PART ONE
Good thing I have 340 some odd days left to work on my New Years Resolutions…not off to a real good start here folks. I do hope that is not an omen.
It’s been forever since I have even visited my website….(no wonder my stats have remained at zero!!!) I am quite sure you are all sitting on pins and needles wondering what the heck I’ve been up to! How exciting this must be for you!
The Holidays were nice, my son made it in from Phoenix for both Christmas and the New Year. Although he drove home for a few days in between to work, he left my grand-doggers, Daisee and Lilee with me for the entire 2 weeks. Who knew 2 little shih tzu’s could be so much work fun!!!
As I said in my previous post, I ended up sick right after Christmas…and still do not feel good. My throat and ears feel better but the flu-like-feeling and eczema remain. I went to the Doctor’s which was a huge waste of time. “It’s allergies.” My Doctor of over 4o years passed away in October and I hate his replacement(s). Allergies is their diagnosis for everything. I am grateful to be past my child bearing years, as I would probably receive cortisone meds. vs. prenatal vitamins for 9 months. Now that I think about it…I have had that lingering flu-like-feeling! (I’m kidding mom!!!) The eczema has now spread to my temples, forehead and upper cheeks. My poor little nightstand is over flowing with maybe this will help remedies. The usual old people pills, Benadryl for itching (and allergies!), my bottle of Sarna lotion, ice-packs for itching and swelling. I have my bars of soap for my jimmy legs (my new word for restless leg) Oh…oh…oh, that reminds me, I must share this. I have sworn by this method for jimmy legs for months…and I still do but if I wasn’t miserable enough, my soap failed me the last few nights. Personally I think I just need new, fresh soap as mine has probably lost it’s ummmph. But check this out…I also have Vicks in my nightstand stash. Why? It helps with the jimmy leg too! I swear, if all else fails rub ‘er down with Vicks. Last but not least stands 1 shot glass and a bottle of Goldschlager, in case all else fails. No, I’m not kidding and yes, it’s hell getting old!!
Speaking of Goldschlager. I did manage a night out last weekend! I went to my nephews birthday party and because I am late for everything, I arrived just about time for the adult festivities. I managed to jump in the jumpy house for a little while. It was exhausting but fun. I’m glad to know I still have bladder control. They say to be very careful in those things once you get old. Although I looked like hell (hence my allergies) it was a lot of fun. My sister and I can both be quite the diva’s when given center stage, so I apologize to all the kids and fellow adults for not letting anyone else have a turn at karaoke. And to my sister I apologize for being the one that had to pick all the songs!
I am very proud to announce that a very good friend of mine, Phil Perry was invited to perform at The Africa and International Friends Inaugural Ball
He is an incredible artist please take a moment to check him out….you will be a fan for life!!
I added some low lights to my hair last week…to kind of break up my regrowth. I usually do highlights but thought I would try something different for the winter. I learned it is very, very important to have a firm grip of the color bottle before squeezing. If it happens to slip out of you hangs while you are in the squeeze process, your walls, mirror, etc…might end up matching your hair color…in splat like effects. Just a courteous F.Y.I.
My “allergy” meds are kicking in now…I will have to continue my update tomorrow. Time to cover my face with ice packs, vicks down my jimmy legs and if needed fill up my shot glass! Til tomorrow….

(EDIT: Believe it or not I have more excitement for you!!!)

I have been sick since Christmas. Along with all my gifts, I received earaches, sore throat, body aches, queasy tummy, fatigue and a full blown case of eczema! I am one lucky gal!! I went to the Doctor yesterday and will see another tomorrow. I am hoping to receive…at the most a little energy and a few pills to pop!!! So for the next day or so, I will leave you with a few of my New Years Resolutions!! Do you have any? What are they? Do you think you can follow through with them?

I received this in an email a few days ago and just got a chance to watch it. It literally sent chills down my spine, and my eyes welled up with tears. Watch how the power of one song can connect people from all around the world.
For his documentary “Playing or Change: Peace Through Music,”
filmmaker Mark Johnson traveled through four continents and
recorded various musicians–some from unexpected quarters–
playing “Stand By Me.”

Each musician was charged with layering a single song
over the previous artist thus building upon it. Over thirty
musicians globally participated in this project and not one
artist knew the other or came in contact initially.

