Blue Skies

New Chapter - "No More"

2010-03-19T01:12:00.005-04:00

So the latest news is that I'm renovating my grandparents house for me to live in. Mom and I were talking on the phone one night while I was working late (again) and said that we should really have a room set up at my grandparent's house for when I work late. Then as we talked more she asked why don't I move in there. That got us all thinking and talking. I went up to see it since it has been empty for about 2 years. I looked around and yes it needs some work but it has great potential. As I walked around looking and making a mental list of the things that had to be done and hearing all the cons and the money that would be needed to update it when something happened to me which I really don't know how to explain. Let's just say that a peace washed over me and I just knew that it was the right thing for me to do and so here I am now with just a few weeks before move in day.

The house is in Hapeville and maybe a little over 2 miles to work. Wait...did you comprehend what I just said...I'll let it sink in...per Google Maps it is 2.2 miles!! I could bike to work. It is just a couple of minutes door to door. And I ask myself...WHY DID I NOT DO THIS SOONER???? No more irritating drivers on 1941...YAHOO!!! No more having to pass the other two lanes of traffic in the 3rd far right lane. No more waiting on the school bus to turn out of my street and not making use of the turn lane. No more having to blow the horn to wake up the driver in front of my at the light who is spacing out that yes indeed the light has turned green. No more worrying about hitting pedestrians who dart out on the highway no matter day or night with or without kids. No more weaving by peps who decide when they pick up the phone that it is OK to drive 30 miles an hour in the left lane. No more getting pissed when people don't know how to merge. No more being cut off by people not realizing that the lanes end. No more idiots on the interstate who when see a cop slow to 45 miles an hour in the left lane. No more blood pressure rising on the way to work. My biggest traffic nuisance will now be the train that runs right through the heart of Hapeville but luckily there are 3 or 4 ways to even bypass that. Can you tell I'm excited with my commute? Come on 1st weekend in April!!!

More to come...

20 Years...Has it been THAT long?

2009-10-01T00:15:00.003-04:00

This past weekend was Fayette County High School's class of 1989's class reunion. REALLY...has it been 20 years since I graduated? Where did the time go?

I volunteered to be part of the reunion committee early on and put in some suggestions here and there. All the sudden September was upon us and the weekends ticked away. My tasks were simple - some music suggestion, order a birthday cake, and make a birthday hat. All easy breezy for me!

Short version of the weekend: Cindy Jordan McMurray came up and was my roomie, met Angela Caldwell and Ashley Kendricks for mexi at El Reposo for three pitchers of Patron margaritas, back to the hotel for a bottle of wine, 2am late night, late morning, Brake Pad for lunch, acted as unofficial welcoming committee in the lobby, pre-reunion meeting in the clubroom, reunion 6pm-1am, dropped off my bags in the room around 2 then things seem to blur. Honestly had a GREAT time! All the clicks from school pretty much vanished and everyone was really glad to see each other!!! Just not enough time to talk to everyone!!

Heard someone had a little scuffle in the hallway at the reunion but won't mention any names to protect the innocent. Let's just say it wouldn't be a FCHS class '89 reunion without a fight! God Bless Us All!!!

Facebook has lots of pics. I'll post some here soon.

The 2009 Grammys

2009-02-08T22:26:00.014-05:00

WOW!!! The Grammys never disappoint me! The collaborations and the MUSIC! OMG!!! Sooo many performances that were AMAZING! Radiohead rocked! I love "American Boy" by Kanye and Estelle! TI and JT, Sir Paul and Dave Grohl, Chris Martin and Jay-Z....oh my, each a legend in their own right! I have to say Taylor and Miley's "Fifteen" was REALLY good! Jennifer even brought me to tears! Adele, Smokie, Ne-Yo, Jamie, Sugarland, Kenny, Katy, Carrie, Boyz II Men, Al Green, Keith, and Stevie Wonder ya'll! Swagga Like Us killed it and MIA is about to pop! Loved the blues tribute to Bo Diddley by BB, Buddy Guy, John Mayer, Keith Urban. The "doing this for New Orleans" performance with Lil Wayne and Robin Thick and the band had me dancing...'Put your hands up for New Orleans". Robert Plant and Alison Krauss...I have this album...two destinct voices that are made to sing together...Gone, Gone, Gone. U2...I WILL PUT MY BOOTS ON!!! Kid Rock...AMEN!!!!! And to top it off...BLINK 182 IS BACK TOGETHER!!!!!!!!

I HATE to say this but did anyone see the "Other Cola's" commercial "Forever Young" with Bob Dylan and Will.I.Am? LOVE it except for the last few seconds which showed the "Other Cola's" logo.

