Mostly Wordless Wednesday: Lunch Break

On our way to New Mexico last week, we stopped in Garfield, KS for lunch.

At least, I think it was Garfield, KS.

We were headed for Dodge City, but Mot's growling tummy won out.

(good thing too, Dodge City was a complete bust....but I'll write about that later)

In the small town park where we stopped for our picnic lunch, was a (an?) historical marker of the Santa Fe Trail.

There was also an old bell. I walked over to see if the bell was from the old town hall?.....fire department?....school?....I hear a "whoop."

I turned around to this......












(I call this one "Put that d*mn thing away, would you?!"

PROMPTUESDAY #69: Introspection

San Diego Momma has yet again posted another of her PrompTuesday challenges.

And I, a person interested in challenges great and small, thought I'd see where it took me. :-)

1. Who are you?

Who are you...who who, who who.......(song stuck firmly in my head - thanks SDM!!) :-)

Who am I?

Wow that's a loaded question...right out of the gate! Although, I guess the challenge is called Introspection...so what did I really expect???

Who am I?

I am Nej. (hear me roar)

Sorry...couldn't resist!! :-)

Sarcasm. I think it's technically my middle name....although I'll have to pull the birth certificate out when I get home. I don't normally bring it with me to work.

Ahem...surely I should tone the sarcasm down and answer the question, yes?

Yes I should - but don't call me surely.

Wow, that's the second time I've quote the movie Airplane today...maybe I should just move on to the next question?

My name is Nej, I was born in Iowa, raised in Iowa, and moved to Nebraska against my better judgement. Basically I was sick of driving 1 hour (each way) to work everyday.

I try to surround myself with positive and happy people whenever I can. And, as I found myself saying last night - at 9:00 - eating my second supper at Village Inn (oh yes, second supper - I'll have to write a post about it)....."why not? you only live once!"

2. Where did you come from?

Well, you see....when your mommy and daddy really love each other, they.....

Never mind.

I guess I've already told you where I physically came from....Iowa and all. On to the introspective side of the question...

I have just recently "found" myself....well, at least as much as one CAN find themselves...at the age of 33. (whoops, cover your eyes, pretend you didn't see that!)

I come from a small family. Mom, dad, little sis and I. Each of my parents are from smaller families as well. There aren't a million cousins in my family.....we invite friends to our family reunions, because we love to be surrounded by people we love - even if our family is relatively small.

We were taught to work for what we want...because you enjoy it and appreciate it sooo much more when you do it the honest way.

I was taught to change the oil and a flat tire on my car....because accepting help from others is a wonderful thing...but being able to do it yourself if you have to is worth it's weight in gold.

I have two tshirts that I absolutely love, because of the message on them..."Well behaved women seldom make history" and "Speak loudly, even if your voice shakes."

3. Where are you going?

I still don't know what I want to do with my life. I don't know where I want to be in 5 years, 10 years, 25 years. As long as I'm happy and living life...I suppose that's all that matters.

I force myself to step outside "the box" as much as possible. I'll eat the chunky stuff in my salsa now, and I tried to eat snails once (I'm the pickiest eater ever, I swear!). I LOVE kayaking and white water rafting, even though water terrifies me if it's deeper than I am tall. (terrifies!!)

I'm not going to be president, or an astronaut, or a professional tennis player....but I am going to try as many things as I can.

Amazing Race is holding auditions...er, accepting applications....in the area this month. I want to go, I want to be on the show, I want to make a fool out of myself.....but I'd never be able to get the time off of work. And...if Mot and I were on a team together, just the two of us...we'd kill each other.

The two of us talk about what we'd do if we won the lottery...allot. We also talk about what we want to do when we retire.....when we pay off all the bills....what we're going to do with our next tax return (should be get one)........

Hmmmm....all of that seems centered around money, doesn't it?

Now accepting donations...you can send them to "imsickofworkingpleasesendmemoneysoIcansleeplateinthemornings{at}lazybum{dot}com"

Weekend Update #29: De plane, de plane...I mean, de train, de train!

This post is a little late. About two weeks, actually. But hey, I do what I can...and the rest is....well, it is.

Friday night (the 7th) was actually pretty boring. We ended up catching up on some back DVR'd television...curled up on the couch. Recouping after a long week.

Saturday morning I didn't get up to run, like I should have. Instead, I did something much more fun.

I grew up in the small town of Modale, IA. Population 303. Every summer, Modale hosts the "Modale Fun Days."

Inny and I joke that they have to hire people to come watch the parade, because everyone who lives there is in it.

She picked me up that morning, and we drove the 30 or so minutes it takes to get there.

My grandmother is the town librarian...and since the library is on main street....we picked ourselves some prime real estate (in the shade) for parade viewing.


(Grandma and Inny in front of the library)


(Remember this train, you'll see it again in this post. Each of the cars is a recycled oil drum. With one of the seven dwarfs painted on each car.)


(Looking down the street. There were quite a few people there to watch.)


(One of the local hair stylists.)


The Methodist church (the church I grew up going to, and my mom and grandmother still attend) had a jungle theme for their float. Somehow or another, they also got themselves 3 banana costumes to wear. With "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" playing on their radio..mom, and two other bananas danced down the street.

On a side note, the Chiquita banana sticker is mine. My kayak is yellow, and we call it the banana boat. One day, Mot called Chiquita, and they sent him two of those big huge banana stickers for my boat! :-)


My school, until I moved in the 2nd grade. When I left, there were only 2 girls left in our class of 11. :-)


There were quite a few refurbished cars in the parade. The parade route led down to the city park.


Lauren getting a pony ride. :-)


Lauren, Inny and mom enjoying the free root beer floats.


Oh, and remember that train I told you would show up later in my post....here it is. The "big kids" decided they wanted a spin around town in it.


(That's a stuffed snake around my neck....don't ask.)


The person in the first car is my best buddy as a kid, Moira. She was in town for the Fun Days event. It was SOOOO great to get to see her!!!!!! We laughed about the silly things we'd done as kids....and then decided a train ride was in order.




