Dallas is not for me...

I just came back from a 3-day conference in Dallas, TX. Now there's not anything really wrong with Dallas (or Texas), but I just didn't really like the city too much. Not that I saw very much of it other than the 3 blocks around the Magnolia Hotel, en route to the Convention Center, and the highway back and forth between Dallas and the DFW Airport...

It seemed to me that the sidewalks just rolled themselves up after 6pm every night. Not that I'm a city girl, but I like the idea that I can go and get what I want or need when I want or need it. Here's an example: THE STARBUCKS IN THE MAGNOLIA HOTEL CLOSED AT 6PM.

How is that even possible?????!!!!!?????!!!!!?????

We talked with a few locals, and they told us that there are tons'o'people who live in Dallas' city limits, but only 5000 of them live in downtown Dallas. Apparently, you live in the suburbs of Dallas (Irving, Richardson, etc.), drive in every weekday to go up into your highrise office building, go downstairs into the food court underground in your building's basement for lunch (similar to what's under Rockefeller Center in NYC - which doesn't close at 6pm, by the way!), then leave to go back to your home in the suburbs. You don't stay in the city.

Apparently it's a GREAT city for philanthropic fundraisers - lots of black tie events to collect oil money for good causes, but it's not the kind of city where you go to Burger King on Tuesday night 'cause you don't feel like cooking...

The Magnolia Hotel is GORGEOUS! I had a "cute" room, according to the front desk. Room 616. It had a huge king-sized bed, 3 walk-in closets, a BIG tub/shower combo, and an absolutely immense full kitchen. A full kitchen. A full kitchen bigger than the kitchen I have in my 5-bedroom home in Clifton! With a dishwasher, a full-sized refrigerator, a microwave, a full-sized electric stove and oven, a coffee-pot, blender and toaster, and cutlery, china, and pots and pans. Amazing! And all for the low, low price of $261 a night! (Not in NYC, baby!!!)

I took some pictures - if I could only figure out how to download photos into this blog, I would. I tried some artsy ones - we'll see how they came out when I pick them up from Costco tonight...

I had the brilliant idea to visit a Recollections; there's one 5.5 miles from the hotel, according to the almighty Mapquest. According to the person who answered the phone and admitted she didn't know downtown Dallas very well, it was "much farther than that." So without a car, I didn't go. Rats!

This weekend is a surprise party for SN, then Jack has an all-day Special Olympics event on Sunday. I think I might shop a bit, then scrap a bit, then clean a bit, then cook a bit... I'm big into bits, as you can see...

Who ever thought that booking one measly little haircut, actually, a trim, would be so complicated and would totally affect the schedules of three or four different people?!???

All I wanted to do was get my hair trimmed before I leave for Dallas next Monday. It's like this: my hair can get to be "too long" overnight. That's right. Overnight. Not over the course of two or three weeks, or even two or three days. I can go to bed and all's well with my head, and in the morning? Voila! Too much hair!

So I called to make an appointment with Kristen at the "new" hair place. She was busy until Thursday night. Okay, I can do Thursday night.

NO I CAN'T DO THURSDAY NIGHT. Jack needs my car Thursday night, and I'm just not good enough at a stick shift to take the Subaru through traffic and into that teeny-tiny parking lot. So I call to reschedule.

BUT WAIT! I can't reschedule 'cause on Friday I have the Credit Union dinner right after work, on Saturday I have an all-day crop, on Sunday the salon is closed and on Monday - well, I'll be in Dallas on Monday.

So I'm now going to A WHOLE NEW PERSON AND A WHOLE NEW SALON to get my hair trimmed. Eva's hairdresser Leah is going to do it on Saturday morning, at 9am. Eva says she's great but Eva's haircuts involve a blunt cut bottom. That's it. No layers. No bangs.

Keep your fingers crossed!

So now I had to let Deborah know I'd be late for the crop, and ask her to save me a seat. And my new friend (I really do like her a lot, to say nothing of the fact I adore her little son Harrison!) said she'd be "sad" if we didn't sit together at the crop! Awww... She's great!

I love you, Dad, and miss you with all of my heart!!!

Tonight's dinner was cancelled - depending on who you listen to, we're getting a surprise March snowstorm. Basically, it can be anything from nothing to 17 inches!!! Come on!!! It was 79 degrees at Newark Airport two days ago!!! I'm definitely going to get sick. I just know it.

Back to work, since I'm most likely leaving early with Jack; Maria called to tell me they're letting the kids go home at 1, and the teachers at 2:30. (What's wrong with that picture?!?!) Hopefully that will be enough time for the WASCP parents to pick up their kids and not make Jack (and me!) stay later than everyone else!

