The.End.

Happy Birthday Cake Breakfast!!!!!!!! yum!

Well, this is it. The end of the blog and if this one is numbered 29 (which it is) I definitely have difficulties with math. (remember it was going to be 40 days) This is all well and good, though, because I was really running out of things to say. I think I will miss this a bit. It has been fun and a good experience, if for anything, then to get my brain to thinking and remembering. So, on to today's blog .....

On this 40th birthday of my life I would like to say ...

I am thankful for my family. My parents and sister (brother-in-law and nieces ... grandparents and beyond) I am very blessed, fortunate, lucky to have been 'given' them. I know I am. I appreciate them and love them more than I could believe possible. Thank you.

I am thankful for my friends I have made throughout my life. I believe in quality, not quantity. The quality of my friends is GREAT. I am blessed, fortunate and lucky to have you all in my life.Thank you for choosing me as your friend, as well.

I am thankful for my life. Life IS Good. I am blessed, fortunate and lucky. It may not go as I would always like it to, the path may be rocky at times and may seem to change course without warning, but overall it really is a wonderful life. Thank you for being a part of it.

I hope the next 40 years are as blessed, fortunate and lucky as the past. In their way, I am sure they will be. The occasional rocky path will find it's way in, I am sure, but with my family and friends, the journey will be worth it.

I love you all and have a HAPPY DAY!
mike ann

YEE-HAW! Almost Done.

Well, this is about it. And that's good. While I have really enjoyed rambling on, I am running out of things to say. I do that .... often ..... like if I am talking with someone (esp. if I may like them, but don't know them very well) Then I think 'Say something!!' and then I can't think of ANYTHING! and I mean NOTHING! a TOTAL BLANK! - seriously, not a thing! and then I think I look like I am uninterested, dull or a moron ..... but I digress :)

I have had fun with this and maybe someone has learned a little something about me, or at the very least has had a laugh. Since I am not there, laughing at me is ok .. I am sure it is deserved.

Let's see .... what else can I tell you?

random likes: (in no particular order)

-walking on the beach
-architecture (decorating)
-shoes
-home depot/art store (could spend hours in either)
-a carnival
-a walk around nature (not a crazy hike, but out there)
-kids giggles
-spending time with people I care about - doing nothing ... the best way to learn about someone
-laughing with friends
-painting my nails
-going to movies/watching movies at home
-cooking (I forget about this, but I enjoy it)
-a 'before&after' (people makeover, home makeover etc.)
-going to art fairs/craft fairs/shows


what I would like to do:

-drive/ride in a race car
-go to a drive-in-movie
-pick apples/blueberries/etc. and then go home and make pies
-go on a picnic
-learn to do something someone else likes to do
-take more art classes(find my craft)- workshop
-more cooking (learn how to make different dishes)- maybe a class
-go to art fairs/craft fairs/shows with someone special


dreams:

-getting married - finding someone who loves me and who I love back. Someone who thinks I am worth the effort. someone to share life's ups and downs. the good times are better when you have someone to share them with. a forever friend to spend the rest of my life with. someone to grow old with. Life is short, but I am still young ... and a catch! wink ;)
-kids (still have some time and would still like them)
-being an artist full-time ...
-getting a 'fixer-upper' and fixing it up
-little more traveling
-having someone welcome me home
-going to an artist workshop away somewhere
-go to art fairs/craft fairs/shows with someone special (still want it)


random thinks:

-people look better/prettier/younger when wearing a smile
-your heart smiles BIG when you help someone else or do something nice
-people need to hear the good things about themselves (things they do, accomplish, etc)- I am not as good about this as I should be
-if you give someone a chance and listen carefully you may hear their heart sing
-at the end of the day, it's the people in my life I cherish the most

Almost.The.End.

I Am Sensitive.

This isn't anything that anyone who knows me doesn't already know. I am sensitive, Not overly (I don't think). I believe that if I weren't as sensitive as I am, then I wouldn't be as thoughtful. I think they go fairly hand-in-hand.(does that sound full of myself that I say I am thoughtful? I don't mean it that way, it's just what I have been told) ... But while we are at it on being 'thoughtful' ... I don't understand why one wouldn't want to be.

