I have had writer's block for the last two days until I was in bed last night and I remembered how happy I was that Trav and I managed to eat a whole Turkey Breast by ourselves. Not in one sitting, of course, but in various ways over about 7 days.
I love left overs - Travis doesn't really love them, but he does love Turkey in all forms. We had a typical turkey dinner the first night, then turkey sandwiches, turkey w/rice and vegetables and most recently turkey over baked potato w/left over gravy and peas - quite delicious.
There is just something nice about using something up completely - no waste; putting Tupperware in the dishwasher after using its contents, not throwing them out. I thought maybe I had a picture of the turkey breast we cooked, Trav likes to document the big 'uns - turkey, pork shoulder, etc. but I could not locate it tonight. Regardless, it was a success and now I know we can use a whole turkey breast all by ourselves.
I Am Grateful,
HB
Diva Quote: "We recommend that no one eat more than two tons of turkey - that's what it would take to poison someone" Elizabeth Whelan
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Day #272 - Support
Oh...you thought I was done blogging...no way.
I can honestly say there is a tree in my yard that owes its more upright life to my blog. I was thinking about what I might blog about earlier today and suddenly got inspired to knock one more thing off my Summer to do list and Trav was there to help, so we lent some support to one of our most crooked trees.
I bought some mettle spikes at Home Depot not long ago and keep putting off digging the 1 foot holes that are necessary to get them in the ground. Two of the three I started on my own, but didn't get far - they are still sticking sideways out of the ground by the unfortunate trees, but today I had big strong Travis to dig through the clay and rocks enough to create the necessary support.
Sad Crooked Tree before - from the entry way this tree looks like a healthy pine bush, but as you walk up the hill you can see how crooked it is and how it is growing down hill, but the newer branches are pointing up to the sky and I couldn't help thinking it wanted to grow straight and tall like its giant sisters spread throughout our yard.
It took digging, pick-axing, digging some more, hammering and burying to get the spike in the ground far enough to make a difference; then we got some strong wire, cut up a hose and pushed and pulled the tree as far as we felt it could take it (I didn't want to break it in half after all that) and secured it to the spike.
Don't you think the tree looks happier in a more upright position? In a week or so we will go back out and tighten the wire to see if we can get it totally straight before winter. That snow is so heavy and it is hard for the little trees to stand tall under that weight all on their own.
I can wax on about how we all need a little support now and then, how the spike can represent any number of things in our lives, but you can draw your own metaphor...
I Am Grateful,
HB
Diva Quote: "Nobody trips over mountains. It is the small pebble that causes you to stumble. Pass all the pebbles in your path and you will find you have crossed the mountain." Anonymous
I can honestly say there is a tree in my yard that owes its more upright life to my blog. I was thinking about what I might blog about earlier today and suddenly got inspired to knock one more thing off my Summer to do list and Trav was there to help, so we lent some support to one of our most crooked trees.
I bought some mettle spikes at Home Depot not long ago and keep putting off digging the 1 foot holes that are necessary to get them in the ground. Two of the three I started on my own, but didn't get far - they are still sticking sideways out of the ground by the unfortunate trees, but today I had big strong Travis to dig through the clay and rocks enough to create the necessary support.
Sad Crooked Tree before - from the entry way this tree looks like a healthy pine bush, but as you walk up the hill you can see how crooked it is and how it is growing down hill, but the newer branches are pointing up to the sky and I couldn't help thinking it wanted to grow straight and tall like its giant sisters spread throughout our yard.
Here is Travis being Brawny:
It took digging, pick-axing, digging some more, hammering and burying to get the spike in the ground far enough to make a difference; then we got some strong wire, cut up a hose and pushed and pulled the tree as far as we felt it could take it (I didn't want to break it in half after all that) and secured it to the spike.
Don't you think the tree looks happier in a more upright position? In a week or so we will go back out and tighten the wire to see if we can get it totally straight before winter. That snow is so heavy and it is hard for the little trees to stand tall under that weight all on their own.
