2008 Comes To An End

2008 was the most up and down year of my life. Here's the good stuff that happened this past year:

• Adopted Buddy
• My daughter graduated from high school
• Eric, Ariel , and I traveled through Europe and saw the most amazing cities in the world (London, Paris, Bern, Venice, Florence, and Brussels)
• Ariel and AJ both passed their driving tests and got their license
• Went on great motorcycle adventures with Eric
• Went to Big Head Todd & Johnny Lang concert
• Read "The Shack", "How Starbucks Saved My Life", & "King Henry IIIV Six Wives"
• Discovered Miro and the ability to watch great shows on the internet
• Learned the art of Mosaic
• Vacationed in Tahoe and enjoyed the last bit of summer including taking Buddy for his first swim
• Found meetup.com and way to meet new people
• Started my own meetup for bowling called "Monday Night Bowling Madness"
  
• Saw some wonderful movies (Frost/Nixon, Doubt, Milk)
• Lost weight and have kept up my workouts all through the year
• Discovered a great hiking trail for people and dogs "Quick Silver"
  

I am glad to see 2008 come to a close. I look forward to the future and hope that 2009 is a much better year.

Reason, Season or Lifetime...

I received an email today that was about relationships and in the email it talked about people who are in your life for a "reason", "season", or "lifetime". Below is an explanation of each:

Reason

When someone is in your life for a REASON, it is usually to meet a need you have expressed. They have come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you with guidance and support, to aid you physically, emotionally or spiritually.

They may seem like a Godsend and they are. They are there for the reason you need them to be.

Then, without any wrongdoing on your part or at an inconvenient time, this person will say or do something to bring the relationship to an end.

Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away. Sometimes they act up and force you to take a stand.

What we must realize is that our need has been met, our desire fulfilled, their work is done. The prayer you sent up has been answered and now it is time to move on.

Season

Some people come into your life for a SEASON, because your turn has come to share, grow or learn.

They bring you an experience of peace or make you laugh. They may teach you something you have never done. They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy.

Believe it. It is real. But only for a season.

Lifetime

LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons, things you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation.

I think it is very interesting to think about each of these and realize that each are gift and we should appreciate the people who come into our lives whether they are a reason, season, or lifetime presence.

Movies Movies Movies...

In the last week I have seen 2 REALLY great movies and there are so many MORE that are on my list of MUST SEES!

Last weekend I saw "Milk ". It was a VERY good movie! give it 4 1/2 STARS!!! Sean Penn was FABULOUS, he did a GREAT job at portraying his character. The film really did take you back in time. I think real footage was a nice touch to the story line of the movie.

This weekend I saw "Frost/Nixon". It was FABULOUS!!! I give it 5 STARS!!! I really enjoyed all of the actors performances and getting to see the infamous interview. Ron Howard did a spectacular job recreating history and taking the famous play to the BIG screen!

In the next weeks I plan on seeing the following:

• Doubt
• Gran Torino
• The Wrestler
• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
• Revolutionary Road
• The Reader

I am sure there are more but I just can't remember their names at the moment.

I Didn't Know...

I just read an article in the "Metro" about Nolan Bushnell. It was REALLY cool to find out that he invented the first video game back in the day "PONG" and was the founder of "ATARI"!

First off I loved, loved, loved the ATARI video games when I was kid. PONG was the very FIRST video game I ever played! It was a simple game but I really enjoyed playing a game on my own television! Then of course came along PAC MAN!!! I was hooked!

As I continued reading the article I find out he also was the brain child behind "Chuck E. Cheese"!!! He thought that this would be a good way to entertain by serving food and playing video games! He was right! I know this first hand because I worked at a "Chuck E. Cheese" long long time ago!

All this probably means nothing to you but I just had to share how cool it was to learn who was the master mind behind some of the things I enjoyed.

Makes Me Feel Like A Kid Again

Yesterday I went to Fry's Electronics with my honey Eric and found a bin of Duncan Imperial Yo-yos! I was mesmerized by the beautiful colors and I couldn't help but remember how much fun these eye catching toys were when I was kid! I loved yo-yos and always wanted to be able to do all of the tricks. Alas it was never in the cards for me to become a professional yo-yo performer.

Eric could tell I really wanted one so my honey bought me a beautiful fuschia Duncan Imperial Yo-yo so I could be a kid again! I took it for a spin today while I was walking around outside enjoying the beautiful fall day and it all started to come back to me. It was incredible how such a simple toy can bring so much joy and entertainment.

It got me thinking about this inexpensive, simplistic, and entertaining toy and how complicated toys have become and how kids today don't really have an appreciation for a toy that isn't a video game. It makes me sad to think that the toys I used to really enjoy as a kid are probably becoming obsolete.

So, if you have the opportunity I think everyone of us should introduce old toys to kids we know and hopefully they will have some GREAT childhood memories of a lifetime.

Today's Television...

I've been thinking more and more lately how television shows are just not what they used to be. I know, I know I sound like a crabby old lady! But it's true! There really isn't a whole lot of variety on t.v. anymore. I usually end up watching an old rerun of show that used to be good. I am tired of reality shows even though there are a few I still can't resist!

