Last Minute Shelley...and Relay for Life

Hi everyone....of course, I am posting this last minute....but well, what else do you expect from me? I am participating in this year's Relay For Life this Friday night and wanted to give all those on the world wide internets an opportunity to donate to the cause.

Last year, I signed up to do Relay For Life on a whim because my roomie was doing it. I thought...why not? I didn't even think much of the cause, but wanted something fun to do with some friends. As I thought more about it, it started to mean more to me. Think about it...everyone's life has been touched by cancer in some way. My grandmother died of cancer when I was a little girl...and I wish I could have gotten to know her better. She was the nicest, kindest woman and I would have loved to have learned more from her. I wish for a day when we have a cure for cancer and we don't need to have walks like this anymore...but this year is not that year.

Last year, my friends and I walked the WHOLE time...from 7pm to 7am. I think I stopped once to sit down and have some food. I wore my pedometer last year and it clocked to over 30 miles. That's longer than a marathon people!

So, if the issue touches your heart...and you would like to support me in this year's Relay for Life, please head over to my page and make a donation. I appreciate anything that people can give....a dollar...a penny...a million dollars! (lol).

Another weekend recap....

Hi all...oops, I didn't realize I didn't update since Monday.

I did fix my bike...err...my dad fixed my bike. We went out and bought a patch kit and it was easier than I thought it would be. The weather was nice all week long...and I rode my bike to work each and every day. I know people say we need the rain...but pfft...I want it to be sunny and warm each and every day, so I can be a biking fool.

On Friday, I went shopping with my dear ol' daddio. We did the usual grocery shopping...and we also went shopping for projects around the house. We got some little ties for the tarp that we put up over the back porch....for shade and what not. We also puttered around Home Depot to price out some fencing, some exterior shutters and some paint for the rooms upstairs. We didn't buy anything...but at least got some good prices and what not.

I had a good ol' time on Saturday. I thought I would sleep in, but it just didn't happen. I ended up waking up before 6am...bright eyes and bushy tailed. But what made the day fun...I ended up going to our local amusement park with a friend. I haven't seen her in a little over a year, so I was really looking forward to it. We met up at her apartment...I got to see the digs...and then we headed to the park. We had a really good time. I forgot how much I LOVE hanging out with her...and I definitely don't plan on letting another year go by before we hang out again.

It was a fun, fun day...it tuckered me out though...I came home and was in bed early.

Today...boring day all around. I went to church, hung out with my dad, helped him put up the tarp in the back yard and then came home, did laundry...and then cleaned the apartment. I know...an exciting day.

I hope you all enjoyed your weekend....and did something fun.

Finishing up a 4 day weekend...

Hi all...a belated Happy Mother's Day to everyone. I was going to post something yesterday, but well...I didn't want to end up being a Debbie Downer, especially since all and all, I've been pretty gosh darn good.

So, what did I do with my LLLLLOOOOONNNNGGGGG weekend? Well...here is a quick recap.

Friday: I went for a long bike ride. I biked from my apartment to the local video store...and then over to my dad's. I went through a bunch of stuff in my brother's room (which we are using for storage right now and are going to turn it into a workout room when I move back in). I found such weird things in there....a couple of checks people wrote me back in 2000. I am not going to cash them now because well, I've seen that episode of Seinfeld, so I just shredded them. I also found so much stuff I could have been using: blank notebooks, crayons, tape, a stapler, boxes of Papermate pens, rolls of unused film, etc. I just threw stuff in a box and never looked at it again. After sorting for a while, I rode my bike home...and then started to pack some stuff.

Saturday: I took a long, long, long bike ride...I rode over to the Post Office in town...then I headed to the video store again...and rode beyond and went on the bike trail for about 4 miles and then headed back to my dad's house. I am LOVING riding my bike around town. Dad and I went shopping...and bought lotsa stuff. I came home and continued packing things I didn't need. I filled my car...and worked up a nice sweat. Oh...and I had a nice, hour long conversation with a friend on the phone. We haven't hung out in about a year...but, it was SO nice talking to her. It didn't feel like so much time had passed. We are going to make plans to hang out next weekend and actually *see* one another. I am glad I am not being such a hermit...slowly, but surely. I also watched 2 movies...Juno and Superbad. Both very funny.

Sunday: I went to church. I almost biked there because my bike and I are in love. I was running a little late, so I drove instead...plus, I don't know how long it would take me to get there, so I played it safe. Church was really nice...and was glad I spent Mother's Day there since my mom always loved going to church. I had the nicest conversation with my Pastor...and she asked me to get involved in a service project I am really excited about (more about that at another time). I headed to dad's...unpacked all the stuff from my car and started to pile it in my dad's house. My dad and I headed to my mom's grave marker and brought some fresh lilacs from the house. My mom LOVED lilacs, so I love the idea of the smell of lilacs surrounding her marker. We came home...puttered around the house a little and then I headed home. I watched some crap tv and was in bed early. It was a sad, but more than that...a really good Mother's Day.

