Boise Police Citizens Police Academy...

I had signed up in February to take the Citizens Police Academy through Boise Police.  It was a big commitment, every Wednesday night from 6:30 - 9:30 from March the end of May.  I missed several classes when my son shared his cold with me that lasted 4 weeks but enjoyed every class I made it to.

One thing was driven home to me over these 3 months - I am definitely socially retarded.  I didn't use to be that way, and I know why I am now, but I don't like it.  Not one little bit.  I'm jealous when I see people standing around visiting with total strangers - or even people they know.  It pains me to think that I probably come off as "unfriendly."  Maybe I should get a t-shirt to tell people I'm not unfriendly but rather socially retarded. 

Maybe not.

However, the class was really good.  It was fascinating to tour the jail and learn about crime scene investigation.  I had always wanted to fingerprint a crime scene!  I enjoyed every minute of it.  The instructors were awesome and the officer who taught the class is married to a former Game Warden, now Boise City Motorcycle Officer.  It was enlightening and enjoyable.

There was one class which I found disturbing/fascinating.  Boise City has two officers who spend every day working on Internet safety/child porn.  They spoke about several local cases, including one from almost 20 years ago.  She was a young girl at the time (7) who had pictures taken and was abused by her father.  They talked about how these pictures taken 20 years ago, have been found in the "collections" of almost every person they have arrested on Internet porn charges since.  This girl, now 27, will have this horror follow her for the rest of her life.  It was something I had never thought about.  Knowing that we have 2 officers who do this job every day was eye opening.  They are both fathers and husbands - neither man was a religious zealot, but both told us that the only way they get through every day doing this job is through "faith."  They were impressive and I admire them.

I enjoyed the ride-along, even though it was boring.  Boise, thankfully, doesn't have that much crime.  There was a "loud party" call that we went to and I swear that there must have been 9 cars that also responded - it was a quiet night in Boise.  The officer I rode with turned out to be the son-in-law of an old friend from Garden Valley.  It was fun to talk to him about his job and see how much he enjoys it.

I wish everyone could take this class.  I'll probably now volunteer to do some Greenbelt patrol work.  I think I'd like that.  And I'll join the CPA Alumni Association which raises money to help buy equipment for the officers that the city can't afford to buy for them.

Oh, and did I mention that I got a coffee mug and t-shirt!

Pictures on My Camera...

 Setting up the motel...

Joe smoking a big doobee (don't look grama)...

and, the granddaughters.  Hip hop and ballet.

*Ahem...*

I have a birthday coming up and I want this...

http://www.etsy.com/listing/69723915/antique-egg-shipping-crate

Meridian Road Blog...

I'm always searching for new (old) and unusual things for our barnhouse once it's built.  Today I was searching for a chicken cage coffee table and up popped Meridian Road.  She lives in an old farmhouse, right here in Idaho.  In Meridian to be more specific.  I love her.  Here's her chicken cage coffee table

Isn't it wonderful?  I'm going to have to start some online searching.

She has some great ideas for decorating, many of which are just the style I want to use in our farmhouse.  Since most of my blogger friends are on some kind of year-long "vacation" or hiatus (yes, I'm speaking about my sisters here), I'm happy to have found another blog I love.

You can never have too many wonderful options for the new home can you?

Pack My Bags, or Pack My Shotgun...

You people know how much I love the "oddities" of life.  UFOs,  Bigfoot, ghosts, psychics, Armageddon - I'm sickly fascinated.  However, yesterday I was made aware of something that just floored me.  The Rapture 2011. 

If you too were unaware of this awful predicament that we seem to be in, you can read about it here.  Then, be sure to go to Youtube and do a search for Harold Camping - he's the one predicting the exact date of The Rapture.  He's also asking us to send him all of our money. I'm not sure what he needs it for since he'll probably be first in line to be "taken up" on Saturday but I went ahead and sent him all we have.  I'm sure he'll return it on Sunday if it turns out he was wrong.  He also says that those left here on earth after Saturday will be enjoying 3 months of torture until August 21 when the world will actually be blown into oblivion.

Yes, The Rapture is happening this Saturday.  Thursday and Friday I'm getting ready and hosting the Peace Officers' Memorial Ceremony in Meridian so I really only have today to get this post done.  Why didn't I find out about this earlier?

For those left behind there has been a "post rapture looting" event set up on Facebook - "When everyone is gone and God's not looking, we need to pick up some sweet stereo equipment and maybe some new furniture for the mansion we're going to squat in."


Now, I've never been one to believe in looting - it seems so heathen, but if the chosen ones aren't coming back, then it really isn't looting is it?   

Don't get me wrong, I have a God - however I don't think I fit the criteria that Harold Camping has set forth for those to be "taken up" on Saturday. 

