A year ago we went to South Dakota to see Mt. Rushmore. On the way home we saw that there was a place called Dirty Sally's. We knew we had to visit and get a tee-shirt! Well, by the time we rolled into the small Wyoming town, Dirty Sally's was CLOSED! Our own 'Dirty Sally' was sooo disappointed. I cannot remember the name of the town, but I will update when I find it. Found this pic and it reminded me of the trip.

Weekend Update

Well, this week has been sooo long and the weekend sooo short. We got back late at night from Denver and had to be up to work in the morning. I luckily have the option to work from home if my schedule allows. I spent Monday in my PJs logged into work, answering emails and working on my 'stuff'. The remainder of the week, I was sooooo tired. I do not know why, but I am not sleeping at night. I fall asleep at 10 PM and then wake up at 2 AM and cannot get back to sleep. By the time I fall back to sleep, I have to get up for work... It is a crazy cycle. So, this week I am going to work on sleeping through the night. I never took 'sleeping pills' until my eye surgery, but I am now a firm believer if you cannot break the wake up cycle. I got lots of rest this weekend so I am hoping to start off on the right foot...er pillow. I have a really busy week at work this week. I am in a training class for three days. That means all of the work I normally do will have to get done before or after the class...ugh. Sally, Mom and I have tickets to LeMiz this week. This is the last of the seven shows we had tickets to for this season at Pioneer Theatre. We saw a bunch of really good shows and plays this time around. Well, I am off to bed...zzzzzzzzzz

Long Short Week

Well, this week seemed long to me, but I only actually went to work for two days. Monday was Memorial Day, Tuesday I had swollen puffy eyes from allergies (grass I think, I mowed the lawn). Wednesday was a whirlwind of catch-up, today, Thursday was a get ready to be gone on Friday day.

Dave called and picked me up for lunch. We went over to the mall to Red Robin. Dave was on a 'work lunch' checking out the mall. I was just on a break. I have not left my building for lunch in so long I sent a message to my colleagues in case they were looking for me. I do not sit with anyone from my team. I have been sitting in another room as our current room does not fit everyone. I found out today that I will be moving once again. To the first floor. I will however be with some of my team, so that is good. I have gone 4 1/2 months without half of my stuff. I left it at my previous desk, in 'storage' for when I return. I fear I will never return to the 'dungeon' as some call it. (no windows) I guess it is time for me to throw that stuff away. It is nice to move, because it keeps you really aware of necessary things and plain old clutter.

We are off tomorrow to fly to Denver then drive to Pueblo. I guess if you are reading this you already know because you are going with me. (I think only Sally and David read this and they are going too) We are going to Luke's wedding. Should be fun. Sally is bringing Mason for a 'special' trip on his own. We may take him to the Rockies game on Sunday. I think he would love that. He said he will not be sitting by me or Sally on the plane because he needs to sit by Dave....it is his turn. Some people do not like to sit by kids on the airplane. I love it....they are small and it gives you more room. They usually sleep too. Sally and Chris took their kids on airplanes when they were babies and now have traveling with kids down to a science. They have their music, their video games, books and their treats. It keeps them busy for the entire flight. Well, I need to pack...nothing like leaving it to the last minute. adios....

The Horn

When I was in St.Louis earlier this month I had a scary experience that turned out to be hilarious. My friend Paula and I had flown early in the AM from NYC to be at our next meeting in St.Louis. After early morning hassle at the airport and then a hassle with the rental car, we were finally on our way to our meeting. Hertz messed up and did not have a GPS for us to use. I told Paula I was pretty good with directions, so we were on our way. As we were driving, we could see our destination. The tricky thing in alot of places except Utah, is that there are these frontage roads that are one way. We were on the correct side of the street, but could not find the entrance to the building we were going to. We decided to try to get there by going around the building to another entrance. As we were driving, we heard this loud horn ..BLAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!! I looked around and Paula looked around and did not see an emergency vehicle. Then I looked up and my stomach dropped.....it was a tornado horn, right in front of us. I told Paula that it was a disaster horn. We started yelling what should we do, crap, just our luck...agggh... We did not know what to do. Piled on our morning of stress, a tornado was coming now! When we were in NYC, the week prior, there had been a terrible storm in Kansas. I remember David telling me that it was an erie feeling. I pulled the car over and we did not know what to do. Then the horn stopped. I guess it was not a test. When we finally made it to the office, we asked our host and he said that the horns are tested every first Monday of the month at 11:00 AM....well, that is what it was, a test, not a tornado.

7 Random Things About Me

OK, so I NEVER do these things...so here goes.....

1. I love to read Craigslist.com to see what people are giving away in the 'free' section.

2. I always get complements on how great my hair looks when I have not washed it for a day or so.

3. I can't seem to get motivated to get up and get to work early, but I can wake up if I have skiing or running plans.

4. I love to read and study maps.

5. I hate it when there is an empty parking lot and someone chooses to park right next to me before I exit the car. (pet peeve)

6. I am a reality tv junkie.

7. I wish I were a ballet dancer.

Big Cheeses with Big Cheese

This past weekend Dave, Matt and I ran in the Ogden 1/2 Marathon. Matt ran a great time, Dave beat his last year time by 18 seconds...and I did not do so hot....I did not really train, but I finished! The night before we went to the store to get some pre-race food and we found this big cheese in the store. We had to take a pic. Have you ever seen a block of cheese this big.

After the race we went into Huntsville and had these famous STAR burgers at the Shooting Star Saloon. Later that night, Mandy, Dave, Matt and I played a game of Phase 10.....a new tradition.

We missed Sally and her family for the race, but I know they had a busy day with dance competitions and performances.

What Color is your Work???

