Jubilant January ~ Week 1

[ladybirdheart]

Jubilant January ~ Week 1

I adore the new avatars. We all love our pets so very much. Here are my four pound dog and fifteen pound kitty. With all the holiday decor put to bed and after a good house cleaning, we three had a lazy afternoon watching a sweet dark comedy "The Kids are Alright" on Netflix. Wishing you ease in your journey tonight. Love, Ladybird.

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[Stargazerlily]

Jubilant January ~ Week 1

Checking in.....

There are many new people who are desperate to make changes, my heart goes out to them. It seems that reality hits us after the New Year's celebrations. I am ready to go back to work, that is what I am telling myself. I again did alot around the house today, cleaned up, cooked, and feel at peace. Balance is important, getting things organized, in order....I really enjoyed this time off. Monday will probably be tough, but I will remind myself I am so grateful to have a job.

LBH and John, your pets are adorable.

Have a great night, AF.

[cyntree]

Jubilant January ~ Week 1

Sunday Evening greetings -

Decided to do a turkey and all trimmings yesterday, just for HB, me, stepD and her man-friend. We had a sweet, lovely, laughing time together, and even played 4-hand Scrabble! I cleaned everybody up at the end with a combination of 'via/oaf'...a shining moment for me, and definitely a harbinger of a good year. No knives were drawn.

Being disciplined about taking time off for myself is one of my goals this year. Sounds kind of selfish, but I am realizing that if I don't, I become diffident, cranky, unpleasant, etc. No fun for me or anyone else. So....today I was going to try to read and knit all day (got a couple of installments of Tale of Two Cities in...it's a start...) My work problem is that being self-employed, I am never off-duty. I have no work routine except for tackling the next 'to-do' just as soon as the last one is ticked off the list. It seems that here we are all after Balance of one sort or another - this is an area that I am working on.

StepD and I also made a plan to each make 1 soup a week that we can swap 1/2s and then each get 2 soups for the week - already accomplished that for this week so we are patting ourselves on the back!

OK - off to find some unfinished bit of knitting that I can render slowly in the coming weeks. It is such a pleasure to feel the yarn move through my fingers, and it seems magical to me that with two sticks and a string you can make something to wear...(Sped - I think you should find a class or a pattern that you can 'felt' - it's very easy and another level of magic.)

Dill - normally I would never joke about drinking w HB -- it must have been the other-worldly atmosphere of that bizarre evening. But it was fun and instructive, nonetheless.

Ladybird Heart -(there is a Ladybird in 'Tale' - is she your ancestor?) - I am thinking that the cat found your contact.

I love the pics of your furry babies, all - I will try to get my tech-courage up and post a pic of my kids --

Greetings to all, and I hope you have an easy return to the regular workaday -- Cheers!

[Lavande]

Jubilant January ~ Week 1

Good evening folks!

Pretty pictures everyone

Star, you mentioned the importance of balance in our lives. That is exactly what I did not have all of my life! I was never able to get YB to understand that concept. He was & still is a workaholic. I always had a good work ethic but needed more out of life. How about a little R & R once in a while?
I worked (trying to keep up his manic pace) until I literally dropped. I ended up exhausted & fell down the steps at home, landing on my head. I spent 3 days in ICU & a total of 6 days in the hospital after emergency surgery to remove the huge hematoma in my skull. It wasn't fun & it hurt like hell. That all happened 10 years ago & I'm very lucky to be alive. Massive depression followed that incident which led me to self-medicating with a bottle or more of wine per day.

I fully understand the importance of balance now

Hope everyone has a great night.
Lav

[spedteach]

Jubilant January ~ Week 1

Hey guys,
Got ready for my first day alone in weeks this morning. Sent my son and his GF off to Santa Fe, my HB went off to take his parents out to breakfast. I settled in bed with the Sunday paper, my laptop, plans for Lifetime movies and attempts at some new crocheting. I hear what sounds like the sprinkler system go on; then a popping sound. Get out of bed and find my closet flooding with water. Run downstairs and find water pouring out of the light fixture in one bedroom and pouring into a closet in another. Guess I don't have to say anymore. Balmy NM was only in the 20's when my pipes burst. The water my neighbor and I bailed and poured down my driveway froze before it hit the street. It took me an hour to find someone to turn off the water. May have to replace some flooring. Sorry, everyone sounds so up beat at the start of a new year. What an awful way to start 2011.

