Lucky Number Seven (plus one)

8 am.  20 degrees Fahrenheit.  Heading out the door for a run?

Yes, it is true.  I am in the land of the cold, home of the frigid (Utah).  I went out for a run again this morning and realized that I really like to run in the cold!  For some reason, I feel like I can run forever when I can't feel my leg muscles.  Hmmmm...

The time out did allow for some random thoughts to enter my brain, which is helpful for another randomness theme for my post today.  I wasn't officially tagged, but I am participating in the "7 Things About Me" meme anyway.  So, FYI:

1.  I think the lint from the dryer is cool.  I like to pick it out of the receptacle.  I found myself doing that at my in-laws' house this morning while changing over the laundry in a sort of OCD-kind of way.

2.  I like to fill out forms.  Doctor offices, job applications, school applications, health forms, you name it.  I often fill forms out for Dave just because I like to do it.

3.  I have hair envy.  My hair is thin and scraggly and no matter how much I want it to grow out and be full and shiny and pretty, it never will be that way.  So I envy others' hair.  Sometimes, I ask to touch their hair.  If they let me, (without getting that funny look on their face that says I am strange) it makes me happy.  If I can brush and braid it, even better.

4.  I can't see properly with my left eye.  This is somewhat inconvenient, since I am left-handed. Thus, I have learned to wield sports equipment from several sports (tennis, fencing, water polo, etc.) with my right hand.   Try it sometime.

5.  On the left eye thing, it isn't as if I can't see anything with it.  It is just that it can't really understand what is going on.  For instance, if I know you, and you walk in the room while I am looking with only my left eye, I would not recognize you by sight alone.  I would be able to see you clearly, but the connection that allows me to say, "oh, that is so-and-so" is, well, not connected.  It is weird how one eye knows the colour green, but the other cannot remember that name.

6.  I do not get grossed out by blood or needles.  I like to watch when I get blood taken to see the technique of the phlebotomist.  When I see blood, I think that there has got to be something to fix, but I don't always know how, so we go to the ER.  

7.  I would love to get my master's degree in anatomy.  I totally geek out when people start talking body parts.

Now you know.  Will life ever be the same?

ps.  I guess it will be eight today:  I was in a hula festival.  See if you can tell which one is me.

A-Randoming We Will Go

Today, my lovely sister tagged me for this "10 Random Things About Me" meme and I have been thinking about it ever since.  So, in no particular order (duh, RANDOM) here we go:

1.  When I am old(er), I want to teach at a university and have grey hair and ride my motorcycle to classes and have a great time molding young minds and grading lame papers.

2.  I hate cookie dough.  I taste it when I bake to check for salt, but it gives me the heebs.

3.  I am afraid of old carpet.  When I move into a place, I have to change the carpet or I can't sit on it.  

4.  Dolphins fascinate me.  I know it sounds cliche, but I love, love them and I want to be one.  I swam out to be near them at Waimea recently and I could hear them calling to each other under the water.  It was incredible.

5.  I have always wanted to be a folk singer.  I can only sing in a very limited range and I don't know how to play the guitar, but I know I could do it if I had the chance.   

6.  I want to be on Survivor.  I have a great idea for an audition tape...

7.  I never get blisters when I run.  Even during my longest runs.  I know that sounds like bragging, but it truly does surprise me from time to time, like during last week's marathon, where I ran in wet shoes and socks for the first 18 miles (after that, just my socks were wet. No blisters).

8.  I don't eat pork.  Ever.

9.  I am slightly obsessed with cultural dancing and music.  I love to lose myself in other cultures--it makes me feel grounded somehow.

10.  I have a grey eyebrow.  It is over my left eye and not very obvious.  But I found it.  And now it must die. 

There.  I don't know ten people to tag, but everyone should do this!  It is fun!  And, what is more fun than FUN?!!?

So have a great day and celebrate your randomness.  Your 'you'-ness.  You ROCK!   

ps.  the guy in this picture really did run the marathon wearing just this red thing.  I passed him on several occasions and every time, I have to admit, I did a double-take.  Why?  I ask you, why?  I just don't get it...

Mindful Marathoning

This morning I was amazed by the glorious sunrise that I watched from my deck.  I was also amazed at the fact that my legs were working. Let me tell you why.

Yesterday, I ran a marathon.

Big deal, right?  I've run them before, you may say.  But this time, it was different.  It was the first time that I did not, at some point, swear that I would never, ever run one again.  

