Pyjama Day

I can never read that word and not pronounce it "PIE-Jawma" in my head. No matter how hard I try. ;)

Today was PJ dat at school. Quite a contrast from their regular threads eh? :0) They got to take a favorite animal as a guest as well. Cody chose his stuffed chocolate lab "Sue" and Kade took his new croc appropriately named "Crocker". Something tells me there were probably a TON of mario jammie bottoms at school today. Just a guess....

In other news.... 

This, my friends, excites me to NO end. I've been dying for the day that I could start reading chapter books with the boys. We have tried a few times, but the attention span just wasn't quite there. FINALLY, Kade and I have started reading our first Harry Potter book. I read a page and he reads a page and MUCH to my delight...I hardly have to help him at all. He really only needs help with the names, understandably so. It will take awhile I'm sure but we're going to go through the whole series. I am shamed to admit I have only read the first two, but I seriously wanted to wait and read it WITH them. Cody listens as he's just now begun his own reading journey but he is doing FABULOUSLY well at it. Love having readers all in the house! 

Can't decide, though I need not worry about it TOO much yet, which set to go to next. It will likely be the Black Stallion series, but who knows... :0)

Lastly...I made a snack. Pinterest inspired. Sort of. It went a little wrong in the end. Taste-wise it was a huge hit. Health-wise... well.....it's actually not QUITE as bad as it looks. Apples covered with melted peanut butter, a few marshmallows piled on, a random chocolate chip (which the did not eat) and a little chocolate syrup drizzle. Should've just stopped at the marshmallows I think. hahaha.

Either way, they've asked for it every day since and I've had to come up with some excuse as to why I can't make another yet. Ooops! I'll have to revert their attention away with something else less.....marshmallowy. 

That is all. Time to grab PJ'd kids from school, drop off friends at home and then...home to snuggle up for movie night. Tonight's menu is pigs in a blanket. Easy enough. I accept. ;)
I think this is going to be movie-marathon weekend. Gotta get a little bit o' Werewolf action in there somewhere!
Then a date at the "PICTURE SHOW" (hahahahaha man that's too damn funny Mike) to see some Poop Pie in action. ;o) YES we're horribly behind on movies here. Bite me. lol

Have a great one all! 

Facebook Ghost

So I kind of failed to ever come on here and explain why I decided to take a little time off of facebook.
More than anything it's just because of the same thing you hear most people say, "I spend too much time on here! Gosh I could've gotten this and that done but I got sucked into such and such on facebook."
Such is the life of the Work at Home crowd, the Stay at Home crowd, the bored at home so and on and so forth. Whatever you are, maybe you are not even at home and always on facebook!

More than anything, I am someone that is a tiny bit of a control freak....ya know, that's laid back all at the same time anyway. However, I've mentioned a time or two that I used to smoke, but now I do not. I also used to drink Dr. Pepper all day. Every single day. Milk or Dr. Pepper. Otherwise it was somewhat random to have some water, tea or booze. Now I do not. I also used to have a SEVERE addiction to reese's peanut butter cups. I won't even lie. Prior to kids...my  metabolism could handle it. Hell my metabolism used to smack itself on the chest and dare the calories... "bring it on bitches!!!" and it won everytime.
Apparently, it worked too damn hard though and with no notice whatsoever, it got a little sick half way through my first pregnancy and has remained fairly crippled ever since.

Therefore, 150 calories per can 12x a day (okay not quite that much but still) and 400 calories per pack more than we want to even mention for the reese's cups...then all the tar and cancer inducing chemicals....
Well, seems I was a bit of a slave to all things unhealthy. I had no control over them. I could have, but I just did not ever put forth the effort nor did I really care to. Until I actually tried to not eat, drink or inhale it. Then I found it was somewhat difficult to just stop.

I would try, not really care to put the effort into it and then fail. Then I'd feel bad for failing so I'd fail a little worse just to make up for it.

