Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Shaken...not stirred...

I WAS IN AN EARTHQUAKE!!!

I had to travel to Richmond, VA for a meeting today and while sitting in a conference room at the Hilton Garden Inn talking about exciting things like the impact to associates and customers will have after we make a particular change in my business...we felt the earth move under our feet. At first we all thought it was the air conditioner kicking into over drive, or someone was trying to move something down the hall and was shaking the floor...we didn't know what it was until it went on for several seconds and someone said "you know, Richmond is on a fault line..." At that point, we all hopped up, got our purses, tried to determine if we should bring our work computers and ran outside.  Once outside, we all stood and looked up at the building trying to see what was happening...probably a pretty stupid move to do, as if there really was something going on, we would have been in a bad spot.  I think that I need to read that book "Worst Case Scenario Survival Guide to determine what I need to do in situations like this should this happen in the future (as we know...my travel experiences tend to be more exciting than I really would like them to be--remember the hurricane last year??)  At any rate they clocked the earthquake at a 5.9 on the richter scale and it was felt as far north as Massachusetts and far west as Ohio.  Our offices in Maryland closed early and there was rumor that the building had some damage.  Was quite an exciting day for me and many others.  While there were not casualties that I'm aware of, and the shock only lasted maybe a minute, it was still a memorable event.  You can read more about the story here:  Virginia earthquake rattles East Coast-CNN.com

So...what am I smiling, celebrating and loving today??? Well...that's pretty easy...I'm loving the fact that while this could have been a very bad situation, we all were ok.  Life is good and all is well in the world (well, not all well with the world, a hurricane is heading for the east coast, the economy is horrible and TX still is in the 100+ degrees!).  God is good and I'm alive!  Just a little shaken...but not stirred!
Thought for the day:  
We only got 86,400 seconds in a day to
Turn it all around or to throw it all away
We gotta tell them that we love them
While we got the chance to say
Gotta live like we're dying  --Live like you were dying-Kris Allen


And...of course, the theme song for the day....

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Was it really 25 years ago?





Many people on my Facebook have been posting status updates that mention taking their kids to college and moving into dorms, etc.  I didn't give it much thought until today, when thinking about 25 years ago and what I was doing the same day that "Livin' on a Prayer" was born.  It hit me that it was very likely that on this exact day 25 years ago, my mom and dad loaded all my belongings into our truck and drove me to Abilene, TX where I moved into first floor of Nelson Dorm.
Nelson Dorm ACU--my room was on the left 1st floor
Now...the first floor was not the floor to be on--to be in the "in crowd" you were supposed to live on the third floor, but alas, my luck was not to be and I was destined to live on the first floor, with a room that didn't have the window screens nailed shut and had a nice pipe right below the window.  More on that later...

Some had pics of Bon Jovi
or Tom Cruise on their walls..
I had Snoopy and Charlie Brown--
I think that about says it all about
my wild and crazy college years!
This probably should be labeled the
"All the things that you can't do
to have a good time in college book"
I also received my PO Box--ACU Station 6978 to be exact. Then I'm sure that I had to pick up my Handbook that told me all the do's and don'ts --like shorts had to be to the knee, curfew had to be met, you had to sign out on the weekend, chapel was mandatory, and boys could only stay in the lobby of the dorms.  My roommate that I met at Freshman Orientation, Dana from Tyler and I had coordinated our matching bedspreads and decor (bears and cross stitch items galore!), and were hopeful that we would be lifelong friends. (I don't think I spoke again to her after we finished our Freshman year...)  The world was wide open for us both and while we were scared to death..we were so happy to be in college!


Yes, a boy...in my room--
can't remember his name,
but he was in my room the one time we could
have boys in the dorm--
yes, the door was open the
whole time!  No, this was not
someone I was interested in.
Dana (on right) and our lovely decorated room-
thanks JC Penney for the lovely and
cheap bedspreads!

The year...1986...a time when gas was $0.89, the average cost of a house was $89,500, and average salaries were $22,400.  Wow...how times have changed--gas on the way home tonight was $3.45; homes are above $200,000 average and there is no way you can live on $22,400 per year!  I can't believe it's been 25 years!  Seriously, how has time passed so fast?  Seems like only yesterday I was that bright eyed, naive girl, who thought that she'd leave college with a good education and a husband.  Life didn't exactly work out like I thought, and if I could go back and tell that 18 year old me something it would be...enjoy the panty raid that happened in your room, put yourself out there, give that boy a chance...he may be the one, and get a better wardrobe--you will be very embarrassed in the future!

Smile:  What have I smiled about?
I smiled when coming home from a business trip to find my house all nice and clean with clean sheets, and the smell of Mr. Clean.  Makes me so happy!

