about froze my ass

Thursday night ski lessons and it was cold as a witches you know what! The instructor was late so we had to stand around in the cold waiting for him. BRRRRRRRR! The lesson was good, he gave me some good advice for my turns. 

Wednesday night I curled on a team as a sub. Met new people it was fun. I ran into an old friend from 'back in the day" I had not seen her in about 15 years. I did not even know she curled at the club and here she has been curling for years. It was great catching up on things.

My Friday night team kicked some butt! I did not have my best game but I did alright, the ice was really fast. Val and Tara came by the club we had a beer together then went to Fabulous Ferns for a couple more drinks and popcorn.

Today I worked on the upstairs bathroom most of the day in addition to doing my laundry. This bathroom project has taken on a life of it's own. Every time I think I am getting close to being done, I decide to do something else. Today I waxed the floor thinking it would be easier now with everything taken out of the bathroom.

That's my big exciting life!
carmen

Whew, I be busy

Let me clear my throat...joined another curling team on Tuesdays, we kicked some booty! Thursday I started my skiing lessons at Hyland Ski area. It was great fun. Friday I went to the Zoya Women's Christmas party. We started the evening at the Tap and Grill in Maplewood, then on to my aunts house for dessert and games. It is always fun to see my aunts and cousins together. Saturday I went to see the Rollergirls. We started the night at Camp, had some food then off to Station 4 where I found a couple shots of the Doctor, Dr. Magillicutty that is, then off to the roller derby. The half time show was a polka band :) After the Rollergirls we caught the shuttle back to Station 4 and walked two doors down to Innuendo for a drink.

Sunday I had to work at 0600, had a bit of a hangover. After work Mike and I installed new light fixtures in the bathroom and ran a couple errands. Today I ran more errands and finally got my car washed, damn was it a mess. I love the snow but the city uses too much salt on the street.

Right now I am coloring my hair, 367/3RV Black Cherry another 10 minutes and rinse!

December is going to be busy, I have curling on Tuesday and Friday nights and skiing on Thursday nights. I am going to Orchestra Hall on the 19th, the Minneapolis Institute of Art on the 22nd and The Ritz theater on the 27th.

OK, gotta rinse...

We got snow!

I just came in from shoveling snow, it is fantastic outside! I love how quiet it gets when the snow falls, all sound is dampened, it's like a hush falls over the city. I am sure we will get a few more inches before morning which should make driving to work quite an adventure.

I cannot wait to get my skis on, I need to send out an email to everyone and find someone to go skiing with me. Hell I will go alone if I have to. I think I can talk Mike into going, I gave him my skis and boots from last year. ohhhh I can't wait!

This puts me in my happy place.

I'm going to sleep early tonight so I can get up early for the morning snow removal. I hope I can get out of the garage.

Good night all...

Sweet dreams

CM

Adventures with a Ceiling Fan

No more putting it off, the ceiling fan went up today. The process was not hard however Mike and I, well actually Mike did it I just went along with it, hooked the wrong wires together. Talk about SPARKS flying!!!!!!! wooohoooo. Needless to say we had to rewire it. It's all better now.

Lets see... Tuesday I curled on the Abraham team with Courtney, Dave and Barni, we kicked some butt!! The team we played against were all men who have competed in the Nationals. It was a lot of fun. 

Wednesday was supposed to be my stay at home doing laundry night but Mike decided we should work on the bathroom so we got the toilet and sink out and I had to put new shut off valves on the sink, the old ones were no longer working. We were unable to find a toilet and sink that we liked so now there is nothing in that bathroom. Rhory called and I met her out for a cold and frosty one. It was good to see her we had not talked for quite a while. It turned out to be another late night and no laundry was done.

Thursday responsibility kicked in and I did my laundry and cleaned the house whew!

Friday was curling night again. My team played against Amy's team and we were once again victorious! I think we have won our last three games. Cheryl, her girlfriend Dee, Amy and I stayed until they had the drawing for the Winter Carnival Bonspiel. My team had entered the drawing. We were the last team pulled so we are in the bonspiel. The Winter Carnival bonspiel is a big deal, people from all over come to get into the spiel. The theme this year is "once upon a time" so I guess we need to dress up as a story or something. Another late night.

