I was so deeply saddened today to learn of the passing of Elsie. I am utterly in shock. I only wish I had the opportunity to meet her in person. She was beautiful, kind, talented, and passionate about her music. This is a very sad day. Sleep peacefully, sweetheart.

I've been lazy about updating. Really lazy.

Anyway, it may be worthy of mention that I'm on the road to quitting smoking. I just finally reached the point where I was really sick of being completely winded from walking up a flight of stairs, for example. I also have had this nagging cough for almost two months now, and if it's not the result of my smoking, the smoking sure isn't helping matters. I have already cut down to, like, 3-5 cigarettes a day -- WAHOO! I also bought some Nicorette gum from a Canadian website (cheaper), so that will hopefully help. I think it would be easier to quit, though, if cigarettes weren't so damned SCRUMPTIOUS. Yes, it's not just the nicotine; I enjoy the flavor, too. I guess I should probably quit the smokers group now?

Also, I started running (again) as part of my little physical self-improvement regimen. Currently, I'm only running about three times a week, and 2-2.5 miles at a time, but I plan to eventually work back up to running about five days/ 25 miles per week. This, of course, helps me not want to smoke. Maybe I'll join the runners group...

Breakfast this morning consisted of coffee and these:


Despite the long weekend, I am still so ready for some time off work. My brother is coming up from Virginia on Friday and we're going backpacking in New Hampshire for four days. I can't wait!
It looks like this up there:


I LOVE hiking, and I LOVE New Hampshire.
I'll bring a camera, and hopefully be posting photos of my own when I get back.

ONE MORE THING: When you have a moment, stop by Sassie's set in Member Review, here. Please give it some love...it needs to be on the front page!

Happy 4th y'all!

(That's Winnie, in case you were wondering.)

Seizure is so cute.

You all should go leave a nice comment on her set in member review, MirrorMirror, so it can go up on the front page!

Thank you so much, everyone who left me a birthday message, they all made me smile! It was awesome to get messages even from people I hadn't ever talked to before. Thanks again!

I wonder if I posted a wishlist, what the odds of anyone getting me something from it would be. I just think it would be funny to post a wishlist.

In my last blog entry, I bitched about having to buy a new lawn mower just as my so-called "economic stimulus" check had arrived. Ha! That was nothing ($240) in comparison to the new freakin' water heater ($800) I had to buy today because my old one just decided to leak all over the basement floor. It was only four years old (free advice: never buy a water heater at Home Depot). Sometimes I think some kind of cosmic force is at work, conspiring to deprive me of a basic ability to save a little money, or do anything beyond just treading water. I fully realize that this same cosmic force is at work in the lives of most people: I hear similar stories all the time. Ah well, I suppose it could be worse: at least I have indoor plumbing...

Okay, several things...

As some of you are aware my brother had a pretty scary health situation recently. The good news is that he seems to be cancer-free. The weird thing is they don't know what is/was wrong with him (this after thousands of dollars worth of CAT scans and other tests). In any case, the scare was enough to make him embark on a health and fitness kick. He's biking and exercising, watching his diet, and has quit smoking. I thank those of you who sent your kind thoughts and positive energy; I credit you all for causing the happy outcome. There are some really good-hearted people here!
BORING EDITORIAL FOLLOWS:

Also, The lawn mower died. That is, of course, perfectly timed with the arrival of my "economic stimulus" check. This is how life works. And who invented lawns, anyway? It's such a waste of time, money, and energy to maintain a ridiculous green carpet around our homes. I'd just make the entire yard a huge flower and vegetable garden, but that wouldn't mean less work, would it now?
Bye Kiddies!

It's past time for a fresh blog entry. I only wish I were able to post something more positive. My brother called last week sometime to say that he had gone to a doctor complaining of pain, for which they told him they thought he had a hernia. He was a little nervous at the prospect of having surgery to correct that, even though it's a pretty straightforward, arthroscopic procedure. Well, Monday he went to the ER from work because he was in so much pain, where he underwent a CAT scan and was told he didn't have a hernia at all, but appeared to have lesions on his liver. An appointment with another specialist yesterday revealed that he probably has colon cancer (he's undergoing further tests today to confirm this). I've really had it with death and tragedy all around me lately. My aunt has beaten cancer once, but has now been told she won't make it to Christmas. Please send all the positive energy you can...I don't really know the severity of any of this yet, but my brother is only 37, and is the single parent of two beautiful children. I'm not sure how to deal with all this yet, so thanks for letting me vent in my blog.

On a happier note, it's like summer outside, finally...WAHOO!