Virtual Friends

Sunday Bloggy Sunday. Only two posts today, but feels like a lot. Anyway I was just thinking...These days it is easier to be friends with more people. I think the quality has gone out of friendship however. With applications and conveiniences like Facebook, email, texting, etc. it does make it easier to keep in touch with friends and family, but it also makes it not as personal. Just a thought.

Memories, Like The Corner Of My Mind...

I had lunch with my mom the other day and she mentioned how it had been like a strange blast from the past for her over the past week, seeing people she lost touch with and catching up on old friends. That night I dreamt of my old neighborhood and my friends from elementary school and jr. high. So today I had some time to kill because of a change in plans, so I made an exit off the highway and a detour into my old neighborhood. It was a nostalgic look back. I was suprised at how much I remembered about what friends lived where and even what streets lead to others, etc. I was able to remember what the insides of these houses looked like and I remembered what my friends and I would do around the neighborhood. It seemed like it was just yesterday but so long ago. Funny too that all the houses that I thought were so big and "fancy" didn't look so big, or fancy anymore. My old house looked much smaller than I remembered and it even looked like the people living there still had the same window treatments in the gameroom window. Odd. I also wondered if any of the families were still living in these houses. Every house I knew had a story and a memory. I guess we really didn't live their that long. I want to say it was from 1983 to 1989, but it seemed like a lifetime.

Looking back things were so simple and innocent back then. So much has changed with my family and even my friends families. It's somewhat sad to think we had no idea what the future held. Good or bad. Some friends lost sisters, moms, dads, and some families are broken by divorice now. Things definately are not as they were and certainly won't be in another 20 years.

Some random things that come to mind when thinking of that time period for me...

Flippy McFlipperson...That's Me!!

So my last post said I didn't want to move. I didn't want to leave my wonderful, comfortable home. Well give it a couple days and like the Texas weather, I will change. See, this is why it's not good for me to make big decisions. I am so worried about making the right one, that I basically can't decide. Now I am worried that if we don't sell now we will regret it. Our front bedrooms are small and there is nothing I can do about that. We actually have buyers who don't care. Imagine that. Next time we decide to sell will we be able to? I hate the unknown. I can't do big decisions. That is why I wash my hands in this and told Frank I am happy with whatever HE decides. I'll know Monday.

Home Is Where The Heart Is?

Is home really where the heart is? Most would probably say yes, but I'm gonna go with no and I'll explain why in a minute. We have had our house for sell since September of 2009. We had not had much traffic and zero offers (mostly due to the holiday season), then as soon as 2010 hit we have had several showings a week with 2 offers. The first offer fell through and we are in negotiations with our 2nd offer. What sucks though is that it is not a good time right now for us to move. Frank has so much going on with work and traveling a lot. My work is also crazy right now.

Here's the deal. We put our house up for sell and I didn't want to, but I kind of had to due to other things going on at the time. Then I was on board. Well, now that we have had a lot of activity and a couple offers, I'm kind of freakin out. Our house is really nice. We don't have to move. There is no new job we need to move for and we are not growing our family, etc. etc. etc. So my thing is that I am kind of scared thinking we are not making the right decision. We kind of know the area we want to move to, but we will have to rent before we buy then who knows if we will be able to find something as nice as what we have now for the price we got this house for?

So many thoughts going through my head right now. This has been my home for the last 7 1/2 years. We have put a lot into it making it how we want it. I feel so comfortable here. Thinking about leaving makes me a little teary eyed. So while some say 'Home Is Where The Heart Is', I can't say that would be the case for me. To me, home is where I am comfortable and familiar. Honestly, I am not ready for this. I don't want to leave my home.

Johnny Weir Is Fabulous!

Johnny Weir competed in the Vancouver Olympics this year and is the most openly flamboyant figure skater anyone has ever seen. He is (said in my Oprah voice) Fabbbbuloussss!!!! I love love love him and his sparkly onsies. There is an hour and a half long documentary on the Sundance Channel about him and his road to the Olympics. The best part about this documentary are the clips they show off the ice. For instance, Johnny and his best friend Paris (not Hilton, and is a boy) are sitting in the bath together with wine and bubbles while Johnny is wearing a blonde wig and glasses, talking in a Russian accent interviewing his bff Paris about himself. Paris is just as faboosh as Johnny.

