Home Sweet Home

1. I'm looking forward to going home today. I miss everything about being home with the person I love the most. I wonder why I allow someone else to direct my time away from what is most important to me.
2. Utah is home. While SC will always be our second home, Utah is where our hearts belong.
3. I can't wait for S to do what she loves most in the snow.
4. Now, it's on to Cincinnati and then home.

If it's too good to be true, it probably is...

Lifestyle Lift, have you ever heard of it? While I'm sitting here in the hotel room, there is a program advertising face lifts. They are showing before and after pictures. I'm impressed. Most of these folks looked like they were 70 and how they look like they are 40.

S and I are going to the Florida Keys for vacation in about a week. We are taking 10 days and getting away from everything. We're staying at Pearl's, which we hear is the place stay. We can't wait.

I've been in Utah for a few days and went looking at some places in the Sugar House area today. I think S and I are going to consider this area, it had a good feel.

Clients, planes, automobiles

1. I'm sitting in the Milwaukee airport waiting on my flight. I was suppose to be here until Friday, but as luck would have it, my meetings ended early and I'm taking the first flight out. It's been snowing since I got here and is so cold. So it makes me wonder why Senga and I want to move back to Utah where there is snow, cold and more snow and cold. South Carolina has been so warm and wonderful, today it's suppose to be in the high 60's, low 70's, that sure beats the 12 degrees here. When we first moved to the South, I was hot all the time. Now I'm cold all the time, clearly I have readjusted to the warmer weather.

So, sitting here in the airport, the nicest man has been chatting with me. He is a former navy pilot and tells me that he hates to fly when they de-ice the planes. I look out the window and see that my plane is being de-iced. He says he would rather land on an aircraft carrier in pitch dark than to take off with ice conditions. If he wasn't such a nice old guy, I'd tell him to please leave and take those negative thoughts with him. I continue to put out the positive thoughts that I will be getting home safely and on time today. So far, so good.

2. I've decided to give up my diet coke and drink more water. It's been three days and I have the headache from hell. The pain killers I'm taking don't even phase the headache. I decided it's not the lack of caffine, but I must be coming down with something. I guess it could be stress...

3. Our Open House is the 19th, I'm certain we will have an offer on the house very shortly thereafter. Then we'll be headed to Utah and find a place to live. We want to live in the SLC area, cause I still need to travel quite often and need to be closer to the airport, but also because we miss the bigger city life. SC has been great, but we are looking forward to being back in a big city where there are lots of things to do and places to explore. Senga wants to live in the Sugar House area, which I hear is rather a nice place to live.

4. This little lady just walked up to the counter to ask if the plane would really be taking off if it's snowing. I need to move seats...

J

New Years brings New Year's Resolutions

I can honestly say that I never would make resolutions at the beginning of the new year. I'll admit that part of that was sheer laziness, but part was the realization that I would likely hiccup, with what I resolved to do, but I was always taught from 12 years on that I should have goals in life in personal, professional, spiritual, and other areas. So should that ever stop? I don't think so.

So a week or so ago I watch Oprah's opening show for the new year. It's about new year's resolutions and she has her trainer, Bob Greene, on so I'm thinking, "Oh great another show about now it's time to lose weight for the next year." So I watch and so many things she said rang true for me and I'm pretty sure would ring true for you so here goes with what I learned on Oprah today.

When a lot of us know that we over indulged this year, we look in the mirror and say, "Oh my gosh, this is my body? It's so different than when I went to high school or when I got married or was 30, etc." Well the overweight self is not really craving food is it? No, my friends and family, it is craving LOVE!!!!!!!!!!!! Think about it and be honest with yourself- the overuse of food is the "drug of choice" and the lack of activity we extend (not exercising) in our life is the very indication that we lack and even crave love. This is what we're really hungry for. The gift we did not give ourselves this year, (if this applies to you) is the gift of love, receiving, extending, all forms and you know what I'm talking about. We have to make ourselves "the priority." We're all so busy doing for others, our families, church, our jobs, and extending ourselves in so many directions that we've become unconscious about it all and maybe you're just trying to get through the day, but we eat and eat, and don't exercise, and don't communicate important stuff to pretty important people and it will all boil over one day when we're so imbalanced that we're emotionally withdrawn, physically overweight, and spiritually deficient that the weight just pours on and the regular visits to the doctor for pills is our answer.

