Saturday, January 31, 2009

Hittin' Balls with my sweetie!

Another Sunny Day!

Lois and I did a little shopping yesterday and
had a little lunch. It was so beautiful out I
hated to be inside so when I got back and saw
Gary out on the porch laying in the sun with a
beer, I joined him! :)

Sort of just hung out last night and chatted it
up with Gary's dad & Lois. We dined on ribs at
the house (yum!) and sat around solving the
world's problems! ;)

Kind of an early night but it was a really
wonderful day.

We are all checked in for our flight tonight
and will get in kinda late.

This trip went pretty fast but I guess short
ones do.

Next we hit Mexico for about 11 days, that should
feel like a month!

Friday, January 30, 2009

Sunny Arizona!

Wow! I guess I didn't realize how much I
really miss the warm weather. I mean, I
know that it's cold in Minnesota but it's
also January and it's supposed to be cold.
We ordinarily set our warmth radar for the
end of February and just look forward to
Mexico. We've come to Arizona in January
in years past but it never seems to be quite
this nice. 70s. Indeed, nice! Oh, and not
a cloud in the sky so that's always remarkable
too...it' so beautiful.

I'll back up a few days to Tuesday, the day
before we flew down only because I think
it's worth it to explain that I worked a 12
hour day to make it possible for me to join
Gary on this trip. Then we were up until
about 11 or 12, set the alarm for 4, caught
the airport shuttle from the (my) Hilton over
to the HHH terminal, breezed through security,
hopped in seats 8 C & D for our 6am flight,
landed around 9:20 AZ time and then got an
early check in to our hotel, walked over to
the golf tournament, and proceeded to walk
the course for the next 4 hours! All the while
imbibing in the occasional beer ;)

At around 4 we ventured over to the infamous
Birds Nest, a giant tent with live music, food
and libations galore! We ran into some friends
that live down here (Tony Schindler) and a
couple that gave me her wrist band and lanyard
to access the VIP area (nicer bathrooms, free
fabulous food and drinks)...well, I'm worth it!
We the took a cab to the "Tilted Kilt" and had...
shocker....PIZZA!!! back to the room around 11.

Need I say that this was a very long day and
it's quite possible that I was "over served"!~

Um, yea, we slept in on Thursday and then drove
to Surprise and settled in to the cutest casita
on the planet! Owned by a couple from Oregon.
Donny & Cory live here full time now. Cory has
impeccable taste and a flare for fun. The casita
is just darling...a beachy theme.

Breakfast with Dean and Lois this morning and
now off to hit some balls and get in the warm sun.

More later....

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

CRAZY DAY!

Much to do before one heads out of town.
Rendering the get away a necessity by the
time in finally arrives!
I think sunny and 70 sounds mighty nice.
It'll be worth the craziness today.

I'm going to miss Boo horribly! :(

We'll get up at like 4 am (and oddly, some
of my SoCal friends finally make it to bed
about then) and catch a super early flight
so that we can have the whole day in Scottsdale
at the FBR golf tournament!

I'll be detached from my camera as I will
be leaving it at home but I will have my
phone which takes pretty nice photos and
we will also have our Canon 1100.

I wanted to share a shot of the bar area
that Nicki painted for us...she's amazingly
talented and I'm so proud to have her as
a sister (in law)! :)



We're almost done! Measured for carpet, wood
floor is all in and all the painting is
complete. It looks so amazing! So different!
Our annual Final Four party will be the
unveiling! Carpet, fixtures and new furniture
will finish off the transformation!
I'll flip it when it's all done!

Have a fabulous Tuesday! :)

Monday, January 26, 2009

St. Paul Winter Carnival 2009

Gary and I went into St. Paul on Friday
to meet some friends at the Gopher Bar for
a Coney. I brought my camera along to hopefully
capture some of the sculptors working on their
entries in the Ice Carving Contest. I was in
luck! They were all finishing up, it was
FREEZING, of course, but Gary obliged me by
dropping me off for a bit so I could get a
few shots. I don't know when the winners are
selected but I enjoyed getting them in action.











Then it was off to the Gopher Bar to warm up
with a Coney Dog! This is a spot in which Gary
and his friends meet once a month so I thought
I'd tag along for the experience. I'm told that
the Gopher Bar is steeped in tradition and I
was able to soak it all in first hand.