However, that's not really like me. I am NEVER happy being half way at anything. I don't dig failing. I do it quite often, we all do believe it or not. I'm fine with admitting such, REGARDLESS of what SOME people say, I openly admit my failures and the 2 or 3 times I've possibly been sort of wrong about something. However in my defense I did make it right or learn how to not do it again and hopefully did not fail again and there went a real quick side-track off into ADHD land.

ANYWAY. The controlling person that I can be is not too cool with that ASSHOLE voice that lives up in my head that muffles the one that speaks reason. The one that says, "don't do that, you will regret it." or whatever it says. That same voice that somehow took control of my hand as it would reach for a reese's cups, all the while that reasonable one who was just trying to stick with the damn program is screaming "NOOOOOOOOO don't do it!!!!" yet...the next thing Miss Reason knows is I'm now sitting in the car outside the store revelling in that sweet mixture of chocolate and peanut butter, swigging down the sickeningly sweet caffeine-laced liquid and just pushing my body one cell at a time closer to diabetes, obesity and overall unhappiness. Not due to being overweight...due to not doing what I set out to do.

I have done this many times. If I am good at anything, I think I've now decided I'm good at quitting.
I've quit a lot of things in my day. A lot of them were good things for me to quit, in fact most of them were. All of them, were NOT good for me to quit though. I'm a quitter. I admit it freely.

However, I'm good at trying again. Again and again and again and again until I get it right. I can get a little bit obsessive. Now that I have successfully quit a decent amount of things that a lot of people never seem to be able to quit...I think I have raised the bar a bit too much in my own head.
So I tend to be pretty strict with myself. It's needed though. I can be a bit of a lame ass and seriously do need the discipline. If only I could stick a Drill Sgt voice in my  head that was louder than the lazy one I'd be one disciplined MoFo.
As it is....I quit those things. I can do it. I have no issue of that at all. I don't really understand why EVERY ONE can't just quit stuff if it makes them unhappy. I really don't. I mean really, really...... (everyone should REALLY stop smoking. Y'all smell bad and your coughing grosses the rest of us out).

I found myself spending too much time on facebook. Duh. Though I know a LOT of folks well think I spent TONS more time on there than most...you are quite mistaken. Seriously. I had NOTHING on a lot of people I know. I did, however, spend too much time and energy there.
I found myself feeling creatively stifled for a number of reasons. I don't find it funny when I see tags of pictures where people joke about "not now honey Mommy's facebooking."
Obviously, I hope, that joke is meant in moderation. However I will shamefully admit that there were MANY times I said, "in just a minute. hold on...." and then it was 30 minutes later. NOT cool.
Obviously I'm a realist and NOT one of those mushy mashy parents that coddles her children to death and can't make the time to go pee b/c I might miss a moment of staring at my beautiful children. Yeah...NOT so much.
However, I also did not like it when my son's every reference began with "on your facebook?'. Granted EVERYONE talks about it nowdays. it is everywhere, however I don't want that to be what my kids remember of me.
I wanted to take out more time to do some fun stuff with them. Not around them. Not in between checking facebook.

When we were gone on holiday, I did not pay the excessive fees to have my phone online. Therefore I wasn't getting all these notifications all through out the day every time someone posted something. Remember some of my friends are facebook gurus so it honestly was near constant that my phone was pinging at me. I liked that I didn't get notified every time someone bought some shoes or were sitting at starbucks behind someone lacking deodorant or wondering why pickles were green etc....
I liked it so much, that upon our return....I turned the notifications off to my phone. I could seek them OUT if  I chose, but it wasn't stalking me at all hours.

Still...I found myself wanting to take a photo of stupid shit at the most idiotic times so I could share something random and stupid on facebook. I found myself doing things specifically based toward facebook. I think I was living part of my life FOR facebook. I mean, if you think about it that way...a lot of us are.
It bothers me.

Then we got some movie, the adverts for digital copy REALLY bothered me. The kid is going on how he can watch movies ANYWHERE! On vacation, at the beach, at the park, when friends are over.... REALLY? Like, what happened to actually enjoying being where you are? Why the hell even bother going to the damn beach if you are going to watch movies on your tiny screen anyway? I mean...just stay your ass at home and save the money/time. It hardly counts as quality time if you have your face stuffed in some screen now does it?

