estamos aqui!

picture this...
it's taken me over 50 % of my
battery to figure out how to get on
line here at the lovely royal playa del carmen!

we have be having the greatest time!
met some terrific folks and even got up
to the web cam at the shangri la carib
(link to beach cam is to the right)
gary and i walked up yesterday and stood
in front of the cam and called my brother!
nicki was not home nor was anne..losiento
(spanish for i'm sorry!)....
so much to write and so little battery as i
am in the middle of the grand lobby....
espresso and all..gary is already at the pool.
probably wondering what the hell is taking
me so long....

big first night (first-day-syndrom!!!)
gary bloddied himself and i am telling you,
our room looked like a crime scene so did the hallway.
when we can't remember how to get to our room
we follow the blood drops! more on that later...
i wan to get to some fotof....3 wedding here
last night at dusk, gorgeous...i was jealous to
not be shooting so i shot anyway and they will
be sorry that it was not me!
the guy (photographer) had this lame camera
and an omni bounce of all things and looked at
everysingle shot he took.....rookies!!!

while these photos are uploading let me just say
that my blogger site, including this page..is all in
spanish....a nice test for me..

totally sunny 90 something and as soon as these
photos are done...i'm outta here and out to
the pool...there's a sol light with my name on it!!
i'm do better at updating know that i know the drill.
the mimi has free wifi and i can sit in the sand
under the palapa and blog!! :)

buen dia a todos!!











not bad..battery almost dead!! :)

departure from life...

picture this...
early to rise.
that's all, just early to rise.
i'm not much of an early riser.
i used to be a couple of years ago
and then BAM! something happened,
people tell me it's age..sha, right.
i'm just a really good sleeper.
gary wishes that i could get paid
for sleeping... :)

tried the new online check in to the
hotel last night but naturally that
didn't work.
you are supposed to just check in and
then waltz in to the desk and your key
is waiting...not so much.
they wanted a credit card and we have
already paid so nuts to that!

anxious to go, anxious to leave the kids
but they are going to be well cared for
and for that, again, i am grateful!
nice to know that you can go away and count
on friends and family to hold down the fort!

well, if i'm going to shave my legs, i'd
better get started :)

jacquie, scott got your bike last night!
i can't wait to see it!
thank you thank you thank you!!

SQS, thank you thank you thank you!

hump day...

picture this...
these are the days that we minnesotans
long for...when we break through the
bitterness of winter and make a turn
into spring...there is a God! (duh!)
it's been in the 40's the past few days
and i know i speak for everyone when i say
.........FINALLY!!!!
we are losing "snow-pack" (as the meteorologists
call it...us laypeople just call it "snow").
all i know for sure is that it'll be march soon!


my sister in law came by for a change in hair.
sorry there's not a before shot.
it's nearly the same length but what's different
is the color...she had no color. now she's got 4!!



it's always fun to help facilitate a change!

speaking of which....jacquie, your bike didn't come.
i never saw fedex....i'll be here today too tho'
if they come by. i was bummed too, i really wanted
to get going on losing that swimsuit size! :)
i've only got about 24 hours left!
maybe i can run on the beach! HA! then when
i get home everyone will wonder..."why the black eyes?"

well, i'll probably zip off a quicky blog tomorrow
and then the fun starts...

soak up that sun today...tulips will come up soon!

jacquie, tell scott not to worry, i will leave a
small novel of directions for the "kids".....

(hi dean and lois!)

spring training for twins...