It was 12:30 and packed with folks from all walks
of life. George, his wife and his staff cater to,
and supports heavily, the military, Gopher Hockey
and the Vulcans of St. Paul. This was no ordinary
"lunch spot" for sure!





It started with a shot of whiskey (to my surprise,
I had to be in on that tradition as well!).




I was told you can only place one order for coneys.
Adding to your order is frowned upon, or should I
say~not allowed...so we ordered 3 to split. It was perfect.



I was allowed all access to the bar and the grill.
George decided that I should be in a photo so I
handed my Mark III off to his wife...the result?


(me, George, John & Gary)

I think my job is safe! ;D

Now if you are offended by the "f-bomb" or
any sort of snide remarks...this is NOT your
place. However, I know that I will return
and if not before, for certain on and
upcoming Saturday in May when George will
hold "Gun Day". On this day (ordinarily one
Saturday a month) everyone brings their guns
in and lays them all out on the bar...that
should be quite the photo op!

I look forward to going again!

Sunday, January 25, 2009

God is Good.

I attended a new church today in Shakopee with
friends of mine. This was much smaller than the
church that I had been attending but I knew that
going in. It was so good to see Ann, Pete and
their children! And it felt great to get back to
church and the Word of God. The message today was
about living passionately, identifying obstacles,
plugging in and taking worthwhile risks. A terrific
topic to be revisited every January but particularly
for me, this message fits with my new "Sue 2009"
campaign! I see growth between me and the horizon
and I've made some might large strides already!

Change isn't aways easy but as it was put this
morning...."a calm sea does not produce a skilled
sailor." I like that. I like it a lot!

I have decided to stay on as an NILMDTS Hospital
Coordinator for both Minneapolis Children's and
Methodist but the reality of cutting back the sessions
that I preform has come to a screeching halt in that I
have already taken 2 this month.

Wedding season is fast approaching and I cannot wait!
Several specTACular venues and, well, I just love
the thought of a warm, sunny wedding day in June about
now with all the sub zero temps we've endured lately.

In a couple of days Gary and I will visit his father
in Arizona...gonna love not having to warm up the
car for 20 minutes! I had to reschedule a shoot
yesterday to to the super cold temps~Rescheduled
for Valentine's Day and should be sweet!

Now that I have removed myself from Facebook, I intend
on getting back to the seriousness at hand her on my
blog ;D

I know that this will be a fabulous year!
Can't wait for God to show me the way!
God is Good!

Friday, January 23, 2009

Short Ribs @ Campielo. AMAZING!

Facebook~the in's and out's.

Well, for those of you wondering and
contrary to what has been written, I made
a decision yesterday to yank my Facebook account.
I initially began with the intention of keeping
in touch with my niece who had gone off to college
in Missouri. Well, she's home now and frankly
I was growing tired of it...Not G....Facebook.

Once I got "into" Facebook, as I look back,
I found it to be a great time waster.
So for me it was really a no-brainer to just
rip it off like a band-aide! And, quite honestly,
I am relieved of it's strangle hold.

I feel that I have my life back and Gary is
happy to see a smile on my face!

I will continue to place my "goings-on" on my
blog and I encourage those of you that might
miss me on Facebook to just zip me off a line
or pick up the phone. Relationships can still
stay intact the "old fashioned" way! :D

Tonight Gary and I are treating ourselves to
a night out at a Hotel. But first we are going
to venture into St. Paul to have a famous Coney
Dog at the "Gopher" then head over to Rice Park
and take a peek at the ice sculptures in progress.

Monday, January 19, 2009

Still a Mess.

Altho' things are still crazy around here from
the remodel, I'm getting some work done.
Blogging has not been a priority, however. :\

What has been a priority is clearing out my lap
top in preparation for two trips and getting
my lap BOTTOM to the gym! :)
Both seem to be working out just fine altho' it
occurs to me that my lapTOP has more memory!

My desktop computer is out of the bathroom and
back on my desk but things are a little jumbled
so my external hard drives are not where they
should be...quite frustrating for a photographer!

The wood floors are done and as soon as Gary can
get Home Depot to mix up a 2nd gallon of the lighter
color (a total oops on their part) we'll get all
the paint completed so that all that's left to
do is get the new carpet in!
Who am I kidding...then it'll be a new sofa, table,
lamps, rugs...yea, I'd say we're a 1/3 of the way
finished! :D

I want to wish Nicola Craig a happy birthday!
She and I ran out for a little coffee this morning
and chatted it up...it had been awhile. I miss
our "coffee talks" Nic!

