Beach princesses

Nothing stops daddy from fishing.

Life continues

One thing no one warns you about when you move to Florida -- at least when you move to the Florida coast. Casual is key. I felt completely overdressed for a job interview I just went to this week. Required navy suit, check. Portfolio and resume in a nice folder - check. Heels - check. You know the drill. I walk in and sit in the lobby waiting. That's when I notice that everyone is wearing jeans or khakis, shorts, T-shirts. Fun is the best word to describe the whole place. I really want to work there. So hopefully, they'll realize that I own other clothes.

Next post: more photos

Florida pics

Pirate Kayla ponders her next move The view from the dock 1/2 block away.

while sitting on daddy's lap.

Papa and Chloe ride a wave.

The view from the boardwalk near (about a block) the house.

Florida

Ray holding Willow. This is the reason we're in Florida.

Arrgh, matey

It's a pirates life for me. Yes, after spending the weekend watching a pirate ship invade our little portion of the bay and hearing "aargh" more times than we can count, my little granddaughters have been transformed from princesses to pirates.

That's ok. They are cute 3 and 4 year olds. But this weekend was a bit unnerving. Seems some residents of Treasure Island really think they are pirates. Really.

Pictures soon, promise. Also in the next few days look for a redesign of the site with possibly a new name. :)

Florida

We're here. Florida. First impression: For a laid-back beach community, things sure move fast, cars, people...

I'm feeling a little like a fish out of water (pun intended) but give me a few weeks and I'm sure I'll feel like a native.

We ventured out to the beach today. It was hot. Despite the 55 + sun proof block we put on, we managed to get a little tan. It's really cool to walk across the street to the beach, or half block the other way to the fishing dock. We saw dophins swimming near the dock yesterday.

I saw the "bikini" in a whole new light today. Those of us in the middle of the country anguish over the perfect swimsuit and how we'll look in it. Here, the bikini is the suit of choice (not me -- let me stress - not me.) The two piece 1/4 yard of fabric is worn here by every size and shape. Ladies with more mid-section than ass wear them. A 70+ man was wearing a thong one today. At least he looked like a man, except for the full bikini top. Really, nice rack. He had long hair and was bald.

So, as I said, the bikini is a whole new experience in Florida.

No one blinks an eye or looks twice on our beach -- Treasure Island beach -- which usually draws the regular time share crowd and locals. Summer people. It will be a different experience this winter.

Because we live on Treasure Island, all references to pirates are constant. We're planning on watching the third pirate movie tonight at the local theater and then tomorrow, the local "pirate" festival will lure us to John's Pass where we'll watch a pirate invasion and go on a treasure hunt.

Then, we'll go down to Paradise Island and don parrot hats for a Jimmy Buffett concert. Yeah, we're still in "vacation" mode. Work starts next week, so I'll decide then whether I'm going to like "living" in Florida.

I'll post some pics tomorrow!

Ten things I’ll miss about Oklahoma

10. Oklahoma City Festival of the Arts
9. Oklahoma City and Tulsa Museums
8. Press club in Tulsa
7. Out of the way wineries
6. Real estate prices
5. Great bbq – Earl’s, Urban Iron Starr, Van’s Pig Stand
4. Bricktown
3. Very little traffic congestion
2. OKC Gridiron

And, the thing I'll miss the most:

1. The people. I’m from Texas, and I’ll still say that bar none, Okies are the best. You can always count on someone coming to your aid if you break down, need a hand or need a friend.

Take a deep breath - don't panic

Boxes -- my house is over run with boxes right now. The reality of moving is settling in, and I occasionally have to stop -- take a deep breath and remind myself not to panic.

It seems like only yesterday, I was moving into this house, scraping layers of wallpaper off the walls and fighting the bugs that had moved in while it was empty. We turned it into our home, and now we're moving.

Do you ever wonder when you drive by a big old house, once beautiful and now dilapated and falling down about the family who built it, who lived in it and turned into their home?

I'll miss our house. But we'll make a new home in Florida, really. Oh now, here comes the panic again. Deep breath...deep breath...

Messages to my friends

Because I'm too lazy to email everyone....

Gina -- Is there a date I should be saving?

Knittin Kitten -- Where are you, Chica? How are you?

Scott -- Add me to your friends list again, so I can read your blog please...

Diva -- I'll have to make a stop in Miami before I head to Florida.

Melessa -- Congrats, congrats, congrats.

The beach awaits...

A few weeks ago, we made a momentous decision – we’re moving to Florida. Everything from then on has been a whirlwind blur of more decisions and actions.

The thought of moving is terrifying. Oklahoma, this red dirt land, has a way of getting under your psyche. I even cried recently when I heard Vince Gill and Jimmy Webb’s song, Oklahoma Rising, on the radio – “I choke back the emotion, I’m Okie and I’m proud. And, if you call me Okie, you’d better say it loud…” I choked back my own tears. I love this state and its people, who have embraced me as one of their own.

Florida offers more opportunity, a better job with almost five times the pay for my husband. His final interview was this past week, and we’re expecting an offer this week. We took a leap of faith in deciding to move. But it’s worked out. The former owners of the house have wanted to move back to the old neighborhood to the house they grew up in, so that’s done. We’ll be bunking with my son and his wife for a couple of weeks, but have found a great beach cottage near them.

I’ve been a little more reluctant than my husband. We’ve lived here nearly five years – longer than we’ve lived anywhere in our whole 22 years of married life – with the exception of Okinawa, Japan. I feel like I’m leaving home.

We gathered our closest friends together for a “Happy Hour” this week, and amid margaritas and laughter, we told them we were moving. First came the tears, then came the pleas for invitations to our new home on the beach. We won’t lose our friends.

I finally acquiesced and sent out a resume packet on Monday. I had a phone interview with the company on Thursday evening after I got back from D.C. Wow. That was quick. Today, I took an editing and writing test. I’ll know tomorrow if they want me to fly out before June for an in-person interview. It’s a great job – challenging with room to move up and almost three times my salary in Oklahoma. And, for the record, the cost of living there is not much higher than Oklahoma City. I never have understood why Oklahoma wages run so far below the norm. That’s one reason so many professionals opt to move, but that’s another post. Things are working out.

I’m giving notice on my own job this week Then reality will really set in. I’m leaving Oklahoma. We’ll be back. In July, I have a wedding to attend. In February, we’re planning to take a week’s vacation and come back for Gridiron.

I’m moving.

She wants to be a cowgirl, baby...

I have a lot of shoes –mostly black – and brown with a few blue and navy and even a red pair. They overflow from the four shelf cabinet in my dressing area, spilling over the sides.

I’m not necessarily a shoe addict. In the grand scheme of female shoe addictions, I’d have to say I rank low. But women need a lot of shoes. We need heels for evening and other occasions. We need pumps. We need flats. We need sandals and sneakers and flip flops. And, those shoes have to match our outfits. Owning a lot of shoes, particularly if you are female is simply a necessity.

But every once in a while, you have to be a pair of shoes just because they are “cute” and sometimes it’s okay to fall in love with your shoes.

I learned this on a recent shopping trip with my three- and four-year-old granddaughters. Hubby and I decided they needed some sandals since the weather was getting warmer. So we scanned the shoe aisles, walking back and forth, letting them pick out the ones they wanted. Granddaughter No. 2, went for comfort plus the prerequisite characters on her sandals. Granddaughter No. 1 (they are ranked by age) wanted the pink “princess” shoes. Even the characters on another pair – princesses, of course – wouldn’t convince her to let go of her princess shoes. Until she saw the boots.

Cowboy boots. Black, with aqua tips and an aqua embroidered butterfly in the center of each one. The boots were smaller than her shoes and I wasn’t convinced they would fit. But she tried them on, and declared them perfect. Trying to abide by the “only one pair” rule we had wisely set at the beginning of the shopping trip, she relinquished her hold on the pink princess shoes. She wanted the boots.

But the boots were on the clearance rack, and at only $4 that meant we could break the rule. We asked granddaughter No. 2 if she wanted an exact pair. She snubbed them, “No, I don’t like them.”

So off we went. My granddaughter’s love affair with her boots has grown. She wears them with skirts and shorts, and with her pajamas. She loves her boots. The princess shoes are not as much fun as the boots. They are fun. She smiles a lot when she wears her boots and people notice them. It’s the best bargain I’ve ever bought for $4.

Sometimes, we just need to buy some fun.

The first 50 years

Fifty. 50. Half a century. Five decades. That’s me. I turned “the big five – O” earlier this year.

And, I drove my friends and family crazy reminding them of my impending “old age.” I thought if I said it long and loud enough, it would be easier for me to accept that I was 50 years old. It worked. Sort of.

What is 50 supposed to feel like, and for that matter, look like really?

Madonna, the material girl herself, is almost 50. She’s still selling c.d.’s and still selling out on her tours. And then again, recently I spoke with a woman with gray hair and wrinkles who was in a wheelchair. I thought she was much older. She was only 52.

So age, I suppose is up to the individual.

