Cindy's Birthday!

It's this cRaZy bunny's B-day.... HAPPY BIRTHDAY, CINDY!

I know you don't want to celebrate and are not looking forward to this day...but I wanted you to know that I am thinking about you, wishing you a HAPPY BIRTHDAY day!!!!

Luv ya, girl!

I am two weeks into my ½ marathon training and am following Hal Higdon's training program. He recommends that you do a 5K (3.1mi) and 10K (6.2mi) to get used to race pace and to track your progress. I went onto Active.com’s website and found two races… so here I go again signing up for more events!

I will be doing a 5k at the City of Cypress 5K & 10L Run/Walk event. It will be held July 28th. The race is a fundraiser for cancer patient and awareness.

The second race I signed up for is The Hills Are Alive 10K/5K Run and 5K Walk. I will me doing the 10K Run. The 26th Annual Hills Are Alive Race is a cross country event taking place on soft-packed equestrian trails for the event’s 5K & 10K Run and 5K fun walk events. Race T-shirts and gift bags are included with each registration, following with snacks, beverages, and an awards ceremony after the race. Race proceeds benefit the Rolling Hills Estates Pepper Tree Foundation, whose purpose is to develop and maintain parks, trails, open space, recreation programs and facilities.

All this so that I have motivation to keep myself in shape!

I have a feeling that might be me come the day of the race! Oh, and I just found out that the week before this race I will be travel. *sigh* I will be coming home the Friday before and waking up very early for the half marathon. Good thing they recommend resting more days before your run, otherwise I am not sure when I would be able to squeeze in daily workouts.

Sleep over recap!

Here is a YouTube video that my creative sister put together to recap our weekend sleep over! Btw, I don't really dance like that and neither does my niece... we were joking around! If you have speakers, turn them up!

Signs from above

Friday I went to House of Blue in Downtown Disney to watch Boyz 2 Men in concert. The whole experience was amazing! House of Blues is a tiny 2-story restaurant, so they cleared the tables for the concert and it becomes a stand-only event. There were seven of us who went together and we all sang along to all our favorite songs and some of us even wept! Um… me included! The memories of Jr. High, cup of noodles, hide-n-go-seek in the grave yard, walking miles each day because we didn’t have a car, Carl’s Jr., sleep overs, etc, etc, rush through my mind.

Afterwards we hung out for a little while and then I headed off to the beach to drop off flowers in the ocean for my Dad’s year anniversary of his passing.

The week before I had gone to Balboa Pier for Father’s Day. I remember thinking that my Dad must have been cracking up as I debated on which flowers to get him, as if he was literally going to receive them. When I had gone last week it was a great visit. I had gone at 4 AM and there were a few fishermen on the pier but not where I was. I talked to my Dad for awhile and then dropped the flowers into the ocean from the pier. I asked my Dad to give me a sign that he was there and all of a sudden a green, glow-in-the-dark dive light popped up. This was pretty significant because my Dad and I were dive buddies since 1994. I started to cried and thanked him so much, and then I asked him for another sign that he was there and a seal popped up right by the flowers I had just dropped into the ocean. I was smiling from ear to ear and couldn’t stop thanking my Dad! The morning fishermen started to come into the area I was at and I decided to leave. I walked down the pier and just hearing the waves crash sounded so soothing and I realized I still wasn’t ready to leave, so I walked under the pier and just sat awhile. I noticed a white cap wash up on shore and I went out and got it. On it was the word “Ricasa” which in Spanish “rica” means rich. I didn’t know if it was another sign from my Dad or just litter washing up onto the shore, but as I walked back to my car I found $21 in the sand! Maybe it WAS another sign!

This past Saturday for my Dad’s one year anniversary of his passing I went to Shaw’s Cove in Laguna Beach after the concert. We had done beach dives from that cove and I think I did my final Jr. Scuba Diving certification dive there, too. This time I brought roses for him. He had a few rose bushed at his house and he was notorious for cutting them and giving them to his daughters and girlfriend. They were yellow and red, yellow for friendship and red for love. I walked onto the rocks on the side of the cove and for every rose I through in I thanked him for something that he had done in my life! It’s was about 1 AM, so I headed back home because I had a busy day ahead of me.

