Lost in a SWAMP

A friend (Kurt) and I went Geocaching yesterday in a beautiful park here in Virginia.
Seashore State Park.

We found 8 or so caches back in the woods and all over the park - it was a perfect day.

Well, rather than go BACK to the parking area to begin a particular search (which is what the instructions told us to do) we started trecking in the park FROM one of the other caches.

We got deeper and deeper into the forest/swamp area and couldn't actually GET to the cache we were searching for because we were blocked by the swamp at every turn.
We walk on and on and things only got worse - and the sun was setting soon!

We decided to attempt to get back to a nearby road (we could hear the cars going by off in the distance)... but were blocked by swamp in that direction too.
Luckily we had our GPS units and followed the 'track-back' feature to get most of the way back - but found a fallen tree which we used as a bridge to make the final crossing to higher ground!

It was fun and we didn't even have to get our shoes wet - but it was certainly a better option than spending the night in the woods.

Ain't Geocahing fun?!
Check it out for yourself at www.geocaching.com!

Road Apples

Can't forget one of the most memorable times of my Christmas trip to Laurel Maryland Race Track.
I GOT TO SHOVEL HORSE SH*T!!!

You ever pee like a race-horse?
Well - try crapping like one sometime... I swear these race horses are all muscle so when they let the apples roll - they shoot out like bullets!

I had the wonderful opportunity to shovel a GIANT wheel barrel full of it and dump it in what all the stable hands call the SH*T SHED.

Piles and piles and piles of it. It was a veritable walk in crap house!
Fun was had by all!

Merry Christmas!!!

What a great Christmas!
I was invited to spend the Holiday in Maryland with a friend.
We spent Christmas Day at a nearby homeless shelter.
We cooked and served an amazingly HUGE Christmas meal for all who showed up.
Some of the guys that came over LIVED under a nearby BRIDGE!

It was a real eye-opener!
We are sooooo blessed and don't even live like it most of the time.

I also had the oportunity to go to the Laurel Racetrack - at 4AM.
We fed and watered the incredible race horses that my friend Lisa is in charge of.
They also need to be walked/galloped every single day so their muscles stay 'tuned'.
There were huge and solid - pent up energy like you wouldn't believe!

Anyway, here is a picture of my friend Lisa with one of the horses.

A Garage with room for a CAR?!

I know women wouldn't understand - It's a guy thing.
I actually pulled my car INTO my garage to change the oil!
It was great.
I haven't been able to do that for 10 years!
We typically cram our garages so full of STUFF that nothing else fits - let alone a CAR!
So there I was - IN THE GARAGE - changing the oil.

Goodness it felt great!
If all goes well - I will be disciplined and KEEP the garage that way!
We'll see!

Goodies

I never expected a small package on my porch this morning.
I never expected to cry when I opened it either.

The package was from my aunt and uncle in Louisiana.
They know all I am going thru with my divorce and they must also know how tough it is during the Holidays.
When I opened the box and saw all the goodies cooked for me, I was overcome with a deep sense of love and care.
These feelings are far in between and it just hit me.
So there I was holding a little box of home-made cookies, brownies, cupcakes, and ginger bread... crying.
It was a good kind of cry and I really felt loved.
Thank you soooooooo very much Dianne and Ken.
You are wonderful.
Mike
I love you.
You don't even know how much this helped.

Wheelchairs

I was returning to work from running errands at lunch and walked up behind a guy in a wheelchair.
He got to the front entrance door just before I did. With only slight difficulty, he opened the door for ME to go thru.

My brain suggested to my mouth to say "Oh no.. let me get it for you." But my heart quickly intervened and told my brain and my mouth to shut up and just let the guy open the door.

I mean, he probably gets only a few chances each year to do that - so I let him.
Not out of pity or some stupid self-righteous attitude... but simply respect.. just as I would for anyone else.

I said "Thank you very much." and walked on thru.
I caught the next door for him.

It all works out in the end.

Sometimes we just need to let people be people.

Joy to the World

Where do we find our Joy?
What does it take to bring us Joy?
Just what is contentment?