We head to Arizona next Wednesday to see Dean and
Lois...and to hit the FBR Open (formerly the Phoenix
Open) golf tournament and hit the Bird's Nest!
That should be fun. Take a break from the snow
and cold for a few days.

I finally got a request from a Bride to plan a
"trash the dress" session the day after their
wedding! I am sooo excited! I never seem to be
able to convince anyone to do this but now I will
have some of my own images to showcase what a
wonderful session this can be...no pressure of the
day, guests or family...just the two of them,
relaxed and married! :D YAY! More on that as it
gets closer to the date (October 10th).

Friday, January 16, 2009

So Friggin' Cold!

Okay, today is just as nasty as yesterday. 20+below ZERO~
The highs are not even getting above zero. I'm tellin' ya,
these temps keep the 'riff~raff' out of Minnesota!

The warm up, the keep eluding, to is going to occur later today.
The 30's? Now you're talking! That's what we call 'sweata weatha'!
(taken from the 'Brox Beat' on Saturday night live)
Might even see some t-shirts out and about! :D

This morning, and I had better get a move on soon, I'm going
to head up to MEI in Golden Valley to take some shots for an
upcoming magazine article about their 25th year! Cool!
Thanks Jane!

Nicki finished up the Venetian Plaster in the bar yesterday.
It looks so awesome. Once I get the area all cleaned up and
everything back in place, I'll shoot it and post some images.

Gotta run!

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

How Cold Is It?

Seriously, if I hadn't have run out of creamer
yesterday, I would have been on hour 50 or so
without leaving the house! Yesterday we had a
high of 12 BELOW! And if that weren't enough,
our furnace was STILL not firing! And let me
tell you, after 2 nights with no furnace I wasn't
about to let Kleeve off the hook! I called them
and they came right over and fixed something
completely unrelated to what they did on Monday.
Hmmmmmmm....yea, not sure I believe that, but
the good news is that they didn't charge us for
the 2nd visit!

Gary is still at it in the basement, painting,
priming, ripping off doors and tearing up carpet.
Boo is acting as the "sidewalk superintendent".
I will take some pictures today.

Nicki is going to come over today and assist me
with Venetian Plaster. A nummy deep red for behind
the bar area. She is the expert at faux finishes
and technique so if you ever have a project that
is a little above you or you are simply looking
to select a new paint color...she's your girl!
Call me for her contact information...Nicki is
also an amazing muralist!

Word of the day...."Layers"!

Monday, January 12, 2009

The Heat is On!

Well, soon anyway...Kleeve will be here
between 10 and noon today to fix our furnace.
It's been out for nearly 3 days! The last two
nights we have slept with the gas fireplace on,
an electric heater in the bedroom AND electric
mattress pad! CRAZY! We didn't want to pay the
"emergency" fee for Sunday so we just called and
scheduled for them to come by today.

In the mean time, we continue to work on the
lower level remodel. Very exciting! I'll try to
remember (cold on the brain!) to post some before
and after's as we work from side to side.
New wood floors by the bar, new carpet by the
theater, and then the wood floors will pick up
again on my office side, go into the salon, down
the hall and into the bath. I KNOW! Fun, right?!
For now I am working in a mess...a real mess.
I had to meet with Jen and Andy at a remote location
to discuss my photographing their wedding in October!
That one is a "go"! I'm very excited! It was actually
GARY that recommended her to me! Thanks Gary! The
wedding will take place at Mount Olivet in Minneapolis
and the reception will be at Windows on the top of
the IDS tower! This is a combination that I have
photographed before but this time there will be time
for a photo walk around town....I'm so pumpep about
that! Here's Rick and Amanda Gorra from July '06.







That was a fun one...my brother in law was
in the wedding party so my sister was there as well!




Well, it's snowing again, and I just said to
Nicki that it's nearly the middle of January
and I still think the snow is pretty so I guess
that makes me a hearty Minnesotan! Or maybe it's
that we booked our flights to Mexico this morning!

Stay warm, a deep freeze is approaching...AGAIN!

Tuesday, January 06, 2009

Back to Life, Back to Reality...

For me, 2009 starts today.
A new calendar with endless opportunity and
possibilities!
I love a new calendar! Transferring Birthday's,
Anniversary's, adding Vacations, Shoots, Weddings,
Celebrations, Parties.

