On the Bee-ach

Warm weather. Sunny. SAND. Walking the dog by the surf. Talking to Clammers. Then a woman with a GIANT Great Dane on a leash...the animal saw Isabelle and launched itself to the end of the leash. Jerking this poor woman off her feet and onto her back. We immediately ran to help, while the small horse was still jerking on the leash at the end of her wrist. The woman had strained her knee and hip falling. So we stayed with her. The clammers came to assist and then they waved down the emergency truck. The poor woman (Julie) was taken away. This monster of a dog must have weighed at LEAST 250 pounds of pure muscle. I had knelt and talked to the woman while Greg kept the dogs occupied. We had lattes & muffins on the beach for breakfast. A walk down the arcade and promenade for the afternoon. A nap in our room, lunch at the Clam Chowder shop-fish&chips; then fireworks and fire on the sand late tonight. Romantic. SO ReStFuL.

VaCaTiOn...Continued

8:30 Continental FULL Breakfast at Best Western 10:45 Jetboat tour for 2 hours in Portland, Oregon boarding at the OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science & Industry) touring the Willamette River. WOW. Water spin outs at 70KPH! 1:30 Travel to Vancouver/Major traffic jam over I-5/Fill with Gas at Walmart/Latte Stop 3;00 Finally arrive at Shawna's. Meet Shawna, Dani, & Kids 3:15 Greg walks Isabelle. Dog FINALLY pees after 2 1/2 days 4:30 Leave Shawna's home 7:00 Arrive Seaside, Oregon to stay at Ocean View Resort 7:15 Dog on sand. Instant peeing. We come to the conclusion she is part cat! 8:15 Rest in room for a while 9:15 Dinner at BOOGERS-Seafood Yes. I MET the Digi GODDESS! Dani Mogstad. I am in heaven. So nervous to talk to her, but she is just a regular person. Just as I imagined-Sweet, smiling, happy. Nervous to the Nth degree, I talked a mile a minute and didn't even TAKE PICS! doh! Met Lexi; Dani's daughter. She is even cuter in 3D than in Dani's LOs. Quietly running around, she reminded me very much of my own little girl so many years ago. I wanted to steal her! Yes. I wanted to steal ANY of those kids. Shawna has 3 wonderful little boys. You can see she is an awesome mother as the boys are so attuned to her. Their eyes are full of love for this mother of theirs. Toys galore and a play yard in the back that any child would envy. A cherry tree in the yard that bears fruit they were telling me about. Those kids were so gracious to a total stranger. Such a wonderful home and full of love. I missed meeting George by minutes as he was due home any time. :( Shawna showed me her design studio and I was so impressed with her extensive knowledge. I did bother her with a couple questions which she so nicely took time to answer. I suppose on the virtual world, I had imagined Shawna as taller than me. Well, this little girl packs quite a lot of talent into that bod! Probably sounding dumb...What DID she think of my statement..."You're shorter than I imagined!" SO Sorry Shawna. I was nervous and say dumb things like that. She laughed and said "My lack of height is a well kept secret around here." Such a sense of humor. Such a very short time to visit. I very much wish I could have stayed for hours with those kids. They were adorable. Dani=Thank you SO much for surprising me by coming over! Shawna=Thank you SO much for graciously having me to your home. Absolutely Wonderful Trip. So many Great memories.

The Resort at the Mountain (Mt Hood)

Reached Portland, OR. We stayed at a wonderful Resort...deluxe accommodations in the quiet woods. A long, leisurely dog walk around the groomed and manicured golf course. (NO, she did NOT go potty on the course- - She's a good dog.) The tastiest, most tender bacon wrapped filet mignon cooked perfectly sitting on au jus, with new potatoes...Pork cutlets with potato fingers and bourbon sauteed apples was had at The Tartan Inn. The theme of the resort was quaint highland Scottish accent. Our wonderful waiter, Josh along with Chris & Cody attended the table gave us a memorable dinner. A restful night, then on to the Alpine Slide...we won't discuss it. Not worth it. Internet advertising was misleading. Quite a disappointment. Then back to Portland to the Washington Park to tour the Rose Gardens. Truly a divine experience. I wasn't interested in obtaining the names of the flowers, only images of the blooms of world renown. Colors that defy explanation! We stay at the Best Western, anticipating our night at the concert! SHE WANTS REVENGE. Visiting friends, relatives, and a JetBoat ride tomorrow!