Saturday morning I had a huge list of things I needed to get accomplished and was shocked when I woke up and saw the clock displaying 9:50AM. I was SUPPOSED to wake up at 7AM, take my car in to get a new starter and oil change and then come home and continue checking things off my “to-do-list.” Seeing how that was not going to happen, I cleaned my house, got ready and went to martial arts practice. Afterwards, roomie stopped by to give me flowers in memory of my Dad. Strange thing is the florist put coffee bean flowers in the arrangement. In Nicaragua, where my Dad is from, my family owns coffee plantains and my Dad was a coffee lover, so it seem fitting and almost like another sign from my Dad.

My Mom, two nieces and sister, Messy Jessy, stopped by and hung out for a little while. Jessy and my niece “Nacha” spent the night. We had great time pigging out at BJ’s Restaurant, doing mud masks, and watching Norbert the movie with Eddy Murphy!

Sunday my sister was teaching a cycle class and off I went to take it at 8AM! I only had 4 hours of sleep and I was so exhausted, but had a great work out. Then I went home to wake up the two sleepy heads and cook them breakfast. I woke them up by saying “You can have turkey bacon, eggs, fruit, yogurt, pancakes” and before I could finish I heard an “OK!” What? Not everything, silly girls! So I made pancakes, turkey bacon, and egg whites. We got up and got ready for a day at the beach with the entire family! I was so poo’d that I passed out for an hour or two and now my back is a little crispy! Ouch!

Cellulite filled rolls

Wednesday is normally Original Mike’s night, were I go to listen to the band Soto and hang out with friends. This past Wednesday we decided not to go and instead Jay, Santa and I went worked out, cleaned, had dinner, shopped at Target and watch Pride and Prejudice, or at least attempted to. All of us fell asleep during the movie. Santa laid across the bottom of the bed, Jay laid diagonally, and I was on one corner. I am sure Santa’s two beagles, Toby and Trigger made it up on the bed at some point, too.

At one point I felt a nudge and heard Jay ask me if I was ok. I vaguely remember making a noise in my sleep that woke me up, but apparently I was talking/moaning a lot in my sleep! How embarrassing! All I remember was having a nightmare of me looking at myself in the mirror. It was a lucid dream, so it felt as if it was real. I looked down and I was a huge, fat women! I had tons of rolls and I was so bothered that not only did I have rolls, but the rolls had cellulite. I even grabed a roll and was examining the cellulite. I remember being so shocked because I really thought this was “real” life and here I was lean one day and obese the next! This must be every woman’s nightmare and there I am having it with my friends on the bed! Well, at least I didn’t toot! Or worst, at least I didn’t toot and have it be a “silent but deadly” one. Oh lord…Now that would be embarrassing and I would not be able to blog about!

Cilliness!

Cindy and I have this GREAT magical power that attracts koinkidinks in our lives and when we are together this power is magnified.

Last week Cindy and I were chatting and the topic of grey hairs came up. I told her about a time when I was at work and towards the end of the day I noticed this grey hair sticking straight up from my reflection in the bathroom mirror. I remember examining myself in the mirror and confirmed that it was a grey hair *sad face* and I plucked the little sucker out of my head so fast! I marched back into my department and told my co-workers that I was upset with them for not only not telling me that I had a grey hair sticking out of my head like Alfalfa from the Little Rascals movie, but for also working in the beauty industry and not noticing! *sigh*

Well, I think Cindy and my power start to join forces again, because when I went to get my hair cut the stylist parted my hair and lo and behold, a grey hair. My stylist walked away for a second and when she returned she asked me “what did you do with it? You should have left it alone!”

Oh my, even she noticed it! *sniff*

If only Cindy and I could figure out how to wrap our little fingers on the control panel of our power!

