look now. He would be (or is) 70 in January. YIKES! I hope he would have looked better then this!

Trying to take a Christmas picture with a dog, a digital camera, and a timer!

The holidays are officially upon us! We had a really great Thanksgiving. Nothing major, just time at home with family. I missed out on the Webb's celebration, but was able to hook up with my dad later on in the evening. Dad and I did some jamming on the guitar, as I had some questions about how to play a few Johnny Cash songs. I wish I had someone to jam with on a regular basis-I really enjoyed singing and playing with him again.

Otherwise, we hung out at home mostly. Mike braved the crowds on Friday morning by arriving at Besty Buy before 6am. He said he'll never do that again. He ran into my cousin Sara and my aunt Steph too. They are all brave souls.

I do not shop on Friday morning after Thanksgiving. As a matter of fact, I try not to go to stores during the holidays at peak hours. I am not a good crowd person and find myself getting irritable and angry. Not a good thing at all. Thank god for the Internet. (or Internets as we've been calling it lately, as the Prez did during the debates) I've done 90% of my shopping online and am for all purposes, finished. It's awesome. I would love nothing more then to contribute to my local communities by shopping at their establishments, but I just can't handle the people. Holidays make people CRAZY and DUMB.

Friday night we met up with my step-brother Matt and his girlfriend Tiffiny. To celebrate our parent's birthdays, we took them out to eat at a new bar and grill in Rochester. Good food, great atmosphere. We had a lot of fun.

Saturday, my aunt Sandra came up to make Christmas cookies with my mom and I. That was fun. This is only the second time we've been able to do this, since Sandra lived in Illinois for 30 some years. Now that they are back in Minnesota, we are trying to make it tradition. We also went shopping at the store my aunt Pam works at now. Cool place, lots of deals.

I put the tree up last night, but tonight I'll get the lights and the ornaments up. We have an artificial tree (no comment) and the minute I started unpacking it, Madison grabbed a branch and off she went. I think she may have injested something because she woke up at 4 am yacking. Who knows? it's going to be interesting to see if she leaves the Christmas decorations alone.

Madison was pretty well behaved on our holiday. She managed to do some digging in the front yard at my parents, and broke a bowl in the kitchen. Otherwise, pretty good. Last night I began my workouts (I've gained way too much weight-it's time it comes off.) in the basement with TaeBo. Madison seemed to think all the moving I was doing meant it was time to play, so she wouldn't stop barking and pulling on me the whole time. We're going to have to figure out what to do about that in the future! I take her for a walk about 4 times a week, so I'm hoping that coupled with a true workout I can lose some of this fat.

I read a really great book last week called Tender. It's a fictional account of a kid named Leroy Kirby who grew up in Tupelo, Mississippi, moves to Memphis and makes it big as a rock-n- roll star. Sound familiar? It has a zillion ties to Elvis, but you could say this is a fictional account of what could/did happen to Elvis. It made for an interesting read.

I bought the DVD Bells of St. Mary over the weekend to add to my Christmas movie selections. It's not really a Christmas movie, but they only sell it at this time of year. I love old movies and this one has Bing Crosby playing Father O'Malley, the same character he played in Going My Way, another favorite. I started watching it last night and will have to round out the others over the week. It's a Wonderful Life, Charlie Brown, Grinch, Rudolph & Frosty. This is the way I get into the Christmas spirit along with Holdiay tunes. In some ways I dislike this time of year, in others I love it. I'm sure having kids of our own will make it even better.

I'm sorry, but this photo still cracks me up.

Sorry for the lack of posts. It's been a busy few weeks and I've been in a bit of a post election funk.

In missing my doggie TJ lately, Mike sent me this email from a veterinarian with a great explanation about the lives of animals. I thought it was absolutely perfect.

Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a ten-year-old Irish Wolfhound named Belker. The dog's owners, Ron, his wife, Lisa, and their little boy, Shane were all very attached to Belker and they were hoping for a miracle. I examined Belker and found he was dying of cancer. I told the family there were no miracles left for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home. As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for the four-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt Shane could learn something from the experience.