Things like that have been eating at me. I don't like it. Not one bit. Knowing that I am not one of those people that can truly cut down on something and STAY cut back on it...I just chose to do what I did. So far....it doesn't bug me much at all. I get kind of bored, sure. That's the moment I should get up and go DO something else though. I feel disconnected, that's for damn sure. I don't even know what all I've missed out on with my friends due to not being on FB. It's okay though. A couple have contacted me via other avenues a few times and I love them for that. :0)
I wasn't trying to get time away from the world. Nor from my friends etc... JUST facebook itself. Period.

I find that more than anything, upon my return to facebook I will drop all but a couple of my groups. Those seem to be the biggest time suck of all and often harbour a lot of drama, which I simply don't give a damn about. I had enough drama in my life before I could even walk, the hell if I'm going to go out of my way to be in the middle of it. Especially when I can't even show my facial expressions. When there is drama, my expressions can take care of any words that need not be spoken. ;)

Anyway, I honestly just did it for no reason beyond needing the separation. Feeling too anxious when I didn't have it, feeling too geared toward it in everyday moments when I already wish I could drop my camera more and be involved in moments rather than having to record them.
I felt I did not have reasonable control over something, therefore...I removed it. THAT'S some control now. ;)
It is what I would do with any aspect of my life that I felt I could not get down to reasonable, so that's what I did.

It's a little too quiet here. I'm a little bored socially. However, it's okay. I've found myself with a slightly cleaner house (though still not spotless b/c that's just never gonna happen till my free maid shows up). I've felt a little freer. I've been trying to cook more often for my family, which is big. haha! I've been doing up some crafts with the kids. I've been trying to sit down and watch a movie.
I've tried to do some reading, but that just tends to come in waves and as much as I try apparently it's just not reading time just yet.

I've definitely made loads of progress on photo stuff. Imagine the hoarders episode from HELL in computer files. Yeah....... that's likely the biggest thing that has taken place since facebook and I have started seeing other people. I've got a LONG LONG LONG way to go as well.
Next week...I aim to get out of the house a bit more. I've been chained to the house since I started my break feeling like I had too much to do here. I do have a great deal to do still but I'm getting way too pale for England even. I need to get out and do some more exploring and I need to reconnect with some old friends.

Time is running out and I need to do with it what I can. Facebook will be there when it's too dark and cold outside or when I'm bored to tears somewhere else. ;0)

Until then....... don't forget about me! ;)

Sew School

I know several of my friends have expressed interest in dusting off the sewing machine. So I thought I'd share this. Pretty good deal it looks like. :)
There are also some good tuts on there. :)

Sew School

Here we go again

JUST great.... now the monkeys are joining the profession. 

What next????

Sunshine on my shoulder wherever i go.... :oP

Sunshine on my shoulder wherever i go.... :oP, originally uploaded by off the*deep*end.

Sunshine on my shoulder wherever i go.... :oP

Hello there Sun

Hello there Sun, originally uploaded by off the*deep*end.

Hello there Sun

Hi. My Name is Dull

Pretty sure I should just have it legally changed. *YAWN* at my own self.
I just skimmed through here. Though I did stop blogging for awhile, though for a reason, still..... can I be a little more *borrrrrrriiiiingggg????*.
I should probably get some stuff caught up on here before I go judging myself. Although...I'm feeling like I should go bungee jump off Big Ben or something to push it a little more.