So I’m hitting the gym again with a vengeance, determined in the next six months, to lose 50 pounds. I’m in yoga class every day, hoping to recapture some of the flexibility I once had. It’s working. I feel younger. Might not LOOK younger, but I feel younger. The looking young part is coming in small doses with cosmetic treatments here and there. Again, I might not necessarily look younger, but I feel better.

Call it my midlife crisis, if you will. I’m also reassessing my job, where I live, where I want to be when I’m 55.

Not that I have any regrets. I look back at the past 50 years and all the phases of my life. My ‘mother earth’ stage when I grew all my own vegetables and my dream was to live on a self-sustaining farm. My yuppie phase when my dream was to make millions and park the nicest car on the block in front of the biggest house. And, then returning back to college, finding a new career. It’s all been fun. I’ve lived in at least nine states and two countries, and traveled a lot. I’ve listened to rock bands in muddy fields, watched Broadway Shows in New York, acted and sang on stage myself, started a theater group, was editor of an infamous campus newspaper, met presidents and spent time on the street with homeless people. I’ve written letters and books and share the dream to write more. I’ve no regrets. I have wonderful friends scattered around the globe, I have three children, four grandchildren and the love of my life beside me.

I don’t know what phase I’m in now. Doesn’t matter. It will be fun.

It’s never too late until well…it’s too late. So for now, I’m on a mission to “find myself” yet again. Hubby’s along for the ride. We’re having fun. And, maybe that’s what makes being 50 okay. Finding myself when I was 18 or 21 or even 30 wasn’t so much fun.

I thought about lying about my age. But then again, that would require me asking all my children to lie about their age. I’m 50. Whew.

Today's Photo of the Day

Our little "Fly girls"

Did you hear that crash?

No, it wasn't the stock market. It was my computer. Crash.

The past few days without a computer made me realize the extent of my addiction to technology.

Growing up in the 1970s, we had television, our tape recorders, turn tables, our eight-track players and transitor radios. An antenna was perched on the rooftop of our house and periodically our father would have to climb a ladder and adjust it so we would get the perfect picture. We were styling.

We didn't even have a dishwasher in our house growing up -- with so many children, my parents knew they didn't need one. We were the dishwashers.

Now, I feel tinges of withdrawal if I inadvertently leave my cell phone at home when I leave the house. Two days without checking email?! Banish the thought. My PDA, my digital recorder, my digital camera -- all in my purse daily. They're with me, whereever I go.

Cable's not even hi-tech enough for us now. We have digital satellite, attached to at least three televisions in the house. We can rewind regular television, record it, watch it later, order a movie all with the click of our remotes.

We shop online. We connect with our friends and the world. We're technology addicts. We carry our laptops and open them up and work at restaurants and coffee shops. Who needs candles as ambience any more? We have the glow of our computer monitors.

We're addicted, and maybe we've lost a bit our own creativity and imagination in the process of depending on technology.

My son and his wife were recently dreading a cross-country trip with their 3 and 4 year olds. The portable digital television and dvd player they can strap to the back seat was not working. I suggested coloring books, crayons and puzzles. I also mentioned the "good old days" when our parents expected the passing scenery to be more than enough entertainment for us in the back seat of the car.

I also remember eating lunch, away from work and not having my boss or my clients call me three or four times while I'm eating. We're addicts.

I'm going to try to change a bit. No more cell phone on at lunch time. At least one day a week without checking email -- really. I'll let you know how it goes.

Unintended hiatus

It's been a whole month + since my last post. A rarity for even me. I've missed you all, and didn't realize how much until I ventured online and started reading some of my favorite blogs (see links.)

Strange, that I should miss people that I really don't know. Some, of course, are friends. Others, are newly acquired friends -- having met them at the Blogger Round Up in the fall. And, still others, I wouldn't know if I walked by on the street. Still, I missed you all.

The OKC Gridiron Show went off beautifully. I've been exhausted for the past week, trying to catch up on all the rest we missed.

Now, it's 25 days until the NAHJ Conference that I'm in the midst of helping plan. So, my time is still limited.

But, I'm back. I'll post. There's so much to post about these days, I hardly know where to start.

But for now. Hello, again.

The state of my life

1. Good news today. Benign cysts for certain. Trying some stuff to "dissolve it" without surgery. No more needles for a while.

2. Cold is gone. I can return to my life. I even missed the office.

3. Made it to rehearsals, it's good to be back in Gridiron mode. Do you need tickets? Damn funny stuff.

4. Enjoying the granddaughters' visit. They are currently in their princess costumes. Life is still a fairy tale for them.

5. I must be mellowing, or the Prez was really pandering tonight. I actually agreed with a lot of what he said, not all, but hey, at least I didn't scream at the TV and shut it off half-way like I have the past five years.

Brrrr...

I'm cold. Right now I've got so many layers on I feel like an onion. All the experts say layering is the way to go.

I'm still cold, and ice is still falling from the sky.

Anybody know what the temperature is like in Florida?

What's in your closet?

Our son and his family are coming to visit for a couple of weeks. We decided that meant giving the girls their own private space in the "guest" room that my youngest daughter and her husband claimed as their own when they were here for an extended stay. Much of their stuff was still there, so we decided to pack it up and move it to the closet in the office. That meant moving the stuff in the office SOMEWHERE. Holy cow. First of all, we've got way too many clothes. And yet, we were the same thing every week and gripe we have nothing to wear. So we dumped it all out and are sorting through it today. In the meantime, I managed to neatly organize two closets and a dresser-full from the guest room into the office closet (big closets.)

Today the goal is to throw out stuff that we don't wear. Haven't worn it in a year --it's gone. Doesn't fit -- it's gone. Bought this when all three children still lived at home (12 years ago) -- it's gone.

Now, I just have to find a second twin bed. All the "Monkey Room" stuff is coming out of boxes and being revived in the guest bedroom during their visit.

I was so exhausted last night that I could hardly make it to the bed before I fell asleep. But I can't wait to see them. Just what the doctor ordered :)

New Year - New look

I've decided that I'm going to upgrade the look on this blog. So, really I have no idea how to do this, but I'm planning, so be prepared.

Hubby also wants me to help him start a blog. Should be fun. I'll let you guys know when it's up and running.

On the previous post: Still sick. Still not talking. But thanks for the good thoughts.

I'll take any design tidbits that you have to offer...

Let's get the worst over with first

Fourth day of the year, and thus far...it sucks.

I've got the mother of all colds. Surely, it's not the flu because I listened to my doctor earlier this week and got a FLU SHOT. Now I'm sick. Can't breathe, can't talk.

What took me to the doctor in the first place last week was the fact that the left side of my face ballooned. He thought it was an infection of some kind, gave me antibiotics. They made me sick. You know, nausea etc. But the swelling went down enough that I was able to enjoy the weekend.

But the big news I didnt' share with all was that I had found a lump on my left breast. So yesterday I had to go through the whole torture of the mammogram. Torture because I didn't realize until then just how much pain I had been feeling. It was excrutiatingly painful (if you're a guy, well just imagine...) The tech flipped out, the doc flipped out. Needle biopsy. Yeah, that sucker hurt too. So now, I've got a cold and sore boobs.

No word yet as to the results. No news is good news, right? Yes, I know this is a lousy way to let friends know about this, but it's easier than actually talking about it. And, no. I don't want to talk. Not yet. Not yet.

The good news is that if I get all the bad crap out of the way now, this year should just get better. I think I've convinced my boss to send me to a class in D.C. in the Spring. I love D.C. So I'll just think of cherry blossoms and take more pain meds.

See looking up already.

Resolutions

It's the last day of the year, and I'm doing my usual -- cleaning. (See Dec. '05 explanation for that.)

Ever the optimist, I always make resolutions. Let's see how I fared this year. Last year's resolutions were:

1. Get healthy, lose weight, etc. On the way. I've been sidetracked a bit lately, but we're hitting the gym, diet, etc. on Tuesday. Have hired a personal trainer.
2. Spend more time with friends and family Tried to visit everyone more often this year, thus putting a *&^%load of miles on my "new" car.
3. FINISH WRITING MY BOOKs (yes, plural) Close, but no cigar. I'm aiming to have No. 1 finished by my birthday in late February this year.
4. Get rich. Not so much.
5. Hire a maid After I clean house this morning, I'm going to go buy myself a nice outfit. Does that count?


This year's resolutions:

1. Finish the damn book
2. Quit being a chicken, and apply to jobs that I know I really want, so what if I don't have a chance in hell of getting it? It's worth applying. Even if I get turned down, at least I got turned down by the best.
3. Finish the t.v. pilot script
4. Take better care of my entire body: hair, skin, weight etc.
5. Move from OKC (see No. 2)

That's enough. There's more. But that's enough. Now, I've got to finish cleaning. We had a marvelous time at a party at a friend's home last night, going to another swanky party tonight at another friend's home, having a crowd over for brunch tomorrow morning. So the year is starting off with friends, fun, laughter etc.

Happy New Year to all. May your dreams come true.

Good-bye 2006

As the year winds down and we mourn the deaths of those we lost -- whether family, friend or a part of our culture -- it's time to say good bye.

