Suddenly *Not So* Single Journey

How to live…

Wednesday, December 30th, 2009

Last year wasn’t all sad.  There were some really good times.  And one of my favorites?  Well, it was all Bubble related, of course.  Two words: Snow Day!

If there’s anything we know how to do in The Bubble, it’s embrace some impromptu fun.  And so last January, we had a snow storm in Charlotte.  I know that this isn’t even newsworthy for most people, but in the the south, snow is a pretty big deal, even if it is very little snow.  On this occasion, it was probably all of four inches.  Ahh, but with a little imagination and a bit of hard work, that is enough.

I remember that morning.  The kids and I woke up to beautiful big falling flakes.  And I knew that I would be off.  No senior citizens leave their house in that kind of weather even when a hearing aid goes out.  So, I made my calls from home and then suited up.  No, we don’t actually have snow gear.  I woke the kids and we put on our most sensible fleece, some gloves, hats and scarves.  (Yes, mom, sometimes I do wear a hat!  That was an area of contention when I was younger.)

We rushed outside and commenced snow ball fighting.  And I was grossly out manned, since I was fighting alone and all the neighboring kids were against me, not all…only about six…there were several unaccounted for.  Soon we were wet and worn out and laughing.

We traipsed down to Ed and Laura’s to see what they were doing in the heart of The Bubble.  Ed had pulled out shovels and was struggling to build a sledding hill for the kids.  Soon, all the kids and most of the adults had assembled.  And then I was headed back to the house to pick up my cocoa-latte machine and all the mugs I could scrounge up.  I set up in the garage and started making hot cocoa for the neighborhood.

We were all happy and exhausted by afternoon, which was just as well since most of the snow had melted by then and the kids were already drenched.  Still, it was the kind of day when people put aside their differences, focused on fun, and forged bonds and friendships.  People came over from other neighborhoods, attracted by all the laughter and squealing.  We know how to have a good time.  We know how to live.

And I know some people may think it unseemly that a woman of my age would engage in a snowball fight, or slide down a hill, or build a snow man.  I know that most would be sitting on the sidelines, acting as support staff in the game of life.  That’s not me.  I’m all in.  Put me in, coach!  I’m ready to play.  I don’t ever want to get so old that I lose that side of my personality.

So, I’m hoping for some snow this winter.  I have my cookie sheets at the ready, and extra garbage bags.  We have a big hill right outside our patio.  I haven’t quite worked out how we’re going to avoid hitting the patio yet.  Maybe we’ll aim for the breezeway instead.  I’ve stocked up on cocoa.  We have our new mugs.  We have each other.  I can’t think of another solitary thing we need.

Posted in Reflections | 5 Comments »

Raising tumbleweeds…

Tuesday, December 29th, 2009

I had this horrible thought last night after a particularly trying day.  We had gone to Bailey’s Birthday in The Bubble.  It was the first time I had really been there to socialize.  I mean, I had spent some time in the sac (cul-de-sac) with Kimberly.  (Thought I should qualify that before your minds went WILD.)  We had the day we baked cookies like we were the freakin’ Keebler elves.  And there was the night I hid out there while waiting for my locks to be changed.  And I suppose there was that brief bit Thanksgiving night where Kimberly and I did our Black Friday pre-shopping.  Okay, and I did babysit Carrie that night so David could surprise Kimberly with dinner and the Trans Siberian Orchestra.  (Wow, I’ve been there more than I thought…)

Regardless, it was nice for me for the first time.  It was nice hanging out with Bishop and all the neighbors.  (Until Bishop drank the better part of a glass of brandied nog, singed his tail in Ed’s new firepit, and commenced farting.)  And Rachel was able to drive the tractor, Ed’s new toy.  I took pictures.  And Laura and I sang Green Acres.  Good times.

Then we went back to our apartment and Breanna spent the night and the girls commenced with a movie marathon where they managed to turn the movies into an eating game…with Hershey’s Kisses.  Yes, I’m raising her right.

Only last night, I wondered if I was.  It hurt her to be back in The Bubble.  And it hurt her to have to leave Bishop again.  And it hurt her to see her old homes.  And I think it hurts me to think about the fact that too soon she will be off to college and who knows what she’ll come home to on breaks.  That thought made me swallow hard.