The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker's family surrounded him. Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on. Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away. The little boy seemed to accept Belker's transition without any difficulty or confusion.

We sat together for a while after Belker's death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal lives are shorter than human lives. Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, "I know why." Startled, we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I'd never heard a more comforting explanation. He said, "Everybody is born so that they can learn how to live a good life like loving everybody and being nice, right?" The four-year-old continued, "Well, animals already know how to do that, so they don't have to stay here as long as people do."

There have been many a day that I don't know if I would have survived without the love of my pet to get me through.

Happy Thanksgiving-we have much to be thankful for in spite of the world in front of us at this moment.

To you Mr. Bush!

I am very angry right now. It's difficult for me to do any reflecting at the moment, so perhaps at another time I can post my feelings.

I worked very hard to educate people during this campaign. It's disappointing when you lose, especially this closely. I'm not a person who gets angry after an election that I lose, usually just sad. This time I'm pissed. I'm truly scared to whether another 4 years of this nonsense.

The above photo is what I feel like doing to America right now.

VOTE!

"My owners are retarded for dressing me this way."

Our first attempt at cool pumpkin carving.

Election Day is 11 Days Away

Undecided voters, people that don't like either candidate, people voting for Bush, whoever. I ask you, for the sake of your future grandchildren, to read this article. Take a moment and think about where things are going in this country. Can we afford another 4 years of this?

Here's just a little piece from Molly Ivins column:

You probably don't remember the time he (Bush) visited the Youth Opportunity Center, a job training site in Portland, Ore. Hailed it as a model, praised the center and its staff. A month later, he cut it out of the budget.

I'm not saying Kerry is perfect. In fact, for some people, this bumper sticker I saw the other day sums it up: "Kerry sucks less then Bush." But if there are so many Republicans out there that are fed up with the direction of our country too and are now voting for Kerry (my father-in-law is one), doesn't that say something?

Until election day, I'm going to keep pounding this point home. So those of you who are sick of all my Kerry pushing & political talk, maybe it's best you don't read my blog until after November 2. Cuz it ain't gonna stop until then.

Thoughts...

Maybe it's because it's fall, or the weather is dreary, but my thoughts keep returning to my Grandma...

At the end of September, it was two years since she had passed away. It still feels like there is something missing. It was such a joy to be able to go to her place as an adult and talk about anything. We'd have snacks (donuts!) and just chat about all kinds of stuff. In the last year of her life it became more about helping her out. Getting groceries, cleaning, those kinds of things. But it's the talking I miss the most. And knowing she was just there.

At her funeral, I read a memorial that I wrote. It was important for me to do that because she had always encouraged my writing. What I wrote for the funeral wasn't much, and I wanted to write it and say much more, but what I came up with is all that I could at the moment. Getting up to read it was much harder then I ever realized. I just wanted to convey to everyone what an amazing lady she was. I wish I could be more like her. And I wanted people to stop and think about their own grandparents, parents, etc that were still around and not waste that precious time with them. I wish even now that I could be closer to my Grandpa and Grandma Webb so that I could help them out with the cleaning, appointments, food. And I wish I could be closer to my parents so that I could help them as well.

I've always been afraid of death. When my step-sister Mary was killed in a car accident when we were just 16 freaked me out. I slept on the floor in my mom's bedroom for 3 months. After that, I avoided funerals and any mention of death just scared me. My dog was getting old, I was afraid to lose her. My grandparents were aging, I didn't want to lose them. I just couldn't deal with any of it. When Grandma died, my dad suggested that I use this experience as a way to overcome this fear.

At first, it wasn't easy. That night, after she died, I woke up screaming from a nightmare. At the funeral home, I was a mess. I had not been back to that funeral home since my grandfather had died some 19 years before. I didn't want to see her lying there. But, with me sobbing, and my mom and Mike on either side of me, I went up there. She really did look nice-more like herself then she had in many months. But, it just didn't seem right. It seemed like she would sit up and start talking to us.

By the end of the evening, things were easing. One thing that always helps is humor. My cousin Cindy's son Ryan (age 8 at the time) asked his mom if he could go up and tell Grandma something. When she gave her consent, he walked over and said in a low, confidential voice, "Grandma, when Derrick (his brother) was little, he called it a Bagina." I laughed so hard. It was the most random thing in the world, but Ryan knew how much Grandma got a hoot out of the things little kids said.