Side note...Neal Diamond was one of the first concerts I ever went to with my mom. I must have been 7 or 8. He still rocks, OK maybe I should say sways...heehee!!!! SWEET CAROLINE, BAH, BAH, BAH, GOOD TIMES NEVER SEEM SO GOOD!!!!

I'm so thankful that my mom, dad, Mama Chris, Daddy Bob, and all my friends have supported and nourished my love of ALL MUSIC!!! "ALL ABOUT THE LOVE AGAIN"!!!!!!!

Mama Chris

2009-02-03T22:08:00.004-05:00

Just some things about my grandmother, Christine Smith Stembridge. She was born on February 4, 1920 and passed away January 31, 2009. She was the 7th child of 8 living on a farm in Rockledge, GA. She went to Berry when it was a finishing high school (I have her high school ring). She had a contagious smile and a great sense of humor. She was a nurse and met my grandfather when stationed with a clinic in Ellijay, GA. She married my grandfather around midnight. When my grandfather moved the family to Atlanta she went to school for accounting and then got a job with Coca-Cola. When she was given the news that she was going to be a grandmother she said she was "too young" to be called granny which is why we called her Mama Chris.

Mama Chris blessed my life with more love and encouragement than any grandmother could give. She showed me how to live...laughing, loving, and sharing all that she had. She taught me my first phrase "Eeewww, Laa-Laa!" She taught me to giggle and was always making faces at me to make me laugh. She taught me to sing "Jesus loves me" and meant it. She taught me that family matters most and even though our immediate family was small with mom being an only child that we had a large support group including all 7 of her brothers and sisters and their families. She encouraged me to do whatever I wanted to do and she would be right there routing for me. If she had a dollar she would give 10% to the church and then help others in need. She was not only my grandmother she was one of my best friends!

Some of my most precious memories are of her teaching me that it was all about having style. She sported the most beautiful hair with finger curls which always amazed me and my ringlets. Of course I paid tribute to her one night in our Riverdale house when I was about 5 by pulling on her "granny panties" and her hair net and posing for the camera. I tried to put the bobbie pins in my hair too but couldn't figure out how they opened. I'll have to find that pic and post it...goodness I was fashionable!

Our Saturday routine growing up was to meet Mama Chris at the mall. We shopped everywhere. When we were real young we shopped at Greenbriar. She would take us to Rich's, then treat us for lunch at the Orange Julius and sit out to watch the birds in big cages that looked like trees. On special occasions she would take us to Rich's downtown to shop and eat at the Rich's Tea Room. When Southlake opened that was where you could find us on any given Saturday. We would shop at Rich's and then go to El Chico's for lunch...which I now realize that mom and Mama Chris loved El Chico's for their margaritas. :) If we did not meet on Saturday then on Sunday we would meet Mama Chris and Daddy Bob (he was also too young for granddaddy) for lunch at ChiChi's usually with some mall action following. And you guys wondered where I get my shopping habits from and why I worked at Rich's during college...hummmm.

She told us jokes and made us laugh all the time. We made faces at each other until the very end. Right before she went into hospice care when she was still in the hospital she told me that she loved me and then stuck her tongue out at me which made me laugh. My last time seeing her in the hospice I was talking with her and told her that I knew she couldn't talk to me but that she should just wink at me. She shut her eyes a couple of times slowly then wrinkled up her nose and squeezed her eyes real tight. That was her wink to me and I will treasure it ALWAYS.

I KNOW SHE LOVED ME BUT I WILL MISS HER!!! Again, my heart is heavy but I KNOW that she is up singing with the angels. She is sitting with her sisters and brothers and Mama and Papa Smith giving them all updates on all our family. I know she is finally at rest and that I will see her again one day.

Happy Birthday Mama Chris!

Once a Klutz ALWAYS a Klutz!!!

2009-01-17T14:44:00.016-05:00

First off...Sorry that I have been away for so long! Life just happened and I have not had any free time to post. 2009 will be a better year I promise! I will catch up on my trip information with pics...hopefully some this weekend.

OK, now on my title. I have been planning a trip for this holiday weekend but we have had difficulty figuring out where to go. Working for an airlines won't make you rich monetarily BUT it truly can make you rich in culture and experiences! Europe was out because it is just too cold and we just didn't have enough time so we started thinking Central or South America. We (Kathy, Millie and myself) had narrowed it down to Guayaquil Ecuador, Bogota Columbia, or Honduras but had not made a real decision. Then Liberia Costa Rica came up as a thought and a decision was made with us leaving on Saturday. Cool...check, plan made.