High Maintenance drink

I think my favorite Satrbuck's drink is a little high maintenance. It’s a

“Venti, vanilla, chai, soy, latte”

And sometimes…
“With no H2O” depending if I want it thick or not.

And if I REALLY need caffeine, I ask for an extra shot of espresso!

No wonder the cashier looked at me weird when I placed my order today, had me repeat my drink request three times, and still got it wrong!

Right on Par!

The final week of my boss’ employment here at my work is just around the corner and I am so sad to see him go. I found out he was retiring about 9 months ago and the information went public in January. I kept talking about it as if it was SO far away and now it has slowly crept up on me.

I contact our HR department to see what we normally do for a retirees, and there is not a set policy or procedure, so I was let loose to do what ever I wanted. I notified all the department and a lot of them had individual dinners/lunches and some even schedule a round of golf with him.

I have never planned a retirement party and didn’t know where to start. My boss has been with the company since 1985 and I am sure he has tons of co-workers that want to say good-bye and wish him well. I decided to I keep it to just our floor for a lunch on his final day because inviting all 4 building and 3K employee might be a little out of our budget.

The lunch menu is classic chicken enchiladas, with shredded lettuce, sour cream, and fresh pico de gallo salsa as the main course. It will be accompanied with authentic Spanish rice, black beans, Southwest salad and chip and salsa.

As far as gifts go….what do you get a man that has everything? I took up a collection and came up with $500. Alright! I am going to get him a gift certificate from Roger Dunn Golf Shop since he goes there at least twice a month for lunch and I hear he goes there on the weekends with his son.

This “Hole in One” goodies basket will have the gift certificate taped on it.

The description said it was for “the golf enthusiasts” and that he is! It’s stylish and sturdy newspaper and magazine rack filled with honey mustard pretzels, sesame crackers, chipotle almonds, cabernet black pepper cheese spread, cashew crunch, coffee, waffle cookies, sesame breadsticks, vanilla tea, Mulligan's gourmet peanuts, cashew and peanut roca butter crunch toffee, two Guy Buffet golfers coffee mugs, matching coasters and more.




In addition, I got him a HUGE card that has a cute little mouse peeking out of a HUGE shoe saying “Congratulation on your retirement!” and in the inside “you’re leaving some VERY BIG shoes to fill.” I thought that would be a good for people to write their heart out.

I also got him this signature, frame card. Everyone just signs their name and his picture goes in the middle. He just had public relations pictures taken, too, so I have great shots to choose from.

Then, I got him this.

A golfer plaque had crafted with his business cards!


So how do you think I did? I hope he LOVES it!


Oh.... how could I forget? This is what I got him from me... or something that looks similar.

A "TIME MAGAZINE: MAN OF THE YEAR" mirror. So when ever he looks into it, he is declared man of the year!

Liar, Liar, pants on FIRE!!

I had a co-worker take me up on the Sexy Challenge for the month of May. The person who worked out the most hours in that month would win $100 cash.

I busted my butt and changed my workout routine so I wouldn’t get bored. Between my apartment gym, 24HourFitness gym, Santa’s apartment gym, dance classes, basketball, dancing, boot camp, DVD work outs, personal trainer sessions and me getting off my booty to practice martial arts outside of my regularly scheduled practice time (martial arts practice with sensei T were not allowed to be included in the contest) I had a total of 76 (or was it 78) hours clocked in! I had lost about 7lbs in the beginning and then gained it back, plus two pounds, but I was floating in my clothes! I guess I gain muscle…whoohoo!

The down fall was that I was dead tired ALL the time! Monster energy drinks became my new best friend!

When it came to the first day of June I eagerly waited to hear from my co-worker. He boasted about how he workout a lot, people were commenting how great he looked and he was losing a lot of weight, 10lbs to be exact! Not only that, he said he gave up caffeine, was watching what he ate and has tons of energy.

