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.