So I go into work on Friday knowing that even though I was not traveling on Friday I was still going to leave by 1:30 because I had put in so many hours this week already. Wahoo...another plan, check, check. The morning is going good since I had my morning reports all finished by 9:20. I go get coffee and have about 40 minutes before morning briefing...ALRIGHT! I had finally gone to Barnes and Noble to get a wall calendar the night before so I got it out of my bag. I normally get a calendar for the next year the first part of DEC but I was way behind this year. No worries though...I found another 365 days of Italy calendar which is awesome! My only problem is that now we have these short walls that no normal size calendar fits on so I have been cutting my calendars in half displaying them side by side. I get out my handy-dandy "safety" scissors that have followed me around Delta for the last 10 years of office life. I'm cutting across the binding no problem. **WARNING**...IT IS COMING!!! I get to the last cut and the calendar pages slide and in slow motion I see the scissors coming together feeling my left hand move with my index finger in the line of fire. Can't...react...fast...enough...to stop or release the scissors. My eyes are now shut and I'm thinking "please don't be bleeding, please just be a blood blister". I open them and there starts the blood. OMG!

For those that know me well know that I do not do good with seeing MY blood or my any of my families. Out of character I calmly stand up and say to my cube mates that I have cut myself and ask if they know where the first aid kit is located. I go to our AA Renee (thank goodness who is a mom) who helps me. As she is getting the band aids I'm starting my "don't faint or cry dance" which she is giggling at then asks to see my finger...I think she started my little dance next. :) We try to stop the bleeding to no avail so after briefing I'm off across the campus to go to our new nurses station. It took 20 mins of poking and prodding for the nurses to realize that it was too deep of a cut for them to treat and to decide where to send me. Getting directions took another 20 mins...HELLO, I'm bleeding here!!

I'm now at Centra Urgent Care and seeing the doctor. Both nurses and the doctor share a giggle with my plight on how I've created this gash. At least two stitches are needed and the doctor asks if I have ever had Durmabond? I laugh...Have I ever had Durmabond...she obviously doesn't know me. I relay my stories of using a Madelaine without the safety guard...now I see the nurses doing my little freaked out dance to which I called her out on and we all have a laugh! I get my finger glued back together, get another tetanus shot, share a few more laughs with the staff, and head back to work.

It is now 12:30...where in the hell did my morning go??? I still have things I have to finish so I single handed type my email responses. I finish what normally would take me 40 mins in about 2 & 1/2 hours. I decided that I had had enough and left early.

Needless to say Costa Rica was out for this weekend. My hand is throbbing and it has taken my an hour to type this post. I'm ridding the couch for the rest of the day!!

BTW, I can do this pose really well now!

Love (and other disasters)

2008-07-05T23:08:00.005-04:00

OMG! We saw a surprisingly AWESOME movie tonight! "Love and Other Disasters" written and directed by Alek Keshishian. It was amazingly funny and sweet without being over the top corny. Brittany Murphy's character Jacks encompasses the innocence, look and charm of Audrey Hepburn...in fact her favorite movie in L&OD is "Breakfast at Tiffany's". The other characters in L&OD are casted beautifully! Catherine Tate who plays Talullah is a hoot! The male characters from Matthew Rhys who plays Jacks' gay roommate that is searching for Mr. Right in all the wrong men to Santiago Cabrera who plays Paulo who is Jacks Mr. Right but she thinks is gay...they are endearing, trustworthy, and wonderfully written. Although Brittany does a lot of romantic-comedies I think this by far is her true first attempt a a more grown-up and believable role! All in all I LOVE this movie and will definitely watch it again and so should you!

Happy 4th of July!!!

2008-07-04T23:28:00.003-04:00

The 4th of July has to be one of my favorite holidays! I love fireworks!!! I normally go out to watch them either in downtown ATL or we over to Peachtree City to watch them over the lake. But this year I did not feel like braving downtown since Pride is this weekend and it most likely is a mad house full of people.

Even not out in the crowd I am still such a sap! Between singing with the music, watching in awe, and the overwhelming sense of patriotism I ALWAYS tear up on the 4th! I've dated my share of military men, I have friends still in the military, my dad and uncle were in the Navy and have a brother-in-law fresh out of his military career straight from his last tour in Iraq...so I get it! This holiday stands for our freedom! How can you not get teary eyed or have your heartstrings tugged on? You may not agree with the current president on LOTS of issues but guess what...that is what makes this country so great...we have the right to BELIEVE in what we choose because of the freedom our forefathers fought for! This is a day to celebrate that freedom!!! So it is our right to live, love, and celebrate!!!

