Friday!

My favorite day has arrived once more.

Blogging sort of got away from me this week.  Hmmm....

Bobaloo's sunflowers have started to sprout in the yard.  Last weekend I noticed some orange stuff on the side of the house which turned out to be giant poppies.  There are all sorts of plants popping up these days.

Mona the turtle is doing well.  I am planning on building her an outdoor habitat soon which seems ambitious and may involve power tools.  She sure likes her fruits and veggies.  Her favorite is cucumber.

A while back my brother texted me this picture with the caption "I caught a Jill!"  It's a Largemouth Bass.  Hilarious.

 

I sent him this in reply:

Take that, bro!

 

On Sunday I am going to take a class on Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT).  I have been trying to be open to more holistic healing methods because prescription medication has been pretty nasty to me in the past.  I like learning about alternative ways of dealing with crap when I am doing well, so I have more "tools" at my side when things aren't too hot.  Anyway, I am looking forward to the class.

 

In fact, I am looking forward to an exciting and action-packed weekend.

 

Happy Friday!

Friday

Bobaloo and I both were able to leave work early on Friday so we headed to the tavern and met up with some friends to kick off the long weekend.  This evening also turned into a reminder of why I don't drink whiskey.

 

 

Saturday

I spent Saturday morning cleaning and finishing up the second bedroom project while Bobaloo volunteered at Red Rocks.  Later, we had some friends over in the afternoon for some beer, tunes, grilling, bubbles, and general tomfoolery.  Our neighbor got chickens last week and he invited me over to feed them. So cute!  It ended up being a pretty late night.

 

Bubbles, Nik the HomeDawg, and the rock band.

Sunday

See Saturday's description.  More of the same.  A lot of goofiness.  Plus I watched one of my fave flicks:

 

"I just like to smile, smilin's my favorite"
 

Monday

We checked out the annual duck races in Morrison.

 

 

 

All in all, a good weekend was had.  And I killed some brain cells.

 

 

Past and Present

It's almost that time of year again.  Time to bask in the sunshine and read a good book.

 

When I was a kid, these were my favorites.

 

That Amelia Bedelia sure was zany, wasn't she?

These are some of my most loved books of all time.

 

 

And here are a few I have really enjoyed recently.

 

 

So...

 

read any good books lately?

 

Friday

I was so happy to meet up with my friend Rachael for some beers after work.  We always have a lot to talk about and we think we're hilarious.  I sure love this gal.

 

Saturday

I did nails for the ladies at the senior community which was fun and I think my nail-painting skills are improving.  After, I embarked on the dreaded second bedroom project while Bobaloo did some work in the yard.  We rewarded ourselves by having some beers and Bobaloo made goofy faces at me.

Nik taking a break from helping me clean.

Goofy face.

Sunday

Yesterday I continued my cleaning project and in the afternoon Bobaloo and I went to a bar to enjoy the weather and some tunes on the patio.  Basically, the entire weekend was cleaning and beer.  Hopefully with summer here, I will have more exciting things going on for these weekend recaps.

 

 

 

May 17

 

Thank goodness today's topic is easy because it's Friday and my brain hurts.  Today's topic is a favorite photo of yourself and why.  Let's do this.

 

 

 

Sometimes when first meeting people I come across a little quiet and reserved.  Little do they know this is the real me.  My buddy named this alter ego of mine Lightning Oops.  I like it.

 

Happy Friday to you all and a Happy Syttende Mai to all you crazy Norwegians...

 

 

May 16

 

The 16th day of this Blog Every Day in May challenge has arrived.  Today's topic is Something difficult about your "lot in life" and how you're working to overcome it.  Here we go.

Hmmm…

Today’s topic is a toughy.

I am not sure I really understand the topic but what the heck, I’ll give it a whirl.

I guess I don’t really believe we have a “lot” in life.  We make our own opportunities and some things happen by chance.  When life stuff happens, we can choose what kind of perspective we have surrounding our circumstances.

There was a time after we got married when Bobaloo and I were really struggling.  The job market was miserable and good any jobs were hard to come by.  We were fortunate to always be able to put a roof over our heads and food on our table, but money was always too tight for comfort and we were stressed.  It didn’t make sense; we worked so hard and didn’t deserve this.

At the time the lean years were miserable and frustrating; looking back they seem like a gift.  Out of the tough times, I learned that Bobaloo and I would do whatever we had to in order to take care of one another.  Even when that meant taking awful, awful jobs and dealing with awful, awful people.