Celebrate:  What do I celebrate?                 Today, August 18th is the 25th anniversary of what some people say is the greatest album of all time, Bon Jovi's "Slippery When Wet."  This album was the birth to some fantastic ballads and songs like "Livin on a Prayer," "Wanted Dead or Alive," "Let it Rock," "Never say Goodbye," and "You give love a Bad Name." This album is what made this band, (that you all know I have grown to love,) popular, and put them in the limelight.  These guys  weren't really "on the scene" prior to this point, and then their world changed when this album was released!  So...Congratulations guys..thanks for creating a masterpiece that we can all karaoke to and enjoy!   Note:  I didn't really even know these guys were around August 18, 1986--now, I could sing every word of Whitney Houston, REO Speedwagon, George Strait, Madonna and probably most Amy Grant songs--and knew every verse to all the church songs.  Don't tell me that I'm not a music lover!  

Love:  What do I love?                                                                                                                                 For 11 summers I've wasted 3 nights a week to stay tuned to see what is happening on this stupid show.  Contestants are locked in a house without any contact with the outside world and are expected to align with others, backstab, create havoc, lie, cheat, and evict one another for $500,000.  They typically always pick a group of crazy folks that have to figure out how to get along.  It's a silly show, and certainly one that I walk away learning NOTHING, but, it's been fun to watch and is a great summer pastime.  I think it's also one of those things that my family also watches, so it's a good bonding experience for all of us.  I love chatting with my mom about it...she gets so worked up about this show!  Love you mom!

Thoughts for the day:  "I'm single because so far...no one can love me better than me!"
"Some people thing hanging in there shows great strength, when the truth is "letting go" is the real test of character."
"The more value you create for others, the more your life will work. Commit yourself to doing good. To get more from life, you must give more to life."



Wednesday, August 10, 2011

God is love...With Him, all things are possible


God is love.  With Him, all things are possible--www.godvine.com

Smile: What did I smile about lately?
I've had some great laughs with some good friends...love those belly laugh kind of moments when you don't know why something is so funny, but find yourself rolling in laughter.  They don't come along too often, but when they do...so much fun!

Celebrate:  What do I celebrate?
I celebrate getting through another company tour with the "big wigs."  Today we had several people in the office looking over all our jobs and making an assessment on how well things were managed.  I think we all showed up well..I got some good praises from some of the people and all in all, think it was a success!  So happy it's over and dread the next one!

Love:  What do I love?
I love McDonald's Ice Cream Chocolate Sundaes!  They are only $1 and worth all the calories!  What a great treat on these HOT days (although I understand that we are supposed to have some break in the heat this weekend..it's supposed to get down to 101 from 110!!)

So, I'm getting over the fact that I got DUMPED!  I know that the right thing worked out, but I'm having a hard time getting over the fact that he did it before I had a chance to do so!  I was the one holding back, not him and yet, he's the one with the change of heart...Once again, I'm happy that things worked out the way they did, but my pride is getting in the way to see past that, so I'm choosing to be bent out of shape at the fact...that I....GOT....DUMPED!  How can you get dumped when you weren't even dating you may ask...well, it happened!  I got dumped without even a kiss!  Guess that's what happens when you put yourself out there...gotta go fishing again...wonder what I may reel in this time...let's hope he's a keeper!  I need a good, long-lasting one that lives here in "Big D!"

Thought for the day:  Stay focused on what you love, and you'll begin to see evidence of it everywhere!

Monday, August 8, 2011

Another Adventure in the {scrap} books...


I can't tell you how many times I saw this sign welcoming me "home"
when I lived in AZ...it was nice to see as a VISITOR and not Resident!

After a nail biting wait in the airport we heard our names called letting us know that our adventure to Arizona was definitely on for that evening!  We made it hassle free to the hotel (well sorta hassle free...once I moved from AZ, I totally forgot all directions to anything!) It was a lovely resort and we were so thrilled to finally be away for some wonderful R & R.

North Scottsdale, AZ
Great buy for the weekend!
If you ever get a chance to go to this wonderful resort and spa...do it!  It was heavenly--and I can definitely say that after all the hotels I've had a chance to stay in during all my travels!  We got a great deal and the $150 hotel credit made it even more worth the trip.  After a great sleep...and I mean GREAT sleep, we got up went to breakfast, then drove to find my old house...
a VERY expensive mistake

Yes..folks...this small Patio Home costs more than you can imagine...one of the biggest mistakes I've made thus far in life...great learning experience, but a costly one at that!  After a visit to Trader Joe's Grocery, we finally settled in back at the hotel for an afternoon of floating on the river and just total relaxation.  This was my view from my chair:
My view from my chair...I do miss this sight...
Beautiful Arizona!
Me and My BIG hat!  Great find to keep the sun away
Resort decorations
I spent the day reading a book and enjoying the shade...
It was actually fairly decent in spite of the temperature
view of the lazy river...so relaxing...when the kids weren't around!

