Suffer in Silence or Speak Your Peace?

At work today there was a tad bit o' drama.  We have this system in place, kind of like a bonus system (just one you have to work your ass off for).  You have to be on the list every month to be able to get the bonus should one come available.  Well, B and I are on the list this month.  And sure enough, an opportunity came up.  But low and behold, teammate X gets the shot and we don't.  WTH?  The managers came up with a lame excuse as to why, but we all know that X just threw a hissy fit and got their way.  So...do B and I just lay down and zip it and move on...or do we voice our opinions that this is complete shit?  We opted for a somewhat silent suffering (after demanding a clear explanation as to why we were passed by)...but next time, we won't go down so quietly.  Playing favorites seems to be a poor business practice, I'd say.  Oh, just another day of LIVING THE DREAM, eh?

Add caption

Duct Tape.  An outspoken gal's best friend in the workplace :)

Tit for Tat?

I ran today.  It was the last thing I wanted to do, but I got it done.  I'm reading a really good book on my Kindle (amazon should pay me for that product ad right there)...so I knew that I could at least speed walk through 40 minutes and a few chapters.  So I got my bag and bribed a friend to go with me to hit the treadmill.  The bribe?  The sweet deliciousness of Cafe Mexicali afterwards for dinner.  Turns out, that is a hell of a motivator.  I figured that if I didn't run I didn't get to eat much of my quesole (think a quesadila  all rolled up like a burrito).  So instead of walking like I thought I would, I jogged/ran.  And I got my 4 miles in under 45 minutes.  Hey, I told you I am a turtle...that hasn't changed.

So as I was enjoying my dinner I was pondering...do other people pound the "pavement" with the goal of getting to eat delicious food afterwards?  Or am I just a fat kid?  I'd like to think that I am not alone.  And if I am, damnit, I don't care.  Both the run and the reward were great.  Win, win I say.

Dog Mothering.

I think I should write a book about being a dog mom.  I mean, not to toot my own horn here, but I think I am a pretty rockin' dog mama.  And I have two creatures that would tell you the same...if they could.  But if dog mothering is anything like what real mother-bearing is like...I am so screwed.  These little creatures have me totally whipped.  And rules?  Sure...they are good in theory...and some are even fairly well implemented after all of these years.  But they always win. 

My love, Grace, had to get a tooth pulled yesterday.  Which meant going under anesthesia.  No big deal, right?  I was such a nervous person yesterday.  I became that person that called the vet for an update when they didn't call me soon enough for my comfort.  I worried even after they told me she was out of surgery, awake and OK.  I worried until I got her home...and even then I worried that she was in pain or uncomfortable.  It is ridiculous, really.

I just have to say...if they came around with affordable dog cloning, I would be tempted.  I adore my monsters.  Even when I want to beat them :)

Really? Grow up, we're professionals now.

It never fails to amaze me when people act like children in the workplace.  Unfortunately, I see it often.  Really?! Did your mama never teach you what mine taught me?  That regardless of your age, the emotional pull to be a 2 year old and throw a tantrum, or any other situation...you bite your damn tongue and act like a grown up.  I work in a business that people's emotions run high, that their pre-conceived notions of me may put me at a disadvantage.  I take pride in the fact that although I might get asked if I am "even graduated from college I look so young" ... I am professional from 730-4p.  (OK, I might not be so professional when I am talking to my dynamic duo G&B...but that just doesn't count!)  So...on days like today, I am so thankful to my mama and all the others in my life that have taught me to act like a grown-up.  To those that taught me to put my best foot forward.  To the folks that helped me master the concept of "if you can't dazzle them with brilliance, baffle them with bullshit".  I might be the turtle in this race...but if I remember my childhood literature, I think that might work out for me in the end. 

Easter Eggs. Let the fun begin!

I've loved dying eggs ever since I was a kiddo.  And why the heck should that have to stop now? 
My family is big on it too.  Last year we died 3 dozen eggs and had a full out Easter egg hunt at my mama's house. 