A friend of mine works in an orphanage in Russia.
It's cold there right now - very cold.
As Christmas draws neigh, He witnessed something pretty cool and I share it here:

He was watching a little boy pull a beaten-up empty box on a piece of twine behind him. For a second, he thought "how sad", but then he saw the true JOY on the boy's face as he ran and pulled that box bumping behind him. He said it was an incredible sight.

Some enjoy the beautiful wrapped packages, some the thoughtful gift inside, some the cardboard box.

Just attach a short piece of twine and pull.

Tacos

I cooked WAY too much last night.
I came home, made a quick decision of what to have for dinner and started cookin'.
TACOS!
One of my most favorite meals.
Well, I started frying the hamburger meat, tossed in the special seasonings.
Got the Refried Beans crankin'.
Put the Spanish Rice on to boil.
Cut up my misc - Cheese, Lettuce, Onions.
Got Guacamole.
Salsa.
And pulled out the shells...

I was so busy having fun cooking - I cooked nearly double what I could possibly eat.
I got on the phone with my sister and invited here over (she couldn't make it since she lives in Idaho), but it was a kind gesture.

I drank a cold beer and watched some DEAL/NO DEAL and enjoyed eating HALF of my meal.
Fun was had by all.
I need to fiture out how to cook for ONE!
:)

Christmas Lights

Well.. most of my lights are up.
I got up on a ladder last night and hung lights all across the front of the house including around the porch.
I underestimated how far the 'icicle' light strings would go and didn't have enough to finish the dormers (I'll do that tomorrow).

The wind started howling so I got off the roof before I fell off.
:)
I'm simply having a wonderful Christmast time!

Dinner is Served

I did it.
I cooked my first dinner in my new home.
Eating out and even a quick meal is NOTHING like pulling a Rachel Rea 30-minute meal!
I timed myself and did it exactly in 30 minutes - it was great.

The picture may be a little blurry, but what you are seeing is:

Lemon Spice Chicken
Sauteed Green Beans in Garlic and Butter
Onion Bun
Garden Salad with fresh chopped Scallions
Bass Ale

What a great dinner.

Tapas Style

There are more and more of these "Tapas-Style" restaurants cropping up - it's the newest craze in the downtown night bar/bistro scenes.

If you never have been - the basics is this: small individual portions of a meal - served (an paid for) separately. Eat your bread, them perhaps a vegetable, or maybe you jump straight to a meat dish - or better yet - sushi. Each plate is decorated (garnished) as if it where all you were going to eat.

Pretty fun - Oh, and there is usually a better beer selection than normal restaurants. Dark Imports are my particular poison.

All that to say this.. Kurt, Wanda and I had a great dinner at Empire Little Bar Bistro in Norfolk VA last night. Kurt paid and said "Merry Christmas". We owe him one!

Thanks Kurt.

Frosty Day

Got up this morining, had my espresso and looked out the window..

FROST

I even had to scrape my car windows!

Virginia is usually nice and warm even on Christmas. But it looks like winter is trying its best to arrive here on the East coast. One year it was 74 on Christmas Day! So you never know what is going to happen from year to year.

Cold has 2 settings (according to me):
GIRL COLD and BOY COLD
Whenever someone says "Dude, it's cold outside."
I alsways ask... "Boy cold or Girl cold?"
And then I just wait for their answer...

I love it.

First Night

Well... I spent my first night in my own home.
This was the first time I've ever spent a night in my own home that only I owned.
I had never purchased a place of my own before I went into the Navy - and got married from there. So now that I am divorced, (you see where this is going) I spent my first night in my own home.. alone.

IT STINKS!

Yet.. There are levels to stink you know:
(being alone stinks - starting over from scratch only stinks half way - uncertainty is fairly neutral smelling, but looking ahead to new adventures smells pretty good.)

My sister reminded me of a great song by Rufus Wainwright - "One Man Guy". I'm a one man guy - and that guy is ME.

I told her (my sister) about an incredible woman I recently met - and my sister suggested I play Rufus' other song - "Hallelujah"!

Sisters are great - they know just how to lift you up when you are down.