I can wax on about how we all need a little support now and then, how the spike can represent any number of things in our lives, but you can draw your own metaphor...
I Am Grateful,
HB
Diva Quote: "Nobody trips over mountains. It is the small pebble that causes you to stumble. Pass all the pebbles in your path and you will find you have crossed the mountain." Anonymous
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Day #271 - The Year Mark
When you document a full year of your life, you realize how quickly time flies by. One moment bleeds into the next until you are a full year ahead of the last. I started this blog Last Sept, 10th and here we are one year later and I am only...oh, 94 posts short of my 365 day year. Still at 271 posts that is just over 5 posts per week. I feel ok about that.
So...What have I learned during this exercise in blogging?
A few things stand out...It is not easy to maintain an attitude of gratitude all the time, but this blog has helped me to focus and think about the blessings I have been given even when it wasn't easy to find them. I am also less afraid of being vulnerable in these posts. I remember the first few posts and how difficult it was for me to hit the "publish" button. Sure, I have like 3 readers, but it was still intimidating and I feel more confident for going for it anyway. It is also interesting to look back and see how many big and little things happen in ones life over the course of a single year.
I will also say, writing a blog is cathartic...so many times this year I have found relief in expressing my feelings and reading those of my family and friends. And publishing a post decreases the likelihood I will write something completely negative or self defeating like I have written in more personal journals over the years.
Another advantage has been connecting with my sister who is my most faithful follower. I thought I knew who she was...I had no idea and it has been extremely fun to get to know her, to understand her and to have a closer relationship with her.
Thank you for sharing this year with me.
I Am Grateful,
HB
Diva Quote: "He who does not understand your silence will probably not understand your words" Elbert Hubbard
So...What have I learned during this exercise in blogging?
A few things stand out...It is not easy to maintain an attitude of gratitude all the time, but this blog has helped me to focus and think about the blessings I have been given even when it wasn't easy to find them. I am also less afraid of being vulnerable in these posts. I remember the first few posts and how difficult it was for me to hit the "publish" button. Sure, I have like 3 readers, but it was still intimidating and I feel more confident for going for it anyway. It is also interesting to look back and see how many big and little things happen in ones life over the course of a single year.
I will also say, writing a blog is cathartic...so many times this year I have found relief in expressing my feelings and reading those of my family and friends. And publishing a post decreases the likelihood I will write something completely negative or self defeating like I have written in more personal journals over the years.
Another advantage has been connecting with my sister who is my most faithful follower. I thought I knew who she was...I had no idea and it has been extremely fun to get to know her, to understand her and to have a closer relationship with her.
Thank you for sharing this year with me.
I Am Grateful,
HB
Diva Quote: "He who does not understand your silence will probably not understand your words" Elbert Hubbard
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Day #270 - Bun Bun
Today I was talking to a client relocating from CA to UT and he mentioned he has a dwarf bunny that he is trying to find a home for. The Humane Societies he has contacted only give the bunnies a few weeks before sending them to the big bunny run in the sky. I told him I actually have an idea and will get back with him tomorrow...
Ring, Ring..."Hey Amy, would you like to add a domesticated bunny to your other two boys and 3 chickens?"..."why would you ask me that?"..."I don't know, you already have two bunnies and might want one more"..."what color is it"..."does that matter?"...sigh,"ok, I'll take it, but you need to check with Archer"..."Archer? uh, ok"...
Archer turns 8 tomorrow...
"Hello"..."Hi Archer - I have a client who is looking for a home for his bunny. It is small and cute and comes when you call 'Bun Bun'. Do you think you could take him in?"..."Sure"..."well, will you take very good care of him?"..."Sure"..."so it is ok with you if they drop him off next week"..."yeah, sure it is fine with me"..."OK - THANKS".
I am totally stoked to call back this transferee and tell him I have a wonderful home for his beloved family pet w/my 8 year old nephew. Travis said if they really care about Bun Bun why don't they just keep it? Good question...but this was a fun thing to do for one of my transferee's, not the normal every day thing, but something he was really concerned and uncertain about.