So long to old worries and sorrows.
So long to fashions and movies that didn't work.
So long to good times and great joys, successes and failures.

They'll live long in our memories.
And quietly become a part of who we are.

Hello to the New Year with all the joys and challenges yet to come, which will in turn become part of the tapestry of our lives.

Tomorrow...we talk resolutions.

Christmas revisited

I love Christmas. I hate Christmas.

I love Christmas because it's such a fun time of year that conjures up memories of our own childhoods. Times were simplier then. We truly believed in Santa Claus, and our parents pulled out all the stops to make it a fun day. Everyone lived within driving distance, and cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents would all be part of the celebration. Memories of Christmases with our children when they were young also make us feel all warm and fuzzy. We lived far away, but we had each other, and our friends who had become our family.

I hate Christmas because it brings to light all the imperfections of our family -- not so much with the people as with the way things are.

I haven't spent Christmas with my parents in too many years to count. They spent Christmas at one of my younger sister's home. She's perfect. I wasn't invited. Not that I would have gone since I have my own family and they wouldn't have been invited, but it would be nice sometimes to be invited.

My mom-in-laws dementia gets worse every day. We remember Christmas with her because she would cook and cook and bake and bake. No matter where we were in the world, she would send a huge box of homemade goodies -- breads, cookies, that special fruitcake Jinks makes in Oswego and a box of chocolates from the factory in Joplin. It was a definite highlight for the kids and they loved grandma's box. Now, we go visit her in her "suite" at the nursing home. Sit on her couch and talk to her about letting the staff do her laundry and making sure she takes showers.

My son and his family live too far away. Too far. Our youngest is still trying to find her way. We've really no idea how she spent Christmas.

We spent Christmas with our daughter and family at their home -- a too small apartment crowded with the needs of a family with a growing child. We loved the time we got to spend with she and our grandson. Some things worried us -- should we have insisted we go to Advent services? Should we have done more with our grandson? We had to leave to drive back right after Christmas dinner. Never enough time.

The ideal Christmas would be to have everyone under our roof. Our decorated house with the tree touching the ceiling and the lights twinkling in doorways seems too much to bear,now. We had thought everyone would be here for the holiday, and we've decided we're taking most of the decorations down before the New Year.

It's not so much that we're unhappy. It's a dissatisfaction with the way things are. But things change. Maybe next year.

The grandkids

Our granddaughters never like photos with Santa. They're not smiling, but at least they weren't screaming this year.



Our grandson at his Christmas program at school.

Merry Christmas ya'll

This is hubby and I at the zoo at Halloween. We have volunteered the past couple of years. It's always fun.

Yes, Virginia...there is a Santa Claus

Read an article today that tells us if you hold a camera upside down when taking a photo -- guess what -- instantly thinner.

There is a Santa Claus!

Merry Christmas, ya'll. I'd blog more but still trying to buy gifts, finish stuff at work and mail Christmas cards. All will be done by Jan. 1

Person of the Year

I always knew that one day I would be Time Magazine's Person of the Year.



I thought the honor would come after I received the Pulitzer or the Nobel Peace Prize. But no, this year. Congratulations to me.

And, congratulations to you, who share the honor with me.

Dang pictures made me cry

OK, I was holding it together about the whole Christmas thing, and then I went to the my son's blog and he has these photos posted of events in his life -- our lives. Made me cry.

Then I went to his new myspace site and it made me laugh to hear some of his old air checks and look at some of the old pics.

Still sad though. We're definitely going to have to plan a trip to the Northwest again -- soon.

On your mark, get set...Christmas

The good news is the house is finally decorated. The tree is up (we had to cut a whole foot off the bottom because I got carried away and brought home a tree that was too tall for our house!) I put lights up yesterday -- just in time for a Christmas party we were hosting.

The party -- smashing success -- people finally all left in the wee hours of the morn. Fun crowd, great conversation. I love holidays. They give us an excuse to get together with friends. And, I should have taken a photo. The table looked absolutely "Martha - ish" -- That's because I basically took her magazine, bought the stuff to "landscape" the setting, and laid out the food in these wonderful crystal trays that we've gotten from parents etc. Gorgeous.

Getting together with other friends tomorrow night, and going to the movies with a girlfriend on Monday night.

Now, I just have to go buy some presents. Oh, I've bought a few things here and there. A few -- not enough to really say that I've shopped. The good news is that we always have a list of exactly what we're buying everyone, so it should be easy finding this stuff. Right? And, we've been blessed with many Christmas cards this year, so I've got to get the lead out and mail those babies on Monday. Sorry pals.

But our Christmas plans are still up in the air. Daughter No. 1's car in on the blitz, so she can't come down. Daughter No. 2 is in another town and likely will go to her in-laws for the holiday. Son and granddaughters are in D.C. Bummer. If they didn't live so dang far, we'd load up the Cruiser. But unfortunately, I've used more than my share of vacation days this year. Personally, I think we should all get a week (paid) at Christmas as a bonus.

Should have just planned for that cruise now. More on that later -- yes, we're going on a cruise in 2007. Woo hoo.

Fortunately are New Year's plans are solid, parties, parties parties every night. Our own brunch/party on New Year's Day. Can't wait.

Hope everyone is having some holiday fun...and has THEIR shopping done.

I'm a dirty old lady

WARNING: DO NOT READ THIS IF YOU MIGHT BE OFFENDED (AKA - my children)

So, my love affair with the gym has been hit or miss lately. Really since August when my bag was stolen, it's been hard to be as persistent as I was before. And, our diet has slowly waned -- too much junk out there right now.

So we look for motivation where we can find it. Today, I was on the arc trainer, set for 35 minutes. I forgot the ear buds, so no music. I don't wear my glasses due to the sweat beads that usually form and drip down the lenses, so I couldn't see the t.v. screens, much less read the captions.

It was rorture trying to occupy my mind while I struggled along at 7 minutes, 8 minutes, then something -- or someone happened along.

Young, muscular, tanned, gorgeous and took the arc trainer right in front of me. Who needs t.v? My heart rate went up probably a little higher than it should have been when he pulled up his shirt to wipe the sweat off his face. The woman on the trainer next to me almost fell, so my guess is he was distracting others as well.

Before I knew it, time was up. Heck, I can stay on this thing a little longer...yep, I did. Then, finally tore myself away.

We find motivation where we need it. :) I guess I'll find out soon if my hubby is reading the blog regularly.

Gift ideas and a question

It's Saturday, I so should be sleeping in....the curse of being a "morning person."

Yesterday was hubby's birthday. It was low-key this year compared to the surprise bash last year. It was extremely nice. Just the two of us last night, and tonight we're meeting friends for dinner, drinks and a hockey game.

Christmas looms, and I just found a great solution for that person who has everything and REALLY doesn't need a present. A co-worker suggested this, and I love the idea! You can give a flock of chickens, geese or ducks to a family in an Third World country, or a water buffalo or goat in someone's name. Our boss is getting a flock of chickens. Here's the link to Heifer International

And now a question for all: Blogger is tempting us with their new "version." Has anyone tried this yet, and do you like it?

Unplanned hiatus

I'm losing track of days and blogging less frequently. I'll blame the holiday. Even though I just finally pulled the fall wreath of our front door yesterday and replaced it with a Christmas one. That's all I've done.

I think it was just sheer exhaustion. We just couldn't get enough sleep for the first few days after getting back from Washington.

The trip was marvelous. Gotta say, my trip to Seattle was much much different this time around. I loved it. We had so much fun, and Olympia was breathtakingly beautiful.

Unfortunately, the job hunt didn't go as well. It's just not a good fit. Ok. It would be a miserable fit, and I finally had to admit it.

That doesn't mean hubby has given up the quest. He's determined to drag me kicking and screaming to the Pacific Northwest. It won't be so bad. It was so absolutely wonderful to see our friends, K and J.

I cannot begin to tell you how wonderful it was to see our son, daughter in law, the three beautiful granddaughters. We miss them so much, and it was heart wrenching to leave them so soon. We want so bad to be a part of their lives more frequently. WE were thrilled that in the short time we were with them, they felt comfortable enough to want to ride in the rental car with us. Yeah, we got them all to ourselves for a bit. And, little Willow? Well, she's the prettiest baby ever!

But Oklahoma you're stuck with me for a while longer. I mean, I'd have to change the name of the blog anyway to something like...WAY freaking North of the Red River.

Gotta go find some Christmas cards to send now....

The Washington Post

Well, I'm in Washington, and apparently missing winter in Oklahoma yet again.

In February, we were leaving for Seattle when a storm was headed to OKC. Then, this week we left just in time to miss the snow. This time it sounds like the snow is hanging around for a while though. Hope everyone at home is bundling up and making it through.

So far, so good on the interview. It's breathtakingly beautiful here. But I've made a vow. If I move here, I'm not wearing flannel or plaid.

The hotel is pretty spiffy with computers and a fitness center. Then they bake cookies in the afternoon for all the guests. Just the smell is great.

Oh, yeah. The paper and everyone there so far seems great. I'm working a shift today, so I'll let you know then.