After the train ride, we entered ourselves in the Bocce tournament. None of us had ever played, so we made our team name "The Renegades."




I tell you what...Modale is serious about their bocce. In fact, some opposing team members were quite put off that we'd never played before.

Of course, at the time they asked us....we were beating them. :-)


It was a double elimination tournament...and we were out after two games....but, we'll be setting up a course...field.....in my yard!!!


After Bocce, we sat down to play some bingo. I LOVE bingo!!!!



The fire department set up a game for the kids. It was over 100 degrees that day, and everyone was MELTING!!!

Two fire hoses, and a barrel on a zip line.



After we left Modale Fun Days, Inny and I headed out to Omaha. We hit some goodwills looking for bargains, but before we went to the first store....we needed lunch.

B&G Tasty Foods. I was told they make a rockin' awesome loose meat sandwich. I hadn't had one since I was a kid....and we decided we'd be the judge on whether they were any good.

They get our seal of approval!!! :-)



Tom was home on Sunday. But for the life of me (two weeks later) I can't remember what we did that day. See what I get for not doing these posts right away! :-) :-)

Taming of the Shoes: I'm a Big Girl Now

Argh!!!! Monday morning I got dressed at the gym this morning, walked to my car...walked in to work....and then things went downhill from there.

You see, I noticed my feet looked a little dry....so I put some lotion on them. A very female thing to do, right?

Then, I get a call from one of my shipping guys, saying I need to come out to the dock. He sounded very stressed, and it sounded urgent.

I took about three steps and realized I had a problem...a big problem.

I can't keep my shoes on my feet.

My feet (and now my shoes) have been lotioned!!!!

I stopped at the restroom on the way, to wash them off. It worked briefly.

Halfway to the dock, my shoes start sliding off again.

I, of course, meet up with half a dozen people I work with along the way. All of them looking at me strangely.

They think I can't walk because of my heels!!!!!!!! (sigh)

"I put lotion on my feet, and now my shoes won't stay on."

Everyone laughs.

When I get to the dock, I find out it was something he could have just told me on the phone. But he was having a bad day, and didn't feel like it.

Can someone be fired for making me walk in heels that I can't keep on my lotioned feet?

Probably not, eh? :-)

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle (part 3)

Hello everybody, and welcome to part 3 of my blog going green.

Yes, I said green.

I'm sure I'm saving some carbon footprint points by not typing a new post, right? Recycling, the blogger way??

A stretch, huh??

OK, fine. Welcome to part 3 of me traveling across country, and not being near a laptop.

Is that better?

(I still like the green theme better!) :-)

If you haven't read the first and second installment, you really should. Really, really should.

But, as I've mentioned before, I'm unable to link to a post that is scheduled to appear in the future. So....to read part 1 and 2, you'll have to scroll down on my blog page and find them.

Sorry about the inconvenience.

So, without further adu, adoo, adeau, adieux (?????), I give you.....

Korean Bath House - part 3 (the rest of the story)

As a little recap....so far we'd been baked, boiled, tenderized, peeled and basted. And were now being ushered into yet another room of torture.

This last room had a calming feel to it. Walking in made me think that maybe, the torture was complete...and we were finally going to get to do some relaxing.

WRONG!!!

I mean, it started out fine enough. They lure you in...and lay you down on a very comfortable massage table. They put some cucumber gunk all over you face, but a hot cloth over your eyes. There is calming music playing in the background. They massage your arms and your shoulders. Things are looking good.

Then I hear a noise, down by my feet. It's the sound of a leather satchel with metal instruments being unrolled. I know, I know...I've watched too many espionage, torture the information out of the informant, movies. But that's exactly what it sounded like.

And that's exactly what it was!!!!!!!

The woman at the end of my table, took one of my feet in her hands.

I'd heard of reflexology. I'd heard that it was a wonderful thing. But for someone like me, things weren't looking good. I have the most ticklish feet ever.

EVER!!!

Not that it would have mattered, being ticklish wasn't a problem in this situation. Being adverse to pain, on the other hand, was. This woman started jamming metal instruments into the bottom of my foot. She'd drag and scrape the things along the sides. Digging in. Poking, prodding.

How the objects didn't break the skin and enter INTO my foot, I'll never know.

Every so often, there would be a break in the action, and she'd come back with a different tool. Holy cow. If I had any national secrets, I would have given them all up and then some, right then! I'd make stuff up, I'd sell my sister into slavery...what ever it takes for them to stop torturing my foot!!!!

And that's when it hit me. Oh My Gawd...they've only done one foot! I have to go through all of this again. There's no way I'll make it out of here alive. My feet are thudding and pounding and burning so badly, I don't think I could have stood up if I wanted to.

This went on for a good 30 minutes, before switching to my other foot. I was sweating and fighting back tears. I'm not a wuss when it comes to pain. I've had reconstructive shoulder surgery...there's nothing that hurts more. And I did it with relatively little complaining (mostly I complained about being bored, and not being able to put my own bra on)...but this was horrible!!!!

Finally, the hell was over. I could hear the tools being put away. They started massaging my legs. My calf muscles (heck, every muscle in my body) had tensed up pretty hard that last hour...so the pampering was a welcome activity.

Until the brush came out. I started getting pedicures a number of years ago, when a pregnant friend of mine decided she had to go. She could no longer reach her feet. We still go together every once and a while. When you get a pedicure, they take a scrub brush along the bottom of your feet.

Yeah, not my feet. Remember the ticklish thing? It's an involuntary action. I about took the head off of one unsuspecting pedicurist. When the brush comes out, I explain I'm ticklish, and we should probably skip that step.

Unfortunately, as was proved with the exfoliation lady smacking me in the forehead in the previous room, the communication barrier had left quite a little to be desired all evening. And, try as I might, I couldn't get her to put the d*mn brush away! I tried laughing and pulling my foot back, all the ladies in the room laughed...and my woman grabbed my foot in a death lock. I tried curling my toes and making it difficult for her. No go....she wouldn't stop. The woman was a pit bull!!!!