Wonderful World of Waterfalls

On our vacation, we stopped in Washington, just outside of Seattle in Snoqualamie. Staying overnight in the worst hotel ever...100 degrees, air conditioning broken, ice machine broken, and a room right on top of the highway... However, a benefit of this dreadful resort was the dread-lock winter snowboarder that stayed to work on into summer at the front desk, that told us of a trailhead with the most wonderful sight ever. After a one-mile hike into an ancient forest overgrown with moss, enormous downed cedars, and a dull thundering roar, we saw the following sight. I can only hope in vain that this photo encompasses the feelings that entered us as we stepped into view of this magnificient work of nature. An array of colors, sounds, and impressions that seldom has been beheld. The spray against our faces, the soggy mud in which we stood, and the feel of awe to behold a...WATERFALL.

Funniest Kid On The BLOK

Love reading the kid's blog. She is SO funny.

Better Red Than Dead

VaCaTiOn

Yippee! I'm on Vacation!

My Father

Father's day has come and gone. Thank goodness. There are people that suffer a loss of a father, in some way; But I was unlucky enough to have my father in my life... I was told from the time I was about 5 that my parents might die at any time as they were decidedly older when I was born. My father blessed me at that moment with an obsessive compulsion - fear of abandonment. Never showing for any school programs, never meeting any of my teachers, never holding me and comforting me if I got hurt, (he would always scream and yell at me if I did get injured), he always criticized EVERYTHING I did. I couldn't have the banana seat bike that I adored that was similar to my friends' upon which I learned how to ride. He told me I was going to have an adult size bike. Of course, when I first rode it, I fell and skinned my knee. Tore the flesh right off the top of my right knee and shredded my pants, blood gushing everywhere. Instead of racing over to help me, he instead started ranting-yelling and screaming abuse at me, picking up the bike and leaving me on the ground crying... When I was 10 years old, I was watering a tree that he ordered me to water. He came out yelling and scolding me that I was doing it "wrong" as I had concentrated the stream of water from the hose on the trunk at the base of the tree. He said I had to water the roots. So I directed the spray instead to the ground. Well, DUH. Don't tree roots start at the trunk of the tree? Constantly telling us as a family that we would go XXX place, or do XXX thing. But always breaking his word. Why did he ever tell us we were going to Hawaii if he had no intention of doing it? Why not wait to tell us after he bought tickets? Why tell us he was going to buy a pool table? For about 1 year we visited every store within the metro area, shopping for pool tables, only to NOT ever purchase one. Too many to describe are the times that he would say something rude, invasive or nasty. Asking questions that were totally personal and none of his business..."How much do you pay for electric every month?" "What do you get paid?" Obsessed about money. He adores starting arguments. I would sit back when my older brother came to visit and watch him do it, just to be hurtful. This is the kind of human being that probably tortured poor dogs at the end of a leash. When I graduated high school, I was TOLD I had to be a secretary like my sister....aka "The Devil". My sister is almost as big a bitch as the devil. God. Her own husband even refused to have sex with her. But I will rant on a blog about her at some later date. All through my marriage, he just walked into every home I own, like it was his own. Never taking the courtesy of once calling before they come to see if it is acceptable to visit. The last straw that broke this camel's back was when he attempted to tell me (again) what to do in relation to something that was private with my daughter. It was none of his business. He attempted for 44 years to dominate and control my life. Until I stood up to him and told him NO MORE. He could not tell me what to do after age 18. I refuse to talk to him now, and albeit, my mother also. Even though she has done nothing wrong, other than not to divorce a poisonous man like that. Immediately tossing into the garbage any letter I receive from him. I will also not write to my mother as she passes on anything to him. So I am cut off from her, too. She has let him dominate her for 70 years and you can tell that her health reflects her emotional pain. He is already an old man that has no friends. And he will probably live until he is 100 as his mother did before him. With no relatives that come to see him, no friends who visit. Just lying in a bed. Scared of death. He will get what he deserves. What brought these thoughts to the fore? I was watering my pine tree beside the house, right next to the deck. By directing the spray on the trunk. The tree that is 10 times healthier than any other on our property...the one that has grown 5 times faster than the others.