We have prided ourselves on our often nomadic existence, our ability to perceive change as a challenge, an opportunity, a new adventure.  At the same time, I’ve always wanted to give the kids roots and wings.  I’ve got the wings covered, but…oh, the roots.  The house was supposed to be the roots.  Instead, now I worry that I’m raising tumbledweeds.  I worry the kids will blow about, wherever the wind or chance takes them.  I worry that I’ll lose some of the closeness we have because they won’t want to come visit an apartment, not that I always plan on living in an apartment, but let’s face it…I never planned on getting divorced either.

And I know I have this theory about never getting too crazy about my plans because they never seem to work out, but I do try to have some goal, some focus.  So, this is going to be my new focus for 2010.  My tumbleweeds need some roots.  I know, in theory, that home is wherever I am, but I want them to have the richest, warmest, best life possible.

At the moment, I’m not sure what that’s going to take.  Somehow, I think there are some big changes in store for us this year.  I feel it.  I scent it on the wind.  It smells like hope and new beginnings, fresh starts, and second chances.  I’m about to burst in anticipation.  Just a few more days left in this year.  I’m going to make the most of them, use them as momentum for the next year.

Posted in Reflections | 4 Comments »

Meals made simple…

Monday, December 28th, 2009

Okay, so even though we had this amazing feast that we can snack off of for days…we get tired of eating the same foods over and over and over again.  So, while the food has held out, our interest in the food has waned.  Amazingly enough, it seems to pick right back up as soon as we take a break.  With that in mind, let me share with you some of our favorite easy break meals.  I like to post recipes that I think you will enjoy, that will make your life easier, that will make your belly happy.  And these meals will do just that.

English Muffin Pizzas

• English muffins
• cottage cheese
• pizza sauce (we use Ragu)
• shredded Italian cheese
• pizza seasoning
• toppings of your choice (like pepperoni and mushrooms)

Split the English muffins and toast either in the toaster or under the broiler.  Once toasted, spread a scoop of cottage cheese on each muffin.  Top the cottage cheese with pizza sauce.  Next add the toppings of your choice.  (Pepperoni can go either on top of under the cheese.)  Top with cheese.  Sprinkle with pizza seasoning.  Place back under the broiler until the cheese has melted.

Okay, the second recipe came off an ad for Pillsbury Crescent Rolls.

I considered doing a cut and paste with the recipe, but decided to simply give you the link above.  The website has a ton of other really great recipes to enjoy.  Peruse at your leisure.  I’m sure you’ll find others that your family will enjoy.  THe link above goes straight to the Ham and Cheese Roll Ups recipe.  And I thought that since some of you may be struggling to rid yourself of excess ham following the holiday, it might come in handy.  It sure is a fan favorite around our place.

Posted in recipes | 8 Comments »

My epiphany…

Sunday, December 27th, 2009

In the last couple of hours before the kids returned on Christmas day, I reread the blog.  I know it only spans half a year of the past year of my life, but there was some pretty important stuff covered.  I had a really big year.  And like most years, some of it was good, some of it was bad, most of it was challenging in some way, shape, or form.  I made some new friends.  I found out that some people I once considered acquaintances were actually friends.  I had friends that I came to a better understanding of.  And I had some people that I had to walk away from, cut out of my life because they were poison.

I read back through the year and while it reminded me that I was stronger than I thought I was, more capable than I could have imagined, more blessed than you would believe…I had an epiphany.  And it was a big one.  I haven’t been fair to one person in particular.  And that epiphany really hurt.

See, I pride myself in being fair, and honest, and mostly good.  And at the same time, those who know me also know that I am also very emotional, but I prefer to think of myself as passionate.  I don’t know any other way to be.  When I care, when I befriend someone, when I love…I am all in.  I give and give and give of myself without question, without pause.  And the danger in that selfless giving, loving all in, is that sometimes when things go wrong, you open yourself  up to BIG HURTS.  And worse, sometimes when you are suffering through the big hurts, you may unintentionally hurt others, the very one in fact that you thought, hoped, swore you’d never hurt.  (Okay, let’s face it, I’m talking about myself here, so I might just as well switch to the first person, right?)

I hurt someone I love very much repeatedly this year…on the blog.  We all know that I was broken-hearted when I lost him.  And in the retelling of the events that unfolded, it wasn’t that I was dishonest, just that so much pain and maybe a little bitterness leaked out into my writing.  I was purging, which is no excuse, but something of an explanation.  And the result was a somewhat skewed version of events.