The weather outside is frightful but the snow is so delightful, let it snow, let it snow, let it snow....... We already have about 5 inches of snow on the ground and there is no sign of it stopping. I say "bring it!" I cannot wait to get out on the slopes. Maybe I need to play hooky this week and go skiing.

Boring as it may be, that's my week..

carmen

Fuck it's cold

Damn, I am not ready for winter! Snow yes, cold no! Ok, let's see what has happened this week? Hell, it's only Tuesday I should remember. Yesterday I worked 10 hours, came home, changed clothes and headed to the curling club. Mary Jane and I had planned to throw some rocks but all the sheets were taken. We watched everyone play for a bit then headed to the Happy Gnome for food. I had a fantastic spinach salad and a risotto dish, yummy. We then headed back to the club for a beer and watched more curling. It was a nice evening.

Beautiful Day

What a beautiful day! It is not often that we get 50 degree weather in November but today was stellar. I worked a long ass day 0400 until 1450 then cruised home and put on my biking gear. I had a wonderful ride around the lake and back. Yesterday I took out my clunky old mountain bike for a spin. It was fun but I sure did get spoiled by using Anne's Trek fuel dual suspension light weight racing bike. My bike is heavy as hell and has only a front suspension but I loved the ride anyway. Today I took my road bike which was much easier and the weather was warmer than yesterday. I sure am going to miss riding this winter.

After my bike ride I had dinner then ran errands, Home Depot and Cub foods, not much fun but needed activities. I also cleaned the kitchen tonight, YUCK! I still need to wash the floor but I will wait until tomorrow when it is light out. I had the most fantastic time relaxing in the living room with my book, a glass of wine and some candles burning. Yummy.

I think I have a crush on someone...

Stay tuned ladies and gentlemen this could prove to be a fun ride.

Until will meet again...

Carmen Marlot

Catch up

Ok, let's see, Tuesday I curled with the Peterson team, they needed a sub. It was really fun, much higher caliber of players than I have curled with so far. Matt, Neil, and Steve were super nice to me. We played against the Kealy team, they too were awesome curlers. I learned a lot from this game. Afterwards I had beers with some of the players, Kevin and Rita from the Kealy team were great, we drank beer and chatted for quite a while. I gave them my email address and phone number in case they ever need a sub. My team mates left shortly after the game, well Matt played another game.

I saw Kim and Michelle at the club, they are on the same Tuesday night team. That Kim sure does hold my interest, I better stay away from her.

Wednesday I went out with Val and Tara to Pi, Tina formerly from Tina and the B-sides was playing. Julie and her friend Ann Marie met us there. It was a good show and the dancing afterwards was fun. I don't usually like Pi but we had a fun time, I think I need to change my opinion about the place and give it a second chance.

I worked this morning then went to my parents for dinner. If was fun getting together with the family. We all pitched in and got Mom's Christmas tree and decorations up. She was happy about that.

That's all for now, peace and love...

CM

A quick question

What the hell is "of", why do we use this word? A couple of dogs, a couple of donuts, a couple of blah, blah, blah. I don't understand why not just say a couple dogs, a couple donuts, a couple blahs? I know there's got to be a reason for it but I can't see it.

Just something to keep me up at night...

Carmen

Dentist

What the hell?!?!?!? I went to the dentist today for a filling, now I know you are not supposed get cavities as we get older but my teeth suck. It's not fair, I brush 3, 4, 5 times a day, I floss at least twice a day sometimes more often if something gets stuck in there. It just ain't right. Ok, as I was saying I went to the dentist, got the shot of novicaine and the entire right side of my face is numb even my ear. This was at 3 o'clock this afternoon and it is still numb almost 4 hours later. On top of that it cost me over $500, damn I need a new dentist. Hell I think it would be cheaper to get me some fake teeth, they could all be pearly whites.

