95 Days....and Counting!

So, my cruise is fast approaching and I am feeling the heat.....LITERALLY! So, I did something drastic! I went to the store and bought 3 (count em') 3 swimming suits that are clearly 4 sizes too small and they are now hanging up on my closet taunting me to not eat cheese fries and go to the gym. This is my new incentive for weight loss. I have now seen a DVD presentation of my cruise and I have picked my excursions and I AM GOING TO DO THEM in one or more of these bathing suits! (Frankly, I truly believe I have lost my mind, but, so be it!) So, here's a little preview of my torture suits, I mean new swimming suits that I will be wearing in 95 days, and counting.........Good Lord that is a lot of workouts! I tread on.........HELP!!

Option 1: CUTE! But the safest choice because it is nearly all black.

Option 2: The riskiest because it is a little on the revealing side top wise.

Option 3: Darling! And a little daring for those of you who know my usual color choices.

What to do.....what to do. I know get to the gym! UGH!!

Wanna See What I Did Last Weekend??

I went to the International Beauty Show in Las Vegas!


It was sooo much fun and soooo HOT!! I don't mean that in a good way! It was 109* and I am so glad people in Las Vegas don't care about the energy crisis---it was like 67* everywhere we went! ( I really do care....I meant that) But, after my first week at Elite Nail Studio, I ended it with a BANG! I had a blast and I made a new friend. Her name is Melanie and I love her! I told her that my sister Carrie would be jealous because she doesn't like us to share friends, because then she isn't the exclusive favorite and so Melanie did a picture show for her. Want to see it?? here we go.....

She is really silly and I had a blast with her and the four of us laughed all weekend! It was hilarious! I got to know Nasrin also, another girl I work with now and we had to kill some time at the airport on Monday (8 hours) so she and I bought some cards and we played Persian card games that she taught me. I thought I was going to pee my pants! I am pretty sure people thought we were drunk because we were laughing so hard, but I can honestly say that was just good clean fun! Anyhoo, I just wanted to share my joy. I can't help it. I am so much happier these days! (Thank God) Here are a few more pics I took on my fun filled girls' weekend!! I tread on.....

Our room was so nice! We love it!

Here is our pretty bathroom and our attempt to take a picture of the 4 of us together!

Brilliant eh?

Here is Melanie showing the ACTUAL size of our desserts at P.F. Chang's Let's just say they were a bit small and we were surprised! She was a little tipsy that night and we almost got kicked out!

Good friends.....good food....and surrounded at the show with really BAD hair!! Such Fun!!

Some Friends are for a Reason...Season....or 2 Months and Then.....What The??

Ever had a "friend" just dump you? It doesn't happen to me very often, but I've had 2 in the last year do it and I am perplexed. Am I going soft? Is my good friend radar on the fritz? Am I just not the judge of character I once was? I truly don't know. The sad thing is, the "deal breakers" were the dumbest things. The first was the price of a cruise and the second.....are you ready? The GYM! What? Who in my world breaks up with me because of the gym? Really? And, the conversation I had to endure to end it.....it was like we were dating or something! She must have told me 4 or 5 times.....I just need to take a step back. Where was she going? Off the treadmill into the abyss? She said it wasn't me it was her. Well, O.K. but I never saw this coming. Really. Such drama for such a silly reason. I felt like I was back in Junior High again. I felt really bad for her because at her age she should maybe pick the high road and be honest. I also felt bad for me because I believed she was my friend and I was mistaken.

I am not sharing this for pity, or to make anyone feel bad. I am trying to figure out what lesson I need to learn in all this. I believe it is so I will refocus in on who exactly I want to surround myself with in this life that will bring joy into my life. Who will support me and love me unconditionally and when times get hard, I can lean on them for strength. More importantly, I want to be the friend people find joy in being around, that can find comfort and strength in when they need it and if I can help--they know I am a phone call away. I haven't really been that person for awhile. 3 months to be exact. I have been wallowing in the "unfair" of my job situation and it has been about me.

I am so sorry to all the people in my life I haven't been paying very good attention to this last little while. I have been attending a private pity party and I should have been looking outward instead of in. Thank you to all of my "inner circle" who have put up with me this last bit of whatever it was. I finally feel myself coming back into the land of the participating and I am grateful to all of you that stuck around in the meantime. I love my friends and family and I truly don't know what I would do without you. Thank you for showing me who you are and what I need to "kick it up a notch" in this life. Especially in a world full of imposter's that are lurking in plain sight every day. I am taking a step forward. So, hang on, it is gonna be a fun ride! Patty and Mom--you were right (damn it) "it all worked out." I tread on.....

PS. I am definitely back on the wagon! 93 lbs. and counting!

Kung Fu Panda Is A Must!!

Looking for a summer movie winner for the whole family? Kung Fu Panda!! Soooo funny and wonderful! Two Thumbs Up!! Love it! That is my summer movie pick June! For the adult girlfriends of the world--SEX & THE CITY!! So much fun for those of us who loved the series! A little dirty of course, but awesome!! Who needs Ebert & Roeper when you have me??