Monday: Ah, my last day off. I could get really used to not having to work...if only that paid the bills. I woke up, puttered around the apartment and then headed out (yes, on my bike)...and yep...went to the video store. Then, I headed over to my dad's and this time went through a lot of the stuff in my old bedroom. It's kind of cluttered now and since I am moving myself and all my stuff in...I have to declutter it. I threw away 2+ garbage bins full and found bags of clothes to donate. I also found...and this is hilarious, some alcohol I had stashed and hidden from college. So, I've had wine coolers stashed in my closet since probably 1998. If that's not funny and pathetic at the same time, I don't know what is. Anyways....I finished what I could, had lunch at my dad's...and headed back out towards my apartment. I decided to take the long way since I wanted to know how long it would take to bike all the way from dad's to work. Well, I got about halfway...and went over a rusty metal hanger and it plunged right into my tire....splat...flat tire. So, I got off my bike and walked her home. It was a little less than 2 miles...and so I got some walking workout in. I came home...watched some crap tv...continued to pack and now dad is coming over and we are going to get a patch kit and hopefully fix my bike.

So...that's my weekend...which basically is packing, decluttering and my constant love affair with my new bike.

Hugs all....

Happy Thursday....because it feels like a Friday!

Hey all...

Yep, today feels like Friday to me...why is that? Because I have tomorrow off from work. I have a bunch of time at work that I NEED to use, so I decided to make it a long weekend...taking Friday and Monday. I'm not doing anything really exciting. I am taking some stuff to the Salvation Army. I'm going over to my dad's and continuing to sort and throw away a lot of stuff...and starting to make my bedroom ready to move into. I plan on going for a long bike ride, as long as it doesn't rain too much. I am going to start the process of packing up and moving things ASAP...so I can do it all a little at a time, instead of having one day of crazy moving where you are dead tired by the end of the day. I did that last time when I moved and it made all the difference in the world. My roomie moved all in one day...and she and her friends were hurting units by the time she was done with the whole event.

I've been a happy camper this week...since the weather has been really nice. The rain has really held off, so I've been able to bike to work every single day this week. I am really excited about it. One, I get instant exercise added into my day. From my apartment, it's just a smidge under 3 miles to get to work...and so I can get there in 10-15 minutes. With the round trip, I get about 30 minutes of exercise each and every day. I've also been doing weight lifting at home...but I am loving the added cardio. Mr. Elliptical is probably getting lonely...but I'll spend some time with him this weekend.

I have to figure out how long it is going to take me to bike to work from my dad's house for when I move home in June. I still wanna bike to and from work...it'll just take a little longer. It's an additional 2 miles since I think it's about 5 miles from the house to work. I am thinking it'll take about a half an hour, but I won't know until I test it out. I am thinking...if the weather holds out...I might give it a test ride one day during my long weekend.

I hope everyone is enjoying their Thursday...I sure am, since my Thursday feels like a Friday...and I LOVE Fridays.

Stimulus schimulus....

Guess what I got this weekend???

That $600 stimulus check from our rusty, non-trustworthy government. I logged onto my bank account on Saturday to see of my payments had cleared and noticed I had WAY too much money in my account. So, I clicked on the detailed report...and low and behold, I had the 600 smackeroos from the government.

I am still annoyed by this whole idea of the stimulus checks. Everyone keeps saying how great it is that we are getting "free" money from the government. It's not free people...and it's not the government giving us anything. We are so far into debt that we are taking loans left and right from places like China *gulp* to keep us afloat as a nation. So, we are giving ourselves 600 bucks....that we had to take a loan to get and will no doubt be paying back with lots of interest in the future. So, enjoy the "free" money.

And...I'm not hopeful this stimulus package is going to work. I don't think it's going to jump start the economy like they hope it is going to. People are scared about where the economy is heading, so spending the money on a flat screen tv or a down payment on a new car....not really what people are jumping to do. I personally feel that if the government really wanted to help the economy...they should be controlling gas prices. They could do it in a variety of ways...but that I think would actually work in stimulating the economy. If gas was cheaper...people wouldn't be so worried about filling their tank. And...prices would go down because the cost to transport goods wouldn't be so expensive. People wouldn't have to decide between groceries and gas, like many are now. So, if gas was in the $2 range...instead of the $3-4 range, I think the economy would naturally start to turn around some....a lot more than these random checks that people are afraid to spend because they are waiting for the next shoe to drop.

So, what did I do with my stimulus check? I did exactly what the government didn't want me to do with it. I made a $600 payment on my student loans. I figure...my loans will get paid off just a smidge faster. It's not helping the economy any...but it is helping my personal finances. So, Sallie Mae...consider yourself stimulated!

