Just the 2 of us for New Year's Eve

Hey all you curious ones--no, he's not here yet!

He finally managed to get out of Des Moines yesterday morning and drove to Lincoln, where he met up with Brendan and Michelle for a pizza visit before driving on to Wichita, KS for the night. Tonight he's made it all the way to Hillsboro, NM (home of a close friend), which is about an hour north of Las Cruces. Tomorrow he'll be pulling in my driveway sometime around lunchtime or early afternoon, i imagine!

Meanwhile, i caught the cold--or the cold caught me--and i've been a sniffly mess for 2 days. I think the worst is over, and hopefully i'm no longer contagious! I do NOT want to start 2006 by passing a virus back and forth!

So, in case i don't check in before the end of the year--HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!

And if the house is rockin', don't bother knockin'--just GO AWAY!!!

The saga continues to continue

They found more stuff wrong with Chris' car once they got in to it....something about a pulley and a timing chain cover and he needs a new one but they might be able to fix the old one with a silicone patch. Or something like that.

Then they broke the water pump installing it.

But, ah-ha, the GOOD news is that the dealership is going to pay the aforementioned hefty tab to overnight a new one in. Tomorrow they'll start over again.

Meanwhile, Chris has a loaner car and is once again cozily holed up at a Motel 6 with a stunning view of the interstate he can't drive on. (sigh)

But, you know what? All is well. And tomorrow, my son is flying to Lincoln, so maybe Chris and Brendan and Michelle will all be able to get together with Michelle's family after all. That would be a nice side benefit from this otherwise pretty discouraging tale!


I did 3 massages today and am feeling the after-effects of way too much sugar for way too many days--my immune system is really compromised and i'm feeling a bit of a sore throat coming on. I'm going to plug a great product that has always worked to nip stuff like this in the bud....Futurebiotics is the label and Garlic, Echinacea & Goldenseal + is the name of the combination. 2 at night and 2 in the morning until symptoms are gone, and i haven't had a cold in a few years. IF i start taking this stuff asap that is.

Okey dokey ciao for now. Early bed for me tonight.

The saga continues

The bad news: It's the water pump.

The good news: The dealership "just happened" to have one in stock. It had been ordered for a customer who never showed up to have it installed. (Otherwise, it would have been a 10-day wait, or a big fat tab to overnight one.)


The bad news: Because it's a Saab, the repair's going to cost a pretty good bundle.

The good news: Because it's a Saab, the water pump ain't never gonna break again. (Are you listening, Howard?)


So, Chris is hanging around the Saab dealership in Des Moines. There's an ice storm and a lot of fog. He's gonna hook up his computer for awhile, so send him a howdy if you're so inclined. http://farmerinthcity.blogspot.com

Or just keep sending those rosy uplifting thoughts and prayers! Thanks....

Scratch that last post.....

The bad news: Chris is broke down in Des Moines.

The good news: Chris is broke down in Des Moines--instead of on the interstate!

He thought he missed a turn, so got off the road he was on and ended up in a Target parking lot, where he suddenly noticed smoke coming from under the hood of his new-to-him '95 Saab. He luckily knows a thing or two about cars, so was pretty sure it was the AC belt, which instead of being a separate belt he could cut, was one of those serpentine universal belts which runs everything at once--AC, water pump, power steering, etc. He figured a bearing somewhere was wearing on the belt, and decided to hang in Des Moines for the night, as he had just missed closing at the Saab dealership there.

Oh, yeah, some other good news is that Des Moines has a Saab dealership!

He just called from the Motel 6 parking lot, 2 blocks from where the belt finally broke. "I don't have power steering anymore," he announced. He'll call the dealership in the morning to see if it's safe to drive there without the belt, and we'll see tomorrow how the dice shake out on this little unexpected detour.

Well, the first part of Chris' Big Adventure is certainly adventurous so far!

Michelle, the wonder girlfriend, called me back just a minute ago and offered to drive out there from Lincoln if necessary--"it's only about 4 hours from here!" Chris had called her, and i did too, as she has her (local # for me) cell phone with her.

Wow. I'm so glad he stopped, or else he could have been stranded on the interstate with no options but a 75-mile towing bill on top of whatever the belt replacement will cost!

Counting the blessings!
:)

He's on his way.....

Omigod, the man is already in Iowa, heading for Lincoln, Nebraska for the night.

Strangely enough, my son's girlfriend (Michelle) is there right now, visiting family for Christmas, and she's asked Chris to come meet her family and stay the night! When Chris was here in September, the 4 of us had dinner together, so they have met once at least!

What is even stranger is that my son (Brendan) is flying to Lincoln on the 28th, so will just miss seeing Chris there.

Michelle and Brendan are doing the "meet the parents" thing all at once--he is flying to Lincoln, where he will meet her mother and stepfather and siblings; and then the 2 of them are headed to Atlanta to meet Brendan's father, stepmother, and very extended family members there!