Trips

Still in Missouri. I've so enjoyed seeing and hugging and laughing with our five-year-old grandson, but I'm so ready to go sleep in my own bed tonight.

I leave Wednesday to go see our new granddaughter and the other two cuties. I dread that plane ride, and will be stressing on Tuesday about what I can carry on, and praying the airline doesn't lose my luggage.

The trip is work related. An interview. I'm nervous. Not so much about the interview, but more on the ramifications if it goes well.

I don't know what's worse. Sigh.

Howdy

I just realized that it's been a while since I posted last. It was definitely not intentional. The thing about holiday weeks is that you get two days off etc. BUT you have to do five days worth of work in three days usually.

I'm in Columbia, Missouri right now. We celebrated Thanksgiving with hubby's mother, aunt and collection of relatives in Kansas. It was a nice event. No drama until we took his mom home. The Alzheimer's and dementia is getting worse. She wanted to leave right after she ate. We told her that we were going to visit before driving her home (another town). So we included her in activities with the little ones and kept her busy.

We compromised and left much earlier than we would have liked. It wasn't early enough. Imagine a two-year-old throwing a temper tantrum -- but it's an 83+ year old. It was hard for my husband. When we got to the facility where she lives, she didn't even want us to walk her in. My husband did anyway, and she gave him a tongue lashing once inside telling him she never wanted to see him again etc.

The rest of us have experienced that, and I've gone through some of that with my dad. But hubby never had. It was devastating to him.

Friday wasn't much better. The "Home Place" care has gone downhill since a new administrator came in a few months ago. They are getting residents who belong in a skilled nursing facility. They don't have enough nurses. Brother in law and wife were more aware of this than we were, and have been raising cain. The administrator was trying to tell us that mom had to start using insulin and would immediately have to be moved. We refused, and thank God, we called the brother in law et. al, because we found out everything that had happened in the past month. I was so furious that this administrator (now known as Jezebel among other names) was trying to play us for fools. She's aware that hubby and brother in law arent' really close and was hoping to use that. Divide and conquer was her method. I wanted to scream at her, but hubby wisely didn't let me.

We have joined the "raising cain" campaign with corporate and the Department of Aging. I'm furious and now we've started a campaign to get family and relatives who live closer than we do to do the unexpected "drop-in" visits regularly.

We're stopping by in early on Sunday on our way home. We wish we could pick mom-in-law up and just move her closer to us, but this little town is her home. She doesn't want to leave and we're trying to abide by her wishes.

Getting old is not for wimps.

Finally a photo

Here's the hospital photo of our new grandbaby.

She's a keeper.

Our little Orange

A photo to come soon.

We have our new little granddaughter. Willow Alexis -- she was 5 lb. 11 oz., 18.5 inches long, born Nov. 14 darn close to midnight.

We can't wait to go see her!

Yellow and Orange

People who know my son know that he's unconventional. He likes to do things his own way. He married someone so much like him.

The two of them have come up with different and delightful names for their two daughters. Daughter No. 3 is due any day now. Her name -- at least her first name -- will be "Willow."

B says he wants to give her a name that stands out and also that he never wants her to be mistaken for a Republican. Now, he's assuming that Willow won't grow up to be a Republican, but he'll learn when they hit the "I'm so much smarter than my parents" stage that children do what THEY want.

Anyway, daughter No. 1 was near Daddy when he was on the phone with me today. Tell "E" what the baby's name is, my sons coaxes her. She says "Willow" in her soft spoken way. It was cute. But enter daughter No. 2, who echoes "Willow" but honestly it sounded a whole like like "Yellow."

Before I could say "B - it sounded like she said..." Daughter No. 2 continued, "But, I'm going to call her Orange."

I was laughing so hard, I had a hard time talking. Yep. She won't be mistaken for a Republican. She might become one - yellow and orange do make RED, but she won't be mistaken for one.

Anonymous blogging

One of the things I often forget about blogging is that anyone out there can read what I write. It took me a moment when an email popped up in my email inbox to realize what this person was referring to.

Someone from Kansas -- my guess is they could possibly be a Jayhawk -- decided to chastise me for a comment I made on my May 30, 2006 blog post.

I guess I'm glad that people read what I write. I just didn't know they had the internet in Sedan.

That by the way, is in no way what I really think. My husband's family is from a little bitty town in southwestern Kansas.

I just think the comment was funnier than anything I'd ever read, because it's so far from the truth.

So what's the weirdest comment anonymous people have left on your blogs?

A salute to veterans

Armistice Day, the day commemorating the treaty signed on the 11th hour, of the 11th day of the 11th month signifying the end of the World War I has been observed since 1919. In the United States people called it "Remembrance Day" or "Veterans Day." Kansas led the movement for the day to become what it is today -- a day set aside for tribute to veterans of all wars, not just World War I. President Wilson made it a national holiday in 1938.

Thank you, we're proud of you to the veterans, former and current in our family:

PFC Tilford Snyder, US Army, World War II
Cpl. Eugene Harrington, US Army, World War II
TGST Tilford Snyder, US Air Force, Desert Storm
SGT Oscar Ochoa, US Army, Vietnam
PO Roland Foster, US Navy, World War II
PFC June Foster, US Army, World War II
PO Mike Perez, US Navy,
SRA Candy Perez, US Air Force,
PO Sheldon MacArthur, US Navy, Iraq
Spec. Robert "Bobby" Martinez, US Army, currently serving in Iraq
Maj. Gen. James Snyder, US Army, Desert Storm, Iraq

To the many more family members I might have missed, to all veterans. Thank you.

Farewell

1. Ed Bradley -- you'll be missed. An excerpt from Ron Allen (NBC news):

"He was a real, genuine, authentic guy who even had the audacity, or self-assuredness, to wear an earring on TV on CBS News. You've got to be sure of who you are to do that. That's probably one reason he was such a great reporter. It's easy to imagine him in the streets of Philadelphia years ago, or at Cheney State College, a proud historically black college, not Harvard or Yale, or spinning records at WDAS FM. Years later he had a distinctive ease and confidence about him, whether interviewing criminals, comedians, politicians or just plain folks.

His contributions to broadcast journalism and to our nation's knowledge of the world we live in are immense. His contributions to our culture, and to the hopes and dreams of other journalists of color, are beyond the words and stories he told with such elegance, compassion and grace."

2. Rumsfeld -- I'm not so sure you will be missed. While, I don't agree with your politics, your policies and your decisions. But I think that there's still much to say -- or maybe just thank you -- for the years of public service you've given this country. Many people might say, you don't deserve that. I believe you do.

3. The GOP -- From the leader of the Kansas Republican party to the handfuls of elected officials and now those who lost who are switching to the other party, the GOP is losing people fast. Maybe like you told the Democrats two years ago, "It's time to get back in touch with Americans."

4. Tracy Rafter, recently fired publisher of the LA Times for sticking up for employees and refusing to cut jobs to save money. It takes courage to be a journalist, and you showed exemplary courage. We'll see more of you, I'm sure.

5. HELEN DEWAR, 70, a dogged reporter who covered the Senate for The Washington Post for a quarter century, Nov. 4 of breast cancer.

Dewar worked for the newspaper for more than 40 years, starting as an editorial aide. She reported on Congress from 1979 to 2004, and her last story appeared on Jan. 20, 2005.

The morning after

Kudos to the Democrats. Kudos to voters.

I'm happy to see that thought was given to what is best for the country.

Now to the Democrats, I say let's stay on track and do something with this win. As for myself, I don't want to see hearings and subpoenas being handed down.

I want lawmakers to do the right thing for this country, be they Democrat or Republican.

Is that too much to ask for?

I love you, I love you not...

For fun, take a peek at V-grrrl's site and try your hand at rhyming.

Dancing with the devil

Comedian Chris Rock offers this advice to fathers, "Your main job as a father," he says, "is to keep your daughter off the pole."

Rock is referring to pole dancing, stripping. And, no, I don't want to hear from all of you who know the finer points and differences between the two.

Last night, my daughter, who's usually reticent and doesn't like to share much about her life, her friend's life etc. came into my room.

"Can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure, what's up?"

"My friend, (name withheld), just called. Her parents are gonna kill her."

"Why?" I asked calmly, knowing this was a figure of speech and said friend's parents really weren't going to kill her.

"She just called me. She's going on stage in a few minutes. She took a job as a stripper."

My daughter then gave me the name and location of the place where her friend was getting ready to throw her dignity away.

It took every inch of my being not to get on the phone and call her friend's dad, and tell him to get down there and get his daughter off the stage.

I thought better of it because her friend's mother has made it abundantly clear in the past few weeks that we no longer have a friendship. We share a lot of the same friends, but it's too complicated to understand why this has happened. It's beyond me. Anyway, I digress, I'm over that -- REALLY. But because the situation is what it is, I didn't call.

And, I'm not sure that I would have been right to call. This girl is of legal age. An adult, who's been on her own since she was a teen. This is her decision.

Still, I was sad. My daughter was sad.

