When I was 5, I remember saying that I wanted to become a truck driver :P . I used to like the hugeness of the vehicle and thought that to drive the biggest vehicle on the road was the best thing to do in life :)

More so, when I started to read English; I would be thrilled by words like ROAD KING ;) on the back of trucks..

Now that's past....

15 years since then ! Phew.. Now if someone asks me the same question...Why would anyone ask me this, now that I am already old?.. Nevertheless, if some one asks me, or If you have always wanted to ask me..
Here's my reply :

I want to grow young :D

It was like I was chasing a bad guy in a Die hard movie. We saw things that you don't see everyday. It seemed kinda weird to be in that part of a building. The best was when we opened the hatch to the roof. It was wild being on the roof of such a large building.

I am not usually afraid of heights; but this was a completely different experience for me. I was a little nervous the entire time on the roof. As you can see from the pictures we where quite high. There is no spiritual content in this post. This was just a cool experience I had and I want to share.

I also need to get on track with my "housework".  I hate it and this place always looks like a dump and I can never catch up.  Lucas is gone all next week so I think I will make an effort to do some organizing, chucking and cleaning.  It's just really hard to get anything done while K is awake and with one 1.5 hour nap and wanting to work out sometimes, it doesn't leave a lot of time.  I guess I just need to get better at figuring out how to MAKE it work.  I hate feeling like I never accomplish anything.  I also want to get some bags made for Christmas presents and do some knitting.  Less time just watching TV and reading and more time doing something else at the same time at least.  Knitting and watching TV isn't too bad as long as I don't try anything too complicated!  I just can't figure out how to manage my time with no deadlines and no one caring whether I do anything or not.

Kailey news:  she is SO CLOSE to walking.  It's worrying me and I am very nervous about her hip appt next month, especially since Lucas will be gone that week and I will have to take her alone.  I just hope not having her in the Rhino very long won't be a disaster.  

She is learning new things every day.  I forget how "sponge-like" they are.  I tell/show her something once and she actually remembers it. ...guess I better stop fucking swearing all the time.

She "signs" a lot of words and says a few more.  She is not into the repeating stage yet, I am guessing that is coming soon.

I took her to the dentist on Tuesday for her first appt.  She screamed bloody murder but I guess that was good as it's the only way to see into her mouth!  He said her teeth looked good, her molars are on their way, and something about her frenulum, I don't know how to spell that.  Anyway, I was annoyed because we had to wait an hour for her 5 minute appt and it's not exactly easy to keep a 16 month old entertained when she is tired and hungry on top of it all.  She was good though.  Fell asleep on the way home and wouldn't take a real nap, I hate that.

I don't really understand the point of a blog but I guess it might be good for me to write some stuff down to get it out at least.

Random thoughts:

who gives a crap if Madonna is getting divorced?  Is anyone surprised?

AS IF Angelina Jolie is already thinking about adopting again, seriously.  She needs her head examined.

I wish I was knitting or something else than waiting for Lucas to get home from work.  

I wish it wasn't so darn hot out and I would take K and Bro for a walk.

As long as it doesn't rain I may do both. Rake now and mulch later. I know it's really not that important and certainly not worthy of a blog entry, especially after a weeks absence but honestly, every time I look in the backyard, all I see is leaves and it drives me nuts.

The upside is the room looks bigger.  The downside, I now need to find new homes for a bunch of knick knacks and books in the corner shelf because it is going.  I need that spot for the easel.

Another upside is I've now found a place to practice with my veil without worrying about dogs or cats pouncing on me.

I'll post some pictures when I've got everything where I want it.

And no, I haven't touched any of Scott's computer gear.  Not even a single extra cable...pinky swears.

"How are ya?" (I gotta look friendly.  Arm tap tap tap) "Good ta see ya!"
"It's good to see you again..." (look at Obama.  Say his name!) "Senator Obama!"
"It's great to be with you again" (look at Obama!!)  "I think we've had a very healthy discussion."

And the kicker.  "Good job! Good job!" he said, gripping Mr. Obama's elbows, after the conclusion of the debate.  And when Cindy and Michelle joined them onstage, McCain practically jumped to be the first to greet Michelle.

It's almost as good as, "Can I call you Joe?"... heck, I expected McCain to invited the Obamas over to a barbeque afterwards.

But this was the best part of all:

Here is my overview of the Presidential debate that took place on October 15, 2008. Candidates Barack Obama and John McCain spoke right after the Dow Jones Industrial Average had crashed more than 700 points, yet neither man appeared to have noticed.