I still am not opening my property tax bill. No way, I will just have a fit! I know it is going to be crazy high again, don't they realize I live in the ghetto? God Damn! And then the dumb asses in St. Paul went ahead and vote YES on the school deal so we can have our taxes raised even higher. I just don't get it are people really that stupid? I think the people with children in the school system, even the ones who had children in the school system at one time should be footin' the bill. I did not birth no babies! I say if you choose to have children then you choose to pay for them, not me!!! Stop birthin' them damn babies. I don't even have a say in what they are learning in school and I have to pay the bill. What a system we live in.

Did I mention what a fantastic time I had at the bonspiel on Saturday? I am still chuckling at myself. I think we have a team for the Fargo Triathlon. Although I did look at my calendar and the Winter Carnival Bonspiel is happening that same weekend. I will need to check with my Friday night team, I know we were going to try to get into it.

Ok time to burn some fat!!!!

Women's All American Bonspiel

Saturday, November 17, 2007 I participated in the All American Bonspiel at the St. Paul Curling club. I had a grand time! Met lots of people. Let's see my team was Becky the skip Sam played third, I was second and Jody was lead. I started the day with a bit of a hangover as I had gone out Friday night. I curled Friday night at 5 in the mixed league then had beers with the team and met Val and Tara at Camp for beers. It was also Missy's b'day and she and the gang were at Camp too. I had at least one too many Blue Moon's. Anyway, as I was saying... my team and I took to the ice around noonish with our first game against my friend Mary Jane's team. Yippee we won, I don't recall the final score but we had a good game. After the first games were finished everyone took a break for lunch. After lunch we played Kim's team and sad to say they won. It was a fun game and very challenging. Again I don't remember the score, obviously it was not too important to me. We had time enough for a quick break then back on the ice for game three. Greetings all around with Margeaux's team, this was an extra fun game as I knew most of the players on her team. We won again!!!!!! I know Margeaux was not a happy camper about that! I will need to send off an email to gloat a little :)

I have no idea which team won the bonspiel, I do know it was not my team, although my team may have had the best time. After the bonspiel was over I hung out at the club with my fellow curlers drinking beers and socializing. Jody informed me of a bonspiel in Fargo ND in January. It is a Triathlon, curling, bowling and darts, what a great idea.

Five of us, Mary Jane, Barb, Kim, Michelle and I, went to Fabulous Ferns for food and drinks. Boy was I a chatty Kathy, I woke up this morning thinking "what the hell got into me?" While at Ferns Barb, Mary Jane, Kim and I decided we would form a team and go to Fargo for the Triathlon. Now I don't know if it was the beer talking or if they were serious. I talked with MJ this morning and she and I have agreed that we both want to go to Fargo, it sounds like a fantastic adventure. I am still waiting to hear from Barb and Kim. We then all played a couple games of darts. I have to say this was one of the best evenings out that I have had in a long time. Lots of laughter.

I also found out that Barb and Kim both downhill ski, I have been looking to find people who ski, most of my friends only cross country. Kim also mountain bikes and we chatted about that. I have known Barb for quite a while, she and I curled on the Tuesday morning league but this was the first time I had met Kim. I think I want to get to know her more, she seems very interesting. As much as I was running my mouth she probably thinks I am a freak.

That's my Saturday

peace and joy,
CM

BRRRRRRRR

Yea, it's cold outside. I guess that's to be expected, it is November. Let's see I made it home safe and sound from Oklahoma, had a fine time there. Met some really fun people. Passed my test.

I have been super busy since I got back. Been playing the Internet dating game, it is so much cheaper to cruise profiles on the Internet than going to a club.

Curling has started, we won last Friday. I played at 5 PM and 9 PM, I was exhausted after the 9 PM game. I felt like an old lady, sore knees, abs, back, even my chest was sore. I did not leave the club until midnight and had to get up early for work Saturday morning.

Went to Tara's hockey game Saturday followed by beers at Elsie's. The game plan was to go to Lee's Liquor Lounge at 9 to see the Roxxy Hall band but we never made it. Stayed at Elsie's and bowled a game. I didn't get home until after midnight and had to get up early to work Sunday morning.