I watched fireworks on TV for the first time since I was little. I was awestruck! We watched the show from the Capital which was amazing! Next we switched it over to the ones from ATL and lastly over to the Boston Pops with Rascal Flatts! WOW!!! Three hours of awesome music and fireworks! And to top it off the Boston Fireworks show featured the Dropkick Murphey's "I'm Shipping Up to Boston" and Rare Earth's "I Just Want to Celebrate"...I love this country!!!

OK...it could be the wine...I love this wine too!!!

Celebrate, Be Happy & Be Safe!!!

My 37th Birthday

2008-06-22T19:46:00.006-04:00

May 13th was my 37th birthday. I had lots of birthday wishes, birthday lunch, and cake! To top it off my friends Jennifer and Judd took me out to dinner at the Geisha House at Atlantic Station. OMG...what a great place! The food was DE-LISH!! We had so many different types of sushi, saki infused cocktails and then desert...you must try the deserts!!! Our waitress was awesome and then one of the hosts sang "Happy Birthday" to me...amazing!!! I had such a great time and my friends are outstanding!!! Thanks JLo and Juddrick for making my birthday so much fun!!!

http://picasaweb.google.com/mendyb513/My37thBirthday

Rhett and Janine's Wedding 04262008

2008-06-22T19:12:00.015-04:00

On Saturday, April 26th I went to the wedding of two of my friends that I met at Delta...Janine Northrup and Rhett Morgan. I've been lucky enough to witness their relationship from the very beginning. I remember Rhett asking me what I knew about Janine and then Janine asking me about Rhett when we were in Belize. We've all been out together over the years and I can't not say enough about what a great and really cute couple they are!!!

The wedding was outside on the golf course at Windermere Golf Club at 5:30pm. The weather held up and was gorgeous for the outdoor nuptials. It was amazing! After the ceremony the reception and dinner was in the ballroom of the Club. We had a great dinner, lots and lots of drinks, and of course there was dancing. Dancing from the moment Rhett and Janine stepped in the room...they had their traditional dance then boogied down! Janine and her bridesmaids performed a dance from Chicago too!!! Lots of laughs and good times!

As the night went on his Piehlness performed his "going out dancing" ritual of picking people up. He got Janine first and then he got Rhett. Like I said...LOTS of laughs!!!

http://picasaweb.google.com/mendyb513/RhettAndJanineSWedding04262008

Trying to catch up

2008-06-22T18:42:00.003-04:00

WELL...I've been pretty busy since the end of April...lots going on that I'll have to blog about. Let's see the short list of things that I'll be blogging on...
I went to the very special wedding of my friends Janine and Rhett
I've had a birthday
I went to Florence, Italy to visit my friend Julia and then we went to Venice
I just got back from Cairo, Egypt with a short stay in Amman, Jordan.

So as you can see I've been out and about and I'm very sorry that I have not posted lately but I promise to be better!!!

Watch for upcoming posts!!!

There and Back Again...And Gators!!!

2008-04-20T00:44:00.014-04:00

So Lori and I started our drive home on Monday afternoon. We make were making some pretty good time then we stopped to get gas before Dothan (I think) at Bob's. I wish I had thought to take a picture of Bob's. This family owned and operated gas station/bait shop/diner had very friendly help and boasted Bob's famous boiled peanuts so I had to try them. This is where the return trip's poor food choices begins again. What is it about road trips and bad food??? I had to get the Cajun boiled peanuts and I think Lori got some more Nerds. And....away we go.

Further down the road we start getting hungry again and we are wanting real food. We are coming up on Eufala, AL. but we can't make minds up and end up passing everything. Outside of Eufala we come across this gem...
I have probably driven by this place hundreds of times over the last 20 years and have never noticed it before. We got out and saw the following:

Oh my word...GATORS!!! Real live, up close gators! They were pretty close to the fence. We walked up and all of the sudden there were eyes popping up out of the water from all directions. Yes, they were behind a chain link fence but that did not stop me from doing a quick spin around to make sure there were none behind me. I'm such a dork! But this was pretty fascinating being so close. Well, off to what we came here for...roadside pizza!?! The signs say best roadside pizza around and we have passed everything for the next 30 miles or more...so we tried it. I must say it was not bad at all and it really traveled well!!!

Thanks Lori for sharing this road trip with me. I had a great time!!!

Road trip to the Padgett Farm

2008-04-19T20:11:00.021-04:00

I got an email from Julia saying that Mr. Ray had had a small stroke and that she was coming home for a week. She was distressed being so far away and not really knowing what the effects were on her father she wanted to come home. I totally understood and would do the exact same thing by immediately booking a flight home!!! So a road trip was being formed. The plan was for Lori and her Zoe to meet Julia at the airport on Sunday early evening then they would drop off Zoe at home and sweep back through the airport again to pick me up. Wahoo...on the road again!