I remember sitting on the patio with Bobaloo one night and laughing our heads off at how things couldn’t possibly get any worse.  And then they would.  This cycle repeated itself multiple times.  It was at this time when I think Bobaloo first thought up the phrase love-rich as in, “We may not have much, but baby, we’re love-rich.”  And it was true.  I am not so naïve to think that all you need is love, but love and a sense of humor can sure get you through some crappy times.

Gradually we both caught some breaks and now things are a lot better and much easier.  Some of the breaks were because of hard work and persistence and some were just dumb luck.  The good stuff has been all the more sweet because of the tough stuff.

I have been both up and down and at times felt stuck or like I couldn’t get out of my “lot in life” no matter what I did.  The important thing is, no matter where I was or whatever my situation may have been I have always found kindheartedness in the people around me.  Life has gotten easier in the last year or so, but I try to remember that others are still stuck in their “lot” and the importance of returning the thoughtfulness I was shown.



Queenie

Last night my dear Auntie Doreen passed away.  She was a woman who lived fiercely and loved wildly.  Though during her life she suffered much physical anguish and endured enormous trials, she did so with strength, kindness, and a sense of humor.

May her soul find a happy rock to fish from.



May 14

Alright I am back for day 14 of this Blog Every Day in May challenge.  Today's topic is ten things that make you really happy.  Here we go (in no specific order)...

 

 

The picture on the bottom left is my new pet turtle!  I got this sweet gal on Saturday and she is named after one of the great film characters of our time:

 

yeah, you blend.

 

 

 

May 10

 

We're on day 10 of this here Blog Every Day in May challenge. Ambitious I know, but there are topics posted for every day. Go check it out. Today's topic is most embarrassing moment(s).  Spill.  So here goes.

I am not a crier at the movies.  It’s not real and I pride myself on my hardy stoicism.  One Christmas my mom took to me to see the movie Prancer and as I remember it was an incredibly depressing and emotional movie.  When it was over my mom looked at me with her puffy eyes and tear-streaked face in surprise because I was detached and unmoved.  Awkward.

An embarrassing fact:

There is an episode of The Simpsons that weaseled its way into my icy disposition and gets me all weepy every time it’s on.  Not Bambi, not ET, not Fluke, not My Girl, not even Old Yeller can bring tears to these peepers like Homer Simpson can.

The episode is called “And Maggie Makes Three.”  

Basically, after Bart and Lisa were born Homer was able to quit his hated job at the nuclear plant and nab his dream job of working at the bowling alley.  He was happy as a clam at the bowling alley and life at home was good.  Then, Marge finds out she’s pregnant again and Homer has to beg for his plant job back because he needs more money for the expanding family.  Here’s where the waterworks start:

Mr. Burns puts this sign up in Homer’s workspace to remind him that he cannot quit again.

 

Maggie is born and Homer falls in love.  It turns out there weren’t a lot of baby pictures of Maggie in the family photo album because Homer used them for this:

 

Pass the Kleenex.

May 9

 

Today's Blog Every Day in May challenge is a moment in your day.  Easy peezy, lemon squeezy.

 

My backseat driver:

 

 

First off, don't you worry.  I took this photo at a stoplight. 

 

Sometimes Nik likes to comes along for the ride to pick up Bobaloo from work.  She doesn't look out the side window like a normal dog, she stares out the windshield.  Sometimes at stoplights she'll stare down the other drivers.  No matter what, when I look in the mirror her rather intense dog-face is looking right back at me.  Creeper!

May 8

 

Eight is great!  Still plugging away at this Blog Every Day in May challenge. Ambitious I know, but there are topics posted for every day. Go check it out. Today's topic is a piece of advice you have for others.  Anything at all.  So here goes.

 

Be good and have fun (in that order).

-Bobaloo's Mom

 

 

May 7

  Wow, the challenge to Blog Every Day in May is really providing a lot of opportunities to share my neuroses with everyone. Today's topic is the thing(s) you're most afraid of, so here goes.

While I am thinking about my vast and varied list of crap I am irrationally afraid of, it’s hard to pick out what would be at the very top of the list, but I’ll give it a whirl.

 

Needles!

 

I can't even stand the thought of getting blood drawn or an immunization.  I am queasy and crawling out of my skin just writing that sentence.

Ick.  Ick.  Ick.

When I was three my mom picked me up early from daycare and brought this little lady along.


 Puffy the Puffalump (creative, I know)

I should have known that along with the new friend, Mom had some shenanigans up her sleeve.  She gave me Puffy and buckled me into the car where she explained we were going to the doctor’s office for some booster shots.*  By the time my mom got me into the doctor’s office I was so anxious about having to get shots that I worked myself into a fever and we had to schedule them for another day.