It's so funny that her family is going to meet her boyfriend's mother's boyfriend before they ever meet her boyfriend....

Brendan initiated a lunch date with Michelle's dad last week; he lives in Tucson like i do. So i don't know if this is any indication of the seriousness of their relationship, but i sure do like her a lot. Kind of hoping it works out for them, but by now i know enough to keep most of my opinion to myself!

Send travelling angels to keep watch over Chris while he's on his way across the country, if you would. 'Preciate it!

"SNOW DAYS"

OK, everybody--go here, http://www.popularfront.com/snowdays/ and make a snowflake!

If you put the mouse on a falling flake, you'll see the details and where it's from. You can leave comments and also email them around. And, you can search for a particular flake if you like--check out #1811916 (the last one i made)!

Have a lotta fun with this! It's very habit-forming!

ciao for now!

HAPPY SOUL-STICE AND MERRY PEACEMAS!!!!

Amazing Peace: A Christmas Poem
By Dr. Maya Angelou


Thunder rumbles in the mountain passes
And lightning rattles the eaves of our houses.
Flood waters await us in our avenues.

Snow falls upon snow, falls upon snow to avalanche
Over unprotected villages.
The sky slips low and grey and threatening.

We question ourselves.
What have we done to so affront nature?
We worry God.
Are you there? Are you there really?
Does the covenant you made with us still hold?

Into this climate of fear and apprehension, Christmas enters,
Streaming lights of joy, ringing bells of hope
And singing carols of forgiveness high up in the bright air.
The world is encouraged to come away from rancor,
Come the way of friendship.

It is the Glad Season.
Thunder ebbs to silence and lightning sleeps quietly in the corner.
Flood waters recede into memory.
Snow becomes a yielding cushion to aid us
As we make our way to higher ground.

Hope is born again in the faces of children
It rides on the shoulders of our aged as they walk into their sunsets.
Hope spreads around the earth. Brightening all things,
Even hate which crouches breeding in dark corridors.

In our joy, we think we hear a whisper.
At first it is too soft. Then only half heard.
We listen carefully as it gathers strength.
We hear a sweetness.
The word is Peace.
It is loud now. It is louder.
Louder than the explosion of bombs.

We tremble at the sound. We are thrilled by its presence.
It is what we have hungered for.
Not just the absence of war. But, true Peace.
A harmony of spirit, a comfort of courtesies.
Security for our beloveds and their beloveds.

We clap hands and welcome the Peace of Christmas.
We beckon this good season to wait a while with us.
We, Baptist and Buddhist, Methodist and Muslim, say come.
Peace.
Come and fill us and our world with your majesty.
We, the Jew and the Jainist, the Catholic and the Confucian,
Implore you, to stay a while with us.
So we may learn by your shimmering light
How to look beyond complexion and see community.

It is Christmas time, a halting of hate time.

On this platform of peace, we can create a language
To translate ourselves to ourselves and to each other.

At this Holy Instant, we celebrate the Birth of Jesus Christ
Into the great religions of the world.
We jubilate the precious advent of trust.
We shout with glorious tongues at the coming of hope.
All the earth's tribes loosen their voices
To celebrate the promise of Peace.

We, Angels and Mortals, Believers and Non-Believers,
Look heavenward and speak the word aloud.
Peace. We look at our world and speak the word aloud.
Peace. We look at each other, then into ourselves
And we say without shyness or apology or hesitation.


Peace, My Brother.
Peace, My Sister.
Peace, My Soul.

purely joyful

wow, nothing like an early-morning romp with a young dog to get me in the mood to face the day!

it was quite chilly this morning on the riverbed. angus has grown bigger than i ever thought he'd get--must be the Puppy Chow!--and is as active as two or three of sun bear and myself combined. today i discovered a wonderful new game to wear his energy down a bit: i crouch behind a shrub, tree, or clump of tall weeds and call his name. he comes running, and at the last moment i jump out and make a growly noise at him.

his response is to run run run away and dash around madly in what i call the "puppy rush". it's funny to watch him veer and swerve around me, and i must look approximately like a beached manatee in comparison, lunging awkwardly and lumpily around this young quicksilvery pup. but it is great fun anyway, and sun bear gets to wander around, following her nose leisurely while angus is otherwise engaged. we all win, even any spectators, who must be quite amused at the scenario.

meanwhile, I'M GETTING NERVOUS about chris' impending arrival. not in a "this isn't going to work" kind of way, but more in a "this is a big big change" sort of way. and change, while often instructive, is just different from the same old thing (duh), which i've gotten pretty used to. To which i've gotten pretty used? Put that way, the phrase takes on a whole new meaning!