Johnny is who he is and makes no apologies. Even when he is at a competition representing the U.S.A. and wearing a jacket with RUSSIA written all over the back. Johnny loves Russia for some reason.

He is now 24/25 and says he is too old to keep competing. I just hope he stays in the spotlight. He has too much presence and personality to blend into the blur.

Anyway, do a search for this show if you love this type of stuff. The name of it is Be Good Johhny Weir: Pop Star on Ice.

Killer Whale Indeed

Yesterday, I posted a link on Facebook about a killer whale in Orlando that killed it's trainer. A lot of details have now come out, so to summarize:

On Feb 24th, a SeaWorld Orlando trainer died Wednesday from "multiple traumatic injuries and drowning" after a killer whale named Tilikum pulled her underwater by her long pony tail near the theme park's Shamu Stadium. The trainer was "interacting" with the killer whale in knee-deep water "when the animal grabbed her by the hair, said to be in a long pony tail, and pulled her underwater," the Orange County Sheriff's Office said. "Rescuers were not able to immediately jump in and render assistance" to the trainer because of the whale's "aggressive nature."

Officials say trainers had to coax an aggressive whale into a smaller pool and use a platform to lift it out of the water before they could free the woman from its jaws.

This Whale Has A Violent Past

~According to the Orlando Sentinel, trainers were forbidden with swimming with Tillikum, a 12,000-pound orca nicknamed "Tilly."

~Only about a dozen of 28 handlers had been specifically trained to work with him from the edge of SeaWorld's pools.

~In 1991, Tilikum and two female killer whales dragged trainer Keltie Byrne underwater, drowning her in front of spectators at Sealand of the Pacific, a defunct aquarium in Victoria, British Columbia.

~Acquired by SeaWorld the next year to breed with female orcas, he was involved in a second incident in July 1999 when the naked body of a man who had apparently sneaked into SeaWorld after hours to swim with the whales was found draped dead across his back.

Why Did This Happen?

A former SeaWorld contractor who has watched Tilikum for 10 years says despite Tilikum's violent past he never saw more than temper tantrums.

"His personality is very laid back," he said. "I've seen him bang his head on the glass. I want to say that Tilikum wasn't doing this intentionally but unfortunately it just looks like he either got curious or bored and wanted to grab her."

He says the 22-foot-long killer whale spends a lot of time alone often in a 15 foot deep pool because he's used for breeding, which is not natural for such a social animal, marine experts say.

"It's a part of their lives to have whales visible to them at all times," said Richard Ellis, a marine conservationist at the American Museum of Natural History. "Put one in a tank and that whale is unhappy."

What Will Happen To Tilikum?

SeaWorld has no plans to euthanize the killer whale that dragged the trainer to her death Wednesday, and will allow trainers to continue to work with the animal, a park official said today.

As two federal agencies launched investigations into the trainers death, the park said it will review its safety policies and determine whether Tillikum, a 12,000-pound bull killer whale, will be used in shows and publicly displayed.

Kickboxing. Nope.

Last night at the gym I watched the kickboxing class while I was on the elliptical and thought "that looks easy"...well, not so much. I always thought I was rather coordinated. Clearly that is not the case as I get older. Yes, it was my first class so I won't know all the moves. But I felt so stupid in there. What made it wose for me was being right next to a wall of mirrors. Seeing myself from a side view in tight workout clothes scared the ba-jesus out of me. I'M AWAKE! Lord. Why is it I thought I was okay? Obviously because I don't own a wall of mirrors. Sweet jesus, that was a good wake up call.

So, I will go back to the formula that got me skinny last year. Going to the gym almost everyday and doing weights and more ab work. I have been so lazy since this past summer. I need to get my giant ass in gear and quickly. I don't have much to offer, so I need to get my body in shape. When I say I don't have much to offer, I mean that I am not tall, I don't have lusterous thick hair, or naturally blonde hair, etc etc etc. SO, I need to rock my body and keep things in check. So all in all, kickboxing wasn't a bad thing. At least I got a good wake up call from it.