I ran with my BGFF Karen (pictured here, with me, at my graduation last June) to support her during her second marathon.  She had signed up almost a year ago with the hopes to achieve a certain time goal.  Due to a late start in the training schedule and numerous time constraints (she teaches high school, is the assistant cross-country coach and has 5 church callings and a husband), she came up against the marathon with a shortage of long runs.

  

Normally, during the course of training for a marathon, long runs reach distances of 20+ miles. Over several months, a runner 'builds up' to at least one 20-miler and completes it no later than 3 weeks before the scheduled marathon.   Well, our long runs reached a 14-miler, which is perfect. If you are running a half-marathon.  To say the least, Karen felt unprepared.  And alone:  her husband Phil, who had signed up with her, did not train at all.  Yet, she was determined to run anyway. 

I was not training for the marathon.  I had no intention of running it this year, especially after running it last year and it being a dismal affair.  The Honolulu Marathon is hot, crowded, and they give you an apple to eat when it is over.  An. Apple.  After burning about 3,000 calories and sweating for hours, they have an apple for the runners.  There was no way I was running it again.  Until I saw Karen's sad and lonely face.  That is when I decided I would go the distance, so to speak, with her.  It wasn't that she couldn't do it without me--her mental toughness is far superior to mine--but I knew we could do better together.

And, it was AMAZING.  We knew that we had not trained enough.  But, we had trained together, so we came up with a plan.  After being warned several times by my husband that I was going to be sore and unhappy, we showed up at the start line at 4:30am, in the dark and in the rain, along with the throngs of the Japanese that fly in specifically for this race.  Our stomachs were nervous, our digestive tracts were on double-time, but as we watched the fireworks go off at the 5am start, we got excited!  We knew what we were in for, but we did it anyway.  We went, we ran, we conquered.  We had our ups and our downs, we got really tired and ate energy gels when we thought we might throw them up, we walked a bit and we laughed a lot.  And we took over 30 minutes off of Karen's time for last year's marathon.

Here is why I think we did so well, not having completed proper training:  we had great attitudes and presence of mind.  We had no expectations except to finish sometime before they took the finish line down.  We stayed in the moment of the race.  We allowed our aches and tiredness to come along for the ride, but did not allow them to dictate our run.  We got really wet and super sweaty, but it really does come down to taking care of yourself mentally. Staying in the moment.  Going with the flow.  Oh, and we changed our wet, sloshy shoes for nice dry ones at mile 18 (thanks, Phil!!).

  

Yes, my legs are indeed sore today, a marathon hangover of sorts.  They worked well enough for a restorative walk down the beach with that amazing sunrise at my back.  I will run a marathon again, and with proper training, too.  And hopefully, with Karen as well.  Yesterday really taught me about the benefits of totally staying in the moment of an experience and how doing things unselfishly can allow us to reap incredible rewards (well, I wasn't completely unselfish--I really wanted that finisher's t-shirt!!).   Plus, it is just plain good to have a genuine friend at your side.   Thanks, Karen!  And thank you, Dave and Phil, for being great sports!

To Infinity and Beyond!

Ours.
  Our sealing at the Mt. Timpanogos Temple
 The boys at the tree--Christmas 1999. 

Ok, I know there are lots of people out there in lala-land that have been married for lots of years. But last weekend, I felt a particular sense of accomplishment as my husband Dave and I celebrated our 12th wedding anniversary. Over a decade, less than a quarter of a century. I'll take it.

When Dave and I got married, we had known each other a total of five weeks. Yes, you read that right, 5. Weeks. If a child of mine did that, I might have serious problems with that child's reasoning capabilities. But it has been the best snap decision of my life. My husband and I laugh a LOT, and loudly, and sometimes at each other (in a good way)--he is my BFF and weekly date and my sparring partner, all rolled into one.

My life has its stresses, true. Blending a family is not easy. Being a stepmother is sometimes an arduous and thankless task. And rewarding. And fulfilling. Like being a mother, only more complicated and sometimes, quite interesting. And I wouldn't trade it for anything.

So here's to you, my family of his, hers and ours: I love you all and what an over-the-hills-and-through-the-woods kind of a trip it has been! Who knows, soon, my house may be a grandmother's house! I have gained a daughter-in-law this year. (Daughters-in-law sometimes mean grandchildren. Hmmmm...am I ready for that?!?!??!!!!)