My thoughts behind these words as I was reading them, was “is this CM?” The one that did the Sexy Challenge with a co-worker before when clocked in 47 hours was dead tired, took at least one day off a week, ate like crazy AND was a couch potato before these two competitions? Seriously… he didn’t sound like the same person. Was he bluffing? Then… he gave me his total 90 hours!

Wow… an even number that totals 3 hours a day! Sounds fishy!!

I really doubt he did that!! I heard from a girl who visited his building that he actually looks like he gained weight, as in fat not muscle.

So I did some investigation work! Tee Hee! He told me he was taking classes at 24HourFitness, that he was going everyday at 5am for an hour and in the evening at 9 or 10 for another hour or so, in addition to in lunch run. Since I knew his birthday, I had Sensei T look up his membership clock in times. Looks like he ONLY clocked in:
May 14th @ gym 147
May 16th @ gym 158
May 17th @ gym 124

BUSTED! I confronted him on it! You should have seen his face, which by the way DOES look chubbier.

I let him go on and on about working out and then I told him that I had a bone to pick with him, I laid on the facts and then he tried to back peddle from there. He said he “did work outs outside the gym” and that they wave him through because the gym personal knows him. I came back with “headcount is important to a gym” and when I know personal they STILL check me in. Granted SOMETIMES they don’t but it is more the exception then the rule! Needless to say I DID NOT pay him the $100.

I'm in the "inner circle"

Have you seen the movie "Meet the Fockers?" Well... I am in the circe! Here at work that is! I am not sure what circle I am in, but I know that it is a top secret, high-level one!

I am covering for a girl at work and since I need to set up a meeting for one of her bosses I was called in to his office for a briefing on the matter. The meeting is set up in code words so it means nothing to me but since I saw the contact list for the meeting I am not allowed to sell, trade or buy stock unless approved!

DANG!

They said if I do, then it "could be serious... like Martha Stewart serious!"

As I am being dismissed from his office he said, wait...I hope you were not planning on selling, buying or trading stock anytime soon. Well, no, but seeing now that I am in the "circle" and have to go through red tape cuz I saw a contact list, I am definitely not planning on it!

Possible Road Kill

See what I got myself into… THIS. My thoughts behind it were:

1. I need to stay in shape during the holiday season, so this will force me to stay keep up my workouts and not snack so much seeing how the race is 1/6/08!
2. I get a free pair of running shoes.
3. …. *crickets chirping* ummm... and that’s basically it!

I had to sign up before June 30th and be one of the first 1,000 participants to sign up to get the shoes, so I signed up today.

The hardest part of signing up was filling out my emergency contact person. Normally that information would be a breeze to fill out. The person I normally would delegate was my Daddy-o, but he is no longer physically here so then I would have to pick someone else. I literally got choked up and just stared at my computer screen for sometime. I could feel my eyes starting to water and my heart racing. I collected myself and started to think who else I could delegate? Afterall, I have heard of things happening to people during a marathon, so I would need a reliable source that would answer their phone. It couldn’t be one of my friends, not because they are not reliable or wouldn't answer their phone, rather they do not have my family’s contact information, doctor’s information, etc. I finally decided to put my oldest sister's information. She is guaranteed to answer her phone or be at the race that day. Also, I remember how calm she is during a stressful situation and I would need someone to be calm and collective during a time like that!

Act of kindness

Awhile back I heard news that my sister, Ligia, from Nicaragua would be visiting the States to be here for my Dad’s one year anniversary of his death.

I got word yesterday that she would not be able to make it, but in honor of his kind memory she will be feeding the homeless for 3 hours on that day.

That made me feel humble inside and honored that I have her as my sister.

I have so many options of things to do that day, visit the San Diego Zoo, take a martial arts class taught by Master Bing, hang out with family and/or friend, but it never occurred to me to do something for someone else on that day.

What thoughtful and selfless family members I have!

Lizzy Looper and her loopiness!

Yesterday I sent my older sister an email saying I would stop by to hunt through my Dad’s paperwork for information that the tax guy and the estate attorney needed and she told me that my little niece, the one I call Lizzy Looper, was having a Goldilocks & 3 Bears play and I was invited to go. I headed down to her elementary school and felt like a giant around all the little rug rats.

