I thought of you today...

...and I always will.

Do you regret anything?

Never regret. If it's good, it's wonderful. If it's bad, it's experience.
-- Victoria Holt

Email

You know when you have too much email when it takes 45 minutes to import your locally stored email from one email client to another. So how much was that??? A lot. I don't keep everything I get but I do keep everything I send. Why? Well you never know when you need to cover your @$$. I finally switched to Thunderbird today. Only a year and a half after we were suppose to have switched. I even got a new machine during this time frame and I still didn't switch. Ok so sometimes I am a creature of habit. Well it only took about 5 hours to install, import (not everything came over the first...second...or even third time) and configure. Whew...glad it's finally over

Oh the weather outside is frightful...

In case you live in a sunny climate or didn't venture outside today, it was nuts. The wind was howling and snow was coming down. Many ventured out to tai chi class tonight, I was amazed. Personally, I would have rather been home earlier but at least I am now. I wonder what it will be like in the morning...

The Bucket List

Today I went and saw "The Bucket List". It was a really good movie. For me it was very good to see alone because it brought up many emotions. As I watched the film, I thought of those that didn't get to do their own "bucket list". My grandma always wanted to see Paris and my best friend always wanted to go to Ireland. If you get a chance, see the movie and if you not ready right now, that is understandable. One thing though, write your own "bucket list". I am writing mine.

It's a Saturday

As we live our lives, we meet new people and experience new things. Part of these experiences are learning and interacting with different cultures. Today was a wonderful day. I took a friend down to Phoenix so she could spend the day with her mom who fell last weekend and under went surgery to repair the break. Her mom is at a rehab hospital now and doing well. The rest of the time I spent with two of the exchange faculty from China. We went shopping at Best Buy and to the Chinese Cultural Center in Phoenix. We went shopping for the the Chinese New Year the three Chinese classes are going to have. It was really fun to learn new words and going shopping. Liking shopping is something that you will not normally hear me say. But in this case it was shopping for food stuffs and that is always enjoyable. We had lunch at the Golden Buddha. I had some new dishes that I didn't have the last time I was there. Last night I was treated to a wonderful dinner. Overall, it was a great day.

Believing

Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.
-- Buddha

My day.

It "was" a good one. "Was" being the operative word. I had a great time in my classes and swam a lot this morning (600 m). It snowed, and work went well. That all changed just before 8PM. I was leaving Basha's after grabbing a few groceries. My intuition was telling me not to go down the hill since it was slippery. Did I listen? No. So I hit some ice and ended up running into someone. They were coming in as I was going down. Going to have to call the insurance company in the A.M. This has really bothered me all night. For me, no damage...just them. No one hurt...going slow enough but that pesky ice. Yes I drive a 4x4 but I do not drive like an idiot. I didn't even have the it engaged.

Sigh.....

What makes you smile?

I have been asked what is life like when you live it with a smile. To me, it is comprised of two things: your internal and external happiness. Your internal happiness is comprised of being open to possibilities and allowing yourself to grow. When you grow, you change. No one knows you better than yourself. Accept yourself for who you are. Sometimes there will be someone in your life who can see into your soul but they are only getting a partial view. Only you can decide what will make you happy. Your external happiness is about how you relate to the world. If you are internally happy, then it will exude from you and others will see that through your smile. I love living life through a smile, it shows that internally I am accepting me.

Ouch...

Did you know it hurts like a dickens when you smash your knee right where your thigh muscle joins the inside of your knee? Yeah, I do. I smacked it good in swimming class getting out of the pool. Now I have a knot and a matching bruise. As an added bonus, I have a nicely swollen knee. Have I put ice on it? No. Why would I do something like that? So you are probably thinking how in the world did you do that? Simple. There are these plates with "D" shaped rings welded on them that are found along the edge of the pool which allows one to adjust the width of a lane. Yep, I think you can imagine now.

One thing about...

Eating healthy takes a lot more time to get ready. Two days a week I am taking a swimming class at 8AM. Yeah if you know me, you know that I am not all that awake in the morning. So because of this class, I need to get to work earlier so I can get a spot near the office so I can hike the distance across campus to the pool. I will say that when it is below zero with wind chill, it is really hard to think good thoughts about swimming.
I digress.
What does the previous ramble have to do with eating healthy? Well I have to get my snacks and lunch ready the night before so I can get those few precious extra minutes of sleep. At present rate we are looking at midnight for sleep time. I am really working hard to clean up my diet and avoid processed foods. So far, doing well and feeling better.