It is all good, as they say out here in the Islands. And I look forward to the next phase, even as I enjoy this one. Rock on, dude!

Let down your emotional hair!

Oh my! Has it really been three weeks since I've posted? Well, I did move after all. I guess that is a good reason, if there is one. It is a good thing I did not commit to NaMoBloMo, or whatever it is, like my lovely sister did, because I would have failed miserably!

On to other things: I was vinyasa-ing* through one of my Baron Baptiste DVDs this morning and as I was in this twisted-triangle-y thing, I realised that I was struggling through the pose. I was starting to panic--I have really tight hips and hamstrings, partly due to my running. And then I heard Baron say, in his smooth voice: "Let down your emotional hair." Oh YEAH! I was uptight! I was feeling cranky about my hips! I was holding it IN!

Several yoga instructors I have had have told us students how much emotion we, especially women, hold in our hips. By holding poses that bring us close to the edge of our tolerance, yet breathing through them, we actually can let go of a lot of tension and anxiety. Believe me, it works. I remember being at a yoga workshop (led by Baron himself--remember, Jenna?) and being in a really difficult (for me) hip opener. As I struggled, Baron walked over, placed his hand on my sacrum and said, "Just let it go." I totally did! And, alarmingly, I started to cry! But I left that day with more a more open, relaxed body and mind. It worked today as well--I feel HAPPY!

I did not intend to extoll the virtues of yoga in this post, but as usual, I get going and woah! a tangent!
But a daily yoga practice is one huge way, for me, to let down my emotional hair. Recognize it, let it go and, along with some deep breathing, move on...

Sometimes, when I walk out of a movie where the heroine was particularly spunky or emotionally carefree, I find myself wanting to be more like that. I try to smile more often and let the little things just roll off my back. We all have our stresses, true, but do they have to RULE our lives? Must we stuff stress and emotions down into our hips and back? No, I say--it is not necessary! Let us practice just letting it out, and letting it go--whatever "it" is. Workers, unite!** Take a deep ujjayi breath and LET IT GO!!!!!

Have a Happy Thanksgiving! And, if your food for some reason does not turn out, it is OK! If you eat too much, it is FINE! If you sleep through dinner, OH WELL! If your children fight, send them OUTSIDE! It will be an incredible day! Seriously, what other day can you eat pie with such abandon?

*vinyasa, as you probably know, is movement with breath, i.e., breathe in, bring your arms up over your head. Breathe out, and lower them back to your sides...
**No, I am not a Marxist.

I Made 37!

Here in the Islands, when your birthday passes, you do not 'turn' to your next year, you achieve another year, as in, "My son just made 13" or "Your dad made 86?" Thus, upon my birthday, I made 37--just a few days ago, in fact.
In my mind, it is not the number that surprises me, it is the sheer number of events that have occured in these thirty-seven years. And, how fast the years have gone by! It makes sense that when you are young, the years seems to go by more slowly. Each year of, say, a nine-year-old's life is a larger proportion of their life compared to mine. To me, the time just seems to flip by, like when you thumb the edges of the pages of a book. My husband Dave and I realized that when twelve more years have passed (this is the number of years we have been married thus far), my youngest child will be graduated from high school!

So, I have decided that I need to make a list, of sorts, of things that I want to do before the next 12 years go by:
* see all of my children through their educations
* finish the sewing AND knitting projects in my sewing bin (before adding new ones--key!)
* pursue graduate studies
* make that trip to India
* become a grandmother (the odds are definitely in my favour...)
* complete an Ironman triathlon
* complete a yoga teacher training course
* own and operate a farm (what kind of farm? you may ask...I don't know that part yet! Just get me those barnyard animals!)
* spend a summer learning Spanish in an immersion school with my family

So far, so good...I may add to the list as I see fit. But they say the first step to recovery is stating the issues at hand, right? My goal is to capture these years and make them COUNT! Plus, it'll be fun! (I hope my husband and children agree!!)

PS. When I "make" 40, I plan to run forty miles! Want to come with?

