Champs

What a long day. Not to be a downer...but I'm sure glad it's over.

Today Katie had a soccer seating tournament. She played four- 20 minute games. This tournament is held to decide which level her team will play during the season.
Katie's team...The Socca Sistas (yes, you heard it right) ranked highest in the league.
Katie is a goalie, and a good one!
But,
I wasn't there to see her defend the goal; denying every attempt the other team made. She loves soccer. She hates swim team. Therefore, it wasn't a difficult choice for her to make.

Swim team championships?? or Soccer Seating tournament??
Two events...same day.

No-brainer.

Megan, however, loves both. She is a strong swimmer and a terrific soccer player. There were several reasons why I knew I'd be taking her to swim champs...

First- I'm on the swim team board.
Second- Swim team (especially the champ meets) are way more parent involved.
Last- Megan is my disappearing child. Meaning...I've lost her many times and I'm paranoid to let her go anywhere without Michael or Me.

That said...I can tell you that it was a long hot day.
72 events, 102 degrees, roughly a thousand people crowded around a small 8 lane pool...well you get the idea.

We arrived at 7:15am (late) and got home at 5:30pm (I left early). Megan swam in 4 events...
100 m IM (individual medley) her favorite
25 m freestyle
25 m backstroke
25 m breaststroke

I thought she did great! Even though the ribbons said 14th & 19th place. I'm not sure what place she got on the IM or breast. We left to soon.
It doesn't really matter the place anyway, as long as you can improve your time.

Like I said...it was a long day and I thought about Michael a lot, sitting at home. He wouldn't have been able to manage the heat.
At least a hundred blue & white pop up tents struggled to shade the green grass hills that surrounded the pool. The highlight of my day was seeing Megan's beautiful face light up when she finished her IM. She thought she had it in the bag...I'm still trying to explain the concept of "heats" to her.
Another highlight was getting to dive in the water myself when it was break time. 10 minutes set aside for everyone who is NOT a swim team member. So that was mostly adults. We get to jump in and cool off. NICE!!

You want to know what Michael did while I was gone?
He cleaned the house.

The kitchen was spotless.
Not a pillow out of place in the living room.
And the bed was made while the floor was set free of laundry clutter.

What a great guy...I just wish he would be careful...to much work right now is not good for him.

Getting Better

He's smiling as best he can in this picture. Now that the swelling has gone down, mostly, his face is tender.

Yesterday he did all his own meds and I worked on remodeling Megan's bedroom. I love having him around the house. It's nice to have him near me. Though I have to keep yelling at him, "go lay down and rest! You shouldn't be walking around so much mister."

Thankfully the first week is behind us. It should only get better from here. Still, we won't know until the bone heals if all this trauma was worth it. Our orthodontist reminded me that this surgery was not a sure thing in curing Michael's chronic headaches. "It may not work."

It HAS to work! Surgery was our last option.

I am optimistic that it will work. Why do doctors do that? They don't want you to get your hopes up in an effort to keep you thinking realistically, but what they are REALLY doing is stunting your ability to get well. That small strand of hope is crucial. We have to believe that this will work. How can doubt be good? I think any credible doctor would acknowlegde the power of the mind.

Almost a week

Now this picture looks bad, but trust me- it's the best one. To update his progress, Michael is doing well. The swelling and that numb sensation like you get after having a cavity filled, are almost history. I have not ventured out to the grocery store yet...or any store. I don't like to leave him alone for any length of time. But our cupboard is getting low and poor Michael is getting tired of his menu. Fresh carrot/ apple juice (I have a juicer), V8 juice, ensure, boost, smoothies, beef & chicken broth. That's about it...oh yeah, I almost forgot his favorite...gatorade. All of which is slowly pushed into his mouth by a syringe. I don't mind doing this and he has done it a few times himself.

Breathing is easier, but congestion is still a problem, though not at night which is becoming somewhat of a routine. He showers, takes meds and then I read to him. I started reading Harry Potter and the half blood prince outloud while we were in ICU. Even though I stumble over my words from time to time, he says the sound of my voice is soothing.