I have been off of facebook for 9 days now and my randomness is really starting to have a panic attack. Can you tell? hahaha. I was technically allowed to log in on Sunday but I did not. Mostly b/c I was too lazy to get off my ass and find the password I'd hidden. I wasn't having withdrawal at all either though...so ya know. LOL.
I did log in for a few minutes last night, so that I could fix the errors with my blog feeds. ONLY to find out that they apparently found out what *I* was doing and now they will no longer allow blog feeds to post through facebook automatically starting on the 22nd. Bastards.
Seriously. See what seems to happen EVERY time I try to make a big change? Oh well....if anyone wants to keep up with me and my wicked awesome exciting life....you better follow me all by yourself then.
At any rate. I didn't go into groups, I didn't do messages or anything else. I fixed my issue and logged back out. Only to find Chrome saved my freakin pw. So yet another catch 22 here. For the last couple of weeks my blogs WILL feed through during my hiatus....if I change my PW so I don't know what it is, my browser automatically puts it in b/c on average I'm too lazy to keep up with PW's. If I change it again and hide it....yep, blogs won't feed through. I may have gotten it off of there, but most likely it's still there.
So now it's left up to my stellar will power. Which is pretty stellar sometimes.

I'm just finding myself getting a little socially bored. Whilst trying to force myself to have x number of things DONE prior to making any plans with friends etc.... I'm probably shooting myself in the foot now b/c I'm getting bored. Therefore, finding other avenues to waste valuable time.
So, of course I will be staying off FB as planned. It's really not that hard either, kind of like quitting smoking, reese's cups and dr. pepper. It's a lot worse in your mind than in reality. LOL
I just need to once again, reassess further.

Until then, I should probably take my kids to school.
Expect some photos later. ;)

Autumn Colours. Getcha Some!

(Yes I did spell that right actually. ;)  )

For anyone that is awed by the amazing colours around this fall, I came across this AWESOME site.
It names the best places for fall foliage and actually updates what stage the leaves are in! How freakin cool is THAT???

Autumn Updates

So if you're itching to get out and get your Autumn on....here's a killer resource. :)
It always seems to me that the leaves begin to turn and then in some cartoon move, the trees shake and they're bare the next morning. hahaha.
I was pretty excited to come across this. I think it's a stellar time to do a little Sunday driving! :) I'm a dork like that though.

Enjoy!

perfectionist

"If you don’t have time to do it right, 
when will you have time to do it over?" 
- John Wooden 

8 years ago today....

I married my best friend. I stepped onto an aisle and into a new life. 
A life like I never imagined I'd have.
I can't believe it's already been 8 years. I cannot believe where our lives have gone and what all we've done together in so little time. How much more we have to see and do together.

:0)


The weather today is exactly like it was on our wedding day too. :o) 

"Alone we can do so little;

together we can do so much." 

- Helen Keller

Food. The Bane of my Existence.

Seriously. It is.
Not for the reasons you  may think though.
This is a whiny blog. **I am frustrated. This is a vent. Carry on....** LOL
Perhaps it will come off that way, but more so, it's being written out of SHEER frustration. I am nearly in tears at the moment, for some reason. It gets to me EVERY great once in awhile but it seems it is coming more often lately. I'm sure it is due to my persistent vow to get healthy. However, very few people in this world can TRULY understand how incredibly DIFFICULT it is for someone like me to be able to maintain a healthy diet.
I swear if one person rolls their eyes and snarks anything about junk food I'll slap them here and now. I do NOT have a junk food problem actually. Thank you. I don't eat fast food at all. Less a pizza once in awhile, though I much prefer the restaurant or home made kind instead. I do fight with chocolate sometimes, but I can honestly drop it just as easily as I can pick it back up. I think the main reason I even have to fight with myself about it sometimes is just due to the complete and utter BOREDOM of my taste buds.

I have what you call "Oral Allergy Syndrome" which easily translates into, I can't eat any freaking thing that is very good for me, much less easy. It translates into IT FREAKING SUCKS ASS to be healthy. It means that more than anything, to calorie count...I basically have to "starve" and not eat much at all.
I have had this my entire life. I appreciate it when people attempt at helping by offering up suggestions, but in all honesty...over the past 33 years, out of hunger...I've probably already thought of it and tried it. So thanks very much but your 5 minutes of thinking on it, is not likely to help, but most likely will irritate me when I'm venting, or anywhere NEAR as frustrated as I currently am.

