I Should Be Doing Laundry

2007-11-15T14:23:00.000-06:00

Wish I was in San Pedro

The 'Family'

The boys
The girls

Cooking video - what was I thinking?

Progress On 'To-Do' List

2007-10-11T11:49:00.000-05:00

Latest on #4 - Do a cooking show

Shot this video and submitted it for an online contest. Check it out if you want (and hopefully vote for it!) but go easy on me - had to do it in one take and no, didn't burn down the house.

http://www.whatsyourmedstyle.com/medstyle/videodetail.aspx?ID=76

Personal 'To-Do' List

2007-10-01T15:07:00.000-05:00

Yes, long time no blog. Many miles between this and last post - literally AND figuratively. Been to Belize a couple times, three weeks in Germany / Austria / Hungary / Czech Republic. Awesome experiences and memories, hopefully details soon.

All well and good on the home front - oldest daughter in grad school, youngest daughter getting married in Dec. much more to report but will save that for later.

For now want to post my personal 'to-do' list. Guess it has been formulating in my mind for a while but seems pretty clear right now so will share in case it changes. Of course the obvious things (happy kids, healthy family, contented husband, etc.) go with out saying....

Here's the list:

-Go to law school

-Raise and give away a million dollars (pet projects: infant crisis centers; women & children in crisis; early childhood education - literacy & reading; childhood obesity and so many others...)

-Publish my books

-Do a cooking show

-Interview Maya Angelou

-Restore a villa in Italy

I'm Really Sorry That I Didn't...

2007-02-09T14:49:00.000-06:00

Wrote this a while back and just ran across it...

I'm really sorry that I didn't go fishing more with my grandfather

I'm really sorry that I didn't sit on the floor and play with legos more with my kids

I'm really sorry that I didn't take the time to listen to my mother's anguish over my father's new wife

I'm really sorry that I didn't kiss my grandmother goodbye as I left her hospital bed the night she died

I'm really sorry that I didn't tell my dad again that I loved him before he had open heart surgery

I'm really sorry that I didn't step in when a friend was berating and belittling her child over some minor infraction

I'm really sorry that I didn't keep in touch more or offer more support to a friend who was nursing her mother through a devastating bout with cancer

I'm really sorry that I didn't eat every bit of chocolate I encountered in Perugia

I'm really sorry that I didn't do something wild on the Spanish steps

I'm really sorry that I didn't go up to the door of Leonardo DiCaprios villa when we passed it in Chianti

I'm really sorry that I didn't tell off the snooty waiter in Italy who insisted it was Italian tradition to order wine AFTER dinner, not before

2007-02-09T12:40:00.000-06:00

Last couple of days have been pretty sad. Had to put our pooch down Wednesday. *sniff* She was 16 years old and not in good health - pretty pitiful actually. Was really hard. Kept hoping that she would just go peacefully in her sleep but alas, had to make the decision ourselves. I know it was the merciful and humane thing to do but has really hit me hard. She was a sweet little poodle that we all loved and was a part of our lives.

I'd always joked that true freedom comes when the kids leave home and the dog dies. Well, the kids left home a couple of years ago and now the dog has died. Not as uplifting as I thought...

Snowing = Cooking

2007-02-01T10:57:00.000-06:00

Snowed yesterday, snowing today. I love it. Great excuse to stay inside, catch up and COOK. I'm sure it's totally a primal thing so I just go with it.

Yesterday made beef burgundy with portabellas over fusilli pasta. Also experimented with a new salad dressing: Cumin pear vinaigrette over romain with pear slices, bleu cheese and sunflower seeds. Turned out great. Need to perfect it though. I put it all in the blender and used pears to replace some of the oil so more heart healthy but need more garlic to boost it a bit. Will post recipe(s) when I figure out exactly what I DID put in. Ahem.

Dale's getting cabin fever, can't blame him - he's the hunter, I'm the gatherer. I'm happy as a clam being 'stuck' inside, he's ready to get out. He's shoveling the sidewalk and drive now even though more snow coming. Oh well, he's happy, so am I. I can see him outside now in overalls and boots (and very red nose), looks cute but COLD.

Trying to work up the motivation to jump on the treadmill - getting closer. Bad thing about snow and cooking is the tendency to add more layers to the 'winter coat'. Yikes. In any stretch of the imagination can't seem to figure if blogging can be remotely considered a cardio activity? Didn't think so...