The lazy river was lovely, in spite of all the families there and just what we both needed..a great chance for us to catch up with each other, solve each other's problems, coach each other on work issues and just be ok with not talking at all so we could be alone with our thoughts.  It was a great afternoon!
Pretty resort!

Bonnie and the pretty trees

Palm Trees at night..so pretty--so peaceful!
After getting cleaned up, we ventured out to dinner...note to self, don't eat Mexican Food outside of Texas...just not the same regardless of the menu!  We got another great night's sleep then hit the lazy river again until the pool got way too crowded and it just got too hot to be outside.  We cleaned up and went to a movie (not sure that I'd recommend "Cowboy's and Aliens" but was a good way to spend the afternoon).  After that, we hit the lazy river for one last time before we called it a night.  Had another anxious wait at the airport, but we made it home safe and sound...another adventure in the record/scrap books!  Once again...thank you SWA for a great trip!  So needed and so lovely!  Go buy a Southwest Airlines Ticket today...they are a GREAT airline!

Smile:  What have I smiled about?
I read..cover to cover the Wall Street Journal both days on vacation!  It was so wonderful and I found myself quoting several facts throughout the day.  While I would love to think that I could find this much joy every day it's just not something that I can do regardless of how much it made me smile!  Did you know that mortgage rates are at an all time low?  Did you know that we are afraid of boredom? Did you know that Mellon is charging some of it's top investors a fee due to banking regulations?  Well...those were all the things that I discovered/learned in the WSJ!

Celebrate:  What do I celebrate?
I celebrate that I've been in quite the learning mode lately.  I love reading some new articles from blogs that I follow on Twitter that help me grow in my knowledge of leadership styles and management challenges and training updates.  It's been great to be in a state of learning mode and I feel like I'm growing more and more each day!  I love to learn and gain knowledge!  

Love:  What do I love?
So...I think this about sums up where I'm at with my love life and Mr. Nice Guy:
Note: I'm not giving up on all Mr. Nice Guys...
Just the one that I've been blogging about lately!

Today I got a text saying: " I would like to talk to you about our "friendship."  I have prayed and soul searched.  I want to be honest with you.  I respect you too much to waste your time.  Can we talk tonight?"  So....that's never good!

While on vacation, I had some time to really weigh the pros and cons about this myself and although I was excited to see him this week, I was also wanting to spend some time asking questions and trying to determine if this is something that I want to pursue or not.  I'm glad that he brought it up first because I think I would have come to this same conclusion.  I will admit that I'm a little confused at his sudden change of heart.  Based upon text messages from the previous week, this was a bit out of the blue...not something that I, myself, wasn't thinking, but a bit out of the blue from where I thought he was with me.

Bottom line to this whole thing, we don't live in the same location and I think he's wanting to have someone that he can be around continuously and given my locale, that's not possible to do at this point--or ever.  So, I'm not sure if he's jumped to another person or what, but something changed in the course of a week. Maybe I've got myself together too much and he wants to be the rescuer ...I don't need someone to rescue me.  Maybe I'm too career oriented and he doesn't want someone to care about their job or what that brings to them..I love what I do and find much joy in it.  Maybe he's looking to fix someone...I'm pretty solid and don't need much fixing.  I don't really know what changed his mind, but  what I do know is that God has answered prayers...the right thing worked out in this situation and that's comforting to know...God did answer both of our prayers and I've got peace that the right thing for both of us occurred.  I wish him well.  He's a great guy and he deserves much happiness --I hope he finds what he's looking for...and I hope I do too.

My Mr. Nice Guy is out there...I know he is.  I've "dated" some great guys and if they were the ones that didn't work out, then I KNOW that there is one that is fantastic out there just waiting for me to cross his path.  It will happen, I believe it will and trust that God will provide at the right time, right place, right moment.  Somewhere out there, he exists...

So for now...the thought for the day is:

I'm willing to keep waiting on the RIGHT one...not the one that's there right now.  I'm willing to keep strengthening myself and building upon my relationship with God.  I'm willing to continue loving who I am, where I am, totally and completely.  Being single has some perks and I have come to love this place I'm at in life....all isn't lost, in fact, I think it's moments like these that make me find myself even more!

Cheers...

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

I'm going to start living better cause this taste of Hell is awful!


It's hot...that's all there is to it...just awful hot...boiling hot..so hot that it never cools off kinda hot...so hot that it feel like you are living in a perpetual hair dryer/oven!  It's been awful here in Big D the last few weeks/month.  Cars that sit outside for the day have a temp when you get in of 118 or so...I feel like I'm living back in Arizona again...only I'm not..I live in Texas and while it's supposed to be hot here in the summer...this is crazy!  I'm ready for some relief!  Wow!  It's hot...so hot!  Makes me think that I need to make sure that I'm living a better life so that I don't experience an eternity in Hell...I can't stand too much more of this!

