Trying to unwind...

I've written about our good friends the caterers, who do tailgate parties for the UofA during football season. They also belong to several networking clubs in the city to create more business opportunities for their company. Last night they hosted an open house at their kitchen and invited members of one of these networking clubs. We were also invited, as were members of their families. I have known this couple for about 10 years, as the company I used to work for, used them for catering events at least once a month, to feed over 800-1000 employees. Anyway, they had set up several stations of various cuisines, complete with decorations. There was an Asian inspired area with an oriental chicken salad, egg rolls, plum sauce, complete with spring rolls. A seafood area with salmon and shrimp; a polynesian style cheese, crudite, baked brie, crusty bread; a "man" area decorated in NASCAR paraphenelia featuring meatballs, wings, and nuts (almonds, walnuts, cashews, of course...what were you thinking?); a Mexican food area with nachos, mini-tamales, churros, quesadillas; a coffee bar; dessert table, and of course a bar...where you could mix your own drink, have a beer, some wine, or just plain do some shots! There was sooooo much food, at least 60-70 people at any given time. This couple is just the sweetest, most generous, fun-loving people I've come across.

TGIF...this has been the week from hell! I called in sick on Monday, felt like crap on Tues, Wed, Thurs, and today was no better. I'll have these coughing spells that seem to go on forever, and the tickle in my throat will not stop. I called my doctor on Wednesday to see if I could get in to see him, but when I spoke with his nurse, the only thing really bothering me is my cough. I don't have a fever, no headache, no runs, etc. A different kind of cough medicine was suggested and I tried it, although it contained high fructose corn syrup, and lasts 12 hours...so unfortunately, that first night I didn't sleep much because I just wasn't sleepy...at all! I took it early yesterday, and it may have helped, I don't know...I'm still coughing today. I refuse to be sick this weekend. Glen is battling a bout of diverticulitis, and a sinus infection that he won't ask for an antibiotic for because he just completed 10 days of a protocol for the diver...hopefully, it will help his sinus infection too.

We have tickets to a spring training game on Sunday, Indians vs Rockies. Its supposed to be a beautiful weekend. We also have the 4th Avenue Street Fair this weekend...a plethora of arts and crafts, food, music, etc., for the whole family. I haven't been in a number of years...just maybe...

Talk soon...

Nana's & Happy Meals or Happy Nana's & Meals...

I've had so much going on in the last couple of weeks, heavy emotional loss, then I got sick. Truly, I believe that I got this cold for just being physically depleted. I was just sick in January of this year, and I almost never get sick!

My son Chris and his wife Christina have split up after 11 years of marriage. They have 3 kids, 10, 7, & 3...just babies. The really tragic thing, and I am ashamed to say, is that Chris has left his family. I know that they have struggled financially for much of their marriage, but I lay much of that blame on Chris. Where most men/fathers would be working 2-3 jobs to make ends meet, he worked only 1 job, barely making over minimum wage to support his family. I realize that it takes two to make a marriage work, as it takes 2 to let it fail. I have suggested counseling, for several years, to no avail. They, he, just won't. She is willing, he prefers to throw in the towel. I spoke with him 2 weeks ago, and I was very angry with him. I hung up on him because I did not want to say things I would regret. I did tell him the ball is in his court. We have not spoken since. I have visited the kids, and helped Christina clean the house, sort through stuff...she is a wreck, the kids are traumatized. She works part time so that she can have the time off with the kids, so she will have to get a full time job. Jobs are hard to come by these days. I don't know what will happen. Her mom is going through some serious health problems...diabetes has affected her sight, and she just had surgery to repair a detached retina. She can hardly help out with the kids. Chris is staying with my mom right now where he is cocooned in a safe world. What about his kids?? I just don't understand him, and I am shocked that this has happened. All part of the circle huh?

I did have my 4 year old granddaughter, Ailani, Carlos' daughter yesterday. She has been asking to come over and spend the night for several weeks. I told her that she could spend the night when she is 5 as I feel she is too young. But after spending the day with her yesterday, I believe she would be fine. We went to the park, she played on the slides, monkey bars, etc. We watched the ducks in the lake, and walked to the dog park. She said she wants to fish, but that she would throw the fish back in the water if she ever caught one! We went grocery shopping for a few things for the week, and she sat in the cart asking for me to hand her the stuff, and she sorted it in the cart for me. We had lunch at McDonald's. I got her a Happy Meal, but when it came time to eat the hamburger, she said she didn't like ketchup, so I tried to scrape it off. Then she said she didn't like mustard, I had already ordered it without pickles. What about some chicken McNuggets, yes...with ranch dressing. She ate it all...and even dipped her fries in it! Its time like these when I don't know their likes and dislikes that I feel like I've failed my grandkids. Aren't these little tidbits that a grandma should know? I've always said I'm not a traditional nana, and I'm not. I thought it was ok not to be "standard". Times are different from when my mom became a nana, and surely from my own nana who I still miss terribly. Anyway, after dinner, I took her home and she said, "I'm going to your house tomorrow, nana?" In a couple of weeks, sweetie, in a couple of weeks!