When she was completely done with my feet, she grabbed my leg, and bent it at a 90 degree angle, so my foot was sitting on the table. She took a metal rod and ran it up along the inside of my calf of my right leg.

Well....that was interesting. I wonder why she did t.................................OH HOLY HELL!!!!!!!

About ten seconds after running that rod along my calf, the pain hit. I've never felt anything like it in my life!!! It felt as though someone was holding a hot poker on the side of my leg...right where she had taken the rod. It burned so bad. What did she just do to me???? I couldn't move my leg, it was paralyzed.....except for the burning sensation that wasn't easing up.

This was when I realized there were more of us in the room. If anything, the ladies had gotten me to forget anyone else was there. I started listening. You could hear small whimpers and such throughout the room. One chorus member let out a small shriek.

I heard someone closer to me sit up suddenly. NOPE! That was me sitting up. She'd just run that metal rod up the other calf, and I guess my body went into fight or flight mode. Since I wasn't running out the door, I can only assume I was readying my self for battle. :-)

The hot cloth fell off my eyes, and I was finally able to look around the room. There were people with tears, there were people looking around with huge eyes, and there was one person asleep. How can you possibly sleep with all of this going on?

I was led back to the locker room where I could change. Everyone rode back to the hotel in silence. No one talking to each other. Shell shocked.

I'm all for experiencing other cultures. There were MANY things we did during those 10 days that I enjoyed beyond belief. I went outside my comfort zone and ate some pretty crazy things. I'm glad I went to the bath house. Would I ever do it again? No. I'll stick with American spas. I hear it's more of a pampering experience. :-)

Well...that's that. I'll be back at work on Monday...have a great weekend!!!! :-)

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle (part 2)

Welcome to part 2 of my recycling program. If you missed part 1, scroll down on my blog (I haven't figured out how to link to something that is scheduled to post in the future. If anyone has any tips, let me know.) :-)

But, let me assure you, you WILL want to read part 1 before reading part 2. :-)

The Korean Bath House (part 2)

So, where was I????

Oh yes. I remember now.

We had just been placed back into the 'oven' after our botched escape attempt.

Our captors were nice enough to bring us glasses of water (Of which we couldn't drink. I had a 13 hour plane ride home in my future, and DID NOT want to spend it in the airplane restroom suffering from digestive distress.)

Now that I think back, I know they were trying to stagger our leaving "the oven" for a reason....but at the time, it was terrifying.

By the time I was finally able to leave, there were only 3 of us left. We had decided there was no way they were going to separate the three of us. We'd fight to the death if need be.

United we stand, divided we....well, we didn't know...but, unfortunately, we were about to find out.

Once in the locker room, we were ordered to undress immediately (against our better judgement). I was friends with most of these ladies. I saw them at rehearsals a minimum of once a week. So, my eyes were carefully pointed towards the ceiling, the back wall, and anywhere else that would keep their naked bodies out of my line of sight. It wasn't something I wanted to have come to mind every time I saw them.

Once we were properly in a state of undress, they led us through that mystery door.

I didn't want to be the first one through. Hell, I didn't want to be the last through either. I just wanted to put my Levi's back on and run!!!!

The room we entered was.....hmmmm....how do I describe it? It was wet, foggy, steamy, white porcelain tiles, floor to ceiling, and...well, it was....ummm.......noisy. But I'll get to that in a minute.

The first place we were told to go, was a wall, with shower heads. Made sense, we had sweat like nobodies business in the oven. I suppose we were pretty stinky by then?

My lady took me to the wall....looked at me with this really mean, snarly face....and punched the shower button on the wall. And when I say punched, I mean it. Then she looked at me, nodded her head and walked away.

Well OK then.

So, I punched the button, mimicking her movements with every ounce of sarcasm I had, and took a shower. When I was done, she came over and pointed me in the direction of the hot tub. I will call this stage two, "pot of boiling water".

It was a small hot tub, and there were too many of us in it for my liking. The water was hotter than any hot tub I'd ever been in....and I found myself wishing I was still in the oven. At least I could wear those funny looking pajama things there!!!!

One by one, we were removed from the "pot of water." Unfortunately, I was sitting in the hot tub with my back to the rest of the room. Actually, I shouldn't say unfortunately. If I had been seated where I could watch what was going on behind me, I don't think I'd be of sound mind to talk about it today.

How can I describe the sounds I was hearing?

OK...I got it!! Buy a chicken from the grocery store. Take it out of the package, and then slam it down on the counter top. Then, take you hands and start slapping at it. (spanking it, for lack of a better word) That slapping sound you are hearing???? Imagine there were 5 people with their own chickens, beating the crap out of them in your kitchen with you. That's what it sounded like was going on behind me.

And, it wasn't really far from the truth.

Yep, there were 5 padded massage tables in this room behind me. Each table had a small Korean woman wearing black bras and panties (very utilitarian looking, nothing Victoria Secret about it, so get your minds out of the gutters!!!).

These women were doing the "massages." But, not American style massages. There was nothing relaxing about it. Trust me!!!

These women scoured, yes...I said scoured....us from head to toe. They had these mitts they wore....made of a very rough material. And they used them to exfoliate every inch of our bodies.

Every. Single. Inch

(As a joke, Elaine got each of us one of these mitts as gifts, and gave them to us on the plane ride home. I keep mine in the shower, and use it to exfoliate my elbows and such if they need it.)

At one point, the lady told me to sit up. So...I started to sit up...and she smacked me on the forehead with the palm of her hand. Smacked me, for real. With the palm of her hand...ssssmack.

She again told me to sit up. So I started to sit up...and she smacked me on the forehead again.

Oh no she didn't!

I found myself wondering what the punishment would be, for beating up a Korean bath house lady??