So what to cook for dinner tonight? Hmmm was thinking a big pot of ham and beans but forgot to put the beans on to soak last night. Dang.

2007-01-27T12:52:00.000-06:00

Well, long time no post - again. I keep thinking I'll get better at being current, but alas, not doing a very good job at it. It's been almost a year since last post so I'm sure anyone who WAS following my blog has totally lost interest due to inactivity on my part. Oh well, such is life...

The last year has been pretty eventful. We finished the remodel on the 'new' house, closed on the previous one and moved into our new digs on April 1st. Love it. Nostalgic about the previous house but no regrets at all.

Hubby sold his business in May - was time but still hard to let go.

Summer was fairly uneventful but fun- a trip back to San Pedro (Belize), New York for 4th of July (saw Madonna at Madison Square Garden - wow. 20 mile bike ride down Long Island to Sag Harbor, misc. fun activities), kids coming and going and backyard construction took most of our time and attention.

Fall was busy - went to Greece for three weeks and was incredible. Still working on trip report but suffice to say it was an awesome experience.

Natalie now a jr. at Okla. State, got engaged in Oct. (great guy - currently deployed in Afghanistan - prayers appreciated). Jessica graduated from MTSU (Middle Tennessee University), moved to Dallas with her fiance (also a great guy)and started grad school at the Guildhall (grad program through SMU)

So, I'm sure you can see the pattern here, our life consists mostly of house, kids and travel.

That's it for now - more later...hopefully!

God bless,
nkn

2006-02-17T22:53:00.000-06:00

Okay, have been getting lots of static because I haven't posted anything so here goes. Quick wrap up since last post:

Aug 2005:
-Went to Las Vegas with hubby - lots of fun - some minor wins but more losses than gains. Didn't see any shows this time but awesome food. Best meal was Ahi tuna in ginger and soy sauce sauce at Les Artiste Steakhouse at Paris. Also great was wild mushroom and goat cheese pizza at Puck's Cafe (at MGM).
-Had minor surgery which was supposed to have recovery time of 2-3 weeks...ended up more like 6 weeks.

Sept 2005:
-Most of month taken up with getting back to normal (whatever that is) and lamenting the fact that recovery from surgery equated to gaining about 10 pounds. *gggrrrrrr*

Oct 2005:
-Back to Belize for 10 days. Remodel work mostly done and had great time. Nice to be there during slow season, not so crazy and lots of sunny days even though rainy season. I absolutely love it there - such a relaxing and restorative place.
-Hubby goes to Mexico on guys fishing trip, I was supposed to go to Vegas with my sisters but trip busted out - work and kids schedule over-rided trip plans. Dang
-Bought a new house, sold this one, began remodel on new one. Exciting but also bittersweet. We've lived in this one for 10 years, raised our kids here (for the last 10 years anyway). When we built this one, thought we'd be here forever but, alas, not so. We moved back to Perry to raise the kids in a small town close to family and now they're in college and going in their own directions so decided it was time for a change. We designed and built this house from the ground up - I was on site for practically every board and nail going into it. Tough decision but change is good - gotta move forward, right? New house is closer to city and airport and other things so - moving on!

Nov 2005:
-Family stuff, Thanksgiving, get-togethers, general hecticness. Remodel going good but slow.

Dec 2005:
-More family stuff, Christmas get togethers and festivities, more remodel aches and pains.

Jan 2006:
-Spent the whole month in Belize - what a great get-away. Went down with another couple, had a great New Years Eve. After they left, kids came down for a week - such fun!! After they left, my mom and stepfather came down. Again, fun time. After that my dad came down, great time again. Then a couple of days just us, then back to reality.

Feb 2005:
Back and forth between current house and new house. Remodel going just as expected: behind schedule and over budget. Oh my. Almost finished though - should be moving in 2-3 weeks!!!

Okay, that's the quick version. Whew.

Outrunning Emily

2005-07-17T13:52:00.000-05:00

Just got home from Belize - what a wild experience.

We love San Pedro (Belize) so much that after 5 visits so far this year we jumped off and bought a condo on the beach. Day of closing I mentioned to hubby - just our luck, finally own a slice of tropical paradise and watch, a hurricane will blow through. He said I was such a pessimist. Guess what? Hurricane blew through.