I should let it be known that Lori, Julia, and myself really should never be in a car together. It's like when we are all together we loose all sense of direction and time but maybe it is because we are always talking or laughing. Normally there are exits missed or wrong roads taken BUT this trip there were just bad food choices (except for while at the farm)...just wait, you will see!

When they pick me up we all are starving! Luckily Lori had packed some Pirate's Booty to get us through...and through I mean all the way to Newnan from the airport. I think it is no more than 30 miles apart. We saw the signs for Sprayberry's BBQ and Julia has been craving BBQ since they don't have anything close to BBQ in Italy. We decided Sprayberry's would be our dinner choice. Well, just our luck...it was closed. UGH!!! But looking around Julia sees this place...

I mean with a name like that we had to try it since it was not Italian and an Island Grill had to be good. We go in and look at the drink menu. "Alright" we are thinking...this is going to be great since there is all sorts of fruity drinks...yummy! We should have left when the waitress said that they don't serve on Sundays. Hummm, ahhhhh yeah, there is a Ruby Tuesday's next store that does serve on Sundays but for some reason we decide to stay. I mean how bad could it be??? Stupid question! Next we flip the page of the menu and what is on the whole next page but Italian dishes, I mean Italian plus different fishes too...can you say weird! AGAIN, we should have gotten up at this point but again we still decide to stay. I ordered a grouper sandwich, Lori gets a grilled veggie wrap, and Julia gets a RUBEN?!? Do I really need to go on with this part of the story??? Welllll, my grouper sandwich and Lori's wrap was good at least. Julia may pick out some awesome restaurants in Italy but in Newnan, GA she is a little out of her league. Heehee!!! And then we are on the road again!!!!

We laugh, catch up on each other's lives, and eat candy. That is right, we stopped at a "LOVELY" (read between the lines - scary as hell) gas station and Lori bought Nerds. I have forgotten how much I like Nerds! We had the original grape and strawberry. They really should put a warning label on them with something like attention kiddie/adult sugar crack...very addictive!!! We drive on and surprisingly do not get lost even with a road detour thrown at us. Although it did take us a little extra time we show up at the farm around midnight.

The Padgett farm is "home" to a lot of us. I can't really explain it but as soon as you walk through the doorway you feel welcomed and at peace. Julia went in to see her dad while Mrs. Sandra made us a pitcher of margaritas. Thank you Mrs. Sandra!!! Mr. Ray came out to say hello and give hugs. He is doing great and looks good but was tired so he went back to bed. Of course there was another pitcher and we talked with Mrs. Sandra until 2am.

The next morning I awoke to hear Ms. Lucy and Julia talking. I slept in the bedroom that was once the old kitchen and it has windows surrounding most of the room so there was no going back to sleep. I got up to visit with Mr. Ray, Ms. Lucy, and Julia. Ms. Lucy had picked some honeysuckle and a few roses and created this gorgeous arrangement in honor of Willie Nelson's song "Honeysuckle Rose".

Julia discovers that there is bacon in the refrigerator and insists that we should eat it so her father is not tempted. OK, twist my arm. She makes me some of her famous eggs which I add to my breakfast burrito. Yum. This definitely was not a bad food choice. We sit around the table which is really part of the foundation of the Padgett farm. Most of my time at the farm is spent sitting around this table either watching Mrs. Sandra cook, reading her cook books, laughing at stories being told but mostly playing cards. Did I say how much I love this place and these people? Anywho...we visit a little more then Lori and I have to get back on the road. Here are some great pics of Mr. Ray and his ladies.

My next post will be about the ride home with Lori...so ya'll come back now ya hear!

5 days old...

2008-04-19T19:45:00.008-04:00

You forget how tiny babies are their first few weeks of life. Little bitty fingers and little bitty toes. Zoe is little bitty too...except for maybe her feet which like Zach's are long cute flippers.

Her I am holding Zoe and getting a hug from Zach...

Zach likes to hold his sister which is just the cutest thing. He helps her with her passie too!

OHHHHH to be this relaxed!!! All stretched out, kicked backed and relaxed!!! While we visited I told Kim I would show her how to make chicken pot pie. It is very easy and I asked Zach to help me. He got up on the step stool and I would give him different cans to pour into the casserole dish. He was a big help!!! When I was adding the black pepper I told him to hold his nose so he wouldn't sneeze. Aunt Men can always make him laugh!!!! Watch out Rachel Ray...our new cooking show will be called "Watch out for the pepper"!!!

