baby it's cold outside!

happy new year everyone!

3 x a charm

this morn, i finally got the final pieces of my bench set together   it was the barbell that holds the weights   it came in 2 separate pieces with pins to hold it together   for the past couple days i couldn't get those damn pins in   they needed to be squeezed down, but how do you move steel   i said to myself this morn, i'm trying this one more time   alas figuring out the wire cutters were my best presser, or squeezer, i managed to reshape the pins just enough so i could pound them in   finally, it is whole   it is done, and i can begin to work out on it   New Years day, or soon thereafter.....then it was off to church   i really didn't want to go, but Marsha talked me into it   leaving with my usual thought of heading to church, then straight home, i arrived back 8hrs later at the house    going to church with Marsha is never just church   i met her eldest granddaughter, then we all had lunch with Marsha's youngest daughter and Lil Miss Madison (15mos.)   then it was babysitting time again for Marsha and me for a few hours   then finally chillin for a little football, which i wanted to do all day today, i made it home about 6pm...but the service was good   a time to remember all those who made their transition last year (died) and reflect on how we believe in life and death   but it was also a time to catch up on a couple other people   actually wanting to know when the memorial service would be for someone who had been murdered just before Christmas   and to check on another member who is on her last days with cancer   it's only a matter of time for her ..but it's all good   only the body dies and our Soul lives forever......by the time i got out of church i had been talked into returning to volunteer for the church again   i wasn't going back   for various reasons i'll be back one day a week, but i'll see how long that lasts   there's one person people including myself are struggling with and she happens to be the church administrator   she hasn't been with us very long, but.....no matter what, i'll serve my community there somehow, someway   as one of my Christmas gifts says:  IT'S ALL GOOD!!!

p.s.   i forgot the good news...Lil Miss Madison has been bonding with me the past few days   i think it was friday nite that she just curled up in my lap and stayed there   since then she wants to be in my arms hanging out with Aunti Karen i'm called    it's taken awhile, but she finally totally warmed up to me   warms my heart and makes me smile...

finally....off!

alas,  i'm off from work   after 3 weeks of work with no days off except Christmas, i get my normal weekend off  i did volunteer for those hours to offset the Christmas blues  it worked  but the only problem now is i'm a little Grumpy   such the price to pay   but i'll be fine...it's a beautiful day here although cold   it's been colder than hell for us lately but when the sun shines, it makes it a lot warmer  one reason i love this state  like better than Washington where i'd get cabin fever badly  ...anyways, i'm off to Barnes and Noble today and hanging out with Marsha   she gave me a gift card from B & N which i already spent most of it on a thermos  love it, purrrrrrfect for taking my coffee to work   the other one i used so much it got raunchy  this one is much better...here i am talkin' about nothings and forgot where i was headed with this entry....O, i know....to let you know i had a WONDERFUL Christmas day   brunch at Marsha's w/George too   then off to see Charlie Wilson's War, which was a great movie   then home to put together my bench set   it's all together except the bar bell   the pins are not fitting that holds it together  will get my young neighbor to assist in reshaping those pins   then i'm off to exercise my butt off so i can lose the weight i've gained since retiring  part of my New Year's resolution   besides i want to get in great conditioning and shape to backpack down to the Colorado River at the Grand Canyon   one of my goals to accomplish by next fall   Life is Good, a bowl of strawberries!

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS

12 days of Christmas

12 days of Christmas and what i gave to me:

2 sweaters

radio 4 work

Johnny Depp pencil sketch

jacket

boots

tool bag and screwdrivers

underwear and calendar

Jeep hoodie sweatshirt

bench and weight set

Shutterbug caricature

motorcycle cover

and one woman biker caricature

can you tell i've been doing retail therapy?

emerson images

sitting quietly again with my coffee and some famous amos cookies    i was looking at Emerson Images, http://www.emersonlithos.com   M introduced these photos to me last week   she ran into the guy in Phoenix while on vacation   these are BEAUTIFUL photos with great captions underneath  the captions are from philosphers, world thinkers, spiritual leaders and the like   apparently the photographer had taken all these photos around the world   then while reading, he decided to add others' thoughts to them   check out the website if nothing else   i'm going to order some of them   if i remember correctly, M said that the guy gives a huge percentage of his sales to fight AIDS (50%, i think?)    these are awe inspiring   well worth the view....enjoy!

pumped!

well, i'm at it again  ...

retail therapy

thought i'd window shop for a bench set & weights tonite  part of my new year's resolution to exercise again & lose at least 20 lbs

it was practically 50% off

couldn't pass it up

good thing i got paid today

just what i was lookin' 4

hurry up Christmas or i'll be broke!