"pitcher" this...
the minnesota twins pitchers
and catchers began spring training
yesterday in ft. meyers, florida!
i know my mother-in-law is pretty
excited...she loves the twins!


this is my buddy jim werdin (of access insurance).
he is a lover of all things twins!
here he is with mr. oliva...



he and his company actually throw
a huge party every year at a chosen twins
game just outside the dome in partner
with the miracles of mitch foundation
(link on this site to the right).
they auction off the first pitch to
the highest bidder...last year it
went for like $750!!

here's my mother in law, bonnie with tony oliva
at last year's event...



here's my niece emily posing for me
inside the dome!



i'll post more information on that
event in a couple of months. it's
usually in june and we take gary's mom
for her birthday. it's a blast!


it got to 43 yesterday in minneapolis!
spring fever was everywhere!
you could smell the thaw...very nice.

saw my friends tim & kristi from portland
on the hotel cielo cam in playa yesterday around noon!
very cool!

my friend jacquie just bought a spin bike.
it's being delivered today and fedex is
going to drop it off here.
i'm going to put it together and hop on
and see if i can't drop a swimsuit size
by thursday morning!! :)

bye!

brittney "shears"...

picture this...
oops, she did it again!
brittney spears is headlining.
no, not as an artist, but as a
newly shorn, newly inked tabloid
subject.
could you shave your head?
i mean sure, we could all perform
the task but would you ever consider
actually shaving your head?! not me.
pastor joel johnson of westwood community church
spoke yesterday about
temptation and how the acronym HALT
describes our weakest moments for
temptation....Hungry, Angry, Lonely
& Tired...'spose brittney was any of
those? hmmmmm.....
that should get my blog a few hits
off google today, right!? :)

countdown continues to playa.
cat sitters in place.
pile started of things i'd like to pack.
hair today, tomorrow and wednesday.

notable today is that it will be above
freezing here in minnesota.
hasn't been that for about a month and
a half! CRAZY!!

never got around to blogging yesterday
and for that i apologize!
get ready for some great blogs as i take
my G4 laptop down to mexico and make
entries from the lobby of the royal playa del carmen
where we will be for 5 days and then the
mimi del mar hotel for 5 days.
so check back over the weekend and
i'll give you my own personal review on
downtown playa del carmen-winter 2007!


enjoy the warmer temps today!

p.s. i've added the beach cam to my links list!

girl scout cookies..

picture this...
a sure sign that spring is around
the corner? girl scout cookies are in!!
well, that and tulips are in at your
local grocery stores and floral centers.
the other big sign around "these parts"?
ice houses have to be off the metro lakes
by the end of february! yay!!
spring is coming.

i met the most darling boys yesterday.
william (age 5...left)



william was pretty excited about getting
to the pool!

and daniel (age 6, with his sisters)



both cancer survivors....
daniel just had a tumor the size of a
chicken egg removed from his brain in
september and went back to school in october!
he was looking forward to the pool and the
park at mall of america!!

these 2 families were being hosted by the
minnesota miracle (the new years eve event
that takes place at the airport hilton that i
am heavily involved with).

today gary and i are going to go meet up
with kerry and mark tousignant at the champs
at ridgedale for lunch. kerry and i have been
failures at trying to get together ever since i
met her almost 2 years ago at a miracles of mitch
event at a twins game...her son tucker died of
cancer and had been a recipient of the foundation.
she is a wonderful woman. mark was highest bidder
on throwing out the first pitch at that game
and so i got to take the whole family down on
the field and meet players and coaches....
sooo much fun! looking forward to lunch today!

God bless.

global warming?

picture this...
i wish i'd taken her photo but
i didn't. my friend lauren was here
last night along with her mom, colleen,
and i colored lauren's hair.
after much consideration we determined
that we needed to make a change.
something bolder and more sophisticated.
now, keep in mind that lauren, 23, has
just broken up with her boyfriend eric.
so as we make our decisions for the
bold, new, change...she states...
"it better be hot!" so the warmer temps
that are on the way? the melting of snow?
it's not really global warming...it's
lauren...she's much hotter! :)
(colleen, great to see you again!)

well, it's friday again.
the weeks go fast, don't they?
well, not for gary's dad in arizona...
he says everyday is friday! :)

i have the privilege of meeting 2
families today that have children with
cancer. they are going to be spending
the weekend at the airport hilton in
bloomington as apart of the growing
minnesota miracle.
i'll be photographing them arriving
in their limo and checking into their
rooms... i'm really excited!