Despite my pre-op effort to understand what this surgery would involve, I underestimated it. For some reason, I had a far different image in my minds eye. I did expect swelling, blood & pain...just not so much of it.
The idea that years worth of migraine headaches would immediately vanish the moment he opened his eyes, now seems foolish.
I can't imagine what it would have been like if the surgery had NOT gone well. Therefore, I count my blessings. I am thankful that I have the strength and ability to help him.

3 days

It has only been 3 days since the surgery...if you took those three days and thought of them as a single rubber band, stretching it out with both hands, knowing that at any second the pressure will cause it to snap across the room until a surface made of wood and drywall abruptly ends its climactic journey and finally dropping the worn out elastic circular shard to the floor...you would know where I am.

It only took a second, yet so much happened.

I'm tired of telling everyone how MB is. However I do appreciate the concern. Michael is a wonderful guy. I'm not surprised by the response from our friends, his co-workers and the community in general. And you, my Wavelength readers, of course!

As I've already reported, the surgery was a great success. It has been the recovery that I underestimated. But fortunately a bit of relief came flooding over me as soon as we left the doctor's office yesterday afternoon.

The wires came off. Did you hear me?? Read it again...

THE WIRES CAME OFF!!! He never does that. In most cases, he leaves your mouth wired shut for a week...but since Michaels surgery went so well, he was able to cut the wires at 48 hours. You have no idea what a relief this is! The doctor also did some yucky stuff to MB's nose, which thankfully, allowed some air to pass through. His mouth is still closed... tiny rubber bands will continue to hold it together for another 8 weeks at least.

There is one thing that happened, that the doctor didn't bother to mention until we were all looking at the x-ray together. He dropped a screw. During the surgery the wayward screw came to rest in the recesses of his nasal cavity.
"It's nothing to worry about. A blood clot is holding it there and scar tissue will form around it, but it won't hurt anything...I wouldn't be concerned if this were my wife's x-ray."
(I personally wonder if that's the reason MB's right eye is watery and slowly releasing small globs of old blood in the corner near the nose). Hmm? Went well, did it?

Tomorrow Dr. Salamassy leaves for Montana. He's taking his family on vacation to a dude ranch. Yesterday was his son's 13th birthday that he would have forgotten had it not been for the subtle reminder from his wife..."Honey, aren't you forgetting something?"

Now, you might be thinking that this doctor sounds like a jerk...NO WAY. He's actually very nice and funny. He is also an extremely talented surgeon. Really, who has the guts to do reconstructive surgery on his own wife after a horse stepped on her face? He has. 3 times.

Last night I slept and Michael breathed. Oh the little things in life we take for granted!
Even though his nose is getting plugged again...I know we will get through this. I've always known, never doubted...because God is my strength. My fortress when I'm weak. And in my weakness He is strong.

Stupid Horoscope

Look how wrong it is today!!

"Sometimes it's important to focus. But today, focus isn't quite as necessary."

Yeah right. *rolling eyes* I'd say today is the MOST important day for me to focus!

1 step forward, 2 steps back

*Warning* This will be a LONG post.

I have so much to tell you.

First- Yesterday morning I used my cell phone to tell you ALL about what happened after the surgery and the how the night in ICU went. When I was finished I hit the "end" button instead of #. Opps. That means my second audio post was gone forever and I was too tired to repeat it.

Here's the gist of it... Thursday Morning.
6:30 am and the cafeteria was closed again. So I went to LaBou to get a soy mocha...easy on the cocoa. I knew I was going to need a good heavy dose of caffeine to get through this day. Michael woke up several times (he's on steroids so this was no surprise).

Wait a minute- I need to back up a bit don't I? Okay...4:15 on Wednesday afternoon, Dr. Salamassy strolls into the waiting room with a big smile on his face. "It couldn't have gone better!"
I thought he said...Could of gone better.
Boy was I relieved when he corrected me.

I had to wait another hour before I could see him. I used that time to find the gift shop and buy him 2 pretty blue carnation flowers. Little did I know MB was going to taken to ICU. Flowers are not usually allowed in there (or visitors), but they bent the rules quite a bit for me.
When I saw him, I thought...he is so out of it! I bet he won't remember this. He had ice packs on his face, wires stuck to his body and an oxygen mask that covered his mouth and nose...including a large trumpet tube sticking out of the right side nostril. I felt so bad for him. I wished I could spare him all this pain and discomfort.