Zoe Elizabeth

2008-04-01T22:30:00.012-04:00

Although she was ten days early we are so excited to have her here finally!!! Zoe Elizabeth was born on Monday night March 31st at 11:28pm. She made her appearance weighing in at 6 lbs 13 oz and is 18 1/2 inches long. She is beautiful and has a head full of curly hair.

Mom called around 9pm and said to start to head to the hospital and that Kim's contractions were 7 minutes apart. Dad and I got to the hospital around 10:30 and went back to see her. The nurse was still filling out her paperwork and her pains started coming closer and harder. At 11pm on the dot her water broke and then all the sudden I think 11 nurses were in her room. The doctor was not at the hospital yet and the nurses were trying to calm Kim and slow down the delivery. We soon realized that there was no time for an epidural and Kim was a real trooper...she did an awesome job. The on-call doctor no sooner made it into the room before Zoe decided to make her appearance at 11:28pm. Their real doctor made it in the room 5 minutes after Zoe's birth.

Kim and Zoe are doing great!!!!

PS...Zach LOVES his baby sister!!!!

Mommy's B-day 2MAR08

2008-03-25T23:39:00.005-04:00

My Mom's birthday was March 2nd. I won't tell you how old she is because she wouldn't like that but she would be the first to tell you that she now has her medicare card. WOW...my parents are getting old...heehee! Not to worry...I won't get in trouble unless I spelled it out...65...I mean SIXTY-FIVE! And she looks GREAT!!!!!!! Ohhhh, I'm in so much trouble!

Zach and the Hat

2008-03-25T23:35:00.004-04:00

I brought back Zach a handmade frog hat from Florence. I think he likes it!!!

Mama Chris's 88th Birthday 4FEB08

2008-03-25T23:15:00.006-04:00

Mama Chris turned 88 this year. My grandmother is a beautiful, caring, and giving person who taught me so much! What an incredible lady! I think she even taught me how to laugh and giggle and to say "Ooohhhh LAAA-LAAAA". We had a really good day when this picture was taken.

Bowling 26FEB08

2008-03-25T22:52:00.005-04:00

Catching up with pics:

Bowling with DL colleagues...

And the second "M" on the left scoreboard really was my score! 142...WAHOOOO!!!!! It was the first game that I have bowled in years. Then the beers kicked in and it went down hill from there.

Welcome Back Kotter...I mean Mendy

2008-03-25T22:06:00.010-04:00

I am SOOOOOO very sorry for the lost time and no blogging. Had a few hiccups with the computer and my new "DSL Extreme"...let's just say that I've had some technical difficulties which involved lots of cursing, crying, and pleading. But I'm back......

AND I have to welcome myself back with a sing-a-long to the theme of one of my favorite shows...http://video.aol.com/video/video-category/1859863 Just wish I knew how to embed the video but one thing at a time! :)

But I will share a beautiful recent sunset...

Quaint Shop

2008-03-02T19:28:00.005-05:00

If I ever decide to get married I have found where I will go look for a dress. There is the most beautiful gown shop on the way from the Duomo to Santa Croce. We have never been inside but the windows are always spectacular.

The Rocco Trattoria

2008-03-02T19:11:00.008-05:00

There are so many good places to eat in Florence but the Rocco Trattoria is by far one of my favorites. It is an unpretentious family restaurant in the middle of the San Marco Market. The surrounding outside market has fruits, veggies, clothes, books, household items and jewelry which is in an open air market with a roof. In the middle is a building where on the inside housed a coffee shop, 3 butchers, a fish monger, and the Rocco Trattoria. Needless to say the Rocco is supplied the best of the best of produce and meats. The last time I came I had stuffed zucchini which was most delicious. They also serve a baked pear in a caramel sauce that is out of this world. Luckily on the back of the daily menu is an English version so I can do some translating. The Rocco is the equivalent of a “meat and 2 vegetables” type of place with the great hospitality of an Italian family. Father and son run the front while the mom is in the back. There are several other family members helping out. The father is my favorite with his handlebar mustache and sparkling eyes. Anytime you are in Florence I would highly suggest that you search out this gem!

The Book Club

2008-03-02T17:49:00.008-05:00

The last time I was in Florence back in OCT 2007 I went with Julia to meet “ The Book Club”. If I remember correctly it was maybe their second official meeting. The club included at that time Julia, Angie, Kelly and Holly. I've known Kelly since Julia's first arrival in Florence from the FSU office but this was the first time meeting Holly who is a friend of Kelly’s and she works at another US university in Florence. Angie was Julia’s roommate and she is a fellow artist. So I was in town and I went not to discuss a book but to see my friends and have some drinks. If I remember correctly the book that was chosen for the next meeting was "A Prayer for Owen Meany". Here are the girls back then...