nicki and i are going to meet for lunch
today at dunn bros. ~have you signed up for
your free coffee coupons yet?
she has her final screening tonight
for her black belt test (march 10th).
quite the accomplishment i must say.
the drive and commitment is amazing!
i must also mention that my brother is also
testing along side her. they both have
been working so hard for a very long time!
pray that they stay calm and focused tonight.
i'll be attending the black belt test in march!

enjoy the warming temps!!

the secret....

picture this...
my dvd "the secret" arrived yesterday
(as did my very cute new shorts from the gap!).
i'm not certain when i will be able to sit
down and view my new dvd but soon.

my sister popped over yesterday for a foil
and a cut. my niece, amanda, came along
and she brought me a valentine!!!
(the bear she won in one of those crane
games at perkins that your parents never
let you play because you can't win!
well, anne said, "fine!, here's a dollar!
but when you don't win, don't ask me for
another one!" and she grabbed it...funny.



well, maybe what's funnier is me foiling a 6 year
old's hair to correct the summer sun that
she got with the new pool last summer...





always bucking for "aunt of the year" ya know!

gary ordered the heart shaped pizza at
papa murphy's and we had a great cabernet.
another COLD, quiet evening!
i'm told it is supposed to warm up next week...
no shi*, i'm going to mexico!! duh!#@*%*@!!
thank God at least the sun was out today!

connected with rene down at the mimi and
confirmed our stay...we're on!
thanks anne & scott & jacquie for taking care
of our children! we feel better knowing that
someone will be here with them! :)

here's some shots of the mimi...old paint job...



here's gary sitting at the blue parrot
enjoying a cold sol while i was working
a wedding rehersal..



here's amilkar...he works the front desk
for rene at the mimi del mar...super nice!



and lastly, here's tim & kristie from
portland..they arrived there yesterday
we'll hook up with them when we get
there next week...



getting mighty excited about the trip.

meeting my friend jess tonight...she
designed my logo for me...here she is
with tom on a trip they hooked up with
us on in playa 2 winters ago..



okay....that's enough for now.
happy thursday!

happy valentine's day...

picture this....
my sweet husband brought me
flowers today and some pink m&m's!
yum!



my PUG meeting was really great!
i had glenn schwartz come out and
talk contract law to the group.
the questions were just flying!
very informative and helpful.
i received many thanks for arranging
for glen to speak. thanks glenn!

how's this for romanitic???
tonight, i work until about 7, then
we are going to get a papa murphy's
delite pizza and watch "friday night
lights" and "american idol"!
sexy~hot, right!?



i pray you have a beautiful day!

valentine's day eve...

picture this...
sorry i haven't posted any photos
lately, my life is not allowing me
any fun! :)

i was indoors yesterday at a seminar
with stephanie clark.
amazing photographer and a fabulous
speaker...very energetic and engaging.
6 hours long and worth every minute.
a self made photographer (i like that!)
who started as a self-proclaimed
"mother with a camera"! constantly
upgrading her equipment by selling
on ebay behind her husband's back to
purchase better stuff....sound familiar??

she was seriously a ton of fun!
i'd love to go down and visit her in'
her "mayo mansion" studio in ashland,
kentucky down the street from the judd's
grandmother! CRAZY!
she only does portraits...no weddings.
she's opened up to doing seniors now
and is really growing that end of her
business. in enjoyed the whole day!

tonight i have my PUG meeting and
friday i have 2 families with kids
with cancer that i will be photographing
at the airport hilton in bloomington.
that is the "minnesota miracle" program
started by the miracles of mitch foundation.

so, here are a few images from
days gone by. all from playa del carmen.

chicks rule the roost...

picture this...
nearly 3 years ago they were practically
deported for speaking out at a concert
over seas against bush and the war.
last night, that all went away.
they swept the grammys.
are they that good or was it political?
hmmmmmmmm.....

