Coolness!

I got a bonus!

I didn't know I was eligible for the bonus at work. I suspected I was, I hoped I was, but didn't know for sure.

So I got extra bucks! Yipee!!

(and then promptly spent it on something very glamorous - 1 more credit card paid off!!!)

Viewpoint

So I'm in the mall with a 9-yr-old friend. We pass Victoria's Secret. I cringe a bit - after all, I have no idea what she does or doesn't know, what her mom's said, etc...

"That's so cute!"
"What?"
"I want teddy like that."

And I realize her fantasy is the black and pink themed Christmas tree covered with teddy bears.

Turkey Forever

KK's Best Turkey Sandwich

Toasted bread
Cream cheese
Jellied cranberry sauce
alfalfa sprouts
Turkey.

Assemble. Cut. Enjoy.

Scrumptious!

Decorator Style

The latest in fashionable men's restrooms....

Thanks TLP for letting me shamelessly steal your content!

Horrors!

Ack! I think I'm acclimating!

I have been very proud of my thick Alaskan blood. I was wearing sandals and sleeveless tops weeks before and after everyone else.

And my mom is always cold so there is constant teasing about how I'm warm and don't need extra layers.

Driving to the Lion King, I was actually cold *inside the heated truck!* My mother had to give me her sweater. I am so ashamed...

The Lion King

Stupendous. Awe-inspiring. Amazing. Fabulous.

There probably are not enough superlatives in the lexicon to describe the experience. The Lion King was really, truly amazing. I am completely in awe of the creative genius of Julie Taymor who did the costumes, mask and puppet design and was the director.

I knew there were "puppets" in the show but this is not your Sunday School hand puppet experience. For example, Scar and several other lions had masks. When the actor was standing upright, the mask rested above the actors head. So Scars mask chin was on the actors forehead. But when the actor bent over, ex. to look Simba in the eyes, the mask moved and came down in front of the actors head so the Scar mask was talking to Simba. It was a fascinating integration of mask, puppetry and acting.

And not all the masks moved. The lionesses and Mufasa's masks were stationary on top of the actors heads. The hyena's masks were an integral part of the costume and actually rested in front on the actor at about belly button level. There was a ridge of fur traveling up the actor hyena's back, over their head and to the mask making the whole actor/mask combo look just like a hunchbacked hyena. And several characters, notably Timon, was a large puppet connected by various wires and such to the actor. It was all incredibly fascinating.

One of my favorite "characters" wasn't even on stage. In the front corners of both stage right and stage left, were percussion platforms filled with every kind of African acoustic instrument you could think of plus others: djembe, conga, shekera, triangle, gong, a bent wood stick with a string that made the coolest plucky sound... So this guy played all these different instruments throughout the show and he looked like he was having the time of his life. He smiled big, sang along, danced to the beat. Not in any distracting sense but my joy in watching the show was enhanced by his obvious joy in performing. I'm so glad we were closer to this guy because his counterpart stage left was a complete stick-in-the-mud.

Being on the aisle was great. The opening sunrise scene includes a parade of the animals making there way to Pride Rock - andthe hugest elephant sauntered down the aisle way right next to me. I *loved* the gazelles (impala?). And the cheetah was great too. There are some good photos here and here.

An amazing experience. It only would have been better if all of you could have joined me! =-)

Powerful Kiss

A Blinding Kiss Australia is famous for its kangaroos, koala bears, and Great
Barrier Reef, but it is also the setting of some strange workplace law cases.
Take the cases of Louise Kelsey and Jirra Collings Ware. In Louise Kelsey's
case, she cites an unusual workplace incident as the cause of her blindness: a
kiss. Kelsey, a maid at the Park Hyatt hotel, testified in Melbourne, Australia,
that she suffered from post traumatic stress disorder after a Uruguayan soccer
player, a guest at the hotel, kissed her against her will, the Daily Telegraph
(Sydney) reports. She claimed the stress disorder led to her blindness. "The
most powerful kiss in history," said a deriding doctor for the defense. The
hotel agreed to settle the case and is negotiating the terms, according to the
newspaper.

Hmmm. I remember being taught that something, ahem, else caused blindness. Kisses just caused babies.

Hmmmm

Last night I let my roommate know I'd be gone Sunday to see the Lion King. I mentioned how excited I was. She said she'd seen the commercials on TV. Then she paused. I was sure she was going to say something about wanting to see it, how cool it must be, etc. Instead "I don't think I would enjoy that kind of thing" and her whole body and demeanor indicated she thought it was a complete waste of time and money.

I can't imagine anyone not being excited by seeing a live show, a live Broadway show, a live Broadway, Tony-Award-winning, completely amazing show!

I don't think my roommate and I would even know each other if not for the roommate thing.

Livin' a Dream

OMG!! Guess what? Guess what??? I'm going to go see the Lion King Broadway show on Sunday!!!

Yipeeeeeee!! Is that not just toooo cool?! Living in the States definately has its advantages!

My brother serves on the USS Ross. I'm very proud of him and thought I'd share this pict.

051024-N-4374S-010 Atlantic Ocean (Oct. 24, 2005) - The guided missile destroyer USS Ross (DDG 71) underway in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean during UNITAS 47-06 Atlantic Phase. Naval forces from Argentina, Brazil, Spain, Uruguay and the United States are participating in UNITAS 47-06 Atlantic phase. This is a U.S. Southern Command-sponsored exercise that enhances friendly, mutual cooperation and understanding between participating navies by enhancing interoperability in naval operations among the nations of the Western Hemisphere. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer’s Mate 2nd Class Michael Sandberg (RELEASED)

Thoughts on Texas

The public library is in a strip mall.