Someone else, please.

SD, good luck at work tomorrow. I loved your ugly sweater party theme. I'll pass on the diet Pepsi and banana though. I'll take one or the other but together!?! You are such a football nut.

Cyn, the first time you and your husband made dinner together, you're kidding? Right? Bet it's nippy even down your way.

John, that is one sweetie pie dog. I wash my kitties every day cause I see them rolling in the dirt all afternoon. They think I'm not looking. I'm curious about why you would want to align yourself with a Christian community, they are so notoriously anti-gay.

Dill, do you and your HB talk about your drinking? Does he drink? Good luck going back to work.

Lav, are you really giving up your doggies? Won't you be terribly lonely without them. Going back a couple of days, I used to love that 3 to 11 shift, loved putting people to bed. When I had kids it was the same thing, reading them a story, tucking them in, my favorite time of day.
When are your new grandbabies due?

Again Chill, happy anniversary.

LBH, take warning! It's supposed to be 12 tonight. The pipe that froze was the spicket on my deck, the pipe right inside the wall burst.

Can only imagine how much $ this clean up is going to cost. Boo hoo...

Night, night Pap, Soot, G., ReB, Rusties, et al

Hope tomorrow is a better day.

[spedteach]

Jubilant January ~ Week 1

Hey guys,
Got ready for my first day alone in weeks this morning. Sent my son and his GF off to Santa Fe, my HB went off to take his parents out to breakfast. I settled in bed with the Sunday paper, my laptop, plans for Lifetime movies and attempts at some new crocheting. I hear what sounds like the sprinkler system go on; then a popping sound. Get out of bed and find my closet flooding with water. Run downstairs and find water pouring out of the light fixture in one bedroom and pouring into a closet in another. Guess I don't have to say anymore. Balmy NM was only in the 20's when my pipes burst. The water my neighbor and I bailed and poured down my driveway froze before it hit the street. It took me an hour to find someone to turn off the water. May have to replace some flooring. Sorry, everyone sounds so up beat at the start of a new year. What an awful way to start 2011.

Someone else, please.

SD, good luck at work tomorrow. I loved your ugly sweater party theme. I'll pass on the diet Pepsi and banana though. I'll take one or the other but together!?! You are such a football nut.

Cyn, the first time you and your husband made dinner together, you're kidding? Right? Bet it's nippy even down your way.

John, that is one sweetie pie dog. I wash my kitties every day cause I see them rolling in the dirt all afternoon. They think I'm not looking. I'm curious about why you would want to align yourself with a Christian community, they are so notoriously anti-gay.

Dill, do you and your HB talk about your drinking? Does he drink? Good luck going back to work.

Lav, are you really giving up your doggies? Won't you be terribly lonely without them. Going back a couple of days, I used to love that 3 to 11 shift, loved putting people to bed. When I had kids it was the same thing, reading them a story, tucking them in, my favorite time of day.
When are your new grandbabies due?

Again Chill, happy anniversary.

LBH, take warning! It's supposed to be 12 tonight. The pipe that froze was the spicket on my deck, the pipe right inside the wall burst.

Can only imagine how much $ this clean up is going to cost. Boo hoo...

Night, night Pap, Soot, G., ReB, Rusties, et al

Hope tomorrow is a better day.

[Rusty]

Jubilant January ~ Week 1

Good Evening Jubilant Friends,

Just a quick check-in....it's been a heavenly AF day for me. Got a lot accomplished, watched a lot of football, wrote thank-you notes, and worked out for 2 hours. I am thrilled because I am making huge progress on my weight loss goals. 43 pounds to go.

SD-I watched the Packer game....whoo whoo....onto play the Eagles. GREAT game!

Sped-so sorry to hear about your flooding problems....especially since it is cold there now. Hope you get it fixed soon.