I hope Bun Bun is a very good bunny and Amy and Archer are happy with their decision to help Bun Bun out. It was a good day.
I Am Grateful,
HB
Diva Quote: "Don't take life too seriously, you'll never get out alive." Bugs Bunny
Ring, Ring..."Hey Amy, would you like to add a domesticated bunny to your other two boys and 3 chickens?"..."why would you ask me that?"..."I don't know, you already have two bunnies and might want one more"..."what color is it"..."does that matter?"...sigh,"ok, I'll take it, but you need to check with Archer"..."Archer? uh, ok"...
Archer turns 8 tomorrow...
"Hello"..."Hi Archer - I have a client who is looking for a home for his bunny. It is small and cute and comes when you call 'Bun Bun'. Do you think you could take him in?"..."Sure"..."well, will you take very good care of him?"..."Sure"..."so it is ok with you if they drop him off next week"..."yeah, sure it is fine with me"..."OK - THANKS".
I am totally stoked to call back this transferee and tell him I have a wonderful home for his beloved family pet w/my 8 year old nephew. Travis said if they really care about Bun Bun why don't they just keep it? Good question...but this was a fun thing to do for one of my transferee's, not the normal every day thing, but something he was really concerned and uncertain about.
I hope Bun Bun is a very good bunny and Amy and Archer are happy with their decision to help Bun Bun out. It was a good day.
I Am Grateful,
HB
Diva Quote: "Don't take life too seriously, you'll never get out alive." Bugs Bunny
Monday, September 5, 2011
Day #269 - Labor Day/Miner's Day
Today is Labor Day and it is also known as Miner's Day in Park City. Trav and I drove out to town and walked up Main Street and then down below Main Street to the festival. There was food/drinks, live music, stuff for kids and a Muck and Drilling competition that we watched for a minute. By this time my camera was out of juice, but it was pretty interesting to see.
The BEST part of today, was kicking Trav's A** at the bean bag game we played. It was honestly one of the best moments of my life...:)
Park City was established as a mining town. The announcer of the competition said there are over 500 miles of tunnels under Park City. Travis and I went on a tour of one of the mines for one of our anniversary's when we stayed in PC. It seems like a hard job and not one I would be too excited to do.
This photo is a mural painted on the walls of a tunnel to the park. It is pretty cool.
I Am Grateful,
HB
Diva Quote: "Look at a day when you are supremely satisfied at the end. It's not a day when you lounge around doing nothing; it's when you've had everything to do, and you've done it." ~Lord Acton
The BEST part of today, was kicking Trav's A** at the bean bag game we played. It was honestly one of the best moments of my life...:)
Park City was established as a mining town. The announcer of the competition said there are over 500 miles of tunnels under Park City. Travis and I went on a tour of one of the mines for one of our anniversary's when we stayed in PC. It seems like a hard job and not one I would be too excited to do.
This photo is a mural painted on the walls of a tunnel to the park. It is pretty cool.
I Am Grateful,
HB
Diva Quote: "Look at a day when you are supremely satisfied at the end. It's not a day when you lounge around doing nothing; it's when you've had everything to do, and you've done it." ~Lord Acton
Day #268 - Point 2 Point - TRAVIS
I'm a few days behind on my blog, but I must give a race recap. I have mentioned before that Travis has been training for a 78 mile mountain bike race this whole year. The last few days before the race, I think he started psyching himself out, but I knew he had trained hard and would do well.
My job at the race was to meet him at two different spots throughout the race and give him some food and drinks he had prepared, take photos and be supportive. I took LOTS of photos:
Start of Race at Round Valley - Trav is full of energy and ready to go. I hung out for the first hour so I could see him go by after the Round Valley loop - he got there exactly when I thought he would:
The next stop was at Deer Valley. Each racer received two free lift tickets up to Silver Lake Lodge where the racers would arrive for the feed zone. For some reason I have begun to fear heights and especially ski lifts. I used to love them, but the last one we went on stopped so many times and took an hour and 1/2 round trip - I was so scared and tense by the end of that ride and not a little befuddled...when did I become afraid??? Hmmm...Anyway, this ride was smooth and I only got a little anxious if I started to think about falling. It was so beautiful and quiet on the way up - very peaceful.