What I didn't imagine was that saying goodbye at the grave site would be the hardest part. I thought if we could all just get through the funeral, things would be better. But it was that final goodbye, in the rain, with the church bells tolling that hurt the most. It was like a movie-a small country church, people gathered under umbrellas, soft crying and talking. I just remember walking up and kissing her coffin, then putting my hand on top of the stone she shared with Grandpa and thinking, goodbye.

One of the moments out of the whole entire process that stands out is the experience between my mom & dad. My grandma loved my dad-no matter what. And dad thought the world of her, as did my step-mom. Grandma didn't judge, she just took things as they were. When Dad arrived at the church and was greeting people (many he hadn't seen in years) he came to my mom. He put out his hand to Mom to shake, and then put his arm around her in a hug. That put things to right in my mind, after all these years. I appreciated the gesture, as did my mom. And I have my grandma to thank for that moment.

And so, as I said at the beginning, I'm not really sure why I felt pressed to write this today, or why I was remembering. But, we all miss Grandma still, and I know we always will.

What gets me through is thinking of the reunions she must have had when she got to where she was going.

Corrections...

In talking with the few people who do read my blog recently, I've found that my original 'tone' did not come across accurately in the political debate I engaged in with my dad. A little information...
a) Yes, my dad did fire me up, but in a good way. I don't get to debate politics very often, and I enjoyed this exchange very much.

b) I was not angry and I am not angry now. I apologize to Charlie, who I inadvertantly put in between the exchange. I meant only to thank and express my gratitude to Charlie for all that he has and continues to teach me about many things. He and Pam have always been my other mom and dad.

c) I've learned (again) that blogging is no place for family discussions about politics, religion, divorce, or any of those those 'off limits' topics that often create angst.

My apologies for those I offended or upset.

On to other things...

Mike won tickets to the Twins playoff game on Saturday. (Caller 13 on 93X) Great game, even though they lost. It's been a long time since I've been that into a good baseball game. A good time was had by all.

Yesterday, we drove up to Ham Lake to visit with Mike's cousins and to see Aunt Shirley who is in town from Florida. Madison was able to enjoy time with a new playmate-Honey the golden lab. Beautiful dog, they are also close in age and had a blast chasing each other. She was tired last night!

I'm in the midst of a Buddy Holly, Johnny Cash, Ritchie Valens music fest. I finished reading the book I just bought: A Man Named Cash. It was okay. It wasn't quite what I was expecting, but still a good read. So, that got me back to listening to my Cash stuff. Then, I started listening to this great CD called "Not Fade Away" by a bunch of artists doing Buddy's tunes. Then, I started thinking of La Bamba, and lo and behold, I caught the tale end of the movie on AMC tonight too. Plus, I've been buying up on E Bay the last few weeks some old black and whites of Holly, Waylon and Ritchie for my 50's style decorations in my bathroom. They look awesome. My goal now is to learn the song "Wishing" on my guitar, which is a tune that Buddy wrote for the Everly Brothers, but they declined. On the tribute CD, the version is so cool. We'll see if I can polish off my guitar skills enough to figure it out.

Now I'm currently reading Bleachers by John Grisham.

I'm testing out picture posting on Blogger. This is Sophie, my friend's new baby girl. 

Debating is Healthy.

I've enjoyed the healthy debate between my father & I over the last few days. It's given me time to think about things in general and in politics. I always learn something. It has led to some conclusions in my mind and sorting out other feelings in another part of mind. All those are good things.

I did get to thinking about divorce, and I wanted to post something about that.

Things are tough when parents separate. When you are young, you don't understand the reasons and what is really going on. In the last few years, my mother has answered many of those questions that inevitably start to pop up as you analyze those previous times in your life. There are no easy answers, and she is the first to say that there was no finger pointing, they were both at fault. As I've gotten to know both of my parents in a different way over the years, I've come to see them in a different light. I see their backgrounds, their personalities, and how they did the best they could with the tools they had. No one ever said being a parent was easy-and I'm the first to admit that I was not an easy kid to raise.