Cyn-I, too, am a workaholic. I own my own business and work out of my house, so if I REALLY want a true vacation, I have to go somewhere. The problem is....I travel so much that when I do have a little time off, I just want to stay home. I need to work on achieving balance, too. Good for you that you spent some time knitting and with your step-daughter. I still remember the surprise 40th bday party you had for her and how thrilled she was because she had never had a birthday party.:upset:

Star and Lav-yes, that is one of my goals this year is to strive for balance this year-work, exercise, fun, family, and volunteer. Ugh....I am not very good at multi-tasking some time.

John-thank you for asking when I leave for Spain. I leave on Saturday. Unfortunately, due to a change in my work schedule, I will be working 6 out of the 8 days I'll be there. Oh well, maybe next year. I loved the picture of your westie. I think my dog is part westie, too...he's so fun to sleep with, but he snores.

Ladybird-I loved your animal pics. What kind of dog is that? Your cat looks like the kitty in a lot of cards I see nowadays....very popular.

Well, I'm off to bed everyone! See you in the morning. It will be wonderful to wake up unhung and happy on a Monday morning.

[papmom3]

Jubilant January ~ Week 1

Sped-my heart goes out to you as I went through the exact same thing with my dad's condo about 10 years ago. The pipe had burst and the flooding happened for hours before the person in the unit next to him noticed anything (my dad was in FLA at the time) and only because the water was starting to flood her place. It was a disaster literally but, we all got through it. The insurance covered all the repairs and the mitigation company's costs for both units. I hope that is the case for you, that your homeowner's will cover all the costs. It was a royal PIA for sure but it was all fixable. I hope this story helps you in some way.
I'm sure John will address your church question but many UCC churches are very open and welcoming of all lifestyles. It wasn't always that way-my own church was a pretty rigid congregationalist type of church when I was growing up but is now a UCC church and recently has turned it's thinking around as a new generation takes over. An openly gay assistant pastor was hired a few years ago and I quite liked her sermons (even better than our reverend's-gasp!!). I think she really made the congregation look deep inside and I know for a few people it was very uncomfortable. I think she has moved on now and since I haven't been in a few years I don't know what is happening now.

Rusty-I'm so sorry you will now have to work during what was supposed to be a vacation in Spain? Do I have that right or was it always a working vacation? Congrats on the weight loss girl!! We can do this!! I'd say lets see who can shed those 40lbs the fastest but the new me understands that is not the healthy way to go and everything can't be a competition!!

Lav-that was some scary story!! I think I can speak for all of us when I say Thank God you came through that time OK and are with us now. Whew!!

Cyn-your soup making sounds really neat. I wish I liked soup more-it's so good for you! I do like it, but I have to talk myself into eating it. I guess I feel like I need a more robust lunch and I really don't!!

LBH-love the pics! I think it's a hoot the cat weighs more than your pup!! Is he a Yorkie?

Star-yes, Balance. The buzz word for this new year and one that is so important for us all to strive for. Too bad there are no months that begin with B!!

Speaking of Balance, I need to start getting to bed earlier. I don't know why I've fallen into the habit of staying up to 11 or 12 again.
Good nite all!!
:l

[paguy]

Jubilant January ~ Week 1

Balance - What a great topic and very timely for all of us. With the beginning of a new year, this is the time to frame everything in it's proper perspective and want to create that perfect balance between work, living a healthy lifestyle, and pampering ourselves! Let's keep one another on track for that perfect balance throughout the year - I'm in!

Sped - So, so sorry to hear of your water troubles. How dreadful that must have been and what a way to start 2011. Sending you positive thoughts to help you get through this.

Also, to follow-up on Papmom?s remarks about the United Church of Christ (UCC). The UCC supports very liberal views on women?s rights and gay rights and they also support same-gender marriage. So, based on the reading that I?ve done, those positions are what interested me to pursue attending their services. I?m still exploring ? not sure exactly where I?ll end up but I like what I?ve seen so far with the UCC.

