A promised Blog for Justin Skalaa....Ode to?

My friend has a son named Justin. Ran into him at The Bean Cellar. He was there with Matthew Smith & Kaella Earle.

His family calls me "The Celeb." Now, that is FUNNY...considering I am anything but. Just another name I get to add to the list.

Justin just celebrated his B-Day. So, I thought I would pop in...you know; The Celeb goes to the Celeb[ration.] Mmm, BBQ & outside fire pit - need I say more?!

What I thought would be a horrible Sat Eve turned into a night of fun & laughter [see previous Blog] and thanks to the invitation to join the party. Although I don't see her much, Justins Mom is a good friend of mine. Partway through the evening some bad news arrived - but once we knew all was ok - we managed to sneak in some laughs! At one point, I believe we were having more fun than Justin & his crew. (Sorry Justin.)

So, anyway...being the Party B-day Boy, I had to get that snap-shot pose with him! Happy Birthday, Justin! Hope you enjoyed!!!

Thanks "C-W" for.....

...breaking down my defence mechanism...beating it down, more like it! Broadening my horizons?

Facing my fears has always been difficult for me, as I assume for most of us. Weird how a relationship break-up can throw you in a tailspin... one moment you feel like you've been dropped off in the middle of the ocean after a huge meal, with no left jacket...slowly drowning in waves of sorrow. Then, you feel the anger of a Bull that is facing that annoying Matador with his fancy cap, frilly shirt AND tablecloth (ok,...maybe you feel bitter, too.) THEN, you're the prisoner locked in that jail cell,...no windows, no socialization - just you and lonely solitude. The waves of sorrow, once again, come crashing down. Finally, through the love & kind words of family and friends & even facebookers you have never met...the lifeboat dinghy arrives to, at least keep you afloat.

Now, at this moment in the aftermath, I'm still bobbing the waves in that dinghy. Well, between "that" and "lets do something crazy cause I going to prove to my ex that I am actually somebody." THIS is where facing my fears come in. :o

I have a co-worker AKA C-W....whom to me is also a GREAT friend. He just so happens to be my Comedy Show, IPod, Confidence Booster aka Psychiatrist, Secret Diary, Motivator, Mother (cause he can be down-right honest), Dance Instructor (well, maybe only once), Leaning Post & at times, Partner-in-Crime.
My young C-W can also sing. And, he's probably famous for his Karaoke Parties. Ah, Karaoke. Care-E-Okie. I love Karaoke. I love watching/listening to "other" people do karaoke. Key words here: Other People! Ohhh, don't get me wrong. I would love to be able to sing (always been a dream of mine.) Sooooo, for some reason beyond any intelligent knowledge, the "C-W" felt the need to add Singing Instructor to his list of duties as my friend.

You do know where this is going,...right?!

After a few bevies, a game which involved shots, lots of "DH, what are you singing," "DH, you're next" and basically a threat of: you're not leaving until you sing.......ADDED with my "WTH, I have no more to lose after this break-up" attitude.....I, yes "I" sang karaoke.Mind you, it was down to my "C-W" and one other person, both whom I trust. But, I faced my fears and sang karaoke.
The one thing I swore I would never do - under the influence or not - I did! [she chuckles]

Another check on my list of things I've done in life. I'm still baffled. Karaoke. Watch out U2, Jewel, Sheryl Crow...we just may be hitting the road!

Tour schedule coming soon. ;)

In my state of excitement....

...I have developed Alzheimer's! For real!

I will be live on location at my favo store soon! I love to have fun with fashion (and I do) with The Painted Wardrobe. So thought I should stop in and check out the new summer tank tops! Now...Monday I was technically on a day off...made my way to TPW, perused the clothing...and within seconds had a handful of tops, tanks, dresses and halfway stripped down in the dressing room...which is LARGE, btw...

Found a dress that I ABSOLUTELY fell in love with! Grabbed it ASAP and prayed to all who would listen that the dress would look nice on me. My prayers were answered...or, maybe I am kidding myself. Regardless...the colors remind me of the Caribbean and I LOVE it!

So, Pat cuts the tags off for me...cause I am excited and want to show-off the dress. OK, so...good looking guy is coming in for an Interview. That had NOTHING to do with it! :)

I'm running late and have an errand to run for Bill....so, ciao Lady Pat....thanks for the help and see ya soon! I pile my loot into the car, zoom back to work, get back in to studio and that...."Wait a minute..." moment hit me. W(here)TH are my clothes? I know I did not come in to work naked! SH*T! [This is where Alzheimer's came in & out like bad radar reception]

I left the store without my clothing...fair trade, right?! Reality is...I love the clothing I have. I could never, ever give it up. At least, not yet! But, I left my clothing in the dressing room. Accckkkk!

I phoned Pat...she probably shook her head and rolled her eyes. So here I am, today, at work with 2 sets of clothing...just in case, cause you just never know. What was I talking about?