Tomorrow is 20 years since Daddy died. Not a day goes by that I don't think of him and miss him. They're right - it gets easier to deal with, but the missing just doesn't go away. I wish he were here - for me, for Mom, for P and C, for J and A. They just don't know what they're missing, not knowing their maternal grandfather. And Dad? He would have been in his element with grandchildren! He would have been that favorite grandparent, the fun one... I can just see A with him now!

I've been married almost 8 years now, and I still can't watch a bride dance with her father at the reception without crying. It could be in person or in a movie - I'm still just a big wuss when I see that. And I get mad. I get mad that I was robbed of that moment. I remember Ivy (from Sher) telling me I can't get "mad" 'cause that's getting mad at God and that's wrong. Wanna bet?!?? I don't love God any less but it really ticks me off that he took Daddy when he did. What can I say? If that makes me a bad Catholic, so be it, but there are people still living long and fulfilling lives, people who are mean, vindictive, malicious - you know who you are! And my dad, a man with a huge heart, an incredible mind, a phenomenal personality - he's dead. Gone. Forever. Yes, that really ticks me off!

On to other topics...

I got a couple of invitations in the mail yesterday. One was an invitation to a bridal shower for Kim (as in Justin and Kim). Their wedding is June 9. Looks like I really have to start exercising and dieting again, BIG TIME, so I can look semi-decent in photos... At least I have an immediate goal. Hope that will be what I need to really stick to WW again. I know it works. It took 20 pounds off me. But I've gained some back, and I MUST START AGAIN. I MUST STICK TO IT AGAIN. I WILL START AGAIN. I WILL SUCCEED AGAIN. I AM SUCCEEDING.

I also got an invite to Stan's surprise 50th. I'd really like to go, just for the surprise part, and the wish him well part. We don't have to stay for the entire thing; we don't know anyone there but the Stan and Cheryl and I think they'll be a bit busy... Somehow I don't think we'll be going, though...

Dinner tomorrow at Villa Amalfi in Cliffside Park with the Hoboken School Employees Federal Credit Union. What can I wear? What can I wear? Hmmm. Black pants... Dressy top... I know! I'll wear the same thing I've worn to all the dinners!! Well, that was easy...

Mom's new bed was delivered yesterday. She says she slept well in it. I'm glad.

Saturday, March 24, is my all day crop. I can't wait! I printed out some pix from C's trip to Punta Cana, and I'll make her a page, perhaps for Mother's Day or her b'day... or just for nothin'!!! I'll work on my card swap, too - 12 "love" cards. Hope they come out respectably okay...

Well - I'm at work. Guess I have to do some. Work, that is...

I think I'm sick...

A couple of days ago I spent the entire day sneezing, chasing after my runny nose and my runny eyes - basically I felt pretty miserable. Yesterday I felt much better, so good in fact, that I was able to attend my Scrapping MeetUp. Got up this morning - the first thing Jack said to me was, "Do you feel okay?" Guess I didn't look so good! And I've been dizzy since I woke up. Not dizzy-spell dizzy, but light-headed, really bad if I close my eyes... I had a good b'fast (multi-grain bread with peanut butter and raisins, for iron); it didn't help. I went and got a slice of multi-cheese pizza and some salad with delicious, calorie-laden bleu cheese dressing. I feel a bit less dizzy, but I'm not walkin' crosstown this afternoon, that's for sure! I'm cold, I'm hot, I'm cold, I'm hot... YUK!

We had a tag swap last night - I have to remember next time that I can make the tags larger. I made a small size; it came out okay. I signed up for a card swap for May. Thank goodness there's enough time 'til then. Think I'll work on them at the all-day crop in two weeks... Have to remember to bring home some fibers, etc., from the lake this weekend...

Next Friday is the Credit Union dinner. I wanted to do some shopping pre-dinner for some clothes, but it's period-week and I'll be bloated. So I think I'll take a day off the week after and try to spend a whole day shopping. I asked Eva if she wanted to come... She said she might...

So, it's been a while since I wrote about my life. I spent some time online last week Googling high school friends and acquaintances. Here's what some of them are doing:

• Liver transplant specialist
• Breast cancer specialist/with clinical trials in progress, and also specializing in sarcomas
• CEO of high-tech aeronautics company, former CEO of production company that produced a Broadway play
• Doctor - hemotology, internal medicine, oncology
• Chiropractors
• Publishing account executives