Once up there I began to watch all the riders coming down the hill and spotted some unique looking jerseys - thank goodness Travis had on red sleeves so he was easy to spot. Travis was 30 minutes early at the feed station at Deer Valley Silver Lake Lodge...I was worried he might be pushing too hard, but he felt good and was rearin' to go, took off his red under shirt & zoomed off up the hill...now it would be pretty hard to tell who he was until he got close enough. Next year I told him he will need to wear something more noticeable.
It was the next feed station at Park City Resort that was tricky - Travis was an hour later then I expected him. It was around mile 54 and he still had 24 miles left to ride to make it to the finish in The Canyons. His inner thighs had started to cramp. This was my biggest worry about this race - the cramping. I was rushing around to get him water and exchange his bottles and he put his hand on my shoulder and said, "It's alright, I am going to stand here for a few minutes". So he shoved bananas, cookies and coke into his mouth and came to stand by me again. I asked him if he had the legs to finish - he shrugged his shoulders and said, "I don't know". I then asked him if he had the guts to finish, he simply said, "Yes". I told him I would see him at the finish.
Throughout the day I would update some of our friends and several people came out to support Travis at the finish line. It is hard because you don't know when they will be coming through, but they were in place at 4 p.m.
Finally, he came through at just over 10 hours, with a ride time of around 9.5 hours and 138th overall (over 300 racers) and 35th in his race group...I am so very proud of him.
I think he will want to do it again next year; there is something special about triumphing over yourself to finish something that wipes you out. I was talking to the wife of one of the racers who has done some of these epic rides as well and she said the last third of the race is all about guts, either you have the guts to finish, or you don't. This is why I asked Travis that question in Park City and because of his answer I knew he would make it to the finish line just fine. Way-to-go Trav!!!
I Am Grateful,
HB
Diva Quote: "Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever" Lance Armstrong
My job at the race was to meet him at two different spots throughout the race and give him some food and drinks he had prepared, take photos and be supportive. I took LOTS of photos:
Start of Race at Round Valley - Trav is full of energy and ready to go. I hung out for the first hour so I could see him go by after the Round Valley loop - he got there exactly when I thought he would:
The next stop was at Deer Valley. Each racer received two free lift tickets up to Silver Lake Lodge where the racers would arrive for the feed zone. For some reason I have begun to fear heights and especially ski lifts. I used to love them, but the last one we went on stopped so many times and took an hour and 1/2 round trip - I was so scared and tense by the end of that ride and not a little befuddled...when did I become afraid??? Hmmm...Anyway, this ride was smooth and I only got a little anxious if I started to think about falling. It was so beautiful and quiet on the way up - very peaceful.
Once up there I began to watch all the riders coming down the hill and spotted some unique looking jerseys - thank goodness Travis had on red sleeves so he was easy to spot. Travis was 30 minutes early at the feed station at Deer Valley Silver Lake Lodge...I was worried he might be pushing too hard, but he felt good and was rearin' to go, took off his red under shirt & zoomed off up the hill...now it would be pretty hard to tell who he was until he got close enough. Next year I told him he will need to wear something more noticeable.
It was the next feed station at Park City Resort that was tricky - Travis was an hour later then I expected him. It was around mile 54 and he still had 24 miles left to ride to make it to the finish in The Canyons. His inner thighs had started to cramp. This was my biggest worry about this race - the cramping. I was rushing around to get him water and exchange his bottles and he put his hand on my shoulder and said, "It's alright, I am going to stand here for a few minutes". So he shoved bananas, cookies and coke into his mouth and came to stand by me again. I asked him if he had the legs to finish - he shrugged his shoulders and said, "I don't know". I then asked him if he had the guts to finish, he simply said, "Yes". I told him I would see him at the finish.
