The "M" Word

I've recently discovered a new "bad" word. It ranks right up there with the best of the bad. In fact, the infamous "F" word might as well accept its newly claimed status as second on my list of never-to-be-uttered-in-public terms as this new word is far more foul.

What's the word?

MOVING!

Yes, my friends, I have discovered moving is NOT for the faint of heart.

One large house, almost fifteen years and 4 hoarders equals a don't-ever-do-it combination.

While I may be exaggerating on the "hoarding" part of the equation, it is amazing what I discovered I had labelled worthy of saving/keeping/storing over the past 15 years. When all was said and done, we filled one super large trash container (a dumpster to be exact), donated truck loads to Goodwill, several more to Salvation Army and many, many loads to the local Children's Home. I gave items to friends and family and even managed to sell quite a few things. In the end I was left with more than a moving truck's worth of bounty to carry into my new home.

So much stuff.

Yet I never felt the situation was as bad as it really was.

I suppose it was one of those times where I saw only what I wanted to see. Ce la vie!

Fortunately, my children took responsibility for purging and storing anything that belonged to them. My daughter had no problem parting ways with her excessive loot. Only seconds of consideration was given to each item. Keep...donate...trash...all easy decisions for her.

My son?

The process wasn't so easy for him. I actually fear he has the makings of a true hoarder. What seemed like hours passed as he weighed the sentimental value of one thing after another. His "keep" pile kept growing...and growing...and growing. He finally went so far as to purchase a storage container to keep all the items he couldn't bear to let go of. Toys, stuffed animals, tools and random "stuff"...all had enough value to warrant saving.

In his defense, he is living in a one bedroom garage apartment leaving him with very little space for storage. So the storage container is a necessity. It's the keeping of so much stuff that gives me pause. I suppose I can't totally blame him for being the way he is. I was much the same in my younger days. You never know what you might need one day. Right? After moving all the crap around for a while, I finally learned to let go of LOTS of "things"...although this move has left me realizing I still have some learning to do. I'm sure his time will come. If not...well...all I can say is it is now his problem. Ha!

A few snags occurred with the move. Would you expect less? To summarize, a few days prior to closing, I was informed my new place would not be ready. I spent 5 days in a hotel with all my belongings sitting on a moving truck. This wasn't the only problem I experienced but nothing has been worthy of a breakdown of any sort. I'm just rolling with it as it comes.

As of tomorrow, I will have been in my new home a full week. All but a few boxes have been emptied and much of the decorating has been done. Work has been overly demanding lately and we have been celebrating birthdays (mine, my daughter's, a good friend's 50th) in marathon style. Very little time to tackle the job at hand. My plan is to be settled by the end of the week. I only took one day off work to move in or I would already proclaim the job done. I've been burning the candle at both ends trying to rid myself of the clutter of the moving boxes.

I can officially say I am exhausted!

So...

Do you understand why the "M" word is no longer welcome in my vocabulary?

Really...I throw up in my mouth a little bit every time I even think of the word.

Such a gross thought...

but I cannot tell a lie...

Until next time...

For Real???

Has it really been 4 months since I last posted? I swear I only thought it had been a few weeks. But as it usually does, Life is rolling along at lightning speed.

So much has happened.

So much to share.

While I will spare you the details of the past 16 or so weeks, I think it's high time I share a few of the "big" events". The biggest being...

I'm Moving!!!

Yes, my friends, I'm packing up and moving on!

And oh has this been a long time coming.

When I suddenly became a single girl 7+ years ago, I knew there would come a day when I would move from our oversized "family" home. Initially, I wavered as to when I should make the move (don't ya just love puns?) and sale the house. The main consideration was how the sale would affect my kiddos. I rather quickly decided to do my best to stay put so my children would have home to come home to as long as they were still coming home.

In other words, I felt it best to keep the house until my youngest graduated college and started life on her own.

That was a major undertaking to say the least. A big house to clean, heat and maintain along with an excessively landscaped yard is not my idea of fun. Think weeds, weeds and more weeds to be sprayed, pulled and cursed. Just when I would think the yard work had ended for another year, an abundance of trees made for the raking of some 55 gazillion leaves. Three levels of flooring to vacuum, 5 toilets to clean, appliances to repair, drainage issues to address, a lightning strike that created electrical problems...I'm tired just typing it all.

Maintenance and repairs have tried to get the best of me but I have survived. All this has made the idea of "maintenance free living" provided by a townhouse a dream come true.

Now the time has come. Keri will be graduating in May and I can officially claim "empty nest" status in every sense of the word. Roughly 8 months ago I listed my house and prayed for a sale. Those prayers were answered a few weeks ago. An offer came through and I'm finally making the transition from "family" mega-house to a much smaller "single girl" townhouse.

I'm so excited...

Overwhelmed...

And a little bit (okay a lot) sad.

Fourteen plus years of memories made in our home makes the goodbyes all the more bittersweet. But bigger things are on the horizon. And the best thing of all... memories have no address. They belong to me and follow me wherever I go.