It was a cute play! The boys in the class all wore fuzzy, bear ears and a blue bow tie and the girls wore a pink collar thing and a pink bow in their hair. The teacher read the story and the kids had songs they sang to different parts.





Let me say… MY NIECE IS A HAM!

The entire time she looked at us, did exaggerated hand gestures and facial expressions. She was too cute!

There is one song I just can’t get out of my head this morning. It’s called Mr. Sun Song and goes like this.

Oh, Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun,
Please shine down on me.
Oh Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun,
Hiding behind a tree
These little children are asking you
To please come out so we can play with you.
Oh Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun,
Please shine down on,please shine down on,
Please shine down on me!

After that I TRIED to go through my Dad’s stuff, but got caught up in conversation with my bro-in-law, my nieces and my sister…then Rita stopped by and us three gals chatted outside for an hour or so. It was getting late and I had to get ready, so there went me getting anything accomplished for the tax guy and the attorney. I told my sister that I need to stop by when she is not there because we do not get much done when we are together…she giggled and totally agreed!

My older niece helped me get ready to go out on the town and did my make-up just like hers. Since I didn’t take a pix of me, here is one of her and her makeup:

She put a lot of shimmer on my eyes and put my eyeliner thicker then usual and it looked great! Went I met up with my friends Jay and Santa at Revolution (which by the way only have like 8 people in the entire place) they said they loved my make up. I told my niece and she is SUPER excited! Now I just need to learn to reproduce the look for Saturday!

Blissful reunions

I go through these waves in my life where I am either a hermit or want to be surround with loves ones. Normally, my family and friends are on a separate wave then me and hit me at the wrong time. However, this time it is working out PERFECTLY!

I am in a mood of being surround with love ones and wanting people to invade my space, so to speak.

My aunt Lili (my Mom’s sister) called me the other day and told me that my Mom was over for dinner and mentioned that I work near her home and invited me over for lunch. She told that she knew we have not been close but it’s never too late to start. That was very touching and I welcomed her wanting to start a new relationship with me, her niece!

When ever I hang out with my niece, I notice her mom (my sister) always telling her how lucky she is to have aunts like us (me and my other sisters). I never looked at it that way until I took a step back and realized that I don’t have a relationship with my aunts. None of my sisters do, so you can image how surprise I was that my aunt called. She is a sweet lady and has tons of love to give!

I headed over to her house and when I arrived there was a cute sign outside that said “Welcome Home, Vanessa!” Awww…. for me? That was such a warm touch to add to her home-cooked meal. When I entered, not only was I greeted by my aunt but their dog, Sunshine, too! Isn’t that the cutest name?

My aunt prepared spaghetti with homemade sauce, steamed veggies, including sweet potato (one of my favorites!!!), mash potatoes, corn on the cob, and rice. It was a lot of food. All was so YUMMY in my tummy!

Afterwards, she gave me a tour of her home and showed me a video of her daughter’s recent dance recital. My cousin does hip hop! COOL! Maybe she can show me some moves.

I had to head back to work, but it was a nice break and great to see my aunt and family! I left with a parting gift, too! A family picture of my sister, my Mom and my DAD! It was taken at my sister’s wedding and is now framed and displayed at home.

Sleeping Beauty!

Last night I was supposed to go grocery shopping on my way home, cook some dinner, stretch and head off to boot camp and have an intense work out.

Instead, I went straight home, made a few phone calls and was in bed by 6:30PM and didn’t officially wake up until 6:30AM. WOW… that is 12 hours of sleep. I woke up feeling better then I felt yesterday, just a slight sinus headache.

Baile Flamenco! OLÉ!

Sunday I went to Tapas Restaurant in Newport Beach to watch my sister’s Flamenco recital.

Flamenco is the traditional song and dance of the Gypsies of Andalucía in southern Spain. It developed over several centuries from Gypsy, Moorish (Arabs), Jews, Andalusian, and other roots.