monday, well today hobie goes in to
have a recheck of sorts regarding his
p.p.f. (my acronym for "poop production
factor").
i have a seminar all day with stephanie
clark, a fashion photographer. i'm really
excited about what the day holds.
it goes until 8 tonight.

pictage users group (PUG) meeting tomorrow
evening where i have arranged for glen
schwartz to come and speak about contract law.

oh, notable...it was 20 degrees yesterday!!!
warmest it's been in weeks!

valentine's day just a couple of days away,
what are you going to do for your sweetie??

enjoy your monday...

jay's red ginger event...

picture this...
last night gary and i attended
another benefit for jay magee.
this was the final event before
he takes off for portugal for his
much awaited and anticipated
procedure in portugal with dr. lima.

way up to shoreview!
it's been so long since i've been
that far up, i thought for sure
we were going to need to go back

and get our passports! :)
anyway, this highly attended event
took place at a great little spot
called the "red ginger~asian bistro".
buffet style yummy asian fare with
a kitchy little bar attached with
room for a band that played jazzy
blues all night. really great!



amy, nice to meet you! glad you are
enjoying my blog! always good to know
that i'm reaching new readers!
did you get the twin's tickets!??

hey! who won the flat screen anyway!???

lots of familiar faces and lots of
new ones...it was a really big crowd!



i pray that everyone involved with
the portugal trip and procedure are
held closely by God and lifted up
with patience and skills to perform
one another's tasks with success!
"trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding".







have a peaceful, football free sunday!

solo dose mas dias..

picture this...
kind of starting a countdown
to our trip.
(side~bar, gosh my coffee is great
today! ethiopian, full city roast
from dunn bros.)
i even started my "pile". it's
what gary and i refer to when we
start to gather things that we
think we want to pack and that
usually means that we are within
the 2 week mark! :)
it's what's keeping me sane with
this awful cold stretch that we
are having to endure!!
i'm feeling a bit like a hermit
or maybe a tulip bulb waiting to
emerge from underneath a pile of
frozen snow! yuck! when will it end?????
alright, get a hold of yourself!


owen came over and got his first,
official haircut! he wasn't interested
in wearing the cape but that was
fine with me...whatever works, ya know!?
mike video taped and i moved quickly.
he'll be 2 the end of march.
then we went to punch for pizza!
he loves pizza...who doesn't, right!
then the 4 of us ran over to the mall
and road the escalators....up and down,
up and down. too cute, he gets on,
sits down and puts his hands in his lap
and then stands up at the end and kiki
picks him up by the arms and swings him
and goes.."weeeeeee!" when he's up at
the top coming down he hollers "daddy!"
everyone was watching as he and kiki
sat down for the ride. owen patted the
step next to him to suggest that i come
and sit too.
next time. :)
thanks for the pizza m, k & o!!

tonight is a benefit for jay magee
i'm offering a portrait session with
an 8x10 as a silent auction item.
perhaps a cord of firewood would be
a nice item to bid on as well!!!
i'll bring my camera and shoot some
of the action tonight. gary is coming
along as well.

have an amazing saturday!!

jacquie, when does your spin bike arrive?

new venture

picture this...
i am beginning a sideline with my
photography. i'm working at branding
a logo and name for it.
i am primarily a portrait and wedding
photographer but i'm excited about
this venture and i'll see where it takes
me...literally!

so, here's the deal....it seemed silly
to me at first, but it's really growing on
me and folks seem to feel that there
would definitely be a niche for it.
here goes.....
i will travel with families, photograph
them on their vacations and create a
gorgeous album!
all of my travel expense is covered and
the album is purchased along with an
archival CD of all of the images.
no more lousy vacation photos!
no more trusting a stranger to photograph
the family...everyone gets to be in
ALL of the photos!
you're own personal "fashion week"!
i'm still working out the details but my
first trip will be the end of march for
a family of 5. i'm going back to mexico
with them and i will create a clone album to
use as my demo! pretty cool!
spread the word!
oh, this first family is going to receive
their album & cd free of charge,
i'm going to give the husband and wife
a couple of nights out while i sit with
the kids AND the mom will have a hairdresser
at her disposal as well!
more on that as it develops!