The truth is that sometimes a series of events is put into motion and pride and anger prevent people from backing down.  Yeah, he did speak the words ‘get out,’ but I’m the one who ran with it rather than cooling the situation down like I normally would.  I’m the one who said ‘fine’ and started packing.  And I really did have to go, but it didn’t really have to be like that…exactly.  And he has always wanted to remain friends, it’s me putting the kibosh on that.  And that sucks because he was my best friend.  For such a very long time after I would want to turn to him like I was so accustomed to and share with him everything going on in my life.  Sometimes, in the past, it was more than he wanted to know…but mostly he sat and heard me out, really listened.

He was someone who understood me, almost as well as Jennie did.  He was someone I trusted with my deepest darkest secrets and he never judged me or betrayed me.  He was someone that tried desperately to move beyond his comfort level to give me what I wanted…a life with him.  It wasn’t easy.  He was taking on an older woman and two kids…one of which was a teenage girl who was starting to date and prone to questionable wardrobe choices.  (I didn’t buy them!)  He was expected to go from being a party of one to a party of four and embrace a ready-made family.  And he tried.  I know he did.  He tried because he cared about me more than he intended, more than he could help.  He cares about me still, from what I’ve heard.  He still wants to know that I’m okay, that the kids are okay.

Today I’m thinking about this maybe a little more than I normally would, for a couple of reasons.  For one, there’s the Gwen Bell Challenge topic for today…which was about an epiphany.  And for another, I saw him briefly and accidentally.  I was going to the movies with Laura yesterday.  And I couldn’t reach her by phone to let her know I had already picked up the tickets.  And so, I braved The Bubble and drove over.  I guess I thought he’d probably be at work, since he usually worked on Saturdays.  Well, as I pulled up in front of Laura…there was Bishop.

The kids and I leapt from the car, after I slammed it into park and yanked the brake.  Bishop hasn’t seen me for two months.  And I was a bit afraid that he would have forgotten me, but he hadn’t.  He loved all over me like it was yesterday.  He licked and leaned, snuggled and nuzzled.  Only my puppy-cow was now huge…at only five months old.  He can’t walk through my legs anymore.  And I could probably saddle him and ride him, if not now in a few weeks.  And how much I loved him and missed him came flooding back.

That was when HE came out of the garage with Ed.  And I think I looked at him and tried to explain my presence, mumbling something about the movie.  I was a little nervous.  He smiled at me.  He complimented Keenan on his hair.  He may have even said something to Rachel.  It’s all a little hazy to me.  Then he did something that was in complete accord with the way I try to remember him.  He went back to the house and gave us space with Bishop.  We took some pictures, we pet him and we marveled over how much he had changed in just a few short months.

Too quickly that moment passed.  We had to leave for the movie, but we have some happy memories of our brief time together, just as I have so many happy memories of my time with HIM.  We made a lot of history in a year and a half.  We lived together for nearly six months.  We had a great life.  And I have no regrets.   I told him that once and I meant it.  I told him I hadn’t held anything back, that I had loved him the best I could.  And despite all my tough talk, I love him still.  What we had isn’t something you get over in a few weeks or months…maybe not even a few years.

And if he should happen upon this post, or if one of his friends should happen to read it, I would hope that he would understand that this isn’t simply an epiphany…the whole damn, I never meant to hurt you.  I would hope that he would know that I’m apologizing because if I hurt you publicly, I should be big enough to admit my mistake and ask for forgiveness publicly as well.  Know that I love you and respect you, Sam.  Know that I never meant to make you out to be less than the man you are.  Know that I’m truly sorry if my words, my pain, inflicted any harm.  I always swore that I’d never hurt you…I never wanted to start now.

Posted in Blog Challenge | 5 Comments »

My not so magical moments…

Saturday, December 26th, 2009

Okay, let me begin by saying you have NO IDEA how much work blogging is.  And I don’t just mean for me.  I mean for the people who have to work with me, help me, hold my hand, carry me, and fix my never ending mistakes.

Take the most recent post that I wrote for Deep South Moms.  I mean, first we’ve already discussed that I have an editor…nay, a TEAM of editors on that site.  It takes a host of people to proof me and approve me and make me public-friendly.  Yes, more than one.

Now, I have mostly worked with one…and by that I mean virtually, so that she has never seen me in person or heard the melodic sound of my voice.  (Okay, some people think it’s melodic, others complain, and still others have suggested that if my day job doesn’t work out I should get a 1-900 number.  Right.  So, I guess I have that going for me…)

Anyway…on Wednesday I had a few extra minutes and a bit of inspiration that I decided to parlay into my next Deep South Moms post.  I finished writing the piece over here on this site and copied it onto Typepad, their blogging platform.  Seemed simple enough.  Added the picture, previewed it, read it aloud to check for mistakes and readability.  Satisfied with the results, I ended up hitting publish.  See, my only options for the buttons were ‘preview’ (which I had already done) and ‘publish’ (which was something the editors were supposed to do.)  For some reason, the ’save’ option, which would have sent the post in the appropriate line up and put it before the editors, was not an option.  Hmmm.