Barack Obama stated that he wants to “spread the wealth,” though he did not explain where he expected to find any.

John McCain insisted he wasn’t President George Bush, after apparently having feared that Obama believes all white, male Republicans look alike.

In terms of word repetition, the winning phrase goes to “Joe the Plumber,” a proper noun that was uttered roughly 389 times, unless I missed a few. This term was followed closely by the words “hurt”, “angry”, “new direction”, and “ninety-five.”

Both candidates stated they wanted to move “in a new direction,” though neither indicated which direction that might be.

McCain and Obama each have a plan to help 95% of American families, making it clear that the other 5% can pretty much kiss their keisters goodbye regardless of who wins this election.

McCain said he’d be the better one to balance the budget because he “knows how to save billions.” However, Obama proved he better knows how to save face.

On the education forefront, Obama said he’d fix the education system by doing something or other with the economy and military might, which really had nothing to do with higher learning. He added that he’s a proponent of charter schools and said that every person in this country who wants to attend college should be able to afford to go (whether or not they’re sufficiently equipped to graduate).

McCain said he believes in school vouchers, that he’d get rid of poorly performing teachers, and that he’d make it easier for non-certified, ex-military personnel to enter the teaching field. While it was not immediately evident how this would help improve education, obviously this would increase the supply of teachers ready for classroom combat.

Most of the debate discussions were targeted specifically to someone both candidates referred to as “Joe the Plumber.” Unfortunately, Joe couldn’t be there to hear their remarks. It’s rumored that Joe had been called away to fix a major sewer break in a pipeline running between the Federal Reserve, U.S. Treasury and several banks.

Moderator Bob Schieffer closed the debate by saying, “Go vote now.” After his microphone was switched off, he likely added, “Before these characters confuse you any more.”

However, I have now been reading this story for 3 days and am only on page 106. I pick it up repeatedly and always seem to find something that takes my attention away from it quite quickly. At this point, I HATE/DETEST/LOATH the hero, Lord Vincent Sinclair with some serious passion. In the first 106 pages, he has seduced and impregnated the widowed heroine, Cassandra Montrose, Lady Colchester. He has continued to be rude and obnoxious when she shows up at the Sinclair estate with baby daughter to plead for help because she believes she is dying of consumption. He goes back and forth between wanting to be involved in his daughter's life to wanting both her and Cassandra out of his life. He has offered to buy Cassandra a home and pay for the upkeep of her and her daughter while mandating that she may never marry another man. Meanwhile, he is engaged to Lady Letitia Markham who was once his father's choice of bride for his the aforementioned Devon - who is heir to the Sinclair dukedom. She is quite mercenary and as unlikeable as Vincent.

Seriously, I don't recall disliking Vincent so much in the first book. In fact, I think he was more a tragic-type figure who had been betrayed by his older brother and then left to manage the family and the estate in his brother's absence (because the Duke may or may not be mad). I think he seemed like an intriguing character. But now, I am having a very difficult time believing that any type of tragic revelation or character transformation can make his behavior towards Cassandra seem appropriate enough to result in a HEA.

In addition, I have a real bad reaction to illegitimate children in historicals - especially involving illegitimate children of peers. There was such an incredible stigma attached to illegitimacy. And, there is no way to reverse this plot device. It ruins both the unmarried mother and the child. At this point in the story, Vincent seems remarkably unconcerned about the fact that he has fathered a child out of wedlock. I have wanted to knock some sense into him several times already. I haven't had much of a reaction to Cassandra, because I've been so annoyed with Vincent.

I do plan to continue reading the book. I don't hate it, and I am curious about the curse and the mad duke. I can only hope that Vincent's redemption is believable and that it makes him worthy of the love of both Cassandra and his daughter June.

The Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure is this Saturday - and me and a few friends are on a team called "Save 2nd Base" - so we decided we should design shirts rather than wear the ones they send, and this is what we came up with!!

And this is what it turned out like!  :)  We printed the image on iron-on paper, and then ironed it on and BAM!  Our rockin' shirt!

Alle gucken!

You, my love, are everything a woman could ever ask for--you are the best of the best. Each moment that passes, I fall more and more in love. You know, I never thought that possible, because I always feel so completely and utterly in love with you. But as I have said, with each new moment, I fall more. I truly believe I will never stop falling in love with you.

The very first words that come from your lips when you wake are, "I love you". How sweet is that! And that is not just some morning, but all. I am truly blessed.