okay, moving on...
did you see oprah yesterday? her guests
were all teachers of the secret
very inspirational! check it out!
soon, everyone will be talking about it!

have a fabulous day!

hola, buenos dias!

picture this...
i didn't take one single
photograph yesterday! :(
buried in hair most of the day.
i didn't even make it to my
networking meeting yesterday!

more good news...hobie is now
a poopin' machine!!!! yay!
he's a totally different cat
these days. you can just tell that
he feels better. i am thankful!

kept a close eye on the beach cam
yesterday. this morning it looks
just gorgeous! calm, sunny, warm.
our portland friends get down
there next wednesday (v-day)!
lucky suckers!

anne, aunt sunami got in late
last night. she misses you! ;)

i have a terrific opportunity through
the TCPPA to spend all of (this) monday
with stephanie clark.
i'm really looking forward to meeting
her and learning more about her
portrait style. should be great!
i had a new friend of mine join the TCPPA,
(twin cities professional photographers
association) this will be her first class.

gotta get moving.

tenga buen dia a todos!
(have a good day everyone!)

p.s. i DID get a new buckle yesterday!!

getting tired of the cold...

picture this...
now i'm a native minnesotan,
but this cold stuff gets old
real fast. i've been pretty
patient these past few days but
enough is enough. i don't need
"global" warming just minnesota
warming!!

got an e-mail from kiki last night.
owen needs another hair cut!
he's not even 2! i had to cut
the "mullet" off a month or so
ago and now it's long again!


hobie update...
he's doing great here at home.
doing his thing, taking his meds,
cuddling like he's never cuddled
before. he's constantly on us!
love that. i feel like the next
words should be that he pooped on
the big potty or something...
i mean these ARE our children you know!

i'm arranging for a visa machine!
now families, brides & grooms and
high school seniors can throw their
fees and purchases on their cards
if they wish.
i really wanted this in place before
spring so it's nice to have that done.

another long hair day for me today.
lisa is coming later today...she's the
buckleup1 gal. i've got her bringing
along some more of her buckles for me
to take a look at. i need another one!!



she doesn't do parties but seriously,
i think i should have one. i just love them!
you would too!

make it a great day!
do something different! :)

salt on an open wound...

picture this...
let's throw a little snow on top
of the sub zero temps and lets do
it during the morning rush hour!!!


hobie is home and better than ever!
he was going crazy when i pulled in
the garage. he knew he was home and
clawed is way over my to my door
so that when i opened it he could
tear out! a little cold for that
so i grabbed him and carried him in.
he just ran up the stairs to gary
and started rubbing on his legs!
quite the homecoming. soooo glad
he's home!

lots of hair this week and then it's
my sister's 11th wedding anniversary
on saturday.
jay magee is having a dinner in shorview
this saturday evening that we are
attending.
they raised about $10,000 at the one
last friday in cold spring!!!
latest news is that jay will be going
to portugal in march.
i'll be photographing this saturday's
event and posting new images on his
caring bridge site and my blog.

just pluggin' away this week.
drive safe and stay warm.

i'm dreaming of some white beaches.....

picture this...
soon i will be here.
it's the only thing that gets
me out of bed these days when
it's like 20 below outside!


didn't get to bring hobie home yesterday.
very bummed. today should be the day though.
he just needed a little more tlc from the gang at mvrs.
dr. "g" (erik goullaud..pronounced 'goo-low")
will be tending to him today.

dr. g is the one who did hobie's surgery
a year ago Christmas with the whole "PEG" tube
thing...NOT fun!
i feel bad tho', because had i known that
he wasn't coming home yesterday, i would have
gone to visit him! they just kept telling
us that they'd call so i didn't...poor hobie,
no visitors yesterday!
i'll call later this morning for an update.

