Look at This!!!!

Mom and I were on our way to a Turner family picnic tonight - driving in her Caddy. She's a beautiful red caddy and mom keeps her spic and span. Until now...

We were driving over the hill when all of a sudden my dear, sweet seventy-something, extremely classy mother excitedly announces, "Oh look, I almost forgot to show you, a bird crapped a fish on my windshield!"




"OH. MY. GOD!"

"You know I can't wash my car now."

"Well, what if you forget and turn your windshield wipers on?"

"I'll have a little awning built for it. Or an umbrella."

"Nope, that won't work. You're going to have to get some of that clear packing tape and put over it and seal it real good around the edges."

"Ok, that'll work."

We then decided it was too bad the bird didn't crap The Virgin Mary or Mickey Mouse. Mom would be rich right now...

Dogtown...

Have you heard about this wonderful show on the National Geographic Channel? My neighbor has what I would consider a dream job working for them. They are the most wonderful animal organization and are located in the beautiful red rocks in southern Utah. This organization is called Best Friends Animal Sanctuary and they basically take the worst-of-the-worst animals that have little chance of finding homes and make them well and socially acceptable - which means adoptable. I've started watching (ok, I'm addicted to) their show on tv called "Dogtown" which is just about the dogs at the sanctuary. They believe that every animal can be rehabilitated and they even took the worst of Michael Vick's fighting pit bulls and spent many months working with them to make them adoptable. I'm so impressed with the work they do.

So far, I've found several horses, bunnies, cats, dogs, ferrets, and oh, a squirrel that really need to come live with us. One day, I want to make a trip down there to spend a week and volunteer.

This is a picture of Bonnie and Clyde. You can read their story here.


You can check out their website here! No more homeless pets!

Another Elmer Story...

Last night I woke from a sound sleep to an AWFUL smell. As Mr. Krabs says, "It was a smelly smell..."

DOG POOP!

Our Daisey is a wonderful goldendoodle. We love her. Evidently, she had to go during the night and we wouldn't wake up. She never goes in the house unless she just can't hold it any more. Well, evidently that's what happened last night.

3 am...
"Elmer! I smell dog poop!"

He groggily starts waking up. "What?"

"Dog poop! I think Daisy pooped!"

I jump out of bed and turn on the light. Yep, a big pile.

"OH crap that stinks!"

I run downstairs to get the carpet cleaner and when I return, I hear Elmer in the bathroom - throwing up. But - the dog poop is gone.

Now we all know that Elmer can skin a deer, an antelope, even a skunk and it doesn't bother him in the least. But dog poop - can't get near it.

"I can't believe you picked that up! How did you do it?????" I was so proud of him!

Still half asleep, he mumbles, "I sprayed aftershave in my mustache."



Oh dear God. While the smell of dog poop is horrendous at 3 am, having to smell aftershave right under your nose for the rest of the night somehow has to be worse. Elmer grabbed his pillows and mumbled he was going down to sleep on the couch. After about 5 minutes, the dog poop smell was gone. Somehow, I couldn't quit thinking about him laying down there with that smell of strong aftershave being sucked up his nose for the rest of the night.

I just wonder about the thought process that went into doing that. But then again, who else would have thought to do it?????

Twitter...

Ok, I shouldn't make fun of something which I know nothing about, but heck, you know me!

I listen to a lot of talk radio when I'm driving, I read several blogs and facebook, and I watch tv. Everybody is talking about Twitter. Now, from what I understand, you're supposed to "Tweet" in 140 charachters or less (or something like that) as often as you can throughout the day to let people know what you're doing. And, you're supposed to find a "flock" of followers - or actaully, they're more like stalkers. Everybody who's anybody is doing it.

Aston Kutcher, Britney Spears, Snoop Dog, Tina Fey, Sarah Palin, and yes, even our President Barak Obama "Twitter". Ok, I have to admit, it might be semi-interesting to see what the Pres has to say during the day, but really, do I care if Brit is "sitn at a rd lit on the crnr of rodeo dr watn 4 it 2 chng"? Do I really care if you've been "sitn at the dr ofice 4 hrs nd I wsh I cld chrg hm 4 makn me L8 4 wrk"?

Then, there's the biggest question - WHAT IF YOU'RE A MIME???? How does a mime twitter? I think it would be something like this -

...
...?
...!!!!!!
..., ...!!

So, when the end comes, and it will for all of us, will God ask us "So what have you done with your life?" and our answer will be "O, well, havn't u bn readng my tweets?"

This n' That...

No matter which way I drive home when I go "over the hill", I love the trip. Here are a few things I've seen in the last few weeks that remind me that Life is Good...














I had to stick these in here. Adam wants to do some rollerblading this summer. He couldn't have nice, safe rollerblades. He had to have "aggressive" blades. They have a half moon cutout in the middle so he can do rails and jumps and all that dangerous stuff. This was the first day he had them and getting used to them. I'd love to send him to one of those camps where they learn agressive skiing and rollerblading. He's got such a natural ability for the more "extreme" sports.