Bush! Get A CLUE...Here's A CLUE!

Those animals over there have families. Why doesn't our military get a CLUE...I can GIVE them a CLUE. They have families, stupid! Yes. I'm talking to you BUSH. and You General ass. Military intelligence by now SHOULD have some concept of who is participating in these groups. We have been over there long enough...to know these types of things. The animals that participate in these groups are NOT ORPHANS. And our military know exactly where their family members live. These family members are probably feeding them and supporting them. Let me ask you...How LONG can you live in the mountains on nothing? Where ARE they getting the money to buy guns and ammunition? Clothes? Food? So GO take their grandparents, their mothers, their fathers, their sisters, their brothers, their uncles, their aunts.... AND TORTURE THEM AND KILL THE FAMILY MEMBERS. I can bet you money that the animals in these groups are all of the male gender. I have heard no information of wherein women are participating. Because they don't think much of their women, do they? They don't think much of anything besides their animalistic behavior. Women don't kill. They get revenge. But it's not about religion, it's not about western influcence. THEY JUST HATE. If it wasn't hating this, it would be about hating some other thing. They have a disease and it needs to wiped out. This is not a career for them, it's not a job...They don't clock in at 8am and go home at 5pm; This is behavior at its lowest level. I've have had enough. This is bull crap. Give THIS mother a gun and I WILL GO SHOOT ME SOME ANIMALS. I won't shoot to kill, I'll shoot to maim. Maim their Brains. Let them live as slobbering vegetables. If they are going to kill our US troops, then they have no rights. Where is the bomb we are going to drop on them? Get this crap over with. For goodness sake Bush, show some balls!

Movie? What Movie?

There is NO movie on earth worth $8.50 to go see it. That is entirely INSANE. The movie theater raised it rates. Wow. I get to sit in a seat beside smelly people, listening to them gossip, play on their cell phones, and see a small screen movie. Nope. Ain't gonna happen. We bellied up tonight to see "Nacho Libre" with Jack Black - - don't bother. It's not even worth $2.50. Disjointed, choppy, and unabsorbing, the humor falls short of anything I would have expected from Jack Black or director Jared Hess (of Napoleon Dynamite fame). So when the cashier demanded $17, I was shocked. Almost $20 for two of us to see a movie. Without yet buying popcorn, pop, or candy. Also...foot high letters on the doors alerted us that "NO OUTSIDE DRINKS OR FOOD ALLOWED" yeah. right. So hubby wanted popcorn. Another $4.50 for a SMALL bag of popcorn. Cheapskates. Whatever happened to popcorn containers that didn't collapse in your hand when you shared? Then when we were finally seated in the theater, we endured 15 minutes of COMMERCIALS. Yes. Commercials. As in...Cola advertisements, Cell Phone Service advertisements, and Automotive advertisements. Like real 3 minute commercials. Then another 15 minutes of coming features...and they were all CARTOONS. Don't they have real people acting in movies anymore? And last but not least...Nope. Not the movie...a REVIEW of the the 15 minutes of commercials & previews that we just watched. 35 minutes and we have yet to see the movie we paid to see! No more. So from now on...it is Pay Per View on Satellite. Another thing we discussed...why do movie theater cashiers have more security (behind a window with a little circular metal microphone) than do any grocery store, inside bank teller, or 7-11? Is somebody going to pull a weapon and demand to see the movie without paying?