Keine Ahnung

This is what I thought during much of my GRE-taking session that occured last Saturday. It means "no idea" as in " I have NO IDEA" (Ich habe nicht keine Ahnung)...but I love school. And I want more.
Why is it that standardized tests accompany and terrorize us throughout our educational career? There are assessments for kindergarten, both at the beginning and the end of the school year. Grades 1, 4, 6, 8 AND 10 include at least a week of the dreaded testing for the children, at least in my state. Not to mention the weeks of preparation that the students endure to get to those hours of testing that requires filling in hundreds of little bubbles. And then, the pre-SAT, the ACT, the actual SAT, the AP tests, the graduation exit for seniors--is there no relief???
Apparently not. The final for General Chemistry is a standardized test. A timed standardized test. SO unfair! I can do chemistry, ok? At least, gen chem. But timed? WIth my final grade as ransom? That is just stress. Another one waits, this time at the end of the organic chemistry series. I guess the American Chemical Society can just DO that.
Then, graduate school. The GRE is only the general test; there is a GRE Subject test as well. Or, if you prefer to be a lawyer, you get the LSAT; a doctor, the MCAT or the DAT. If English is your second language or if you wish to teach English as a second language, there are tests for that as well.
I know, I know, there are standards we all must achieve before we can move on. Yes, I realize that standardized tests are a convenient way to find the level of education to which a person has progressed. But what about those of us who know the material, yet the set-up and structure of the test points directly to our weaknesses? Could there be another way to prove to our prospective educators or employers that we are capable of the tasks and rigours required without having to know how to figure the area of a trapezoid? (it is A=1/2(b1+b2)(h), BTW)
Believe me, I studied. For weeks, and using the practice materials the testing institution itself recommended and even gave out. I practiced! I learned new vocabulary, practiced figuring (by hand) standard deviation and reviewed many algebra and geometry equations and theorems. But I still did poorly.
There is hope, however. There was actual writing involved (yay!) and I did graduate magna cum laude from my undergraduate university. May the admissions committee have mercy...please LET ME IN!!!

A Credit Card and a Penny

When I run in the mornings, I usually run up or down Kamehameha Highway. This is not my preference; there is simply no other place to run that is longer than a two-mile route. I run along the shoulder of the highway, often running into the "rough" to avoid puddles, buses and trash cans. It is necessary for me to look down at the ground for most of my run to avoid stepping off the road or rolling my ankle on any number of tree pods or rocks. Thus, I find things. Mostly, I find trash or cast-off items of clothing or lone slippers, which I leave on the ground. But on almost every run, I find money. Which I pick up.
Now you may think that this is strange. Do I need the lone penny I find on my run? Not necessarily, but I admit I am a trifle superstitious, as in "Find a penny, pick it up, and all day long you'll have good luck." I cannot resist that chance! Now, however, I pick up whatever change I find along the way.
Truthfully, this habit was originally started by a friend of a friend. It was my friend Lynette's friend Gerry that picked up every piece of change she saw on her runs over aseveral years and ended up finding enough money to fund a trip to Disneyland for her family with the money! No joke! When she got sick one year, Lynette and I started looking for change on our runs to give to Gerry so she wouldn't feel like she was missing out on her findings. Now that I run on a road where I have to look down most of the time, I find change and copy friend Gerry. My record (in change) on a run is $1.32. I once found a ten dollar bill in the gutter during a 5-K race ad still managed to place in my age group despite stopping to pick it up! Last Saturday's long run yielded 32 cents. This morning, as I was about to cross one of the footbridges on my route, I found someone's bank card. If I were a dishonest person, this would be a jackpot! But I picked it up and brought it home to see if I could contact its owner. Oh yeah, I also found a penny.

ps.this picture was taken during the 2006 Honolulu Marathon. The runner you cannot identify is me, I swear.

My Middle Name

I begin this post with an apology to my sister who tagged me for a middle name meme some time ago. (Sorry, Michelle!) I have to admit that even though my middle name is (thankfully) short, I still found myself unable to finish the assignment. Then I realized that I will never be as clever as some people and that it did not matter if I was witty either. I am merely shooting for not droll! So, here goes:
M: mother-in-law. Yes, yes, I know: 36 years old is a tender age to have something so significant as a daughter-in-law, but there it is. As of August 10th, I am, in fact, a mother-in-law. Soon, I will move to the next stage: grandmother...probably while my own youngsters are still in grade school...weird.
A: adaptable: since I have moved umpteen times in my life, I feel that my skills in adapting to change are somewhat refined. I can even adapt to the possibility or rumours of change! Sometimes it happens, sometimes it doesn't...I'm OK with that--something my husband appreciates about me.
E: enteric: now, this one seems off, since 'enteric' means 'of the intestines'--but what I mean by this is that I often take action by gut instinct; hence, the reference to the intestines. If it doesn't feel right in my gut, then I am not happy about it. This 'gut instinct' is wrapped up in the 'still small voice'...