I was pretty impressed! Especially by the fact that the ones who have proven themselves to be so successful - well, they weren't all rocket scientists in high school! Some of them? Yes, they were real smart. Others, not so - or should I say, not apparently so...
I'm excited - I might be able to visit P this summer! It sounds like we might be having our next set of sales meetings in San Francisco. If we do, I'm taking a few days after to fly to a state in the SW. She asked me the other day if I had any ideas as to what I might want to do while I was there, but I really don't - she can work, I'll stay home and watch TV, take the dogs for a walk (one at a time, thank you very much!), and generally just veg!
I was in Mom's attic the other day, cleaning out some of my old things - letters, books, etc. I found some old letters from Barb B., a former friend/roomie. I always prided myself on my memory. I could remember everything, actual conversations, the clothes I was wearing, etc. FORGET IT! I was reading about people I don't even remember! Ex. Grayson & Jimmy. WHO??? I had no clue. Then, after straining my brain, I remembered: the people with the ferret that Donna lived with for a while! It hurt, but the brain came through!!! I cannot believe that I couldn't remember such memorable people!!! But I didn't!!!
I just called Stan to wish him a Happy B'day, three days early, since I thought he might take some time off next week. Apparently not. He couldn't talk; he was real busy. Said he'd call back. We'll see.

Lent - a reason to keep some resolutions rather than deny myself something...

I've decided to give up cursing - my language is atrocious and needs massive improvement!
I've decided to do better at WW - I've been tracking my points better, and will continue to do so.
I've decided to exercise - still a hurdle, but I'm going to try my best. (I just hate it so much!)

So, Kevin came home, maybe not hale and hearty, but certainly better than when he went into the hospital. He's had a stress test since then - I'll have to find out how he did. Thank goodness he's better. According to the doctors (he updated us when we visited with him earlier this month!), this was 20 years in the making. And it could have been "the big one!" Thank you, God, for this wake-up call!

We primed Mom's bedroom - she's got a new bed being delivered early next month. I think she's decided on lavender with white trim for the walls. I want her to fix up her house. I'll get on over there soon and clean up some stuff for her... I really need to get into her attic, too, and go through all the "stuff" of mine that's accumulated there over the years...

C is in Puntacana with T. Happy vacation to her! The kids are home alone, which really makes me insane, but I'm not their mom and have been told that in no uncertain terms! The fun part? T's kids aren't home alone...

Tonight is a big Board meeting in town. They'll be introducing the two finalists for the position of superintendent. I'll pick up sandwiches for Jack and me so we can eat something before the meeting.

P's house was broken into last week. I can't imagine the feeling of violation, of seeing my things touched and disturbed. The theft was bad enough, but to have to live with knowing some stranger was in my home, touching my things... It would drive me bonkers! It's times like these that I wish P lived closer, but I know she's happy out there.

We're scheduled for a variance hearing before the town on April 11, then we can finally begin to make some decisions about the addition to the lake house. Now Jack is looking for cheaper and less permanent storage in the spare room. We'll see...

Kevin is okay, and he's supposed to come home today. He had an angioplasty yesterday (I believe) and they put a stent in him. He had a 90% blockage near his heart. This could have been "the big one." It's really woken him to the fact that he (a) HAS to quit smoking, (b) has to eat well, (c) has to exercise, and (d) HAS to take care of himself.

And it's woken me to the same facts, minus the smoking one... I MUST STICK TO WW. I MUST NOT CHEAT A LOT. I MUST EXERCISE. I WILL EXERCISE. I NEED HELP TO EXERCISE.

Last week was so productive - at work and at home (at least over the weekend). I will be as productive this weekend at home (if we don't go to the lake), and I'm going to try to be as productive at work for the rest of the week. I've done okay, but just not as well as last week...

A had had her braces removed! Apparently I'm allowed to know, but not allowed to acknowledge, according to C.

Had lunch with Eva today. She had a bit of an argument with her mom last night. I feel so badly for her. She is trying so hard to eat healthy, exercise when she can... She just doesn't get support from her family; she only gets criticism. Her sister seems to be supportive, as much as little sisters can be, and Eva doesn't have a problem with Paul, but the rest of them? I wouldn't give you a plug nickel for 'em! It really makes me appreciate my family, even on their worst day!!!

WE HAVE A NEW CAR!

We bought a 1998 Subaru Forester, white (yes, I still hate white cars, but what are ya gonna do?!), manual, AWD, $3700, 98K miles... and yesterday I went for my first lesson in driving a stick shift...