The week started out innocuously enough and we had a great time until we had to evacuate. We took suitcases packed to the bursting limit with bedspreads, curtains, blinds, kitchen stuff, silk plants, etc. for the re-do. Week was spent alternating between lining out workmen, fixing everything up, a little sun, a little sand, a few nights out eating awesome food (fresh caught lobster, blackened snapper were the best meals) and hearing Dennis Wolfe play while dragging our toes through the sand.

About Wednesday we heard the weather report that Emily was heading our way and looked serious. At first we considered staying and riding it out but the management at our place was 'strongly' encouraging everyone to leave. Not sure if it was so much for our personal safety or more the fact that with less people there would be easier on them, especially since there would be no power, water, food, etc. and limited staff and no guest/resident services.

So, on Fri. we changed our flights and started packing up to leave the next day.

Sat. morning we headed for the San Pedro airstrip a little before 11 - had reservations on Tropic Air but as of that morning all reservations were null and it was first come first serve. Line was enormous and no real information as to procedure. We stood in the heat for a good three hours making literally 6 feet of progress in the line, dragging bags and gear and sweating our you-know-whats off. Thankfully there was a guy in line behind us making beer and water runs.

Since there was no clear info as to which line to wait in or what to do, I tried going up closer to the TA office door but there was a throng of people there just trying to get info also. Hubby ran over to Maya Air and was gone for a long time but finally came back with boarding passes for the 1pm flight. At 2pm we finally got on a plane, supposedly heading for Belize International (where our flight to the states was leaving in less than 2 hrs). They closed the doors, headed down the airstrip and pilot announces "welcome to your flight to the Belize Municipal Airport" WHAT? Stop the plane! No way of course so we sweated out the sweltering flight - ran off the plane into the office - no bags. Of course the bags made it to International, but not us.

Oh wait, it gets better...

Standing at the counter, fortunately we got a Maya rep with some pull - he got on his radio, figured out where our bags were and said we could fly us over to International in 30 minutes - 10 minute flight. No time for that. Taxi driver comes up and says he'll take us, 20 minute ride - we tell the Maya rep they should pay for the taxi and they agree. Off in the taxi at breakneck speed - eyes closed and REALLY praying hard at this point. Man what a ride - taxi ride in Rome was a picnic compared to this one. Passing cars trucks and bicycles on left AND right side on small two lane road. Oh my.

Got to International, up to Continental desk - another line but up to front in about 20 minutes. Guess what? Reservations MIA. Seems that when we changed our flights the agent on the phone had us leaving on Fri. - not Sat. Guy at desk says - oops, you missed your flight, you were booked for yesterday and all flights are booked for today. ARE YOU KIDDING??? I had all the notes, conf. #, dates, everything written down (thank goodness) and was not leaving that counter without a boarding pass. He went back into the back room, comes back and taps on the computer some more, back into the back room (break time?) then back - FINALLY after (I kid you not) 55 minutes he had us on standby.

We race through to security and customs/immigration and of course, there is only one departure form in our passports (two of us - need one for each) and they don't have them at THAT desk - only at the ticket counter. Run back to ticket counter, frantically fill it out (no telling what info I put on there) race through security and get to gate as last ones are boarding - they've already called for stand-bys. Hubby goes through the line up to the front and says we're either on that plane or else (don't know what 'else' would have been but would not have been pretty.) FINALLY they let us through, we board and can relax.

Flight goes okay but late getting in so at Houston we race through the maze of tunnels, trams and lines, get through customs, no bags. They we're re-routed, natch. Wait 20 minutes, bags come, race again to recheck and clear immigrations, literally run to gate as they're closing doors for our connecting flight to home. Finally arrive at 11pm, still have an hour and a half drive to home so decide to stay at airport hotel and come in next morning. (This morning). Once our heads hid the pillow slept for 9 hours straight - hard bad bed with flat excuses for pillow but no prob at this point.

Drove in this morning and now here at home sweet home. God is good. Now worried about what will happen to our slice of island paradise and friends we've made there. Hope and pray all will be well...

Oh and one other thing - my sister and her hubby and three daughters are in Cancun right now and can't get out. I feel bad for even complaining about our experience while they're still there...

Terror in London

2005-07-07T21:22:00.000-05:00

I grew up in Oklahoma City and wept with anguished grief as I watched the live coverage of the bombing of the Murrah Bldg. and waited for my sister to call saying she was okay.