Glen has been sleeping on the couch for the last two nights because he wants me to sleep better knowing I won't be keeping him up. Translation: I'll sleep on the couch so I can get a good nights' sleep. I slept a good 12 hours last night. I still can't taste my food that well today, and its so frustrating...like why eat when I can't taste! We are going to dinner with Glen's sis and her DH today, The Melting Pot. Guess if Glen doesn't have my germs yet, he will by tonight. Love you, honey :)

Talk soon...

Sunshine Abounds!

Time just seems to escape me...or I have a boring life! Take your pick. The weather here has been unseasonably warm, up to 10 degrees. We topped out at 91F last Monday. If you caught any of the Accenture Golf matches over the weekend the commentators were gushing over the weather. It was absolutely gorgeous! We also had the rode in town. I didn't think that was such a big deal, but I heard it is in one of the top 20 in the country with a purse of $400K! I've been once, didn't really do anything for me. It was enough...been there, done that.

We're planning our vacation for this year...Yosemite! We did Yellowstone last year, and while it was beautiful, we had some bad weather that cut into our hiking time, turned into hanging-out-at-the-lodge-eating-all-day time! We usually try to get away for our anniversary in May, before school lets out and the summer family vacations begin. We're planning some hikes, visiting the Sequoia's, and spend a day or two in Death Valley. It probably sounds like a strange mix, but we enjoy off the beaten path stuff! We were looking at some pictures and video on-line of Half Dome, and I don't think we'll be doing that hike! Glen doesn't do heights, and I don't think I am fit enough to do, much less do it by myself. What if I get to the top and can't get down? Besides, there aren't any bathrooms on the way up nor at the top! We tried to do Angel's Landing in Zion Canyon a couple of years ago, but we had just started hiking and it was quite steep and high! Hoping to get back there someday.

I took some pics of a hike in Sabino Canyon last week during a walk. I'll get those up soon...I just noticed the time and I have to work! Talk soon...

Happy Valentine's Day

We had a cold spell on Tuesday of last week...even some snow on Pusch Ridge! Ok, well, maybe it was only a dusting, but it was the white stuff!! This is a view from our back yard. It was a bleary day, and it was cold. Alisha and I walked Sabino, it was maybe 47F...perfect walking weather!! By Thursday it was back up in the 60's. Today was sunny, blue skies, and upper 60's with a slight cool breeze! Gorgeous!

Glen and I don't exchange gifts, not for Christmas, birthdays, Valentine's Day, etc. We just don't. Early in our relationship, we agreed that we would just exchange cards. We pick out a card that best expresses our sentiments. This year, the cards we got each other had the same theme...best friends. We are truly best friends by every definition of the word. There is nothing I cannot tell him, my deepest dreams, hopes, desires, along with my troubles. He doesn't judge me, and doesn't tell me what to do. He expresses his opinion, because I ask him, and then leaves it to me to decide what to do. Because I value his opinion, we usually decide together. If I decide to go against his opinion, he is ok with that too...I explain my position, and though he may not understand, he accepts it. He never says, "I told you so"...even when he's had the opportunity to do so. He has never ridiculed me, called me names, belittled me; he is selfless, always putting me first. When I get home each day, he comes out to meet me to carry my bags in. I could go on and on, but suffice it to say, he is my soul mate, my true love, and I could not imagine my life without him. I truly try not to take him for granted.