I know in the past I have felt love. I understand this, I do. But it has never felt as this does, and it has never been complete from the other side. What I mean is, either I was not totally in love, or they never gave their all to me. I deserve that. Some were much too frightened and never knew how to truly love another, some did not know how to love unconditionally,... some just a mere moment in my life; insignificant seconds that brought lies, that in return, brought tears and never really made me smile deep inside.

But you, dear, you always knew I deserved more, and stood beside me every step of the way as a best friend and confidant. You have loved wholly, sweetly, courageously and strong. I have never known a love like this before. Thank you for how you are, for waiting, and for getting me through even the darkest of nights.

... I so love you, Stefan.

Long story short, a cell phone user texts a question, any question, to 242242 (ChaCha) and someone like me....will automatically get a pop up window on their computer with the question. I have 3 minutes to find the answer and a source website with credible information to send back to the customer. I get paid 10 cents a question.

If I do at least 200 questions a week....My pay rate rises to 20 cents a question.

You think this sounds silly? Try it....text a question you want to find out the answer to.

Right now my goal is 100 questions a day. Because this is obviously more than 200 a week I get paid 20 cents a question. 100 questions a day x .20 x 30 days = $600/month.

Ka-ching. I know some ladies online who do this full time. One takes home about $2400 a month answering about 400 questions a day. Being a ChaCha guide is not for the occasional computer user. You need to be quick. You need to type fast and proficiently....you need to be a google junkie. Luckily I fit all those categories.

For now I will really be trying to hit my 100 a day goal. Supposedly you get faster and faster the more you do it.....so I'm going to stick with it. I've been doing it for about 3 weeks now.

Last night I went to a wonderful comedy at the Gamer Galleria Theatre in downtown Denver.  It is a two-woman cast having fun that started out by reading their old diaries -- very cute, funny, and nostalgic.  I was absolutely tearing from laughter several times. 

The irony for me on the organization topic is that they asked the audience at one point about how many girls had boxes of mementos from their childhood and nearly everyone including me raised their hand.  Then they asked how many people have garages full of stuff from their childhood and nearly a third of the audience still raised their hands.

What are we really doing with all this stuff?   I’ve learned lots of ways to let go of my memorable stuff by writing about them and logging them in my computer, now with blogs we can do that, scan photos, scan those famous A+ book reports from 6^th grade, and even connect with others and keep those memories current and interactive. I have even scanned in documents from old jobs, why not – it’s not doing anything in a box (at least now I can find it on my hard drive – those celebrated purchasing policy and procedure manual that I labored over for months at one dot com company in the 90s!)   If you’re not using the memories as part of today, what’s the benefit?  If they’re not good memories, really, why are we keeping them?  A hard one for me year’s ago, still being single, was letting go of those old boyfriend photos.  I kept one memory photo and put all of them in one book.  Next step will be to put them into a digital one…. I’m almost there – mentally.  Obviously, we all have our reasons for hanging onto stuff.  I have just found out that when I don’t have all this physical clutter in a storage unit or crammed in the back of my front hall closet, I feel so much freer to enjoy today and learn or  laugh at my past. 

Go ahead and have some fun and tackle one small area, storage bin, or shoe box and work your way through it by letting go of stuff that no longer serves you. 

Clear your clutter and take actions that will create the greatest results for the memories expended. 

If you need help, I’m always happy to help with organizing, coaching you to clear the clutter.  I also have great resources for how to scan your stuff, set up a blog and how to protect your information with clever back up systems inexpensively.  Call me at 303-778-0588 or email me at anne@strategizeandorganize.com.  

The rest of the time, I’ve just been gorging on chaat and chhole bhature and some uncharitable souls have already started commenting that I’ve put on weight. Put on weight?! It’s been four frigging days! Delhi is an air pump or what?

I’ve also been answering some fan mail most of which is from people I knew at various educational institutions. This is not to drive home the fact that I’m famous…well, maybe just a tiny bit.  

To get back to the fan mail, some of the comments made me laugh out loud. “Our teachers said you were one of the boldest girls they’d known.” Last I’d known the word that was being bandied about was notorious. Makes you realize what a little success can do for your reputation.

Just to apprise you of the facts, I have been expelled from every hostel I’ve ever been to. The reasons ranged from wearing a too short skirt to smuggling in bhang during Holi to bunking and going off to a disco at night to being a groupie of rock bands to generally being too individualistic.

India, as most of us know, approves of acquiescent behavior. It is unforgiving of originality and independent thought, especially in women.

Enough cynicism. I’m off to the Corbett Tiger Reserve tomorrow and onto Rishikesh from there for a spot of river rafting. Terrible planning I know but what to do. Time is short and there’s a lot I want to do.