Since this is my blog, I speak for myself only but I think a lot of this rings true for many of you too. So what do we do about it?

Something!
Anything!
Walking!
Talking!
Loving!
Doing!

Any other verb for action is appropriate too. Insert your own for your situation and you'll know what I mean.

For me, this last year was extremely hard. I'm already away from all of my family and dearest friends living in South Carolina. Joni's job is such that she has had to travel a lot, leaving me alone with a bunch of cats, who I love, but it's not the same. Food has been my choice of "comfort" and it's silly and stupid but it is what it is. So here I am. Change can only be made once you are aware and can admit it. So here I sit, 40 lbs heavier than my college basketball days. Heaviest I've been, people, so it's time for some changes.

So getting back to Oprah, the #1 thing they suggest is to plan for your life and meals so that you keep in check what you're taking into your body. Lots of recipe's on her site and others. If you don't plan your meals you get hungry and you eat fast food or other unwise quick choices and it all adds up.

Cardio (running/jogging/moving) is essential to losing/then maintaining your weight, so 30 minutes/day should be spent.

#2 Resistance training. The older we get the more muscle you lose and need to try and maintain. So even though weight may not drop as fast for this area, after awhile your shape changes and your clothes fit differently-more comfortable and loose.

Carnie Wilson, who had battled an extremely public view of her weight ups and downs, had gastric bypass surgery, then ballooned back to 220 this year. Carnie says, "You need to love yourself." You have to take care of yourself. What do you really want in life? Food? What's the real craving? She wanted to be healthy and that's her focus. She's lost 50 lbs in the last 6 months. "Put yourself back on your list." Exercise is the best way to start.

So look at "falling off the wagon" as not a weight issue but a love issue and make some changes today. I say all of this for myself most of all but I know a few of you need a kick in the pants also. "How much love can you give youself in 2009?" Make it the year. Let's not make excuses or whatever, "Do it!"

Jacky at the Whitehouse/Massage stories

1. This is my cousin Jacky, who I've blogged about before. She's a Senior Intelligence Officer working in Washington D.C. and she posted these pictures recently on her Facebook page when she and her peers got to go the White house a week or so ago.



2. Yes, this is Barney Bush, who Jacky says is the only Bush she would greet kindly. I'm sure Barney could tell she was a dog owner Mommy. She never said but I figured if Barney is there President Bush or the First lady must have been also. I want that picture though. I'll ping her on that one.



3. Jacky and her peers in front of the Oval office. Can you imagine getting to stand there? I told her I would love to volunteer to be her personal assistant next time she needs to visit the White house. Wouldn't that be cool?

4. Massage stories- Sometimes things happen in my profession that are either very funny or I just have to tell you about. And I know there is a lot of you out there who will read this and wonder, "Does she tell stories about me to others?" If I have, I NEVER use names so no one would know. Anyway here's the first one-

So there is a girl who comes into the spa once a month and gets a massage. She takes medication for schizophrenia and when I first massaged her I was warned that she says and does things during her massage that you normally wouldn't experience with others. One of the things she does is when she's lying on her stomach her arms are out front of her and she constantly rubs her hands as if she's putting lotion on. She also has a breathing pattern that you could mistaken for sobbing at times, yet when I've asked her is she's ok she snaps out of it and answers, "yes." Once she turns over, instead of keeping her eyes closed, she stares at you. She'll also talk to herself after I've turned her over and you'd think you were looking at someone who was in the middle of a disturbing dream and her mouth moves like she's talking to someone very troubled. So all of this kind of freaks most of the therapists out and we take turns working on her because it's just to disburbing sometimes. So that is the background of this client. So a week ago, my therapist friend, Michelle was working on her in the room next to me. Often we can hear things even through the walls but I was aware that Michelle had already left the room. So, just another piece of information- sometimes the door locks leaving the client to either knock so we can hear they're stuck or they call our front desk from their cell phones.
So back to Michelle's client- I can hear her struggling with opening the door. Pulling and pulling and I thought, she is going to really FREAK if she can't get out. So there are very few things that make me excuse myself from a massage with a client but I thought I had better go next door and try to help her out so she didn't have this nervous breakdown. And just as I get there, she finally got the door opened and her face was all red and her blonde hair was really tousled. So anyway, she got out just in time but we were very nervous what her reaction would have been had she not gotten the door open.

