Coffee, Shoes, and Ramblings

I've missed all the northern states or don't remember them? 
 I may have to seriously consider invading the north in the next few years. Didn't realize I was so lacking in northern travel.
visit http://douweosinga.com/projects/visitedstates to make your own state map 

I'm thankful that I'm healthy. I'm relieved I'm healthy. God is good.

"A corrupt and disorderly multitude can be spoken to by some worthy person and can easily be brought around to the right way, but a bad prince cannot be spoken to by anyone, and the only remedy for his case is COLD STEEL."

Machiavelli

I have had a relationship with gym for many years. I am in love with gym and gym has been very very good to me. I also hate gym because its not always easy being with him. For starters, I have to go to him, he never comes over to my house. And when I go there, its not always fun.

Because of this, I let months go by when I don't see gym. But I always come back.

I usually have a good time there. Or at least he thinks so. Sometimes we watch television while riding bikes or using the stair master. (not even going to get into the naming of equipment) sometimes we swim or hang out in the hot tub. Sometimes we walk or jog on the track or treadmills. Other days we do yoga or Pilates. Things are never the same.

Gym offers a variety of entertainment and is always ready to accommodate anything I want to do. The thing is. Somedays I just don't want to see him. I'm sick of him and his demanding ways. I just want to hangout on the couch and watch TV. But gym is there waiting and I know I'll feel guilty if I don't go see him.

So I go. Sometimes other people are there, some are people I know and we visit for a bit, catching up on how the kids have grown, who has retired and how so and so is and do we remember such and such. Sometimes its people I've never met and we smile and nod as someone across the room makes grunting noises and someone tries not to moan. Many of them have the same love hate relationship with gym that I do. Gym doesn't discriminate, but some people clearly get more out of their relationship with him than others. I've tried to bring friends to visit gym, but most aren't interested. They have a million reasons why they don't want to meet gym. I think they know he's hard to get to know and a hard person to stay friends with. In short knowing gym is hard work.

One of the best things about gym is when I leave him. I feel good, strong, powerful, like I can conquer the world. Gym gives me that centeredness and that makes up for all of his other qualities. Because of that, Gym and I will continue our love/hate relationship for years to come.

Well after spending a day and a half with InDesign, I am happy to say. I Win! I did it. It came back. I'm happy, cause this time yesterday I was ready to pull hair out.

So in other words, its Spring so get off your butt and get to it!

I love Spring! 

I'm actually getting up and going to the gym at 5 a.m.

Happy to report that my son is genus and fence is fixed.

he "found"  a dog yesterday that promises to grow into a HUGE gnawing machine. looks like cross between golden reteriever and black lab. paws enormous. very sweet, but I don't want it on my new couch. I prefer my 7-lb "snack size" as Sara calls her, dauchsund.

The swimming pool is now spring green as opposed to pea soup that it was Saturday. Better living through chemicels. Its 56 degrees in there, but it will be warm in a few weeks.

NOW:

Valentine Dell is going down. I'm going to tackle him this week and have him mostly done by Sunday. He's the thing I don't want to do and have been putting off for so long. He needs to get out of my head and on paper. Especially before the library puts out an APB on the overdue books related to him.

Final project will be drafted by Sunday and on its way to the finish line as well.

Also taking classes on faux finises and painting at Lowes and Home Depot Saturday. Looking for pictures today for living room, buying fish on Saturday for aquarium. Will probably madly paint things instead of anything useful on my to do list for awhile.

Car still not cleaned out from Gulf Wars. Will finish that tonight and tomorrow.

Things that will dissappear this spring:

• The "stuff" in my garage that has lived there for three years.
• The holes in the shed roof.
• the dirt in the shed floor (it will be concrete)
• the stuff in the garage that should live in the shed.

Note: The only good thing about having an empty shed is it made it easier for the police to find the alleged car thief that hid there.

If you hear any loud crashes in north central Arkansas, its Jeremy and Byron blowing up Blue Mountain Lake. They are going camping and it should be an adventure.

Is there any place to canoe in Lousiana that you won't get eaten by alligators?

"In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt." - Margaret Eleanor Atwood (1939~) Canadian Novelist, Poet

I agree, I found some seeds today when I was looking for my spare tennis shoes (the ones I keep at work so I have no excuse to not walk) and as part of my procrastination, I'm going to plant them tonight. I'm ready for fresh tomatoes, herbs and watching things grow.

Generally speaking, the world was built by and for beings with opposable thumbs.

Someone needs to tell my dog that. She can't remember that if she goes in the garage, she's stuck there until I hear random barking hours later.

She can't open the door and it doesn't just randomly open. She does this every time I go in the garage. She's not too bright, my little Cinnamon Bun.

Apparently my back fence has decided it wants a closer look at the ground. I went out there today to turn the pea-soup swimming pool into something slightly healthier and found the corner, otherwise known as "hell" (Jeremy did you mow hell?&quot trying to kiss mother earth.

Hell is a 4×4 foot square area that holds the transformers or some other big square thing that is part of the utility easement. Before we moved in some kids tried to dig to china there and then no one mowed it until it was as high as the fence. It was a pretty scary place. It doens't bother me that hell is in my back yard. At least its not in the house.

This ground kissing has happened in the last month. It clearly wasn't like that when the police busted the front gate to apprehend the suspect that tried to hide in my swimming pool one day when the air tempreature was 36 degrees. Apparently you don't have to pass an apptitude test to be a car thief. (Wonder if thats why the swimming pool water looks so bad? Wonder if he dropped something in there when he jumped in? Oh gross.)

Well anyway, that's what stinks about home ownership. I don't want to fix the fence. I don't know how to fix the fence. I don't want to dig a hole, level something and put a post in it.  I want a new stove and some new living room paint. I want a fish pond and a deck. I don't want to repair anything. Know any good handy men?