Authors

Have you ever read anything by Jodi Picoult? She's a fabulous author! I've read every one of her books and I'm not sure which one is my favorite. Maybe My Sister's Keeper. Here's a link to her website: Jodi Picoult. Check it out! She writes about subjects that are current and hit close to home for many people. Her latest book, Change of Heart, has received mixed reviews, but I loved it.

Another one of my favorite authors is Lorna Landvik. The first book of hers that I read was Patty Jane's House of Curl and I fell in love. Here's her website: Lorna Landvik. Check it out, too. I think my favorite book of hers is Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons, but The View From Mount Joy is a close second and Patty Jane's House of Curl is right up there at the top, too. Oh, geeze, I can't decide which is my favorite! I love them all.

I also like Debbie Macomber, but her books aren't as thought-provoking as either Jodi Picoult's or Lorna Landvik's. They are a much easier read.

I love to read but I definitely have my favorite authors! I hope you check some of them out!

The Husband

My husband is a wonderful man. I'm not saying he's perfect, he definitely has his moments. But overall, he's a wonderful person. We've been married for 21+ years and I can't imagine being married to anyone else. We've had many ups and downs in our marriage, some were hideous to live through, but there has never been a moment that I doubted that I loved him or that he loved me. He has many physical ailments -- MS, diabetes, bipolar disorder, but we deal with all of those. His diabetes is under great control -- he eats a very low fat, healthy diet (unlike moi!) and has, in fact, lost a lot of weight in the last year. MS and bipolar are different animals and they are what affect him and us the most. But as long as he takes his meds, he does fine. He is on permanent disability but does a couple of part time jobs that keep him busy and brings in some much needed extra income. Believe it or not, he shovels horse poop in the mornings and delivers catered lunches in the afternoon and also does occasional wine deliveries. He also keeps our house neat and clean, does the laundry and the cooking. I'm spoiled rotten!! I love it! And I love him very much.

My Cat

I have a cat named K.C. (initials for Kitty Cat). She is a sweet, good kitty and I love her a lot. Here are some pics.

Isn't she pretty?

February

Well, February is here. It's my birthday month. Yes, I celebrate the entire month! And no, I'm not telling my age! If you read my earlier blogs there is detail in one of them that would give away my age so if you're really interested... It's also one of my niece's and my sister's birthday month as well. My sister and I have birthdays three days apart but we can't celebrate together because I live in Arizona and she lives in Missouri. What a drag.

I found out this week that two sisters and one brother are coming out to Arizona for my son's wedding in March! I'm psyched! It will be so much fun.

Kevin and I went to Teakwood's last night and the place was packed! Tony Dorset (sp?) was there signing autographs. Most of the people were in line to get his autograph so we got seats at the bar and had a good time. My nephew is a bartender there. It's a great neighborhood bar in Scottsdale. Great atmosphere, food and people. http://www.scottsdaleteakwoods.com/ If you go, ask if Jay is working at the bar and tell him Sally sent you!

We're going to our friends, Judy and Hank, for the Super Bowl. Should be pretty low key. Hope everyone has a great weekend.

Monday Musings

I figured out why I slept so much on Saturday -- I have a horrendous cold! I spent all day Sunday in bed as well... stuffed up, aching, coughing, sneezing, etc. Oh what a glorious weekend it was! I'm almost (almost!) glad it's Monday. I'm feeling somewhat better today, still stuffed up and achy, but not coughing or sneezing nearly as much. It seems like it's about this time each year I get this. I just hope it doesn't turn into bronchitis as it's been known to do. Enough kvetching about my health.

I can't wait until tomorrow night -- American Idol! My husband and I get together with a group of friends to watch it every week, Judy and Hank, Tracy, Debi and (sometimes) Donna. We have a blast! We take turns hosting it and it's always very casual. We each bring our drink of choice and the host/ess provides the food. Tomorrow we're at Tracy's house. I think she's making some kind of breakfast casserole (yes, for dinner!) and salad. Should be delish!! Can't say I've seen anyone too promising for the Idol yet this year, but it's just the beginning so I'm not too worried.

Gotta get to work -- may post more later.

Friday Night

I talked to my sister in St. Louis tonight and it inspired me to write about my family. I have a very close, loving family. Most of them live in the St. Louis area and I miss them so much. I have three sisters there and one brother (and one brother who lives in central Illinois) and am close to all of them. Two of my sisters have had breast cancer and it makes living far away from them that much harder. My mom died of breast cancer when I was fourteen years old so it's pretty scary. Even though that was 31 years ago (doesn't seem possible that it was that long ago!) and the advancements they've made in breast cancer treatment and research are remarkable, it's still scary. I think about losing either one of my sisters and I lose it. Enough of the downer stuff.

I made it through the work week! I have a fairly new job (been there three months) and so far I like it okay. Don't love it yet, but am hoping that comes with time. The people are very nice and it's a great organization and I'm hoping I stay there for the rest of my career. We'll see. The longest I've ever been at any one organization is eight-plus years with a company in Minneapolis, MN.

As I said in my profile, I'm married and have been for 21 years (to the same man!). I have two wonderful stepsons. One of them is getting married March 15! I remember when he was five years old and now he's getting married. Time goes by so fast... it makes me realize how important each day (in fact, each moment) is and appreciate it all the more. Again, going back to my original post about Kim (Parachuting Without a Net) and the short time she had with her daughters, every moment of life is precious -- live it without regret! I hope everyone has a great weekend!

My First Blog

Well, this is my first blog. I was inspired by Kim (Parachuting Without a Net) who doesn't even know me, to start this blog. Check out her blog if you haven't already, she's one heck of a lady!!

I'm not sure what I plan to use this blog for other than to post some daily thoughts. My thoughts today are simple: get through Friday and look forward to the weekend. I'll leave it at that for now and see if I can figure out how to publish this thing!