She yelled at me to sit up again. I sat up, but was ready this time. I had my hands up and was ready to smack her back, when another little lady in black under garments shouted something. She came over, yelled at my lady a little...and then asked me to scoot up. It seems they wanted my head to hang off the table, so they could massage my neck or scalp or something.

I don't think my lady trusted me after that. She looked at me like she was afraid I was going to attack her at any minute. Actually made me feel a little better....I admit it. I can't say the exfoliation felt even close to good. It hurt like a son of a b*tch, and I think I was missing the top 70 or so layers of skin. Everywhere!!!

EVERYWHERE!!!

E.V.E.R.Y.W.H.E.R.E.

Now, also take into account, that as this was going on...they were using an oil. To soften the skin, when the exfoliation was done.

And numerous time, they asked that we flip from side to side.....while oiled....on a wet table.

And there were no seat belts. :-)

I'd been stuck in an oven and baked....I'd been boiled....and now I'd been...hmmm...what's the cooking equivalent of what that little lady in black underpants had done? I'd been tenderized, peeled, and basted.

And don't forget....all of the things in this room had been done naked.

Butt. Friggin'. Naked.

And as each person finished, we were taken into the main locker room again...and handed another set of those comfy pink pajama things.

All I could think to myself was "Oh gawd, they still haven't given me my clothes yet. Now what???"

(to be continued, one more time)

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle (part 1)

Mot and I, and the rest of the family, are heading to NM as you read this. It's not a leisure trip, I guess you could call it more business than anything. Business that no one wants to attend.

My grandfather, Milo, passed away last Thursday. I didn't post about it, and still haven't yet...because I'm trying to find just the right things to say. This is not a post to be taken lightly.

But....while I'm gone, driving 12 hours (each way) to the OVEN they call eastern New Mexico...I thought I'd do a little post recycling.

Some of you were around to read these posts when I first drafted them...but some of you weren't.

I give to you....Korean bath house (in 3 parts).

The Korean Bath House

A few years ago, the chorus I sang in was asked to sing in Korea, in a competition held during the APEC Summit. President Bush was going to attend the meetings, and the organizers were hoping to get an American chorus to participate in honor of him attending.

Well, anyway....long story short, we were selected. The trip lasted 10 days, and is a million posts by itself. But, there was one story, in particular, I'd love to share.

Elaine (the member of our chorus that was organizing the trip), used to be the USO liaison in Korea. She lived there for a number of years before moving back to the states. She suggested we spend one night experiencing a local Korean bath house.

After spending a week with 20 women (and assorted husbands) touring around Korea, singing on military bases, teaching music classes, and competing in the choral competition.....let me say, the idea of massages and such sounded wonderful!!! There were quite a few of us who signed up.

The bus that had been driving us around was only available during the day, so we had to be taken to the bath house in small groups...via mini vans. We were one of the first vans to leave the hotel. None of us spoke a lick of Korean, except for the occasional hello and thank you (and "no thank you, I don't want to buy").

The small Korean lady who was driving our vehicle drove us around and through the city. We had no idea where we were. After driving through some of the creepiest looking alleyways, she finally stopped the van and got out. We all sat there for a minute, then decided she must have wanted us to follow her.

She led us through a door in the building she was standing behind, and into a small lobby (lobby = small 5 x 5 foot area, with nothing in it, but an elevator door). She pushed the elevator button, and ushered us in. Just as the door was closing, she rushed out of the elevator, into the lobby. As the door was closing it's final 2 or 3 inches, she waved...and ran away.

Allllllllrighty then.

All of us stood in the elevator, not wanting to say what we were thinking. Finally someone spoke....... "Where we just sold into some sort of prostitution ring?" I rummaged through my pockets, and found I had nothing that could be used as a weapon if needed.

The elevator 'dinged' and we all took a deep breath. The doors opened to a small reception desk, with two ladies. They were looking at us with huge, uncertain eyes. We stepped up to the counter, and tried to tell them why we were there. They spoke zero English, and we spoke zero Korean. Eventually both parties were speaking louder than they needed to.

Somehow, speaking louder makes it easier to understand a language you don't know?????

Who knows how long this would have continued if Elaine hadn't finally stepped off that same elevator with the next van load of girls. She explained everything to the flustered women behind the counter.

The whole group was led into a small locker room, and were each handed a set of clothing. Shorts and a shirt....pajama style. We were to wear them, and nothing else....and change right there. The door to the room was still open to the lobby, and we all just stood there. Finally, one of ladies sighed and closed to the door for us. Silly shy American girls!!

(if only we knew how un-shy we were going to be by the end of the night)

After we were changed, we were taken into the first of many rooms. This was stage one. I call it "The Oven."

Technically, it was a dry sauna. A very, very, very hot sauna. There were no chairs and no benches...so everyone had to sit on the floor. Each of us had our own wooden pillow to place our heads on while we laid on the floor.

After 45 minutes of baking time, two women came into the room. They literally walked from person to person, pinching everyone's knees.

Some people must have been more "done" than others....because they asked some of our group to leave with them.

15 minutes later, we decided it was our time to leave as well. We walked through the door and found the main dressing room. As we walked into the room, a group of three local women walked in from the lobby. They proceeded to strip naked right in front of us, then walk over to these.....well.........stalls.

Within each stall was an outhouse looking seat. Basically a bench with a toilet seat on it. They all sat down on the toilet seats (naked) and zipped themselves in. Yes, I said zipped. There was a "cover" that went around the whole stall, and zipped up to their neck. All you could see where their heads. Under the bench seats, were.....well......containers of steaming fluids. Once they were zipped into the stalls.....whatever was under the benches, steamed up through the toilet seat holes onto (into?) them.

I've seen some strange things in my life....but that took the cake. These ladies were giggling like school girls. And I never did figure out what treatment they were receiving. I thought it better to not ask. I probably didn't want to know.

