on the road again

just can't wait to get on the road again.

woohoo! The wait is done. We're gone. Outta here.

The freedom of the open road has beckoned. Stay tuned...

love this photo

This pic is one of my screensaver slideshow photos on my home pc. Everytime I see it, I say - wow - I love this photo. So had to share... :-)


Talking with Jean and her friend Barbara the other day (btw, Barbara is great - hope I get to see her again!)... Jean commented to Barbara how I look like hmm.... was it a terrorist?? I can't remember. Anyway, it was in regards to how I look when biking in cold weather. Here are two photos that prove her point:

Yellowstone Nat'l Park, Sept 2005

Smoky Mountains, Oct 2007

the countdown

continues...

50 hours!

75 hours

and counting...

:-)

a little biking warmup

prior to the big biking fun... ;-)

We experienced a bit of something my friend Emily noted in her blog recently - unseasonably warm weather. LOVED IT!! But wow - what a freak. It was 83 today! Tomorrow? high of 56. bwahahaha Typical Wisconsin.

So we took advantage and did some stops on two bike runs we're doing this year. Here are some fun pics:

Greg taking a bite, thinking the water tower is ice cream


Some funky place with interesting metal sculptures and art

got my new girl

my new car that is... And so far, so good. Love it! ;-)

She handles well, corners nice and is quite spunky for a 4-cylinder. She's pretty inside and out, nice calm silvers and greys. Definitely grooving on the chrome-looking dashboard accents I had installed. I am considering getting interior lighting for it too - blue LED lights in footwells and center console. However, I'm not sure if the lights will be distracting while I'm driving. ?

one word challenge

Answer the following with only one word each!

1. Where is your cell phone? foyer
2. Where is your significant other? bedroom
3. Your hair? blonde
4. Your mother? loving
5. Your father? hero
6. Your favorite thing? learning
7. Your dream last night? water
8. Your favorite drink? Dew
9. Your dream/goal? fun
10. The room you're in? office
11. Your hobby? scrapbooking
12. Your fear? boredom
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? retired
14. Where were you last night? shopping
15. What you're not? skinny
16. Muffins? blah
17. One of your wish list items? traveling
18. Where you grew up? Lodi
19. The last thing you did? email
20. What are you wearing? underclothing
21. Your TV? smallish
22. Your pets? kitties
23. Your computer? love
24. Your life? fun
25. Your mood? overwhelmed
26. Missing someone? daddy
27. Your car? new
28. Something you're not wearing? shoes
29. Favorite store? scrapbook
30. Like someone? lots
31. Your summer? fantastic
32. Your favorite color? purple
33. When is the last time you laughed? recently
34. Favorite food? chocolate
35. Favorite word? cool
36. Favorite sound? quiet

what's shiny silver and heading to our house?

yep, I made the big decision and bought a new car, a Civic EX in alabaster silver with a gray interior. I traded in my champagne Grand Am which has been a wonderful car for me - it has approx 91,400 miles and has had no major issues besides when a deer decided she wanted to drive my car and didn't let me know to open the driver door for her. Well, except that the A/C doesn't work, and the first two fan settings don't work, and that it makes a lot of noises now when braking, and really, honestly, I've never liked how it braked anyway. Oh, and I can't forget the "Check Engine" light that's been on for a couple months now. And.... lol... yes, I still say that overall it's been a great car, but I'm just tired of the little issues that I haven't had fixed.

I did some serious self-debate on whether to get a gas model or a hybrid, and decided on the gas Civic for numerous reasons. First, it would take approx 7-8 years to even recoup the difference of upfront price with the fuel savings - when I estimated fuel costs from $4-$5 thru the years. Second, I didn't like the interior colors in the hybrid... and that's important to me if I'm spending lots of time in my car - to me, an hour each day is a lot, and that's been minimum for me for the past three years. And third, I wasn't sure I could get used to the little jerks in the hybrid when starting from a stop or very slow speed and during certain braking situations.

I haven't taken delivery yet, we just bought it yesterday, and as part of the bargaining, we're having the protection plan (inside and out) installed at a very low cost. Never thought I'd do that, but considering the cost we paid as compared to the damage the car could get from things like door dings, bird crap, tree sap, spills on the seats and/or flooring, etc., I figured what the heck. Plus I'm having the interior gauge trim kit installed - a chrome look around the gages, vents, etc. I think it makes the car look a little more expensive and "polished" (pun not intended, lol). :-) I was thinking about upgrading the sound system, but I'll just wait and see how this one does.

