Music...

"it's all around us, all you have to do is listen." - August Rush (movie/soundtrack).

I love that quote. More importantly, I love music. As I was working on yoga books, etc today, I cranked up itunes and let it run it's course through my library. I became mellow when John Waite's "Missing You" came through the speakers, rocked out when Ted Nugent's "Stranglehold" blasted through, and reflective when heart's "Dog and Butterfly" echoed through my mind.

I cannot tell you how many times my mood has actually done a 180 just because a certain song plays. I can be in the deepest funk, and a song like "Footloose" can bring me out of it in a snap. The opposite is certainly true as well - as certain songs can bring me to my knees with memories of sad or tumultuous times, or bring on a smile with thoughts of treasured friends who have walked in and out of my life.


I learned music at an early age from my parents. In prior blog entries I wrote about family jam sessions with my mother on the piano, dad playing fiddle, an uncle playing guitar and my brother on the harmonica. Those are some favored memories - and I learned to appreciate them more as time goes on. I play piano - I took lessons for 10 years(it's been a while since I've played), saxophone (high school), and drums (briefly). Singing, well, let's just say that I sing off key really well! (I just sing what's in my heart).

My music tastes are rather eclectic, by my own admission. I love everything from Stevie Ray Vaughn, Sheryl Crow, Bon Jovi, Little Feat, to Clint Black, Sugarland, Eva Cassidy, Journey, Blue Rodeo, Rolling Stones, Beatles, or Fleetwood, Motley Crue, Heart, Rascal Flatts, Jann Arden, Lenny Kravitz, Nickelback, Prince, R.E.M, Josh Groban,U2, Journey, Eagles...and the list goes on and on.

But when was the last time we took a moment to listen to the beautiful music of quietness?

Close your eyes, and hear the gentle breeze playing softly through the branches and leaves; the birds adding their perfect melody while crickets or frogs croak out the harmony. Then feel your heartbeat laying down the baseline that pulls it all together. This, perhaps, is music in it's purest form. And, unfortunately, the least heard.

Beautiful music.... it's all around us, all you have to do is listen.

Good Morning!!!!!!!

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood, though a little chilly!   I can't believe how fast the week has gone.  I love the fact that the weekend is here so soon. 

 

Today is my 1/2 day at work, and as usual, I have an afternoon loaded with appointments.  If all goes well, I'll have lunch with Blaine (nephew), and then off to pay some bills, pick up the key (to my new yoga location), hit the gym for an extended workout, and then cap it off with a massage!  Yeah!!!

 

Life has been going pretty good lately.  I can't complain - well, I could, but it wouldn't do any good.  ~L~  You all know how it is.  

 

I have a ton of things to do this weekend, and one of them is Fitness Boot camp!  Yeah, I know....am I CRAZY??  ~L~   AF is holding two Fitness Boot camps for it's members, one in the morning for "new exercisers" and another in the afternoon for "those that have been doing it for a while but are in a rut."  Guess I qualify for the 2nd one.  It ought to be interesting.  They said they will be going through some plyometric exercises, weight lifting tips, interval training, etc.  

I'm hoping that I'll pick up some good pointers.  Most of all, I hope I can keep up with everyone! ~LOL~ 

 

Sandbag Stomp is this weekend! I hope everyone can get out and enjoy the festivities and celebrate bringing the community through the floods of this spring.  We DESERVE to celebrate.  

 

Sit back, relax, have a beer or glass of wine, enjoy and appreciate the good life.  :-)

 

Namaste'

 

Sherry

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm thinking...

that weekends just aren't long enough to accomplish everything that I need to get done, let alone everything that I want to do.

I try to cram as much as I can in to 2 days, and it doesn't work. I fall in to bed exhausted and the end of each day and then I'm cranky when Monday rolls around. Go figure! ~LOL~

All in all, things in my world are going good. The weather finally turned to summer again today! (Rock on!) I was beginning to wonder if the calendar was wrong when we had those 65-degree days last week. Brrrrrr! Mother Nature is trying to fool us I think.

Spent a good morning at the gym yesterday then went to lunch with two favorite peeps: Becky and my #2 guy, Blainer! Yep, we ate, we talked, we laughed, discussed the worlds problems (and our own) then proceeded to try and fix them all. ~LOL~ (The operative word there is "try").

Then home to make a cake to take to a fish fry last night. I have no clue what happened. This is supposed to be a "no fail" recipe.....which obviously, failed! I put the knife in to cut the cake and it was so freaking hard that it wouldn't even make a dent! ~LOL~ Hubs just laughed at me and said that he was going to take it over to the ranch and use it to anchor down the grain auger! ~LOL~ Jeeeezzzz!

I whimped out...

and didn't do a full workout at the gym today. I did 1/2 of it and honestly, that 1/2 still managed to wup my butt!

My heart wasn't in it but I still managed to get a good workout. Yeah! I'm working really hard at getting to the gym 3-4 per week now. I'm battling that middle-age spread....if I even look at a carbohydrate I gain 10lbs! ~L~ Ok, so I'm exaggerating slightly....5lbs is more accurate.

Had a good weekend - as it FINALLY rained on the ranch! Rock on! Hubs is in a MUCH better mood when it rains. We received just shy of an inch of rain which will do wonders for the crops considering that we haven't received a significant rain on our lands since the beginning of June. It's too late for a 2nd cutting hay crop, but the heat/rain is crucial for the corn crop right now.