Well, I didn't break the car. And I didn't break my marriage. A wonderfully accomplished day, if you ask me! I thought I did remarkably well considering that although I'm not a clutz and have never broken a bone, I don't really think of myself as all that coordinated a human being... I realize it's all timing and coordination, but I really think part of my biggest problem is not associating "downshifting" with increasing your speed going up a hill. Innately I feel you "give it more gas" in order to "give it more power." It just doesn't seem to work that way with a manual transmission. Of course, it could all be in the translation - maybe I just don't understand Jack's instructions/explanations... It could have been filmed for a movie - how cliche - I'm at a stop sign at a traffic light in the Meadowlands (near Medieval Times, for any of you who know the area) and although there's turn on red there, I'm behind the wheel of a car with a stick shift, so the automatic (pardon the pun!) "look three ways and proceed" just wasn't happenin'! I was in a mild panic 'cause there was a car behind me, but Jack told me to take my time and turn when I was ready. So I was talking myself through it when all of a sudden, Mr. Rude Driver in the silver sedan behind me blew his horn. Well, I stalled. Three times. And each time I stalled, it bucked, and I got flushed, and cranky, and sweaty... AND THEN, WHEN I FINALLY TURNED THE CORNER, HE WENT STRAIGHT AHEAD!!! Whoever you are - you suck!!!

But I'm sure with a little practice and a lot of praying, I'll be able to drive a manual transmission and Jack and I will still be the happy-newlywed-couple-even-after-7.5-years that we are today!
I worked hard this weekend, even though I believe with all my heart that weekends are for goofing off! When you work all week and are almost never home in the evenings, weekends just have to include some housecleaning and other boring chores. Although I didn't squeeze in any scrapbooking, here's my weekend in a nutshell:
Saturday 1/27 -
* up at 6:30am, in the car at 7:00am, en route to the DMV to register my white non-rental Forester, even though we found out the DMV opens at 8:00am on Saturday
* at Panera's for coffee and a bagel by 8:45am (thanks, DMV, for being so efficient and easy this time!!! For NJ residents, bet you never thought I'd ever write anything like that!!!) - Panera's is Jack's new favorite b'fast place (along with our local Atlanta Bread Company)
* home by 10:15am and back in the car at 11:10am to go to the lakehouse to check for frozen pipes - it was COLD this past Saturday - 0 degrees in the house according to our weather barometer thingee on the island and 23 degrees outside - we poured some more anti-freeze in the pipes, crossed our fingers, and left for Wal-mart
* 12:00noon - shopping at Wal-Mart - bought a pair of jeans that claims they will make me look thinner - we'll see
* home by around 4:30pm, ate dinner normal time, then showered and left to see Tommy's band, 50 Amp Fuse, play in between Alternative Groove sets at the Exchange on Main Street in Rockaway - their band is great, but I think their singer isn't as good as their musicians are - we had a great time, though!
* home at 1:15am - tuckered out
Sunday, 1/28 -
* 7:00am - up for Mass at 8:00am
* 8:00am - Mass
* 9:00am - breakfast at Atlanta Bread Company
* 10:30am - home with the TV on - took down Christmas tree (don't worry - it was a fake one!) - now that Mom's home and we had our belated Christmas dinner/party, the decorations (sans my Santa collection) can come down without tears! AND I WORKED MY A-S OFF (well, if only it was that easy!) - It's all down except for a candle in the main bathroom, a sled-and-only-three-tiny-reindeer in the stairway, and the clingy gel "Merry Christmas" words on the kitchen window - it all just has to get carried upstairs... Jack...
* 11:30pm - lights out, to bed

Tonight we're picking up Mrs. D. to take her to see KD in the hospital - apparently he suffered an infarction of some sort on Saturday morning - he's got a blockage. They're transferring him from St. Clare's in Dover to Morristown General (Memorial?) today so we're going to see him tonight - be well, KD! We worry about you! (See what happens after about a year of eating better, exercising, and cutting down substantially on his smoking?! To say nothing of his seeing a lady we have yet to meet...)

Okay - 'tis actually work time, so I'm off to be as productive as I was last week...

I need to retire...

I spend a bit of time daily looking at my favorite blogs - correction - I USED to spend a bit of time daily looking at my favorite blogs - NOW I can only pop on by a time or two a week... I miss all those scrapping bloggers! I need more hours in a day, or less work to do in a day, so that I can apply myself to more fun in a day...

Mom is home! Hip! Hip! Hooray! I picked her up at Newark's Penn Station last night at around 5pm. I sat in the Amtrak Luggage Office with a few very nice men - thanks to the Amtrak guys for keeping me company 'til Mom's train came in! I had fun!

After we dropped her luggage at home, we went to IHOP for dinner, and C, J, and A came, too. Jack was at a Special Olympics dinner in Jersey City. Mom got home around 8pm and I went home and plopped down in front of the TV to watch Ugly Betty, Grey's Anatomy, and Men in Trees. I like Thursdays!

We have a three day weekend - I will be minimally creative since I have a lot of my tools and other scrapping stuff at home, but I will try to make some more cards, covers for my new planners (wonder if I can make a transferable cover that can go from month to month... hmmm... must put on my thinking cap...), and perhaps a page or two. Or perhaps I will remember my camera and I can learn to use it. Maybe I'll see some interesting photos to take and print and scrap...