I am by no means, always thoughtful, nor as nice as I should be. But why would we ever think so little of others as to be thoughtless. For if I am not thoughtful, am I thoughtless? I would hate to be thought of as thoughtless. Though I may think a little too much on it all at times.

While talking of these qualities let me throw in another one. One that often bugs me. (and again, I am not perfect with these, and am not fooled into thinking I am) - however- .. Caring. That's the one I am talking about. I have never understood someone saying they care, when their actions show so obviously that they do not. Know this. If I say I care, I do. I'd never say it if I didn't mean it. That, to me, is a very basic level of cruelty. Maybe because I am sensitive.

P.s. Here is something else I learned early on. ALL gifts should be thoughtful (and I am not saying this with my upcoming Birthday - I want nor need anything). I once worked for an upscale children's toy store. Someone called and asked that we pick out a gift for their 10 year old daughter for X amount of $$ and could we have it wrapped up so they could pick it up after work.

How sad, I thought. To care so little as to not pick out your own child's gift. To think you are too busy and it is unimportant. To care -- less. From that moment on I vowed to always put thought in every gift I give, make, etc. I may not give the right thing, but I always put thought into it. I don't know. ... I am learning I should expect less. The only one disappointed with expectations is you (me) ..... I guess it is the sensitivity. I'll have to work on that. :)

Be Mine

Love is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired. ~Robert Frost


I LOVE Valentine's Day. Maybe it is all the GLITTER and RED and PINK! (twinkle lights - hint-hint) Maybe the sweets, the cards, the flowers. Little tokens to show those we care about, that we do.

Actually, I think that stuff is just the icing on the cake. I think it's the smile, the laugh, the joy, the happiness. It's the look, the touch the flutter of the heart. The thought, the selflessness... the things we do for the ones we love.

All the stuff in the world is nothing if you aren't with the one you love. So, love the ones you're with.



Love is the greatest refreshment in life. ~Pablo Picasso

Lazy Saturdays

I like the idea of a lazy Saturday (hence the late blog).

But they don't really work as I get older. While being lazy all I can think about is all that needs to be done ... laundry, cleaning the kitchen, floors, bathrooms, pick up all the stuff make some stuff ..... really just too much to do.

Maybe, if I get it done .... I can have a lazy Sunday :)

I Dream of Jeannie

When I was little my gmom had a salad dressing bottle (or maybe it was a vinegar bottle) that looked a LOT like the I Dream of Jeannie Bottle. It had circular 'windows' and looked real ornate. So, when I was at her house, I would play I Dream of Jeannie. Guess who I was?

:)

When she passed away I got that bottle. It is now on my bookshelf and when I see it I think of her and Jeannie.

p.s. I found out tonight that my cousin and her husband will be selling my gmom's old house. I haven't been in it since she passed away. It was just too hard. They sent a 'virtual tour' of the house. It looks good. It looks different and that is good. I know my gmom would be happy they are moving along to something a little bigger for their new life together. All is good.

(Happy Birthday Sissy!)

You Don't Like Steak, You Like Chicken.

(First, this photo is both sick and funny all at the same time)

I once had a guy tell me that I didn't like steak, I liked chicken. This was after he was telling me how to cook a steak. Something like, "You cook it for about 2 minutes on each side - blah, blah" to which I said something like "Is it still bleeding at that point?" And he said something like "Well you can cook it for a couple more minutes" and I said something like "Is it still moo-ing?" and he said "You don't like steak, you like chicken."

To a degree he was right, but to another degree he was WAY wrong. I made myself a steak tonight and it was DELISH! (I write these the night before, my brain doesn't work that early in the morning) Anywho, I did a really good job. It wasn't bleeding. It wasn't moo-ing. It was yummy. I thought it might help my headache, but it didn't.

It did, however, smoke up the house so much I could hardly see AND the smoke alarm didn't (yup, I said DID NOT) go off - that may be a problem. But, it wasn't actually burnt. It was quite tasty with some asparagus and corn. I am quite the cook. - ha!