Update 1/22/08: Wow what a ramble this was. I should maybe try less sleep over a three day weekend instead of more.

Everyone should watch

There is new TV show on Lifetime called "How to Look Good Naked". The show was brought across the pond from England. The host is Carson Kressley and he is great. The show looks at the perception that women have about their bodies. It is amazing how judgmental we are about ourselves and others. The show has a woman or women look at themselves and talk about what they see with just their undergarments on. They need to evaluate where they think they feel they should be in a line up of women based on a part of their body that they focus most negatively on. The women are shown how to dress properly from their undergarments on up. After hair and makeup, Carson tells them about the photo shoot with one caveat - you are naked. Now this isn't a center-fold spread. You are tastefully draped with flowing cloth. It ends with one of your photos projected on the side of a building. You have to ask people what they think of you naked. Overall, there are positive comments and people are generally shocked. It catches people who have to really analyze their thoughts. The first show I saw was of a very curvy woman. One of the male respondents of her photo was with his girlfriend. She obviously has issues and is very judgmental. I hope you get a chance to see it.
When you look in the mirror, what do you see? Do you see yourself as beautiful or are you judging yourself. When you look at others or your significant other, are you being judgmental or supportive? Remember that we will not all be the same shape and size. Don't assume why a person is heavy, thin or average, just be accepting and respectful. We would probably have fewer problems with self-acceptance. it took me a long time to figure that out.

Being you

The easiest thing in the world to be is you. The most difficult thing to be is what other people want you to be. Don't let them put you in that position.
-- Leo Buscaglia (1925 - 1998)

At Last...

It's Friday and we are coming upon a three day weekend. I crave a hot bath and sleep this weekend. Tuesday will bring problems again but at least for the next 72 hours, it will be the farthest thing from my mind. So far got another hot bath in. Time for sleep. Good night all.

My plan for tonight

It has been one of those weeks where my patience is at wits end. I am choosing my battles this week and I am making tactical decisions before charging ahead. I have been ranting and swearing more than I would like and so I think it is time to take care of me tonight. I think the picture explains my plans....a bath tub, a rubber ducky and a glass of wine. Life couldn't get any better...Could it?

Brrr.....

My family thinks I am nuts because I love four seasons and they like the weather in Southern California. So. Cal. really only has 1.5 seasons. The 0.5 = Spring/Autumn/Winter. Tonight as I write this it is a lovely 11 degrees outside with a wind chill of -0.7. Yes! I can't wait to walk to swimming from the office tomorrow morning. It will be invigorating! Right now I am glad I am snuggled in bed.

Hair

Oh it is fun being a woman...getting your hair cut and colored is part of it. Tonight I did something amazing, I allowed my hairdresser to color my hair and cut it how ever she wanted. It came out cool. The color is awesome and the cut sassy. Now I have to figure out how the heck I am to duplicate the sassy configuration....

The start of the semester...

If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough
-- Mario Andretti

Pesky Fork...

I have been at this fork in the road for awhile. That pesky fork decided I needed to make a decision. So I am going to take the other path. This one will parallel my current path for a while then it will start to diverge and then I will come to a point where the last single track connector to my current path will be passed and when it is passed, you can not go back.

Dim sum

A good day today. I went with some friends to have dim sum and we had a great time. Dim sum is a type of Chinese cuisine which involves a wide range of light dishes served alongside Chinese tea. We ate ate the Golden Buddha which is at the Chinese Cultural Center in Phoenix. There are restaurants, shops, grocery store and a garden. The weather was fabulous.

End of the week at last...

What a long week that was filled with upgrades, problems and resolutions. Some things didn't go that well but with colleagues on another team helping out, made it go smoother. Students come back this weekend and classes start Monday. Where did the winter break go?

Just need to bake a bunch of cookies this weekend and we will be good to go.

Bunco

I play Bunco with this really great and fun group of women. We vary in age and in occupation. It is always a blast. We get together once a month and the location rotates among all of us. Thanks Linda for taking a great photo.