Well, my mistake was readily and ever so publicly apparent.  As in, it went live on the site.  Oops.  In fact, that was the title of my first email to the woman I am now going to refer to as Poor A.  I explained that somehow I had managed to publish.  Could she pull it?

And then I read over the post.  Hmmm.  It didn’t have the normal indicator in the title that the post hadn’t been approved.  Maybe they magically approved me that quickly?  Maybe I was finally getting it and didn’t need a revision?  Maybe I was…gifted…a little magical…and it had to be seen IMMEDIATELY?

So, I sent ANOTHER email.  A ‘my bad must be it was approved’ email.  Only my email crossed Poor A’s and instead of communicating.  We were suddenly embroiled in a game of catch up culminating in me making more work for her.  (Now do you see why I call her Poor A?)

For me, it’s hard to know how to be helpful sometimes.  I saw that she had left me a message about the picture quality being bad, too blurry.  So I needed to change it.  And I was in the middle of doing that when her next email came through…telling me to leave it alone, since she had solved the problem.

So here’s what I wrote back:

Ummm.  About that.  I made it as far as deleting the photo when the email came through.  I’m just going to let you put that photo back in and back away SLOWLY while being ever so thankful that technology prevents you from reaching through the computer to throttle me.  (Because clearly my reflexes aren’t going to cut it.)

On the bright side…you only have to work with me twice a month and the button has changed to ’save’ instead of ‘publish.’  Told you that you were magic.

Happy holidays.  And my New Year’s resolution will be to not be a pain in your posterior.  Good one, huh?

Posted in Just Sharing | 5 Comments »

So ready…

Friday, December 25th, 2009

It’s been a crazy week without the kids.  So many people were concerned about what I would do with myself, how I would manage to keep busy and not be so lonely and miserable without the kids around.  I wasn’t worried.  I knew I’d miss them, but at the same time, I knew I had so much to accomplish that I wouldn’t have time to feel their loss as acutely as I would have say…this time last year.

I’m a different woman now, not just because I’m older, but because I’m in a better place.  I feel it all the time, this happiness that wraps around me like a warm blanket, comforting me, causing me to smile and giggle and hum…or even sing out loud.  And I like that me, that’s the me that I like sharing with my kids, my friends and family, and of course the world.

So, I spent Friday night alone, unwinding, not accomplishing much…but after DAYS of baking and running the roads, there’s something to be said for a little down time.  Saturday was a mass of preparations for the wrap and nog party with Laura and Kimberly.  Sunday saw me baking and shopping.  Monday was a wash, since I was holed up in the safety of The Bubble.  (Yes, The Bubble rolls deep.  Mess with one of us, you take on all of us.  And I still maintain Bubble status.)  Tuesday, I was still dealing with the ramifications of my over zealous admirer…and my big accomplishment was moving back into the apartment after work and finishing my shopping.  That brings us to Wednesday where I played catch up, cooking, wrapping, and cleaning, since Spring had invited me over to unwind before the kids came home.  And I was feeling so big because I was all done with a day to spare.  This was one for the record books.

And what did I have to bring to Spring’s?  Nothing.  Only before I left, I remembered that her family really loved my homemade applesauce.  And I had some leftover apples.  And it was only 3pm.  And if we were just going to relax, I might as well surprise them by teaching them to make applesauce and leaving the entire batch for the family.  Merry Christmas.

So, I packed some sugar (since they use Splenda) and cinnamon and a pan and a knife and apples…then headed on my way.  I hadn’t even made it out of the complex when she called to ask if I had some spare wrapping paper.  Why, yes I did.  And I drove back to the apartment to get two rolls of wrapping paper then headed on my way…again.

Well, after Breanna greeted me like the second mother I am and while Spring was changing and Jay was trimming his hair, I went straight to work on making apple sauce.  And next thing you know, I have been pea-schnuckered into making Magic Cookie Bars and running home to get my egg nog.