Speaking of chicken - I AM A CHICKEN. scared of heights (told that one) bugs ESP. roaches, bees, spiders ... don't really care for worms or pretty much anything else .... the dark (Like out in the middle of nowhere dark)- having that feeling of someone coming up behind you in the dark - Haunted houses --

I ONCE went to a haunted house (a good 22 years ago). As we were finally getting to the end of that stupid scary house -(I had already survived the part where I was sitting on the back of the hay truck as it drove up to the house, where people jumped out of the woods and grabbed me (don't like that))- we were walking along and I could see a little sliver of light in the distance (creeping in the top of the door) and all of a sudden people started grabbing our legs!!!!! (I really don't like that)

SO, I ran full force ahead shoving the girl in front of me out through the door. As we were falling out of the door, I lost my balance grabbing her to help break my fall. Grabbing her as I was falling. From behind....OK, I grabbed her boobs - one in each hand - as I shoved her out of that damn pitch black haunted house just to get the hell out! And let me just say, I'd do it again, in a heartbeat! That is, if I'd go back in a haunted house, which I won't. Thank you, very much!

:) the.end.

Fish & Art & Valentine's Day

I LOVE Aquariums! LOVE them! I love seeing all the different, beautiful, strange fish swimming around. How cool would it be to travel all over going to all the different aquariums? (well, I think it would be)

I LOVE ART/CRAFT shows! LOVE them! Not Crap shows... CRAFT shows - By real artisans. I find it super inspiring and really gets my creative juices going. It makes me want to get home and make something. (It also makes me want to be dating someone because there are always couples there and .... well, it just does - :)...)

Speaking of LOVIN' ... I used to get confused. Was my birthday Feb. 14 or 17? ..... One day was about LOVE and one day was about ME. After experiencing many days that weren't about LOVE, I have figured out which one was about ME. (no more CORNfusion-ha!)

the.end.

Pet Peeves .......

--When someone wears their sunglasses (at night) in stores. You are not that important. Unless you have 'eye issues' take them off. You look like a fool and snobby, to boot.

--To the person in the checkout line - do not fold and stuff my 'gift bag' into the purchase/sales bag. If I wanted bent up crappy paper to wrap on my odd shaped gift, I would have saved myself the cost of the gift bag and just wrapped the miss-shaped thing at home.

--If you're driving slow, move out of the fast lane.

--While we are at it, please don't take your Sunday drive on Tuesday. Many of us have somewhere to be.

--I don't like to take the front thing off the shelf. Meaning, if I am buying a box of something off the shelf, I usually take one from further back.

--Do not pick up my drink and drink from it without asking. I need time to mentally prepare.

--When people are rude to old people.

--When I have met someone a good 5-7 times and they still don't have a clue who I am. :(

The.End.Of.My.Rant.

Life's Observation

The Setup: Going through the cafeteria line. Exiting the door with tray in hand. Entering the crowded lunchroom full of teenagers.

The Feeling: Panic. Who likes me? Who won't make fun of me? Who accepts me - just as I am?

This is how I feel on any given day. Walking into a meeting. Entering a store/etc. I have never been to. Seeing someone I haven't seen in a long while. Talking to strangers. Meeting people in large groups. Even talking on the phone. It's a shy thing. Something I push away on a regular basis. Something that is always there, but at various levels. I hope I hide it, but don't think I hide it very well.

It's funny, though. Sometimes I don't feel this way at all. :)

the end.

Randoms .. because, really, that's about all I can think of right now.

Fall is my favorite time of year (have I said that already?)

My parents bought me a birthday cake one year and I cried. (I wanted my special request cake - yellow with pink icing)

I wanted a dog so bad, I named my duck (from the easter bunny) after my cousin's dog.

I like to mix (stir) my regular ice cream around until it is 'soft serve' (And chocolate is best when it starts out as vanilla with chocolate sauce mixed in)

I like peanut butter and potato chip sandwiches. But I don't often but peanut butter
because it also tastes great on a spoon.

I like to get a little piece of art from the art shows I go to, to remember it by -- therefore, I am a little Knick-knacky.

My first car was a Yellow and black convertible super beetle - I LOVED THAT CAR! - It was very me!

We had a slumber party at the girl scout house when I was little (in B'Ham). I watched a jumping cricket crawl across a girls face ..... scared the crap outta me and I had to pull my sleeping bag over my head. I am not keen on bugs!

I like a lazy Sunday but then I feel like I should have done something. (I'm going to do something today)

Done Before I Start

(this one will be short)

Often times, with art projects(things other people have made that interest me) - I see something and think ... How did they do that? I think I could do that .... How would I be able to do that? .. and once I figure it out ...... I am done.

the.end.