When I traveled to NYC for work earlier this year, Mason asked me a few questions.
''Why are you in New York Mimi?'' ''Did you fly on a 'hairplane'?''
''What color is your work?'' I told him, "I am working in New York Mason....I did fly on an airplane....and my work is um...Brown. " This past trip, I called and he asked, ''Are you at your Brown Work?" I told him yes, then I said, ''Guess what I can see out my window?" I told him the Statue of Liberty... do you remember how she is?'' Mason replied, ''Yeah, she is that lady holding a book and an ice cream cone.'' I laughed so hard!
You never know what questions he will ask next.

New York Work Trip

I traveled for work with my friend Paula for a week to NYC and another few days to St. Louis. We worked hard all week and then played on the weekend before going to St. Louis. On one night we went to a Broadway show, Avenue Q. It was a great show. This show has muppet like characters, but it is NOT for kids. We went shopping on Saturday to a huge outlet mall, then on Sunday we took a bus to Atlantic City. I was not impressed at all with Atlantic City. It was small, windy, dirty and rundown. Save your money and your time and just go to Wendover! Paula and I could not find a table to play on for less than $10. I guess we are cheap?

The pictures here are a few I took from the 49th floor of the office in NYC. Can you believe the view?

Easter in Arizona

Over Easter weekend, Sally and I made plans to go to Arizona. Both of us were burnt out from work and needed a break in the sun. Since Hawaii was not a logical destination for sun and fun over a weekend, Arizona was the next best option. We searched the Internet for a resort to go and stay where we could just 'sit'. We found the Point South Mountain Resort. This place was a waterpark and golf resort. When we vacation, Sally and I love to 'sit' and do nothing but read magazines, watch the kids and chat on our vacations. We invited Mom and Mel to come too. They were excited to golf. I think they golfed 18 holes three days straight. This trip was Mom's first trip golfing after her surgery. Sally, Chris and family and I flew on Wednesday and stayed the weekend. We met up with Mom and Mel for dinner one night. Sally and I went to the mall one afternoon for some shopping. Chris had to leave on Saturday morning to get back to SLC for work. The Easter bunny visited our hotel suite and brought the kids a basket with some candy and toys. We all had a great time at the resort and got some much needed rest and relaxation. There was a concert on Saturday and the kids had fun singing along. They even got a t-shirt! Mason was fascinated by the magician. After the show, he was doing 'magic tricks' of his own.

We returned from our trip ready to join the rat race once again.....Can't wait for the next vacation!

Day off from work tomorrow...Field Trip

Last week Meg and Maddie asked if I would come and go on their school field trip. Well, I checked my schedule and said 'sure'. So, tomorrow, I am going with the 2nd grade to the Planetarium and the International Peace Gardens. It should be fun. Sally ordered me a school lunch and everything. I will update tomorrow with pics and any fun stories.

Back to the Blog

It has been forever, almost two months since I have updated my blog. Sally has been on me to get to updating....I hate to admit it, but I forgot how to. So now I got back in and am ready to update. Since the last blog, I have been really busy with traveling to Arizona for Easter and to NYC and St Louis for work. I have some pics, so I will use them to guide my update.

Sometimes I wish I were a Cat.....

This is Isabel. She has a great life: no bills, no job, no stress. All she does is sleep all day, get some food when she wants and be all lovey and cute. As I sit here she is laying on the floor acting like she just ran a marathon. When I talk to her, she barely opens her eyes and looks at me like I am disturbing her. Alfred (not pictured) is the same. No worries, just if his bowl is empty. They are great cats, although they have a reputation of 'bad cats'. They don't bark or nip at strange small children or jump up at you when you arrive, but they are still aka 'bad cats'. I still love them....and their lazy easy lives.

By the way......

I do not necessarily endorse the links I create on my blog or get any sort of compensation for putting links to my posts. I just think it is fun to find an applicable link.

Signs of Spring - Flowers and Taxes

I saw the daffodils popping up this weekend. This must mean spring is on the way. I do however know there will be at least one more snow storm. There always is one in late March or April.

I just finished my taxes. Actually, I finished them last night and when I went to print them off, I ran out of paper! Just my luck! So I went to the Office Depot tonight and picked up a whole new ream of paper. I wonder how long it will last? The last one lasted me over a year I think.

Have you ever gone to the office supply store for one thing and wandered around for things you 'might need?' I swear, the office supply store sucks you in and you think "hey, I really need a 12 pack of sharpies, post-it notes and a couple of 3" binders." Well, I went to pick up my new ream of paper and while wandering, I remembered I wanted to pick up a flash drive. For those who do not know, a flash drive is the latest in media storage. First there were big magnetic tapes, then there were floppy disks, big ones and small ones, then the CD and DVD came along. Finally, the flash drive. It has lots of alias' too: flash drive, memory stick, memory key,little tiny 'lipstick sized' thing. Some people at my office call it by the name on the device...mine would be called the SanDisc Cruzer. After checking out the prices on the flash drives as I was walking up the register, I was finally approached by the sales person...'do you need any help?' Yeah, five minutes ago. Oh well, customer service...that is another topic for another day.
-ciao

Start Training Again!

Sally and I had this crazy idea last year to train for the Salt Lake Marathon. This is our picture after the big day last June. We are sunburnt, tired and sore. I am putting it up for inspiration. During our training, we ran the Ogden 1/2 Marathon. Then, before our "high" wore off we committed to run in the Las Vegas 1/2 Marathon. What were we thinking...so far in the last 12 months, we have run the over 100 miles -- including all of the training time. Well we are beginning to train again for Ogden. I better get a pedicure soon before my toenails fall off again.

Spring is Coming!

Today was a nice spring day. This is a view from Alta, one of my favorite places to go skiing!

The Beginning

This is my blog. Sally has been doing this for months and I have been meaning to get started, so no time better than now.