I Miss My Dad

I miss having a Dad. Even though when he was alive, we didn't always get along, I miss so many things about him. I miss his laughter, his sense of humor, the way he would dance around the room doing his fifties doo wap dance moves when we were little. I loved watching movies with him because he wanted to know what happened 5 minutes into it and drove me crazy asking questions. I loved walking over to the Artic Circle with him to have our "Daddy Daughter" outings. I miss finding him the perfect gift for my Mom and then watching him take the credit for it and knowing Mom knew I picked it out. I miss his outrageous handwriting on a note usually apologizing for something he had done. I even miss waking up out of a dead sleep because he had set the alarm on me when he left for work and running upstairs before it quit beeping. I regret so many things about our complicated relationship. I was his "cross to bear" a lot of the time because he had passed on his stubborness to me and I was determined to always be right in our arguments. We were much more alike than I ever realized, because I spent so much time being mad at him. I just didn't realize what he was going through and how truly ill he was. I was too busy being disappointed because he wasn't what I thought he should be. I have had many great talks with him since he died. They are very productive because he doesn't get to say anything.

Seeing my Dad again is one of my greatest wishes in life, so I can tell him I love him so much. I pray all the time that this isn't the end for us. I would love a do-over with him to get it right the next time. Maybe we will. This father's day was especially hard for me, because Tim Russert passed away. He was the pollitical analyst for NBC News. One of the many things my Dad and I had in common was we both loved the pollitical process and really got into the presidential elections. Now granted, we were polar opposites of the spectrum in our belief systems, but really loved the process. Tim Russert was a staple for us to watch together as we debated the issues and I never really realized what a connection he was for my Dad, until I watched all of the tributes for this lovely man who died too soon. My Dad died too soon also. I always try to find something to learn from death and the one constant I always find is, you just never know when someone will go. So, don't wait until tomorrow to let people know you love them, because they may be gone. So, on this father's day as the world remembers all the dads that make us laugh, cry, scream and smile.......I miss you Dad. Thank you for all the gifts you gave me that I probably didn't appreciate at the time. I do now and I know what I miss the very most about you.....your hugs for a little girl that needed one. Today would be that day. I love you. I tread on.

This was one of our really good days.

It's Official......I Am Employed Again!!

Wow. What a year it has been. Every year I think, next year has got to be better than last year. And for the last 6 years.....I've been mistaken. Now, this isn't a pity party, by any means. However, I have felt as though a giant mirror has been slammed over my head at times and life has kicked me in the slats on several occasions. But, this year--come on! I have had some of my worst moments and some of my best (UN-MEDICATED) I might add. But, I think I may be going in a new direction. After a lot of blood, sweat and tears, Hairapy by Crissy Olpin is now a reality and will be open for business June 23rd. Hale-frickin-lueigh! I am so ready to get my life back on track and be me again! I miss doing something creative every day and I miss my clients! I miss the salon environment and gossip-God forgive me-I love dishing with my pals! Ever since I saw the movie Steel Magnolias, I wanted to be Truvy! I wanted to have that "Coming Home" feeling job where you could make people beautiful and when they left they knew you genuinely cared about them. So, Elite Nail Studio........I hope you are ready for a loud, loving, full-figured hair stylist to come and be part of your world, because I am on my way!

I think my trainer is the happiest of all that I am going to a job I love, because I don't think she could bear me losing and gaining the same 8 lbs. again! I am finally just losing again. YEAH!

I also did another 5K last Saturday. I shaved 5 & 1/2 minutes off my time and got 2 blisters to prove it! I looked at them as badges of honor! Who knew this girl could get injured from exercise? Who is this person?? I don't even recognize her!! 78 lbs. and counting......I tread on.

So.....Ever Tried To Get A Sink Installed??

UGH! This seems to be my mantra these days. When I started this quest for a new gig, I never in my wildest dreams figured that a little old sink would bring my to my knees--LITERALLY! I consider myself an understanding person, so I try to see other's perspectives when in a situation where my patience is tried, but I don't understand why postal workers get such a bad wrap, when there are people every day, just trying to get a simple construction job completed and are brought to the brink of mania and become a stalker trying to understand the lunacy their lives have become because of such projects. I now realize I have become the proverbial "donkey" with the carrot in front of her nose and every time I am within reach.......YANK! It is gone in a flash and I am left gritting my teeth and trying not to burst a vessel in my brain before my project is brought to completion. I just need a sink. Not the Taj Mahal people~a sink and I pray every day for it to get installed and here I am....again......denied. Maybe tomorrow. Always........ maybe tomorrow. I'm not seeing the big deal. Really?? But, today (emotionally) was better than yesterday. Yesterday, I felt like a Stepford Wife stuck in a loop. UGH. I say again. My plumber is a nice guy. Really. I feel for him. I do. But, how do I say this with all the love the Lord has put in my heart for my fellow man.................I NEED A FRICKIN' SINK MAN! Whew. OK. I got that out and I feel a little better. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe. I tread on.