I appreciate my father's honesty of the situation and his response. It's no secret that we don't see eye to eye on many things. But, I also know that my dad gave me a love of music and books, writing, and sports, and those are all things that are part of my personality, and I thank him for that. Those were all important tools in growing up as well. I don't know what I gave to him, maybe I wasn't able to give anything, but for as many times as I've been angry with both my parents, I have never wished that they were someone else. I'm glad my parents are who they are and I'm thankful for what they did give me.

Moving along...

Briefly, I couldn't handle watching the VP debate for longer then 15 minutes last night. I watched the Twins game instead.

My car went kapoot yesterday. It's leaking anti-freeze, so we had to leave it at Midas while Mike took his parents van to work (they just got back from Hawaii and were staying at our house overnight) while I took his car. Things got worse from there! The guy from Midas called to say that the battery was dead in the car when they tried to start it. My brakes needed to be done, and I needed an oil change. Thankfully, some of it is under warranty, which knocks the price from $1600 down to around $500. The car has not had any major problems in the 2 1/2 years I've owned it, so I feel lucky.

I came to work at 6:45am this morning, since I had to drop Mike off at work in order to use his car. Mine should be finished shortly and I should have a nice, fixed car. Fingers crossed!

Pat sent pictures of Alissa from Homecoming. She looked amazing! So hard to believe she will be 16 in February. Cute dress, awesome shoes, and a hottie senior boyfriend! Plus, her Gwen Stefani 40's style hair was great. The little girl that said, "I'm hottttt", has grown up!

Tomorrow is our anniversary. Wow. I sure wish I could do our wedding over again. It was such a blast. We aren't sure what we'll be doing to celebrate-probably nothing more then going out to dinner on Friday night or something. We've gone on two weekend trips the first two years of our anniversary, but last year and this year we've had to forsake that due to money. We hope to go back to the Bahamas this Spring.

GO TWINS!

We know where I DIDN'T get my political views from...

Thanks Dad, for giving me more fodder for my blog. It's people like you (and I hate to use that phrase, but it's the truth) that people like me are trying to get to understand that voting DOES matter. It DOES affect you. I know, I know, you've said time and again that you are an old, cynical newspaper writer, but you've been this way for as long as I can remember. Case in point:

My interest in politics began young. Thanks to my Uncle Charlie, he gave me an amazing foundation to learn about them and what it means to take an active interest. My parents didn't give a crap (rather Dad didn't) and so when they dumped me off at my aunt and uncle's every Friday night while they went out with their friends, I got a front seat to learning about democracy. Charlie is also black, which gave me another point of view to see the world and politics from. And so, in 1984, Walter Mondale is running against Ronald Reagan. I was so excited as I learned how things worked for an election. On election night, I created my own 'poll' so to speak by giving out ballots to my Mom, Dad, Brother and one for myself. I had everyone vote and put it in my little poll envelope which was taped up on the wall in the living room. If memory serves me, my brother didn't want to participate, Mom voted for Mondale, I voted for Mondale, and Dad wrote on his ballot "don't care". Isn't it nice to see the encouragement from my family?!?

I guess I'm thankful that one of the main male influences in my life was Charlie. And luckily, he was there during the formative years of my youth. Dad wasn't around as much because of his divorce from my mother, so I spent even more time with Pam and Charlie.

To this day, I still learn about politics from Charlie. In fact, when Wellstone died and everything went to crap in Minnesota, I spent three hours at his place learning how to deal with it. We rehashed it out, discussed the outcome, what could/should have been done, everything. In the end, I came away feeling much better and learning again what a great thing we have in this country, even when it doesn't go the way you want it to go.

Dad, you are now 63. You say you are apolitical and this stuff doesn't affect you. What happens when you decide to retire? Will you have a prescription drug plan in place that will not cost you an arm and a leg? Will you have enough money saved, like Grandpa managed to do, to care for you and Debbie? Even then, as we have seen with Grandpa, it still costs a ton of money to pay those bills, even when you are healthy. These are the issues we all have to care about because they will directly affect us in some way. Social Security is there now, but it won't be there forever. Companies like Enron have taken their employees 401k plans and flushed them down the toilet. We have to elect someone who can at least get us on the road to figuring out what can be done.

