Oh the joys of working from home...

I am blessed to have a fantastic job. I get to travel a lot and work from home when the need arises. Today was one of those days. I've been trying to catch a cold and since it is -17F outside right now, I opted to work from home during the later part of the day.

It's been a very pleasant and productive afternoon. I've stayed in touch with my co-workers via the phone and internet and I've gotten more done than I most likely would have at work where there are more distractions.

Not to say that I don't have distractions here, just not quite as many...

...but distracting none-the-less.

I am blessed in so many ways...

I am officially moved! After oh-so-very-many trips up and down the 30 stairs that lead to my new "loft" apartment, I am happily ensconced in my new digs. Although there have been some ups and downs (the up being nearly everything, the down being the night the new heating system failed and I went to bed in 4 sweatshirts, 3 pairs of sweats, thick fuzzy socks, rainbow slippers, cap and mittens.

When I woke up the next morning it was 42 degrees and the water bottle I keep next to my bed was starting to freeze). The contractor who is doing the renovations came by at 8 am and rigged a repair and had a new part overnight expressed in. He was surprised that I hadn't called him at 10 pm when the heater went out and apologized over and over again for my trouble. I just laughed and told him I was a tough Montana chick and it would take more than freezing room temperatures to upset me.

Since then he has gone even farther out of his way to accommodate me and even had one of his carpenters hang my new solar blinds for me. I have been truly blessed so often in my life and this is one of those times. I don't think I could have found a more 'fun' apartment or a better landlord or contractor.

I have also been blessed with wonderful friends. They've helped me move, driving 100's of miles, making dozens of trips up and down the steps and they've asked nothing at all in return.

I am also incredibly blessed with a fantastic family. My brother, my dad, the cousins and of course my fabulous son Wolf who drove from Denver to spend this weekend with me. He and I are in Billings with the cousins now and will drive to Forsyth tomorrow to Feng Shui the apartment and spend some quality time together.

How lucky can a gal get?

On top of spaghetti...

Dad came through the surgery. Other than some blood pressure and low oxygen levels, all went well. Because of the b.p., they decided to keep him in the hospital for a few days. His readings were ultra high and a few hours later, really low, so they are keeping a close watch on him.

He is also quite confused; more so than normal. Probably the hardest thing for Mike and I right now is that he thinks mom is still alive. I've been staying with him at the hospital and I don't have the heart to tell him she's gone; I just don't want him to have to go through that again.

He keeps trying to call her but it won't go through. It about broke my heart when he said he'd just have to wait for her to call him. I hope this phase of the disease doesn't last long. Sometimes I think it would be easier on him to be oblivious to the present, like a lot of the people in his nursing home ward are, but of course, that's not my call.

You will notice from the picture, however, that he still has his appetite and that has to be a good thing. The red stuff on his shirt and face is the spaghetti he had for lunch. Some of it even made it to his tummy, I promise.

Dad sleep pets the dog...

On the home front, I haven't managed to get everything into my new place yet. Bad weather, lots of meetings and late nights has put a crimp in my moving style. My hope is that I get everything in on Sunday with the help of a few men with strong backs and good legs. There are 30, count them 30, steps to my new apartment so moving furniture up them is not for the faint of heart. I, myself, have made about a bazillion trips up and down and my legs are as muscular as I can ever remember them. This move is going to be good for me in so many ways!

You may be asking yourself (if you've managed to hang on this long) why doesn't she move the rest in today? The reason is because my dad is having hernia surgery in Billings so I am here with him. It's not a very serious operation, but with dad's age and Parkinson's to consider, there is always a chance (though I prefer to believe it to be VERY slight) that there could be complications.

So as usual, I am sending out a request for your kind thoughts and prayers to be sent this direction. My dad is a wonderful, sweet, dear man and he is very much loved by all that know him and it gives us all comfort knowing you are holding him in your hearts.

Take good care, my dear friends. I'll talk to you soon.

The best son in the universe!!!

Yes, as if you didn't already know it, I have the best son in the universe. When he heard I was moving (according to him it was long overdue), he ordered these for me on Amazon.com. Isn't he the most thoughtful son?

And speaking of the move...