Soon, we realize that Breanna’s presents still need to be wrapped and Spring only has one arm and Jay sucks as wrapping and Breanna, who has wrapped all the rest of the presents, can’t very well unwrap her own….and even sooner I’m beginning to wonder when this relaxing is going to begin, since it’s obvious I’m now going to have to wrap these presents with my wrapping paper.  And none of the presents are box shaped.  No, we have cylinders and handles and all manner of freakish packaging.

I’m tired.  I left at 10pm to go home and relax.  Just know that I could never say ‘no’ to these people.  I know that if I ever need anything they will be there.  They kept me from being truly homeless that week with two kids.  So, it doesn’t matter if I’m tired.  They appreciate my efforts.  And I value their friendship.  I joked that I had come under false pretenses and that I was, in fact, working in their little Merry Christmas Sweatshop.  The truth is, they made me a part of their Christmas.  Isn’t it baking and cooking and wrapping that are an integral part of the holiday?  I left my stamp, my own ‘Nicki was here.’  In truth, I was blessed to have a chance to be a part of it.

I wish you a very Merry Christmas, a truly relaxing holiday spent with those you love…your family, your friends, your friends that are family.  And don’t forget to love yourself.  You deserve it!

Posted in Reflections | 3 Comments »

On the menu of life…

Thursday, December 24th, 2009

I’ll have a side of ‘I told you so’ hold the lecture.

Yeah, this year I have been chalking up learning experiences left and right.  I mean, which  learning experience do I pick from?  The divorce was finalized this year which means that maybe I’m not so good at marriage.  Nah.  It’s not that.  I’ll just look for someone I’m more suited to next time.  And then there was my failed relationship with Sam.  Did I say I’d look for someone I was more suited to next time?  I meant next next time.  Or from now on.  Or…well, we’ll see.

And then there was the whole renters morphing into squatters episode that marred the better part of my summer and the early part of my fall.  But by far, the best learning experience was the one that I had most recently, the one I was dealing with right up until yesterday.  The reason I was too distracted to post anything more than videos.  And apparently people noticed.  Okay, my mom noticed.  I’m not sure about the rest of the world.

Without going into a lot of gory details…because then it will be a huge spoiler for the made for TV movie my life has become…I went against my better judgment and gave out my address.  It seemed like a benign request from a blog fan who wanted to mail me a Christmas card.  And in my defense, it’s not like I just gave out my address all devil may care.  No, I contemplated and after a long drawn out discussion reluctantly relinquished my address.  (Stop it.  I can hear you.  I specifically said ‘hold the lecture.’  No one has been tougher on me than I have…maybe with the exception of Laura.  Love you, Laura!)

Anyway, the address was given out almost a month ago.  And then on Monday, I had a text from the fan that there was a package for me on my back patio.  *gasp*  Immediately, I felt utterly violated.  There were a lot of texts exchanged with friends, a few lectures, several emails and then I headed home, more than a little shaken…not stirred.  (See, Kimberly, I had to use that line somewhere!)  Oh, and Kimberly met me at the apartment because she didn’t want me to blow up alone.  (Sign of a true friend, right?)

No bomb, but a ton of chocolate.  That I will never touched.  Suffice it to say, I stayed at Kimberly’s Monday night, which prompted a realization that might have been funny if it were not so true.

me: I own a house.  I’m renting an apartment.  I have more real estate than half of Charlotte and somehow I’m still homeless!

My locks were changed Tuesday…because there was a key hidden outside (past tense…as in never again…nice learning curve, huh?)  And if I had no guarantee that it hadn’t been discovered and copied…well, new locks!  It cost me $25.  (And I didn’t think that checks would come in handy?  Ha!)  It seemed a small price to pay for my life.

Tuesday saw another flurry of emails and texts and I tried to measure the danger.  I mean should the alert be on yellow, red, what?  And I finally felt as though I had achieved a solution and safety.  (Again, I’m not going into the gory details.  How else will I get you to fork over the money for my exciting memoirs?  Everyone knows you don’t pay for the cow if you can get the milk for free.  And no, I don’t have a book deal, but dammit, I should!)

So, I’ve looked at the dilemmas I’ve faced.  Aside from the obvious commonality, which is me, they all point back to what some are now considering a character flaw.  I’m too trusting.  I’m too nice.  (Trust me, I’m not always too nice.)  My mother, the cynic to my optimist, wondered how I could possibly have trusted someone I barely knew.  And it points back to something J once said to me.

J: You think that everyone is like you, that everyone tells the truth and says what they mean and follows through.  People aren’t like that!