"Did you tell her not to do it?"

"She wouldn't have listened. I just told her to call me if she needed to talk after it was over."

Sometimes, that's the best we can do.

Second post of the day

OK, I've been up and blogging way too long this morning. I should be doing more constructive things like...oh, never mind.

M. -- 5-year-old grandson -- has a teacher who gives out the red, yellow and green lights every day based on students' behaviors. M. tends to get yellow or red on most days. He does earn those green lights too, though. Lately, he's been coming home with more green lights. I think I might have mentioned that he had been "trading" his yellow and red lights on the bus after convincing some of the not-as-smart but better behaved kiddos that those were more desirable. Well, apparently he's got quite a little scam going, teaching the other kids how to do the same, or change the color of their lights with a marker. Teacher overheard he and his friend, D, making some plans. D gets green light, shows mom. D, who lives down the street from M., comes over, gives M, green light, takes red or yellow light. Both moms and dads see "green" light. In this case, neither had a green light, so the plan was to change the color of the light to green. Teach called mom BEFORE M. got home, so the parents were on to the ruse.

Sigh. Teacher doesn't get as mad at M. as she should because he's so bright. He's way ahead of all the other kids in class, and she absolutely loves teaching him. But behavior can be a challenge. He gets frustrated at kids, and "hits" or pushes. Yes, we're dealing with that -- anger management etc.

M.'s been "grounded." D. can't come over to play for a while. Wouldn't it be nice if all kids came with instructions?

Reality check

An editor from a Washington paper called me this week for a telephone interview. No warning. Just answer the phone and I was "on." He seemed like a nice enough Joe. But here are the drawbacks:

It's a night city editor job -- which means I work nights. I'm a very social MORNING person. But I guess I could do this for a while.

A MALE friend had spoken to same editor a couple of weeks ago about the job. My friend lives in Seattle and decided the one-hour commute was too much for him to handle every day, so he declined. But before he declined said editor quoted him a salary.

He quoted me a much lower salary. Red flag. Same basic qualifications, and the guy gets a higher monetary offer. Hmmm.

Another red flag. He called one of my references at a former paper, and my reference called me afterward asking if everything was ok. Apparently, said editor, was more interested in WHY I left the paper than how I performed while I was there. Weird.

I hate looking for a job. And I don't think that hubby, or son in Washington understand how much I really don't want to move. I'm in the "middle" of stuff here. Excited about the NAHJ Region V conference that I'm helping to plan. Excited about the 2007 Gridiron show that I'm helping to write.

True, I hate my job. True, I really need to change that job.

The ONLY reason I want to move to Washington is because I miss my son, daughter-in-law and granddaughters terribly. But everyone one else is HERE or within driving distance of HERE. And if you recall from my February trip to Seattle, I wasn't that impressed.

That's it. They need to move closer. Don't you wish life's decisions were easy?

Happy Halloween

Boo!

I think I'm glad that Halloween is over. We were at the Oklahoma City Zoo for the second night tonight -- we gave candy out. Sunday night we were in the scarecrow booth, which was the first booth. That meant huge crowds. I think about 6,000 kids plus parents went by. Tonight was much slower and more fun. We were in the "Judy the Elephant" booth.

The behavior of parents amazed me. They coached their kids into going through the line more than once. They grabbed handfuls of candy as they went by themselves and then there was the one little girl tonight. Beautiful, sweet looking little princess. The rule is one candy per child because we want to make sure we don't run out. So she walks over to my husband after I put candy in her bag. He says, "Sorry, sweetie, just one per bag." She says, "Well, duh." My husband, I thin was stunned, he said, "What?" She said it again, louder. In the meantime, her dad stood by and heard the whole thing and NEVER said one word to that child. Let me just tell you if that had been my princess...

Then let's talk about the mom's who showed so much cleavage and legs that I can't believe they were with their children. My kids would have died of embarassment. One woman even had fishnet stockings under her very short barely there skirt tonight. And we saw a lot of drunk parents this year. Made me wonder who was driving.

Despite all that, it was still fun. We'll do it again next year. And, I didn't notice all that stuff last year so much, so maybe it was an "off" year. Hope so. Happy Halloween everyone!

So much to say

Whew. I'm tired. Go figure, since I'm up at 6:04 a.m. and already blogging. I hate that I wake up so early. That I'm not one of these people who can sleep until noon. But then again, half the day would be gone, then what?

But I digress...This has been a fun few days. Thursday night we went to a Halloween Party/fundraiser for the National Association of Hispanic Journalists. Yes, we wore costumes. Hubby was talked into wearing a black suit, tie, hat, glasses -- yes, one of the Blues Brothers. He looked pretty cute, and I was a little miffed at all the attention some of the women gave him. Darn, who would have thought after 22 years I could be jealous? Of course, these women were all dressed in some slinky costume or very short costume with a lot of cleavage. French maid, a naughty nurse etc.

My daughter said Halloween is just an excuse for women to dress like sluts. Really? (For the record, my outfit was very non slut-like) Do the majority of women dress this way at Halloween to fulfill their own fantasies? Men's fantasies? It's always men's fault. Let's blame them.

Friday, my friend K. came in from Seattle where she moved six weeks ago. We've all missed her. She bunked with us, we had friends over for an impromptu pasta dinner, lots of wine. It was a wonderful time that finally broke up about 1 a.m.

Saturday, five of us gals went shopping together. That was fun. I'd never ever done that with a whole bunch of women before. We had a fab lunch, and then hit the stores. None of us really bought a whole lot, well, except for one friend who makes two or three times what the rest of us earn. But it was FUN. Way more fun than shopping with my husband or alone.

So last night, we were too pooped to go to party No. 2. Just couldn't do it. So we stayed home, hubby read, and I sewed (quilt etc. for the new any day now grandchild.)

This evening, we head to the Oklahoma City Zoo (in costume)as volunteers for the annual "Haunt the Zoo" event. It's always fun.

Oh, and the most fun this week? THE CARDINALS WON THE WORLD SERIES!!

Gringos and interviews

The job hunt proceeds.

So far, I’ve been ignored by the New York Times and the Seattle Times. Hey, I’m aiming high. I figure if I’m going to get ignored it should be by a paper I respect.

I’ve gotten thanks, you’re really great, but we aren’t interviewing you letters from smaller publications. At least they cared enough to send me a form letter.

The nicest letter I did get was from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.

I managed to snag a first interview with one West Coast publisher, but haven’t made it past that first interview. The process is a second interview, and THEN if they like you they fly you out for a third interview. We’ll see.

A job in Cabo San Lucas tempted me, but I wisely did some research on the newspaper, the Gringo Gazette (catchy name.) It appears the publisher was deported in 2005, but she manages to get back and forth no matter. Her former biz partner at the other Gringo Gazette in Baja California describes this publisher as a “hideous human being.” However, I should note that said former business partner also is at risk for being deported, or worse sent to jail for something she printed in her paper. ( Mexico ’s idea of free speech.) So despite the lure of warm beaches and blue water, I think I’ll pass.

So, I’ll keep plugging along.

Buy my stuff, or I'll give it to you

Life is still a blur. Slow down. Slow down. I’m certainly trying.

Saturday, we decided – ok, my daughter insisted – we have an impromptu garage sale. I think we broke some laws because we didn’t get a permit. But we pulled stuff out of the garage, set up a table to play board games on for the down time, and waited. People stopped by, bought stuff. At noon, we called it quits. Pulled some stuff to the curb, knowing darn well someone would take it. They did. This was by the way, much of what we did all morning.

“How much is this?”
“It’s free, just take it.”
“Free? How about I give you $5 for it?”
“OK, that works too.”

We did manage to give away a large traffic light that had ended up in our possession I don’t know how, and a lawn mower, a desk etc.

The remaining stuff is going to Goodwill, except for the toys. I’m taking those to a homeless shelter.

And then, we’ll actually have a two-car garage that we can park two cars in.

I need at least five more hours a day, please

Work on all fronts continues to be busy. And socially things are just as busy, which is good, but hard to fit in everything and everyone.

Tomorrow night for example. I have a "mixer" I'm expected to attend, and then I have to go judge a costume contest at another event. Fun, but somewhere in there, I need to get home, go to the gym etc. Aagh.

Don't get me wrong, Friends are great. I love having friends, and a social life. It's just that the holidays are coming too fast. We have two costume parties to attend, volunteering at the Zoo and a "ball -- yes, really, a ball -- to attend next week.

So pardon me if I'm not blogging so much these days.

And, I have so much to say! Baseball, baseball, baseball. Go Cards!

I had so many other things to say, and now I can't remember them. So I'll start writing them during "breaks" and get them in. Promise.

Til tomorrow.

Texas bound

We're heading to Amarillo today. I always love going to Texas. Maybe it's a natural pull that calls us all back to the place of our birth.

But then again, those who have lived in the Lone Star State and have roots elsewhere say they always feel CONNECTED to Texas.

I've been remiss in visitng my dad and mom. I think it was intentional. My dad, now 78, has grown frail. Dementia has become to cloud and distort his personality. That scares me.