Throughout the day I would update some of our friends and several people came out to support Travis at the finish line. It is hard because you don't know when they will be coming through, but they were in place at 4 p.m.
Finally, he came through at just over 10 hours, with a ride time of around 9.5 hours and 138th overall (over 300 racers) and 35th in his race group...I am so very proud of him.
I think he will want to do it again next year; there is something special about triumphing over yourself to finish something that wipes you out. I was talking to the wife of one of the racers who has done some of these epic rides as well and she said the last third of the race is all about guts, either you have the guts to finish, or you don't. This is why I asked Travis that question in Park City and because of his answer I knew he would make it to the finish line just fine. Way-to-go Trav!!!
I Am Grateful,
HB
Diva Quote: "Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever" Lance Armstrong
Thursday, September 1, 2011
Day #267 - Season's Change
There's a definite chill in the air here in The Park, as Elaine informed me the neighbors call our subdivision, Fall is on it's way for sure. I love the changing of all the Seasons, but Summer to Fall is the best. Just two days ago I thought I would be smothered by heat exhaustion in the loft while I typed away and tonight I had to close the window and put on socks. Soon the trees will begin to change again and the moose will come to visit...
I have the day off work tomorrow and have a nagging feeling I left something important undone...I stayed late tonight finishing up some paperwork that has been at the back of my mind all week, returned all phone calls, completed my time card and put my "out of office" on...I guess I will hear soon enough if there is a problem. I should just not worry about it, but I am my Mother's daughter after all.
ANYWAY, I took the day off so I can prepare for Trav's race on Saturday. He has been training hard for months now and I feel he is really ready to take it on. He is racing in the Point to Point race, which is 78 miles of mountain biking from Deer Valley, up and down through Park City Resort, up down and over to The Canyons w/a mile long uphill finish. My job is to provide him with fresh water bottles full of some powder that acts sort of like Gatorade without all the sugar and a baked potato w/salt and cheese mashed on it at two different stops throughout the day. He is taking me to the two stops tomorrow so I won't mess up (my words, not his).
I will take photos and provide details on Saturday and can't help being nervous for him. It will be a long day for me, but I have books to get through, including Atlas Shrugged (which I am LOVING all of sudden - the "John Gault Line" HA - Good one!). I am glad the heat has subsided and feel a warm day is much more conducive to endurance events then a super hot day. Now I just hope we have a long sustained Fall this year - it is the best time of year to live in The Park.
I Am Grateful,
HB
Diva Quote: "Live each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influences of each." Henry David Thoreau
I have the day off work tomorrow and have a nagging feeling I left something important undone...I stayed late tonight finishing up some paperwork that has been at the back of my mind all week, returned all phone calls, completed my time card and put my "out of office" on...I guess I will hear soon enough if there is a problem. I should just not worry about it, but I am my Mother's daughter after all.
ANYWAY, I took the day off so I can prepare for Trav's race on Saturday. He has been training hard for months now and I feel he is really ready to take it on. He is racing in the Point to Point race, which is 78 miles of mountain biking from Deer Valley, up and down through Park City Resort, up down and over to The Canyons w/a mile long uphill finish. My job is to provide him with fresh water bottles full of some powder that acts sort of like Gatorade without all the sugar and a baked potato w/salt and cheese mashed on it at two different stops throughout the day. He is taking me to the two stops tomorrow so I won't mess up (my words, not his).
I will take photos and provide details on Saturday and can't help being nervous for him. It will be a long day for me, but I have books to get through, including Atlas Shrugged (which I am LOVING all of sudden - the "John Gault Line" HA - Good one!). I am glad the heat has subsided and feel a warm day is much more conducive to endurance events then a super hot day. Now I just hope we have a long sustained Fall this year - it is the best time of year to live in The Park.
I Am Grateful,
HB
Diva Quote: "Live each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influences of each." Henry David Thoreau
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