Weekly Quip

In honor of my trip to San Francisco this week I thought I would share some photos I took the last time I was there. Hopefully you can click on the pix to see them larger. Blogger has not been cooperative today.


Sailboats in the bay. You can see the Bay Bridge in the background.


A skyline view of SF from Pier 39


Alcatraz Island


Golden Gate Bridge

Wrap Up

Did I wind up running this weekend? NOPE! I was a bum and slept in Saturday morning. It was a good thing since my foot has been hurting since last Wednesday and I needed the rest before the triathlon on Sunday. As you all read Friday night was a bust. The televangelist was Joel Osteen plus there was a Farm Show and Stars on Ice in town. ARG!! The triathlon went well. I thought I had done pretty well, but being the first heat of girls gets you picked off fairly quickly. I did take 6½ minutes off my time from last year, so it wasn't all bad. Did Tim win? Not really. He should have and would have if he hadn't been paying attention to his competition instead of me. I put the kick board in the water right before his last lap and then he completely ignored it and swam another lap because he saw the guy he was trying to beat turn and do another lap. WELL, Tim apparently is more deaf than his competition and the competition only swam one length instead of two. Oh Well, he can't blame me for it. Crab legs were great and so was the baby shower.

I did get my number in line in regards to the adoption........wait for it........#125! Yes, that's 125. Down from 144 at the end of 2007. 19 spaces and only 6 referrals for the year. WOW! That is a lot of people choosing to opt out of their Vietnam adoption or needing to put it on hold. Selfishly I hope they keep dropping for whatever reason so I can move up more quickly. On the compassionate side of things I feel bad for these families having to drop or postpone after making it as far as they had. Since the difference is 13 spaces that's 13 families ahead of me that have dropped meaning they started this process well before me and have been waiting longer than me. I don't think I could make that decision after 8+ months. I'm in it for the long haul. It may just kill me, but I don't think I can turn back now. I'll keep you updated.

I hope you all have a good week. I'm off to San Francisco this Thursday and I hope the weather is better than here.

It was a BUST

THERE ARE THREE POSTS TODAY

OK, so pole dancing was a bust tonight. I'm going to contact the KCMO Convention and Visitors Bureau to see when they have NOTHING big happening on another Friday night.

Was God sending us a message tonight? Pole dancing is wrong, be damned? YEA, I don't think so! I think HE just has a cruel sense of justice/humor or whatever you want to call it that our AWESOME evening of D, D & D was derailed by a televangelist. Who is this guy anyway? Who goes to church on TV? OK, I may not go to church on Sunday mornings, but I'm not glued to the TV watching Oster-whatever preach to make up for it. I really didn't know this guy was in town or that he had such a HUGE following that all roads leading to our night of D, D & D would be detoured, jammed, etc.

I digress....We WILL reschedule!!!!!!! At least Stacie, Jean, Emily, Anne and Gretchen managed to salvage the evening. I was too peeved to see straight and would have been horrible company to the WONDERFUL ladies that I'm sure are having a big time blast as I sit here drinking my heavily spiked Coke with slitted eyes. Is slitted even a word? Who cares! I'm too tired to care and enjoying every minute of MY long lost Captain.

Oh how I've missed him! The sweet spiced nature he has. What a smooth trip he makes down the esophagus to eat away at my liver. You ask..Is it worth it? HELL YES!!!! Did I mention how I've missed My Capt'N? It's been TOO long since we've shared each others company. My Capt'N is every bit what I remembered. Sometimes I wish that I WASN'T in my right mind the majority of the time and My Capt'N and I could hang all the time. Instead we have this secret love affair that is only acquainted a few times a year. I cherish these moments that Capt'N and I share and will look back on them fondly. Unless of course, he comes back on me in the morning. Then I may swear I will banish him FOREVER. Oh My Captain, How will I live without you? Without the need for a liver transplant, that's how!

DISCLAIMER: I'm feeling the effects of My Capt'N (rapidly I might add. yes, I ate) and I'm running on 3 and a half hours of sleep. Damn the arthritic knee (my self diagnosis) and Tim's NEED to hog a queen size bed! Maybe My Capt'N will put me in a semi-coma (doubtful since I've only had 2) and I'll be able to sleep tonight. Ya know, sometimes it sucks being SEMI healthy/health conscience, but I know when I wake up tomorrow NOT feeling like my head is going to explode or that I may toss my chicken wrap and chips into "The Porcelain God" I'll be thankful. BTW, Tim says I'm drunk. YEA, I don't think so.