She had been taking a class for two months and at the end of each semester the school has a recital. Even though it has only been 2 months, she looks like an expert! You would have thought she has been doing A LOT longer!

That dance she was doing is called “Sevillanas.” Sevillanas is a type of folk music, sung and written in Seville (Andalusia) in Spain. Historically, they are a derivative of Castilian folk music, spiced with a bit of Arabic rhythm. Technically, they are an evolution from Castilian seguidillas, they have a relatively limited musical pattern, but rich lyrics, based on country side life, virgins, towns, neighbourhoods, pilgrimage and, of course, love themes. (got that off the web...not my words...haha!)

My sister did an AWESOME job! He was well poised, danced fluidly and wore the spirit of the dance all over her. I loved watching all the different age group and to see a part of my culture. I loved it so much that I am going to take dancing lesson this summer with my niece and Santa and together we are going to learn the Sevillanas. The instructor is Claudia de la Cruz and she even honor us with a dance!

OLÉ! My oldest sister!

Here is mi familia... doing the "olé" pose!

Santa and my Mom dancing salsa at the end. It was too cute! AND...they were being video taped by the cameraman and will be featured at the end of the recital's video when everyone is exiting.

The road to being a BLACK BELT!

(What my niece gets to look forward to when she is a black belt...their own restroom!)

Friday morning I got an email from my older sister saying that my niece was being promoted from yellow belt to orange at her martial arts school. I quickly made arrangements with the girls at work to leave early, so I could make it on time.

I made it to Fullerton with 20 minutes to spare, so I went to the Sprint store and bought my niece a little congratulations/"I'm proud of you"/"Keep up the good work!" gift, a NEW CELL PHONE! Poor kids had gone months with out a phone because the face has come apart. I have gone just a day or two without my phone and felt like I was disconnected from the world. I can't imagine being in high school and not having it. Well.. I guess I technically can, since back in my high school days i didn't have one, but time are different now.

I could decide what color to get, so I called her from the store an asked "grey, pink or red?" She was confused and I didn't want to give away the gift, so I said think clothes or an accessory and she choose red.

When my niece arrived, I asked her if she wanted her gift now or after her promotion. Silly question, huh? Of course she wanted it right then. I don't blame her, I would too!

So I asked her to close her eye's tight and stick out her hands and I place it her deadly, karate hands.

This is a before picture with my niece and her yellow belt.

See the black belts on the wall? This martial arts school has a "black belt" club. You pay a flat fee for your "journey to black belt experience" and no matter how long it takes to get you black belt you will not have any fees there on out. Part of the black belt club is having you future black belt placed on the wall with your name and year you signed up under it. It is then up to you to work hard to get that belt off the wall and around your waist. I thought that was a great motivation factor. To come to class and always see your future black belt up on the wall as a constant reminder what you are working for.

(Here is a picture of all the current "future black belts" on the wall.)

(Here is my niece in action...sparring! I LOVE IT! She takes after ME!)

AND...TAHDA..... Here she is AFTERWARDS!!!! And did you notice something???? She is not wearing here old yellow belt!....AND she is not wearing her orange belt that she was SUPPOSED to get promoted to! She is wearing a PURPLE belt!!!! Her sensei wanted to recognize her for all her hard work and bumped her up a belt!

CONGRATULATION'S MY NIECE!!!!

Delirium

Friday night Jay came over and helped me assemble my TV stand. I was hungry, sleep and going delirious! When I get like that I am one big goof ball. But about one 1 AM we completed it! Poor Jay had to be at work that morning at 6am!

Saturday night we headed down to Jay’s home and had a bonfire! Seeing how Jay lives in San Clemente and drives all the time to North Orange County, the group thought it would be a nice treat for us to visit his area. Josh and I were the first ones there and we guarded the last fire pit as if our lives depended on it. South county beaches are a lot cooler then north county and I was freezing! I made a Starbucks run to get some warm fluids running through our bodies. Go figure the two people that were assigned to bring wood didn’t show up for another 1 ½ - 2 hours. Josh and I sat there on the pit and watched the ocean and talked about life. Pretty soon we saw dolphins jumping out of the water. There were three pods and they were jumping out of the water and displaying quite a show for us! We told all the late folks…. And of course, they were jealous! See it pays to be on time!

