Done!

With my part at least...now it's the tax guy's turn. It feels good to have this part done and with a couple of weeks to spare. The problem with having so many ideas all the time, is that it becomes a nightmare for me at tax time. Annie's Baskets, Strapped4Cash, Ann Anderson Consulting, Sleepy Turtle Ranch, yada yada yada! Back to having some fun!

Jetsetting Dira

On April 7th we will be going to the airport to pick up one kennel full of precious cargo. Dira is coming to the Sleepy Turtle Ranch to join Booner, Tessie and Sadie! We figured as long as the economy is the way it is and home prices are the way they are and the likihood of being able to sell the rest of the horses and the ranch is not great, we'd take advantage of staying here a little longer and convert our chicken condo into a 4 star dog kennel.

Dira is 19 months old, she is a papered German Shepherd, she was born and has been raised in Slovakia, so she speaks Slovakian, yikes! (that might be tough, because we don't!) she's super smart, and is just a couple months younger than Sadie who will turn 2 on April 2.

We are super excited to have her join our family. We will also be adding a male in the next couple of months. It is confirmed that Booner is a grandpa and too old to sire puppies, so his job (and he's the best at it) will be to nanny the puppies when they eventually come along.

There are videos of Dira on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYWgQPoIER0 and also at the website www.eurosportk9.com

Blog Surfing

I was bored last night, so just started hitting the "next blog" link at the top of the page. There were some good ones and some boring ones. This one was pretty funny http://badfrigginhair.blogspot.com I feel a little like a voyeur, but it is an interesting way to pass a little time. Try it, you might like it. Be sure to pass on any good blogs you come across.

Feeling Sick Today

Typically I keep my political views to myself, but today I just can't. I feel nauseous at the passing of the "health care bill" mostly because it is more about egos, socialism, loss of freedom and imposition of a change to my life that I DID NOT want. This sweeping bill has little to do with health care, although that will certainly change (and not for the better) and more about increased government control in our everyday lives.

I'm wondering if so many people are out of work, where will the money come from to pay for this stuff and why isn't there at least as much focus on creating jobs and putting people back to work. I'm sure that our illustrious political boneheads are busy slapping each other on the backs this morning and I cannot look at one more smug shot of obama or one more silly teary eyed shot of bidden. Their work is just beginning, the bill is apparently so bad that it will take a truck load of "fixes" to even get it close to what people thought they were voting on and what about all the back room deals, what is that going to cost me???? And what will they focus in on now...the people who didn't vote with them, will they be crucified now? I guess the over 50% of us who thought this was a bad idea don't really count....

Attached to the bill was also the government take over of the student lending industry forcing schools and students to now borrow directly from the national treasury, that's another $60+ billion (bet you didn't see or hear about that)and another hit to the education system in this country... But more than that, it is my (and your) tax dollars again on the line. I have recently started back to work and I am less than enthusiastic knowing that a bigger chunk will be coming out of my paycheck to subsidize all this "stuff" that is being passed. I am sick to death of subsidizing people who refuse to work, refuse to step up and take care of themselves and who continually bottom feed through life. I know I should be looking for the positive spin on things (and I will eventually get there) but right now I am so MAD I can barely stand being in the same room with myself. What is wrong with us that we are not doing more to stop this and what the HECK is wrong with our country? If I wanted socialized medicine I would move to Canada, if I wanted the government to run every aspect of my life I could move to Russia. I don't believe that having everything, including health care is a right...it's something you have the priviledge to work for and provide for yourself (or not). In fairness, I do understand things like pre-existing conditions, I'm not saying we shouldn't fix things, I'm just saying it's not the job of the federal government to dictate (hello Hitler!) it to us.

Great Balls of Fire!

What a FUN day! I got up early, got my walk in, had PANCAKES, then headed out to the airport. I ran into my old flying buddies out there who were heading down to Pueblo for lunch. They invited me to fly along, but they were ready to go and I was just getting there, so I decided to not go this time and just fly around the city. I taxi'd down to the self serve pumps for some jet fuel, topped off the tanks and then waited in line with everyone else for my take off sequence. Finally....373WD cleared for take off 1-7-left. A nice take off into the plane dotted sky and the Springtime bumps....

After I landed, I was getting ready to push my plane back into the hangar when a voice behind me about scared the doo out of me. It was my hangar neighbor, Joe. I hadn't seen him for awhile either so after he helped my push my plane in, he asked if I wanted to go flying with him...in his WW2 Sea Fury!!! I didn't hesitate, I said yes so fast it made him laugh....Strapped in, parachutes on, headsets working, briefing on what to do in an emergency...check!

And we are off! It was SO AWESOME! We were looking for a friend's grass landing strip south of Elbert. When he would turn we'd be at a 90 degree angle to the ground...YIKES! We heard his friend on the radio and he guided us to the landing strip where we did some low flyovers...I'm talking 10-15 feet off the ground. At the end of one of low passes, we went into a roll! I did the YEE HAW and felt pure exhilaration! He asked if I wanted to do some more rolls, ABSOLUTELY! So we got clearance in the air space and flew some loops, rolls and point rolls. LOVED IT!

When we landed (which was much too soon for me) he invited me to tag along back to the friends place with a few other pilots, including his son, JP. I went and it was a really fun afternoon. I had to leave about the time the chicken and Brats were coming off the grill, I hadn't planned this adventure and needed to get home to cook dinner there. What a fun day, I am still smiling....Life IS Good!

Tribute

I've put off writing this entry for a couple of weeks, partly because it is so personal to me and partly because it makes things that much more real. February 25th marked the 1 year anniversary of Susan's passing. Today while I was out for my morning walk, I knew it was time to do this. I loved Susan as my friend for a lot of reasons, amongst them:

She kept me honest
She was completely different in many ways from me, but we still had deep common ground
She was as stubborn as she was compassionate
We shared a "secret box"
She would always be there for me, even during the times I wasn't there for her
We shared the longing for...and the pain of not having...children of our own.
We also shared incredible relationships with our nieces
She understood why I was always doing something...trying to fill a hole that can never be filled
She let me be me and I her, we respected the differences and the quirks and the boundaries


Most people thought we were an odd friendship, but most didn't understand the bond that we had and still have.

I still see her rolling her eyes at me and I miss her...

This is how we roll

Out on a walk, with Sebastian in tow. He follows on the ground a lot but he likes to hitch a ride as well. For some reason it is always my left shoulder. Guess that leaves my right arm free to throw the ball for Sadie, an activity that doesn't seem to affect Sebastian in the least. Crazy Cat, Crazy Gal.

Seb and Tessie taking a break.

Still awhile until Spring

For us we still have a few weeks left, but it doesn't keep me from getting a little bit of Spring fever. It is a balmy 52 degrees here today and a little overcast. Seems like a year since Hawaii...

The good news is we will be in Hurricane for a week at the end of the month, YEA!!