We weren't in that room very long. Soon it was time to be taken to ICU. I was told to wait in another room while they got him settled. I was surprised to see Dr. Ulrich (Michael's orthodontist) waiting in the room as well. He gave me a card to give to MB and said his whole office was thinking about him. Isn't that nice! We waited and talked about things for about 40 minutes. Then we came in I could tell that Dr. Ulrich felt uncomfortable. He patted MB's shoulder and said he just wanted to come by and see how he was doing. Then he left.

I immediately started checking the place out. It was a circular room with the nurses station in the middle. 2 beds were placed on either side with curtains that could be drawn for privacy. There were 3 doors that led to more private rooms, even though the doors remained open much of the time.

I stayed by his side, hold his hand and helping the nurses. At 7, I decided it would be a good idea if I tried to eat something. The cafeteria was closed. LaBou was closed. My only other option (because I wasn't thinking clear enough to try the grocery store) was fast food.
McDonalds?- NO WAY!
KFC?- No, to much milk and grease.
Subway?- Not another huge loaf of bread!
That left Carl's Jr. Yuck. A burger and fries...oh joy. I would have rather gone without, but my stomach was hurting. I needed something.

The night didn't allow for much rest. The lights stay on, MB's not tired (those damn steroids!) and by the looks of that chair...forget it!!

At about 3:30 am I found a position that most people couldn't do. Because I am small, I knew I could manage it. I curled up my legs and slept sideways on the chair with my head resting on 2 pillows that I placed on a portable handicap toilet chair. Not very comfortable, but at least it allowed me nearly 2 hours of glorious, much needed rest.

Okay- that puts us back to Thursday morning at LaBou.
I ordered a soy mocha and searched for something else breakfast like that didn't have cheese or milk. Nothing.
Well, I do kind of like those sausage biscuit things at McDonalds...I couldn't believe it was 6:30 AM and I was going through the drive thru at McDonalds! Why didn't I plan better!! Why didn't I remember the damn grocery store?? Fruit Kathy...remember? FRUIT!! They have that at grocery stores, duh!

Dr. Salamassy came by to check on his patient around 9am.

Dr.-Where was the surgery?
me- Uhm, (pointing above my lip on both sides of my face)...here?
Dr.- Yeah, so why are there ice packs on his ears?
me- That's where the nurses put 'em.
Dr.- Sometimes you know more than the nurses.

Great! I know more than the nurses! MB sure is in trouble.

Three things MB had to do before he could be released:
1. Take in something other than water and keep it down.
2. Get up and walk around.
3. Pee without the catheter.

#1 was no problem. Apple juice.
#2 & 3 were harder. He was dizzy and blood drained from his nose & mouth when he tried to stand up. But by noon, he'd done it. Dr. Salamassy said we could be released at 1:00 when he faxed over the release papers.
1:00 came and went. 2:00...3:00...4:00...
Finally at 4:30, and several phones calls to his office by the nurses, the fax came in and the IV was taken out. At 5:00 MB was in the wheel chair and we were going home. Thank goodness. If only things have been going better here at home.

Last night was rough. I got him all set up in bed...45 degree angle, meds all done, breathing good. But at 1 am I woke up to find Michael with his head hanging over in the sink, coughing and trying to spit. His nose was clogged and he couldn't breath. Shit!

I tried not to panic, but it's not my nature to stay calm. I get mad when I start to panic.
Why didn't you wake me up?
What am I suppose to do now?
Why am I asking you, you can't talk!

I knew I shouldn't...but I did. I went into the kitchen and grabbed the nasal spray. He's gotta breath!
Once I had him breathing good again (good just means he can) I called the doctor.
It was 2 am when Dr. Salamassy's voice asked what was happening. I told him how the congestion and coughing was really making me nervous.
He reminded me that keeping Michael's blood pressure down was VERY important. If the pressure goes up, so does his swelling which means he doesn't breath. ICE, ICE and 45 DEGREE ANGLE. If you have to use the nasal spray again, just do one side- NOT both.
Okay- I got it. But he's freaking me out and if he keeps this up, I'm takin him right back to the hospital! Sorry I woke you up.
"It's okay- important call. See you tomorrow, Kathy."