However, I also must get to my taxes! :\
We are remodeling our lower level :)
And that means working in a mess :(
But it'll be beautiful when it's complete :D

Make the most of today...tomorrow is no guarantee.

Monday, January 05, 2009

TCPPA

Today I will be attending my first TCPPA event
as an actual Board Member. I've been a member
for 3 years and thought I'd step it up.

Today's speaker is Mitche Graf. He'll be sharing
with us The Power of Marketing 101.

This will pretty much shoot a hole in my Monday
but I'm excited to meet Mitche and be enlightened
about marketing! A pretty great way to start a
new year and with wedding season around the corner
I'm sure his tips will be FABulous!

Well, I can't go any farther without mentioning
how disappointed I was in the Viking loss to the
Philadelphia Eagles yesterday. However, I must say
that this was by far the most fun I've ever had at
a Vikings football game! Not really sure when I'll
regain my hearing!
For those of you not on facebook, I posted several
shots throughout the day and I even brought Gary's
camera along and shot some video (I'll post that
later on).
I sat with my sister in row 15 behind the Eagles'
bench on the 45 yardline...it was PERfect!
Except for the fact that "Donald Downer" was behind
us and kept asking Anne to sit down...whatever dude!
We paid OUR $320! We actually considered going out
and buying some big ass hats to wear just to piss
him off more! Riding to and from the game in a big
'ol Expedition Limo was quite the ticket too, thanks
John! What a day!

Pete, Anne, Paul & I came back to Redstone, where we
had lunch before the game, to get my car and by 8
we were all starving again so we went in, sat in
Travis' section and ordered up a delicious dinner
as well!

Hey, I gotta run.

Sunday, January 04, 2009

Playoff Sunday.

My sister managed to get her hands on a couple
of good seats for today's playoff game.
Embarrassingly enough that the Vikings "backed"
into the playoffs, the game was nearly blacked
out due to low ticket sales....niiiiiiice!
I think it speaks volumes that the general
public, here, doesn't give a rip about their own
pro football team. Me thinks that Childress is,
perhaps, on his way out..my opinion.
Well, regardless, I'm more looking forward to
spending a day with my sister that doesn't
involve baking! ;)

Anne's husband, Pete, and his boss are taking a
limo down to the game and while we won't be
sitting with them at the game we'll ride down
to the dome with them. That should be fun!

Pete came by yesterday to have some new head
shots taken for an upcoming article in a trade
magazine. Pete works with RTI and will be
attending the Consumer Electronics Show in
Las Vegas next week.





I talked to Gary this morning...he and Dave
are going to come home today. I'm so excited!
They will stop along the way and watch some of
the game and get home sometime after dinner. For
some reason, I missed him most this time around!

Have a great day, stay warm.
Go Vikes!

Saturday, January 03, 2009

On The Road Again...

I will go to Excelsior today to partake in some
cooking, wine tasting and video watching.
Nicki received the DVD set and accompanying book
to a favorite series "Spain, On the Road Again"
for Christmas so we thought it would be a gas to hang
out and grab a favorite recipe from the book and watch
some of the episodes! We just fell in love with the
series when it aired late this fall. We've even talked
about going to Spain...How cool would THAT be!



Nicki and I used to get together pretty regularly
and as of late that has gone by the way side.
New year, new plans!

That leaves me with this morning to put the rest
of Christmas away because tomorrow will be a long
day, no doubt, with a limo ride to Manny's for
lunch and then to the Viking's play off game.
Anne & I are going to have a sister day and see
if she can get on TV again :)
50 yard line seats....not bad!

I just talked to Gary and they are experiencing a
blizzard out in Winner, South Dakota so no hunting
today but they plan to stay through tomorrow and
come home Monday.

I got the opportunity to go next door to Jacquie's
last night and catch up. I've missed her and it
was so great to just sit and chat. In order for us
to sit there, I brought along some of my "Boo" M&Ms
that I got from Mike & Kindra for Christmas to bribe
her husband with....Scott and I are self proclaimed
chocoholics! These M&Ms have teeny tiny Boo faces on
them and are absolutely aDORable. I kind of find it
hard to actually eat them, cuz, well after all, it's
Boo's face, ya know?
But what's not to love? Boo? GOOD!...Chocolate? GOOD!
(for all you "Friend's fans out there!)

Well, back to the task at hand. I hate to move Boo
from the tree skirt...he's so happy there.