I think I want to remember my dad when he was strong, when he spent his days outside working on the farm (in the yard, after he retired) or building the wagons and furniture that he enjoyed creating.

But lately, it's hard to hold a conversation with dad. He doesn't even venture outside that much anymore because he's afraid of the frequent falls that result in trips to the hospital lately.

So it's also with trepidation that I travel to my parents' home. There's a lump in the pit of my stomach. It's fear.

Observations

1. A news report this week warned that Americans were too busy "multi-tasking" to get as much accomplished as well as it should be. Probably so. I'm tired of multi-tasking. But I don't see it ending soon.

2. At a recent conference a few of us noticed someone had stuck their gum on the chair rail in a conference room. Today, walking down the hall of the very tastefully decorated hallway outside the provost offices at the College of Medicine, I saw a wad of chewed gum stuck on the wall. I don't think I know anyone who would do such a thing. Who DOES that? What sort of upbringing, lack of social graces does one have to have to think it's ok to stick gum from your mouth on a wall?

3. Is it just me or is there a rule about the bigger your SUV, the more pro-Bush bumper stickers you have on your car?

4. Does anyone really think that Ney was/is the only one in Washington taking any money?

5. The writing on Grey's Anatomy is as good if not better than last season.I'm impressed, usually there's a downward slide.

6. Missouri Tigers vs. A&M. I'm headed to Texas tomorrow, but unfortunately not to the game. We will be watching on the game on t.v. in a room full of "I'll cheer for anything and anyone out of Texas, and that's by the way, how Dubyah got elected even though most Texans generally think he's a putz," people.

10 Things

1. Mizzou 38 Texas Tech 21: Now I grew up around Lubbock and I do have a soft spot for the Red Raiders, but I've gotta say, I'm absolutely positively thrilled that Missouri Tigers are now 6-0. First time since 1973.

2. Happy 3rd birthday to our sweet little Kayla.

3. Knittin Kitten -- rant again, dang it.

4. Did you ever piss someone off, and you just don't know what it was that you did? I'm at that place with someone I thought was my friend, and it's sort of weird. This is a person I really really like. But apparently, it's not a mutual thing. Weird, since I've known this person for almost four years. It's like the mean girls in school, you know? Who decided NOT to like you for no particular reason. Oh well. I'll live and won't lose too much sleep. But it still sort of bugs me.

5. We're back to the gym full steam this week. Tater motivated me to try again, as did Lipschtick with her Weight Watcher postings. I'm tired of being the fat girl in the picture.

6. Well, I've taken another step in the potential new job (in another state) this week. The proverbial "writing test." Well, heck yeah. I aced it. Next step, if they like what I wrote is the interview.

7. That said, I'm still not sure that I want to move. I really like it here, and I'll miss Rosalind, and Joy and Katherine and Bart and Cynthia and John and Cynthia and Cheryl and Ben and Kim and Bobby and...ok, so you get the drift (I'll still keep up with everyone else via their blogs...)

8. Sorry Twins fans, it just wasn't meant to be this year.

9. I'm worried about hubby. He's been under the weather lately, not too serious, but we think surgery might be in the near future. We'll find out Tuesday.

10. We had planned on a cruise next year, now we're seriously considering Europe. Guess it depends on the job etc.

Wild Bill rides again

Quick kudos to Okie blogger, Wild Bill featured in The Oklahoman today for his work in uncovering the Istook aide who was involved in the Foley scandal. Here's the article for those who don't want to register to read it.
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State blogger IDs figure in scandal

By Bryan Dean
The Oklahoman

William Kerr can’t afford to buy a cafe mocha at Starbucks.
He has to find an electrical outlet for his beat-up laptop because the battery doesn’t work. But Kerr used his laptop this week to write a blog post that started a national media frenzy and led to threats against him and his family.

Kerr, 32, of Moore is the blogger who Wednesday revealed the identity of Jordan Edmund, a 21-year-old working for Rep. Ernest Istook’s gubernatorial campaign who may be involved in the Mark Foley congressional page scandal.

Kerr posted Edmund’s name and age, along with a rundown of how he connected the Californian with sexually explicit instant messages from Foley. By Thursday, the negative comments on his Passionate America blog had gone too far. One threatened to hunt him down. Another posted a picture of Kerr’s 11-year-old son.

The blogger, who goes by the name “Wild Bill,” took down the comments after his son’s picture was posted.

“I’ve been bashed before,” Kerr said. “I knew it was coming. My wife didn’t think it was funny.”

‘The pieces all fit’

It started simply enough. Kerr was reading the news online late Saturday or early Sunday - he’s not sure whether it was midnight or not. He was reading an ABC news transcript of instant messages between Foley and a former House page.

Something about the tone of the messages didn’t seem right to Kerr. Some of the messages seemed edited, and it wasn’t clear whether some of them were sent before or after the page’s 18th birthday.

The page’s replies made Kerr think the attention from Foley wasn’t entirely unsolicited. In some cases, the teen stayed online for more than an hour exchanging explicit messages with the Republican congressman.

“If you are a victim, why don’t you just turn your instant messenger off?” Kerr said. “I pretty much believe the kid was egging him on the whole time. He saved every single one of them to his computer.”

Efforts to reach Edmund on Wednesday and Thursday were not successful. His attorney, Stephen Jones, said his client has left Oklahoma.

By entering a slightly different Web address, Kerr found a different version of the transcript that showed the former page’s America Online screen name.

He enlisted the help of another blogger to look up the AOL profile for the screen name. It had a first name, Jordan, and a home state, California.

After three more days of Internet sleuthing, Kerr and his fellow blogger, who prefers to go by the name “Ms. Underestimated,” had connected the screen name to Edmund.

“The pieces all fit together on the MySpace page,” Kerr said.

In addition to circumstantial evidence linking Edmund to information the page had shared with Foley - both played lacrosse, for example - Kerr also found out Edmund was living only miles down the road in Oklahoma City. Edmund’s MySpace site also said Edmund was working as Istook’s deputy campaign manager.

‘I was reckless’

Kerr began to prepare for the possible ramifications of his discovery even before he posted it.

A Del City native, Kerr attended Douglass High School. He said he spent less than a year in the Navy before being honorably discharged for what he calls, “a personality disorder.”

He doesn’t try to hide his past; he pleaded guilty to burglary in 1994 and once was arrested for possessing marijuana. The burglary charge was dismissed in 1997 after he had no further run-ins with the law, according to court records.

“I was reckless,” Kerr said. “I didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life.”

Kerr moved to Kansas City for a few years before returning to Oklahoma about a year and a half ago. That’s when he started his blog.

Kerr calls himself a conservative, and the posts on his blog reflect his ideology. He began working for an Internet radio station this summer. It doesn’t pay the bills, though.

Kerr is a stay-at-home dad. He hates the idea of putting his kids in day care. So he and his wife try to make ends meet on less than $20,000 a year.

“We might go broke,” Kerr said as he wiped tears from his eyes. “We’re on food stamps. If we go broke, we go broke. But my kids aren’t going to day care.”

Kerr said he didn’t begin looking into the Foley scandal with the thought of making money. He hopes his work could lead to a better radio job.

“There’s no conspiracy here,” Kerr said. “It was just two idiots on the Internet who started finding stuff and thought it was a cool treasure hunt, and it turned into something.”

TiVo -- television’s evil twin

So, I finally succumbed to the pleadings of hubby, who was extremely worried he was going to miss one single football game, and reinstated our satellite TV -- as I had promised at the start of summer.

It’s back, along with TiVo, and my ass is firmly planted on the couch after dinner and after the gym, because TiVo does give you the impression that you can actually HAVE a life and still watch television. It’s just an impression.

Pretty soon, the lines of my own life will be blurred with the lives of Bree, Susan and the girls (who I’ve decided to give a second chance too) and Meredith, McDreamy and the bunch at Seattle Grace. TiVo is evil.

But in the hopes that people will believe I do have a life, here’s a few more things on my mind:

Twins – Two down, not good. Keep the hope.

MU Tigers – I’m so dang nervous about Saturday’s game, you’d think I was playing in it. Undefeated – 5-0. But I know heartbreak is only a game away. You’ve broken my heart before.

Bedlam – Go Texas !

Pink Zone Sports – really this blog/podcast will be up and running soon. Really, I swear. Sherri, I'll be calling you this weekend so we can "talk" about baseball. I'll post it Monday as the first podcast.

Fish – Our friends when they moved allowed us to adopt their fish -- 14 in all. We accidentally killed three when we “cleaned” the tank a few weeks ago. A floater was found this morning – cause of death, unknown. However, apparently we’re keeping the lights dimmed too often. This fish are breeding like guppies, which they are not. We now have approximately seven babies (fry) of varying sizes.

Nephew – We have a new one. 8 lbs.12 oz. Gorgeous kiddo, lots of hair big eyes (haven't figured out the color yet.) Still - ouch.

Cool Person of the Week

(For those of you who have asked -- yes, I know I posted the Monday post on Tuesday. I was running late.)

