Grandma turned 80!!! 9.21.2010

I've given up blogging! Love you but I'm done for a while...

CALIFORNIA

I love California!!!! I am here for work and since the minute I got here, I keep wondering WHY DID I EVER LEAVE?!?!?! I'm thinking I might just need to move back one day. I will be positing LOTS of pictures. Hope all is well with my favorite bloggers :)

New job!

I know I am terrible at blogging!!!! I never have much to say other than I was at work this week and my dogs are cute. Same old, same old, all the time and even though I'm okay with boring, thats no fun for other people to read.

But, I am happy to say I have news-- I got a new job! One night last month I happened to be looking at craigslist and decided to search under "animal". Listed under jobs available was a "Clinical Sales Rep". Innovative Animal Products is based out of Minnesota and they were hiring a rep to sell surgical supplies to veterinarians in California, Arizona, Utah and Nevada. HELLO!!!! They might as well have sent me the job description directly because it was MEANT for me. The post was 2weeks old so I was afraid the position had been filled but luckily they were still in the interview process. I had to do 4 interviews, one of which was a skype webcam interview (never done that and its not pretty) and the final interview was out in Minnesota with a full blown powerpoint presentation I had to create. Stress!

But, I am THRILLED to announce I got the job! What this means for you?!?! This means I will be a better friend because I will not be working 12 hour days 6 days a week anymore. It means I will actually pick up the phone and learn how to dial again. I will return text messages and voicemails! I will try to remember birthdays- TRY that is :) AND, since I cover those 4 states, I will actually VISIT you too!!!! If you keep in touch I will let you know when I'm coming and we can meet for lunch or dinner. I can see your babies before they turn 16!!! :)

In all seriousness, it is interesting to look back over the last 10 years and see how each job taught me something that I would need for this job. I lived in and did outside sales in each state. Tradeshows, Conferences, Sales to doctors, animal hospital experience- all of it built the perfect experiences for me to qualify. I feel so lucky!

Now I can pay my bills and save doggies all in one job!

Losing my MIND

This is what happens when you work too much!!!
The other night I made some yummy pudding and the next morning I couldn't find the milk. I was sure I hadn't finished this half gallon but since it wasn't in the fridge and I live alone, I must have used it all.
Well, tonight I went to get a measuring cup and....

THERE IS MY MILK.

Disgusting.

FINALLY!!!!

Sorry I haven't posted anything in AGES but my life is boring (my fault)... Since it is Thanksgiving though, I figured it was time to update some photos! Love my family and friends! Who doesn't appreciate a holiday that is all about being GRATEFUL?~?~?~

Good Stuff

Nothing new to tell, working way too much to have much of a life these days and I need to change that!

But, I wanted to share a blog that my friend recommended and man does it make me want to get in the kitchen and EAT!

http://kickbuttcookin.blogspot.com/

Check it out!

I love this!

One fun part of my growing up involved a girl named Heather Collins... She and I became friends in Jr High and when we were together we had so much fun but we also got in trouble rather often. I remember I wanted to be like her and I've never met another person quite like her. Well, she just found me on Facebook and I love to see that she hasn't changed in 20+ years. She has this amazing love for life, a fantastic laugh and a way of just being that I really admire.

Anyway, I read these quotes she has on her page and I had to copy them...

'Let yourself be silently drawn by the stronger pull of what you really love.'
'One is, in their own Self, the wanderer, the exile, the homecoming, and the home.'

letting GO...

I've had 2 great lessons this week...

First-- Bandit. My little love from the last post. I fell head over heels for this 7 week old puppy and watched him try to recover each day. His foster family picked him up on Monday and it made me so sad... Well, tonight I got a video from the rescue group- it was him playing with his brother and he looks SOOO happy! He's recovering even more rapidly and its obvious being with his brother is helping him heal.
Lesson #1--Sometimes my heartache is much less important than another's opportunity to heal, grow, and find happiness.

Second-- Wraser. A month ago I interviewed for a Pharmaceutical sales job and when I left my meeting with them I swore I had it. I was certain they thought I was a perfect addition to the team and I was thrilled about who they were and the company. Well, a few days turned into a week, a week turned into two and after 2 phone calls and 2 emails with NO response, I accepted the fact I wasn't going to hear back. I was REALLY disappointed but I went ahead and started applying elsewhere. In this economy, I knew I would have to take whatever came my way. Well, out of the blue, 2 days ago I got an email from WraSer wanting to know if I was still interested in the position and to please contact them ASAP. So, of course I emailed and I will have an offer tomorrow!
Lesson #2-- I can and should trust my gut!! Things work themselves out in their own way and time.

my latest little love

This is Bandit... He and his brother were dropped off on someones doorstep and later that night a big dog picked him up and threw him. He "hit his head" and had some serious head trauma. When the lady brought him to our hospital he was in a coma and they wanted him put to sleep but one of our vets refused. She wanted to wait a week and see what happened. Its been 5 days and he has won over everyone who works here! He walks a little sideways, he doesn't look at you straight in the face sometimes and its obvious he has some brain damage but man, he is the happiest puppy ever! He runs and plays and oh can he bark when he wants some attention! This is him sleeping on a stuffed dog that is 3 times bigger than he is.
Every single person I work with has been praying for this little one to pull through and recover so he can have a long dog life-- its so amazing to see such a turnaround in just a few days! Adorable...

Little blessings!

I've been waiting to add a new post because I've been meaning to take some pictures but I haven't done that, of course. So, while I try and catch up on the camera action, I figured its time to start being thankful for the little things or I'm going to drown in my whining about this @#$*ing heat!

1- I figured out how to install a digital thermostat in my place, all by myself, WITHOUT electrocuting myself and now I know EXACTLY what temperature I need to stop sweating.

2- Some really nice young 20 something kid at the oil change place decided that my total for the day was "$ a hug and a smile.00". This was after a very smelly, barely clothed, snaggle-toothed woman came running in yelling "damsel in distress!!!" because she broke down on the highway, who was followed by an overdone grandma who marched in, stepped in front of me at the counter and shoved her keys in his face. I'll take free any day, poor kid...

3- My mom drove all the way to Page to bring me my 4 legged furry kids and had spoiled them rotten!

4- My 4 legged kids acting like its a freaking celebration EACH and EVERY time I walk in this door, no matter how hot it is in this place and in spite of the fact they have no yard to play in.

5- Walmart having juice on sale for $1 and my favorite steak marinade that I haven't been able to find in 2 years. Too bad I left my barbeque in Huntington. Oh wait, I can throw the steaks out on my freaking driveway. Thank heaven for marinade!

6- I just found out that one of NICEST, MOST POSITIVE people I've worked with for 2 months has cancer for the second time. He has never mentioned he is sick or in the middle of treatment! He also used to be a MONK, (is that how they spell it?)how interesting is that?!?! People amaze me...

7- My favorite little boy on the planet turned one last week and I found my beloved, treasured childhood book when I was buying presents for him-- The pooky little puppy!

Thats plenty. I have decided I need to be more grateful and thankful each day. I'll post pictures soon.

Arizona

Ask not what I can do for Scottsdale, but what Scottsdale has done for me..........

Scottsdale! I've heard the people here are snotty and it has the nickname Snobbsdale, but everyone has been really nice so far and honestly I haven't seen that many pretty people so it can't be ALL that :)

As of tomorrow I will have been here 1 month, feels like 3, but its one. Lets discuss my progress...
I moved. That's a good step. Of course all my stuff is still in storage so its not official until June 23rd.
I got a great little apartment that I love, although I wish I had a house :), but again, it will do.
I went out with one blind date, TOM, well, and by the picture below we can all see why the buck stopped there! Hello. Poor Chuck Minor. So Tom is a big bonus, AZ sure treated me right with that present. Will have one more blind date tomorrow, just to remind myself how lucky I was the first time around! :)
What else...
Got a job at this amazing animal hospital, which I love! Still can't pay bills cuz its part time but doing what you love is almost worth being poor.
Got pinkeye. That's a fun one... Ever had pink eye? Its like a giant ball of puss has somehow lodged behind your actual eyeball and it drains all day and night. It is the equivalent of a 2 year old snotty nose that runs all day--- DISGUSTING!
And, surprise, surprise, the day after the pink eye, I lost my voice. Related? Did I lose it from all my whining about the pinkeye? Hmmm...
The next day, I start hacking like an 80 yr old smoker who's pink eye leaked down into her lungs. Disgusting. But, the eye stopped oozing and I've almost got a voice back to start singin my praises to AZ again! It started out so well...... Hopefully this is just the downhill ride, not the beginning of the end, or a brain tumor.
Good thing Tom is in NY-- a one eyed, puss hacking lung cancer patient can't keep a man like that for long. :)

I will try and post pictures soon. Love you all!

One word- Tom.

The grin says it all :)

happy easter!

Sorry I haven't been posting anything... I'm lazy :)

I will say that this Easter I really enjoyed time with my family... Its funny how growing up I was such a little snot-I couldn't wait to get away from my siblings and parents. The older I get the more I appreciate them. These are my younger brothers, well, 2 of them, one is in Korea and has been gone for 4 years. The other picture is of my aunt and uncle, that I just LOVE. She is from Georgia and I love that she still has an accent.

Hope you all had a wonderful Easter and I hope someone else is feeling the pain I am from serious OVER EATING!

Bats Brains and Ex-Boyfriends

Okay, so as I mentioned before, life has been slow lately because I am spending all my time working and hanging out with family... I enjoy it but it doesnt make for entertainment. Well, I had a little drama over the last couple weeks and I figured I'd share.

My brother and I found a little, young bat lying on the floor at the office. Couldn't have been there long and looked dead. When my brother picked it up (with gloves of course) it started moving- "ITS ALIVE". Bats are definitely more freaky when moving!!! I've never looked at a bat up close and as disgusting as it is, its also very fascinating. Anyway, he took it to a place that rescues injured animals and we thought all was finished, we saved a rodent life. Not so... California is a RABIES state. So, if a bat is found it is tested for rabies. Do you know how thats done? It is killed and the brains are sent to a lab because rabies can only be found in the brain, after an animal is dead.

So, who cares about a bat right? Well, the problem was my dogs... DOGS=KIDS in Lisa World, until I have 2-legged children who puke, poop and wake up happy. My dogs had been with me when I found the bat and animal control told me that there was a chance that bat jumped up and bit my dogs on the nose without me seeing (because rabies is passed through saliva, through a break in the skin AND is almost always FATAL--BOTH humans and animals). What that meant was if that brain came back positive, Animal Control was coming to take my dogs and I had two options- 6 month quarantine at my cost or Euthanize so they could test their brains. Anyway, 2 days of panic and research later, I found someone who made the whole thing go away and learned that their are Lawyers who practice ANIMAL LAW... Ever heard of such a thing? If I liked school more, I'd consider going back to do that but I can't sit still in a classroom.

No rabies, no dead dogs, one dead bat and lesson learned- you find a bat anywhere, let it die outside. That and Raccoons, they are big rabies carriers too.

After that drama, the next day I found out that someone in Atwater California was on a shopping spree at Target and Guitar Center with my debit card... Strangely, my card was in my wallet, I have never been to Atwater and we all know how musically inclined I am. So, beware-- FRAUD is alive and well!

Last but not least, I have been having lots of fun with Facebook! There are people from as far back as Elementary School that I still remember. I've run into a some ex-boyfriends... A few were so fun to find- rewind back to the young love and innocent lives, laugh at shared memories. A couple others--well, either a quick reminder of why they were ex's OR a quick prayer of thanks that they had decided to make me the dumpee! And its amazing to realize how incredibly horrible my memory really is!!! I only remember faces- not details, names, places or events but some of these people remember stuff that I had no clue about. I have become aware of how selfish I was when I was younger, so if I was a little brat to any of you, I am sorry!!! :)

Well, thats it for me but I've been checking in on all of you and man, the babies/children are CUTE!!! Growing like weeds... I have a little Husband Envy too. The rest of you make me laugh OR make me think and I love it! I'm planning to be in AZ by the end of April so I'm sure once I'm there my blogs will be FULL of laughs since I'll have a life and get back to DATING-- sadly, Lisa's dating life is almost worth $7.75 and popcorn :)

Sorry I'm boring

Okay, sorry its been a while but I don't have too much to tell these days... I'm up in northern CA workin for my Dad and hanging out with my brothers, which is fun, but not Funny so I don't have much to entertain you. I did get a molar and wisdom tooth yanked out last week so I should have written while I was drugged and drooling, that might have made for some good reading...
I will say that I am VERY upset with The Bachelor for those of you fellow followers! I cheated and spent hours online trying to find the spoilers for what is to come, and you don't want to know. If what I read is true, I will force myself to give up this show because it is mean, humiliating and wrong. I won't give any details but I am seriously bothered.
Other than that, I will try and do something stupid or meet someone crazy or hang out in some odd place so that I can come up with juice for my next entry.
Until then, I love your stories and I spend many late nights catching up on your lives when I can't sleep!

Love to you all!

Nothin finer...

I figure I should share this fun little story with you ladies that are married. If there is ever a day that you can't stand your husband or you wonder why in the hell you ever got married, I want you to think of this and then make your man some dinner!

On the first day of animal cop training class I noticed there was a guy sitting up front who looked somewhat like a guy I used to kiss in college, but he was bigger and didn't have freckles. Well, 3 days into training, my kisser look alike decided to start talking to me. He seemed friendly, has nice teeth and was somewhat funny.

So, within an hour of him introducing himself and saying a few friendly words, he starts sending me texts all during class, just pouring it on! (I am not good at flirting, and I run from aggressive guys). Before class ends he asks if we can go to dinner that night. So, I say I'm busy and try to make light of it since I have 2 more days with him in class. What happens next? He calls the minute I leave class. Then he texts later that night. And finally, I get a text at 2:30 am with a picture of him in it, "hoping this will influence me". I get to class the next day and immediately get more texts and so on and so forth.

In all these texts I notice it says 'NOTHIN FINER'. In the first message I thought he was trying to reinforce his undeniable attraction to me but when it started showing up on every text, I wondered if this was his signature of some sort. So I asked why thats on every message and he says,

"cuz there's NOTHIN FINER THAN CHUCK MINOR."

This is my life. This is what is attracted to me. These are the men that stalk me. Ladies, this is whats left in the single men pool. So the next time your husband rolls over snoring with his stinky breath and jiggly belly, I want you to remember this... Its down to North Dakotan, bull riding, "all natural" weight lifting stalkers named Chuck!

But there aint nothin finer....

Animal Cops Rule!

Alright, anyone who knows me well knows that I am an animal lover through and through! I don't expect anyone else to be as nuts as I am, I know I'm "different"... :) But, I'm not the crazy girl who gives up burgers, steak or chicken- I can't do it. I haven't had lamb in like 20 years though because when I was young I was in 4-H, go ahead and laugh, and I raised 3 little lambs... Can't eat something that used to follow me around "baaaaahing" all day long.

Anyway, I didn't even know Animal Cops existed until Animal Planet did a show and now I have found my calling!!! First, I get to save little animals AND I get a gun! Hello, bossing people around, with authority, and saving little puppies.... What could be better!?!?!?! Well, if I was married with a family, there might be Higher callings, but since it is what it is-- I have found mine!

So, I have started some training and it is like living Law and Order. Crime scene investigation and photography, search warrants, testifying in court, self-defense, and public speaking. Hello, so fascinating and fun! I'm sure its nothing like a baby walking for the first time or any of that but its like being called home to the mother ship in Lisa land :)

Bet you can't wait to see me in uniform with a badge and bite stick, so sexy... Pit bulls and gangsta thugs here I come!

Gifts from my loved ones

We all know I don't have a husband and kids to spoil on Christmas so the next best thing are my four legged, spoiled rotten, oh so cute Dogs- Sampson and Lilah. Well, they decided to make this a VERY special year for their mommy and got me some really nice presents!!! Since the economy sucks, they felt it was best to MAKE some gifts instead. In our little family of 3 we have a tradition of opening one present on Christmas eve.... So, Lilah volunteered to give me her gift first....

FARTS! She had a belly full! She was farting non-stop and the funniest part was each fart made this hilarious squeak, which scared her so she'd jump away from herself. FUNNY! The gift that kept on giving....

Then Sampson, like all young kids, decided he couldn't wait til the sun was up to give me his present. He was so excited that by 4 am he was waking me up and leading me out to the tree, (well, the living room, which should have had a tree) and there he PUKED. Merry Christmas Mom, here's an early morning puke for you! And of course, Lilah can't be outdone, so a few hours later, she puked all over the entry way for me too.

Merry Christmas!!!! :)

What would JESUS do?

Merry Christmas to me!!! Or so I thought....

So, yesterday I run to the bank to make a measly $80 deposit to cover a utility bill I need to pay. I hardly ever use this bank because I personally believe Wells Fargo SUCKS! :) (No offense Nicole). They screw you on every possible fee there is! Anyway, I might just be wrong about them because later when I came home and logged on to pay that bill, there was a CHRISTMAS MIRACLE!!!

Miraculously there was a deposit for $4004.34 right after my $80.09 deposit. YES, FOUR THOUSAND DOLLARS! Now I know for some of you this is chump change, but for me, it was real proof Santa exists!!!

What could I do with $4004.34???? Lots of friends to go visit, spectaular last minute presents for my family, a professional ear/eyes/nails and anal glands expressed grooming for the dogs! :) I bet they'd rather NOT have that gift... The ideas were endless! Of course I called the bank to find out what was going on but they couldn't tell me because it was "pending" and I called my parents to make sure no one had accidentally "misplaced" money into my account. Nope.

So, I didn't sleep all night and I realized that even Satan comes out to play on Christmas Eve... This morning I debated about withdrawing all that cash and finding out what happens AFTER I celebrate Christmas... BUT of course, tomorrow is Jesus's freakin birthday for goodness sake!!!! What would JESUS do? He wouldn't steal that money and high tail it to the Inn. He wouldn't con the 3 wise men into some immediate "business ventures". And he definitely wouldn't send the donkey to get a good once over. He'd walk those no-sock sandled feet in this 30 degree blowing wind the 5 miles to dumb Wells Fargo and tell them the truth.

So not-so-merry-christmas to me, but happy birthday to you Jesus! Someone got their $4004.34 back just in time to celebrate...

Lets hope theres a Washington Mutual bank of Good Deeds in Heaven...