Guess Who's Son In Law Got To Re-Fuel AF1?

Yep. Mine!

tired

Massive rain tonight. No internet today. Worked on scrap LOs. Cold. Washed clothes. Very tired. Made dinner for hubby. Exhausted.

Yep, I really do Like this one!

Most of my digital LOs I like. Some I really love. This one was fun. I really like this one. Really. And while I was doing it, there was a FLY buzzing around me.

Jello Salad

Sorry. Wednesday, I indulged my love of fonts and spent all day looking at different font sites on the net. Surfing. Today was making Jello day. For Jello salad. And homemade blueberry mini muffin day. The hubby calls in the midst of this. Answering machine picks up...Conversation as follows: HIM-"Hi, It's me. Pick up." Running to pick up phone b4 he hangs up. Balancing the phone on my shoulder while holding boiling hot water in a pan... ME-"Yes? What do you want? I'm making jello for you." Silence. ME-"Hurry Up" More SILENCE. ME-"You forgot what you called for, didn't you?" HIM-"Dang IT!" Dialtone. I found this unusual site. It has motivated and challenged me to create an altered scrap page.DigitalArtQuirks I REALLY like different stuff like this. This site I found LloydFonts when surfing for Fonts-these are ALL FREE Fonts. I have had the heaters on here all day. Still wearing jeans and sweatshirts. I believe there is also still snow on the mountains.

1 B M

1 Bad Movie=The BreakUp starring Vince Vaughn and Jennifer Aniston; two wonderful performers showcased in a horrible movie about fighting, arguing, and splitting. Not a happy ending, either... Tanning is coming well. I am becoming quite brown for our vacation. Greg needs to rent a vehicle for our trip. Preferrably b4 the last day that we leave...June 23. I will be taking my laptop computer with me to record info, pictures, and blog. Monday nite Peas chat was not full- Only about 8 in there tonight. I got a nice compliment from the skinny, young girl (Mandy) at my tanning salon. She said I looked very good, like I was 1/2 the person I was b4. Then I thought...was she saying I was extremely FAT b4? Hmmm. All I have done is start exercising. Hubby says my silhouette is changing. Into What? A rabbit?

If It Weren't For Bad Luck

It was near perfect. We had welcomed into our midst an awesome predator willing to eat lots of vicious, vermin squirrels. However it was not to be. The highway took care of that. The fish & game officer made a visit early this morning to pick up our little HAWK. Determining that she was maybe less than a year old, he told the hubby that the parents will bring the offspring to the area where they were born and leave them with an established hunting ground. The parents then go on to find other pastures as they are more experienced. How sweet. Searching the woods, she was huddled under a pine tree seeking shelter from the rain not far from where we had first spotted her last night. Approaching her calmly, he gently tossed his coat over her head and picking her up tenderly, he turned her on her back to carry her to his truck. He will take x-rays, but made a preliminary diagnosis that her leg was severely broken and she might have to be “put down”. If she can be medically treated and returned to health, he will release her in this area. Good luck, little HAWK. Dream of huge, slow squirrels and fat, dumb mice. Get better soon and come back to us!

Bad Things Happen to Good Birds

While working in my library on the computer, hubby was taking a short nap right after work. I heard the unmistakable noise of a sudden impact on the highway. My heart stops everytime anything unusual is heard from there. The vehicle had been a semi as I recognized the sound of air-brakes and tires squeal as they were locked. The smell of burnt rubber wafted around in the early evening breeze. Immediately verifying that OUR dog was curled up on her dog bed...I proceeded to run out to the road. But the semi had apparently taken off and I saw no accident. Assuming that a deer, or moose had mistakenly crossed the road, the wildlife was now long gone deep into the woods. Deciding to make a quick 10 minute trip into our little berg to pick up milk, hubby had gotten the dog to wake up and go outside in preparation for coming with us on our little jaunt. However, Isabelle decided to go romping into the woods-which is definitely NOT like her. Greg had her beside him ready to jump into the Bronco, he looked down and she had disappeared. After locking up inside, I soon followed them out and Greg suggested we walk out towards the woods to see what she was now barking about. Obviously the near miss had actually been a hit as we arrived on the scene to find our HAWK...limping along and endeavouring to get away from the dog. Immediately calling 9-1-1 for the local State Wildlife info...we were advised to leave the animal alone as it would probably be in shock. A wildlife officer would stop tomorrow morning (Saturday) to verify its condition and evaluate taking it to a shelter. We believe it might be a female as we heard a young hawk, but could not locate it. Maybe more info in the morning if a wildlife officer does show up!

A Most Amazing Thing

Izzy was barking violently. I peeked out from the bedroom window upstairs and told her to be quiet. I noticed that she was looking off into the woods and would not cease her racket. Proceeding downstairs and out onto the deck, I perused the area and did not notice anything. Then while I yelled at her to get her butt inside and shut up...she hung her head as if I had beaten her severely. As I swung around to shut the door behind us...I again looked once more out towards where she had been aimed "on point"...and noticed that the log out on the hubby's burn pile was a little bit taller than it had been. In fact...the log seemed to move. I froze; my brain needed a second to actually comprehend was I was seeing...Today had been somewhat cloudy and the sun was not shining, so I didn't get an adequate look when Izzy had been barking. So I quickly grabbed the camera, opened it and the film card was still in the computer! Running to get the film card, loading it quickly and by now my hands were shaking SO much that I almost dropped the camera. I attempted to hold a position, but the dog was again barking. I was yelling at her to shut up so she would not scare anything. And I was STILL shaking. Snapping away, taking totally blurry pictures! Remembering my brand new tripod just inside the door, I grabbed it and wasted precious seconds attempting to secure the camera to the apparatus. Then adjusting the focus, I tried to get as many shots as possible. The dog kept advancing towards the pile of logs until with a great "WOOF", she scared it away. I will scrap the pictures of it later, but share one with you now... HAWK

Mega Kit's Almost Here

You must be a subscriber to get the June 2006 NDISB Mega Kit for Free It will be released any time now. Aren't you just quivering with the suspense? This layout was made with the kit. Go. Sign Up Now. Just because I said so. Go here - - > http://www.ndisb.com

Hate Cleaning

The dust & pollen has been so bad here lately this spring that if I dust in the morning, it is back by the afternoon. So I think...Why bother? Lawn mower man came Friday and took care of everything besides the areas he can't reach in the woods, then hubby mowed around the house last night. Looks much better. But it still needs the weed eater in places. A friend recommended a very strong weed killer last year that as yards manager of the local amusement park he used. Told us that it REALLY killed the weeds...yah. right. Our weeds must be stronger than those weeds because my weeds are back this year in the same areas that I DUMPED a ton of toxic chemicals on. It has been over 2 weeks and the areas on my ankles have still not healed from the chiggers that I got when I walked in the unmown grass...never had this problem in past years. Worked all day yesterday on CT layouts; and while Greg mowed, I vacuumed and dusted the house last night. The weather has been nicer, and Isabelle has been going out on the deck to nap. Debbie at the latte stand told us that when she drives by our home early in the mornings...she sees a big bull moose. We saw those 3 at the end of winter...and we have seen deer lately. Already made 1 LO and got it posted... Think I will make jello salad for hubby this afternoon.

1st CT LO

That's..."first creative team layout" in layman's terms...for NATURAL DESIGNS IN SCRAPBOOKING

These Are A Few Of My Favorite Things

I got to do 3 things this weekend that make me happy.