Friday

For lack of a better post name. I'm so boring. Maybe just brain dead from the week and thankful that it is FINALLY Friday. Not that the weekend is going to be any better. Jam packed and fun filled that's for sure.

Oh Yes, it's Ladies Night and the feeling's right, oh yes, it's ladies night, Oh what a night

That's right...be jealous...it's ladies night tonight and we're in for dancing (pole that is), drinking and debauchery. Oh what a night!!!!

Girls, ya'll got one, A night that's special everywhere, from NY to Hollywood, It's ladies night and girl the feeling's good. Oh yes, it's ladies night and the feeling's right, oh yes, it's ladies night, oh what a night. ~ Kool and the Gang

Hopefully I will be able to wake up Saturday morning and run the 10 miles I'm scheduled to do. If I miss it I won't be too upset. That'll just mean more free time for me to relax before Sunday.

Sunday morning Tim and I will be participating in an indoor triathlon. He's looking to win and I'm just looking to finish better than I did last year. It's kind of a long day since they run the race in heats of six and every heat has practically gone before they give out awards. I probably won't be staying for that since I'm going to a baby shower that afternoon as well as to my parents house for a crab fry. YUMMY YUM YUM!!! Yes, a jam packed Sunday.

Who said rest is necessary? I think I heard that you get enough of it when you're dead, so why worry about it now.

Week update.........Nothing too exciting. Really only two things to talk about that don't normally go on. 1) The movie 'Spirit of the Marathon' was good last night. I left there wanting to sign up for the Chicago Marathon this year knowing full well that I couldn't. I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE that marathon. If you EVER decide you want to run a marathon that is the one to do. 2) I forgot to mention the new level of trail running I experienced this week. I ran a little over 3 miles, in the woods, in the dark on a trail. I had a headlamp to guide my way which was a little weird, but cool at the same time. The neatest/scariest part was hearing rustling, turning my head to see MANY beady green eyes staring back at me. Yes, the deer were not impressed with Tracy, her dog, Lucy, and me running on their turf. I will concede that the woods at night should/do belong to the deer however, they are fair game during the day. I was worried that I would wind up on 'Animals Attack' or some other funky home video show, but that would mean some weirdo was lurking in the woods, at night with a video camera. UGH! that's just too freaky to think about.

Have a great weekend.

8 months and STILL counting

There was an adoption update yesterday and there were NO new referrals. : ( I tried to ask for my number in line, but the St. Louis office was closed due to the ice storm and Nikki (KC Office) said that Nicky (St. Louis Office) didn't attach the list. I'm going to have to wait until Monday to find out. On the positive side, this adorable little girl who has been on the waiting child list for over a year was adopted. She is SO unbelievably cute and if I thought I could handle HIV+ and Hepatitis-C+ I would have asked for her off the bat. I'm SO glad that she found her forever family. The last line of the update stated "We hope to receive more referrals in the near future!!!!" I don't know about you, but it doesn't sound too encouraging to me.

My initial referral time was 8-10 months. It's hard to believe that one year ago 8-10 months was the goal. I could of have been that much closer to a referral right now. 8 months down 10-16 to go. WOW! Does that seem like a long time? When I thought it out in my head it didn't seem too bad, but when I typed it out. YIKES! I think the #1 family on the list for a boy/either has been waiting 18 months. I think this counts as SERIOUS labor pains. What do you think?

Winter Storm Warning

Not so bad in my opinion. The weather people LOVE to make people worry about what's to come and then they all freak out when the get behind the wheel of their fiberglass box with wheels. I swear THOSE kind of people need to stay home on days like this. I'm not driving like a bat of hell or anything however, I fail to see the need to drive 25mph when the roads really aren't that bad. Oh yes, there are wrecks, but those, I'm convinced, are caused by THOSE people who DO drive like a bat out of hell and think because they have 4 wheel drive their boxes with wheels couldn't possibly run off the road. HELLO!!! I drive a gas guzzler with 4 wheel drive and I KNOW I can still wind up in the ditch if I hit a patch of ice. Put me in the snow and I'm good to go. Should there be a happy medium? One could only hope. Then again, I'm one of THOSE people who think EVERYONE should get the hell out of MY way. I want to get where I'm going without interruption. LOL!