Sunday up early, off to work, then to Ann Marie's 40th birthday party. That was a lot of fun. They picked a great place, The Chatterbox. Finally got some sleep Sunday night.

I have the next few days off work and hope to finish my chores around the house. Pretty boring post today.

Peace,
CM

OKLAHOMA

Here I am smack dab in the middle of nowhere. Norman, Oklahoma. I arrived yesterday afternoon, checked in and scoped out the place. I was sent here by the PO for MOS training. I will be here for the next two weeks. Today I was in class all day then went to the gym for a fitness assessment. I will find out the results Wednesday morning. I am also going to talk with a personal trainer, it is free so I will take full advantage of it. I have found three people willing to go riding. I hope to get out tomorrow for a couple hours after class. I am in class from 8 AM to 5 PM so it does not leave much time to ride before it gets dark. If we can get out by 5:30 we should be able to get in 1.5 to 2 hours.

that's all for now...
CM

Rocky Horror Picture Show

Rocky Horror Picture Show. Wednesday night What a fantastic show. Tara, Val, Trisha, Summer, Angie, Karen, Anne Marie, Jody and myself went to the 8 PM show. The show was great! Lots of music, dancing and mayhem. I was the only one who had seen the movie version. The show was at the Ordway theater, well actually the McKnight theater, same building. I am thinking I might try to get to it again. Maybe with a different group of friends.

Thursday it was back to work then I met a woman, Tracy, out for coffee. She seems very nice. It was odd for me, I have not "dated" in a very long time. I don't know if this was actually a date though. We met at the Blue Moon Coffee Cafe and chatted for about an hour. Maybe we will meet again...

Friday was a very busy day at work. I had to finish up all my work so that I am ready to head to Oklahoma. Oklahoma I cannot believe I am off to Oklahoma for two weeks. I have no idea what I will do to keep myself entertained. I hear they have a great fitness center so I am going to take this time work out and get fit.

Thats all for now...

cm

weekend adventures

Friday Margeaux picked me up and we headed south. We landed in Whalen around 1:30 PM, checked into the lodge and unpacked. The rest of the women showed up shortly thereafter. We all introduced ourselves and made decisions on what to do next. Margeaux and I decided on a bike ride. We rode about 20 miles out then turned around and headed back. Along the way we checked out the small towns of Peterson and Rushford. Rushford was hit hard by flooding. On the way back to the lodge we stopped in Peterson for a cold frosty one.

Upon arrrival back at the lodge the rest of the women were engaged in making dinner. We all sat down to dinner together, what a fantastic dinner, two different salads, salmon, some pork thing etc. After dinner Margeaux played girlscout and got a fire started in the pit outside of the cabin. We all sat around the fire chatting, having cocktails and getting to know each other. It was a very unique gathering of women.

Saturday morning I could not sleep so I was up by 6 and relaxed with a book. Once the rest of the crew was awake we again talked of where the day would take us. Margeaux and I planned a Century ride. We drove to Lanesboro as the trail between Whalen and Lanesboro was washed out. From Lansboro we hopped on the trail and rode to Harmony. The last maybe 7 miles was uphill with a fierce headwind. By the time we reached Harmony we were both ready for lunch. We ate at a nice little cafe then walked around the town and checked out the shops. The ride back to Lanesboro was a quick one, this time we were heading downhill and had a tail wind. We decided a century ride was out of the question. We met the rest of the women in Lanesboro for dinner and beers. After dinner it was back to the cabin. Margeaux again got the fire started. We sat around the fire for a while, I was exhausted and headed off to bed by midnight.

Sunday morning I slept in until nearly 7 am. We had to be up and out of the cabin by 10 AM so the morning was quite busy. After packing up we all went our own ways. Margeaux went for another ride, I went for a 6 mile hike and the rest of the women went their own way. Margeaux and I met back up around 4 PM and headed back to the Cities.

What a fantastic weekend, lots of exercise, fresh air, interesting conversations, making new friends.