The liquor stores have a drive through window.

With your eggs you can get your choice of a side of grits, hashbrowns or tomatoes.

"Catering" means a huge homemade grill pulled on a hay trailer.

Veggies for fajitas equal one piece of red pepper, one piece of green pepper, an entire grilled onion and a side of Texas beans (definately not refried beans).

The Bible and Christian literature section at Sams is bigger than the Romance section.

Home Again

Well, I'm back - safe and sound. It's so nice to get away and it's so nice to come home to your own bed and own home. My puppies were very happy to see me and one of my little friends was out front playing as I dragged my suitcases up the sidewalk and she gave me the biggest hug. Very gratifying.

In spite of getting up at 1am Texas time, I was feeling fairly energized when I got home (must have been the nap in the car during the drive to DFW airport - thanks Laura!). So puppies got a haircut and bath (several hour process) and then I realized the headache I was fighting was probably from a lack of sleep. Even though I didn't feel tired I decided to lay down and read. Bam! out like a light for two hours. =-) Guess I was tired!

I woke up when my roommate came home. Get this - I'm slowly waking up and rolling out of bed and as I go to the door I hear her on the phone talking in a completely panic-stricken voice: "have you seen Dana? The front door was unlocked and the dogs aren't here and there's stuff on the floor so I know she was here...."

She called my mother! The light was on in my room and she never knocked on the door or stuck her head in. No - she panics, calls my mother and blows up the fact the door is unlocked into this huge drama *that is all in her head!* Geesh!

Yeah, yeah, I should be grateful she was concerned. Rubbish! IF she had searched the house and I'd been gone for hours, then maybe. In this situation, she was just manufacturing drama.

Well, now I know I'm really home!

New and Improved

See? May entire vacation hasn't been about relaxation! Behold the new layout! =-) Does anyone know how to get rid of the stupid number in front of the links to friends and family?

News of the Day

I haven't missed a nights sleep in a *long* time and my body really doesn't seem to be appreciating the experience. I got to Seattle at 7:30pm and had a 3hour lay-over. Not too bad since I rented a DVD and play and got a bite to eat. I watched another DVD on the plane, which made the three-hour flight pass quickly.

I arrived in DFW at 3am my time; 5am local time. A quick glance in the mirror showed I should have probably tried to sleep - the red eyes were beautiful.

I went to quickly return the DVD player before meeting Laura at baggage claim...only to find out the InMotion kiosk was under construction. It took **45 minutes** to catch the SkyRail to the next concourse and return. Jeepers!! that was annoying. I felt really bad for making Laura wait - thank goodness for cell phones!

Seeing my godson and his family has been great. I think I'll enjoy it more tomorow after a really good nights sleep.

Guess what? I saw a stick bug! I've never seen a stick bug before! The closest I've ever come is Bug's Life! They are funny looking things but cute.

Texas bound

Well I'm off to visit my godson for a week! Last summer I told his mom that if she would fly me down I would organize the then-to-be-purchased-house. So she's in her new place and still in boxes so I get to go help!

Talk to you all later. I'll try not to come back with a Texas drawl. =-)

Revised Christmas List

(Was books, cd's, etc.)

Bunk beds
2 twin mattresses for said bunk beds
2 twin size waterproof mattress covers
4 sets of gender-neutral bed-in-a-bags
2 pillows
chest of drawers
nightstand
bedside lamps
Toys for various ages and both genders
Kid's books
Four sets of bath towels and washcloths
Stuffed animals so each child can choose a new friend to keep
Outlet plug push-in safety thingys

Going forward

So I finally DID something.

I went to foster care parent orientation last night and actually started filling out the application.

I've really realized lately that I have this strong desire to work with kids and do service. Foster care seems a good way to start.

And I am so tired of all the messages - past and present - telling me I can't do it. I refuse to fail any longer because I didn't even try. Defeating myself through self-talk and inaction only drives me into despair and depression. Foster care may turn out to be the worst idea I've ever had - but it's my idea and I want to try. After all, if not me then who?

Pumpkin Virgin

So I participated in Halloween for the first time ever.

See, I grew up in a conservative Christian home. We did not do Halloween. It is the devil's holiday. And as a good Christian adult, I also eschewed everything Halloween and refused to answer the door even as the trick-or-treater's knocked.

So since I'm still in the whole lost-my-faith-still-figuring-out-what-I-believe phase, I decided to participate in Halloween.

Last weekend, I (and several young helpers) carved my very first pumpkin. That was fun! The girls picked out all the pumpkin seeds and a couple days later we roasted them - yummy!

I actually bought the pumpkin at a local attraction - the Maise. T (one of my young friends) and I spent 45 minutes wandering through the corn maze, took a hay ride into another corn field where they had stashed bunches of pumpkins among the corn stalks (yes, I am aware pumpkins do not grow in corn fields).

I bought Halloween candy (opened it three days early) and spent last night imitating a popcorn piece - jumping up from the couch to answer the door. Not as many trick-or-treaters as I had thought but still fun to see all the costumes.

I did not get dressed up - didn't even really think about it until Sunday. Maybe next year.

Still not into the scary, ghoulishness of Halloween and maybe I'll someday go back to seeing the day for the true evil it is...

In the meantime, I'll remember the fun of pumpkin carving and the smile on the kids faces as I gave them the candy. Can't believe I missed that for all these years