I watched again with tears streaming down my cheeks as the twin towers fell in smoke and rubble on 9/11 and my heart broke for those lost and their families.

When the bombings in Madrid happened I was gripped with fear because I was in Japan and a long, long way from home and again I cried and thought of the lost and their loved ones.

When I hear about the many terrorists attacks occuring all too frequently in Israel, Iraq, and too many other places around the world I shudder at the inhumane acts of humans. This morning when I turned on the TV again I cried.

When will it stop? How will it ever be brought to an end? God forgive us all and may God protect us and soften our hearts to let us all live in peace together no matter what our political, religious, ethnic or personal beliefs. And above all we can never be less than adamantly vigilant against the vile scourge of terrorism and its evil-hearted perpetrators.

Our thoughts and prayers are with you, our British friends. We know the depth of your loss, we feel the heaviness of your heart, and we have wept as you now weep. As we learned in Oklahoma City, "Our hearts are broken, but not our spirit. We will go on, we will survive."

We wish you healing and hopefully in time, a peaceful, forgiving heart.

DO Try This At Home

2005-06-25T07:40:00.000-05:00

Okay, here's a totally random post. Like I've said before, good, sharp knives and an iron skillet are basic kitchen staples, right? Well, I got some new knives and they are sharp, sharp, sharp. I was slicing and dicing away and pretty much in heaven. Then the other day I cut my finger pretty bad. Well I guess you could say I cut it pretty good because it would not quit bleeding. After four or five bandaids it was still bleeding.

Lupe, who helps me around the house had a suggestion: cobwebs. Cobwebs? Now of course my first reaction was "Lupe, if you're doing what you SHOULD be doing here there shouldn't BE any cobwebs." My next reaction was "eeewwwww, how disgustingly unsanitary and downright nuts."

Guess what? Worked like a charm. Didn't even faze me that it only took her seconds to find a nice big clump of cobweb uh, material. She balled it up, slapped it on, put the bandaid back on and wala - bleeding stopped immediately. Sounds to me like a medical breakthrough. Wonder if the research scientists and medical gurus know about this novel little bit of info?

She also swears by mustard on a burn but haven't tried that one yet...

I Think Something Is Terribly Wrong With Me

2005-06-25T06:28:00.000-05:00

I'm baffled as to the cause or the cure. This is the third Saturday in a row that I have woken up at 5a.m. Why? No Clue. Frustrating? You bet. Don't have to get up, don't need to get up but up nonetheless. Now if it was a Monday, or say a Thursday I would be sleeping blissfully savoring every minute of shut-eye time and squeezing every last second I could until I HAD to get up. But nope, not on Saturday. Go figure...

Recipe: Pork Tenderloin with Cranberry, Rosemary, Black Pepper Glaze

2005-06-23T10:16:00.000-05:00

This one is so easy and so far has been very popular (even with people who absolutely detest cranberry!) We make it with a pork tenderloin about 8" long (don't know how many pounds but serves 4-5 people)

GLAZE
1 can whole berry cranberry sauce
1/2 c. balsamic vinegar
1 TBSP garlic, minced
2 tsp coarse ground black pepper
1/4 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. fresh rosemary (or 1/4 c. dried)

Place all ingredients in blender and blend on high for 20-30 seconds. Pour into sauce pan and simmer on medium heat until reduced and thickened, about 10-12 minutes. Stir occasionally to keep from sticking. If cooking too fast, turn heat down a little (should be a gentle rolling boil). Turn off heat and let cool. You can make the sauce up to a day ahead.

Wash and pat dry the pork. Place pork and about 1/3 of the sauce in a zip-top bag and refrigerate for a couple of hours or overnight. Can also make the sauce and cook the pork immediately but deeper flavor if you marinate. Save the rest of the sauce to heat up and serve with the pork.

To cook: Place pork on grill or in 350 oven, cover with sauce from marinade. Use a meat thermometer and cook to 140 degrees internal temp, about 30-40 minutes. Don't get impatient, temp will stay low for quite awhile then all of a sudden climb pretty fast. At 140 degrees, take off, cover and let set for about 10 minutes. Slice and serve with remaining sauce. You can brush on more sauce for about the first 10-15 minutes, after that, just let it cook and glaze.

Enjoy!

You Can't Go Home Again...Or Can You?