When we started dating in December of 2000, we did exchange gifts...I gave him a poetry book (corny, I know), and he gave me some sapphire and diamond earrings. Our first Valentine's Day, he gave me a gold diamond heart pendant, I gave him a wallet. It was then we chose by mutual agreement not to exchange gifts because we just decided that if we wanted something for ourselves, we got it. We truly want for nothing. Neither of us is materialistic, and we work hard for the things we do have. It also takes the pressure off shopping for each other!! The most pressing decision we made for today was deciding where to have dinner! We opted for Miguel's, a local restaurant specializing in Southwest cuisine. We've eaten there before and it was a little pricey, but the food, service, ambience were impeccable - we decided to go back. I made the reservation 2 weeks ago, after trying to get into The Melting Pot, but they were already booked solid. Anyway, Miguel's called me on Wednesday confirming the time, and to tell me they would have a set menu. They called me twice but didn't make contact with me, so they called me again on Thursday, this time they talked to me personally. They were offering a 4-course menu: soup (tomato, mussels, with a cilantro topping), salad (asparagus, beets with a citrus vinagrette), I had Chilean Sea Bass cooked just right, Glen had the prime rib, which he said was very good! Dessert was creme brulee. Neither of us is a huge fan of the dessert, but it was on the menu...OMG...it was soooooo good! It had a salsa of diced strawberries on top, a very light topping, and the custard was airy, light and not too sweet at all. Overall, dinner was exceptional!! There was a party of 4 seated behind us that seemed surprised that there was a set menu for the evening. The waiter informed them that they should have been told when the reservation was confirmed. They said no one told them. Glen and I were talking that someone in that party had to know and just failed to tell everyone else. As I said, they called me several times, and made contact with me...I can't imagine that they missed them - possible, but highly improbable. Maybe they just didn't like the menu :)

We had DirecTV installed today. Now we have 3 dishes on the roof. One is for Glen's current internet, the other is for Glen's old internet, and now we have the TV dish. When the guy was on the roof, he happened to look down from the roof because he had seen a "large cat" on our front porch and thought, "thats a big cat". It was our neighborhood bobcat lounging near our front door. The tech took a picture of it with his cell phone. The cat eventually took off for the desert vegetation area between us and the neighbor. My SIL was telling Glen that there was a family, 2 adults and 2 babies, in their backyard a couple of weeks ago; they live behind us on the next street. They are certainly not afraid of humans thats for sure...yikes!

I hope everyone had a great day, whether you spent it with yourself (YOU are special), or with someone, or perhaps your loved one is no longer physically here - he/she lives on in your heart. You are never alone! Talk soon...

It must be spring...

Our weather has been so beautiful that I have to wonder where did the winter go or did we ever have one? Usually by this time we've had a couple of cold snaps, and a few protect the plants, pets, pipes and people, but this season, maybe twice!! While hiking in Sabino Canyon yesterday, some of the ocotillos are already blooming - seems they are confused too. I wore shorts and a t-shirt at 6 pm! We are due for a cold spell this weekend, maybe 57F on Sunday. Right now, it is 70F, and its almost 10pm! I have never lived anywhere else but here, so I cannot imagine cold like the rest of the country experiences. Of course, the summers can get quite toasty ;)

My pay cut will be 5%, which is not bad, and I still have a job. Lots going on at work behind the scenes, but to our guest population it is business as usual. Although I have seen some guest surveys where they have cited cutbacks as areas where we need to improve. Our new phone list came out today, and I compared it to the last version, and quite a few people are gone. Even the parking lots have ample parking when just a few short months ago if you didn't get there by 8 am, you had to park on the road and risk a ticket from our security office. Three tickets to your manager and its a verbal warning...yikes!

Alisha and I have been walking in Sabino Canyon the last 3 days, except today. Last week we walked 3 days out of 7. Today I attended a lecture at one of the medical centers near my house. Topic: Eating Healthy on a Budget. It was a regurgitation of common sense guidelines...I don't know, maybe I just wasn't in the mood. I am doing a Get Well in 2009 series at work...12 weeks of tracking my physical activity (minimum 2.5 hours a week), attend 3 nutrition lectures (1 per month), and a stress reducing activity (it can be anything you do for you) per week. Because my employer is so health oriented, we get all this information at work. Not to say I know it all, but the key is to just do it...we all know what we need to do, we just don't. That goes for me too. I'll probably end up pitching the peach pie I made last Sunday!

Its way past my bedtime...talk soon!

It wasn't in the Cards...

Glen and I got up early Sunday morning, 6 am, stopped at a local breakfast in Catalina, Sunnyside Up, and headed out into the hills. Glen and his family used to do lots of 4 wheeling and camping, hiking and looking for old artifacts. This was way back in the late 60's, early 70's, when it was ok to remove stuff from sites (or at least it wasn't yet illegal). We have old horseshoes, bottles, rocks, pieces of metal shards, etc. Fascinating stuff! Actually, the little bottles are really cute. When I first moved in, I wanted to display them, but they're kind of dirty, muddy...so I was going to wash them. Glen said, NOOOOO!! Glen and his family would like to eventually turn over all this stuff to the historical society on behalf of his parents. Anyway, 30 years ago, behind Biosphere 2 (Google it), but the road ended at the gate. We tried a few other roads, but there is a lot of mining going on back there. According to our GPS, we were in the correct place, it just wasn't what Glen remembered. We turned back, stopped in Oracle at our nephew's TruValue hardware store for a bit, and headed back out toward Peppersauce Canyon. We found a couple of caves where Glen used to spelunk back in the day. Kind of scary...we didn't go in, but it clear that people go up there to party. Lots of graffiti on the walls, trash. We headed back around 1:30 pm. We used to do this a lot, before Glen started working OT, so it was good to spend time together. He/we both need the down time!