Last week I called this “Ode to my friends”. I decided to change that just to highlight cool people I know that others should know ABOUT at the very least. Some are my dear friends, others just cool people whom I’ve had the pleasure of meeting.

Meet my friend: Lillie Tucker

Ask Lillie Tucker how she feels about being “older than Oklahoma ,” and she laughs.

“I’m still just a kid,” said Mrs. Tucker, who turned 102 years old on Sept. 15.

A resident at Grace Living Center – Del City , Mrs. Tucker likes to laugh, saying it keeps her young.

She celebrated her birthday with cake, music, a clown and some friends.

Born Lillie Hensley on a farm near McCloud on Sept. 15, 1904, she likes to talk fondly of her life, her family and friends.

Growing up on a farm meant hard work, but there was always time for some fun.

“We had a team of mules that would take us places,” Mrs. Tucker said. “I liked those mules and used to challenge anyone that would try to hurt them. I think sometimes I liked them better than some people,” she added, laughing again.

She and her future husband, U.T. “Tuck” Tucker grew up together, playing at school and attending church together.

“I think I always knew him, we kind of grew up together and were friends,” Mrs. Tucker said.

The couple tried farming before they moved to town where she was a homemaker and Tuck was a mechanic.

She and Tuck would spend their summers camping, and after Tuck retired the two traveled all over the country in their van.

“I met them in the late 1950s and I think they were old then,” said Joy Scott, 83, teasing her friend, who is nearly 20 years her senior. Scott and Mary Chesser, both friends from Free Will Methodist Church in Midwest City visit Mrs. Tucker often.

Mrs. Scott said the Tuckers were always one of the nicest couples she had ever met. Mrs. Tucker loved to grow a large garden and stayed busy with church activities.

“It was fun, just kept me out of trouble,” Mrs. Tucker said. Asked what her secret was for living to be 102 years old, she said, “Tend to your own business and leave others alone.”

Then she laughed again.

Monday sports round-up

Be still my beating heart – I’m in the hunt for the “perfect” job, and I’m leaning toward sports. So when an ad for a sports writer for a women’s sport foundation caught my eye, I got very excited. “This is it!” I thought. Then I read the ad. The position – in the not-so-low cost of living New York state – was actually an internship with the top pay of $800 a month. I think a cardboard box might cost more than that per month to rent there, so it’s back to the search.

Baseball(s) – I’m sure Sherrie is quite excited about the Cards this week. This is the month baseball really gets good. Pay attention all.

When we picked up a box of “stuff” that belonged to my husband from his mother’s house when she was moving into the assisted living facility, he wanted to toss most of it. Being the pack rat and sentimental fool that I am, I went through it piece by piece and saved things like his old Boy Scout cap and a baseball. The baseball was dirty and looked like it had been used by some kid with sticky fingers. But it had autographs on it. 1967 – Houston Astros team. I’ve hung on to the ball and it sits on the shelf next to my prized autographed photo of Stan “The Man” Musial. This weekend an old baseball fan was over at our house and identified each player, among them several hall of famers. My husband was glad I didn’t throw the ball out.

NBA – I managed to grab some tickets for the Hornets season opener against the Mavericks. Nosebleed. It will still be fun.

Football – Go Cowboys! It’s good to see them playing a little better. And how about them Missouri Tigers? 5-0 for the first time in 25 years?! Ranked nationally in some polls. Holy cow. We’re zooming up to Faurot Field in late October to cheer the Tigers on to victory against the OKLAHOMA SOONERS. Go Mizzou!

Sports fact of the week:

Who’s Joe Carter? I hear that a lot when we drive along the east side of the Bricktown Ball Park on Joe Carter Drive . To the West is Mickey Mantle Ave. , and no one – ok some folks do -- asks “Who’s Mickey Mantle?” Joe Carter played for first for the Chicago Cubs, did better (one of the top home run hitters of all time) with the Cleveland Indians. He was traded again to the Padres and then the Blue Jays. He led the Blue Jays to World Series victories in 1992 and won the series in the ninth inning against Philly (which was leading 6-5) with a 3-run homer in 1993. He retired in 1998. Now, you know who Joe Carter is, though I probably should check some of my facts etc. Some hip-hop guy even mentions him in a song.

Babies

It's raining babies in my world right now. One of my daughter's best friends had a baby girl this week. Cutie. My sis is due any day now. Gender is still under wraps. How fun. And then there's KK, who's threatening to name her child some unpronounceable Greek name.

S has suggested that we throw a baby shower in Vegas, complete with strippers in pink and blue diapers. K has suggested a cocktail party to name the little tyke.

Both sound like worthy endeavors. Of course, we'll have to schedule the Vegas bash earlier than normal because most airlines won't risk KK going into labor en route. With this group, tradition just doesn't seem to fit. So a shower in Vegas definitely has merit. So how about KK? Vegas?

I wonder if they'll strip to a certain Hall and Oates song...?

Weekend "Round-up"

The weekend seems so long ago now,(I'll explain that in a little while) but it was fun.

Saturday -- Blogger Round-up. So, the hotel was not exactly up to par, but the sessions were great and it was FUN meeting people whose blogs I read and who read mine.

Redneck Diva and her sis, Tater, are beautiful, nice, funny women. It was great to see them interact -- you can tell they genuninely like one another.

Melessa from I digress -- another beautiful, talented, wonderfully witty person was there as was Babs from Conversation Station.

And, truthfully, there were some "interesting" other people who are not necessarily someone that I would befriend, but it was still interesting to see the common thread that all this diverse group of people have in common.

Sunday -- Bonnie Raitt! Amazing. Terrific. Fun. The evening at the Bonnie Raitt concert with opening act, Keb Mo was perfect.

Today -- Rough day. We came home yesterday to find my daughter's little dog Titus, a golden pom, was sick. We called the vet, who suggested some things and said bring him in today. He was already scheduled to go in for another booster this week.

Unfortunately, it was too late. The little guy had parvo. He died today. The virus moves fast, and the vet assured us that even if he had already had he booster he still could have gotten sick because nothing is foolproof, especially for puppies.

So I tried to make my daughter feel better. She blames herself for being a couple of weeks late on the booster. The vet was kind and said Titus likely was infected before then, and he still would have gotten sick.

Our cat, Marley, who had a contentious relationship with Titus, has been crying most of the afternoon. Rough day.

Ode to my friends

I'll admit that I don't always get around to reading everyone's blog,(on my list) but I try to at least once a week. I was just exploring a friend's site and I realized that I know such wonderfully talented and unique people, so I've decided to introduce everyone else who might read this to my friends.

First one up -- Christian We had our ups and downs as friends, and we're not exactly close, but we're connected through other friends and shared experiences.

Even through the not so great times, I've always respected the talent that Christian had as an artist, as a journalist and now as a musician. His characters are still my "favorite comic strip of all time."

So take some time and explore his blog. Listen to his music, check out his art. Not only because of his talent, but because of his dedication, his passion and his humor, he's a very cool person.

Getting no sleep has its merits

Last night I didn't sleep much. But I managed to accomplish much of what was on my "to do" list for work. And, I wrote another chapter in my book -- the one closest to completion.

And, today I go to Blogger Round-up. I'll probably fall asleep during the workshop I really want to attend.

My favorite part is going to be seeing people's faces when they get to the hotel. It's dubbed as "Bricktown Central" Bricktown is the premier, trendy etc. entertainment district here. This hotel is ...shall we say...not. Should be interesting.

Tell ya'll about the gathering tomorrow.

Speed Blog

Now that we've already ascertained that I have no time for anything fun since I'm working my way down the "to do" or "I will" list, I'll speed blog on topics on my mind:

1. Dang. Get over it Sooner fans. It was a blown call. We, Missouri fans, have had to live with the fifth down for a long time now. Replay might have made a difference, maybe not. But Oklahoma has a lot more pressing issues like ranking 46th in the country in healthcare, and just as low in some aspects of our public education. There are more important things in life than a football game. Really.

2. That said, I'm more than just a little bugged about the "Friday Night Lights" preview. Looks like t.v. is taking an edgy novel that dealt with the nuances of a city divided by economic and racial factors as well as football loyalties and turning it into another "teen" show. I lived in the Odessa the book describes. For better or worse, it was real. Read the book, skip the t.v. show.

3. Ernest Istook's new campaign jingle is nothing more than a racist's attempt at humor. Gov. Henry's going to kill him in the upcoming election and the former journalist turned politician (James Istook for those of you who remember) is going to be out of Washington and out of politics. Good riddance.

4. Tomorrow is the Okie Blogger Round-up. I plan to be there to learn all about how to make my blog prettier etc. And find Diva and Tater and all the other regulars for Margaritas at Pearl's. Ah, yes. Nerds unite :)

Art, novels, sewing, conferences, scripts, work and police work

What do all those things have in common? I'm in need of finishing SOMETHING. Right now I feel like I'm floundering, so I've started functioning with "to-do" lists. Must finish painting/project for wall art in my office. Must finish quilts, projects started for new grandchild arriving in November. Must finish at least one of the books I have started before the end of the year -- I know they are all best sellers. Must get organized for this upcoming NAHJ regional conference in March. Must finish projects at work. Must finish songs, skits to submit before Oct. 8 meeting of the Gridiron Club for the 2007 script, and must finish sending out news releases, sending photos out, talking to witnesses at store about robbery suspect -- the police aren't trying.