5. There are some health situations that a therapist must know about since some diagnoses do NOT advise any massage therapy while they are being cared for. So my client was a 70 year old woman who was a return client. If someone is a new client they have them fill out a health questionaire form so the therapist can determind if they are in good enough health for massage. But this woman had already been there. So we have a quick conversation about what areas she needs massage and I leave the room for her to dress down and get on the table. So when I come back in, she has this bandage kind of thing wrapped around her breast area all around her back. And I said, have you hurt yourself or what's going on? She then volunteered that she had a biopsy done earlier in the week. So I pressed further. "So what is your diagnosis because I need to know." She says, "I have Breast CANCER."

Now, friends/family you are NEVER supposed to get massage when you have cancer unless you have a written note from your doctor saying that you can. So I then asked, "Do you have your doctor's permission to be getting a massage?" And she tells me that she didn't even think about that. So I explain the situation and tell her that we really shouldn't be doing a massage but she chooses to proceed anyway and so I told her that we would NOT be doing anything deep but rather just a relaxing kind of massage. So basically I just rubbed her down lightly with lotion. So never get massage if you have cancer, k.

Happy New Year

So many people I've talked to lately are looking forward to the new year (including me - 2008 has been one of the most difficult years) with such excitement and merriment, but it dawned on me this afternoon; that the new year itself will not be anything special. As we enter into another year; things will be the same; people will continue upon their ways and courses. Companies will continue to use and abuse their employees; we will all get up; go to work; come home and start over again the next day. Citizens of the world will continue to war with each other; trying to gain control and dominion over the other and another year will come and go. Sounds depressing, huh?

But, what if... what if we all wake up on January 1, 2009 and say I want to be happier, more peaceful and more loving to my fellow kind (and animals)? What if we all get up that morning and put a little more effort into being kinder to each other; being a little more patient in the traffic on our way to work; slow down and allow someone who just realized their exit is coming up and allow them to merge in at the last minute? What if we take a few minutes to acknowledge those younger than us trying to make their way in the world and we offer them the advise and wisdom that only comes from experiences; experiences of seeing our world in economic strife; leaders making bad decisions; our elderly parents trying to figure out what went wrong with their savings; etc.? What if we all stopped and just showed one act of kindness to someone? I read on a friends blog recently that she was rushing around a few days before Christmas and stopped at a Taco Time to buy a bean burrito and when she went to pay; the clerk told her that the car in front of her had already paid for her burrito. I can assure you; this friend most likely needs no one to pay for her bean burrito; but what a kind act? That might have been the last few dollars that person had before heading home with their Christmas treasures, but it brought joy to my heart to know that there are kind people in our world who are trying their best to be kind; loving; peaceful folks. Pay it forward, that's what I take from this. Let's all pay it forward.

S and I have been talking recently about new years resolutions and being better people; not only to ourselves and each other; to our family, friends and strangers. We have talked about how blessed we are, the joy and love we feel for each other, our families and our friends and those who we come in contact with us on a daily basis. We've talked about our experiences, both good and bad. We've talked about what we have learned and how we need to approach the new year more holistically and with more openness and farsightedness. If we want our home; and the world to be a better place; then we need to be better individuals - better partners - better friends - better family members and better citizens. We need to love more and hate less. We need to be more tolerant - more patient - more willing to give of our abundance; our time; and make our small corner of the world a better place.

I've seen someone who has been there for me, who has given time, patience, love, forgiveness and understanding and all they wanted in return was for me to be a better person. What if... we all took a few minutes to think about who has been there for us in our lives? Who has forgiven us when we have made minor/major mistakes? Who has asked nothing more from us than to be the best that we be - and then give something back to those who need it most?