2005-06-23T09:56:00.000-05:00

Oldest daughter Jessica (22 yrs.) came in from Tennessee last Thurs. Great having her home! Seems like we have been chatting non-stop most of the time. She's here for 10 days and seems like the time is flying. She's going to my mom's today for a few days before she heads back home.

Amazing how your kids actually do turn into great, loving, responsible, fun adults! Hope she's enjoying being here as much as we enjoy having her. She and Dale went fishing yeaterday - didn't catch much but seemed to have a great time just having father / daughter time.

Fortunately I had a back-up supply of fish in the freezer so at least we still were able to have a fish fry. Had also saved some homegrown okra to cook but didn't get the grease hot enough so was kind of chewy. Or maybe the problem was a combination of not-hot-enough grease or the fact that I only had one cast iron skillet so cooked the fish in that and the okra in a regular skillet. Big mistake. First rule of frying - ONLY fry in cast iron skillet. A REAL kitchen is not complete without a good set of knives and a good cast iron skillet. The older the skillet is, the better.

Made 'corny bread' too (her fav) and also had homegrown tomatoes so all in all turned out to be a great meal.

What's corny bread? Glad you asked. It's fabulous and SO easy. Make a box of Jiffy cornbread according to package directions, add 1/2 can of corn, 1 TBSP sugar, 1/2 tsp. salt, pour into 8x8 baking pan and cook at 350 for about 20 minutes. I like to stir in a couple slices of jalapenos in my 'corner' of the pan. YUM.

Anyhoo, I digress....

So, having a great time with Jessica being here and will miss her tremendously when she goes back to her Tennessee home.....

Recipe: Grilled Redfish with Tequila Raspberry Sauce

2005-06-17T20:45:00.000-05:00

Made this the other night, turned out great! We used redfish but you can substitute any mild flaky white fish if you want (or can use chicken breast fillets). The raspberry vinaigrette we used was Kraft Light Done right but any raspberry dressing should work fine. We served it over a bed of fresh baby spinach - great flavor combination and the sauce was like a dressing so kind of doubled as a salad too. Easy to make since while the sauce is cooking you can get everything else ready.

Prep
4 redfish fillets, washed & patted dry
1/2 c. raspberry vinaigrette dressing

Put fillets in zip-top bag, add dressing, refrigerate for a couple of hours or overnight

Sauce
1/4 c. raspberry vinaigrette
2 TBSP tequila
1 tsp lime juice
1 can chicken broth
1 TBSP garlic, minced
1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp soy sauce
2-3 TBSP roasted red peppers, sliced thin
3 TBSP fresh cilantro
2 green onions, sliced
6-4 cherry tomatoes, quartered

Put all ingredients except cilantro, onions and tomatoes in sauce pan. Cover and simmer until reduced and thickened, about 10 - 12 minutes. Add remaining ingredients, cover, turn off heat and leave on stove.

While sauce is cooking, wash and pat dry the spinach, grill the fish, make the side dish, etc. (We made coconut rice - easy and goes good with the sauce.)

To serve: arrange a bed of the spinach on each plate, place fish on top, cover with sauce. Serve rice on the side.

Tip: for the roasted red peppers, you can buy them already roasted (in jars usually) but is really easy to do yourself. When they're on sale I do a whole batch, then freeze in mini zip-top bags - easy to break apart and use what you need. To roast peppers: Can do them on grill or in oven, up to you. Cut peppers in half, cut out stem and seeds. Spray both sides with cooking spray or drizzle with olive oil. Place on foil lined cake pan or cookie sheet in 350 oven for about 10 - 15 minutes. When the skin gets nice and brown, take out and place in paper bag (this helps the skins loosen for easy removal). When cool, peel skin (actually just an almost translucent covering), then slice or chop and either bag up to freeze or refrigerate (will keep in the refrigerator for a few days. Cover with olive oil to keep longer in 'fridge).

Things I'm Thankful For

2005-06-14T15:55:00.000-05:00

Started a new book today: Simple Abundance by Sarah Ban Breathnach. It's been in the media and was featured by Oprah. Has been on my shelf for a long time but just now getting around to reading it. I'll let you know how it goes (it's a BIG book). The basic gist is to be thankful for the basic everyday things that we would probably take for granted. I like the idea of putting down in writing every day things I'm thankful for. You should try it!

I wrote this next section last year and tucked it away. When I started reading this book it came to mind.