I think there are too many reality shows and they all seem to dish out the same crap show after show. It's all about the drama, the drinking, the fighting, and who's doing who! I miss the days of good shows like West Wing, That 70's Show, Malcom In the Middle etc.. (All of these shows are syndicated and I catch them here and there to get away from so-called "Reality".

I don't really believe they should call it "Reality" when it is actually "Scripted". I know they don't just capture a scene once and move on. They make the people on the show do it again and again to get just the right moment on film!

I think "Reality" shows for the most part are a waste of time! However, I have a few I still do catch when I can (Top Chef, Project Runway, and the Tim Gunn Show). Other than that I really try to stay away from the train wreck they call entertainment.

I really do hope one day that t.v. executives do find some good television they can broadcast so that we can actually enjoy some entertainment instead of think what the hell!?!

Do you enjoy television today? Can you remember the last time you really liked the show you were watching or was it just a vegging out time?

Enough for today!

Meetup.com

What a great way to meet people! This year I started looking for new ways to make friends and get out of the house. I was surfing Google for a bowling league and Meetup.com showed up in the search list so I took a look. It's a site that gives people a way to find something they are interested in and join a group of people that are too!

So, the first two groups I joined were the "Bay Area Adventurers" and "The Los Gatos Labrador Retriever" meetups. I went to a meetup for the Labradors and it was GREAT! It was a pool party for Labradors. I couldn't believe that Libby opened up her house and pool to 20 Labradors and their owners but it was GREAT! Buddy and I had a WONDERFUL time! It was Buddy's first time swimming and it was the perfect situation with lifeguards in the pool to help out the swimmers and the rest of us enjoying our dogs having a great time!

The Adventurers group had a bowling meetup which was lots of fun! I met some really nice people and got to do one of my favorite activities (Bowl)! It was all about meeting new people so the bowling part you just had to roll with it and not try to be competitive. I had a hard time with that because I am competitive when it comes to bowling. But I got over it :)

I have recently joined a "Scrabble", "Yoga", "Movie Night", and "Dining Around the World" meetups. I have only been able to go to the "Scrabble" meetup which has been really wonderful hanging out in a coffee shop talking and playing Scrabble. Mark and Diana have been fun to play with and the conversation has been enjoyable.

I look forward to my other new meetups and highly suggest you check it out if you are looking for new ways to have fun! You can check it out at Meetup.com!

Get out there and have some fun!

Buddy

Buddy the Elf is our Labrador Retriever! I saw him on Craigslist back in February and immediately fell in love. He is a yellow lab that now weighs 100 lbs. and he is a little over a year old! He keeps us very busy. He loves going for walks, playing fetch, chewing on big sticks and wood logs, and swimming!

For a puppy he is very well behaved. He doesn't tear up the furniture or anything that doesn't belong to him. However, he is always trying to get into bed during the night to snuggle and doesn't leave a whole lot a room for us humans!

I look forward to more adventures with Buddy like swimming, hiking, and maybe one day being able to hang out at a coffee shop with him completely relaxed.

Princess

About 6 years ago a wonderful orange tabby adopted our family and she has been here ever since. Her name is Princess and she is the best cat ever! She's adorable!

I think a cats life is pretty sweet. Laying around the house and hanging out and doing whatever they want and whenever they want. No bills, no house cleaning (except for the occasional self cleaning), eat whenever, sleep whenever, and oh yeah gets some cuddling action on their own terms.

She is the best cat ever!

Things I Want To Do...

I've been thinking about things I want to do and have decided that I should put them in writing to make sure I do them. Life seems to get in the way of things I want to accomplish so here goes my list of to dos in life!

• Lose more weight (I'm still on track but I need stick to my goal!)
• Travel
  
• Go back to Europe
• See Canada
• Experience Seattle
• See the Fall on the East Coast
• See the Cherry Blossoms in Washington D.C. in the Spring
• Experience the beaches of Hawaii
• Visit little towns all over the United States (Experience all the beautiful mountains, deserts, rivers, and lakes that I can)
• Skydiving (If Neeraj can do it so can I)
• Motorcycle roadtrips
  
• Parasailing
• Motorcycle safety class (So I can be the rider in case of an emergency)
• Experience great food from all over the world
• Create more mosaic art (Hopefully become very talented)
• Write a book
• Start a small business
• Live in Tahoe and become a local
• Become a hostess of parties in my home
• Get out and meet new people and make new friends
• Learn to indulge myself more often (Soaking in the tub, pedicures, buy something that's just for me, have a chocolate break and not share with anyone)
• Let my creative side come out
• Learn more about relationships, art, web, and hopefully about life
  

I'm sure there are more things that I want to do I just can't come up with anything else. Stay tuned and don't be shy let me know what your "To Do List" is made up of!

Hello...

So, here's my VERY first blog entry ever! I am jumping into the world of blogging with both feet! It's exciting and a bit nerve racking! I have been contemplating this for weeks and thought "What the heck? Give it a try!" I feel at this point in my life I have something to say and want others to hear me!

Just like the title says "Life Is Too Short - Live, Love, & Laugh!". I truly believe this and am doing my best to try new things and live life to the fullest. So, here I am!

I want to use this blog to talk about life, love, adventure, and anything else that might come to mind.