I have a doctor's appt on Monday at 4:15 (gyno annual) - will talk with Dr. K. about the spotting these past two months (we'll see if it happens again this month...) - perhaps he'll suggest another pelvic ultrasound? And I need a prescription/referral for my annual mammogram.

P and C and I are going to try to create a reading list for the next 12 months that includes 12 books we really want to read, excluding my usual monthly release type reading... I started and have already added Kite Runner, Knowledge for Generations, and Reading Lolita in Tehran to my list. I'm going to try to pick some stuff I wouldn't normally read... step out of the box, so to speak...

Eva wants to talk with me about a career decision she has to make - I wonder what that's all about. More when I talk with her...

Eva got a new car. Finally. With help from mom & dad. Finally. 'Nough said.

I asked Jack to help me be a better person. I'm quick with the sarcastic comment or the biting response, and it's not the best character trait I have... My wonderful husband said I already was a nice person (without a hint or any prompting from me!) but I truly want to be a more compassionate and more generous and more loving person. I will try.

Okay, on with my story...

FHP year was great. Having skipped senior year in high school, I was only 16-1/2 when I started college. And a young 16-1/2 at that. I came from a very protected home - looking back at it, it was such a wonderful gift that my parents gave me. We didn't have a lot - Dad worked the night shift 'cause of the 10% differential, Mom made most of our clothing when we were younger, she was a stay-at-home mom 'til C was in high school - if I had had children of my own, I would have been so proud and happy to be 1/2 the mom mine was. And my dad? Does "perfect" describe him? Yes. He was so smart, and loving, and caring, and sacrificing...

I think Mom and Dad each deserve their own part in my story, so I'll save more on each for later...

As a FHP, I was part of a rather unique group of kids - they were SMART. Smart and weird. Most of them felt compelled to be "different" - to act differently, to dress differently, to draw attention to themselves by being what others easily considered "weird." There was Klaus, who wore his hair long and scraggly and dirty, and wore a long woolen coat even in May... There was Elizabeth (?) who walked around with unshaven legs and underarms, wearing long flowy skirts and John Lennon glasses, with her flute in hand... There was RichS (whose first and last names were always used, like they were actually one word) who, looking back at him, so obviously acted a bit strange to be the center of attention... As an adult, he was less strange and weird than he was unsure of his own worth, but that didn't help in 1977... There was Rhonda Y., my accordian-playing, felon-dating first-semester roommate...

Then there were the Wesley students we all interacted with on a daily basis - Drew R. (an older man who became a good friend of mine - 26, in college on the G.I. bill - whose "What I Did over Summer Vacation" report was entitled "How I got V.D. in Greece."), Dana P. (basketball player and extremely nice guy), Nancy M. (my ex-second-semester roommate), Buddy N. (my freshman year crush - he was from Kenilworth), and many more...

I remember the Amish coming in their buggies to the little deli on the other side of campus, near Williams and Gooding Halls. I remember the guys in Williams putting a sign out when the Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crashed and Ronnie Van Zant died. I remember snowball fights between those two dorms. I remember meeting Chris the first time on the steps of Carpenter Hall, on the way back home from breakfast the day before Thanksgiving, when he made a joke about the donuts I had for breakfast. I remember the guys from Budd Hall lifting Buddy's car (a Celica) out of the snowbank so he could go get food. I remember the campus being quarantined due to the Russian Flu - I WAS SO VERY SICK THAT WEEK. I can barely remember EVER being THAT sick EVER. I remember hanging out in the College Center lounge, with Chris, until all hours of the night. I remember the girls who had crushes on him - Ginger, Lorna. I remember a party at Drew's room, with microdots (I left when I found out they were drugged with LSD). I remember being in the boys' bathroom with Jeff F., helping him get ready for the Halloween party. I remember driving home in Sue L.'s little VW bug, with Drew. I remember Sue and Melissa L. rooming together next door in Carpenter Hall. I remember them dressing up for Halloween. I remember Nancy's birthday party. I remember mystery meat and scrapple and spam. I remember the salad bars in the cafeteria at Wesley College.

I remember.

It's 2007 - I went to my Weight Watcher's Meeting last night and the topic was resolution vs. lifestyle. Resolutions have a beginning and an end, and lifestyles are forever. What a great way to look at it. WW is an easy change, at least for me - the plan was easy to begin and who wouldn't like a diet where you can eat anything you want, as long as you honestly account for the points! I'm at 21 pounds and still going... (To be honest, I made it to 23+ but have had a bit of a slip up recently... I hit one of those plateaus the leaders are always talking about... I'm hoping it's over since last night the scales showed a .8 lb loss - after the holidays and two weeks of not weighing in!!!)