OK, there it is. I know this seems random, and it is, but is more entertaining to read on blogs than random stuff??? Isn't that what it is all about?

ps. this is a picture of me nearly 12 years ago just before (we're talking minutes) I married Dave...that day, I gained a mother-in-law, changed from single to married and went with my gut: Dave and I were married 5 weeks after we met...the proof is in the pudding!

A Little Rant (and a little rave)

OK, I got caught up in a snit with the world the other day on my run and I cannot seem to let it go. So maybe if I share, it will get out of my head. First, let's start with the rant (bad news first, right?)...
It bothers me when I fall in love with a product (or at least serious like), and then the company stops making it. Does this happen to you, too? For instance, I am very picky about how my jeans fit, so when I finally find a pair I like, I try to buy two pairs. But what to do when you go back a mere week later, and the jeans, with the same labelling, fit completely different? I fell in love with the men's Low Rise Relaxed Fit jeans at The Gap and went to get another pair--a relative bargain at $49.50--and brought them home to enjoy. Alas! I put them on and they were thigh-suckers!! I bought the men's jeans specifically because they did NOT suck my thighs, and here they were, doing that very thing! I was disgusted. I haven't bought a pair of jeans since...what to do? Here are a few other examples:
1. Brooks Mach 1.0 running shoes: light, durable, affordable. Imagine my disgust when they announced these shoes were being replaced by another, an "update", an impostor! Needless to say, I bought every pair in women's 11 that I could find (6 pairs). I have not found their equal...and I ran out of them about three years ago.
2. The Body Shop's Indian Gardenia perfume. I LOVE this stuff and, yet, it is nowhere to be found. My good friend Berenice said her favourite scent--Mango oil--is no longer made by the Body Shop either. sad...but true.
3. The blue kind of Neutrogena body wash--oooh, I love that stuff! no can find...
4. A facial exfoliator called Apotek that was the only thing that kept the pimplies off of my forehead in the humid climate where I live...now I have them again :(

oh, the ranting.
Now on to the RAVE:
1. I love fall weather. Lovely air, cool mornings, crispy leaves, gorgeous colours--all accompanied by that wood-stove burning smell in the background. (Michelle and I have discussed this...I am living vicariously through her East Coast fall experiences.)
2. Who has had Zabar's apricot streusel long pastry thing--perhaps my very favourite treat on this planet! I need to go there...
3. I smile when I think of the way my daughter is all warm and snoozy when she wakes up. Her crinkly eyes and bed-head are just the best!
4. Birthdays. Anyone's birthday--but especially mine. They are just so FUN and what a great day to do whatever you want! (within reason, of course)
5. The best socks: my Asics Kayano socks that have a right and left foot. These feel so nice on my arches and I never, ever get blisters wearing them, even if I have just come off of the beach after a run but still have sand between my toes for the last few miles until I get home...
6. Attached to the above are my running shorts that I have 6 pairs of. If they EVER stop making these, I will SCREAM!
7. I appreciate sunrises that only vary about an hour throughout the year. This seems to contradict #1 (where I love the fall, which has continually later sunrises until winter), but I have no fall weather here. This daylight consistency is very good for my love of routine...plus, it is good for people to see the sunrise. It is so fortifying!
8. Butter. mmmmm, I love butter. I love butter pie crust and butter melted on wheat toast and a dollop on my old-fashioned oats with maple syrup. Butter is good. I run to eat things made with butter...

So this is an abbreviated list, but I was thinking of the little pleasures that make life lovely and fun. Tell me about something that you love...or what have they stopped making that you wish they hadn't? I need replacements, reinforcements! ack!

Snippets

This morning seemed to come suddenly--when my back-up alarm went off, it read 7am. What!!??! My run is usually finished by that time, or at least half-way. Why did I sleep so long? (oh yeah, late night addiction to Prison Break...) But I am out the door running by 7:15. These are the conclusions I came to on my usual 5-miler today:

1. A head wind is not necessarily a bad thing. Just turn around and there is the extra ooomph you need to finsh the second half of your run.
2. If I make myself run for 10 minutes, 95% of the time, I will finish the run I set out to do.
3. A nice accompaniment to a run is a bus stop full of boys playing their ukuleles.
4. Drinking fountains are very nice to come upon during a sweaty run.
5. People who honk at a runner while they (in the car) are still behind the runner are not very nice people. Especially when seen laughing as they drive off...
6. The hymn "Master, the Tempest is Raging", with its perky up-tempo, is an interesting and helpful song to have in your head during a run. It keeps the stride short and efficient.
7. I really, really like pumpkin pie.
8. I am going to be bummed out if BYU discontinues their Masters program in HIstory.