Several of you have asked how do I keep my Westie so clean? I?m embarrassed to say that he only gets groomed once every 3 months. But, based on information that one of my Physical Therapists gave me, I started him on a new brand of dry food ? it?s called EVO. She (my PT) gives it to her dogs and commented on the wonders that it did for their coats. My Westie has been plagued by some really annoying dermatitis problems so I decided to give this new dog food a try and it really seems to be helping. He?s a handsome little devil, isn?t he?

Have any of you read books by Sandra Dallas? I am reading "Prayers for Sale" and I really enjoy her writing style - she's a good old fashioned story teller. This is the first book I've read of hers - I probably will be reading more.

It is nearly 11pm and I am still wide awake. Not sure why I am so wired tonight. I did have a cup of Starbucks coffee at 4pm ? that normally doesn?t bother me but I will definitely be counting the sheep or maybe some of Lav?s goats tonight. :H

Melatonin, here I come.

Sweet dreams folks?.

[ladybirdheart]

Jubilant January ~ Week 1

Lord Shelley, that is awful about your flood, you must have been frantic running around trying to get things turned off and cleaned up. You have my deep sympathy as that sort of stress in one?s ?nest? is very hard, I want a sanctuary that is somehow invulnerable even though I know it does not exist. I walled myself in tonight with yet another movie, this one a remarkably quirky documentary called ?The King of Kong, a Fistful of Quarters?, available on Netflix instant. The peculiar universe of world championship classic video gaming, it was nerdy and wonderful, some things really are stranger than fiction. Rusty and Pappy, my dog is indeed a Yorkshire Terrier with a homemade Ladybird kitchen hair chop. She and the cat adore one another and can play with abandon now that they have figured out what to do after our big shelter dog Teddy died last summer (he had been a sweet but stern referee). My thoughts are with everybody going back to work tomorrow and I too will aim for balance and making the next right choice. Lav, what a terrible fall, I am so glad you will never let yourself get depleted in that way again. We love you, Ladybird.

[sooty]

Jubilant January ~ Week 1

Morning JJs I'm in a terrific rush - will post again later

SD - I was looking at DVDs! That's why it said US only. Silly me! I'll look for wii games later - what a dur brain I am! I'm sure wii games will be the same everywhere. Another senior moment I'm afraid - they come more frequently these days.

LBH I loved the pet pics - beautiful!

Gotta go - have a good day gang, speak this evening
Sooty

[Stargazerlily]

Jubilant January ~ Week 1

Running late so just wanted to say hi.....

Will try to check in tonight.

Sending you all strength and hope.

[Lavande]

Jubilant January ~ Week 1

Good moring kids!

Nice & sunny today but chilly

Working my way thru a bit of work then meeting an old friend for lunch. We've been friends since high school - way back when!

Shelley, I hope there was not too much damage to your floors, etc. Your home owners insurance is likely to cover your costs. Don't let that incident throw you off balance.

John, goats are not quite as cute as sheep IMO......counting them would probably keep me awake :H

OK everyone, have a good Monday.
Lav

[Rusty]

Jubilant January ~ Week 1

Hi Everyone,

Just a quick check-in to say hello to all my friends here!

Lav-what a scary story about your fall...OMG you must have been so frightened. You are truly a survivor in more ways than one and I'm so glad you're with us today....and I bet your family would have been destroyed without you.

LBH-I love Yorkies-one of my friends takes hers in the car in one of those baby doll carriers.

Papmom-I am going to Barcelona for business but it was supposed to be work-3 days-vacation-4 days, and now it's work 6 days (working two 12-hour days during the week and vacation on the weekend. SIGH. Good to have work, though, right?

PA-I hope you post more Westie pictures. I've developed a love for lap dogs.

Star and Dill-I hope your first day back at school is not too depressing.

Shelley-I hope your place isn't too damaged and that your insurance will cover it. That happened to one of the condo owners in my association and their whole condo was a complete loss and their insurance didn't cover much of it at all.

Have a great AF Monday, everyone!

[rebirth]

Jubilant January ~ Week 1

Helllo folks.

Ohhh Rusty! You are off to Barcelona?? I was there last christmas. The place is heavenly! You MUST spare some time to look around as it would be such a shame not to see this fabulous city. Or have you been before?

Back to work tomorrow. Dreading it!