(Left to Right: Me, Josh, Santa, Dennis and Jay (he is on the bottom)

(Santa and me holding the fruit bowl and trying not to have it in the picture. Obviously that didn't work!)

I had made some croissant sandwiches with chicken, pesto sauce, sun dried tomatoes and pine nuts and everyone kept raving about them! *me blushing*

I got a call into the night that Paul and Sensei T were coming down!
NICE! I was so excited I haven’t seen Paul in like forever.

(Left to Right: Sensei T, Me and IT Paul)

The night was filled with tasty food, great company and TONS OF LAUGHTER!

(Left to Right: Jay, Josh, Dennis and homeless women in the middle)

This homeless person kept coming to our pit asking to sit by the fire and for ice. At the end of the night we were taking photos and the guys wanted one with her. Little did we know that her husband was not too far away and got jealous. Oops!

What do you think?

The VP of HR passed by and asked if I follow American Idol and I told her that I don't. She said when ever she sees me she wants to call me "Jordin" because I look like her. You know me, the minute she walked away I googled "American Idol Jordan". Up came these photos... so what do you think?? Do I look like her? And is that a good think?

Dad will always take care of us!

After my Father passed away all my sisters and I picked things that when ever we saw them we would think of him, so when I ever I see a bubbles, humming bird, butterflies and blue jays I ALWAYS think of my Daddy!

This past weekend I was hanging at my sister’s house and she was telling me a great story that just happen to her. She was having a terrible morning and on her drive to work she had heavy metal blasting and if steam could come out of her ears, it probably would have. All-of-a-sudden, she started to talk to God and asked him to help her calm down because she was about to go to work and didn’t want to start her day this way. She asked specifically. “God, give me a sign that today is going to be okay and that you hear me!”

She got to work and a gentleman was waiting to deliver some furniture to one of the employees. My sister directed him to where to assemble the furniture and continued to start her day. About 20 minutes later the lady who received the furniture came to my sister and was holding a small hummingbird in her hand. She had found it in the drawer of the desk that was delivered and it had already passed away. My sister said it was a beautiful hummingbird and she couldn’t believe her eyes. What is the likely hood of a hummingbird fling into a warehouse and going into a drawer and getting trapped in? And then, on top of that, it being delivered to my sister’s work.

My sister told me that she just kept looking at it. They lady didn’t know what to do with it and my sister was in shock that it was a sign from Dad and God letting her know that they heard her and everything was going to be okay!

Never could hack it as a Shaolin Monk!

Saturday morning I headed over to Mr. W’s house (Cindy’s honey) for a day of sun bathing, catching up, swimming, and good food!

Mr. W set up a wall dedicated to their trip. It was neat to see pictures, statues and a cool picture of Cindy and Mr. W dressed as royal emperors (or something like that). Cindy, I think you should so post it! It is my favorite!

Sun bathing was so relaxing. I could hear the birds chirping away and it almost put me to sleep.

I have never tried tofu cheesecake and it’s like tart crust with a tofu whip cream on it. Very tasty! That was the main reason Cindy and I wanted to go.

Afterwards, we headed back to the house and watched a DVD on Shaolin Monk training in kung fu. I couldn’t believe the amount of dedication and hard work they put in to it. The live, eat and breathe kung fu! They prepare for any situation. One of the drills is they attach a rope to their testicles and the other end of the rope is attached to an iron brick. They proceed to drag…yes, drag it with their testicles! Another exercise is where they squat for hours at a time with a cup on their head, each leg is on bamboo and a sharp bamboo is placed right under their bottom, so if they give up they get speared. OUCH!

Oh to the ASPARAGUS!