So what is Bunco? The game has these basic components: three sets of dice, three tables, score sheets and 4 major rounds with 6 sub rounds in each (one for each value on a dice). From there, rules of Bunco vary among groups. Our group rotates in a circle instead of a high, mid, and low table. It is fast paced and we do have some optional components such as traveling and prizes. When I started this post, I thought I would check out what the "rules" should be. Here is a link: http://www.buncorules.com/rules.html. Our rules make it fun and way less complicated. We have a great bunch of subs and people who can jump in on the fly. I look forward to these nights.

Two things to remember...

To acquire knowledge, one must study; but to acquire wisdom, one must observe.
-- Marilyn vos Savant

Do or do not. There is no try.
-- Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back

Why is it so hard to believe...

Ok... I have this rule that I do not discuss religion or politics. However, this time I am making an exception to my rule because it seems the world is on its head.

This week, our government is delaying a decision on whether global warming threatens polar bears. They said on Monday new data and public comment required more time. It's not really about that...it is about this black gunk that is pumped out of the ground that makes a few people rich and millions of others dependent on it. We seemed to have forgotten that we aren't the only species here on our planet. When we muck with the food chains...things happen. When we focus on greed...things happen. I hope someday that "we" pull our heads out of our !#%$ and figure out that "he or she" who has the most, doesn't win.

I got an email today...

Today was an interesting day. I had a very long day at work but that is not what this post is about. Today I found out that a good friend that I had in high school had passed away this past November. His name was Stephan. In my last posting of 2007, I mentioned those friends in my life you have passed away and at the time, I wasn't aware of him.

I have not kept in touch with my friends in high school very well and to some, not at all. I left the state for college and never went back. Lucky for me, a few of those friends have kept the link either with me or my mom. In 2006, I had my 20th high school reunion (yes I am dating myself so get over it). I had missed the earlier one. The days leading up to that reunion, I had thought of all of the friends I had hoped to see. I think about them periodically...some times it is a situation or a figure of speech. Unfortunately, Stephan couldn't make it to that reunion as he was working in Iraq (as a civilian).

Last fall, I had thought of Stephan. There was something that happened at work that reminded me of his laugh and his smile. Stephan was a wonderful person and will be missed.

It's Coming....

For Christmas...

My parent's gave me some money to purchase a new TV for Christmas. They didn't give me all of it, just some which was great. Today I went and picked it out. It was a long process. Did I want an LCD or a Plasma? How big of a TV did I want...42", 47" or 50"? With some research a friend did for me yesterday, another friend and I went and checked them out. After about an hour of looking at them, walking away and coming back to them, I choose one like the one above.
Thanks Dad and Mom! You are awesome!

It's about art

There are painters who transform the sun to a yellow spot, but there are others who with the help of their art and their intelligence, transform a yellow spot into the sun.
-- Pablo Picasso

Integrity

About a month ago, I ran across a blog posting discussing what integrity is and asking people what their personal sense of integrity was. Since then this topic has been mulling in my head. Do people really have a sense of integrity anymore? Do they really only think of themselves? If they do, do I want that kind of person in my life? I think not.

So what is my sense of integrity...

• Being both ethical and morally sound
• Treat others as you want to be treated
• Staying true to myself even if the whole world tells me that I'm are wrong

In case you are not sure of the definition of integrity (according to Merriam-Webster online):

1. Firm adherence to a code of especially moral or artistic values : incorruptibility
2. An unimpaired condition : soundness
3. The quality or state of being complete or undivided : completeness

What is yours?

Sleep...

Well my thought last night as I was composing my first entry for 2008 was that I was going to get 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep. Nope....it didn't happen. Instead I got 4 hours then was awake for 2 hours (2am to 4am) then asleep (finally) for 4 more hours. In that last stretch I managed to sleep through my alarm clock that goes off a bunch of times before it gives up. Tonight I am hoping for the same thing. This time I am going to try a lavender filled bath. Hopefully the heat and steam will lull me to sleep.....

Brrr.....

My family thinks I am nuts because I love four seasons and they like the weather in Southern California. So. Cal. really only has 1.5 seasons. The 0.5 = Spring/Autumn/Winter. Tonight as I write this it is a lovely 11 degrees with a wind chill of -0.7. Yes! I can't wait to walk to swimming from the office tomorrow morning. It will be invigorating!

By the way... I am not nuts.

Here we go...

Happy New Year!

Today is the beginning of 2008. It is a good beginning...

• I slept till nearly 10AM.
• Went to a lovely party with a small group of friends with great food and drinks
• Had dinner with a friend

Here's to sleep and getting 8 solid hours...