I know what you'll say-I'm young, I'm still idealistic. Your damn right I am. And I hope I stay that way because at least that still gives me hope for this country. When people stop voting and stop caring, we're screwed. No wonder things are going the way they are right now. And I think that you have it the other way around when you mentioned that Kerry is a 'puppet'. Who the hell do you think is running our country right now? Not Bush. CHENEY. Bush is his puppet.

If you vote for Bush, fine. I'll just be happy you voted at this point. And I'm not one of those lunatics that hate everyone that doesn't vote the way I vote. I respect your opinion. This is just mine.

End of Rant. And Dad, thanks for the writing skills, and I still do love you!

"I thought the President was repetitive and reactive."

-Kate O'Beirne, National Review Online’s the Corner


The above quote sums up my feelings on how Bush did in the debate last night. I've been somewhat worried in the last month about Kerry, but last night I felt that he stood tall and presented us with the facts. He looked presidential and he kept his cool. Bush's facial expression during Kerry's speaking time were reminiscent of Al Gore's constant huffing and puffing during the 2000 debates. Did somebody in the Bush camp forget to teach him how to use his 'neutral' face? Kerry seemed to concentrate on taking notes while Bush spoke, and there were just a few times I saw a facial reaction. Even then, it was no where near the frustrated, annoyed and belligerent look that President Bush kept conveying.

While the President is said to be 'folksy' and tries to come across as everyone's friend, I don't see that. I get the folksy, but I've never felt like he was trying to reach out to me. But, he may do better during the Town Hall Meeting debate because it may fit his style a little better. I'm still confident that Kerry can come across that way as well. Even John McCain commented that Kerry 'came out slugging.' Another key quote I liked about Kerry was from Tim Russert: “Tonight he seemed to find his voice for the Democratic view of the world.”

This morning on the Today show as Matt Lauer was interviewing someone from Bush's camp, Matt asked this person about the whole 'flip flop' thing they keep using against Kerry. Lauer said it to this effect: Isn't the ability to be flexible on key issues, make decisions based on information (even if it means changing where you were going) and admit that some of the things you have done were wrong are what people want to see in a President? This dude's response was that President Bush is flexible and that's what he is doing. Ummmm, no. If that were the case, he'd be able to step in front of us and say that he made an error in the invasion of Iraq and that he is doing his best to fix it. The guy DOES NOT like to admit that he is wrong!

The tides are changing...check this out from John Eisenhower:
As son of a Republican President, Dwight D. Eisenhower, it is automatically expected by many that I am a Republican. For 50 years, through the election of 2000, I was. With the current administration’s decision to invade Iraq unilaterally, however, I changed my voter registration to independent, and barring some utterly unforeseen development, I intend to vote for the Democratic Presidential candidate, Sen. John Kerry.

I had to laugh while watching 60 Minutes on Wednesday night as Mike Wallace interviewed one of my favorite NASCAR drivers, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. Turns out, Junior's a Republican. In some ways it surprised me, but in others it didn't because A) His Dad was a Republican B) He's from the Deep South C) He makes a lot of money. Not that any of those reasons automatically point to a Republican, they are just very common qualities found in many of them.

And it's no secret that the candidates are trying to appeal to the coined term 'NASCAR Dad'. Junior was quick to point out that many of his fans (and they showed a bunch of rednecks sitting outside their motorhomes at the track drinking beer, sitting in kiddie pools, and waving their rebel flags) are typically white, southern, and conservative. When Wallace questioned him on the rebel flag bit, and if NASCAR was pretty much all white, Junior said that they go hand in hand. Although Junior considers himself a 'good ole boy', he did say that he didn't agree with the rebel flag and that the sport is predominately white and that it didn't fit with his personality, although all the other stuff did. (In which Wallace replied, "So, if you weren't a driver, you'd be sitting outside your motor home, at the track, drinking beer and raising hell?" The answer? "Yep.")