I'm attempting allergy shots, but the allergy clinic on base is just about useless. So with my current level of frustration I'm beyond irritated with them as well. The chances of this helping at all is about 5% out of none. So I doubt my record of always being the 1 in 5 billion person in the world of statistics will ever actually fall in my favor. I think that only works against me. So I'm not really all that optimistic about it, even IF we ever get this shit underway. Which I'm now not holding my breath for either.

So to top it off, with ALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL the stuff I already cannot eat. We'll add in my reflux/ulcer issues. Yeah. Those don't help either. I know a lot of people come up with some stupid ass excuses, but quite frankly...it is yet another reason I want to slap people when they look at me all stupid when they offer up a helpful suggestion and I give a reason why it will not work.
Case in point....I have a glass of milk every morning. I do not drink water first thing in the morning. Never ever have water on an empty stomach. WHY?? Well...it actually feels like I've had a big glass of battery acid about 45 seconds after I chug a big sip. That is why. WHAT? That's insane. So says you. Please, step into my body for 30 minutes, then you will see. Trust me. Even milk, if not very quickly followed by food, will cause nausea. Juice? Oh please don't even go there. PLEASE. That is battery acid with a side of gasoline and rubbing alcohol at least.
That's just trying to get me through breakfast. I've only been up for half an hour. Now let's make it through the rest of the day..... every. single. day.

Basically, I could probably stick to a diet of water and bread and still go over my calories, have some sort of stupid reaction to it and then die of taste bud boredom anyway. I get SO angry when I see so many people "trying to get fit", so they say, and they just pass by all the stuff I'd love to get to eat. Hardly any calories, LOADS of vitamins and minerals and whatever other bits of natural goodness I don't even know about, and they don't have anything to eat. Though, I don't know, it just comes from my judgement as I look at them and read the info on these foods and how much I could eat every day if only I could have an apple. Though, I am not them...so far be it from me to say for sure. I am still envious and irritated.

You know I always want to throw out a big old "eff you' some days. Today would be a prime time for that.
I can cut out EVERYTHING nearly, still have to eat next to nothing and cap out on my daily caloric intake and then half the population could go off and eat a freaking apple and just don't? OMG do you have any idea how GOOD those are? I've tasted one a few times, paid for it dearly but wow how YUMMY are they? Healthy! OMG!

I started worrying a great deal about what all I don't get health-wise by not being able to eat these things over the past few years. Of course I can take vitamins to try to make up for it, but..... yes, you guessed it. My stomach bites back. Seems where I don't have an allergy to it, then my stomach hates it and then just beyond that.... I just damn well don't like the other stuff. I try to force it down but it will come back.

So...I started drinking a v8 daily. It was nearly impossible at first to have one daily. I'd have too strong of a reaction to it, but I've worked up to it. Some days I react to it anyway, so I  know I've not actually accomplished much, I think there are just other factors at work that either do or do not contribute. Either way... it kills my stomach and some days causes my face, lips, eyes to swell and some hives. Today.... I've got all of the above. Puffy swollen face, huge lips (damn if some ppl don't pay big money for that), red splotches on my face and a few hives down my neck. All for the sake of trying to gain just a bit of healthy stuff.
I have just been getting more frustrated than EVER really, the last few days. I am so SICK of it all. It is so completely and totally unfair. Yes I said it. I will slap myself later. God forbid I be unable to eat the food I am actually lucky enough to have. What a load of crap eh? I am blessed enough to HAVE the food, but cannot eat it. Ironic now isn't it? I WANT the simple, cheap and natural vs. the sugared, chemically laced, hormone injected, fat harboring God only knows what other crap is in it stuff.
I want an apple. I would relish in getting to eat a banana. Sliced up cucumber.