super bowl party at dave & jane's new house
on spring lake in prior lake..nice, mellow.
minnesotan's, altho' we call ourselves "hearty",
have a tendency to always leave events early
due to traffic, weather, what have you.....
gary and i stayed 'til the end...we were the
last to arrive and the last to go home!
i have to admit, the game was really fun to
watch this year.
my favorite commercial??? ummm....
the snickers one and the taco bell one
towards the end of the game.
what's with coca~cola anyway...too global for me!

here's some warmer-uppers for ya...

today's high?...a new low!

picture this...
it's cold and it's only going
to get worse the next couple of
days!

i went to visit hobie yesterday
around noon (visiting hours are
from noon to 4 and 6-8 on the
weekends.
he looked pretty normal...



aside from the fact that they had
to wrap his tail in blue tape
to keep it from getting all pooy!



they all love him...they really
are so great there. dr. jarvis
loves ragdolls and she sat on the
floor with me and just chatted.
it's so comforting to know that
hobie is there with all the talented
staff at mvrs. they tell me
he's been a very good patient...





i'll get to go pick him up today
and bring him home. katie is ready
for her brother to return home as well!



"g" drove over yesterday to redeem
her christmas present from me....a new do!

here she is before (last june)...




and now, after a pretty hefty foil...



she and her sister like to always look
all serious...but "g" always ends up
laughing! which is good!

dean and lois....good talking to you
last night! sorry to hear that it's
going to be 80 in arizona today, you poor things!
our high today will be -4....yay!!!

cold enough for ya?

picture this...
the high today? 2 below. nice.
i always say that the weather in
minnesota is just strange enough
to keep the riff raff out!
humidity? no one likes it...
sub zero? fah-get-a-baht-it!
and only kids think it's funny when
boogers freeze!!

good news~bad news....
hobie spent the night at mvrs.
(metropolitan veterinary referral service)
my vet said that hobie needed more
intensive care than they can provide
at their facility.
so, gary picked him up from the vet
and brought him over there and i
had jacquie drop me off to help in
the process. poor guy!
we talked to dr. jean jarvis and she
was really thorough with everything.
he'll stay the weekend and they will
hydrate him 'round the clock and
work on getting the ascending colon clear.
nothing like the last time he was there
but costly nonetheless.

hold the phone! i just got a call from
dr. jean jarvis @ mvrs! hobie is pooping!!
he's doing really great! no surgery is
necessary, we just will need to change
his dietary program around (again!)
she is going to keep him overnight for
"observation" and release him tomorrow.
thank you God for all that you do!
for loving, listening, forgiving and
watching over my boy, who means the world
to me (and gary!)




jabz was awesome! what a workout!
i had forgotten how great kickboxing is!
thanks for suggesting it jacquie!

out on the town last night with nearly
the whole family!
gary and i asked tim and laurie, scott & nicki,
anne & pete to meet us at jake o'connor's
in excelsior for happy hour which turned into
dinner for 6 of us. it was really fun!
we met upstairs and then moved downstairs
(which opens at 5 by the way) and altho'
the menu is slightly different downstairs
it was just as scrummy!!
everyone said..."where's your camera! you
should have brought your camera!"
...i've created a monster, i guess.
i bring it along to just about everything.
as a matter of fact, i'm going to go see
hobie during visiting hours and i'll bring
it along and get some shots of the staff at
mvrs with hobie!

jabz....

picture this...
i haven't been to jabz in over a year.
kristin and i used to go, sometimes
3 days a week!
jacquie and i are going to hit it today.
i'm sure that terry (the owner and former
professional kickboxer) will be shocked
to see me there.
although jacquie's never been, she knows
the language and moves. it'll be fun!
hope she knows that kristin would always
say to me...."you hit like a boy!" :)
this is not your billy blanks tae bo...
this is full on, sweaty, contact kickboxing!
check out jabz online for
classes and children's programs!