Chequamegon Fat Tire Festival

What a fantastic ride! This is the first time I have done this race and I hope to do it again. Tara, Trisha and I drove to Cable WI on Friday, September 14, 2007. When we arrived we checked into the hotel, dropped our things at the room then headed to Telemark Resort to register for the race. After registration we did some looking around then went out for a ride to check out the course. We rode about 7 miles into the course then headed back to the car before it could get dark on us. We then did some quick shopping for some gloves as Trisha and I were freezing our assets off. We had dinner at a Saloon in Seeley, good food.

Saturday we were up early and off to the race. Tara made sure we had our bikes in the line-up then off to breakfast. After eating we milled around with the rest of the people getting nervous about the race. The gun went off at 10 AM and we were off. At first I got caught up with the excitment then had to remind myself that I could not keep up that pace and hope to finish the race. I calmed myself and set my own pace. Mile after mile people were passing me and I did not seem to be passing anyone else. I thought for sure I must be at the end of the pack. As I continued to ride random thoughts would enter my mind, I had to continue to check my heart rate as there were times I felt as though I would never catch my breath. My goal was to stay on my bike and not have to walk any hills, this plan was working until I met up with "Big Bertha;" I had to get off about 2/3 of the way up the hill, I just could not make it any further, I was not alone. I ran the final 1/3 of the hill and hopped back onto my bike. After Big Bertha there were numerous rolling hills. My stomach was upset and I thought I would puke through the first half of the ride after about 8 miles into it my stomach settled down. As I approached the finish line I was so happy, my body was telling me it was done, my legs were getting so tired I had to keep chanting pedal, pedal, pedal. I crossed the finish line at 1 hour 25 minutes. Whew! After my heart rate was back to normal I checked my bike and went off looking for Trisha and Tara I was sure they had finished before me. I found Trisha; Tara had not arrived yet. I could not believe she was behind me. Tara came in about 5 minutes behind me.

After the race we headed to the locker room, took showers, changed clothes and headed back out to watch the riders from the Chequamegon 40 finish. We checked the board and found out our rankings, Trisha came in 3rd in her age groups!!!! I was happy with my race, I finished in the top half over all, the top half in my age group and the top half of the women racers. We then caught the shuttle to get back to the car, we picked up the car and drove back to Telemark and enjoyed the festivities for a while, then decided to call it a day and head home. We stopped at Coops for pizza while enroute home.

All in all it was a good weekend. This was the first time I had spent any amount of time with Trisha, she is a very cool person and I enjoyed getting to know her better. The three of us decided we need to do this ride again next year.

PEDAL PEDAL PEDAL...

DULUTH WEEKEND!!!!

I almost forgot to write about my weekend in Duluth. I drove up with Val and Tara on Friday. We got into town a little late, checked into the hotel/motel holiday inn then went across the parking lot to the corner bar and met some of their team people. All three of us were a bit tired so we did not stay long, had a couple beers then back to the hotel/motel holiday inn.

Saturday we slept late, at least for me it was late. Anything past 4:30 AM is late for me. Their first game was at 10 AM, we headed to the ball fields around 8:30. We watched some games then Val and Tara needed to get ready for their game. It was fun, I ran into a number of old friends. After their game, I don't remember if they won or lost, I think they lost, we tried to locate a restaurant they had been to before. We were unable to locate it so we went to Pizza Luce, my favorite place. After lunch we went back to the hotel/motel/holiday inn and chilled out. We went back to the ballfields for their second game, I think they lost that one too. We watched more softball we had dinner at a Mexican place then went back to the hotel/motel/holiday inn to change and meet people out at JT's bar. The bar was pretty empty when we got there. We each had a shot for Kathy then chatted with a few people and called it a night.

Sunday was back to the ball fields. I made a point of looking for Pam Z so we could chat. She and Jo and some of their friends were out by the entrance when we arrived so I chatted with them for quite awhile. Sunday I met up with more people. I ran into Cathy C, boy did I have a crush on her "back in the day." It seems like it has been 100 years since I last saw her. We chatted for a bit and exchanged phone numbers. I called her earlier tonight and left a message on her voice mail. It would be great to see her again. Val and Tara had another game and actually won this one. Their team sure sustained a number of injuries, two people went to the hospital with head injuries, and another was hit on the left cheek bone. She will have a nasty shiner for awhile. Because the team won they had to play another game. They lost that game, afterwards we watched some of the championship game then had to head back to the cities.