Whew. I'm tired. Think I'll go take a nap before I finish anything... Hey, at least I blogged today.

Sept. 11

All week, I've gone back and forth about whether to write about 9/11. For some reason, this year was particularly hard. The horror is still so real.

Living in Oklahoma City has taught me that the horror of a terrorist act, domestic or foreign, never goes away. Oklahomans have not forgotten. New Yorkers won't forget. But as my friend Gina points out in her post, the heartbeat of life goes on. We all go on.

Sometimes, though it's good to remember. Cry.

I was starting my commute from Jefferson City, Missouri to Columbia a little later that day. When I pulled out on the highway, I turned the radio station to KMOX out of St. Louis. My colleague, Nan Wyatt, was going to do a live interview with Gov. Bob Holden, who had been having a heck of a time since he'd taken office.

At first, I thought that I had the wrong station on. Nan wasn't on. It was a reporter from CBS in New York, she was talking about a plane hitting the World Trade Center. I shook my head, "Dumb student pilots."

It took me a minute to realize that the reporter was screaming. Screaming. She said something about another plane hitting the second tower. I kept driving, feeling detached somehow. Was I dreaming? This was a bad dream.

The station cut away, and then another report came in about a plane hitting the Pentagon. My husband was by then, a retired Air Force man. My brother was still in the Navy. My brother-in-law in the army -- stationed at the Pentagon. I found the nearest opportunity and turned around and went back home. I knew I had to reach my mother-in-law in Kansas before she heard the news.

I was shaken. New York was bad enough. But to someone from a military family, the Pentagon represented safety and our country's defense. It was incomprehensible.

By the time I got home, our message machine was full. Family members, friends. I called my husband at work. I called my mother-in-law. She was confused. "He's ok. His new office isn't finished yet, so he's still working at Grand Central Station."

I let her think that. I didn't tell her that my brother's in laws office was one of the few where renovations had been completed, and he was likely working at the Pentagon again.It would be hours before we learned that he had been called away only minutes before to go to Andrews Air Force Base. So thankfully, he had already left the building.

I couldn't take my eyes off the television. "This can't be happening." Then thinking of all our friends in New York and panicking. The next few days are a blur. We finally learned that all friends and family were ok. We, like most Americans watched until we couldn't watch anymore. We cried. We gave blood. We did what we could. We still feel it wasn't enough.

The events of that day still haunt all of us. Things would never be the same again. I would never see Nan again after that week. She went back to St. Louis without her interview. A few months later, she also had died at the hands of her husband. Another shock -- too much to comprehend.

But we're resilient. We'll wipe away the tears and go on, hopefully stronger. And, maybe most of us are a little kinder, a little more grateful for each day.

The last best Governor Texas ever had

I was covering the presidential campaign in early 2004 before the Oklahoma primary. The crowd of Democratic presidential hopefuls were running into the state at every chance. On one particular day, I had to drive to Tulsa to cover yet another round of speeches.

Ann Richards was among the speakers, stumping for one of the candidates. We were in the curtained off area behind the stage. She comes over and I conduct my interview, then I did something that was totally out of character for me. I asked my photographer to take a photo of me with Governor Richards. Of all the politicians and other "famous" people I've ever interviewed, I'd never done that. I'd never stepped out of my professional persona to ask for a photo. But I did this time, and I'm glad. The photo of myself with Ann Richards is one I'm proud of. (I'll get it scanned and post.) She's always been my hero.

I think we're going to wait a long time before Texas has as colorful and as geniunely dedicated a governor as Ann Richards, unless Friedman actually gets elected.

She's probably up in heaven, riding her Harley and putting the good ol' boys in their place. She's been missed in Texas for some time. This just leaves a bigger hole.

I'll be flying my Texas flag in front of my Oklahoma house in her honor today.

The world has gone mad

1. Jerry Springer on a (sur)reality television show? Well...at least it's more "real" than his other show.

2. Monday Night Football on ESPN. That just plain blows. What happens if I don't want to subscribe to ESPN? Or what about the millions of fans who can't afford cable? I'll watch it, but I'll gripe the whole time. It just isn't right.

3. ER versus Grey's Anatomy -- those Network execs suck. You know one of these shows with a great cast and great writers is going to flounder. Thank Goodness for TiVO.

4. I was shopping the other day and spied a "cute" shirt that I thought would work well at the gym. As I reached for it, I realized it had a Sooners logo. I pulled my hand back as if it were a rattlesnake ready to strike. Omigod. I'm not a Sooner fan. I'm not a Sooner fan. It's time to move.

Random thoughts at 2 a.m.

Sleep has managed to elude me again this night. It's too noisy to sleep -- not in my house. The house is quiet. Even the dog and cat tired after a full day of chasing one another are asleep.

My thoughts are making the noise that's keeping me awake.

It's been a week since I last blogged. In the interim I've dealt with catching up on the job and meetings. Meetings with police, meetings with the YMCA officials and bank fraud investigators and finally a police detective assigned to the case. The thiefs managed to take more than $46,000 from the five of us they robbed that evening. The police released video taken from a store that was much better than the one I posted earlier to the media today. Only one station ran the photo. They blurred out the wrong face in the photo. So much for anyone recognizing the woman.

This week though, I've found that it's been such stress and I keep telling myself how lucky I am really and this is just a financial setback. We both are professinals and have good jobs, our money will be back in the accounts soon. It's not something serious that I can't handle. At first I was angry. Now, I find myself going out of my way to be nice to people, because well...maybe they are going through a rough week too. I NEVER give beggers money. Yesterday, I gave one who asked for 80-cents a whole $4 -- all the cash I had on me at the time. He took the money, and looked at it for a minute and then looked back at me. "Thanks, sister," he put it in his pocket and put his hand over the pocket. "It's all I had," I said, and walked away.
I was thinking about that man tonight. He was older, probably closer to 70 than 60. His clothes were old and torn. He walked with a slight limp and his scuffed shoes looked as if they were held together only by the shoelaces tied in a tight knot. One eye was clouded over with what was probably cataracts. He had an old car -- brown -- and as scuffed as his shoes parked at a meter. He would take change people gave him and feed the meter periodically. Maybe I should have given him change?
I don't know how or why that man came to be where he is, but I hope that he finds some comfort in his life. I hope that he has a warm bed somewhere.

Meme - a diversion

From the Diva. I need a diversion. As you can see from the time, it's still hard to sleep after the week's events.

WHAT DO YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT WHERE YOU LIVE?

Well, last week I would have said I feel safe. I'm sure that I will again. Oklahoma City has picked itself up after the bombing and moved toward the future full steam. Everywhere, you see signs of progress and growth. I like that Oklahoma has a Democratic governor who CARES about Oklahoma and is positive, even if it is a little Pollyanna-ish.(It still pains me greatly that my home state of Texas has succombed to the evilness that is Rick Perry. Vote Kinky.)

Low cost of living, traffic I can live with, friendly folks.

IS THERE ANYTHING STRANGE ABOUT WHERE YOU LIVE?

Sooner fans. This state can survive the dust bowl and its "Okie" depiction in the "Grapes of Wrath" (that damn book hurt this state.) This state can survive tornadoes. A bombing. Yet, the demise of the OU Sooners star quarterback in a scandal a few weeks before the start of football season has people wringing their hands in confusion and agony. Then there's the Sooner "look" on game day, and the Friday before game day.

We have a guy name "E.Z. Million" running for Lt. Gov. I've actually talked to him, he makes sense and I just might vote for him, depending on how ugly the Hiett/Askins match up gets.

WHAT'S ONE OF YOUR ALL-TIME FAVORITE MUSIC ALBUMS AND WHY?

Funny, you should use the word "album." Because this is actually on vinyl in my collection -- Melissa Manchester's Best Of... -- love it, know all the lyrics, still sing them in the shower. Second favorite: The Forest Gump Soundtrack. It's the music of my life. Current favorite: Susan Tedeschi's "Hope and Desire." Watermelon Slim's "Up Close and Personal" -- you can close your eyes and get lost in the sound.

DID YOU HAVE A PASSION FOR SOMETHING AS A KID THAT YOU STILL HAVE NOW?

Reading. Learning. I grew up in a family with lots of kids, so I used to put pillows in the back of the walk-in closet that my sisters and I shared and I would read. I can still read one book a day, if it's short and good. I also used to love to read the World Book Encyclopedias that my parents had been talked into buying by some door-to-door salesman.

WHAT DO YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT HAVING A BLOG?

I suppose it's the annonymity of it to a point. Though some of my friends read my blog, others don't know my real name. It's also cheaper than therapy. Maybe not as effective, but cheaper.

So I have a question for all of you bloggers: We're having a Blogger Round-Up in OKC. Would you attend one, and lose that annonymity? Share experiences, please.