Shit I have and haven't done....

Bold is what I have done...

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyworld/Disneyland...both actually
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped...not on your life
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child (I am adopted, does that count?)
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied …not anymore, though
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance …more than a few times, too!
47. Had your portrait painted by a well known artist, too!
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain.
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving...no thanks, I don't have a death wish
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt...by hand during 6 months pregnancy bed rest....boring
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job...quit many, though
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone …does fractured count?
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating…lobster, and it was gooooooood!!
88. Had chickenpox …at 16 and it sucked
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous …bumped into Robin Williams in SF at a toy store
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby …two, even
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

54 out of 99...not too bad

On a Girl Scout cookie high...

Almost sounds like a John Denver song, doesn't it?

Our Girl Scout cookies were finally delivered this last week.

I ordered 8 boxes and if I'm not mistaken we might be down to two boxes.
Just for the record, that's 6 boxes of cookies in 4 days.

Thin mints, samoas, shortbread, lemon creme....hmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

We order every year. Promptly plow through the boxes and then restock our supply by lurking about outside the Safeway, waiting for the girls to show up to sell off the rest of the unsold boxes.

I feel a trip to Safeway, coming on.


Nothing better than laying in bed, English football on the telly (Go Liverpool!), eating girl scout cookies with a huge glass of milk.

Simple pleasures.


UPDATE SUNDAY MORNING: They're all gone. gone. gone...and there were no girls outside the Safeway yesterday! I can feel the withdrawals already starting.

Long time coming...

This post has been a long time coming...

It's been almost 9 years since my biological father walked back into my life, via a private investigator.
You see, my biological father went off to fight in Vietnam and when he returned to the states my biological mother had given me up to the state of California.

It's a long story and as most long stories go it doesn't have a fairy-tale ending. It's has a realistic ending where the biological mother walked away from her children and where the biological father chose to let the state of California raise his children.

They both simply walked away.

As I grew up I often thought of my biological mother, but rarely gave any thought to my biological father. Over the years, I often referred to him as the 'sperm donor'. I never thought there was a space for him in my life. No vacancy here.

My brother and I were eventually adopted but only after years of living in foster care.

So when I got that call in early March 2000, needless to say, I was speechless.


Our current relationship is a strained one.

You see, I already had a father.

A father who taught me to ride a bike.
A father who brushed my hair and kissed me good night.
A father who gave me his sense of humor.
A father who taught me to play the piano.
A father who took me to get my driver's license.
A father who never left me and loved me unconditionally.
A father who passed away almost 16 years ago.
A father who doesn't need replacing.

I was a Daddy's Girl. 100%

He simply can't be replaced.

A heart doesn't recognize biology.