I have treadmilled every day since the new year began (yes, I know, that's only two days!- but that's two days more than last year!). I'd like to do it at least 4 days a week and when my endurance and breathing and strength has improved, I want to add a bit of weight training and exercise ball toning to my plan. And it will be easy - I have my own personal trainer - my sister-in-law does that for a living! We've already discussed some exercises that I can add in but that was months ago, when it briefly crossed my mind... I'll meet with her again to create a plan when I really decide to add it into my daily program...

Santa came and his imminent visit was the impetus I needed to clean my house. It looks so nice and festive and the holidays will last until at least Martin Luther King Day this year - my mom isn't due home from Arizona until the 11th and I'd like to do a family dinner the following weekend to welcome her home... Of course, since this is the place I can be honest (after all, who's reading this but me!), you can't go into Maria's room or into the computer room (formerly known as Johnny's room) without a helmet on - all the stuff I cleaned out of the rest of the house is hidden behind those two closed doors! That is part of my New Year's resolutions - no - lifestyle changes - to clean and keep my house clean.

My friend Chris has this habit of missing my b'day by one day every year - he either calls or emails or snail mails the day before or the day after - this year I must have been really good 'cause he emailed me, and then sent me a card, too! Thanks, Chris!

Well, this was much ado about nothing, to quote Bill and imply a Seinfeld connection... perhaps my next entry will be a bit more in keeping with the story of me and mine...

Thank you to my one and only commenter! Glad to hear someone's reading this! And that I haven't bored you to death! I'm so busy I don't really get a chance to write very often (obviously!), but I hope you'll check in from time to time to catch up!

I got a Christmas card yesterday from Chris' parents. Mrs. T. invited Jack and me to visit next June or Thanksgiving, and mentioned that our holiday card (the first where I included a photo of the two of us) is hanging on their fridge, with "the rest of the family." I've met these people a handful of times in my life, but they are so very important to me. I always write "miss you" in the Christmas cards I send them, and it's true.

Chris is an integral part of my life, a friend I first met in November of FHP year, but who became my "BFF" on January 30, 1978. We began to spend time together - not time, TIME. We were together for hours on end, hanging in the College Center, just talking, just being with each other (when he wasn't with Lorna!). He is a smart, kind, thoughtful, considerate, funny man, and I'm proud to call him my friend.

There was a time I thought he might be more than a friend, but distance can sure put a whammy on that! On one of my visits, he got drunk and we made out on the front porch of the house where the party was being held. Looking back, that was strange! Fun, but strange! He was Chris, after all. Even though I thought I wanted that to happen, I was nervous. Then we went back to Tim's house and we "slept" together - literally. He passed out in the bed (drinking can do that to you!) and when he rolled over and his arm landed across my upper body, I froze. And that was the end of sleep for me! The first time I ever "slept" with a man, and I was SOOO nervous! And all we did was sleep!

Then he met his wife and they are happy. I can see it when I see them together. I visited them in 1992, while  P and I were driving cross-country. I think "D" (Chris' wife) was a bit uncomfortable with my visit, but when she came this past October with Chris and their three boys, I truly felt as though that was gone. It was so nice to see him so happy with her. Their sons are TERRIFIC and C & D deserve kudos for being GREAT parents!

So... back to Chris... We spent all of second semester/freshman year together. When school was over, he wrote me a note and instructed me to read it when I got home. I cried all the way him from Delaware, sure that I would never see him again. ("Why are you crying? He's not crying 'cause he's not going to see you..." Thanks, Mom!!) His note (if only I could find that autograph book! Hopefully it's in Mom's attic.) said something along the lines of being my friend forever. It's 28 years later, and we still are!

He followed the harvest for a summer, and we wrote back and forth. It's funny, but I can still go days, weeks, months without thinking of him, then all of a sudden, I'll think of him, and he'll call. He'll pop back into my life with a phone call or a letter. We've always been "connected" that way!

He came to visit two or three years later, while I was in the Park Place apartment, then again for our FHP reunion. That was cool - the rest of the class was amazed that we were sharing a room in Christiana Towers - "you and Chris???!!!" Yup.

In between, my college graduation present from Mom and Dad was a plane ticket to visit Chris in Missouri ("Are you sure you don't want a watch, or something?"). I spent a week or so out there - had a wonderful time! Spent time with Mr. and Mrs. T. Met Gail and her family, Tim and his. Met Grandma Franklin - what a wonderful lady, may she rest in peace.