A couple weeks ago I was sitting at a restaurant and to help time pass they have these random little tid bits you can read, so after reading it I put it my purse to blog about and totally forgot about it until I bumped into it this morning.

Can you pass the . . .

ASPARAGUS TEST?

We can't give you a million dollars, but if you answer the questions correctly and eat a lot of asparagus, we can assure you that you'll be much healthier.

Ready...?

1. The word "asparagus" is derived from what language?
2. What state grows most of the asparagus in the US?
3. What do asparagus, onions, garlic, leeks, shallots, chives and yucca have in common?
4. What is asparagus's best known nutritional value?
5. Does asparagus have aphrodisiac qualities?


ANSWER KEY
1. Greek, and the word means "sprout" or "shoot".

2. California. And, Stockton, CA is host to the Asparagus Festival in April. Make your reservations NOW as the attendance of asparagus enthusiasts has grown considerably over the past few years.

3. They are all in the Lily family!

4. It is the best vegetable provider of folic acid - necessary for blood and cell formation, as well as, liver disease prevention.

5. All through history asparagus has been trumpeted as an aphrodisiac. A 16th century Arabian love manual gave an asparagus recipe to create a stimulant for amorous desires. In his book "FOOD", write Waverly Root devotes a section to the sex life of the asparagus!

1 of the reasons I DON'T use a microwave

MICROWAVED WATER – SEE WHAT IT DOES TO PLANTS

Below is a science fair project. I n it she took filtered water and divided it into two parts. The first part she heated to boiling in a pan on the stove, the second part she heated to boiling in the microwave. Then after cooling she used the water to water two identical plants to see if there would be any difference in the growth between the normal boiled water and the water boiled in a microwave. She was thinking that the structure or energy of the water may be compromised by microwave. As it turned out, even she was amazed at the difference.

I have known for years that the problem with microwaved anything is not the radiation people used to worry about; it’s how it corrupts the DNA in the food so the body can not recognize it. So the body wraps it in fat cells to protect itself from dead food or it eliminates it fast. Think of all the Mothers heating up milk in these “safe” appliances. What about the nurse in Canada that warmed up blood for a transfusion patient and accidentally killed them when the blood went dead. But the makers say it’s safe. Never mind then, keep using them. Ask your Doctor I am sure they will say it’s safe too. Proof is in the picture of living plants dying. Remember – You are also living. Take care!

FORENSIC RESEARCH DOCUMENT

Prepared By: William P. Kopp
A.R.E.C. Research Operations
TO61-7R10/10-77F05
RELEASE PRIORITY: CLASS I ROO1a

Ten Reasons to throw out your Microwave Oven

From the conclusion of the Swiss, Russian and German scientific clinical studies, we can no longer ignore the microwave oven sitting in out kitchens. Based on research, we will conclude this article with the following:

1. Continually eat food processed from a microwave oven causes long term – permanent – brain damage by “shorting out” electrical impulses in the brain [de-polarizing or de-magnetizing the brain tissue].
2. The human body can not metabolize [break down] the unknown by-product created in microwaved food.
3. Male and female hormone production is shut down and/pr altered by continually eating microwaved foods.
4. The effects of microwaved food by-product are residual [long-term, permanent] within the human body.
5. Minerals, vitamins, and nutrients of all microwaved food is reduced or altered so that the human body gets little or no benefit, or the human body altered compounds that cannot be broken down.
6. The minerals in vegetables are altered into cancerous free radical when cooked in microwaved.
7. Microwaved food cause stomach and intestinal cancerous growths [tumors]. This may explain the rapidly increased rate in colon cancer in America.
8. The prolonged eating of microwaved food causes cancerous cells to increase in human blood
9. Continual ingestion of microwaved food causes immune system deficiencies through lymph glad and blood serum alterations.
10. Eating microwaved food causes loss of memory, concentration, emotional instability, and a decrease of intelligence.
    
    
    JUST THOUGHT YOU WOULD WANT TO KNOW....