Have you gotten yours yet?? What do you plan on doing with it???

a year....comes and it goes.

This weekend...today actually...is the one year anniversary of my mom's death. Sometimes it seems like a million years have passed since my mom died and sometimes it seems like it was yesterday.

The anniversary is today, but it felt like it was on Friday. My mom passed away on the first Friday in May last year. I was in a huge funk on Friday. I wanted to call in "sick" to work on Friday...since I just didn't want to deal. I didn't...because there was work that needed to be done, but I wanted to. It was a hard day to sit in my office and go through the motions...and it kind of felt like I was living the day over again since many things were similar. I had a class I was preparing for the next day last year...just like this year. I had to leave during my lunchtime...this year, to run errands...last year, to go check on my mom. I would often think of that wonderful, naive sense I had last year until my dad called and asked if I had heard from mom and if I could call and see if she was home. My whole world changed...once I left and hoped to just go home, check on her and chastise her for not answering the phone.

So...on Friday, I just kind of went through the day and did everything to get my work done and get home. I spent both Friday and Saturday continuing my funk...I ended up bring snarky and trying to pick a fight with my dad on Saturday while we were shopping because I am just THAT mature. I basically hung up on him on the phone (which I think is just the rudest thing a person can do)...when I was calling him from one side of Target while he was on the other. I went home...ate WAY too much for dinner and then watched a movie and went to bed.

Today, I woke up...and felt better. I felt renewed is the best way I can describe it. I got up before my alarm...and got ready to go to church. I considered not going, but I always feel close and connected to my mom at church, so I knew it was where I needed to be. I spent two days being a grump...and missing my mom and I felt this morning, that she was telling me to get over it and honor her by being that positive being that my was always was. So, today...I have that spirit about me again.

I miss my mom. I can't believe she's been gone for a year. Dad and I went to visit her grave marker...and spend a little time with her. I'm gonna do the best I can to honor her and make her proud. I can dwell in the pain of missing her...but I am not going to do that because it isn't what she would want. She's more important to me and the world than that.

Hugs to all....

Moving Back Home

Happy May Day everyone!!!

Hey everyone out there on the internet...and by everyone, I mean the 4 people who might read here. LOL That's alright...I always say I write more for me than anything else.

I've made a decision...that when my lease expires in the end of June, I'm going to move back home with my dad. It's something I've been thinking about for a few weeks...maybe longer. I kept deciding one way and then another...and then changing my mind all over again. But, I finally bucked up and made a final decision.

The last year has been a tough one on me and my dad...we've had to adjust our daily lives in a way we had never hoped to with the loss of my mom. When she first passed away, I asked him if he wanted me to move home...and he said that I could, but that he didn't need me to. So, I resigned my lease and went on my way.

A little while ago, my dad mentioned that the offer for me to move home was still there. I think it was his way of asking me to move home...but without putting any pressure on. I started to mull it around in my head and weighing the pros and the cons. All in all...there are so many more pros than cons. One, I can save a lot of money....which I plan on putting in a savings account to buy a car/down payment for a house/get lasik eye surgery/ put towards my 401K, etc. I'll have a lot more money to be able to use for things...and put away. So, that is a huge advantage. It'll also give me a lot more time to spend with my dad...which is such a pro. We have been meaning to do a lot of projects around the house...and I was finding it hard to find the time, but with being home...that will be so much easier. I'll also be able to just hang with him a lot more...which I think will be good for both of us. My dad and I really get along...so, it'll be nice for both of us. I also think the house has probably been pretty lonely for him this past year, so if me being home can brighten it up, that'll make me feel good.

There are some cons...or things I need to be careful of. One, the idea of being 30 and living at your parent's house just doesn't LOOK good. I look like one of those mooch kids who grows up, but never moves out. I know that isn't the situation...but to the outside, it's how it looks. I also need to make sure the transition doesn't lead to me gaining some weight back. I have a horrible pattern of gaining weight when change happens and particularly when I move. So, I am going to make sure that does not happen. I've worked way too hard to just throw it all away. My dad and I talked about turning my brother's room into an exercise room...which will be great. I think I'm also going to rejoin the gym...so I know I always have a place to workout. And another con...is that I'll be really sad not to be living with my roommate anymore. She's one of my closest friends and I have really enjoyed living with her. Also, I know life is really stressful for her right now...so I hate that I added more stress to her life with my decision. If I could have an ideal world...and have both at the same time, I would.

My lease isn't up until the end of June...and now I am going to spend the next month and a half slowly moving myself back into my dad's. I wanna be "moved out" by mid June since our apartment complex is notorious for not giving much of a deposit back...so I want to make sure we get every nickle we can, etc. I figure if I bring some stuff every time I go to my dad's....it won't be such an ordeal.

Happy Thursday all....