We celebrated by going to the stock car races last night. I honestly cannot remember the last time we went to the races....I *think* it was back in 88 or 89?? Far too long ago, that's for sure. We recognized quite a few names Johnny C, Seckerson of course, and a few names that surprised us. It was an absolutely beautiful evening to sit in the stands and cheer on the drivers.

Today I finished cleaning the spare bedroom/office! Only ONE room to go and my quest of having a clean/orderly home has come to fruition! Well almost - I now have to go through the basement and attic! ~LOL~ I can never be happy, can I?!

Well, it feels good at any rate. I'm going to have to really work on keeping up a cleaning schedule now so that it's not such a chore to keep a clean house.

Just another week..

..please, that is all that I ask for.

Well folks, I went through this week like a tornado on the high plains. I cannot believe that I go back to work tomorrow. I have sooooooooooo much more that I want to get done and I just know that another week of vacation would help me out. But, I also know that if I take another week, the likelihood of me walking in the doors at work would be slim to none. So, alas, I am biting the bullet and getting things ready for work tomorrow. (You know me, I like to be prepared in order to make Monday's as relatively painless as possible!).

I ended up finishing only one room in the three days left since my last post. I ended up playing on Friday and going to chase parts with hubster and then crashing a family reunion of some friends of ours. So progress on the home front was nonexistent. That's alright, I hit it hard yesterday though. That means TWO rooms left in the house; I forsee them getting done in the next two weekends. That is the goal anyways. I want to be able to enjoy my Labor Day holiday by being guilt-free of cleaning! ~L~ (It'll never happen!)

I dread walking in to work tomorrow though. I wonder what kind of drama will be waiting for me and what kind of "tudes" I'll need to smack down! ~L~

I'm pretty sure I'll be ok - will just need to breathe through the bs and go to my happy place.

It's been a while...

since my last post here in the great blogosphere. Not for lack of content, I might add, but due to an extremely busy life. I'm not complaining or offering up excuses, just explaining my lack of philosophical wisdom and intellectual wit.

Now, I'm done blowing smoke up your skirts so you can relax! ~L~

I'm on a vacation this week. Yeah! I wake up with gusto and hurridly search for the ever growing "to do" list that I've been compiling for the last month. The list of things to do "if I ever get more than just a weekend" list.

Monday morning hits and I jump out of bed at the crack of dawn, jump in to my workout clothes and head for the gym cuz "gosh darnnit, I can workout and get it over with for the day." It proved to be a good thing cuz I woke up a little bit on the "blue" side. Why? Hell if I know...might be hormones, might be feeling defeated by the "to do" list that hasn't even gotten one thing checked off of it. Anywho, the workout proved to be the anecdote as I came home and immediately tore apart my living room and scoured it from top to bottom. I cleared out the clutter and rearranged furniture, dusted, vacuumed, and polished to my hearts content. All of this took place, I might add, BEFORE lunch! How do you like those apples?!

Next up? The dreaded "catch all" space by my patio doors. Hubs like to think of this as his holding grounds for things "he might need some day." I call it junk! I dive in head first and tackle that project with gusto and complete it in record time. Once more hauling out the clutter that I'm sure will find a home someday (after it gets moved out of my basement, MY holding bin for good stuff that "might get used some day.") Am I the ONLY one that has one of those places?

Tuesday proved to be even more productive (if you can believe that!) as I decided to test my hanging skills by hanging from my kitchen cabinetry whilst washing down walls and cabinets. Tough job but mostly finished with the exception of wiping out and restoring order to the lower cabinets. (Puts that on the next list of things to do)

Wednesday? I didn't do anything on the house cleaning front, but had a day booked full of appointments in town. Wished that would have been saved for Friday, because today I have gotten absolutely nothing accomplished. I lost my momentum. On a positive note, I helped my mother-in-law with a project, managed a 2 hour workout at the gym, and spent a lovely hour with Brooke for a reflexology appointment (heaven, pureeeee heaven!)

I must be nuts to spend my vacation doing the domestic diva thing - yet again. I do this quite frequently though. I've put it down to the fact that I am a "Procrastinating Perfectionist." (Directs you to earlier blog entries regarding this rare and incurable disease).

On the list for tomorrow? Well, I have three rooms to tackle, and three days before I go back to work. Hmmmmmmmmm - anyone placing any bets on what I do??

It could have been worse...

and thank God it wasn't.  

 

After getting home from a great weekend away from the ranch (with hubster), I received a phone call from my sister-in-law stating that someone had some news to tell me and they wanted me to hear it from them and not a co-worker of mine. 

 

Blaine gets on the phone and says, "I rolled the 4-wheeler Sherry."   Oh my God!   My heart went to my toes as he relayed how he was downshifting to turn on to the gravel driveway of his parents house, and he rolled the 4-wheeler.   (Shivers still run up my spine just typing this!).  

 

I immediately asked him if he was wearing his helmet (he religiously wears one when riding his scooter) and he said "no, I wasn't."   When asked if anything was broken, he said "no" and said, "here, talk to mom."   That wasn't a typical Blaine reaction, so I knew he wasn't feeling so hot.

 

Marna got on the phone and proceeded to tell me the events leading up to - and after- the accident.  She said that his hip is bruised badly, scraped knees, arms and hands, but nothing broken.  He received a note from the ER physician excusing him from work today, and was given some pain pills to lessen the pain. 

 

I cannot wait to see him and wrap him in a big hug........

 

Thank GOD the angels were looking out for my Blainer.  I couldn't stand the thought of losing him from my life!