Monday UnDay - Angry Birds!

In short, and in the name of being prudent, the last few weeks have been tough. And worse, tough in a manner that is not necessarily appropriate or wise to be sharing on the wonderful world of the interwebs. So, to suffice in my venting, I shall share a bit of how I have relieved my pain, in a few entertaining(to me, at least!) ways that seem to blend together pretty well.

First off, is March Madness. I LOVE college football but could honestly give a hoot about college basketball, or any basketball for that matter. That is, however, until March Madness rolls around, as it makes for an entertaining day at the office. I have one boss who is a die-hard Syracuse fan(hockey season started today, lol!) and another who is Penn State all the way. Me? I'm always torn between my personal loyalty to Oregon(Quack, Quack, Quack!!) and my family loyalty to Ohio State. The only time it's ever really an issue is when they play each other....Rose Bowl last year was quite painful in that regard, Dad wouldn't watch the game with me. So, being a fan of the nearly BCS Champion team(while Penn floundered....) and being a fan of OSU(who pummeled Penn in both sports this year, and Mr. Syracuse just doesn't love because he's out and they're number 1....) gives me much pleasure. So...even if Ducks aren't birds, they're still having a good ole time making people angry :o)

When not at work, which unfortunately is when much of the latest stress has been, I have succumbed to video games. Yes, it is horribly sad. I have never been the gamer type, but upon the not-so-sad demise of my dreadful crackberry last week, I had to give in a get myself an iPhone(which has gotten me equally hooked on iBooks, already.) which led to the inevitable spiel in the office about how everyone was hooked on a game called Angry Birds. I thought nothing of this, it's just a game. Until, that is, you decided to download the free app just for kicks. It's free, and you can delete it if you don't love it, right? Wrong! Well, not wrong that you can delete, you just don't want to! I am ashamed to admit that I honestly and truly sacrificed almost 2 hours of good reading time on Saturday night, because I was pretty much incapable of putting it down.

What has become of me? Someone please take the iPhone away from me! Oh, but can you please leave the iBooks behind? I kinda like that part.

Monday UnDay

 

There must always be a time for a detour from even the most wonderful things like books and stories....so, it shall be Monday, the UnBook day.

Today's random thoughts? Mud Season! Hence, we meet one of my favorite dogs out there, Arthur. The Arthur is a chow/lab/rot and the happy companion of my best friend Jayne. More importantly, he's not to be confused with his step-brother, the deer-dog Artie. Yes, my best friend and her husband have Arthur and Artie, adopted from the Steamboat Springs Animal Shelter within a week of each other, gave them nearly matching names, and all of this about a month before Jayne and Alex met. Awwww, so cute and meant to be, right? Yeah, pretty much. In addition to the serendipitous(and crazy!) pups, they now have Reesa, their adorable 17-month old daughter.

This time of year always makes me think of my best friend and her family because Jayne is always cold. In the dead of winter, she wears more layers than should be humanly possible, with not a care in world about whether they match. Proof? I made her a camo bacalava for Christmas a few years back, which she happily showed off along with the 12 other colors she was currently wearing to ski(it's very hard to find that many coordinating layers....). The best part? I don't think I've ever heard her complain about being cold....she just says "it's cold!" with a very sweet smile and distinctive laugh, then proceeds to put on the next layer. That's just how she is. Positive, sweet, caring, and honest to goodness GOOD(yes, there are still some of them left out there, and no, you can't have her for your best friend! :o)

That's why I get sappy this time of year....things are melting, grass is showing, she can shed some layers and actually be able to move her arms enough to throw a stick at the dogs(I say at in a good way....Artie is blind as a bat and usually runs himself right into something instead of catching it), and she has real, live smile. She gets bubbly and excited that it will be WARM soon. We play outside. We walk around town. We play yard games. We relish the fact that "Look!! I have a yard!! I almost forgot after it disappeared for 6 months!!". We ride our bikes...until the dogs knock us over.

I love springtime because it makes me think of my friends, and the way everyone lights up with the sunshine lights up. It's a fleeting moment in the mountains, where summer is 3 months and winter feels like 11. But, it's almost here!!

Til then....time to play in the mud! 

Miss ya JRock and the Art-pups, it's your turn to visit! :o)