I digress......The real reason for this post is to let you know (like you really care) that I'm going to see Spirit of the Marathon tonight. I'm really looking forward to it. Friends who have already seen it say it is truly inspiring. I may need to take some Kleenex. I'll let you know if I actually had to break it out. : ) If it ever shows again I hope you all will go see it. If not, it should come out on DVD and you can rent it.

Weekly Quip

This has been my week, so far. ARG!

Tidbits

TIDBIT # 1 - It occurred to me the other day that I didn't post about Valentine's Day. Tim and I went to spin class that night. Yep, that was it. He had just gotten back from St. Louis, so we had planned to do nothing except spin. Saturday night however, he cooked a really nice dinner. Steak, mashed 'tators, asparagus, shrimp, wine and a chocolate. It was very good and I was proud of him for being able to put it all together since his idea of a meal is a piece of meat. That's it. A piece of meat. He also got me some Ghiradelli chocolates (which he'll wind up eating) and a Wallet Pix. The wallet pix is really cool. I uploaded some pictures already and carry it in my purse. (You can get them at Bed, Bath and Beyond as well) I got him some PJ's. My mom got him a pair of "lounge pants," as he calls them, and a matching shirt a few years back for Christmas and he really liked them, so I found some at Target and bought his another set. He's such an old man. LOL! He does actually sleep in them as well as wear them around just to be comfy.

TIDBIT # 2 - There were 3 referrals last week. All infants. One boy and two girls aged 3, 2 and 6 months respectively. Congrats to those families who should travel in the next 4-6 months to pick up their kiddos. Hopefully this week will bring an equal number of referrals. The Tet holiday has been over for a week now, so things should get moving. Hopefully.

TIDBIT # 3 - Ran on a new trail this past Saturday. The people my friend Tracy and I met there were super nice and the trails were scenic. There is this one section where old stuff has gone to die. We saw an old lawn mower and two cars. The cars had trees growing up through them. There was also this really large tree that had fallen over and pulled the roots out with it. The roots had grown through rock, so the roots are still stuck in the rocks and combined they make this cool little wall. It was really neat. No wildlife on this run however.

TIDBIT # 4 - On Sunday the 10th I went to a local Vietnamese restaurant, Cafe Song, for the Tet holiday. The event was put on by my agency and several families who have adopted or who are in the process were there. The food was really good. I was surprised that I liked all of it. I'm pretty picky when it comes to food. I spent a little over an hour there playing with Kennison and helping her mommy & daddy out since baby Colton was just born and they need to eat and hold him. Kennison will be two this month sometime and she's an ABSOLUTE DOLL! Tim met her at the summer picnic and loved her as well.

Hope you all are having a great week.

DISCLAIMER: Sorry for any misspellings. Blogger doesn't seem to want to spell check for me these days. Maybe it's just this computer. It hates me most of the time.

Trail Race

THERE ARE TWO POSTS TODAY

OK, so I ran my first trail race EVER this past Saturday. 10 miles, 1 loop, 5000' elevation change average. Can we say, OUCH!!!? How about "HOLY CRAP!!!!? I don't really think anyone could have prepared me for this race. It was brutal. The uphills were practically straight up and the dowhills weren't much better. Thankfully most of the uphills were still relatively frozen however, the downhills were ALL mud. It was a mud run. My legs are scratched because I ran parallel to the trail (in some areas) in the trees and brush. I WAS NOT going to be covered in mud or go slip sliding away. I saw far too many people fall. Mind you, it's not just mud they are falling into. Its rocks, tree roots, horse pucky and wildlife excretes. Wildlife I didn't see, but with 300ish runners I'm sure they all scattered to the far ends of the woods. I twisted my right ankle 5 times over the 10 miles and it still hurts today. I didn't finish in the time I wanted to, but I finished and I'll be that much more prepared for my trail marathon in April.

Here are a few photos from the race.....