Then I flew out there for Chris' wedding, spent some time with the family again. One of the nicest things anyone has ever said to me was Mr. T's comment that he wished I was going to be his daughter-in-law. I know they love D, but it was nice to hear how much they loved me, too!

In 1999, Chris and D flew out here for our wedding (at that point, I really didn't speak with her too much, I'm sorry to say), and then this past October, their whole family came to NYC for vacation, and spent a couple of evenings with us. (Thanks, guys!)

Chris is so much a part of my past, and my present, and hopefully we'll stay friends forever. It's the kind of relationship where we email back and forth a few times, every 4-6 months or so, and we talk on the phone maybe once or twice a year. But always, always, we are friends. There's no awkwardness, no lack of things to talk about... We're friends. And that's nice.

I'm proud of the fact that there are a few people in my life that have been there for what seems like forever. People who played different roles in making me who I am today. People who still mean the world to me, and to whom I am eternally grateful for being part in my life.

As promised...

The first night of college was nothing if not exciting! There was a hurricane warning so they advised students to go into the basement of whatever building you were in. I was in the College Center, having just finished eating dinner with a dorm neighbor, Sue L. (first names and initials only, to protect the innocent and not-s0!). The basement was crowded and there was really no room for us, so John P. (I remember a big football type body and white, white teeth!) suggested we sit on the floor under the pool table. And we did.

Now, at 45, almost 46, it's incomprehensible to me that I actually sat under a pool table with a stranger, and talked animatedly with a guy holding a cue stick who, every few minutes or so, stuck his head down to see if Sue and I were still okay! We stayed there about 45 minutes to an hour, then people started leaving, so we did as well. Back to the dorms (Carpenter Hall, on the Wesley College campus in Dover, Delaware), to get ready for bed and the beginning of my college career.

The Freshman Honors Program at the University of Delaware was only a couple of years old at the time; we might even have been the second class or so. (It's a long, long time ago, and I can't still remember... an awkward reference to a popular song...) The Program was housed on the Wesley College campus, although we were University of Delaware students. Wesley College, at the time, was known for its nursing program and its football team, not necessarily in that order! Imagine a class of 130 or so geeks, on their own for the first time in their short lives, on a campus surrounded by macho football players... It's a story waiting to happen.

And stories did - happen, that is. Here are a few highlights (lowlights?):

1. At least one attempted suicide (that I know of)
2. More drinking and drugging (not me, ever) than I've ever thought about, let alone witnessed
3. Parties, with and without microdots, costumes, and beer
4. Four days of class, and one "free day," Friday, for visits to main campus in Newark, DE, via the FHP shuttle
5. Although not my first experience with cutting classes, my first experience with not being scared to do it - after all, I was "in college," an adult, responsible for myself (not really, check out my grades that first year!)
6. Chris
7. Chris, and
8. Chris.

Can you tell that Chris was an important part of my freshman year? And guess what?! He's still an important part of my life, even now, 28 years later!!!

But enough for now - he warrants his own entry... more later...

More about me...

It was a big decision, to leave high school and go to college at 16-1/2 years of age, and I was a young 16-1/2. My parents were very old-fashioned and protective, and although I never had a problem with that (even then), I can truly appreciate the wonderful upbringing I had and I'll be forever grateful to them.

I took the PSATs and the SATs on schedule, and after my SAT scores arrived (don't even ask me now wha they were, but they were good), the college brochures started to arrive. I can clearly remember receiving flyers from Case Western Reserve University, Lehigh Valley University, Washington University,...

I had never even considered the University of Delaware but one day I had a meeting with my high school guidance counselor, Mrs. Betty Zoehller. One of the routine questions was, "Have you heard from any colleges? Which ones?" So I started reciting the list. I sort of threw the UD Freshman Honors Program in there, in conversation. It wasn't something I ever would have considered, but Mrs. Z. jumped on it! "The UD FHP doesn't ask just anyone to be in that program! You have to respond to that!"

So I did. I was asked to come down for and interview, and so we went, Mom, Dad and me. I interviewed with Stephen Skopik, the biology professor. I remember him asking me what made me think I was good enough for the University of Delaware, and I remember replying, "I don't know that I am, but I'm here to see if the University of Delaware is good enough for me! They're the ones who sent me the brochure!" I can remember trembling as I said it; even then that was pretty aggressive for me! I could just feel my mom grimacing behind me... Dr. S. just chuckled and went on with the interview. We toured the campus - I remember seeing Hullihen Hall, Memorial Hall, the Morris Library, the Green. We have a great picture of Dad in his shorts and a white T-shirt, standing on the steps of Hullihen Hall with his hands up in the air like he was being arrested - there was a security guard behind him locking the doors!

I joined the FHP and became a FHP!