so i'm overeating nervously, not-cleaning the house, spending too much time playing solitare, and not-going to holiday parties. well, that last thing is fairly normal for me, hermitesse that i am--but 'tis the season, after all, and all that.

i may take myself to a pajama party tonight--that's only one of about 5 different fun concerts, dances, and parties going on in my immediate circle of friends. or i may once again stay home with the dogs--my little animal family (faminaly) and i.

have a wonderful weekend y'all!

happy birthday to meeeeeeee!

today was the day that, 49 years ago, i was born.

i was blessed with a day off, doing nothing but what i wanted. i chose a long walk with the dogs, followed by a surprise visit from my son with a gorgeous bouquet of my favorite flowers (stargazer lilies), lunch with a girlfriend, and then i visited a friend who is in a nursing home with multiple sclerosis (sp?) for awhile.

then i hosted at the women's sweat for an hour and then i sweat for about an hour. what a truly special day!

thank you all for the birthday wishes! i've got a good feeling about this next year, my last year before the big 5-0....and plan to follow through with that good feeling as much as i can!

i choose to participate in joy....

counting the days

well, as of today it is 18 days at the most until my sweet minnesota man pulls up in my driveway and shouts, "hi honey, i'm home!"

for some reason i am not yet going totally insane with housecleaning et al. if you recall from mid-september (his first visit and our first meeting), it took until the morning of his flight for me to get my ass in gear! (thank goodness, the man isn't picky about housecleaning. needless to say that could have been a deal-breaker!)

it's obvious that my son comes by his procrastinating tendencies very naturally.

i want to sort through all the dreck and extraneous crap in my house and live lighter, throw away the unnecessaries and clean out the closets. my hope is that chris and i will do this together. he has asked for a 'honey-do' list (can you believe this guy?) and i look forward to working with him on homey projects.

meanwhile, my life is quiet. i've had a dearth of private clients, so the dogs and i have been doing the winter thing of early bed, late rise (compared to the summertime wake-up of 5:30, 7:00 feels very late indeed!). it's not too cold, but the light is diminished. as the sun gives less and less light daily, i find myself turning inwards, staying homewards, reading, cooking, baking.

i am so ready to be with chris without conversation--or more precisely, with the sort of conversation conducted without words. the conversation of glances, smiles, twinkles, sly gestures, etc....the fabric of love, the rhythm of bondedness, the energy of growth together.

i left st. paul on 1 november. it has been 6 weeks since we last held each other, gazed into one another's eyes, kissed. it will be 2 and a half more weeks until we get to do any of those things again. my my, i never thought of myself as a patient person--but for the right thing, waiting is worth it.

Birth Month

Your Birth Month is December

You love life and exude an outgoing, cheerful vibe. Blessed with a great sense of humor, you can laugh at adversity. Your soul reflects: Celebration, success, and wealth Your gemstone: Blue Topaz Your flower: Narcissus Your colors: Indigo, green, and blue-green

What Does Your Birth Month Mean?

mostly better

thanks to all the well-wishers! the bath turned into a shower, and the tube time turned into getting in bed at 6:45 and sleeping for 12 hours. gotta say that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, cause if i'd gone to my EFT class last night from 7-9 i'm pretty sure i'd be laid out today. and today is a "makin' some bucks" day so you know i've got to show up for that.

it's been a really skinny couple of months around here, and i know i'm not the only one feeling it. i'm putting checks in the bank and writing checks on them immediately. hand to mouth survival, but for some reason i'm not freaking out. i'm just not doing anything except working and going home. no social spending, no day trips, no grocery shopping for the time being. "it is what it is, but it ain't what it's going to be." (timeless words of wisdom from my son's dad)

love and kisses and hugs to everyone, just 'cause you're awesome!

:)

oh my

headache, tummy troubles. not feeling too cool, think i'm going to spend the evening in a hot bath and then zone out in front of the tube.

GO GRATITUDE

The man i call my love will be here within the month....for some reason (fatalistic thinking?) i have more or less put his arrival out of my mind for the last month....maybe because it was so far away i didn't want to think about it.

Anyway, he IS real, and he IS coming, and he WILL be staying for a couple of months in the beautiful Arizona sunshine, with me and my dogs, in my little house.

I am thoroughly filled with immense gratitude for the opportunity to know and share and grow and dare with this man.

So here is an awesome flash movie about GRATITUDE and a chance to sign up for 42 daily emails about the subject. Each day i have been more blown away by the emails i'm getting. And if thoughts change reality, my reality is getting ready to levitate! (But, didn't i already say that Chris is on his way?)

:)

Please click for movie, www.givemethemasterkey.com

how do you live your life?

How You Life Your Life

You seem to be straight forward, but you keep a lot inside. You're laid back and chill, but sometimes you care too much about what others think. You prefer a variety of friends and tend to change friends quickly. Some of your past dreams have disappointed you, but you don't let it get you down.

How Do You Live Your Life?