Just as they got themselves zipped in, our bath house ladies walked in from another door. They were less than happy we'd taken ourselves out of the 'oven' without their permission, and shoo'd us back in, with obvious frustration.

As we returned to the oven, I couldn't help but wonder what was behind the door those bath house ladies had just come through. The noises coming from the room were less than reassuring.

I looked around at those of us still left in the oven, and wondered what happened to the ones that had been taken out. Were they in the room behind that door? What had I gotten myself into??

(to be continued)

Taming of the Shoes: Slow Moving

I fell in love with these the minute I laid eyes on them. They are really comfy.....but.....

my heels slide out of them if I walk too fast. :-)


(pardon the blurry camera shot)

Driving....

I hate it.

I mean, it's fun to do for short amounts of time. It's fun to do when you're driving a stolen car, cease obeying traffic laws, and ....... um....never mind, forget I said that.

But anything over 2 hours is just plain boring.

Especially when 9/10 of the trip looks like this....



And once you hit the 10-12 hour mark, it's "gouge my eyeballs out with a spoon" time.

A couple weekends ago, we drove down to Amarillo, TX.

The ride down was completely occupied with...a) fighting the FM transmitter for the iPod, so our music wasn't invaded by static b) watching the scenery go by, and by, and by c) snacking d) consuming caffeine e) snacking f) watching cattle drives block our path g) sudoku...all with the added benefit of being fresh and awake.

The ride back was completely occupied with a) audio books b) napping c) magazines d) snacking e) caffeine f) snacking g) caffeine h) caffeine.

Unfortunately, we get to do it again next week.

Does anybody out there in blogland have any suggestions for passing the time during a 12 hour (each way) car trip?

And mortgaging my house for plane tickets isn't an option.

Selling a kidney for plane tickets - maybe.

I mean, I have two...and only need one....right?



Photo Source

They did what????

If you've read this blog for any amount of time, you've probably read at least one of my posts detailing a dream I had the night before.

If you haven't read one before, hang onto your hats...last night's was a doosey. :-)

I've actually been debating whether or not I want to post this. There's been a death in the family recently....and I can only assume that's what brought this dream on.

But, the more I thought about it, the more I realized that's what this darn blog is for. For me to tell stories...tell my dreams...tell my goals....put it all out there, because sometimes bottling it up just isn't any good for you.

So....here we go.....

In my dream I'm dying....of some disease. I don't know (or don't remember) what it was, and I wasn't actually suffering at the time of my dream. I just knew that I was going to die from it...whatever it was.

Instead of dying horribly, my doctors came up with a plan.

And for some reason.....we all went along with it.

They were going to put a hole in the top of my head....then crank my bed at an angle, so that my head was down. Then, I'd slowly drain out and die peacefully.

Oh yeah....this one was morbid!!!! :-(~

I've watched too much TV in my life.

As I'm laying there in my bed (with a hole in my head), Mot says something about how it's going to be sad in the morning.

HELLO!!!

Sad??

Just sad??

After a while, I was started to feel "funny" so I sat up.

This draining thing was for the birds!!!! I was going to live life until I couldn't do it anymore. I wasn't going to run and hide.

And then I woke up.


It was all I could do to get out of bed and go to the gym this morning. I just wanted to cuddle up to Mot, and let the day pass me by. But then, that felt too much like running and hiding....so I got up.

My workout was pretty much a waste. 2 miles on the treadmill. But.....at least I got up...right?

Weekend Update #27: Running Shoes, Toe Length, and Homemade Pizza

I came home Friday after work, and decided to pay bills. It's on e of those things I just never seem to be able to find time or motivation to do. Call it being lazy, call it procrastination....

I blame it on being in the accounting field for so long. Kinda like a housekeeper not wanting to clean her own home....or a landscaper grimacing when he has to mow his own lawn.

Pay bills...my own? Ugh!!! :-)

But, just like going to work...or shopping for groceries, it had to be done.

(insert overly dramatic sigh here)

Saturday morning was nice. I tried to sleep in.....but at 7:30 I just couldn't lay in bed any longer. I got up, jumped in the shower, then sat down on the couch to do a little reading while waiting for my lions mane of hair to give up it's fight to hold 7 pounds of water for the entire day.

To say it takes forever to dry it, is an enormous understatement!

Mot was up not long after I decided to welcome the day with open arms.

We headed out into town....our mission.....well....to spend embarrassing large amounts of money.

OK, that might be a bit of an exaggeration.

But...we did have to hit an ATM at one point in the day, because we reached the daily maximum we had imposed on our debit card.

Not because we can't control ourselves, but because we're both paranoid about having our debit card stolen, and used at gas stations, fast food establishments, and electronics stores across America.

I had gone to the local running store for a Mizuno shoe fitting earlier in the week. Mizuno had it's mobile "lab" in town, and I wanted to have my feet officially measured to see if I was wearing the correct shoes for running.

I wasn't.

After seeing me run, the manager of the store ended up putting me in something completely different that he thought would fit my gait the best. But, when I went to try them on...he found they didn't have my size in stock. So we were going to go back Saturday, so I could try them on and see if they'd work.

After a run around their indoor track, I ended up buying them. I'll wear them to the gym and really try them out this week. Seems my outstanding flexibility and my high arches are too much for the shoes I'm wearing now.

From there we took advantage of a 60% off sale on a memory foam mattress topper for our bed. (I've been watching the ads for a sale on these things for a little while now.) Besides making our bed feel luxurious, it also mutes the movement Mot makes while sleeping.

He's one of those guys that can't sit still during the day....and that tendency follows him to bed.

From there we hit Cabela's and Bass Pro Shop for a new duck call for Mot. He only has one, and wanted another to add variety to his calling this year. Cabela's ticked him off (to say the least) so we headed to Bass Pro (where the service was much better).

Just as we were leaving Bass Pro, I got a text from the boys. "What 'cha doin'?"

I told them we were out spending money.

They were at their golf league picnic and wanted us to come by. It was being hosted by some close friends of theirs, Val and Dee.