 It's a lot like being a kid again...fighting my sister for an egg that I swear I saw first.  She is still faster than me...

My mom and I had a paint-off.  Mine is on the left.  Her's just looks scary. (Sorry, Ma)

And so, the tradition continues... this was the first year that I dyed eggs at my own home.  A great friend, wine, robin egg candies and Paas dye kits did the trick.  

 Happy Easter, all....can't wait to do it again next year :)

Pray for Our Troops. Pray for My Brother!

Prayer For our Military

"Lord, hold our troops in your loving hands. 

Protect them as they protect us.

Bless them and their families for the selfless acts they perform for us in our time of need. 

Amen." 

My brother and I didn't really care for each other until college.  Not anything out of the norm for siblings that are almost four years apart, had nothing really in common and had to endure the same roof over our heads for 16 years.  But when he moved to Laramie his Junior year of college...we became friends.  I realized how much I loved him as a person, which made him an even cooler brother.  I was so proud of him the day that Julianne and I got to pin his "bars" on him when he became and Officer in the Army.  I was honored he asked us to be the ones to be there. 

His first deployment to Iraq made me realize how much he means to me.  I prayed for him everyday.  And I prayed harder than I ever have in my life.  I prayed until it felt like my soul was empty.  And, he came home safe and sound after his tour.  Now, with his 2nd tour, I do the same thing. 

While he was first deployed, I realized how Patriotic I really am.  Now when the National Anthem plays, whether it be on TV or at a ballgame, I cry.  And usually this is fueled by the beer that I paid 6$ for at the stadium.  It embarrassed me the first time it happened (at an Avalanche game...with my entire team from work!).  Now, it just is how it is.  

This last year has been a blessing.  Luke was actually in Wyoming for most of it.  So I got to hang out with him.  He also came to stay with me at my house in Fort Collins a few times.  It was so great to have him come and hang out under my roof.  I picked him up from DIA the day before Thanksgiving...he was going to leave and drive to WY.  I threatened him and bribed him with candied yams to stay.  Making yams and saving the gravy I almost destroyed with him that day might be my favorite memory of him so far.  

I also got to see him fall in love with his wonderful wife Melanie over the last few years.  God bless her for the support she gives him and the puzzle she completes for him. 

Now, he will likely (ok, totally) be embarrassed by my page-long gush about how fabulous I think he is...but he will have to get over it.  And, if he ever reads this...I hope he finds flattery in it.  

So, today and everyday...when I pray for all of our service men and women...I pray for him.  And I am so thankful for those who opt this career choice as I, myself, could never do it.  

So, let's support them, and pray for them all, and watch them come home safe to those, like me, who love them so. 

GOD BLESS OUR TROOPS.  

*If Heaven Wasn't So Far Away*

Today I spent two hours of my day driving.  Which, with my job is nothing out of the norm.  But today I spent the day thinking about the ones I love and no longer have here with me.  I think about Heaven and how thankful I am that I believe that I am not forever without those that go before me.  I'd give anything to swap a day of my youth when I thought my Yia-Yia was just a crazy old lady to have her for one day to have an adult conversation with her.  I would love to meet my Grandma Lockerd, who died when my mom was just 24.  She wrote letters to the family during her radiation and chemo which I've read...they only make me realize how much I missed out on not knowing her.  I am pretty sure my mom is a good replica.  And my dad's dad who died when my dad was 14....I don't know much about him other than he was a soldier in WWII and has two purple hearts.  And he wrote my Yia-Yia love letters from the war.  Knowing that someday I will be reunited with them warms my heart.  

"I wish heaven had a phone so I could hear your voice again. I thought of you today, but that is nothing new. I thought about you yesterday, and days before that too. I think of you in silence, I often speak your name. All I have are memories and a picture in a frame. Your memory is a keepsake, from which I'll never part. God has you in his arms. I have you in my heart. " - unknown

 If Heaven Wasn't So Far Away - Justin Moore