In my downer state of mind....

...I thought I would grab my son and head to Dairy Queen for a pick-me-up'er! He is going to be 15 tomorrow (on Earth Day) and considering it was closed the evening before...this was a "make good" to trying to treat him on his Birthday week.

He decides to try the new Ooey-gooey Caramel Chocolate...whatever it was. And, he turns to me, "What are you getting?" OH COME ON....does he have to ask?! For X amount of years I have been ordering the same darn Blizzard. Oh, I have tried to stray....but, I have learned over those little affairs...The Strawberry Cheesquake is my lover! My #1! My I'll-always-come-back-to-you ice cream treat! Mmm!

So, we get to the counter and spy the HUGE poster: Blizzards, buy one regular price, 2nd is 25 cents. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?????? Ryan and I, who are simply wanting a small...look at each other and order a medium. And, tonight, it may have to be a large! :) I'm a sucker for sales!

Thank you, Dairy Queen! And, thank you Strawberry Cheesquake for being so understanding. See you tonight! ;)

Received an email....

...from Kristen and I got to thinking on her lines of thought: We all have struggles in life, bad days, and even times where we want to give up. Reality is, these bad times too shall pass.
We all have questions about life, society, people, and the list goes on... The important thing to remember is that everything always happens for a reason... at least, that is my belief.
There may be a lesson to be learned, or this may happen in order for something else to come in effect, the curiosities are endless...I agree, Kristen.

We all have 2 choices in life; two paths we can take...We can either take everything in the worst way possible, or we can learn from everything we encounter in life, take it as it is and embrace life to the fullest... I’m trying! Honest I am. I want the "learning" way of thinking! The Embrace Life path. Not one of anger and rejection and sorrow. I refuse to be a victim! I believe we are on this earth to love life, feel amazing and most of all love and be true to ourselves... If we don't respect ourselves then it becomes hard to respect others...

There will always be people in our lives who try to bring us down and make us feel unworthy of ourselves but the only thing that matters is that we believe in ourselves, because if we believe, anything in this crazy world is possible... And trust me, that’s the complete truth... No matter what is going on in your life, trust in your heart to tell you what is right and what is wrong.. Your intuition or gut feeling will always give you the correct answer (for you)...

It's okay to make mistakes and fall off the wrong path, but you just need to learn from each situation and get on the right one again! Thank you Guardian Angel for your words of wisdom. They came to me at the right moment!

I am sooooo tired today....

But, still smiling. And, it's Aarons fault. Oh yeah, talking about...Mr. I'm-Hot-Aaron Pritchett.

So, it all started with a co-worker wanting me to touch his arms for her. Oh, yeah...right...like I'm going to turn down a request from my GF co-worker. NOT! Actually, I tried to drag him home - see photo above - so she could touch his arm herself. But,....you know...the concert was coming up...blah, blah, blah!

So, as we were posing in front of the stage...I thought, "Lets Get Rowdy"...and "Lucky For Me"...I got "My Way!"

So, for all you chumps out there...listen to Aaron:

I've been watching you watchin every girl in the bar, Payin no attention to the one on your arm, You're a dog...Man, she's smokin! I've seen your kind before, and you think you're so cool. This country boy's gonna take you to school! Hold out your hand....no man, I ain't jokin...And hold my beer....While I kiss you're girlfriend, cause she needs a real man, and not a boy like you! Hold my beer, yeah I'm a man on a mission...you don't see what you're missin, but I do, so here....hold my beer!!!

K,....SLAP! Had to wake myself up! :)

My swimming experience...

...replaced my bike ride yesterday!

See, I have this great friend, Eileen, who was away on a cruise for a month. We usually try to spend once a week together - Girl Time! So, she suggested we go for a swim. I love water and I especially love salt water pools...so, she didn't have to twist my arm. Besides...the pain from my rib would have made me give in pronto!

Dilemma: I am at work with no bathing suit! "No prob," she says....and brings along 10-million suits for me to try. Ok, so I'm fibbing a bit...but, she had a lot!

Now, I have a secret to share...I am not a great swimmer...shameful for a Maritimer! But, I can hold my own and I know how to save someone (if they are drowning.) But, yesterday, the back was a killer. I was even walking funny. I'm sure I had a family of ducklings follow me down the path to the pool. Guess DH stood for Duck Hobble yesterday. I'm not a fan of floater devices, but MAN...it sure helped yesterday. I think it was the first time that I actually spent most of my time in a pool with floater devices attached to me. I used the little board for a bit, but what I really enjoyed were the weights. Huh?! The floaters looked like bar bells...made me want to exercise! :) Now, I want my own. I love them!

So, thank you Eileen, for such a wonderful experience and the new suit! It hides the fat on my hips! BONUS! I felt better after the swim, and enjoyed the Cruise pics!

Bicycle?! What bicycle???