I am a fainter.  When I was a junior in high school we were watching a movie that involved immunizations.  After about three minutes of seeing people get shots I got that good old woozy feeling and passed out right then and there.

I had to get a TB test for a job and when I asked the nurse if it was going to hurt, she replied, “Well, it’s not a hug.”  I cried.

The last time I had to get blood work done, one nurse had to hold my arm down while the other took my blood out.  There I was all grown up, being held down, and sobbing in the chair.  It was pretty pathetic.

Tattoos?  Bring ‘em on!  Not a tear will be shed, but tell me I need to get blood work done and you get the full on freak-out!

*Why do we use the word shots? Can’t we think of something friendlier, like love pokes, pleasant pricks, or joy jabs? Never mind, everything else sounds dirty. 

May 6

 

It's day 6 of this here Blog Every Day in May challenge. Ambitious I know, but there are topics posted for every day. Go check it out. Today's topic is if you couldn't answer with your job, how would you answer the question "what do you do?" so here goes.

 

I would probably just reply with, "Oh you know, this and that."

 

Speaking of this and that, here's what I did over the weekend:

 

Friday

It was kind of a long week so Bobaloo and I kicked it mellow Friday night.  I did make a batch of my Panty-Dropper Drink and we walked over to our friend Aaron's house for a visit.  The weather was perfect for an evening stroll.

 

Saturday

I was so excited about the alpaca show I couldn't even handle it.  It was the largest show we have been to with alpacas as far as the eye could see!  We also watched an alpaca agility competition, which is basically the animal going through an obstacle course.  It was a pretty goofy sight.

 

Three Amigos

After the show we stopped into the Buffalo Rose for a couple of drinks and to check out the afternoon band.  We ended the night eating snacks and watching a flick.

Sunday
Yesterday we headed to Civic Center Park in Denver for Cinco de Mayo.  The lightrail near our house opened recently so I got to make my maiden voyage (compliments of some free tickets from RTD!). 

At the fiesta we checked out a taco-eating contest and watched a band.  We ran into my girlfriend and her husband and went to a couple of bars in the area for some good old-fashioned day drinking.  I was so happy to bump into Rachael because the two of us can laugh and laugh all day.  We took the train back to our side of town and enjoyed the gorgeous day on a patio.  Bobaloo made his famous white sauce pasta for supper and I called it a night.

A great weekend was had!

May 5

 

I'm on a roll with this Blog Every Day in May challenge. Ambitious I know, but there are topics posted for every day. Go check it out. Today's topic is Publicly profess your love and devotion for one of your blogger friends.  What makes them great?  Why do you love them?  If you don't have blogger friends, talk about a real-life friend so here goes.

 

There a few bloggers that I have been following forever (or since 2008):

 

Lora at Fever is my blog hero.  She is super duper smart, insightful, funny, and her posts always give me something to chew on.

 

Jacob at Busy Busy Busy used to post every Monday which was a great way to start the week.  He doesn't post as often now but when he does it's funny, funny stuff.

 

Jennifer at Chronicles of Consciousness has an awesome blog and great taste in music.  She should really come to see Widespread Panic at red rocks one of these days.

 

Amanda at The A-List always has me cracking up, she is hilarious and introduced me to the Morning Margarita once upon a time.

 

Here's a picture of my in-real-life best friend and I.



 

Her name is Jillian and I have known her since we were thirteen.  I don't think we liked each other very much at first but a year later we were inseparable.  We've been through a lot of stuff together, basically every after school special scenario you can think of.

 

We live 1,000 miles apart but are still thick as thieves.  If you ever want to see two grown women make a game of cribbage foul-mouthed and rowdy, come to one of our get-togethers.  Jillian is one of the most ambitious, smartest, and toughest chicks I know and has a heart of gold. 

 

She was my saving grace during a time when I really needed one and I love her dearly for it.

 

May 4

Here's day 4 of the above challenge to Blog Every Day in May.  Today's topic is Favorite quote and why you love it so here goes.

An anonymous text from the Tradition says that, in life, each person can take one of two attitudes: to build or to plant. The builders might take years over their tasks, but one day, they finish what they’re doing. Then they find they’re hemmed in by their own walls. Life loses its meaning when the building stops.

Then there are those who plant. They endure storms and all the many vicissitudes of the seasons, and they rarely rest. But, unlike a building, a garden never stops growing. And while it requires the gardener’s constant attention, it allows life for the gardener to be a great adventure.

Gardeners always recognize one another, because they know in the history of each plant lies the growth of the whole world.

-Paulo Coelho (Brida)
 

I love everything Paulo writes.  This was the reading at our wedding.