1/Spent time with Greg & Isabelle

2/Baked & Cooked

3/Had hot monkey Sex

-made more pea salad (hubby just INHALES this stuff)-secret ingredient-sun dried tomatoes!; -Lima Bean Soup (new recipe);

-cherry chip cake with cream cheese frosting;

-cooked 2 lbs bacon for breakfast sandwiches;

-made jello salad;

-baked weiner winks *Isabelle's Favorite

Victoria's Secret Breasts

Yep, it's true. Those BOOBS are really NOT that big!

Enhancement and deception are the names of the game!

But...whoo hoo! Victoria! Ya just GoTtA find another developer for your catalog that knows HOW to digitally enhance correctly and proofs the catalog b4 sending it out to millions of customers...

Yet another Victoria's Secret catalog came in the mail today.

The hubby and I avidly tear through each catalogue received almost daily in the mail to point out the imperfections. It's become somewhat of a competition to spot the flaws!

We have discovered uncovered tattoos that exist on one page and disappear on the next page...breasts that mysteriously look like 66DDDs on one page, and on the next page the same model is flat as a board.

Laughing our way thru looking at bosoms that are hugely saggy on one side and perky on the other side...we cringe at the straight crops on crotch shots-no camel toes there! And moan at the cropping of thighs, calves, & underarms; Gasping at the stretch of the models' legs. HOW can a woman have 6 foot legs?

We have seen tans that are the shade of a pimento or an orange...and tans darker than those advertise in old St. Tropez ads!

These models are hired for their extreme height and thinness as the clothes hang better, to be displayed to the fullest advantage; but then the layouts are digitally enhanced to such extremes of ridiculousness.

When we get our catalogue in the mail, it's better than going to a comedy show!

Smeg Heads

Dave Lister, Arnold Rimmer, Cat, Kryten, & Holly It’s cold outside, there’s no kind of atmosphere, I’m all along, more or less. Let me fly, far away from here, Fun, fun, fun, in the sun, sun, sun. I want to lie, shipwrecked and comatose, Drinking fresh mango juice. Goldfish shoals, nibbling at my toes, Fun, fun, fun, in the sun, sun, sun, Fun, fun, fun, in the sun, sun, sun. I’ll pack my bags, and head into hyperspace, Velocity at time-warp speed. Spend my days in ultraviolet rays, Fun, fun, fun, in the sun, sun, sun. We’ll lock on course, straight through the universe, You and me, and the galaxy. Reach the stage, hyperdrive’s engaged, Fun, fun, fun, in the sun, sun, sun, Fun, fun, fun, in the sun, sun, sun.

I KNOW My Daughter

Just recently I read in the news of a horrific accident that occurred in Indianapolis. It killed 5 people and critically injured a young woman. There was a mix-up of identification and the girl that had originally survived the accident was in a coma for over a month. After reviving from the coma, the parents indicated that they thought it was not their daughter; the coroner had misidentified the bodies and their daughter had died. This was a totally different girl; the girls sharing a distinctive blonde color of their hair. Now, I don’t like to judge, but I would like to hope that even after a few hours in the hospital and my daughter was extensively injured- face swollen, broken bones, and swathed in bandages that I would recognize my own child. She was with me (us) everyday for 18 years; I carried her for 8 months; She has a VERY individualistic hair coloring; I would even recognize her SMELL. Not that she has an offensive smell, I believe it is just something subconcious mothers associate with their children. My daughter also has tattoos now that would be identifiable; She has a scar that I would recognize from when she fell off a friend’s playground equipment; She has a beautiful birthmark on the back of one leg. Did these people actually begin to know that this was not their daughter, but an underlying desire for their daughter to NOT be dead would make them deny that acknowledgment? My heart grieves for them. My spirit rejoices for the other family that had their daughter restored to them when they thought her dead. Very damp and dreary Memorial Day weekend; we took the dog to Bayview to walk around. Lots of improvements there as it has been bought by a conglomerate. Wow. Maybe an infusion of a massive amount of money will transform the small burg on the edge of the water. In the kitchen I prepared home made spice cake with cherries (the darling husband LOVES cherries); angel food cake, and weiner winks.