Smile:  What have I smiled about lately?
Last night, I had the chance of spending an evening with my brother, sister in law and nieces.  It was a lovely evening in the pool, having dinner and just catching up on what's happening in our lives.  In the course of the conversation, we started talking about how close we are and how happy that makes us that we can still enjoy being around each other after all these years.  Many of our friends can't exactly say that about their siblings so it's nice to know that we are not only family, but also friends.  I'm fortunate to have the wonderful relationship I have with my fantastic brother and sister!  I love you guys!

Celebrate:  What do I celebrate?

After 135 shows, in 22 countries over the last 18 months, Bon Jovi ended their "Circle Tour."  I'm proud that I was one of the 3 million fans that went to five of their shows during the course of this 18 months.  I know you all think I'm crazy, but I truly came to love these guys and can't believe I wasn't such a fanatical fan before now.  Since my first concert in Dallas in April 2010, I've come to appreciate their music so much more and find that many of their songs truly fit many moments in my life.  Whether I'm having a bad day, or a good day, turning on a little Bon Jovi helps my moods.  Some of my favorite lessons that I've learned through their music:


  • "When the world get's in your face, say...HAVE A NICE DAY!"
  • "When you want to give up and your hearts about to break, remember that you're perfect...God makes no mistakes...WELCOME TO WHERE EVER YOU ARE...this is your life, you've made it this far!"
  • "I'm gonna live, I want to survive, don't want the world to pass me by.  I'm gonna dream ain't gonna die thinking my life was just a lie...I WANT TO BE LOVED"
  • "I finally found my way...said good-bye to yesterday...hit the gas there ain't no brakes on this LOST HIGHWAY."
  • It's ok to be a little broken, EVERYBODY'S BROKEN in this life, you're alright..it's just life
  • My song that I hope is played before my wedding night..."This is the last night you'll have to be alone, I'll be standing right beside you when you can't make it on your own so walk with me please help me to be strong, this is the LAST NIGHT you'll have to be alone."
  • And of course...IT'S MY LIFE...it's now or never..I ain't gonna live forever!  Cause It's...my...life!
  • Hey man I'm alive...takin each day one night at a time..feeling like a Monday, but SOMEDAY I'LL BE SATURDAY NIGHT!"
  • And finally, when it's a long week, i have to say..."We're halfway there...Livin' on a prayer!

I could go on and on, the point is that I love this band and have learned some good lessons about life, love and myself as I listen to their music...and they aren't too bad to look at too.  I sure hope they don't take too long off...I'm going to miss my boys...good thing there's You Tube and all those great concert videos to keep me from going in withdrawals!

Love:  What do I love?
Things with Mr. Nice Guy are going well.  He comes next week for a monthly business review, so I'm looking forward to seeing him, fixing him dinner and just spending some time getting to know each other more and more.  Not sure where this is going to go, or even if we can really even define that at this point, but I will say, that it's really nice to know that I'm on someone's mind and to have someone on mine.  I know I've said that before, but I find myself thinking of him quite a bit through my day and wanting to share more and more of my life--the good and bad with him.  We'll see where it goes.  I'm putting in God's hands and just hoping to  let HIM control my life, instead of me doing the typical sabotage that I tend to do in my relationships.  Perhaps, there's a Bon Jovi song to help me through this stage in life too...guess I'll just have to listen to more music (or buy another album).

I also love the new MAC operating system called Lion.  It's got some fun features to it  that makes it fun to surf and do things on my computer.  I also was pretty proud of myself when something wasn't working properly and I fixed it.  Google can be a good friend when you need to teach yourself how to do something.  I researched the problem and found the solution...and it worked!   I love when I figure things out like that!  Makes me feel so good and independent!

So...stay tuned for another adventure of Bonnie and me.  We are venturing to the cooler temps of Phoenix, Arizona this weekend to get away for some much needed rest and relaxation!  MUCH NEEDED REST and RELAXATION!  We are staying at a lovely resort and spa in Scottsdale and I'm excited to venture back to one of my favorite grocery stores...Trader Joe's and seeing my old house again.  (wonder if my crazy neighbors with the lovely el camino still live across the street...??)  Should be a lovely time, even though it won't be much cooler than it is in Dallas!  I'll report out on the adventures in the next blog post!  Stay tuned...i'm sure there will be some exciting things to learn!

Thought for the day "It is only possible to live happily ever after on a daily basis." —Margaret Bonanno


Cheers! 


Now..off to pack for my big adventure!