F.Y.I., there is a Santa!
A little over a month ago I befriended a cat (well actually many, this one in particular.) My first instinct was to snatch it up, hide it in my jacket and smuggle it home. Then it donned on me, it might actually belong to someone. I stalked visited this little fella everyday, trying to gain it’s trust so I could at least pet it’s luscious coat of fur. It was almost always in the same place leading me to believe it probably did have a home. After a little investigating, I was totally crushed learning it was in fact someone’s pet but happy to know it had a loving home. Every time I saw him I would come home and announce how much I wanted this cutie!
Fast forward a month, I continue to visit my ‘friend’ and am able to now pet and hold him. A few nights ago I had been out for my nightly walk and visit. Every time I walked away, my little friend insisted on following me. After about the 10th time I scooped him up and knocked on his owners door, explained what was going on and handed him back to them. They were very grateful, they were also very shocked that I was holding him….this was not a common occurrence. I explained my love of Persians and how I had one at home. The conversation became quite lengthy but to make a long story short, they let me know they were moving. My heart sunk as I knew how much I would miss my little friend. They went on to say they were moving to a smaller place and didn’t know if they would be able to take both their dog and the cat. The lady said she was torn and her heart was broken….his name is Oliver….I still can’t believe he let you pick him up… If you are interested, you may make this decision easier for us. “It is obvious you have built a bond with Oliver, at this point I really don’t think we can take him with us. Would you be interested in giving him a home….it would make this so much easier knowing he would be loved and I can see he already is” My heart sank even more. Keep your composure Heidi or they may change their mind! “Of..ab..we..I would love to!” We talked a bit longer and I told her to think about it and I would get back to them in a few days to find out their decision. She agreed but left me with, “I think we have.”
Without further adieu, meet Oliver….the cat I might, almost for sure get!

*click on the image for a closer look at my new cat, Oliver
Of course I will keep you updated!!!

So my son bought a new car a few months ago. Well, at 21 you CANNOT have a new car without G.P.S. It annoys the heck out of me. I call her Belle and she has absolutely no personality. How did we, ‘in the olden days’ ever find our way around? (barefoot in the snow)

You spend a small fortune for an emotionless voice to tell you where to go, not to mention that by the time you enter all the information for Belle to process, you could be half way to your destination. Part of me wants to “be hip” so I designed my own device. H.I.P. Heidi’s Ingenious Plan
It’s cheap.
It’s user friendly.
It’s portable, transfer it between your cars in seconds!

How does it work you ask?
You simply attach it (with velcro) to your dashboard facing towards you. It is at eye level, you will never lose your signal, etc…
So now you have made it to your destination but how do you find your way home?

You simply detach from the velcro, flip it upside down and WALA!

Do you have a compact car? Would you like something a little more portable? Relax, you too can still be H.I.P.! Here’s how: Now that’s H.I.P.

____________

WoW!! What a great idea, the ‘mini H.I.P.’ is born. Thanks for sharing!!

Mom, don’t be so hard on yourself, this is a common question. Since they are so young, I would start out with the ‘mini H.I.P.’

Ummm…no. *blushing*

Forever Greatful, I find myself weeping at such a beautiful story. Thank you for sharing!!!!

No honey, I don’t. Feel free to start one though!!!

I originally sat down to take a break from cleaning, my cat was sleeping and I didn’t want to wake her with the vacuum. I have since taken a nice hot shower, put my p.j.’s on, climbed into bed and watched the season finale of one of my favorite shows, Dr. Drew’s Rehab. I will vacuum tomorrow. As much of a princess my cat is, she doesn’t usually have that much pull in the household. Poor thing has a bladder infection and has been miserable all day, her sleeping meant a break from her meooowwwing. Hopefully the meds will kick in by tomorrow and we will all feel better! She now lay at my feet snoring…I can’t win.

So my apartment complex decided to replace all the toilets with “high efficiency, dual flush toilets” to conserve water. Great idea…I can get past the fact it’s not a real homey feeling toilet, it has more of that hotel/restaurant feel, but how do you use the damn thing? I had to go online to learn what button to push and when…wtf? Honest to God, they actually have how to and video tutorials for this thing. I did my research. There is the button on the left which is the 0.8 gallon volume, the one on the right, 1.6 gallon volume. Typically, 4 out of 5 flushes will be your left button (0.8 g.v) which in the long run saves 1,000′s of gallons of water. I guess the button on the right is as per needed.

I had a nice conversation with my ‘older’ sister today, she lives in Seattle and with so much going on (she is a grandma now you know) lately, we haven’t had much time to chit-chat.
“Hi…how are you???”
“O.k., I hurt my back and shoulder”
“How did you do that?”
“Slip in the snow?”
“No”
“Ice?”
“No…I’ve done that before, I’m really careful now!”
“So what happened?”
“Well I just came in (from the snow and ice) and went to sit down and missed the chair”
Doggone if I didn’t choke on that .99 cent doughnut I just got at 7-11
“So how are you?” (that would be me)
“O.k., I hurt my hip”
“How did you do that?”
“Fall?”
“Nope”
“Slip?”
“Oh no” I continue. “I was really excited that I was able to get back into one of my favorite pants again. I thought it would be cute to get a picture of me doing the yippee jump”
“The yippee jump?”
“Yeah where you jump up and bend your legs up to one side and go yippee”
“Ohhh…”
“Well I didn’t think my yippee jump was high enough”
“Uh-huh”
“So I tried to do it jumping off my bed, I didn’t land so well.”
After a brief moment of silence we died laughing. At 48, she should know better than to not know where she’s sitting. At 45, I should probably not be jumping off beds trying to perfect the yippee jump. Mom…you’ve got to be bloody well proud!!
It’s now well past my bed time. I think I’m going to make a quick trip to the restroom first. Now that I know what buttons to push, I kinda just want to test it. Otherwise, (I can’t resist) all that knowledge will just go down the drain!!