Before I sign off to go pack a few more boxes, I wanted to share another bit of news.

I am also moving from my cyber home. My timing is impeccable. Don't you think? Two moves for the price of one. (ha!) The past few months I have been working with a web designer creating my new internet address. My desire was to wait to make the announcement when the design was complete. But I'm too excited to keep quiet. We have a few more items to tweak so I will continue to post here for the time being.

Should you feel so inclined, you can check out my new space at My Extraordinarily Ordinary Life.






I hope Life is being good to all of you. Please leave me a note and let me know of your latest and greatest!

Much love,
-L

Adventures In Green Juice - Part 1

Every morning I use this...

to make this...

It is oh so tasty...

and good for me...


BUT.


That's a lot of produce and a lot of work for a small glass of juice....

and produce is expensive...

especially organic produce.


SO.


When I have one of those days I so frequently have...

you know, one of those days...

a day where I know why I wear the self-imposed label of super klutz.

It's days like these when I sometimes find myself crying a river...

A green river...

Don't You Just Hate It When...

...you feel stupid?

I'm not sure it happens to everyone. But it happens to me.

Often.

Too often.

Today I share Stupid Moment #1:

Obviously I'm not the multi-tasker I once was. During a recent early morning phone conversation with a friend, I was attempting to gather the trash on my way out the door for work, all the while picking up random this and that, stuffing it here and there.

With my house on the market, I do my best to keep things orderly should I get a much awaited phone call stating my house will be shown.

A little side note: I have no idea why I bother. The only showings have been on days when I was running so late I left the house in complete disarray. Maybe this should be my new approach.

Messy house equals visits from potential buyers???

Then again, that may be why potential buyers have not potentially bought. 

So...back to my story. I'm always running late and this day was no exception. Picture me scrambling about the house jabbering away. One last look around assured me the house would pass muster but there was one problem.

Something was missing.

The one thing I cannot get through any day without. It is imperative to my survival. In other words...my life depended on finding it.

I frantically began retracing my steps in search of said important object. I began digging through drawers and closets, flinging about all the this and that I had just stashed here and there.

When it appeared I wouldn't find this thing as vital to my existence as oxygen, I interrupted the conversation to make this most panicked statement...

"Hold on! I have to go! I'm late for work and I can't seem to find my phone!!!"

I'm thinking I need to learn to be happy feeling stupid. Looks like the "stupids" are here to stay.

Doing a Drive By

Seeing as life is sucking up all my time, I thought it best to stop in with a quick hello rather than wait for time to write a proper post. Life has become the whirlwind it once was and I'm doing my best impersonation of a sprinter in my efforts to keep up. That is NOT a complaint! Life is more than good! Here are but a few of my latest reasons to shout Woo Hoo!:

• The writer/publisher LOVED (her emphasis, not mine) the photos so I'm working hard at improving my photography skills. So excited! So, so excited!

• I'm working out again. Although I worked out throughout the majority of my treatments, I had to tone things down a bit. At the end of radiation, I hit a wall and my energy was gone. Zapped. Drained. My gas tank was on empty. I have never felt so helpless in my life. It has taken months to reclaim a "pep in my step" but I'm getting there. I worked out 3 times this week...at the same level I worked prior to my diagnosis...AND...I didn't immediately fall in the bed and stay there for 3 days! YAY!

• The clinical trial at Duke is a no-go. There were complications with registration prior to the trial closing. Everyone has been concerned I would be upset. But I'm not. I simply see it as God closing the door. He is SO good to do things like that!

• I'm working longer hours. While that may not sound like something to celebrate, for a work-a-holic like me...it is definitely a good thing. Those 40 hour work weeks feel much better when you add another hour or two... or three or four... here and there.

• I'm finally getting my scrapping groove on! After my time on various design teams ended, I suffered major burn-out. Try as I might to scrap, I just couldn't find my mojo. Lately I've been dreaming of layout ideas... of paint and paper and scissors..Oh My!

• My social life is back in full swing! Time with friends, friends and more friends! I've even gone on a few dates. Yes. Yes. There could be possible future posts coming on this subject. ;-)

Although that doesn't cover everything, it covers most things....lots and lots to be thankful for!

So tell me, what are you celebrating or most thankful for today?

Photography 101

Last night I had the opportunity to use my camera in something other than auto mode... something I've rarely done. Seems my mother has been promoting herself and one of her friend's decorating skills for publication. Both have filled their homes with primitive antiques. Both have magazine-worthy homes.

An author whose focus is on highlighting primitive antiques is interested in featuring their homes in her upcoming publications. Sample photos were needed to decide if their decor was in keeping with the theme and feel of her books. I quickly volunteered to use my less than stellar photography skills to capture the sample images.