We grilled some steaks outside, it was about 70F today, beautiful day!! Baked some potatoes, had some baked beans, peach pie, and settled in for the game. No, the Cards didn't win, they actually beat themselves. You don't win football games with the amount of penalties they had. They gave a valiant effort in the end, but it was too little too late. Right after the Fitzgerald touchdown, Comcast aired 30 seconds of porn, then returned to the game!! OMG...it was a full frontal of the male. At first I thought it was a commercial in very poor taste, then it was there!!! No one knows what happened, and I believe it was a local issue, but can you imagine if kids were watching, which they probably were. You'd think there would be measures in place to prevent this type of thing!

Anyway...back to work today. Talk soon...

TGIF

Today, my parents, sister and BIL went to a funeral in Chandler...the wife of the deceased is my dad's cousin, so not particularly close, but my parents wanted to go pay their respects and catch up with people they haven't seen in a long time. The family is actually from Queen Creek, a tiny (or used to be small) community just south of Phoenix. Growing up we used to spend a lot of time visiting relatives, who lived rural and very simple. I remember walking miles along the railroad tracks besides farmland, sometimes until the sun was well set. As we'd walk, we would tell scary stories, my cousins were good storytellers. I was/am so gullible I'd believe every word they said. Little did I realize, it was the fabrication of those stories from our aunts who just wanted us home at a decent hour. My sister and I were younger than our more mature, older cousins, maybe 2-3 years. Seeing them today with their families, made me realize that time does indeed fly by. They look so old, even those that were younger than I. I must look old to them too!

The weather here has been gorgeous!!! Absolutely beautiful...blue skies, warm days, chilly nights - but still you can do things outside. May have been 72F today for a high. Alisha and I have been walking in Sabino Canyon after work, 5:15 pm, and by the time we're done, over 2 miles, the sun is just setting. Good workout, and gives me a good night sleep. I just seem to be very hungry lately, so trying to eat healthy too.

Glen has to work tomorrow, so I'm on my own for most of the morning. Even when he's not home, I'll make a good breakfast of eggs, potatoes, toast. Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day, and gets me off to a good start. We'll watch the game on Sunday, maybe grill some steaks and chill...Go Cards!!

Talk soon...

Wages & adjustments...

My where does the time go?? I didn't realize I hadn't made an entry since the first of the year! Maybe I just don't have much to say...or I have to much to say that I can't even piece it together for an entry.

Work is still very slow business-wise. We went through another round of lay offs the second week of January, another 40 positions. Some of the part time massage therapists were asked to give up their health insurance. Many part timers were cut completely. Those of us that remain are working hard to ensure guest services are impacted as little as possible. From what I understand, house counts are picking up, but it will take us a while to make up what we've lost. Today, another round of communication was scheduled. When they say that, you know it can't be good. The admins from Executive were called into the conference room for a meeting about 3:30 pm. Basically, there will be wage adjustments, anywhere from 2% to 12%...the higher you are on the wage scale, the bigger your cut. Paid time off will also be slashed. Since I've been there for 2 years, I am losing 1 day per year. People who are 20+ years tenured will loose 3 days. The good thing is I still have a job!! Truly, I am so thankful! Back in September, when the whole banking/investment fiasco began or came to light, our Executive team put together a contingency plan in case the industry failed to make a quick rebound. It didn't, so we implemented what was to begin a major overhaul of our business model. Started with layoffs, operational and capital expenses were put on hold. This wage adjustment is the last piece to put in place so that we can ride it out. Of course, there isn't a crystal ball that will tell whether the worst is over, but at least they have thought ahead. Our health insurance plan remains intact, and though the employer match contribution in our 401K has been eliminated, at least it is still offered. After 9/11, they made a 20% across the board cut in wages, so this isn't that bad.

There was a job fair at the convention center yesterday...66 employers had representatives on hand taking resumes for open positions, and recruiters doing on-the-spot interviews. Six thousand people passed through the job fair!! They were expecting 3,000. There is another job expo planned for next month. February and March are our big months for tourists, Tucson Gem & Mineral Show, Accenture Golf Match Play, rodeo, etc., and the hotels are reporting record lows in occupancy. Another sign of the times.

Sorry to be all gloom and doom, but it is what it is (as Phil would say)...talk soon...