It's after 11am now on Friday and I've managed to keep him alive so far without taking him back in. Breathing is still our main concern...our main challenge.
Dr. appt is at 3:00.

Ps. 89:9

You rule the raging of the sea;
When its waves rise,
You still them.

Ps. 89:9

Sometimes I fear the waves will sweep over me, Lord. Thank You for the assurance that You are in Control. I put my trust in You. Amen.

I have a daily calendar with Bible verses and a prayer to go along with it. This is what I read this morning. How appropriate.
It does not tell me that everything will be alright or that the surgery will go the way I want it to...what I understand is that there is nothing beyond His ability.

Whatever the outcome, God is good, God is righteous, God will still be God...Creator of all things.

And that is enough.

In Sickness and in Health

My husband, the man I love, is going in for surgery tomorrow.
They will break his jaw bone, realign his bite and wire his mouth shut.

The problem:
Some doctors have called it TMJ.
I disagree and so does our surgeon.

In MB's mouth the upper and lower teeth do not touch when he bites down. He grinds his teeth at night trying to find that fit. This puts enormous amounts of pressure on his jaw muscles.
Imagine trying to hold up a 10 pound weight above your head. Sure you can do it for a while, but at some point it is going to get heavy. Your muscle will fatigue. You can't hold it forever, can you?
I envision MB like this. He's been resisting that pressure for the last 9 years!! He takes 2-3 800 mg motrin a day. He goes in to have his liver and kidneys checked twice a year.
Some days are worse than others which may require ice packs, massage or a double shot of rum!! But everyday there is a headache. Everyday there is pain.

Tomorrow may be the start of a final chapter in this down side of life. Tomorrow could be the beginning of a life with freedom. A chapter without pain.

3 hours is a long time to be under, and that's if all goes well. I'm taking the girls to their grandparents house tonight. They will come home friday. MB will spend the first night in the hospital so they can monitor him. After that it will be my job. I hope I can do it. I hope I can be what he is going to need.

Summer Fun

Well folks,

We had a nice, relaxing weekend with friends, food, sand & sun. If you would like to see a few pictures I took, click on over to here.

We arrived at the cabin in the late afternoon, settled in, went shopping, had dinner (Yummy fish tacos that Tom made from fresh cod he just caught out of the San Francisco Bay the day before) then packed up the kids and headed for the lake. By the time we were done swimming, the moonlight glittered across the water, making it almost impossible to see anyone in the lake. The moon was half full.

Saturday MB, Tom & Nick played golf. Me, Denise, Claudia & the kids (all 7 of them!) spent the day at the lake.
I heard one child ask his mother, "what time is it?" she answered "I don't know, we're on vacation!"

And just like that 7 hours were gone!

Dinner was great. I bought MB a T-bone steak which ended up costing more than all the other steaks put together. But that's okay, he's worth it.
Now you're asking...
Why does he get t-bone while everyone else gets sirloin?
Well, if you were going to be on a liquid diet for the next 3 months, you'd be looking for the best meal you could get too!
Jaw surgery.
I'll write so much more about it in the next few posts. Or if you can't wait...read about it on MB's site.

So Saturday we piged out on Steak, potatoes, corn (yummy sweet white corn), salad, bread & wine. Then we were to tired to go back down to the lodge where they were doing Kareoke. Darn...I really wanted to go, but I was voted out. Maybe next time. No biggie. Everyone was pretty tired. The sun has a way of sucking out the energy through your skin.

Sunday we cleaned up. I took Denise to my favorite antique store in Arnold. Lots of old relics and treasures galore. It was closed. The sign on the door said they usually are open on weekends by ten unless they slept in and then it would be later, but if you were famous or drop dead gorgeous just call them and they will come right down and open the store for you!

So I called. Though we are not famous, I did say that we ARE drop dead gorgeous!

We waited for a bit, sipping our iced blended mochas and chatting about mafia family members...until we decided that nobody was coming. Before heading back to the cabin, we noticed a farmers market sign pointing toward the center of town. We strolled around and bought fresh blueberries and greenbeans.

Hey- let's swing back by the store and see if it's open.
It was.