I guess I'd better get my shopping list ready!  What stores will you be hitting and what will you be doing for the last 3 months of your life - assuming you won't be "taken up" on Saturday of course...

I Thought I Could Trust a Fireman...

Well, my friend Casey at All I'm Saying had a little contest where you had to tell her your favorite book and why.  I haven't had the time, nor gumption to read for many years so I mentioned that my favorite book was Give a Boy a Gun by Jack Olsen and write a few lines about why.  Well, I'll be darned but I won her contest and got a $10 gift certificate to buy a book. 

So now, I have to tell you a story.  A very sad story that I haven't admitted to anyone except my husband.  It makes me too sad, and I'm terribly ashamed.

After the trial, our family had the honor of meeting Jack Olsen.  He was a wonderful man and spent time with mom getting information for the book he was writing about "the incident."  I hate having to try to figure out what to call it when I talk about this.  I hate saying "dad's death" and I hate saying the killer/poacher's name, so I tend to say "the incident."  Anyone have any grand ideas on what to call this?  Anyway, our family became rather close to Jack, he was a wonderful man.  After the book was printed, we all went to dinner one night when Jack was in town - he lived on Bainbridge Island in Washington.  Jack had brought quite a few hardcover copies of his book for our family and Cheri's.  So we sat at dinner with Tim Nettleton, Jack, and all the other "key players."  We all signed Cheri's book, then mom's then mine, etc.  My book had personal words from everyone - I treasured it.  It was a night I'll always remember.  If we had ever had a fire, I knew exactly where that book was and it was one thing I would have taken out of the house.

So, this is what breaks my heart.  A few summers ago, we were going to cater the wedding of a "friend of a friend" and met with them about the menu.  He is a Boise firefighter and she was a 1st grade teacher and our friends had mentioned to him who dad was.  He started asking me about "the event" and I told him a little bit about it and said he should read the book Give a Boy a Gun.  He said he had always wanted to read it and so, being a Pogue (if you like something we have, we'll give it to you - it's genetic.  Dad was like that, we're all like that) I told him I would loan him the book.  I showed him all the signatures inside the front cover and told him how much the book meant to me.  I told him to be careful with it and return it after he was done reading it.  He promised he would.

Well, to make this long story short, I didn't get the book back.  I asked our mutual friends if they could try to get it back for me.  I was "friends" with his wife on Fb and had asked her several times if they could return the book.  Finally, our mutual friends found out and reported to us that their dog had chewed the back cover up.  I told her that I didn't care, I could take it to a book shop and probably get it repaired.  I told the wife on Fb that I had heard what had happened to the book but it didn't matter, I would get it fixed.

She would never reply.  So, I don't know if they threw the book away or what.  But my precious piece of history is gone.  I couldn't believe that a teacher and a fireman would do such a thing to me, but they did.  It's something I will always regret and have thought about it so many times.  I'm so ashamed that I loaned out something that was so special to me.

Jack Olsen died soon after.  He was a wonderful man and a great author.

I had always wished I had asked him for another signed copy before he died.  So, with the gift certificate, I found ONE copy of the book on the site and snatched it up.  The book has been out of print for many years.  I want my kids to read it someday.  So, thank you Casey, for the book.  Now, I'll think of you every time I see it - and it won't be loaned out.   

I learned a very valuable lesson...

We "Kind of" Got an Offer on The House...

Someone wanted to "lease with the option to buy."  They wanted to put $5,000 non-refundable down and pay $1,450/month to lease until they receive an inheritance.  They're already renting here in HS.  We thought this was a real possibility - until we sat down last night and really looked at how this would impact us.  We would lose our homeowner's exemption so our taxes would go up, we would still be responsible for the homeowners association dues and sewer up here, and we would have to find a place to rent that would cost us at least the same as they wanted to pay.

In other words, we wouldn't have been making a dime on the house, plus we'd still have the mortgage until they purchased outright.  Plus, if something else came on the market they liked better between now and then what would keep them from moving on?

It just wasn't the right thing to do.  Much as we desperately wanted to take the deal, it just wasn't right.  Had they wanted to put $15,000 down that would have been different, but $5,000 just wasn't enough to ensure our safety in the whole deal.

So, we wait.  I want to get horses sooooooo bad.  Every nice day I think how much I'd love to be out riding in these beautiful foothills.  I know the right thing will come along - hopefully soon!

In other news, Adam got home from the Envirothon in Challis yesterday.  He had a wonderful time and their team did the best of the 5 that went from Boise - and they were all first year students!  He had been so nervous thinking about giving a 5-minute presentation to a bunch of adults about the environment that wildlife depends on and how it's changed over the eons of time, but he did fine. 

What a Day...