All in all it was a very nice weekend. The weather was beautiful and I was able to see some old friends and make some new ones.

until tomorrow...

It's my Friday

Whew, I am happy it's my Friday. I left work early today I had a funeral to attend. Actually I just went to the visitation, I was not up for a funeral. My long time friend Leslies father died over the weekend. We grew up together, her family lived down the street so I have known her dad since I was a little kid.

After the visitation I came home and worked in the yard. We finally got some rain and the grass just went crazy. I will still need to get out in the backyard and cut it again. It needs to dry out a bit before I can cut it shorter.

I met Karen S and her friend Connie out for dinner tonight. It was fun, we went to Jake's City Grill in Maplewood. The food was really good, I think I ate too much. I got back home around 6:30 and decided I did not want to do any more work around the house so I chatted on the phone with friends for about an hour.

Tomorrow will be a busy day, I have a tee time at 8:30 at Gem Lake with Mary Jane and Barb, then we will do brunch someplace and hopefully I will meet up with Rhory afterwards. I then have a tee time at Fort Snelling with Val and Tara. We plan to meet Ann Marie and Jody for beers afterwards.

It's the Labor Day holiday weekend and the price of gas has gone through the roof. Of course I am driving on less than a quarter tank of gas. I am hoping to make it through the weekend then the prices will go down. I will be riding my bike to work for the next week.

I am hoping to get to bed early tonight and actually sleep the night through. I have not been sleeping very good, last night I got to bed by 10 PM and woke up at 12:45 AM then again at 2:17 AM then tossed and turned for quite some time. The alarm went off at 4:30 and it felt like I had not slept at all. Maybe I should be drinking a glass of wine instead of a glass of water.

I see Marlayna is online, I think I will say Hi then call it a night.

Peace

My Little Dog Ayla

Tasha is on the left and Ayla is on the right

I can't stop crying, I lost my little dog Ayla on Thursday evening. She has been with me for 15 years! It is just not the same walking into my house. Ayla was the sweetest little Boston Terrier, she loved to run and play fetch. So much energy and so independent, nothing stopped her. Now I have lost both my Boston Terriers, Tasha (13) in May and Ayla on August 23rd. My little dogs had been with me longer than any people, they were the best. Always happy to see me, their little tails waggin and happy looks on their faces. I know they are together once again running around crazy, no more pain, no suffering, just happiness and joy. Lots of snacks and puppy treats.

Peace to my little dogs, thank you for so much laughter, happiness and joy.

shopping

Searched everywhere today for new window coverings. I am giving my bedroom a beauty makeover. It is looking fabulous! I cannot wait to finish and move my bed in there. I have painted and purchased all new things (except the bed). My little brother went shopping with me, he loves to shop and I hate it. World Market, Tuesday Morning, Home Depot and of course Menards. I found plenty of other things to buy but could not find the right window coverings. I think we will head out to Ikea this week.

Work went well today, I received a compliment from my manager, that makes two this week. He said he appreciated my efficiency. Most of the people I work with don't really want to do anything extra. I also put some time in with my Union work. I have a light duty case I am working on, it is very convoluted. I more I investigate the worse it gets. I was also given a new case today, an overtime by-pass violation. That one should be pretty cut and dry.