Anyway, I just thought that was interesting. That's my two cents on the evening.

As for new television programming this Fall, I have only watched Joey. And, I like it. It's dumb and funny and a nice guilty pleasure. The writing isn't as good as Friends, but it still is enjoyable to watch because the character of Joey is likeable. Mike & I have always loved Joey and the dumb things that come out of his mouth. Plus, I really like the guy who plays his nephew. Drea de Matteo that plays his sister is okay, I'm not overly fond of her. I just read the other day that she is dating Shooter Jennings-none other then the son of the late, great Waylon Jennings.

Otherwise, the television doesn't get watched much when Mike isn't around. Some nights when he is at school, I don't even turn it on. I've been re-reading my Little House on the Prairie books for some reason. Return to the days of being a little kid. It's funny how much more I understand of the books now then when I was little. Yesterday I went to Barnes and Noble and purchased Bleachers by John Grisham and A Man Called Cash (brand new) by Steve Turner. The latter I just started today and it's already excellent, but sad.

This weekend: nothing on tap. Mike's with the boys at his NOME weekend, so it's just me and Madison taking it easy.

To quote James Brown, "I feel good..." Or at least I'm getting there.

Went to the doctor for a follow-up on Friday for some other tests I had done, so they checked me out for my sickness crap too. Not much that could be done. Just that typical upper respiratory stuff. Otherwise, I was given a clean bill of health. My heart is in fantastic shape, my weight is normal for my height (although I disagree because I found out I have gained 12lbs since February). My blood work was good, with the exception of some elctrolite that I have to have re-checked. All in all, the symptoms I was experiencing before getting sick (shortness of breath, bruising, insomnia, sleep disorder, etc) all look like they are side effects of the medication I take for depression. So, to sum things up, it's all in my head.

I'm working on things. I'll get there.

My co-worker Amy had her baby last Thursday morning. Sophie, 7lbs 8oz. I stopped at the hospital on Friday to visit with them and she is absolutely adorable. Amy was in labor for 48 hours, pushed for 1 1/2 hours, and ended up with a c-section. The baby wasn't coming because the umbilical cord was wrapped around her neck FIVE times! Mom and baby are fine, although Amy is obviously recovering, slowly, from her surgery. Poor thing-she looked tough at the hospital.

My cousin Jenni also had a baby girl on Monday! Congrats to Jen and Tim, and the new grandparents, my Uncle Mike & Aunt Sue. Emily Elizabeth, in the same 7lb range as Sophie. New babies everywhere! I can't wait to see Emily. We haven't had a new baby in the Webb family for a very long time!

Her picture reminded me of when Jenni was a baby. I remember when she was born (I was 4) because although I liked her very much, I was also a bit jealous because of the attention Grandma Webb was giving to her! I also remember when my cousin Molly was born because she had to spend some time in the hospital. I have a vague memory of looking at her in the nursery of the hospital window and wondering why we couldn't hold her yet. She had lots of red hair! I wasn't as jealous of Molly, because I was older.

When I got home on Friday and showed Mike the pictures of Sophie, he asked if I was getting baby fever again. (I had it bad last October after Sam was born). He's always checking to see if I have it!

Mike & I went over to Cretin Durham Hall H.S. in St. Paul last night to watch Tyler play football for Century. They lost, but it was really fun to see him play at the JV level. They had him at running back, and I can't remember what he played on defense. He scored a touchdown as well! I'm glad we at least got to see one game this season. Sometimes it's hard to believe that is my little buddy that I used to carry around and take care of when he was little!

Fall is here...temp was 41 degrees this morning. It was awesome to wake up to. I love Fall weather. And, yesterday was Paige's 9th birthday. Happy Birthday kiddo!

Mike & I have now known each other 8 years as of yesterday. We'll celebrate anniversary #4 next week. Things have been tough lately as we deal with adjusting our schedules to his with school, taking care of his parents, worrying about grandparents, trying to remain social and have fun, on top of every day responsibilities and running a house. I realize daily that marriage is about communication, compromise, love and understanding. And, it's only your spouse that can laugh at your dumb jokes, love you even when you look like hell and are coughing your brains out, share in the responsibilty of a pet, understand when you lose a family member, feel your pain at losing touch with friends, it goes on and on.