hobie goes back in today for a check up.
he seemed fine when we got him home the
other day, but he's acting a little "punky"
so...back he goes.

lunch at the big 10 was a big hit!
lauren is a darling, typical 2 year old
and stacey kept after her as if to protect me.
no need...she's adorable!





might need to hook her up with owen!
here he is in his chef attire!

it's FEBRUARY!!!!!

picture this...
i have no photo today but
a new, dear friend of mine (stacey thon)
from my PUG group and i are finally
going to meet, outside of the usual meetings,
and have lunch today at "the big 10" in hopkins.
she's bringing along her darling 2 year old
daughter whom i hope to capture today
as i am going to bring along my camera.
stacey and i are always on the same wave
length, it seams. we share so many of the
same views about pictage and photography
and life. i really enjoy her.

today, gary goes for his final "weekly" rehab
appointment...a graduation of sorts i guess!
yay! now he moves to once a month.
kind of like pre-natal visits in reverse! :)

it's getting much much colder here as we
move into a stretch of days where the high
won't even be ZERO! OMG! yuck!
my friend kristin says that she may pull a
"hugh hefner" this weekend.
that's her new term for~stay in her jammies!!
i like it!!

i'm meeting with my sister in law kindra
today to fianlly go over that camera stuff
with her...she's been using her mom's
rebel xt and has a lot of questions so
i'll head over there later this afternoon and
practice with her and owen...can't wait!

tomorrow.....jabz with jacquie!


throw a blanket in your car today!!

hobie's procedure

picture this...
i took hobie in at 7:30 this morning to
have his procedure done.
they will sedate him and manually empty
his colon/bowel....ick, right?
whatever works! the enemas were clearly not.
so, anyway i drop him off and find that there
is a kitten ahead of hobie that is having one
of it's eye's removed (perhaps ickier!).
this is a stray from the humane society that
they have been working on for a month to
get healthy enough to have this surgery.
my veterinarians work with the humane
society of hennepin county and donate all
of their time. isn't that wonderful?
i remember going in once and there was
another young kitten (stray) that was giving
birth to a litter and needed help. shari was
holding one of them and it was sooo tiny!
i just love the folks up at anderson lakes vet!
i think i owe them a pizza...maybe tomorrow! :)
i'll give the hobie update tomorrow.
i took this last night...



network meeting today (every wednesday)...
did i mention that we moved from flagship to
the offices of the eden prairie chamber of commerce?
well, we did that just after the 1st of the year.
it's a really nice fit.
flagship was taken over by braham and the
"lifetime fitness" empire and made it impossible
for us to continue meeting there....so, on ward
and upward!

my newest addiction? those flippin' candy hearts



i can sit and put away a bag in a day...
why must these companies put seasonal stuff out
so early? don't they realize that there are addicts
out there? it's just not fair. okay, i admit it, i enjoy sugar.
otherwise i guess i'd be sitting here telling you
that i can put away a whole bag of apples, right?
NO!!! those are out all the time...there's no attraction!
don't you get it?! it's like, i never eat hershey's kisses
until the pink foiled ones hit the shelves.
BRILLIANT marketing, that's what it is...bastards!
i'm certain there must be a 12 step program for sugar.

enjoy the rest of january.....
65 days 'till bert blyleven's & my birthday! :)

still no poo....

picture this...
poor hobie. he hates dr. rod!
enema after enema after enema.
nothin'! today, dr. toogood will
attempt one last series of enemas
with hobie and then schedule him
to be sedated tomorrow for what
they like to call a "manual evacuation".
sounds horrible, doesn' it?!
he had it done a year ago last fall.
not sure what's up with that, but
soon he will have relief. he acts
normally, which is good and he
doesn't mind the car ride (on my lap),
i just feel so bad for him.