We spent another 45 minutes checking out every square inch of the store and made our purchases.
I bought a small victorian painting of a young lady. The frame is finely detailed with carvings and whitewashed paint. I had seen her the last time I was here but didn't buy it. This time she was coming home with me!
Denise struggled over which glass square serving dish to buy. The larger one with the silver platter or the smaller one with deeper insets?
She went with her first instinct and bought the smaller one. Good choice.

We left the cabin and headed for home in the middle of the afternoon.

These are the days.

Sitting in the customer service lounge waiting...

Latest news from NASA...

John Muratore, Shuttle Systems Engineering and Integration manager, explained twelve teams of engineers across the country are working around the clock to troubleshoot the problem and review data. Further information is expected Monday, but managers are still optimistic about a launch within the current window, which ends July 31.

Cabin Retreat

History of the Cabin
It was June 1997 the first time MB & I visited the family style getaway at Lakemont Pines in Arnold, Ca. We were in a young couples group at our church that met once a week. One of the couple's parents owned a large cabin in the Lakemont location. They soon planned a weekend couples retreat in which MB & I attended. Though we hated our friends "large" cabin, we loved the location and knew that MB's parents were looking for a vacation spot for our own family.
It only took my in-laws one trip up to fall in love with the place, find a realtor & purchase a cabin. It was small and needed A LOT of work. It actually still does. But much has been done already and hopefully before winter we'll put down a new floor in the kitchen.

Why we love the cabin
Summers are spent at the lake where you can play ping pong, ride on a paddleboat, enter in a sand castle contest or try to catch fish off the dock with a large net. Winters keep you packed down with skis, boots, poles, inner tubes & hot chocolate. It's a very special place only 2 1/2 hours away. You won't have to drive one mile on a freeway...but you may want to stop and walk around one or two of the cute little towns along the way. Sutter's Creek is an antique heaven while Murphy's (my favorite) has the perfect mix of shops, wine tasting rooms & an old fashioned ice cream parlor.
The cabin itself is small and very rustic with tall wood ceilings, 2 bedrooms, 1 bath and a large room we added downstairs. An old wood porch wraps around the house and shakes when you walk on it. But don't worry- it's not going to fall down!
The pine trees are so tall that at night you can hardly see the sky which is a shame because the conditions for star gazing are perfect...no bright lights. You'd almost have to be on a boat in the middle of the lake to get the ultimate view.

Tomorrow we head for our little slice of heaven in the pines. This time we are taking friends. My friend Denise, her husband, Tom & their children...Emma & Evan. As some of you may know, Emma and Megan are very close friends.
This should be a fun time to getaway, play in the sand and just enjoy these friends that God has given us. Also more friends from Redwood City (they have a cabin too) will be up this weekend. Sounds like a party!

Simply profound

"Time is of no difference. What ever amount you've been given, it must be divided accordingly."

Do you ever say something off the top of your head and later think...wow, that was profound...in a simple sort of way?

NASA's Discovery STS is ready, opps except for that window cover!

Click the title.

Yeah, you know I'll be watching!

Update:
It's a no-go. Malfunctioning sensor in the fuel tank. It reads empty when they know darn well the thing is full.
Crap.
The next launch could be Monday...or September. Crap. Crap!!

I sure wanted to see that thing lift off. It's been 2 1/2 years. We're due. We're ready for EVA (Extra Vehicular Activities) or aka...space walks. Aren't you impressed? Nah, didn't think so.

Cha, cha, cha, cha, changes!!

Ready for this?

It'll make a beautiful wig

Bye, bye hair.

Man, this feels weird.

What the truck?

I take for granted that I have a vehicle. A vehicle that is dependable.

It is true...I love my trooper. It is the perfect size SUV for me. I am small, so driving a huge monster like a Ford expedition or suburban...even a Lincoln Navigator is not for me. Those are just to big. Nice inside, with all the bells and whistles, but I'm a simple girl and I love my foreign Isuzu trooper!

Last year we bought MB a Toyota Tundra. It's a nice truck. It only has 30 thousand miles, but I hate to predict, it might be a lemon. It's been in the shop all week getting a new transmission. Can you believe it? The thing needs a whole new transmission?!?!
Thank God (really) for the manufactures power train warranty or we'd be screwed.