I had an "AH HA" moment the other day. Rhory explained an "AH HA" moment to me just a few weeks ago. She got it from Oprah, Rhory is a big Oprah fan. Anyway, I was watching a movie Saturday night, I don't really know the name of the movie, it just came on and I started watching it. It was kind of a hokey movie but I watched anyway. Saturday was a rainy, stay at home and vegitate kind of day. Anyway, as I was saying, I was watching a hokey movie and one of the lines the female main charactor said to the male main charactor was "you are in love with the idea of me." I am telling you, it struck home with me. I realized that is exactly what was going on with Anne and I. I truely believe I was in love with the "idea" of her. She is a super cyclist, races competitively both road and mountain bikes. Her cycling is what defines who she is and I got a real kick out of it. I thought it was great to brag, my girlfriend is a pro cyclist, here is a picture of her on an advertisement, blah, blah, blah. Truth be told she is not a very good girlfriend, I could never make plans because she was not available. Her first and only priority is racing, everything else in life comes second. She is very selfish, self centered and unreliable. She will be 40 in November but I believe her maturity is at around 26. I have spent the last month evaluating our relationship and the pros and cons of it. The cons totally outweigh the pros, why I stayed in the relationship myself is a mystery to me. I am not going to deny I loved the woman or that she does not have some wonderful qualities, she just is not the one for me. I went through hell the first several weeks but since my "AH HA" moment life is looking so much better. I do believe I still need to talk with her and that she owes me an explanation. She ended the relationship and I don't really know why. I believe she was cheating on me. She has cheated in all her previous relationships so why I ever believed she would not cheat on me I'll never know. I believe she started a relationship with another woman before ours ended. That weighs heavily on me. if she had just gone out and had a fling with someone then was honest about it, I would not like it but I could handle it and get over it. But when someone is deceiving and lies, that to me it so disrespectful. I don't think I trusted her from the beginning, hell, I know I never trusted her and I am sure that cause me more stress than need be. OK, enough of this, it just irritates me. Until we sit down and I get my questions answered, it just does not matter.

Let's see what do I have for the rest of the week. Val and Tara are due back from the East Coast tomorrow, I need to contact them about the weekend. I still have not decided whether I will go to Duluth Friday evening or Saturday morning. I will be golfing Friday afternoon. Mary Jane is due back from her cruise on Thursday, boy I hope she is OK. The cruise was supposed to go to the Cayman Islands and with all the bad weather I don't know where they ended up going. Surely not into the hurricane area. Hopefully I will get out on my bike this week. I have to check the weather and if there is no rain forcasted for tomorrow I will ride to work. That's all for today...

ONLY WHEN HE NO LONGER KNOWS WHAT HE IS DOING DOES THE PAINTER DO GOOD THINGS - Edgar Degas

OH MY GOD!

Could you heap anything more onto my plate? OK, so here is a recap of the last few months. May: My little dog Tasha (13 yrs) gets sick and dies. June: my house is burlarized and then my dishwasher and clothes washer go to hell. July: my girlfriend ends our relationship without any explanation, I believe she was cheating on me. I sure hope the saying "things happen in threes" is true then I can look forward to happier times.

Those were the highlights there were also a few smaller things happening as well. For instance, my dog Ayla needed her teeth cleaned $600. My stepdog Lash got sick, nasty mess on the floor that I will not even begin to explain or we will all get sick. Lets just say it took over an hour to clean the kitchen floor. He was diagnosed with Pancreatitis! Good God! I had big ass tree limbs come down in my front yard after that last big storm. Oh yeah and I had been looking forward to a mountain bike race, Ore to Shore, all year only to have the rest of the crew back out at the last minute. Now that really sucked!!!!!!

And then what happens? August 1: The bridge on 35W callapses and brings it all home to me. Any of us could have been on that bridge, my friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, hell I could have been on that bridge. As my friend Miss Marly always said "Dont sweat the small stuff." My issues pale in comparison to what those people and their families are going through. I can only hope that time eases their pain and they can find peace.

On the brighter side of things, the sun comes up every day and sets every evening. I have my health, a good job and people who love me. Life is good.

This weeks brings a flurry of activity, work, a little shopping, biking, golf and then off to the great white north for the weekend. I am heading to Duluth for a women's softball tournament. It should be fun.

that's all for no,
carmen

YOU ARE EITHER LOSING YOUR MIND OR GAINING YOUR SOUL - julia cameron

Appliances

OK, what is up with the appliance gods? I can't just have my dishwasher go out, no, I have to have my washing machine die as well.