These are a few of the MANY hills. Yes, you had to hurdle the downed trees.
This gives you an idea of how muddy it was. If you click on the picture of the runner you may be able to see more detail. He's covered in mud. He must have slid down a hill face first. His backside looked the same.

Weekly Quip

So sweet.

They LOVE each other.

HAPPY VALENTINE's DAY

(a day early)

TET: Vietnamese New Year

Town Hall - Ho Chi Minh City

CHUC MUNG NAM MOI (Happy New Year)

Tet, which means the first morning of the first day of the new year, is the Vietnamese New Year. The celebration lasts for 7 days. Like the Chinese, the Lunar New Year is one of the most celebrated holidays.

Preparation for Tet starts weeks before New Year's Day. Homes are cleaned to get rid of bad fortune associated with the old year. Families paint their homes to give it a new look. Everyone gets new clothes and new shoes. Pay your debts and resolve differences between family and friends.

A special ceremony called Le Tru Tich is held at the mid-night hour (Giao Thua) on New Year's Eve. The ritual involves firecrackers and gongs and other festive items that make loud noises to usher out the old and welcome the new.

Like the Chinese, Vietnamese people are very careful about what they do on New Year's Day. The events on New Year's Day determine your luck for the rest of the year. Therefore, everything and everyone you are in touch with on New Year's Day should symbolize good fortune. Don't visit people who are in mourning because they are associated with death. Children should not fight or cry on New Year's Day. Homes are decorated with Hoa Mai, a yellow blossom that represents spring.

Family members exchange gifts and pay homage to the Kitchen God. They also visit local temples to pray for prosperity and good health.

During Tet, Vietnamese families plant a New Year's tree called Cay Neu in front of their homes. A bamboo pole is often used as a Cay Neu. All the leaves are removed from the tree so that it can be wrapped or decorated by good luck red paper. Legends have it that the red color scares off evil spirits. On the seventh (the last) day of Tet, the Cay Neu is taken down. This is the last ritual of the New Year celebration.

Huc Bridge, Hoan Kiem Lake - Hanoi

The Year of the Rat

A Rat year prophesies a year of chaos. Rat people are charming and attractvie to the opposite sex, although they have a fear of light and noise. Rat people are active and dynamic, but can be fussy about little things. Rats can have a positive side because if there are rats, it is a sign that there is grain in the storage bins, so rats can represent a bountiful harvest. Because it is a nocturnal animal and can be heard scurrying about at midnight, the period of time between 11pm and 1am is called the rat hour. Years of the Rat: 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008.

Weekly Quip

Happy Ash Wednesday.

I hope you didn't celebrate too hard on Fat Tuesday like Grandpa did.

Mardi Gras - What a fun time!!

I'm hoping he gives up flashing for Lent.

Happy Super Fat Tuesday

For those that get to vote today, good luck and have fun. Happy Super Tuesday.

For those of you just looking for a reason to party. Happy Fat Tuesday.

Great Night

WAY TO GO GIANTS !!!!!

I've always cheered for he Giants when they were in a Super Bowl and I'm glad they didn't disappoint. I'm SO glad that the Pats got knocked off their high horse. I really didn't want to hear anymore about their "perfect" season. OOPS! Too bad. Not so perfect now. Way to go MVP Eli!

In Review

Not much went on this weekend. Saturday morning my friend Tracy and I drove to our trail run location (a new one) and NO ONE was there, so we drove to the regular location and ran on our own. It was a good time as usual. Tim and I watched Pirates of the Carribbean - At World's End Saturday night. Good movie. Tim thought you really had to pay attention and there were parts where I thought the same, but for the most part I followed everything. Is there going to be another? It just seems like there needs to be.

We actually got our swim workouts in on Sunday morning. FINALLY. We had hail around the metro that morning as well, but it was hit or miss in some areas. I also had a Super Bowl Party at my parents house and invited a few friends as well as some of their friends.

This coming week will be much of the same. Spinning unless we get a lot of snow Tue (I doubt it), running, swimming and a race on Saturday. OOPS, need to sign up for that one.

My boring life!!! LOL!!!

I think I will stop posting about adoption for a bit because 1) there is NOTHING going on (no referrals last week) 2) it only stresses me out 3) there won't be anything going on for the next week due to Tet. SO, you're stuck with the mundane or nothing. ; )