Talking to my mom yesterday had her pointing out to me that I’m 37.  (Because otherwise I wouldn’t know…)  And I guess when she says it like that, it means I’m supposed to be different by now, have outgrown some of the characteristics that make me inherently me.  But I don’t want to be cynical and jaded.  On the other hand, I don’t want to be naive and gullible either.  I guess I need to strive for a balance, somewhere between optimist and pessimist, but perkier than a realist.  Is there an optimalist?  Because I think that’s what I am.

See, I don’t want to face people warily, keep them always at arm’s length.  I know that not everyone tells the truth, which is different than House’s supposition that everyone lies.  I just believe that people have it in them to be better than they are, since I constantly strive to be better than I am.  So maybe an optimalist is one who looks for the best in others and gives the best he or she has.  I love making up words.  Eat that, Oxford English Dictionary.  One day…  (That’s a dream book Rachel and I aspire to own.  So if you want to drop that on my patio…call me!  Just kidding, Mom.  Man, she just can’t take a joke!)

And I don’t think there is anything wrong with being an optimalist.  I like being optimalistic.  It’s my beacon of hope.  I just need to learn to temper it, be smarter about it.  So, no, you can’t have my mailing address.  I’m getting a PO Box.  (You only think it stands for post office.  Right now, to me, it means something else.  It’s a reminder that I can’t just trust anyone to do the right thing, that people can’t be trusted to know they are crossing a line, that even though they may have had the best of intentions, it can be received badly.)  I’m learning, one painful sometimes frightening always disheartening experience at a time.

PS. Why this?  Why today…on Christmas Eve when I should be posting about sweet happy holiday stuff?  Gwen Bell Challenge 2009.  Enough said.

Posted in Blog Challenge | 15 Comments »

Holiday Must Watch Movies…

Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009

Okay, I know everyone has their favorites, the movies they have to watch during the holiday season in order to feel complete.  We all have them.  And I’m sure my selections aren’t exceptional, but just in case, in no particular order and for varying reasons…

• Love Actually Due to its R rating, it isn’t one I share with the kids.  (If only there weren’t that scene with the couple…coupling nekked as movie doubles…)  I love the message.  The cast is phenomenal.  Hugh Grant.  Laura Linney.  Liam Neeson.  To name a few.  Oh, and the stories all interwoven, just like in life…  Well, watch it and think of me watching it alone.

• The Muppet Christmas Carol Ah, one I can watch with the kids.  By all estimations I should be sick to death of this movie.  Rachel and I watched it together all weekend long, every weekend from Halloween to Christmas one year.  We do love our musicals.  And there’s something about a two year old singing and dancing along with The Muppets.  Good times.  And this was one of our favorite songs from the movie.

• White Christmas J and I had a tradition.  We would wrap Christmas presents together to this movie.  He introduced me to it.  I grew to love Bing Crosby and Rosemary Clooney.  (Yes, she is related to George Clooney.)  After watching it the first five times, I moved past my urge to toss Vera Ellen a donut.  (She is unnaturally thin!)  If you haven’t seen it…it’s a classic, ranking right up there with It’s  A Wonderful Life.  (And edging out the ever popular A Christmas Story.

• Scrooged Yes, last but not least…because 5 is too many and 3 is too few…the Bill Murray 80s wonderment.  I love Carol Kane as the ghost of Christmas past.  She’s outrageous and violent.  It’s a redemption story.  And who doesn’t love a good redemption story.  (And I love a good contemporary telling of the Dickens’ classic.)

So, here’s my promise to you.  Tomorrow I will write words again.  See, I’m still  a little distracted right now with my drama.  I should be better tomorrow.  And the next post will be one for the Gwen Bell Challenge.  Yup, have I got a learning experience to share with you.  It starts with trust and ends with tragedy.  (And sometimes I think I’ll never learn…I just keep finding new mistakes to make.)

Have a great day.  Watch a great movie.  And try to lay off the popcorn while you’re wrapping.  You didn’t go to all that effort picking out the perfect present to leave a few greasy smudges on it while wrapping, right?

Posted in Reflections | 21 Comments »

As promised…

Tuesday, December 22nd, 2009

Okay, so I have a lot going on right now.  And believe it or not, I’m keeping it to myself.  Yes, I’m suffering in silence.  If you can imagine me silent.

Regardless, here’s the soundtrack I’ve chosen for today.  I love Pomplamoose.  So much talent.  Such a cute couple.  So much promise.

Enjoy!

PS. Look Rachel, Mom learned a new trick!  Are you so very proud of me?

Posted in Just Sharing | 7 Comments »