Sometimes ....

.... I feel like fighting but sometimes I feel like crying. It is what it is. It happens.

Most times I am pretty even keeled. I'd say 'generally happy with moments of sadness.' And when I get mad, it doesn't usually last for very long. (Take note, those of you who choose to cross my path - ha!) I get snappy, more than mad, I think. And I'll defend someone else quicker and easier than myself (remember the soccer story - LESSON: Do NOT be mean to someone I care about in front of me! - 'nuff said)

But today, I feel like laughing! (and posting a random weird photo)

:)

the.end.

Hay is for Horses!

I LOVE round hay bales scattered across a field. Every time I drive past them I smile ... they make me happy :). They make me want to pull over, jump out of the car, then run and dance around them. Skipping. Jumping. Laughing.

I Like A KIDS Meal ....

... it's plenty! :)

If they have a kids meal and they'll let me order it, I will. I'm not afraid .... even when I have to say 'I'd like a Moo Moo Mr. Cow, please' (really can they not just give them normal names? - I mean seriously) I like a kids meal. Sometimes the toys are pretty neat, too.

While we're talking about it ... I don't like people talking about my food. I don't know why, but I don't. This mainly applies to the work environment, I've noticed. I think it is the whole sitting in a cubicle and someone walking by and then they talk about my food. Why? I mean, I am sure it is just 'making conversation' ... but I plain don't care for it. :) Don't talk about my food. When you do, what are you really saying? Leave it alone. ;)

I'm just sayin'.

:)

Requested

MY Gmom.

She was my mother's mother. I never knew my mother's father (my granddaddy) - he passed away two years before I was born, when my mom was in her early 20s and my uncle was a teenager. I believe my gmom was about 50 years old. She never remarried. She went to work when he was sick and worked to raise and send my uncle to school and take care of herself.

She was a very strong, smart, funny lady. I miss her every day. We spent every Saturday night with her (while we lived in B'ham)- we thought for us, and in part, it was - but also for her and so my parents could have a break. She would let us pick out whatever we wanted for dinner, knowing we would have a balanced meal at home. we'd usually pick out frozen pizza, chips, dip, cucumbers and tv dinners.. WHAT A TREAT! :)

She would tell us stories - she was a GREAT story teller. We would stay up late to watch the late, late movie (that may have been around 9pm) If I forgot my baby doll, she would make me one out of a bath towel. She was very creative and talented, but didn't give herself credit.

We would spend forever drawing pictures of each other, not looking at the paper until we were done - then laugh hysterically at the end results. :) We would make Christmas ornaments with her each year.

It was with her that I went 'down home'. Where she came from, to see all her sisters . She was one of 6 children. Four girls and 2 boys. Her mother passed away when she was 37 and all 6 children had to be separated among relatives because her father could not take care of them all.

The story goes, that after my great grandmother passed away, my great grandfather's brother tried to set him up with a lady who was part of the Coke family. My grandmother and her sisters and brothers wanted none of that. So they would intercept the woman's letters and once, when the lady sent a tin with a cake in it - they ate the cake, filled the tin with mud and gave it to their father. He was like 'What the?' and that was pretty much the end of it. - then the kids went to live with other relatives.

My grandmother and her sisters all had similar personalities. They were all very funny. Laughing all the time. Very loving and caring. Very 'family'.

I miss her every day. She knew me best. I always felt loved, liked, accepted .... happy with her.

I love her a bushel and a peck and a hug around the neck. (just like she always said)

I Should Be Italian!

But instead I am Scottish, Irish, English, American Indian (just a little) and a whole lotta German...

I LOVE the music! (It makes me smile) I LOVE the architecture! (It is So beautiful) I LOVE the scenery/atmosphere! (It makes me want to skip and play) I LOVE the food (Followed by the limoncello) The people are so friendly. (Some of the men aren't so bad ;) - wink) and the gelatto is 'delizioso'

Along with this I really think I was born at the wrong time . I LOVE the old BIG band music of Frank Sinatra and the like ..... it makes me want to dance and sing and laugh and smile and TWIRL! ...... (somehow they go hand-in-hand, I think)


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