I started keeping a diary on August 16, 1977 - two weeks before FHP, the day Elvis Presley died. I can remember it like it was yesterday.

The next time I make an entry, I'll tell you about my first night on the Wesley College campus...

Work, work, work! How I wish I was independently wealthy, or had a money tree in the backyard... I do like my job, I just want to sleep in when I want to, shop when I want to, clean my house when I want to, visit when I want to, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera... How King and I of me!

I'm traveling to Alexandria, VA, next week to visit 4 of my key accounts. I called a couple of other accounts, to fill in some free hours, but they're traveling as well, so that didn't work... I've put together my sales kits and Jack will pick me (and them!) up this afternoon so I don't have to schlep them across town...

We're supposed to go to the lake tomorrow morning, but it's supposed to rain heavily all weekend; if we wait to go tomorrow, the wood will be soaked. So we changed our plans to go tonight - the rain is starting tonight. So now, who knows when/if we'll go. I have plenty to do around the house, so if we don't go this weekend, that would be okay. PLUS I have some shopping to do - the holidays are upon us, and I need some clothes as well.

I'm so happy I'm at 23 pounds and losing; I can really see it and feel it now. Now, if I could only get off my butt and exercise, too --- I just really have no desire to do it...

I guess I'll start my life story now... I was born to Mom and Dad in 1960. Mom's Polish, born and bred, and Dad's American, of Dutch, English and American Indian descent (Lenni Lenape, I believe). Mom and Dad were of the old school - I was raised to be polite and respectful, and I'm happy about it! We didn't have much money - what we had went to food, shelter and education for the three of us. P was born in 1965 and C in 1966. We all went to St. Thomas the Apostle School (grades 1-8) and to Paul VI Regional High School in Clifton when it was time for high school.

I skipped my senior year in high school to early admit into the Freshman Honors Program at the University of Delaware. We were housed on a satellite campus (Wesley College) my first year, then we moved on to the main campus in Newark, DE. And the stories begin...

I don't know who really cares, but here it is - my boring little piece of the world!

I'm 45, married (we're still as happy as newlyweds after 7-1/2 years of marriage, and 16 years together), with two step-children, 3 nieces, 2 nephews, a nephew-by-marriage, and two little second cousins who are my niece and nephew at heart (their dad is my first cousin but we were raised closely enough that he might as well be my brother!).

If you know me, you know I love to read. I surround myself with books. I always have at least two or three going at once. I carry at least one with me at all times and nothing makes me happier and calmer than a good book. I'd rather read than watch TV. I'd rather read, actually, than do almost anything else at all! I love romances, contemporary ones if I have my choice, but I also enjoy general fiction. I've been known to read a political book or two, when it slants my way (to the right), and non-fiction when the subject piques my interest. Some of my favorite authors are Jodi Picault, Tami Hoag, J.K. Rowling, Ayn Rand, Dean Koontz, Nicholas Sparks, Mitch Albom - yes, they're pretty much all over the map!

I've never considered myself very artistic but I've found a recent talent for scrapbooking. I also never considered myself to be an addictive personality type, but let me tell you - scrapbooking is addictive for me! I think it's because I like the pages I create, I tend to want to do it more and more. I never realized the push to create could be so strong.

I've always wanted to write - I used to swear that I had so many stories to tell - but I don't think I have it in me. I'm too self-critical. I tried once, tried to write a romance. I've read so many of them that, well, how hard could it be, right? WRONG! I came up with a story set in Alaska (my dream vacation), with a hero based on my teenage perception of who Mr. Right would be (not even close to my Mr. Right!), a heroine who was loosely based on Laurie Partridge in looks (yes, "The Partridge Family" was a big part of my preteen life!), and several pages into my first draft, what did I discover? The book had been written before - by another author, with more talent and imagination than I had.

Now I know that "art is based on life" and "there's nothing new under the sun" and I even know that Harlequin has an actual format for writing a romance novel, but I wanted it to be original, fun to read, good, darn it! And it sucked! So I tore it up!

I'm sort of insecure and secure in myself at the same time. I mean, deep down inside, who's really all that secure? But I know I'm loved, I know I'm a good person, I know I put others first, I know I'm not stupid - but deep down inside, in my heart of hearts, I'm that little girl who was a bookworm, without a lot of friends (but certainly I had a few!), who always wanted to be bigger and better than she was. Today I'm a wife, mother, daughter, sister. I have a job in a field I love (publishing - although who'd have thought I would be in sales?!?! But that's another story for another time!), and I'm doing okay at it. I have friends. I'm happy.

And now, now I have a blog. I have blogs on other websites, but I think I'm going to delete them and move that stuff over here, to one site, where I can put a little piece of me out there for you.

I'd love to meet you - write back!

More at a later time...