Flash forward to FEB 2008 – I’m in town again and Jules says BTW “The Book Club” is meeting to discuss Owen Meany. Heehee! Has it been such a short time since the last meeting? With the holidays and all it seems that this was the first time the club has been able to meet . AND the club now has two more members…the Angies. Now there are 3 Angies…Angie the Painter, Angie the RA, and Angie Angie with the Four Seasons. We meet up a bar called Kitsch which has a huge appretivo spread. If you have never been to an appretivo bar it is basically a happy hour with food. I guess Kitsch is know for a huge spread…anything from pasta to grilled veggies to stuffed brussel sprouts to assorted meats. It was crazy and I now know why it was so packed with people young and old and even kids were there to enjoy the relaxed atmosphere and great food. Of course there was not a LOT of the book discussed but is was discussed. The meeting is more of a social meeting to get together and visit and drink. Since Kelly and Holly remembered that I was at the last meeting there was some talk if I wanted to join so I am now the official transatlantic member. I can either write in, be a part of the discussion via Skype or just catch a plane for the next meeting. ;) We discussed several options for the next book and more rules for the meeting like one book written by an Italian author and a book of poetry must be included in the readings at some point. Everyone put in three choices for the next book choice and “The Unbearable Lightness of Being” was chosen as the next read. I can’t wait! Here they are now....

My Name is Lucca...

2008-02-07T14:17:00.000-05:00

Monday, FEB 4th 2008

We finally decided to take a day trip outside of Florence. Decisions, Decisions!! We got inspired while I was reading the guidebook that Cindy let me borrow that said Lucca is an hour train ride away which is great for a day trip. It also has a 3 mile wall that is built around the city that you can actually walk on. Sounded a little China wallish but they said there were always people up on the wall so we were sold. It should also be mentioned that within this 3 mile wall radius that there are 99 churches...being from the Bible Belt I had to see this! AND...I got to sing "my name is Lucca" ALL day long! Even made up words since I could not remember the whole song!

Here is one of the portas into the city wall...

Once we were up on the wall we realized that it is basically a tree lined path around the city where young and old strolled, jogged, or rode their bikes. There are several children's playgrounds, lots of moss on trees and several water fountains. It is kind of a magical place. We walked around on the wall for a little while as the sun started breaking through the clouds and then decided it was time to check out the city within. We had heard that they did not allow cars within the walls but to our dismay there were cars and scooters inside. Once placing ourselves "inside the map" and finding one of the churches of interest (San Frediano) we remember that it is Monday and most places are closed. UGH! We make the best of it took pics of the outside and even snuck into the Pilazzo Pfanner which was closed for the winter. What they don't know won't hurt them. So I got a great pic of the Pfanner's courtyard. Then on to San Michele, over to Pucinni's birthplace, and then it was time for lunch. We were scheptical of the lunch in the little cafe but we were suprised with a delicioius meal of mushroom lasagne and tortellini with ham & cream. Next we decided to see their Duomo which had the most beautiful stain glass but we were not allowed to take photos inside. We strolled around the city some more and the back to the wall. All in all it was a wonderful day to walk on the wall and sing "I live on the second floor, I live upstairs from you, I think I've seen you before".

Here is my flickr link for more pics than I have posted here. http://www.flickr.com/photos/15000395@N06/sets/72157603859568085/

"Little Boxes, Little Boxes"

2008-02-06T10:38:00.000-05:00

Oh My Goodness! On Sunday we had a veggie day once we finally got out of the bed around 1pm. :) Whoopsie! It is amazing how when you don't have english tv channels you find a way to watch something, anything non-italian. We caught up watching some episodes of Lost (3rd season) via iTunes. AND...I have a new love...WEEDS . What a great show! OMG!!! I'm hooked! Here is a pic of our "TV" lounge...notice Julia's baby Mac on the chair!

Angie's Pub

2008-02-06T10:13:00.000-05:00

There is the most interesting pub in the Santa Croce district called Angie's Pub. The clientele ranges from students to punks to intellectuals of all ages. There is always good music playing from their speakers and it is always dark inside. Plus the bartenders are hot "blobs".

Julia and I met up with Julia's old roommate Lexie for a pint (or two). Here are some picks with the flash...

Always the Gracious Host

2008-02-06T09:53:00.000-05:00

I've been waiting on the day to get back to one of my favorite cites...Florence, Italy. It just so happened that I start my new job on the International side of Pricing on the 12th and I have to finish most of this years vacation ASAP so of course my first thoughts were to go see Julia in Florence. Jules is always the gracious host always welcoming you to come visit. I jumped on the plane on JAN 31st, flew to Milan, and took our codeshare flight to Firenze. I have to say that I might not get paid much but the perk to just go get on an airplane whenever the flights look good is a wonderful thing!!!