Now, under the state law of Ca., Toyota gets 2 chances to fix the problem. If the problem reoccurs a third time, they have to buy back the vehicle. Our full purchase price. It's the lemon law. So, we'll see. It will be covered under the warranty for another year.

We'd just buy a car...but where we live- a truck is so very necessary. It didn't take us long to figure that one out. There is a lot to haul.

Locks of Love

Click on the title of this post for link.
If you are familiar with this organization, and you know anything about me, than you might have guessed what I've already done.

I went down to Supercuts and let them whack off my hair. She separated it into 2 ponytails. Then she buzzed it off just above the rubberband. I wanted to cry, but all I could do was smile. I starred at my hair sitting on the counter.

My hair is blonde. My hair is strong and healthy. My hair is going to help a child with cancer feel normal again...and that is MORE than worth it.

I hate my new haircut. I think it makes me look awful. It's okay though. It will grow back.
It will not mutate and cause my organs to fail. It will not spread to the rest of my body like weeds and cause my heart to stop beating. It will not make my mother cry while I'm sleeping. It will not keep any doctors awake at night wondering if I will be alive the next day.

It is hair. Just hair.

It only describes me...it will not define me.

What I didn't expect...

I had no way of knowing. I've never been on a swim team before. My children had never wanted to be on a swim team before either.

Why?
Commitment.
Early morning practices, everyday, all summer long?? Plus 7am-3pm swim meets EVERY Saturday??
Doesn't sound like the way I wanted to spend a summer. I like to sleep in, swim for fun not work and Saturdays are for out of town trips.

However, we moved to a place where most kids join the swim team every summer. We might as well give it a try since that's where all their friends will be anyway, right?

Sure. Let's look at the bright side...my girls will become strong swimmers. That's good. Very good. It also gets them ready for soccer.

What I didn't expect was how nice it would be to have that routine. Getting up and walking down to the pool every morning...it's actually kind of nice. They swim for an hour and I talk with the other moms.
Most of them are easy to get along with...except one. She is awful! So awful that my stomach turns at the sight of her overweight, short, stubby little figure.
It's not her appearance that bothers me. It's the way she completely screwed up the swim teams finances last year that really pisses me off!

You see, when I signed up the girls for swim team, I signed up myself as well. I took an open spot on the board. Treasurer. It took me a while to figure out what happened to thousand of dollars that were twiddled away by the above said person. Plus she has a big mouth. She gets our board in trouble with her hot temper. She also crashed the computer by stuffing it with her own personal shit (excuse me...files).

But this morning I received a beautiful email from her.
The most lovely thing she's ever said..."I resign!"
Yeah! Next year will be GREAT!

That is of course, if I can manage to secure enough funds for us to have a team next year. We've been doing fund raisers and penny pinching. I'm being real stingy with the checkbook. Right now, I'm only cutting checks for coaches! Bracelets? We don't need no stinkin bracelets!

All that and I didn't even mention the dead beat dad that bounced his 200+ registration check, still shows up everyday with every excuse in the book for why he doesn't have the cash in my hand! I want his butt off the team! Would have been done a month ago if we weren't such a bunch of gutless, wanny pushovers! It has to be a board decision to cut his butt loose. This Monday night is our next meeting.
"All in favor of dropping the scumbag loser, say I! I! I!"

The worst part about that is this is NOT the first time he's done it. Last year he bounced the same damn check for which payment was NEVER collected. Kick him off now...kick him off for good! Too bad though, his kids are nice and very fast swimmers. I hate to see the kids suffer for having bad parents!

*Sorry for the swearing...I get a little upset over that!

London Olympics

Good.

I was pulling for London to get the games. I don't think it should be here. Especially the big apple. I think the USA has had enough attention lately, besides I sorta feel like we didn't deserve to get the games.
We are a nation divided right now. The Olympic games are about unity. They shouldn't be held in a place where enemies are likely to harm people just to make a statement. Neutral ground. I'm happy for London!

2012? Seven years from now...sounds like a lot, but it really isn't.

UPDATE: London is hit by terrorists. This comes only one day after the big Olympic announcement and the first day of the G8 meeting.