One of the big bonuses of the Civic is that it has a direct plug for mp3 players - MUCH better sound than trying to use an FM modulator to play tunes from my beloved clix mp3! And I love the size of the car - it could actually be even smaller for me - and it handles great around corners, and has spunk for the smaller engine it has. This will be my first 4-banger, so hopefully it'll be quick and responsive enuf. For a short person with stubby arms (like me), it's hard to find a car that has all controls within reach, and the Civic does this well. I don't have to bend forward every time I want to change a setting. Plus stereo and cruise settings are on the steering wheel anyway, so another bonus! woohoo!!

more fun quizzes!

You Are a Fierce Femme

You have a wild side, and you aren't afraid to bring it out when the time is right. But you also know when to hang back and keep your "crazy chick" persona in check. In fact, some of your friends may be surprised to find out how far you can take it... You may look mild mannered, but it's all an act!

Are You a Daring Woman?

You Are a Semi-Colon

You are elegant, understated, and subtle in your communication. You're very smart (and you know it), but you don't often showcase your brilliance. Instead, you carefully construct your arguments, ideas, and theories until they are bulletproof. You see your words as an expression of yourself, and you are careful not to waste them. You friends see you as enlightened, logical, and shrewd. (But what you're saying often goes right over their heads.)

What Punctuation Mark Are You?

You Should Try Base Jumping

One of the most dangerous extreme sports Illegal, potentially legal - but totally worth the risk

What Extreme Sport Should You Try?

You Are 70% Creative

You are beyond creative. You are a true artist - even if it's not in the conventional sense of the word. You love creating for its own sake, and you find yourself quite inspired at times.

How Creative Are You?

You Are 20% Pure

You've either done it, thought about it, or at least heard about it. Luckily, there's a few things left for you to try!

How Pure Are You?

You Should Drive a Red Car

You're the type of driver who isn't afraid to be the fastest on the road. You have a lot of energy built up, and you tend to get your adrenaline fix from driving. Moving at hyper speed, you tend to be annoyed with slow drivers and slow people. Life's too short to be slowed down by someone else!

What Color Car Should You Drive?

You're Totally Sarcastic

You sarcastic? Never! You're as sweet as a baby bunny. Seriously, though, you have a sharp tongue - and you aren't afraid to use it. And if people are too wimpy to deal with your attitutde, then too bad. So sad.

How Sarcastic Are You?

Carrie and I must both be bored or easily amused. Both of us, staying up way too late, doing these darn quizzes!

Your Personality at 35,000 Says...

Deep down, you prefer spending time alone to spending time with others. You enjoy thinking more than talking. You are good with your place in the world. You are confident and comfortable with who you are. Your gift is having a way with words. You know how to express yourself well. You are inspired by challenges. If something is hard to accomplish, you want to do it. You are happy as long as you are given some personal space. It's important for you to have your own private life.

The Personality Test at 35,000 Feet

ENOUGH!!

the color purple

Another fun quiz from http://www.blogthings.com/whatcolorisyourmindquiz/ - What Color is Your Mind? Again I'm thinking how true this is! And YES, my fave color is purple, has been as long as I can remember... even when I was about 6 years old, when my parents built their house, I wanted PURPLE as my room color!!

Your Mind is Purple

Of all the mind types, yours is the most idealistic. You tend to think wild, amazing thoughts. Your dreams and fantasies are intense. Your thoughts are creative, inventive, and without boundaries. You tend to spend a lot of time thinking of fictional people and places - or a very different life for yourself.


omg, too funny, a dif quiz from that same site: What Color is Your Aura?

Your Aura is Violet

Idealistic and thoughtful, you have the mind and ideas to change the world. And you have the charisma of a great leader, even if you don't always use it! The purpose of your life: saying truths that other people dare not say. Famous purples include: Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., Susan B. Anthony. Careers for you to try: Political Activist, Inventor, Life Coach.

happy mother's day

I made a sweet mini album for mom for mother's day! It's an acrylic album, kind of a hard clear plastic. Since it's clear, as in SEE THRU, the big challenge is to not have adhesive or the ugly backs of stuff showing. You basically have to put the front and back side of each page together at the same time. And even working with other pages - you have to make sure that yuck stuff won't show thru page to page. This album is definitely clean and simple... it was my first attempt at acrylic, and I was in a bit of a hurry. But I think it turned out really cool. woohoo!

The theme for this was basically "family." The cover is a picture of mom and dad on their wedding day. Then the pictures are of their kids (my siblings and me) chrono thru the years. In birth order: Nancy, Bonnie, Susie, Donnie, Randy, Gini and me.


argh - photos suck - the camera was set at a very low res, unbeknownst to me. oh well, c'est la vie. You get the idea... ;-)