enough about poo.
had a "scrummy" cup of soup at
"the general store" in minnetonka with
kristin yesterday.
kristin had to run new paperwork down-
town to dissolve her marriage to alex.
a very sad day indeed. i miss that couple!
they gave it a go for nearly a year after
their separation, but no go.
it's always sad, no matter who is the leaver
or the leavie.
i was glad she had time to visit with me,
she's gone a lot....
why do i have friends that are gone a lot?
hmmmmmm. hey, wait a minute!
i know what you are thinking....but
you know what?? i didn't pick their jobs!!
i met these people before they took these
jobs!!! :)

while i was there, i ran into
a familiar face. a cousin of an
old friend that i used to work with.
katie...she's due any minute with her
2nd! katie, it was really great running
into you yesterday!

sorry dean! timberwolves broke the phoenix
sun's 17 game winning streak!!! :)

off to the gym....oh, and drop hobie off at
the vet!

enjoy the warm up today.....13!!!!

deep freeze continues...

picture this...
yesterday's high of "9" occurred at 10pm.
so arizona...i'll see your measly bursting pipes
and raise you "black ice"!
and don't ya just love it when folks from
warmer states say...."well, but you're used
to the cold weather."
um, yea...NO WE AREN'T! that's like saying
that you get used to spinters and slamming
your fingers in a car door.
what's more accurate is that we "prepare" for
the cold....we'll never get "used" to the cold.
just wanted to get that straight!

hobie is going into the vet again this morning
so i'm warming up the car! (SEE! i'm just preparing
for the cold!)

meeting with my friend kristin today, haven't seen
her since before christmas i think.
her hair is so long that we all call her crystal gayle!
i e-mailed her last night to see if she had gotten
her tour bus back....we laughed!
i had to explain it ot her cuz she hadn't seen
the story....pretty funny!
stay warm...more later....

"j" and the new "do"...

picture this....
wake up one day and say....
"i feel like going with a whole new
haircolor today!"....and then call your
aunt and see if she has it!
here's "j" after her november color/shoot;



we got together yesterday for the
transformation.....relax! it's a "demi" color!
over time it will fade out as it grows out.
it's not permanent. i couldn't do that to her mother!







we had fun. she loves it. and more important,
her older sister gave her the thumbs up!
i'm pretty certain that she's looking forward to
showing it off at school tomorrow!

can't think of a good segway from gorgeous hair
to distended bowel so, well.....there ya go...
hobie returned home yesterday afternoon from
seeing dr. rodney toogood and we will return
on monday for more treatment.
his spirits are up and they were able to get some
of the "poo" out but there's lots more.
he's our little million dollar cat....love him, mean it! :)
we just want to go from "super bowel" to "pooper bowl"
this week! keep him in your prayers!

hey, a jay magee benefit next weekend in cold spring, mn.
spaghetti dinner @ the great blue herron at 5pm on the 2nd.
did i mention that he is off to see dr. lima in portugal
in february...his surgery was moved up! yay.
pray for jay too, his wife jill and their families & friends!




brrr...another cold one today...stay warm.

deep freeze....

picture this...
okay, it's freezing! it's the end of january
and it's finally freezing! with february just
around the corner it seems a little easier
to take for some reason.


gary found a really great ongoing
thread about cat shaving.
it's on someone's blog....please go
to http://neoncobra.blogspot.com
and check it out. it's pretty hilarious!

"j" is coming over today to redeem her
christmas gift of "hair color & cut"!
this'll be fun. i take some before and
afters of her to share on tomorrow's
blog.

i'm considering spending the night 2night
at my sister's to horse around with her
and my younger nieces. i haven't done
that in a long time.


some folks have their "super bowl"...
well, we have the "super bowel".....
hobie is having tummy (well, really it's poo)
problems again...cat's.....can't live without 'em,
can't get them to poo! ;)
oh, and it's always over a weekend too,
so the cost escalates! yikes!
i'm going to bring him up to see the gang
at anderson lakes veterinarian this morning.
more on that later.....

stay warm today!