These are a few of the photos taken. (click on the photos for a larger image)

I was ever so grateful these are only to be used as samples and the focus is on content, not the quality of the photos. I've noticed the images are darker when viewed on my work computer than when viewing on my home computer. Leaves me to wonder how they will appear when viewed by the author???

Not to make excuses, but I was shooting in very low light in most rooms and I was digging deep to remember all I've learned in Photography 101 about shooting in such conditions. Trust I will be studying and refreshing my memory on the subject. If the author/publisher likes what she sees, I will be photographing both "J's" house and my mother's house at Christmas. They both decorate for the holidays in their incredible vintage style.

If chosen, the photos...yes...MY photos... will be published in a 2012 Christmas publication!

Wish me luck.

Mom and "J" have their part in the bag.

Me?

Well...I'm off to practice. For as they say...practice makes perfect! And I need all the help I can get!

Stirring Things Up - The Season Premiere

Here we go folks! We are back to our regularly scheduled program. I'm referring to the "show" that is my life. Although we recently took a break from broadcasting the shenanigans of our mixed up, messed up leading lady (that would be me), we are now back in action!

Last year our season finale took an unexpected twist when our heroine (I so love that label) faced serious, life threatening illness. The writers of this not-exactly-ready-for-prime-time drama struggled to generate captivating episodes on the subject for the new season. It was simply too humorless and often times grim...not exactly in keeping with the flippant and sometimes inappropriate main character they had worked so hard to create. There was even consideration given to cancelling the series altogether. The intended story line was no longer there.

However, meetings were held, story lines were pitched and negotiations were made resulting in the network honchos agreeing to another season. The writers have been collaborating over how to reintroduce our protagonist. Obviously the character we all know and love (it's my story here so I am going with the assumption we all love our diva) has changed. Still wanting to tap into her spirit and spunk, they have been working diligently to craft stories that meld the two sides of her personality...the old, naive, believe-life-will-go-on-forever side with the new, more-aware-than-ever-life-can-bite-you-in-the-ass-and-end-tomorrow side.

One aspect of seasons past that will be carried forward into the new season is what we will call the "curve ball effect". Just when you think our heroine is safe and you are sure of her intended course, a curve ball is throw in to stir things up and the plot begins to thicken. As with all good dramas, the viewers (and quite frankly the heroine herself) are left wondering what will happen next.

When we last left our warrior princess, she had just come face to face with her worries regarding her recent health battles and the fear of a recurrence. Knowing she would no longer be visiting her team of medical doctors on a monthly basis, she felt she was stepping into uncharted waters without a life vest.  As the scene came to a close, we were left with the impression she would be venturing back into the world of "normal" where medical issues were not the pressing order of the day. She was choosing to speed forward with a renewed sense of living life to the fullest, leaving her fears in the dust all the while shouting "Cancer be damned!"

But our writers found that boring.

It was time to up their game and interject more frenzy and fuss to the picture. It was time to stir things up.

 Here is a recap of our most recent episode:

• Our opening scene begins with our leading lady making a four hour drive to the infamous Duke Medical Center for a second opinion regarding continued treatments of her life-saving drug Herceptin. Duke's resident expert, Dr. "B", strongly encouraged her to discontinue Herceptin. The benefits of continuing were not proven yet the risks to her heart were great. A suggestion was made to consider enrolling in a clinical trial for a new drug, Neratinib. This drug would offer many of the same benefits of Herceptin without the heart risks. The downside is the drug is not yet approved by the FDA and the protocol of the trial only allows a 50/50 chance of receiving the drug over a placebo.

• Very little thought was needed before the decision was made to follow Dr. "B's" advice. With her mother and friend, "K", to keep her company, our heroine embarked on a day of scans and tests to verify her eligibility to participate in the trial. The trio of characters arrived at the Medical Center at 7:30 am and didn't leave until 11:00 pm. It made for a long, exhausting day. An enormous amount of information relating to the prevention of another encounter with the "c" beast was also offered up by Dr. "B". It was overwhelming but reassuring. As we cut to commercial, the women set out on the long trek home in the wee morning hours with a sense of hope and peace that only comes from hearing what you want to hear.

• The next few days were a whirlwind of phone calls and online searches. Decisions needed to be made regarding an additional procedure and the changing of a maintenance drug. More tests were to be performed on the original biopsy and a nutritionist needed to be contracted as a new member of the show-cancer-who's-boss team.

• Things seemed to be going well until... all hearts stopped and the background music swelled as a phone call came suggesting changes had been found on the recent MRI! What had been the source of her most recent fears could quite possibly be reality...the cancer may have returned. With a weekend to wait for the final results of the current MRI, our heroine made the decision to dig in her heels and not let fear control her. She had given cancer the finger once...she could certainly do it again.

• The episode ends with the news that all is well...it had been a false alarm. No significant changes were found in the MRI. We fade to black as our star lifts her eyes to the sky and offers prayers of thanksgiving.

Tune in next time to see how the clinical trial affects our champion (another word I'm loving) and to witness her fate as she begins her new life as a survivor!