If we are going to have a better world; one filled with peace; joy; happiness;... then we need to do our part. It could be big, it could be small. But every little or big thing we do that helps another is one step forward into a better world for those who come after us. Give when you can... take time when you can... stop and help when you can... Those who can; do... those who cannot; need a little help.

Don't wait for a calender to tell you that it's time to change> Take every moment of everyday to think beyond yourselves and ask "what can I do"? It may be small, but to the person who bought my friend a bean burrito at Taco Time; I say; no small thing goes unnoticed by the world. All acts of kindness; whether small; medium or big means more than the person giving will ever know. That's the beauty. Give with no expectation of receiving.

We are looking forward to selling our home in the South and moving back to where our hearts find the most meaning. We look forward to reuniting with friends and family, but mostly we look forward to being better people, better partners, better daughters, better friends, and citizens of the world.

Happy New Year,

J

Lost Visitors/A New Era/The Cat/The Blower/Friends

1. It seems that we have lost a lot of our visitors lately here on the blog. I'm sure it's due to the lack of exciting posts lately, which I admit has fallen to the last of the priority list. It's hard to keep up on everything. I'm always unsure of new topics to blog about too because half the crowd likes political stuff, half just want to read something pleasant, and sometimes I have to make a statement for myself, that's why it's our blog. Anyway we'll try to spruce it up again and gain your attendance once again.

2. So I just turned 40 and entered another era, a new tax bracket, and everything. Funny though, 40 feels like 35 or 30, or even 25. Except the body is breaking more and more everyday. A lot of you out there know that I have had lots of injuries in my lifetime, mostly due to playing sports. I mostly struggle with low-back pain on a regular basis and have taken every measure imaginable out there from massage therapy to getting adjustments from a chiropractor, and even acupuncture, which worked really good. I'm now doing some physical therapy and have discovered through the PT that my pain is coming from weak hip and glute muscles along with my stomach muscles- the core. So I've been doing crunches and leg extension lifts and it's actually working, people. I quit working at the airport too, which helps now that I'm not lifting up to 50 lbs x 50 times a day and standing all the time. So hopefully this gets me back on the road to just enjoying life again without the pain. So here's to 40, as I sip my drink. :-)

3. So Joni and I are going to be gone for part of the week coming and we've decided to take Mr. Nose to the humane society where they can check him out and try to find another home for him. He sure is a cute guy but the way he waddles, makes me think he's older too. It's sad to have to say goodbye to a sweet little animal but we have no room in the inn. 3 is already enough for the next 20 years.

4. One of our favorite garden tools is the blower. Here in South Carolina, we live among a thousand trees and when the wind blows they all like to land in our pool or everywhere else. So a few weeks ago we had been using it and the next time I went to go get it, I couldn't find it. We searched high and low and it was no where to be found. There's a home being built two houses down from us and we just thought that maybe we had left the garage door up and one of the transient workers there happen to see it and snatched it. So we tell all of our friends that our blower has been stolen and we go buy a new one. Fast forward to about 6 weeks later- Joni informs me that she's cleaning out the pool house and found it under a pile of stuff that happen to fall down on top of it. So now we have two blowers and we feel bad for blaming the immigrant workers of two doors down but now we have a blower for both of us to blow at the same time. Somehow this doesn't sound very good does it? :-)

4. Friends- One of the hardest things about moving is that you won't be near your friends. Joni and I have made the best friends here, Tonya Walters and Lisa Coggins. We love these friends like our own families and it will be so hard to leave because of the friendship we have. We've committed them to at least one yearly visit to the great state of Utah and maybe two so they can be here during winter time to see our spectacular snow. Tonya and Lisa are avid South Carolina Gamecock football fans and they have season tickets to the games. They took us recently to the South Carolina vs. Arkansas game recently and we had a blast. They've won both times I've gone now. I keep telling them I'm the lucky link so they must take me more often.

5. This is my latest picture of Joni that I took last week. Isn't she a cutie? She'll be embarrassed I posted this but this is her blog afterall too. Maybe I can talk her into writing another entry soon.