I was hesitant to crash their golf party, but they assured us we were welcome.

And he told us they had margaritas.

Sold!!!!


The boys relaxing on Val and Dee's deck.

(Danny has been giving me crap about the number of times he's on my blog.)


Mot was drinking margaritas out of a Casper glass...I had Count Dracula! :-)


The GORGEOUS deck and back patio at the golf party!!!

The party cleared out not too long after we arrived, so it was just the 6 of us left. We sat around their patio table talking and laughing. I'd met the gals once at a hockey game, but it was nice getting to know them better!!!!

At one point in the afternoon, we started taking about the length of toes. Altogether length, if your second toe is longer than your first toe, etc, etc.



We left their place about 7....or was it 8? The four of us headed to our place to play cards.

I think we called it quits about 10....or was it 11?

Sunday morning started similar to the day before. Except it was Mot that got up first. I stayed in bed and read...then finally drug myself out.

Best Buy was offering a sale on iPod nanos.....and since my old one holds a charge for just over 30 minutes....it was time to bite the bullet and replace it. (I got the orange one. The color is so much cooler in real life. More of an orangy rust.)

Yes, I'd love to replace it with an iPod classic, or touch......but I just can't justify the money....on coolness alone. The nano will do everything I need it to...period.

We hit the grocery store really quick then headed home. I spent the afternoon finishing Jim Butcher's book Turn Coat, charging and syncing the new iPod.

I also spent some time sticking my nose into my new running shoes. Man I love that smell! And, you can only enjoy it until you use them the first time.....so I was taking advantage of the time I still had.

To run without pain....I can't wait!!!!

I eventually found myself enjoying the new mattress topper in our bedroom.

Afternoon naps rock!!!!

Mot made an excellent pizza for dinner. Homemade wheat ciabatta bread crust, homemade sauce, turkey pepperoni and sausage. Yum!!!



The rest of the evening was lazy......we watched the finale of Food Networks, The Next Food Network Star. Then I sat down at my laptop, and Mot went up to play on the computer in the den.

Taming of the Shoes: Barney

I love you...you love me....

Any time I think of Barney, I think of the Robin Williams/Ed Norton movie, Death to Smoochy. Such a catchy tune, yet so so wrong. :-)

Sometimes you feel like a nut.....

I went to lunch with my buddy Lorrie today. We ate at Subway and decided we were sick of sitting....but we didn't want to go back to work just yet.

(or in my case...EVER!!)

There's a Shopko across the street, so we headed over.

We walked through some clearance aisles. I did as I always do.....slowly doing my part to rearrange the store one product at a time.

I'll pick something up to buy....then two aisles later decide I really don't need it, want it, whatever. Instead of taking it back, I put it wherever I am.

When you see a pair of socks with the peanut butter, you know I've probably been there. :-)

I only have one ground rule....no rearranging perishable items. If they'll go bad where you leave them, put them back from whence they came.

After 8 years of managing a grocery store, the rearranging of items was OK...but there's nothing worst than finding a perfectly good carton of milk left to spoil in the pickle aisle.

As we wandered through the snack aisle, I thought to myself......"Self, I could really use a snack for this afternoon. Something crunchy, something not absolutely horrible for myself...."

"I would totally love a bag of Corn Nuts."

My sister bought a bag while on our way to Texas a couple weeks ago. I didn't even know they still made them until then.

Shopko didn't have any....and I couldn't find anything else that sounded good.

Well.....no, that's a lie.....the Chocolate Chex Mix actually sounded intriguing.

I was desperate, give me a break!!!

In any case, I didn't get them. Probably a wise decision. :-)

While wandering and meandering our way towards the checkout, we went through the purse/jewelry section.

And I found this gem on sale.


(That's right Mel, I bought a watch.)

It's nothing fancy, no big name brand, no snazzy functions (although, it does have a stop watch on it, go figure). But it's fun.

They also have it in lime green. I just might have to go back and get it. :-)

Loyal readers will know that, if anything, I can leave them about for the poltergeist to take....so he'll leave my good ones alone!!!!

As we walked along the rows of cashiers....we noticed none of the lines were moving very quickly.

* One lady had 5 different orders, for 5 different people, to be paid with five different credit cards.

* One woman had grabbed every single sale item they offered....and was arguing the price on every one of them.

* One cashier looked new....really new. Deer in the headlights new.

So...we each picked a lane.

The race was on!!!!!

I got behind "argue every price lady", and Lorrie chose the new cashier.

She won.

My lady was giving me the hard sell on a warranty for my $10 watch. A $3 warranty.

Cashier: You want the warranty for that? It's only $3.

Nej: No thanks.

Cashier: You sure? It's only $3.

Nej: Yep, that's what you said. But no thank you.

Cashier: That's a really nice watch. I'd get it if I were you.

Nej: I really don't.....

Cashier (interrupting me): That watch has a nice band and stuff. The warranty would cover that.

Nej: I'm not interested in the warranty.

Cashier: But what if it breaks?

Nej: I like to live life on the edge.

Cashier: (hmph)

On a good note....look what they had in the middle of the spontaneous buys hanging at the check out!!!!!!

Random Thoughts: 07/29/09

1) Why aren't women's' skirt sizes regulated? How can I try on one skirt that is way to big, one that is way to small, and then one that fits great......and they are all the same size???? It's criminal I tell ya! :-)

2) How can my scale say I gained 3 pounds since yesterday morning? I'm putting it on unpaid leave...if it acts up again, it's gone!!!! :-)

3) What does this license plate mean? EXTAMTR

4) There is a Wendy's Frosty calling my name.....I can hear it. It's been getting steadily louder since 2:00 this afternoon. I'm trying to be good, I'm not eating junk.....and then this self-absorbed frozen treat starts calling my name, how dare it?!?!?! :-)

5) I hooked my phone up to my laptop to backup all the information in it, in case I drop it in the toilet or something (it's been known to happen). All of my calendar events are now gone. Every single one. Since when does "back-up" and "erase completely" mean the same thing? Did I miss a memo Blackberry people??

