The Catch-Up Blog

Okay, so I haven't blogged in like, a month. This is sad.

Let's see, what's happened? Oh, I think I can call it "official" that my house is an actual weather magnet. Remember all the hail? Well, during the weekend of the Tulsa Tough bike race, one of my big backyard maples was struck by lightning! Thankfully, I wasn't at home, or I may have wet my pants when it hit! I don't know how poor ol' Kooka is still alive-- I'm surprised he didn't have a heart-attack. At least the lightning didn't take out the entire tree, just part of it (as you can see from the picture). Wouldn't you know it?-- My homeowner's insurance doesn't cover trees? Go figure.

My poor tree! :(

Speaking of hail damage, I finally got my car back from the shop, but after having it back just a couple of days, I managed to back over the front end of my mom's convertible, while pulling out of my garage. Just what I needed! I crunched her car pretty good, and did some damage to my new back bumper. I swear-- I can't catch a break these days. No, I am not going out into the garage to take pictures. It's just too embarassing.

In better news, I decided to sign up for the MS150 charity bike ride in September. It's 150-miles over two days, and it's supposed to be fun. Fun? 150 miles in September in Oklahoma is supposed to be FUN? I've been told that there are beer-stops every 10-miles or so, like that was supposed to entice me somehow. I'm not a drinker, so I'm definitely not going for the booze. I can't even fathom drinking a beer and then getting on my bike (puke). I've been on several training rides since I committed to doing the ride, and I'm already feeling pretty good. Riding is seriously the BEST therapy-- EVER. Makes me wonder why I'm paying my therapist, really? I still don't quite have my spin back to where I want it to be, but it's getting there. My speed is so-so, but my strength is nowhere close to where it needs to be. Luckily, I have a fun group of people to ride with, so it at least makes it fun. If you're interested in checking my training progress, or better yet, if you're interested in donating (puh-lease), please visit my page at: http://bikeoke.nationalmssociety.org/site/TR?px=4218011&pg=personal&fr_id=8590

Yes, I was actually too lazy to go out in the garage and take a picture of my OWN bike, but this is it. An 'o5 Trek Pilot 2.1. My darling girl!

I'm also thinking about going down to Wichita Falls, Texas in August, to do the 50-mile leg of The Hotter n' Hell Hundred. It's supposed to be U-G-L-Y, but I think I'll be able to handle the 50-miler. Jarrod (my brother) and some of his friends are doing the century, which is awesome, but I know I'm not ready for something like that. I just figured it would be a fun road-trip, and something to be proud of at the end of the day. Plus, there's a t-shirt, and we as we know, it's ALL ABOUT THE T-SHIRT!

Let's see, what else? Oh yeah, I turned thirty. Yikes. Excuse me while I go crawl under a rock and die. It was a pretty sucky birthday (as most of you already know), but I tried to make the most of it anyway. I'm pretty sure I didn't sprout anymore gray hairs or anything, so that's good. To be honest, I've started feeling better all-around in my life since my birthday, so maybe turning thirty was a positive turning point for me. Maybe it only gets better from here on out. Man, I sure hope so! This is a picture of me on my birthday (don't I look like I'm having fun?)

I am H-O-T!

Tick-tock, tick-tock, okay... what else? You're probably wondering what the kids have been up to (or not). Just making me crazy and enjoying the summer weather, like always. I took the boys to the fire station with Kris and Shawn last week. Shawn is practically part of the squad already, but he was excited to show the boys around "his" station. Very cute. The boys crawled in and out of fire trucks, ambulances, you name it. They even met the fire dog, a young chocolate lab. Later, they got a tour of the fire station, and got to see where the firemen eat and sleep. I threatened to leave them there. Even with as much as the firemen enjoyed their visit, I don't think they would've wanted to "keep" the boys! Here's a picture of the boys on the front of the fire truck. Thank you, Shawn, for smiling!

Oh yeah, my hair re-growth update. I'm really behind on that, huh? Well, it's, uh... growing? Sometimes it's a real pain to mess with, mostly because I'm not used to having this much hair, but I'm getting used to it. It's pretty versatile, too, which is nice, but not as versatile as it was when it was shorter. Oh well. I haven't really done much with the color, sorry. Just same ol' dark brown/black with blonde highlights-- whoop-dee-doo. I think that I'll have it grown out by the end of the summer, but there's no telling. These are pics from May and June. Slow but sure, good grief!

Mid-May

Late-June

Oh, I also re-vamped my studio area, which isn't all that exciting to most of you, but whatever. My desk had turned into this massive stack of mail, and so the entire area just needed a bit of sprucing up. So, I moved my desk around, reorganized it, added fresh curtains, and straightened my easel area, since I've been painting a lot more.

I'm also in the process of giving my bathroom a moderate face-lift. Nothing major-- no remodel (as much as I would love new cabinets, countertops, and an updated tub, shower, and toilet). I'm just giving everything a fresh coat of paint, throwing some window treatments up, some updated hardware, and maybe some new towels. I really want new faucets, BAD, but those will have to wait. It isn't that the old bathroom was just ultra-ugly, it was just "blah" and needed to take on a new life, you know? I don't have any "after" pictures yet-- it will be quite awhile before that happens.

So, I really think that may be about it for the last month. Geez, my life is dull. Wow. That's all that happened to me in a month's time? Really? Okay, I'm going to go crawl under the covers and cry about the fact that I have no life now (okay, not really, but I AM going to go to bed-- yes before 9:00) I'm tired.