Cool fall mornings are definitely a gift from God, there's just nothing like them. After stifling heat, scorching winds, and blazing sun the refreshing change ranks right up there with hot-fudge sundaes. (Pretty high ranking, if you ask me). Even though I sometimes grumble about the oppressive heat or biting cold, deep down I really do give thanks for the change of seasons. Tropical consistency is great but I look forward to the changes in seasons, and I'm thankful for them.

Sometimes it's so easy to get caught up in the daily grind that I forget to step back and appreciate all of my blessings.

When I was elbow-high in dirty dishes and laundry, it was hard to be thankful for the rowdy little creatures that created such a mess - until they grew up and left home and I was only doing dishes for two.

When I was still up at midnight waiting on one of them to get home, it was hard to be thankful - until they had a place of their own and I wondered if they were okay.

It was hard to be thankful when Grandmommy told me I had put way too much sage in the cornbread dressing - until she was gone and I had to make it by myself.

It was hard to be thankful for rules when I was growing up - until I was faced with temptations later on didn't know how to deal with.

It was hard to be thankful for pouring rain - until I looked out over a parched wheat field dying in the hot sun.

It was hard to be thankful for painful shots and doctors' offices - until a good friend was diagnosed with cancer and those shots were her only hope.

There are so many things to be thankful for, where do you start? We live in a free country where we can worship as we choose, elect our own government, be protected from criminals, and dream dreams with the realistic expectations of fulfilling them. I'm thankful for that.

I'm also thankful for my family, warts and all. They're not perfect, they're not always completely normal, but what is normal anyway? Sometimes I think normal is overrated. For the most part, they're a pretty good bunch - full of love, laughter and forgiveness. I was blessed to have a mother and father who loved us, took good care of us, took us to church on Sundays, and taught us love, respect, and compassion. Even when we disagreed, we always knew we were loved and that we would always have each other. I'm thankful for that.

I'm thankful for my husband. I'm thankful for his strengths, and also his weaknesses. I'm thankful that he's honest, loyal, responsible, disciplined, and that he's such a great father to our children. I also give thanks for his weaknesses, because if he didn't have any, he wouldn't be human, and he wouldn't need me. Hopefully our strengths and weaknesses balance out, and hopefully I can give him something that no one else can. God gave me the perfect mate, and even when we don't see eye-to-eye, I'm thankful for him.

I'm thankful for my children. Parenting isn't easy, but the reward is SO worth the effort. I thank God for their health, their smiles, their individual personalities, and yes, even for their tempers. I don't always like their stubbornness or outbursts, but it does teach me patience and diplomacy. And the hugs and heart-to-heart talks make up for all the down sides.
I'm thankful for that.

Most of all, I'm thankful that I have a God who loves me and forgives me, even when I don't deserve it. He guides me, comforts me, and picks me up when I feel I just can't go on. I'm so thankful for that.

And I'm also thankful for all the little things in life. I'm thankful for a note from a long lost friend, a delivery that arrives on time, a kind word when I'm sad, short check-out lines, re-chargeable batteries, self-cleaning ovens, a crocus in spring, a child's giggle, a good harvest, hot-fudge sundaes, and cool fall mornings. Life would be bleak indeed without each and every one of these things.

What are you thankful for?

On The Menu

2005-06-14T15:36:00.000-05:00

Dinner for tonight: Grilled red fish with sauce of tequila, lime, cilantro, roasted red peppers and red raspberry vinaigrette served over bed of fresh baby spinach. Sides: green salad, grilled veggies and coconut rice. If it turns out I'll post the recipe tomorrow!

Ode to Being 80

2005-06-14T09:25:00.000-05:00

Sun is shining, no storms forecast for our area today, scales were kind to me this morning - ahhhhh it's going to be a good day.

My father-in-law turns 80 next week, we're having a family get-together for him this Sun. Hard to fathom what it would be like to be 80 years old - wow, that's a lot of living. Hope I make it to 80. Seems to me that when you turn 80 life would get a whole lot easier.

You can wear what you want and if it matches, well, hey that's a bonus. They should make garanimals for seniors. (Remember garanimals? They're childrens clothes where if there's a lion tag on the top and a lion tag on the bottom, they go together. Don't put the zebra top with the lion bottom because the kids on the playground will point and laugh.) For seniors they could do the same thing. They'd have to change the name though, like maybe garpolident or something. Just a thought.

No need for moisturizer - why bother?