6) If you work at Best Buy, and you don't know the answer to my question, just tell me. Be honest. Don't make something up, just so I'll buy your product. It's sooo not cool.

7) My iPod nano is about dead. It's a first generation model, and has served me well. I charge it fully, and it lasts just long enough to get me through a 3 mile run....then dies. No warning, just dies. I need to replace it...and have been thinking it over for quite some time now.

I'd love to get an iPod classic...120 gb...sweet! But, it has moving bits, that won't like the jostling from my running with it. And, from what I can find out online (no thanks to the Best Buy guy who lies), you can't use the Nike + iPod chip with the classic.

The iPod touch is awesome.....with it's fancy apps and all. But if Verizon ever gets the iPhone contract (due for renewal in 2010 - or so I'm told), I'll get one of those. So why have two devices with all the fancy apps? Plus, the blackberry I have now has plenty of apps, bells and whistles.

A new nano is 16 gb, plenty to hold all of my music, any podrunner downloads I want to load onto it, and audio books when we go on road trips. It's lighter weight, no moving bits to bang around while running. Plus, it's cheaper than the first two options.

Or, I could just load stuff onto my blackberry and use it. I've heard the sound quality isn't that grand, but who cares about sound quality when running? (Most days, I'm just concerned with making it to the end of the run without tripping on the treadmill, breaking my neck, and embarrassing myself. ) And, if I do that, I need to find an armband that will fit the blackberry....I'm not having much luck with that quest yet. :-)

8) Our quartet has been asked to sing at the Sarpy County fair tonight. They've asked us before...and every year, they have us singing the same time as the tractor pull. We spend the hour trying to time our singing and the revving of the tractor engines. Usually good for some laughs! :-)

9) 34 minutes until I can blow this Popsicle stand. Rock on!!!!

Weekend Update #26: Taking a breather

That's right....I'm writing this blog, while laying on my couch, under a blanket. The A/C set at our usual 63 degrees. I have a can of Pringles, my cell phone, the house phone, and Mot's cat (believe it or not).



You can see it in her eyes....."Human, I'm only laying with you because HE isn't home."

:-)

I'm wearing nothing but one of those towels they sell on infommericals....you know, the kind that your wrap around yourself, and has Velcro to keep it in place.

Yet, I haven't taken a shower, so there's really no reason to wear a towel....except I'm just too darned lazy to walk down to the basement to put something else on.

And that, my friends, is why I've decided to call the theme for this weekend. "Too D*mned Lazy"

Oh yes.

I came home from work Friday night and lazed about. Mot was working, I had the place to myself. And I did nothing. NOTHING!!!!

Yesterday, we went to the gym when he got home.....then went to Mo. Valley to see some friends....then went to the bookstore (go figure) here in Omaha. Then....home, to be lazy the rest of the afternoon and all night.

The DCI (Drum Corp International) had their annual competition here in town, and we usually go.

But we didn't.

L.A.Z.Y.

This morning, Mot headed back out for work, and I went back to bed. I finally drug myself from the bedroom around 9 am...which is unheard of for me!!!! :-)

I had this idea that I was going to grab my bike, and head to DeSoto to do some much needed biking. Look up above in that pic....see my bike in the background? Yes, there it is. Staring at me as I lay here on the couch.

It's 10:30, and I haven't moved since I laid down. The idea of biking slipping further and further into impossibility.

Somehow I ended up stopping (while flipping channels) on the Style network. The show is called Ruby. Basically, it's a show that follows Ruby, a very obese woman, around as she lives her life, looses weight, and puts herself back into a more public life (getting a job, etc).

This particular episode centers around 2 things. 1) getting a job 2) going to the doctor.

And not just any doctor....but a gynecologist.

Oh boy.

She calls her "womanly parts" her christmas. You heard me....her christmas.

Apparently, she considers it a gift...and thinks this is an appropriate name.

I don't know what to say. I'm changing the channel. Why do people put this stuff on TV?

Sunday TV is horrible. We have every cable channel out there, plus HBO, and nothing is on.

Nothing!!!

So....with that...I'm going to set the laptop down, and find something constructive to do. Check back with you later. :-)
______________________________________________________________

Well...I picked up a few things around the house...then the couch called to me again. I lasted all of maybe 30 minutes being productive. I really should just stop fighting it. :-)

The boys stopped by later in the afternoon...with the last few re-faced cupboard doors. It's done! It looks awesome!!!!!!!!

Actually, not totally done. We still need to paint the cupboards themselves....and touch up some work needed on the ceiling above the fridge (where we ripped cabinets out). But...the door are all done!!!

And they look AWESOME!!!!!








And....drum roll please!!

I present to you the before and after pics for the doors!!





Ahhhhh....so much better!!!!!!! :-)

Hanging the last few doors didn't take as long as we expected....so the three of us (Mot was working yesterday) headed out to do a little window shopping.

A Big Lots recently opened near my house, and we went in to check it out. I was immediately drawn to this huge stack of fuzzy pillows. The stack was taller than me.....so Steve and I searched the store for a step stool.



They were REALLY fluffy pillows. Once i sat down, they scrunched almost to the floor. No step stool needed to get down. :-)

After doing a little shopping, we drove down 60th Street to the Pizza Shoppe, and PS Collective for a little dinner and entertainment.



The girls took me to see Roxi Copland in Des Moines. And I fell in love with her music....her voice...her songwriting...her piano playing.

She was finally coming to Omaha to perform....and I was excited!!!



She played a short set (maybe an hour)....then Shannon Curtis took the stage. I'd never heard her music before, and was curious. She's from LA, and is driving across country, playing a summer tour.

I left with all three of her Cd's.

Roxi and Shannon are completely different ends of the spectrum.

Roxi sings with a jazzier or bluesier tone to her voice and her music. Shannon plays love songs, hard hitting, but happy.