So that is it. These are the types of things that go through my mind while running. I know, I am a very profound, intellectual type of girl...tee hee!

ps. this is me and my running buddy Karen after last year's Great Aloha Run

Conflama

Have you ever heard of conflama?
It is a mix of "conflict" and "drama" and I have to say that I am a fan of this made-up word. It seems to follow certain people and it is the thing that hooks us into those strangely addicting drama shows on the television. Now, I know there are many of you that claim not to watch television, but we all have our little secrets of certain conflama shows, whether it was soap operas in high school or the early days of ER. I admit, however, that I have two shows that I am addicted to at this very moment. I am exposing myself by saying so, but I love to watch Grey's Anatomy and Prison Break. I have been previously addicted to the beginning seasons of ER and the entire running of Alias as well as seasons one and two of 24. Yes! Conflama abounds on each and every one of these shows! No one can ever seem to catch a break on these shows, and if they do, their new-found peace or happiness is exceedingly short-lived! ACK!
It is true that sometimes I watch new shows to see if they have an addictive force, but none has caught my attention as of late. That is ok, though, because I can still deny that I watch too much TV, as I only 'specifically' watch these two shows. But what about my guilty flipping on to The Biggest Loser? And the afternoons of laundry folding in which the Food Network tempts me to make blueberry crumble or grilled peanut-butter-honey-and-banana sandwiches? But, ah, I am sidetracked so easily. Perhaps it is not conflama that draws me towards that darned noisy box that the television is. Perhaps I just like to watch it...

ps. this picture has nothing whatsoever to do with the subject, but I like this picture of me, doing things I love to do: eat ice cream, travel and walk about...

Adventures in Recipes...

Faith, my youngest child, loves to help me in the kitchen. After we gather ingredients for a recipe, I then read the directions out loud to Faith and we commence the building of whatever food item that is on the agenda, be it soup or cookies, et cetera. One afternoon, we were in the process of trying out a new chili recipe and I was, of course, reading the instructions out loud. This particular recipe read, "Toss until all ingredients are intimately mingled." What?!? I may not be the connoisseur of cookbook instructions (though I have read several cookbooks cover to cover), I have never come across that particular phrase in cooking! How romantic! If one thought of one's food as being "intimately mingled", would not one enjoy their food just that much more? It reminds me of that movie about the lady who makes a meal for her extended family while she is extremely upset and the whole family begins to weep before the end of the first course! I love that scene! To me, it is a reminder of how one person in a home can influence all of the others without ever realizing it. Also, I think that from now on, when someone asks me for a recipe, they may find that I have somewhat altered the instructions of a recipe to reflect a recipe that is more than just a preparation of food, but an exercise in what exactly goes into the recipe besides the physical ingredients. When I ate that chili this week, I thought of how the ingredients were "intimately mingled" as if a chili could be full of passion or romance-or both! Could that extend to our moods? hmmm...

Floating about

Now that my family and I have been in Hawaii for two years, it recently become apparent how slow our life has become. We spent a few weeks on the mainland this summer and I was seriously culture-shocked at the rushing-rushing-rushing feeling that I experienced while there (in Utah). I do have periods of busy-ness here in Hawaii, but there is a considerable amount of down time as well. This may sound suspiciously like boasting, but going to the beach to decompress for the couple of hours before dinnertime seems decadent to me, especially as I think back on times in my life that have been ridiculously busy. I remarked to Dave that I was surprised at my slow afternoons...and then I laughed at myself. I had better just enjoy it while it lasts!! So, it must be said that hanging out at the beach park with a picnic lunch and friends (and their babies!) is an ideal way to spend a Saturday...

It's Me!

Yes, it is true. I have finally graduated from college. It was as though I would never see the day, but here it is, the beginning of September and I still think I have classes to attend...Dave says I am addicted to studying--must be true, because I am still looking for new things to study, memorize and, hey wait! When is the test!?!?!?
So here I am, new to the blogging world and ready to introduce my life...Stay tuned!