Mother's Day.  We spent the morning at my daughter Jacki's house having breakfast with all the moms.  It was wonderful.  My son-in-law Tim, cooked us such a great breakfast and I love seeing Jacki's and Tim's other moms that I don't see very often.  It was a great morning.

I had noticed several days ago a soreness in my armpit on the side where I had breast cancer.  Then Saturday night the crook of that same arm was aching and red.  I have lymphodema in that arm, caused by having lymph nodes taken out, so I figured I had better wear my sleeve to make sure it didn't start swelling.  Any new swelling with lymphodema is permanent - and it can get really ugly.  I'm already self conscious about the size of my right arm and certainly don't want it to get any bigger.

When I got home from Jacki's my arm was aching like a bad toothache so I took my sleeve off to look at it.  I noticed it was bright red and hot to the touch.  That's all it took - it scared the hell out of me.  With lymphodema, a hangnail, small burn, or paper cut can cause a major infection which will be nothing but a problem.  So, I ran down to the doctor and she gave me an injection of a strong antibiotic and pills to take.  Thankfully, today the redness isn't near as bad, but it still aches and the crook of my arm is still red and hot.  I'm hoping that by the end of the day I'll feel more comfortable that the infection is going away.

Here's a picture of what lymphodema looks like - I didn't want to use a real picture as it's really ugly.

I was sad that my son was going to Skype me for Mother's Day from Iraq but this infection scared me enough that I knew I needed to get right to the doctor and there was only a small time frame that he could call.  I love him so much.  It meant the world to me to even know he had the time to call, he's been working terrible hours and hasn't had a single day off since he got there other than the small leave he had at home.  Hopefully I can talk to him soon. 

Hope you all had a wonderful Mother's Day.  I am so incredibly blessed to have my 3 children and my sisters and mother.  I love you all!

This, or That?

There's a new house being built in Hidden Springs on one of the few remaining lots.  I'm sure it's a build-job and not a spec home - after all, who else would want to live in a barn - besides us?  I love the outside.  We couldn't go in because the doors were locked, but I wasn't crazy about the floor plan after peeking through the windows.  The master was upstairs and the kitchen wasn't visible from the living room.  But, I love the outside.  But, I love "our" barn too. 

So this...

or that?

Which one do you like?

Some Realtors - Gotta Love 'Em...

Don't get me wrong.  I'm happy that we've been showing our house at least 3 times a week lately.  Traffic has definitely picked up since the weather has warmed and the sun has been shining.  There's just nothing about spring that doesn't make you want to go out and buy a new home.

Most realtors are really considerate.  I have one local Realtor and her husband who have showed the house several times that always try to give us ample warning.  Yet, I realize that's not always possible.  I am however, getting really tired of getting calls at work from my husband saying "Someone is showing the house this morning" so I have to leave work for a few minutes and run home and make the beds, tidy up, and put all the stuff on the kitchen counter into the oven.  Yes, my oven is usually packed tight with bread, cast iron pans, paper towels, and paperwork.  In fact, it stays in the oven now unless I'm baking something.  I don't like having anything on the counter - I want the kitchen to look bigger and that means - empty.

I think however, what is going to be the death of any "good" brains cells I may have had left after chemo is - the Realtors.  "We'll be there at 4" - and they show up at 2:15 - so I'm sneaking the cat litter box out the back way as they stand in my kitchen.  Or, I really like this one on a Saturday when everyone is home - "We'll be there sometime between 2 and 4:30."  WTH????  You can't narrow it down just a tad so we don't have to vacate the premises for 2 1/2 hours on a Saturday? 

Then, this one was my favorite.  I got a call at 7pm last Sunday night.  "I'm at the Merc with my clients and we wondered if we could come and see your house real quick."  You've got to be kidding me.  Ival was already laying in bed watching tv.  I hollered upstairs and told him to get his ass out of bed and help me pick up the house because I had talked the realtor into giving me 15 minutes to pick up.  He "hurried" up and managed to pick up his dirty clothes in the bedroom while I ran around the house like a madman putting shit in the oven, cupboards, and under couch cushions to hide everything.  I used to spend 3-4 hours on my hardwood floors before a showing - I don't do that anymore.

Unfortunately, we do actually live in this house.  AND, I have a teenager.  So, I just can't keep the house perfectly spotless unless I want to spend every waking second following everyone around to pick up after them.  Yet, I want my house to look as close to perfect as possible when someone comes to see it. 

I have learned one thing. If I'm ever in the market for a house again (and I won't be.  Elmer and I are firmly planting our butts on the property), I'm going to open the oven, look under couch cushions, under beds, behind pillows, and open all the cupboards in every house I look at, just to see what's there.  I think that would be fun.

Later today, I'm going to post some pictures of a new house that's being built up here in Hidden Springs.  It's freakin' awesome!