There was much discussion when we started living together because of friends and family that didn't necessarily agree with that idea. For me, and I think for both of us, it came down to helping us be sure that this was what we wanted. Many people say that when you get married after living together, the divorce rate is higher because there is no difference in the feeling of being married and living together. Experts say that couples still have a tendency to think they can walk away from it all with no strings. I can honestly say that was not the case with us. The day we walked back into our apartment after getting married FELT different. I knew that there was no walking out that door without looking back.

After watching my parents go through a divorce, this was my way of ensuring that this marriage was going to last. No one has a crystal ball and no one can predict the future. But for me, this was my peace of mind. I'm not saying we didn't have the usual ups and downs of the first year of marriage. It was just that we knew how to deal with them. I love being married, and we really do have a great relationship, but we've also worked hard at achieving that. And it helps that we are also friends and like many of the same things. One thing that always stumps us though is our personalities. We are opposites here, but since we like many of the same things (i.e. hockey was the first thing we talked about) that is our common ground. But, we also are alike too in that our values are similar. We both think the world of our grandparents and spent a lot of time with them, our families are important, we believe in respect of one another, our ideas about raising kids are similar, we pretty much agree at what direction we want this country to go in, and we are both liberal. (me WAY more then him!) I guess it all comes down to a perfect mix of things that just work.

Mom & Barry leave for Pat's tomorrow-have a safe trip! Pat, hope you've recovered from Dave's visit as well. I received a crazy phone call from them on Saturday night from the baseball game they were attending, during the 7th Inning stretch of "Take Me Out To The Ballgame." It sounded like a lot of fun!

Happy October!

I'm still sick...


That's the long and short of it. Not much to post. My life has been nothing but staring at the ceiling, trying to sleep, or watching tv. I wish I could read, but I just can't focus!

I'm back at work today, trying to do something. I was here Monday and gone yesterday. No energy, coughing insanely. I sound like Kermit the Frog. Everyone keeps saying stuff like, "Wow, you sound terrible." "Why are you here?" "Don't breathe on me." "What's wrong with you?" I feel like the plague.

Yesterday I watched part of Days of Our Lives for the first time in a many months. It was retarded beyond my wildest dreams. I watched A Baby Story (which is always interesting when your friends are having kids all over the place), then I fell asleep and dreamed some really strange things. Then I woke and watched Little House (the one where Mary goes blind) and then Coal Miners Daughter was on, which is always a good watch. Watched some Seinfeld (the one where this girl thinks George and Jerry are gay, and the one where Kramer finds the Merv Griffin set), Father of the Pride (kind of cute), Scrubs, and then I actually watched an episode of Law and Order. Which Law and Order, I don't know. It's the one with Mariska Hagartay (is that the SVU?). It was a good episode, considering I'm not a fan of these types of shows. But, when I do watch one, I get sucked in.

Then, I let Madison outside when I was talking to my mom on the phone. She likes to lay out there, so I just let her be. When I got out there about 15 minutes later to check on her, she had dug up the entire tree of wood chips, the chicken wire, everything. THEN, she comes running in and tracks mud on the carpet. At that, Mike grabbed her and up to the kennel she went. He went outside to pick up the mess, I stayed in and cleaned up the carpet. When I let her out a short while later, she knew she was in deep shit. The joys of puppyhood.

Mike's busy with school and lots of homework. He's doing good, but definitely has gone into things full swing now. :)

"You're not dying...you just can't think of anything better to do."

That's a direct quote from Ferris Bueller and describes how I'm currently feeling. I haven't been this sick in a looooong time. Yikes.

Short post-limited energy.

I've watched 13 going on 30 and Mona Lisa Smiles, as well as a dozen episodes of Roseanne and Full House at 4am on Nick at Nite this weekend. I coughed so bad that I think I gave myself a hernia. Mike has slept downstairs and the dog has slept with me.

Anyway, I hope the rest of you have been able to enjoy this beautiful weekend of high temperatures and blue skies. It looks awesome! Get out there and do something because it won't be long before it's gone.