Traffic signs, lane markers and speed limits are merely suggestions and blinkers can always be on and it's okay, you're 80.

You can say whatever you want to your friends because, hey, chances are good they won't remember it anyway.

Secrets you tell your friends are always safe (see previous).

You don't have to worry that smoking and drinking will shorten your life. Enjoy!

Fried pork chops are okay, too late to worry about cholesterol.

Frosted flakes for dinner is perfectly fine and no one will say a thing when you put extra sugar on it.

You can't see your toes and you really don't care. I have toes???

Yup, seems to me life would be pretty sweet at 80...

Italy Pics

2005-06-13T14:38:00.000-05:00

Trip was incredible, best part was all of us being together seeing such great things, eating awesome food and just experiencing such a different part of the world. More details to come...

Cooking class in Assisi

View from Castello De Velona outside Montalcino

Piazza Barbarini in Rome

Street in Pienza

Amalfi Coast - Positano

Siena

Fruit stand in Positano

Flower Market on street in Rome

Tuscany

Working on trip report for recent trip to Italy. Also trying to figure out how to upload pics here. Bear with me!

Motto To Live By

2005-06-12T17:40:00.000-05:00

I love this - unfortunately no clue who wrote it...

"Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well-preserved body.

No, life should be an awesome adventure where at the end you skid in sideways, champagne in one hand, strawberries in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out screaming "WOOHOO what a ride, thank you Lord!!!!"

It's Raining Cats and Dogs

2005-06-12T14:49:00.000-05:00

Actually it's raining rain but that sounds so non-nondescript. It's one of the side-ways Oklahoma rains that makes you want to tilt your head to the side because in the natural order of things rain should come straight down, shouldn't it? Oh great, now there's hail too - or rather hail-wanna-be - only pea sized. Now the hail is getting bigger - but maybe just lima bean size so still not too bad.

We're under a severe weather watch which is not unusual for this part of our region. In the spring/early summer you might as well give up watching any TV show uninterrupted by weather updates and the ever present weather bug in the corner of the screen. Of course, always good to know beforehand if/when your home may blow away but annoying nonetheless. Especially so if you tape something during this time of year and play it back at a later date. Even though you know it's recorded, hard not to sit up and take notice: "hey, better put the car in the garage, storm's picking up...oh wait, this is from LAST month..."

Don't have to worry about what to fix for dinner tonight - just got back from family reunion where the main activity is food, food, food. And more food. Actually was hubbys' family reunion - kind of a good news bad news thing.

Good news: I can come late and then leave early while he's obligated to get there early to help set up the tables and chairs and then stay after to help clean up.
Bad news: Since it's his family instead of mine I can't openly make fun of the oddballs. Well, okay, mostly. I try to at least not laugh and roll my eyes openly. It's the least I can do...

Good news: People in this family live a LONG time.
Bad news: People in this family live a LONG time.

Good news: Only time of year I get KFC that the out-of-town relatives bring since they don't have anywhere to cook, being on the road and all.
Bad news: KFC is still greasy, heavy and laden with calories. That's why I love it.

Good news: While some dishes are virtually unrecognizable, there's always lots of Velveeta. I love Velveeta. In fact I've had an ongoing borderline obsessive love affair with Velveeta for as long as I can remember. I think often about petitioning for Velveeta to be classified as a food group. I mean, what's not to like? It's creamy, gooey, sticks to the roof of your mouth, goes with anything (well, except maybe peanut butter. And not so good with jello - I've tried. ugh.) Lots of velveeta today - with rice, with potatoes, with macaroni, I'm pretty sure I even spotted it melted over some beanie weenies....
Bad news: First part of last paragraph: unrecognizable dishes. You have to wonder if that was what the cook ( I use the term loosely) intended when they decided on what to bring to the reunion. Or was it somewhere in the far depths of the refrigerator and the 'cook' decided to just rearrange it and melt some Velveeta over it? Hmmmm - sometimes you've got to wonder.

Good news: All in all had a pretty good time though - good to see and visit with everyone, especially in-laws, nieces & nephews. And there's not really that many oddballs.
Bad news: There's still those few that make you scratch your head and wonder about the future of the gene pool. There are some people who just SHOULD NOT procreate. TBT (Tacky but true) *sigh*

Rain has stopped, sun is out, still under tornado watch. Go fig... Only in Oklahoma.