Our first drill performance

www.youtube.com

mane attraction rodeo performance drill team

enjoy!

Spring cleaning

My house is 100 years old this year! Actually, I rent it from a very nice family that lives next door. My kids and I have been here for almost two years. It's a pretty small house. Like you can walk in the front door, take 1.5 steps and run into my chair. It's a typical house from the early 1900's, this was a logging town, so many of the houses here were for bachelors. That being said, I am raising two almost teenage girls, who have to share a room, and my son, who sleeps with me. Starting to feel cramped yet? Top that off with no closets, or mud room. The Mohawk river is less than 15 feet from the back door, and the Marcola highway (a thoroughfare for log trucks)is about 30 feet from the front door. Now are you feeling cramped?
You would think it would be easy to keep clean. NOT SO. NOT EVEN FREAKIN THE SlIGHTEST. Between the two girls who have suddenly forgotten everything I ever taught them about cleaning up, and my 3 year old boy, who doesn't know better, and if he did clean, he would make another mess because it is fun, I'm at my wit's end.
Luckily, for the sake of my stress level, the girls are spending a week with their dad (okay so even tho I can't stand him, it's a nice break. they'll come back worse than they were before they left) and I've taken today and tomorrow off to catch up with what has been almost 6 months of not properly cleaning.
Oh. MY. Gawd.
I started with the bathroom, and got the laundry area ( which is on the way to the bathroom) and the kitchen done. I'm exhausted. Utterly. I never knew how much mess a kid can ignore, let alone an overworked, going-to-school, mom could miss!
(Don't forget the house is 100years old..thats going to fit in soon)

I forgot about the 'closet' next to the stove, that used to be the old wood stove chimney space...yeah. 2million spiders! 4million sugar ants! (so THAT's where they were coming from!) I sprayed Tilex in there, shut the door and moved the little shelf-thingy in front of it. I hate sugar ants. They are rude, and like a hell of a lot more things than sugar. Hot dogs, salad, etc.. My poor son plays with them during supper..(just kidding. but almost not)

I'm thankful, really. I have a place to live. Renting is not as good as owning, but NOW, (100 years) I'm fighting dry rot. MOLD. Mice. The cures for all of these cost money and repeated trips to Jerry's, I'm really looking into a newer manufactured (yes, I hate them too) but OMG! Can we not have spider heaven, and mice-a-topia live here?

I gave up at 4pm and went riding..

People watching

I just started "Twittering" today. It's really kind of fun, and my younger, prettier cousin is following me and I her.
I suppose you could call "twitter" a way to launch random thoughts and 'what i'm doing now' types of line out there with my cell phone.
My cousin entered that she was people watching a while ago and that got me to thinking..
One time in a bar, some friends and I stayed sober the whole night and just people watched. Sure we danced and had fun, but watching everything going on around us was the one of the most entertaining things I have ever witnessed.
Typical country bar scene, just add a little "meat market" to the mix and you get the idea. In on corner, the 'girls night out" crew, loud, boisterous girls making themselves the center of attention, then the ones that sit at the bar and do the serious drinking, usually looking for a fight later on.
The 'first daters' are always obvious. Eyes only for each other, nauseatingly affectionate, especially after a lot of drinking.
It's interesting to see that no matter how many years go by and the generations that come and go, the people stay the same. Our behaviour has not modified much, if at all. Sure there's more violence, and to the opposite, tolerance, but the bell curve would not look much different than it did 20, 30, 50 years ago.
Interesting, don't you think?

Old Friends

I admit, I have a Facebook page. I tried Myspace, there's too much 'distraction' and, frankly, a lot of it can be 'not very nice'. But FB, now, there is what's happening! I can hardly believe the amount of people that have caught up with me, or I have found. I connected with the relatives, because it's easier to keep in touch since they are all over the state.
I know I sound like a FB commercial, but get this. I have gotten to know people I barely knew in High School! It's a lot of fun re-connecting and such. Of course, I'm also finding out that I am totally NOT the same person I was years ago. Thank God some of us change.
Although there are some drawbacks. You can add so many Applications (little time-wasters, I call them) that you may need a new computer just for FB. My mother won't get on because she says she has no time.(fair enough) So I keep in touch with her friends for her! Like I have this obligation to be mom's "life reporter"..LoL
It's a good thing overall as long as it stays innocent enough. I'm sure the bad guys are already out there stalking, etc. My daughter is on it and I have friends and relatives "watching" to help me keep her out of trouble.
For the most part, it's fun, and is one of the only reasons I still get on the computer unless I'm on another blog, or checking out books on Amazon, or looking for new ideas for Western clothing.
OOps, gotta check the home page to see if there are any updates..

A new chapter

Just when you think that it will NEVER end...
It does.

Seems like forever ago I started this surgical technology program, and yesterday, I'm sitting in orientation at my new job! And I mean NEW. The building is new, the equipment was getting unloaded off the truck and being unpacked, NEW.
This is what it's all about, people! Success never felt so good! I know I'm not a Physician's assistant yet, just another step up the professional ladder, but damn it feels good. I have a sucky cough, though, and can't get any sleep, but hell! who cares? (I've been up since 0230, can you tell?)

I haven't been able to knit of crochet or sew much due to all of this, but I did put a few more rows on my Aurora socks. (I'll have a pic later) and cut out a few more scrub hats. I have a few plans to get down to the Oregon Horse Center with my big Industrial machine and fix horse blankets. There is a little extra money to be made, even tho everyone is broke, the ones that persevere will prevail.
There is a consignment shop that just opened here in Marcola, and from peeking in the windows, looks like a great mish-mash of collectibles, pack rat pick-ups, and other trinkets to satisfy the 'collector's palate.
Drill team is gearing up for our first performance. I'm a little nervous, but glad it's not going to be judged- well in the competitive sense, anyway. We do look pretty good, and the spacing is getting better, I just have that "I'm a fat girl on a horse" cloud hanging over my head. Yeah, I know- get over it, or lose the frikkin weight, Marilyn!
I went to bed at 730 last night. Just too tired to exercise. Plus, this stupid cough is really kicking my butt. Okay, I'm whining. Sorry.
wow, it's almost time to get up! Now I'm ready to go back to bed! I'd stay home, but it's "picture badge" day.. pheh!