Both put on a great show!

After the ladies were finished, a local (new) group went up to play.

They were new, new.

Really new.

We left about 10:45, and I was home and in bed by 11:00.

Great weekend!!!

Seeing Dots

Have you ever visited the site "Awkward Family Photos (dot) com" ????

I'm giving you a really embarrassing (for me) reason to check it out. :-)

Go ahead....click here. Scroll down a few to the one titled "seeing dots" and look really closely.

Granted, I don't post many pictures of myself on my blog, so you might not catch it right off the bat....but I'll give you a hint.

My sister in pink...my cousin Amanda (who just came up for 4th of July weekend - and the one that submitted the pic to the site) is in the orange.....and I may or may not be the one in blue. :-)

Last I checked...there were 50+ comments to the pic. My favorite so far....

I think this is one of those magic eye pictures, because I stared at this for a few moments and the word “AWESOME” emerged.

Now, that's the spirit!!! :-)

Taming of the Shoes: Shoes with a View

I work in the manufacturing industry, so walking around in 4" heels usually catches some stares. I have a ton of them...but rarely wear them.



And, to answer your questions.....they are "moderately" comfy. You won't find me out running errands in them....but I can wear them the whole day here at the office, and not spend my time wishing to be put out of my misery.

I've been walking around the office, to and from my car (etc) all day today. But when I ran to a store over lunch, I switched into a pair of black sandals. Any time I can reduce the stress on my feet, I try to.

I could totally get rid of the stress by not wearing the shoes at all...but what fun would that be???

:-)

Brake, Gas, Brake, Gas....

I drove to work this morning, behind a woman driving an older red Ford Taurus.

This lady was on her cell phone.

This lady had a mental (and physical) connection between her feet and her cell phone.

When her phone would ring, she'd hit the brakes.

Hard.

On the interstate.

When the phone came up to her ear, she'd hit the gas.

Really hit it. And Speed off.

When she hung up and looked down to dial another number....BRAKE!!!

Phone up to her ear.....GAS!!!

Hang up, dial another number....BRAKE!!!

Phone up to her ear....GAS!!!

(sigh)

Traffic was thick, I couldn't change lanes to escape. :-)

Weekend Update #25: 24 hours in a car...shoot me now!!!!!

My grandfather, Milo, is not doing well in the health department. It seems smoking for his whole life has finally caught up to him.

Lung cancer. :-(

It's an obviously unpleasant, and very dark topic of conversation. So....I'll do as I always try to do, and find the positive.

Granted, there isn't ANY in this case....but I'll do my best to give you the positives from this weekend.

Inny, mom, Mot and I drove to Amarillo, TX this weekend. We left Friday at 4:00, once everyone was off of work.









My sister's car is nicknamed Harry. Can you figure out why by looking at this picture?? :-)



We drove halfway (to Wichita, KS) the first night. The drive was actually quite nice. We listened to music and audio books. All in all, the first day of driving went pretty quick.





* Mental note: Must research Tuttle Creek wildlife area in Kansas. Beautiful to drive through. Want to go back and check it out for real.

* We drove past Salina, KS. Which brought about a small "discussion" of how to pronounce it.

saleena?? salina??

Tomayto, Tomahto. :-)

* We drove past the Fort Riley Gunnery.

Gunnery, I love saying that word!!

Gunnery, gunnery, gunnery. :-)

By the time we passed the gunnery (giggle) we were pretty slap happy.

Nej: Do they actually....ah...rehearse there?

Mot: They practice, they do drills, they don't rehearse.

Nej: Rehearse means the same thing.

Mot: (shaking his head)


Friday night, on the other hand....was horrible!! I don't know what it is about us....but we were unable to sleep the first night.

Why??

Drunk people in the room next to us. Yelling, screaming and carrying on. (sigh)

At 1:30, we called hotel security, and they came to break up the party.

So much for getting on the road by 6:00. We slept in, once we finally got to sleep. :-)

Saturday we drove from Wichita to Amarillo. Via a bunch of highways our GPS (Daniel) deemed the best and quickest route.

Through the Gloss Mountains.





We disagreed with the "mountains" label they'd been given....but do agree they were pretty. I mean, we have scenery taller than this by us....and they just call them hills. (Loess Hills) How do these "hills" rate the mountain label??? :-) :-)

Just as we were nearing the OK/TX state line...we were stopped in a small town. For many minutes. For a cattle drive to cross the road. Gotta love it!!!

Once we arrived in Amarillo, we spent the day hanging out in the hospital with grandpa. He was very happy that we came!!!!

Our original plan was to start back for home that night....but no one really felt like it. So, we got a hotel room.

* The elevator was behind a regular room door....in a hallway of like doors.



* And the lighting in the room was driving my OCD crazy!!!!!



But we slept the best we had in a long time. The a/c was fully operational, and we slept in meat locker temperatures.....LOVE IT!!!! :-)

We left for home first thing Sunday am.

12 hours on the road ahead of us.

Inny tells me this is the largest cross in Texas...or something like that.



We stopped here (below) for fuel and beverages. I wanted out of that place as soon as I could. Something about it, and the attached spooky looking motel had my hair standing on end.

I read too much Stephen King. It's official. :-)



We stopped at the most curious little place for lunch. After finding the Quizno's we'd stopped at was closed, we went across the street to Braum's. Per the guy working inside, they don't exist much north of Wichita, KS.

When we walked inside, the smell of grease about knocked us all over. We had to swim through it to get to the counter to order. If it hadn't been for our hunger, and wanting to get home, we probably would have left to find something else.

At one end of the building, fast food and grease...at the other end, a small little grocery store. Dairy, produce and meat sections. Plus about every flavor of packaged ice cream available. They had little shopping carts and everything.

For some reason, it struck us all as very strange.

Heart attacks on one side, healthy living on the other.



The rest of the drive home was pretty anti-climactic. We listened to more audio books....and barely spoke. We were all ready to be home!!!!!!