I got into Florence around noon, got caught up on the going ons here, took a little nap while Julia went to teach English, and then Luigi came by for a welcome dinner. We had the BEST Indian delivery dinner! Way too much food but boy was it good!!!!!

B-day Pics for Julia

2008-01-28T12:49:00.001-05:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JULES!

Happy Birthday Julia!!!

2008-01-27T23:27:00.000-05:00

January 28th is my dearest friend Julia's birthday. I've known Julia most of my adult life. We met in English 101 which was our very first class in college and have been friends ever since. We have shared our dreams, our fears, laughs, tears, a house and our love of travel. She is still the only person I can understand with toothbrush talk. We created the rules for laughter...rule #1 don't make the other person laugh while drinking, rule #2 not while eating, and rule #3 not while smoking. Julia, THANKS for always making me laugh no matter what rules we break! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!! And I'll see you and Luigi very soon!!!

Today's Lesson

2008-01-23T21:29:00.000-05:00

It all started with the alarm clock that did NOT go off. At 7:30 am when my bladder finally said "enough already" I did my early morning shuffle past the clock in my bathroom when my brain started working just enough to register that I was running WAY late. So off to the races I go getting ready and in my car by 8. I lucked out and got to work in like 35 minutes (I promise I did not go over 65).
I missed my morning briefing but made it in time for our normal coffee run. "Yahoo" I'm thinking...maybe my luck for the day is changing. I mean come on. I made it to work in time for my favorite part of the morning anyway, right. We have one of those Flava Coffee machines where you put in your coffee packet and it brews one cup how you want it. I put my packet in, the machine starts up and then tells you to "catch the aroma of fresh brewed coffee" which I always mock by throwing my hands together as if I've physically caught the aroma like a baby bumble bee in my hands. And yes, I think of the children's song about squishing that baby bumble bee when I do this action but it is little silly things like this that make my work life bearable. I'm the first to say it...I know I'm goofy! The next thing I notice is that the machine is back to the beginning sequence where it asks you what kind of drink do you want. WELL, I want the French Vanilla coffee that was supposed to come out of the machine and into my cup so I can actually get to work. I now have to go back around the corner to the galley where I get another French Vanilla coffee packet to try this again. I go to the other machine, put my packet in and wait again but this time I decide not to move my hands in the air like the idiot that I am. I patiently wait while coffee comes out of the machine...ALRIGHTY NOW! Yeah, Life is Good until I look down to realize that this machine had give me an espresso shot instead of a regular cup. Oh well, this I can deal with.
Finally things start to stabilize when I get an email stating that one of my favorite guys on our management team has left our company. No details on where he is going or why. I hate seeing such a huge asset that has done so much for our department and company just leave. Plus he made me laugh all the time with his big hair band songs and smart-ass comments. Again, AUGHHHH!
Positive, Positive, I need a Positive to talk about. Ohhhhhh, my next trip to Italy to see my oldest and dearest friend, Julia. Now there is a positive. I think I'll be on flying the friendly skies the first part of February back to one of my favorite cites (Florence, Italy) to see one of my favorite people.

So here is what I realized today in song form:
"You take the good, you take the bad, you take them both and there you have The Facts of Life, the Facts of Life. There's a time you got to go and show You're growin' now you know about The Facts of Life, the Facts of Life. When the world never seems to be livin up to your dreams And suddenly you're finding out the Facts of Life are all about you, you. It takes a lot to get 'em right When you're learning the Facts of Life. (learning the Facts of Life) Learning the Facts of Life (learning the Facts of Life) Learning the Facts of Life."

Did you sing along? :)

Day 1 - Geek Night

2008-01-21T19:52:00.000-05:00

Geek Night...My friends Cindy and Smita (and whoever else is available) get together, have wine, maybe some dinner and blog. Cindy has invited me over to help me start my blog several times and I was never able to go. Finally on Monday, JAN 21, 2007 MY blogging has begun. WARNING...This blog is way over due and I've got a LOT of catching to do so please be aware that this blog will be skipping back and forth until I'm caught up.
Well...I had a very hard time at first with my new blog. I spent at least 45 minutes to an hour just trying to remember my gmail password. UGH! And now to remember which of my 5 email accounts did I set up as my gmail back-up? After a series of unfortunate events I reset my password and I'm off to the races. By the time I got my header set up with a picture it was dinner time. Cindy, Ernesto, and Smita collectively made and seasoned an awesome black bean soup that was topped with avocados and onions..."it was good as hell"! Now back to the computer! I'm in test mode and won't be writing a lot tonight so be patient with the newbie!!! Please and Thank You!