Journey & Adventure

Well technically, I didn’t take a summer vacation, but I thought it would be fun to take a look back at the Summer of 2009 and re fl ect for a moment. The weather was the worst possible in memory. Although I do have a selective memory and could be embellishing the facts because I’m slightly jaded that Labor Day signals the “end of summer” for me, I stand by the statement that this summer’s weather was crappy. June and July were the rainiest on record (at least it was where I live near the North Pole) and August was colder than usual. I don’t know what I’ve done to piss off Mother Nature, but I’ve certainly been punished – perhaps it’s my lack of enthusiasm for the winter season. After 3 years, J and I completed the last phase of our deck and landscaping in the backyard. It looks fantastic and perhaps next summer, I will actually be able to enjoy it. I’d post a picture if J wasn’t paranoid that some internet stalker will be able to identify where we live by th...

JB @ It’s Gonna Take More Than A Hamburger To Make Me Happy awarded me this fantastic Superior Scribbler Award. I pride myself on my scribbling talents and am super excited to have received this award from JB because her blog is super hysterical and she is such a talented writer. I also take pride in coloring outside the lines, but I don’t think there is an award for that yet, so this one is even more special. Thanks, JB! Now for the hard part - the rules and they much be followed: 1. Pass the award on to 5 deserving bloggy friends I hereby award JW @ Jessi Bob and the Monsters , SA @ The Decline of Youth and the Beginning of Me , CrazyCris @ Here and There and Everywhere , Renee @ Renee's World and Sylvia @ Rock The Cage . 2. Name the person who passed the award on to you & link back to his or her blog Thanks again to JB @ It’s Gonna Take More Than A Hamburger To Make Me Happy ! 3. Display the award on your blog Done! 4. Link to this post which explains how the award ca...

I have found from experience that there are two types of work boredom – there is the simple being bored with the work your doing (i.e. data entry and photocopying) and then there is the “poke yourself in the eye”, mind rotting boredom. I experience the latter on a daily basis. Unfortunately in this type of economy, the last thing I need to do is run into my boss’ office and exclaim: “I’m turning into a freakin vegetable out there. What the hell were you thinking when you hired me? I need work and there appears to be none. Hello, do you not see how much time I waste during the day.” Nope, I know when to keep my mouth shut and that would just be career suicide and while it might be fun at that moment, unemployment would soon follow and I can’t imagine that would be full of awesome moments. So, in order to continue collecting a paycheck, I’ve adapted to my surroundings. In case you are ever in my situation, here are some tips as to how you can eff...

After my "crazy friends" post of yesterday, I need to refocus of things that make me happy and thought I would share one of my passions with today's post - scuba diving. I t’s only 71 more days until I’m headed to Bonaire for another installment of Travel and Dive Girl's excellent scuba adventures. This upcoming trip to Bonaire will be trip #7 for me since 2000 and just when I think I’ve experienced everything Bonaire has to offer, I am pleasantly surprised with its awesomeness. I have accumulated over 90 dives on Bonaire , the majority of which have been made from shore. There is no need to get up early and run to the dock to catch your boat and then make chit chat with annoying tourists that inevitably crowd your personal space and eventually end up seasick - hurling over the side of the boat beside your head. No, I don't consider myself a tourist, especially after 7 visits. The beauty of shore diving - peace and quiet and no irritating ...

I apologize in advance for this long post, but the story needed to be told and there isn't a condensed version... For the past year and a half, I have stood idly by and watched a good friend, go from an independent, fun loving, self-absorbed, control freak to a bi-polar, emotional puddle of goo, with insane tendencies. She is still self-absorbed, but with a fatal attraction, bunny-boiling, stalker-type twist to her personality. I bet you are wondering what can turn some someone so quickly. Perhaps it was being told by her husband of 17 years “I love our cleaning lady. I hope you’ll understand. I haven’t had sex with her yet, but I know she is my soul-mate. She is nothing like you – she is thoughtful and has a great heart. We’ve rented a house together, but can’t move in together until the beginning of the month, so I’ll be staying here until then. I will be moving out on your birthday because my shrink says I shouldn’t prolong the agony I feel when I am without her. I kno...

“Mondays are the potholes in the road of life”. Tom Wilson Reasons I Hate Mondays... I always need to stop at the gas station on Monday mornings. One would think I would plan ahead and just fill-up on Sundays, but sadly – no. I guess I’m too stubborn to admit that I didn’t win the weekend lottery and will in fact have to go to work. On Mondays, my commute route is littered by “speed traps”. If I were a cop, I would prefer to catch speeders on a Friday – you know catching them as they race to start the weekend, but sadly I’m not a cop and as such don’t make the rules. Only sick bastard cops insist on catching those poor people that have hit the snooze button a few too many times and then had to stop and get gas and haven’t had their damn coffee yet. Yes, I am speaking from experience! On Mondays, the drive-thru at the coffee shop is always packed with lazy-asses that refuse to get out of their car and walk inside to get their coffee. Yes, I re...

I am happy to report that I scored the tickets I was hoping for. Whoo Hoo!! Funny thing, I actually managed to buy more than I needed. Yup - you see when I was trying to purchase them on line, the best I could get were the 2nd best tickets, so in desperation I purchased them and then I checked ticket availability again and this time, the best tickets were available, so I purchased them too. Thinking I would be such a fantastic mom and treat my son to his first rock concert, I asked my son if he would be interested in going and taking a friend. His response "Ummm, no I don't think so - those guys are old and I don't even know any of their music. It would just be awkward." Whaaat? So now I have an extra set of tickets to unload, which I'm sure won't be too big of a problem - I have friends that are old and would actually appreciate them, not unlike my unappreciative, uneducated, uncultured 17 year old. *sigh* I joke, he is a good kid, but his taste in mu...