Awww..

 

May 3

  I'm keepin' on keepin' on with the above challenge to Blog Every Day in May. Ambitious I know, but there are topics posted for every day. Go check it out. Today's topic is Things that make you uncomfortable so here goes.

I could write an entire book about things that make me uncomfortable.

Having anxiety certainly presents its fair share of things that make me uncomfortable.  Most uncomfortable moments deal with issues of space or not being in control of my surroundings. 

Sometimes those issues creep up, sometimes they don’t.

Some instances of being uncomfortable in no spectacular order:

* Recently I walked over a bridge (sort of ran because it was rather high up) and could not and would not get back over to the other side.  Bobaloo walked back to the hotel to get my Pops to come pick me up in a car.  I knew in my heart of hearts the bridge was not going to suddenly break and I knew I wasn't going to accidentally fall off, but nonetheless I seriously cried over this:

This is the pedestrian bridge, for real yo.



* Every once in a while riding on the highway in the passenger seat of a car can be a horrible experience.  I am not sure if it’s the speed or the other drivers or the fact that I am not driving but some days it’s just too much to handle.

*  Every 8-12 months I get on an airplane, freak out, and vow to never get on another plane again, forget about aforementioned vow 8-12 months later, lather, rinse, and repeat.

*  Eating in front of strangers is bizarre and uncomfortable, weddings are a nightmare.

*  The self checkout at the grocery store is an endless source of anxiety for me which is weird because I usually prefer to interact with machines rather than people.  I think it's because the fruit and vegetables get priced wrong with the scanner and the scary Overlord of Groceries has to come over and boss me around.

*  Experiencing new things by myself isn’t my strong suit.  It’s not the new experience so much as the not getting lost on the way there, finding where to park, what if I wrote down the wrong day or time, expectation management, I don't know what's happening, what if I start panicking, am I breathing normal, etc.

Long story short, I make me incredibly uncomfortable.

May 2

 

Today is day dos of the above challenge to Blog Every Day in May. Ambitious I know, but there are topics posted for every day. Go check it out. Today's topic is Educate us on something you know a lot about or are good at.

 

Hmm..  Something I know a lot about?  I know a little about a lot, but not the other way around.  I don't think I have any secret talents either.  Well maybe I do but they're still a secret from me, who knows?

 

You may not know this about me but I am saving my rubles to buy a homestead and on my homestead I want to raise...

 

Alpacas!

 



  

Seriously, I want to be able to wake up and hug my alpacas everyday.  If you buy me one, I will name it after you.  Any takers?

 

Bobaloo and I have gone to a couple of alpaca shows around town, in fact the big Great Western Alpaca Show is coming up this weekend.  Ready Bobaloo?  The shows are fun and you get to pet the alpacas and talk to the exhibitors.  So, I guess I know more than the average bear about alpacas.

 

Jill’s top 5 alpaca facts:

1)  Alpacas live for around twenty years.

2)  You can keep up to five alpacas per acre.

 

3)  Alpacas produce 5-8 pounds of wool per year, the wool is hypoallergenic.

 

4)  Alpacas weren’t imported to the US until 1984.

 

5)  Alpacas come in 16 different tones.

 

P.S. Here's a link to an alpaca webcam in Loveland, CO.  It's time for babies!

May 1

Now that my springtime funk is in check, I have linked up with the above challenge to Blog Every Day in May.  Ambitious I know, but there are topics posted for every day.  Go check it out.  Today's topic is The story of your life in 250ish words so here goes.

 

 

I was born* April 13 during a blizzard in Minneapolis to a mom, dad, and brother.  I relished being the baby of the family for eight and a half years until my younger brother was born.  He turned out to be one of my favorite people. 

I was an emotional kid who loved to read, ride my bike, play dolls, and be outside.  My mom has always said that I was the busiest little kid she ever saw; always up to something.

My best friends all came into my life during childhood and I picked up a few really good ones in high school too.  I was a nerdy teenager but it didn’t matter too much because I had a few awesome friends and generally enjoyed doing my own thing.

At nineteen, I asked the universe for a man who loved music more than I did and I would marry him.  Asked and answered.

A few months later at a Halloween party I hit on my future husband (Bobaloo), I saw his smiling face and just knew I had to meet him.  A few years later we packed our stuff and moved to Colorado just for the heck of it and we’ve been living here ever since.

There have been some rough times in this story but I try to focus on the happier stuff.  Life now is happy.  We rent a cute little house and I have two fish and a dog.  I just turned thirty and am excited about the misadventures to come.

 

*You have no idea how badly I just wanted to post Navin R. Johnson's story: