What Day Is It?

I received a notice that the parking lots here at my complex are being re-striped and all cars need to be removed from the property all day long on the 29th. Alright no biggie! So this morning I got up rather early. I took the dogs out. They didn't get their customary walk because we didn't have that kind of time before the car needed to be moved. I then got a few things together and headed for my boyfriend's place to spend the day.

As I sat at his computer soon after arriving at his place it occurred to me that yesterday was the 27th, meaning today was the 28th not the 29th. What a dork I am! I can't believe I made that mistake. Although I must admit I have made a similar mistake before, but it's been years. I guess we can consider this morning as a rehearsal for tomorrow morning!

Oh Sime!

Well, leave it to Simon to scope out something edible that falls from a tree. Every place we have lived it doesn't take the little guy long to find something craveable....in his opinion. Right before we moved to this apartment he had found a tree that was dropping something good to eat. It resembled a berry. Now he's found something else. This new craveable item I have yet to identify.

The worst part about it...it's falling from a tree at the bottom of our stairs. Which means he is eager to get down the stairs when we come out for walks and he is delayed to walk back upstairs when we come back from a walk. Oh Sime! Yesterday, he nearly pulled me down the stairs trying to get to his new special tree.

Simon and I had a tough time yesterday. The nearly pulling me down the stairs incident was followed by him scratching me due to his anxiousness to get outside. Then later in the evening he followed those incidents up by grabbing Cody's rawhide off the coffee table. His quick lunge and then retraction with the rawhide firmly in his mouth reminded me of a snake! It was freaky! That move earned him an early ticket to bed!

Thankfully Simon doesn't have too many of those days where he goes from one trouble-making incident to another! I'm happy to report that so far today he's been trouble-making free! One can only hope that continues for awhile! Pretty much every time he gets in trouble food is to blame in one regard or another. An over anxious food drive rules him!

Printing my Vacation Pics!

This likely seems like a strangely titled post. Typically, not a noteworthy issue! However, to me the quality of photos has gone downhill since digital photography became the craze. All I have to do to prove my point is to look around my apartment at photos taken from my old non-digital Olympus camera vs. my digital camera. There's a difference but I've recently realized it's all about the printing of the pics that matters!

I have a friend of mine that is extremely into photography. In her spare time she works as an independent photographer doing jobs for numerous special occasions. She told me many years ago to never use Kodak film in my camera. I instantly switched to Fuji. Well, I would like to add something to her advice...never use Kodak photo printing machines.

Since becoming a digital camera owner I have gone to many Kodak photo printing machines at stores like Target, CVS, and Walmart. Sometimes I'm happy/ok with the results and sometimes I'm not at all happy. This past week I wanted to develop vacation pics. In the process of trying to get the best looking pics I discovered the photo processing machine I like the best is Walgreens!

Here in the Dallas area Walgreens has their own machine. It's not a Kodak affiliated machine or Fuji affiliated it's just Walgreens. You step up to the machine go through your pics, decide on your order, then place your order. Yes, placing your order to many people is likely seen as a negative. My prints were not ready in an instant like they would have been at a Kodak machine. I had to wait at least 30 minutes for my pics to be developed. I am certainly very happy to wait the 30 minutes or more if I can have better quality pics then what those silly little Kodak machines offer. The paper and machine that ended up producing my vacation pics were at a much higher standard. I think the only way I would try Kodak again is if Walgreens closes! I'm not sure it's just Walgreens that does it that way here or if there's other stores. But basically I have learned to use photo processing places that have their own photo lab on sight! That is the difference! Having the photo equipment on sight versus having a jiffy Kodak machine in the corner of a Target.

Below is a comparison of a pic. The first pic is from a jiffy little Kodak machine at a Target. The second pic is from Walgreens. Now understand these are scans so nothing is as good as the real pic but it's easy to notice Kodak's diluted colors. The mountain in the middle isn't clear at all from the Kodak pic.

Why Can't Simon and I Learn?

Does everyone remember the "Got Milk?" post? Remember how I stated I would not put milk in the cargo area of my SUV anymore? Thereby eliminating another leaky milk issue! Well apparently I don't learn very well! However, I would like to make it clear it wasn't milk this time. It was marinara sauce! The marinara sauce and it's bag(thank goodness) rolled against the cargo door while I was driving. When it was time to get the groceries out of the SUV of course you can all imagine what happened...it came flying out as I lifted the cargo door up. A marinara catastrophe! At least with the milk when it hit the ground it was punctured causing it to leak. Not the case with the marinara sauce. It was like a small explosion when it hit the ground. Thankfully the bag caught a lot of the sauce. I still have some marinara on the bumper that I have yet to clean off though.

Now onto Simon....I have numerous nicknames for him. One of those very fitting nicknames is Slicky-Licky! Today as I'm bringing in the groceries I look around and there he is licking the package of fresh chicken. Gross! I guess if he becomes violently ill in the next few days I will know why...salmonella poisoning! Yuk! A week ago the crazy pug tried to eat a dead frog! Honestly what is up with my boo-boo?

Thanks to Simon and I, Cody is inching closer and closer to genius status! Lol!!!!!

Vacation Wrap-Up!

From inside our cabin.

Highlights of the vacation were numerous. The scenery was amazing! Likely the most beautiful scenery I've ever had the pleasure of seeing! We had a great cabin that was away from the hustle and bustle of the touristy streets. We went up a mountain on a sky lift. This former AZ girl realized she likes shrimp! We met a bird named Simon at a year-round Christmas village. What a great name he has been blessed with! Simon the bird "meows" and "barks". Super hilarious! My Simon on the other hand only barks! Plus we went hiking up a mountain on the border of TN and NC. Awesome! I was rather surprised/impressed with myself during that hike! It was tough at first but my body adjusted to the altitude and it got easier as we went. Oh and we didn't get eaten by a bear! LOL!

View from our cabin balcony.

View from our cabin loft.

View of Smokies from Pigeon Forge!

Penguin exhibit at the Aquarium.

View from our seat on the sky lift!

View from the top of the mountain after we got off the sky lift.

View going back down the sky lift.

Simon the bird!

Taken while hiking up the mountain that separates TN and NC.

Now it's back to real-life. I'm finding that to be a little bit more of a daunting challenge than I expected! What a great time but now back to doggie chores and the normal everyday schedule!

Greetings from Tennessee (part 2)

Each day of our vacation we have seen rain at some point in the day. I love rain so it doesn't bother me one bit! Yesterday we went as far as we could driving up a mountain stopping at different lookout sites to get pictures. For the majority of the time it was raining. At times it was only sprinkling at other times it was pouring. I think it's interesting little curve balls like rain that make an adventure more of an adventure! We will always remember tripping up the steps of a lookout site together as the rain poured down on us. My poor waterlogged sandals!

Greetings from Tennessee! (part 1)

This is my 100th post! I'm glad that for my 100th post I get to talk about being on vacation! Yay!

The road trip here to Tennessee went well! We are enjoying our stay in a beautiful cabin. A cabin that does not disappoint in any way!

Yesterday we went to see some of the sights. First up, was the very large aquarium. My favorite part was seeing the penguins. I love those little guys! Afterwards we went to eat, carefully choosing a place that Dallas doesn't have. We didn't come all this way to go to Burger King! We wound up at a shrimp place called Bubba Gump. A restaurant that has borrowed it's name and theme from the movie Forrest Gump. Obviously coming from AZ, my seafood exposure has been limited! Much to my surprise I kept sampling shrimp after shrimp. Who would've predicted this former AZ girl would like shrimp so much?

Before eating we talked of going on the sky lift that goes to the top of a mountain. After eating we revisited the sky lift option. I'm not a huge fan of heights. I wouldn't say I have an extreme fear of them but I'm not the type that would do things to go outrageously high up in the air. So most people that know me would likely be a little surprised that I would want to go on a sky lift that climbs a mountain. I'm happy to report I went on the sky lift! I had one tiny freak out moment soon after we got on but thanks to my boyfriend's calming words of encouragement I was able to refocus on the beauty that surrounded us. The sky lift was well worth it! Views from the top of the mountain were amazing!

I have taken plenty of pictures but I don't have the ability right now to post them so posts of the pics will come next week!

Preparing for Vacation part 2

I realize the boys are not puppies anymore. Don't get me wrong I'm glad they aren't because it's easier now that they know what's expected of them. There are times when it doesn't seem the boys need me as much as they once did. I'm sure this is all in my imagination as they depend on me to get their basic needs met each day. However, today I was reminded that my boys are still little momma's boys! I took them to their new vet clinic/pet lodge.

Yep, I decided after all to change vet clinics early this morning. I looked into one that I've driven by numerous times. I went to check it out this afternoon and then took the boys back this evening to be boarded. When we walked in Simon immediately began trying to climb up my leg. Making every effort possible to get me to pick him up and not Cody. Thankfully, Cody seemed content, he was rather busy investigating things and attempting to find new friends interested in petting him. So I reached down to get Simon. The little guy would not let go for the longest time. He just clung to me. And when we were left standing at the check-in counter while the attendant went to the back to get the boys faxed over paperwork, he turned and rested his chin on the counter as I continued to hold him. Aww!

It's always a little hard to take them to be boarded so having those few tender moments of holding Simon right before handing them over was probably what we both needed! The boys are so different...Cody was happy-go-lucky, jumping around looking for anyone that would pet him. Taking in all the sights and sounds. Whereas Simon simply wanted his mommie!

Finally!

My hair has finally been fixed. I made the decision today to go get it done before vacation. I think I have a new hairstylist too. She did a great job. She was super friendly and knowledgeable! She couldn't believe that the previous salon did what they did to my hair. I couldn't believe it either! Even more shocking is how long I lived with that awful hue. I feel much relieved that it's fixed! It's now the color I was trying to achieve nearly 2 months ago. Yay!

Preparing for Vacation!

We will be going on vacation starting Saturday. The vacation is part road trip part sightseeing with plenty of relaxation among God's splendid scenery. I'm looking forward to seeing sections of the country I've never seen before.

I'm certainly no stranger to road trips. As I've made quite a few! All but one of my road trips was on the western side of the U.S. map. The boys are staying here in Dallas. Tomorrow afternoon I will take them on their own personal mini road trip. All the way to the other side of town to their vet's clinic.

Tonight I will be busy packing the boys things and my stuff too. I'm not looking forward to Simon's curious/worried eyes looking at me as I begin to pack. However, I have a brilliant plan to help with that. Peanut butter! I save empty peanut butter jars for the boys to clean out. It certainly takes time waiting to get 2 jars empty but thanks to my peanut butter sandwich at lunch I now have 2 jars that are ready for the boys!

Happy 4th of July!

Our street is lined with American flags and has been for a few days now. Many streets around the Dallas area are also lined with flags. Keeping the boys from peeing on the flags has been quite the challenge the last few days. After all the flags are at the perfect level for the boys! The rows of flags has even withstood the rainy conditions! I seriously doubt that we will have any fireworks since rain is once again predicted for today. The Dallas area spreads out their fireworks displays, some areas were scheduled to have fireworks last night but had to cancel due to the thunderstorms. We've had lots of rain lately and the rain isn't expected to let up any time soon since the remnants of Hurricane Alex will go over Texas.

We are currently kicking back watching the Wimbledon men's final. Can Berdych take down Nadal after taking out Federer and DJokovic? I doubt it!

Soon I will be baking some brownies as a special treat for the 4th. I baked brownies early last week using a new recipe but I packaged them up to send to a friend of mine for her birthday. Since those brownies were a gift I didn't try them so I will at least get to try this batch! Here's a little tip I discovered for bakers out there. Put the entire pan of brownies in the fridge for about 20 minutes before cutting them. It makes them less crumbly when cutting.

Happy 4th of July to all! Have a safe and enjoyable holiday!

NBAnnoying!

I'm finding the NBA to be quite annoying right now! I don't care one bit where these overpaid turkeys choose to go play this upcoming season! Free agency just started and I'm already tired of seeing espn show reporters standing outside some "secret meeting" as high-dollar cars go by. Is it a secret when reporters are standing all over the place?

Did anyone hear about the ridiculous contract that former Suns player Joe Johnson is about to sign? A 6 year deal for $119 million. He's not a dominate player that should command that kind of money. Plus he's 29 years old. So he's not exactly in his prime as far as basketball age goes. But Atlanta's only choice is to throw money at him or he'll walk.

Many of these free agents simply opted out of their current deals so they could join this money hungry free agency frenzy. Using each other as leverage to drive up the amount of their own contract. I find it all to be rather irritating and distasteful! I'm thinking these players will have their fun now as they have teams over a barrel but come next summer things could turn sour with owners opting for a lockout!

There are people in this country that are barely making it from paycheck to paycheck. Lay-offs happening all over the place. I just talked to a friend of mine this week that has been laid-off due to cutbacks. But yet we are forced to hear about and watch images of these overpaid arrogant babies sign their new lucrative deals with their new/old team. NBAnnoying! And now I'll get down off my soapbox! Lol!