The apartment finally has heat! Yes folks, a brand spankin' new heating and air conditioning system is up and running. I had moved a lot of things in while freezing my tushy off, but now I can officially get the heck out of Dodge and into my own digs.

I had planned to move my chaise lounge, bed, dresser and numerous boxes today, but a howling wind and wet wet snowstorm settled in upon us so that may have to wait for tomorrow.

I'm leaving a lot of things with R. I'm mainly taking the things that have sentimental value and things we had two of. Not that I think R would accuse me of taking more than my fair share, but "someone else" most likely would, so I'm not taking any chances. I just want the drama to end.

I'll keep you all posted and post some pictures when I finally get everything moved in.

Hugs to all.

A new chapter...

I am moving! I found a loft-type apartment in Forsyth. The gigantic leaded-style windows overlook the historic district, such as it is, and it has three bedrooms. I would have gotten something much smaller and easier to heat and cool, but it's hard to find a place that will take my cat, especially on short notice.

As some of you know, I have lived with my friend R for many years. We have some interests in common and have had a lot of fun. He has been dating a mutual acquaintance for several months now and she has decided that she doesn't like me living there. She has told several of my friends that she was going to get me out of there one way or another and apparently, she means it. Her way of removing me has been to start causing problems. She's done some pretty scary things which are giving me cause to fear for my safety and more importantly the safety of my extended family, so the time has come to move.

I am sad for a few reasons, and these are in random order:

~R and I have been friends for a lot of years and it pains me to have our friendship end this way, but some people have no conscience and don't care what they do to get their way and she is one of them, so this is for the best.

~I will miss the 5 cats that I can't take with me. The cat I brought into the house with me thinks she is a dog and she hates cats with a passion (I think she's a cog or a dat to be honest). She was raised by my border collie and we have always had to keep her separate from the others. She stayed downstairs with R and the rest were upstairs with me. I can't even begin to imagine how empty the house will feel with only one cat to keep me entertained, but as I said, this is for the best and R has agreed for me to have visitation rights.

~I spend a lot of time with the neighbor's dog, Keeper. He is the sweetest cocker spaniel dog in the world and he loves me more than his owner (of course I bring him the best treats and take him in my car and walk him to the river, so it stands to reason that he would love me). I know that I can always go over and pick him up for walks and rides, but it's not quite the same as being there all the time.

But I am happy for several reasons as well (also in random order):

~I can invite my friends over whenever I want without wondering if it will bother my roommate.

~I can decorate the place any way that I like. Since the house was in his name, I didn't want to change the decor, it was, after all, "his" house. So I lived with the felt unicorn picture, the stained glass white tiger pane and the deer drawings. It will be nice to have some things of my own on display, although I gave most of my things away when I moved.

~I can't stand the drama that this woman has brought into my life. I'm a happy person who sees the glass half full. Recent events have left me doubting not only myself, but humanity and I do not like feeling that way. I just need to have my own space for awhile to get back to myself.

~I've always loved adventure and in Forsyth, this is about the most adventure one can have. So wish me luck, folks. And if you can recommend a good Feng Shui book, please do so. I'm gonna need all the help I can get decorating this behemoth.

The Switch...

There are some people in the world that seem to have an on/off switch for their emotions. Do you know anyone like that? One moment the switch is on and they care about you and the next, for no apparent reason, the switch is off and they want nothing to do with you. I know quite a few people like that and it never ceases to amaze me when the switch flips.

I guess this type of person isn't capable of deep emotion or true love or maybe they are just more evolved and have figured out a way to control their emotions in a way I never will and to be honest, never really want to.

I love deep, I love hard, I love forever. I still care deeply for the first man I ever loved. We were not destined to be and the love we shared wasn't a deep, "can't live without him" kind of love, but I loved him and he loved me. I never lost that love and I'm glad. I still have strong feelings for every man that I've had a relationship with and I suppose, me being me and all, I always will.

I think it's a good thing. I'm glad. It might be easier to have a flippable switch. It might take less out of a person and make the hardships in life easier to manage...but I'll take the pain and the sorrow and the joy and elation of loving deep.

I'll take the agony and the ecstasy of loving with abandon, with giving my whole heart, with throwing not only caution, but reason to the wind and loving with everything I've got. I truly believe that in the end, I will be richly rewarded.


By the way, I'm not talking about my current love life!