I don't care if they think their timing is perfect.
Terrorists will never gain victory in their religious quest. They are trying to redefine the rules of war. Blowing up themselves and anyone who happens to be within range is NOT a war strategy...it's murder. The Bible does NOT say "Thou shalt not kill" it says "Thou shalt not murder".
Big difference.
In war people are killed. In sin people are murdered.

I understand that these terrorists are playing by a different concept of religion than us, which is why they do what they do, but religion aside...they can not win. You can't scare the whole world.

Use your common sense. Terrorists like these are evil. We must stop them or live with the fear they instill. It is freedom we seek. Freedom from fear. Freedom is not free. Is your freedom worth the cost? Each soldier thinks so. He puts his butt on the line so you can put your butt where ever you damn well please.

Red, White & Blue

Our Fourth of July was spent like this. Setting off little boxed light shows in front of my in-laws house. We do this every year. Especially now that we live in an area were ALL fireworks are strictly prohibited. We swim, BBQ and make homemade ice cream. It's fun, but I'm ready for a real show. Maybe next year? I hope!

Sparklers

Our swim team (The Dolphins) had fun cooling off neighbors in our annual Auburn Lake Trails parade.

Megan on the slip & slide at our community 4th of July celebration.

Going shopping with Claudia.

Getting some sun.

Time for arts & crafts.

Lakemont Pines

Watch the sky for "Deep Impact"

It's the third of July...watch the sky.

My day in the bay

Market Street

This is exactly where you end up. The steps down to BART are right behind those newspaper stands. Umbrellas, shoe shiners, laptops, ipods, trolley cars, hot dogs, birds, street musicians, the occasional whiff of pot & homeless people consume the spaces between the sky scraping monsters of the place known as the financial district of San Francisco, California.

The weather was a sunny 70 something degrees. Perfect. Closer to home, my family suffered through 100 degree temps.

I arrived with 1.5 hours to spare. I decided to set off in search of my favorite place to shop...The Apple Store.
Walking in that sea of faces, you have to maintain a good pace. You have to cross the street with everybody else...even when the light is against you. It's a good idea to wear headphones and comfortable shoes.

I didn't quite know where the store was, but I had a feeling...as if it were magnetically luring me on toward it. After some help from Michael, which ended up taking me way out of my way...I found it. A large white apple shined like a becon, proudly welcoming all who appreciate the workings of a fine computer. Its black box figure stuck out slightly onto the walk, separating itself from all neighboring structures.

I bought a new set of headphones. They sit inside my ears (like most these days) , but wrap around my neck with the wire hanging down my back. They are made by Nike and are suppose to be great for running. All of the headphones are packaged, which makes it impossible to try them out prior to purchase.
I immediately asked for scissors and tore into the plastic packaging.
I am overall...small. My ears, my neck...
These headphones might not work for me. However, they have GREAT sound. Hopefully I'll get to run with them this weekend in Arnold.

Arnold?
Yeah, Arnold.
That is the name of the town we are leaving for in about 3 hours from now and I haven't packed yet!
We have a vacation cabin there.
Have a great weekend everyone!

Real quick...I'll leave you with a few things I saw yesterday...

Three people getting arrested with a mile radius.
A license plate that read "Mr. Luv".
A ghost fleet of retired military ships.
A lady with white paint all over her...including her hair.
A large conference room filled with nervous middle aged adults.
A black couple arguing and a security guard trying to make them stop.
Thousands of bats leaving their home under the Yolo cosway to eat mosquitos. GO BATS!
On my way home, a single firework shot up in the sky near Roseville.

Boobs not Bombs

San Francisco BART train.


I snapped this picture just before a short, small framed man with average blonde hair wearing a dark navy blue suit asked me this question, "Are you a terrorist?"

The tone of his voice and the look on his face told me that his wasn't joking.
Before I could answer he added his logical reasoning for the accusation, "Taking pictures of our underground transit system?"

"No, I'm not a terrorist! I'm a tourist." I giggled. "I just like to take pictures."

He seemed to look me up and down. I felt like saying...like em? There boobs not bombs. But given the fact that this guy is dumb enough to ask a person if they are a terrorist, which of course they are not going to tell you if they were, I wasn't willing to make that kind of a scene, so I just turned away instead.