And then there's this...
He went over to help his buddy Jake, clear boulders off their 10-acre property today. Can you see where his socks and shorts were? I haven't checked the shower, it's probably clogged with mud.

The Other Side With Steve Godfrey...

You all know how I've wanted to find a "true" psychic for many years to try to communicate with dad. A few weeks ago, I was listening to "The Other Side" with Steve Godfrey, a radio psychic and decided that the next Saturday, I was going to call and see what he had to say.

I called the minute the show started and was one of the first in line. Naturally, I was put on hold and patiently waited my turn. After a few minutes on hold, a man came on the line and told me his first name. "Who is it that you're hoping to connect with tonight?"

"Well, if I tell you, then how will I know if Steve really connects with him?"

"Well, he's given me some questions to ask you to make sure he's got the right person."

I should have just hung up then, but in a way, I was also fascinated to see how this radio "psychic" worked.

He asked me quite a few questions such as "What's the significance of May 2? Who's anniversary is it? How did your father die?" and a few other questions that made me realize that I wasn't going to be talking to a physic at all.

After the screener put me on hold again, I waited a few more minutes until Steve put me on the air. He repeated all the same questions, except he didn't pose most as questions. It was more like "He's showing me May 2nd, who's anniversary is that?" When I answered his questions the same as the screeners with "I have no idea, that date doesn't mean anything that I know of" He would reply with "Well, write it down, you'll realize what I'm talking about." After a few responses from me of "I have no idea, that doesn't mean anything that I know of" he couldn't get me off the air fast enough. He ended with "Well, this is your dad's way of letting you know he's ok." BUH BYE!

One thing he did get right - and it WAS the only thing, was he asked me "Who's the truck driver?" Well, my brother is a truck driver, but at that point, I knew it was just pure luck.

Once again, I'm disappointed. I know that there are true psychics out there, but as I've known, most who claim to be are no more psychic than I am.

Someday, I'm going to find one of the true psychics, maybe then I can finally quit looking. But until then, it's been a fascinating journey!

Happy Mother's Day...

to some of the wonderful mom's in my family...

Deodorant, Could You Live Without It?

As I was going through my routine this morning I remembered a funny I had a few years ago. I went for months wondering what was going on. After having my first breast cancer surgery, I would shower and for some reason, I would use deodorant under my left arm and then when I went to use it under my right arm, it stopped working. I'd spray and spray and it just wasn't working. WTH! Now mind you, most people look in the mirror to put on their deodorant, but it wasn't a pretty sight. So, instead, I'd put on my shirt, then apply deodorant. Well, after a few months of this, I finally realized, I had no feeling under my right arm, so I had obviously been just caking on the spray deodorant under that arm, simply because I couldn't feel it being applied! Boy, did I feel stupid!

Then this morning, I remembered something I had been told when I discovered I had lymphodemia on my right arm. "Don't use any lotions, sunscreen, or deodorant. It can cause your arm to swell." The first year after chemo was an absolute blur, but I think I remember I actually tried not using deodorant for a while. I'm pretty sure I couldn't stand myself so I just decided it wasn't worth it.

Now really, could you/would you go without using deodorant? I think not...

Idaho Peace Officers' Memorial Ceremony...

It's time again for the annual Idaho Peace Officers' Memorial Ceremony. It's an opportunity to remember Idaho's law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty and to show support to those officers who continue to perform very dangerous duties in order to keep us safe. The service will be held this Friday, May 8th at 10am at 700 S Stratford Dr. in Meridian.

Feel free to bring your kids, it's a beautiful ceremony for the whole family. Hope to see you there...




photos courtesy of The Idaho Peace Officers' Memorial Website

So Unfortunate...

We had a very sad day here in Hidden Springs a few weeks ago. A neighbor two houses down from us died from breast cancer. They're a very private family and I didn't know them well other than they have four absolutely adorable kids. Two of the girls come to our house a few times a week and take our dogs for a walk. Their mother home-schooled them and they are just all-around sweet children.

The part I continue to struggle with is that she probably didn't have to die. Evidently, she knew quite a long time ago she was sick but chose not to go to see a doctor. I don't know if they just don't believe in doctors, if it's a religious thing, or something spiritual. I certainly don't want to judge them for their decision. But, I have to admit a part of me is angry. Angry because those four children now have no mother. The children lost someone who was their best friend, their teacher, and basically she was their life. It breaks my heart that at the age of 42, we lost a woman who probably could have been saved.

From what I've heard, she was sick for a very long time but none of us really knew. We've been taking meals to the family and someone has started a fund to pay funeral expenses and help with other expenses, but as neighbors, we couldn't save her. Could she have been saved if she had sought medical help? I can't help but think so...