I especially want to see a tiger before tigers are extinct. I’m crazy about tigers and have been to Ranthambore and Sariska (this was before I was informed that there are no tigers left in those two anymore!) and all I saw after two whole days of eating dust were pug marks (which in hindsight are suspect as well).

Maybe I’ll be lucky the third time around. I did ask rather pointed questions of the KMVN and the Forest Service officials and have been assured that there are indeed tigers to be found at Corbett.

Otherwise, next stop, Bandhavgarh.

Ciao until later.

John McCain rally in Washington PA August 30, 2008 - photo by Eric McKenna, originally uploaded by Eric McKenna.

First - this is not a political rant.

Second - let me get this out right away. I'm a conservative. I'm a white male. I'm a Christian. I'm a small business owner. I'm a capitalist.

Third - I'm just clearly stating why I'm giving John McCain my vote.

Obama was never really in my radar. Clinton was a slight consideration although I'm not a fan of her husband and the farther from American politics Bill stays - the better I feel.

My guy in the primary was Fred Thompson. My 'feel good' contender was Ron Paul.

But faced with reality of McCain and Obama, it's no contest. McCain gets my vote.

Here are my simple bullet points why.

1. American Security. I believe McCain takes this much more seriously than Obama. I believe McCain is much more familiar with the US military. And I do give a extra amount of consideration to McCain for what his service and the entire prisoner of war ordeal he endured.

2. Capitalism. While I'm certain that neither candidate has a great track record of true pro-business, pro-capitalism, I am certain that McCain is closer in record and belief in free markets and less regulation. I also feel McCain does not share the rather dangerous 'socialism' rhetoric that often comes from Obama.

3. Taxes. I'm confident that John McCain understands that stealing from America's wealthy to give to American's not so wealthy is wrong. Morally wrong as well as economically wrong. In every regard. Obama's stated positions are about continuing the unfair 'tiered' tax percentage plan as well as accessing additional taxes on those with incomes of 250K per year. Obama's stated positions also seem to broaden the government's scope of social programs and pandering to the portion of society which is not interested in self-achievement.

4. Supreme Court. As a conservative, I would like to see additional conservative judges in our nation's highest court.

That is basically it for me. I think Obama is a fine man. He has a beautiful family. And I think John McCain is a fine man and also has a beautiful family. And John is indeed a patriot who has served his country both in battle and peacetime.

John McCain gets my vote for President.

• Visiting the chiropractor. This has been interesting. I have been suffering from "heel-itis" which is also known to most as plantar fasciitis (PLAN-tur fas-e-I-tis).  It also appears that I have several subluxations that need worked on.  I'm getting used to the routine of "just relax" and then "crunching bone sounds".  It actually feels much better after an "adjustment". And, the different treatments on my heel are actually giving me some almost pain free times on my feet!  Yeah!
• Had lunch with my good friend Kim.  We aren't able to see each other as often as we'd like - so this was a treat!  We laughed a ton and it was over all too quickly!
• Did some recording with my brother Mike.  He's working on a fun compilation of old hymns and needed some piano tracks and background vocals dropped in.
• Had breakfast with my "little brother" Josh.  It was great to catch up on what's going on in his life.  Two words, Josh, "borrowed hope!"
• Hung out in the afternoon with Bethany - got to see her dorm apartment - it's great! Then went downtown to grab a Starbucks and a bite to eat. It's always fun hanging out with Beth.
• Caught up (almost) on all the DVR-ness that has been stacking up.
• Cooked a lot - Rob is getting ready for the big day - his marathon is this weekend!  Pasta is the food of the day lately!
• Spending a lot of time with the newest Kelly family member - Sophie, Little Dog, Sopher Loafer, The Soph, or whatever else she gets called around here:

• Finished one book and started another one. Brewed coffee, sat in my "coffee chairs" and drank the whole pot while I luxuriously sat and read!
• Reorganized my iTunes.  Apple is now back in good graces with me (see here if you hadn't been keeping up and have a few hours, ha!) After 2 defective iPods (3 if you count the first one that went kaput, they worked it out to exchange the latest defective iPod for a new current year model!  Hooray!  It did require me paying for the 2 year warranty, but that worked since it appears that I might need that given my history. Rob swears I have user error issues - whatever!)  I also enjoyed buying a few songs from a gift certificate from my good friend Steve Wade, or Swade as he's called by a few.
• Had some chill time just hanging out with my mom. That's the best!

I still have 4 days of decompressing left before I start my new job.  I'm planning on enjoying every minute of it!