If you wonder...imagine it like this:
I cannot eat raw nuts, raw vegetables, raw fruits, eggs, fish, or olives. I cannot stomach the after taste of yogurt, no matter how hard I've tried to deal with it. When I say raw, I mean if it is to be tolerated by me, it has to be thoroughly cooked, and that is only for some things. I often still react to foods even if they are cooked. I cannot go to person's home and just eat away at everything. I often either have to pass completely, pick through things, have a piece of bread or ask incessantly "what's in this? what's in that?' which I just don't really do anymore b/c I find it rude and it usually leads to the most annoying of conversations with random tips I've likely never thought of.
Oh but anyway...the raw thing. I can eat things if they are cooked? Yes.....and then sometimes no. As mentioned thoroughly cooked, a lot of foods can be tolerated. Though a large portion of those things, I gag on the texture. I've even asked to be hypnotized to see if that would work, to get me passed my issue with textures. No one will do it apparently, but yes I'm actually THAT desperate. Which says a LOT coming from a control freak such as myself.
So.....basically food is, indeed, the bane of my freaking existence.
I can't imagine others having to think SO much about their freaking FOOD. How easy it must be to go through life and just eat whatever. Willy Nilly....with out a care in the world.

So. In closing of my frustrated, whiny, random post today.... food sucks. It sucks, to me, to even complain about it b/c as I said I'm lucky to have that problem rather than nothing to eat. It's just another one of life's ironies I guess. I've been damn hungry before, and now I can put food on the table I just can't eat half of it.
Why can't I be allergic to cookies and chocolate and stuff like that?

Now...I leave you with this:
If you can't eat fruits, nuts, vegetables, eggs, fish and olivey products. No fast fried foods. No cakes and cookies, chips or candy. No spicy foods. Water in moderation. No juices. Milk in the proper conditions.
What does that leave you with?

Roll your eyes. Then try it for a week or two....

I *KNOW* I'm weird....

...but I LOVE this kind of forecast! LOL.

For some reason, weather like this morning (which was low 50's and heavy mist) I can't stand to stay indoors! It is my FAVORITE weather to go out and work out in.
Hey it's like a free a/c with mister chasing me around. So I don't have to continue my search for minions to spritz and fan me while I work out, as I have searched for these past few years.


Trying to soak up all I can...b/c we KNOW there's no forecast like THIS in Texas! ;)

Strolling through Cambridge

I'd call it a series if I felt like pressuring myself into HAVING to do it. However, that generally makes me NOT do something. Therefore, something you may or may not see a bit more often from me..... "From the Hip" shots. Quite literally, shots taken from the hip. Generally, shot while walking, but overall just a snap or two or twenty of the way the world looks as I walk through it.
Random places, random things that catch my eye. Sometimes, I might focus it in, but not always...
I've got a lot of them really. Random things I've photographed while living here in England, shots I took 'for' someone else. With someone else in mind, something someone else, somewhere else may have taken interest in, or found funny....or purely because I just felt compelled to shoot it that day.
I do try to take a day here and there to have nothing in particular to do but take my camera along and shoot at will.
Today...I'm sharing Cambridge on a rainy fall morning. :o) Shot last week in the city centre.

Enjoy...


I wonder stupid things when I walk around. Like...I wonder how many times someone was walking down this very path over the past few centuries and thought up something amazing? Maybe a historically famous play was thought up right on this path? Perhaps a vaccine that is normal and everyday to us now? Who knows....but I'm goofy enough to wonder stuff like that when I'm walking around. ;) I guess one of the smartest cities in the world doesn't really seep into the pores of everyone. ;) Hey I try though. ;)

 It is always amazing to me, the amazing artwork on buildings here, that no one likely really ever notices due to the regularity of it. Like this...I wish there was a story on a plaque next to it so I could know what it was about. :)

 So I can't go one post w/out at least ONE black and white....

 Tiny little wall graffiti :)

 I just wonder if Gap would sell me those. What I wouldn't give..... hehehehehehe

 I just wouldn't be able to get past the name

 I might need to go buy that. *LOVE* it. Dig the refection as well :)

 In all that dreary. In all that white...there is still a rainbow ;)

Nasty? I think not!

Some may think it's insane to have photos of mud-crusted fingers and bugs. Me, I think it's pretty much the norm around here. The boys were playing in the dirt, as they should, and were ecstatic to find a "calla-petter". That is, they were ecstatic once I confirmed it was not, in fact, poisonous.
No, I can't bring myself to correct one of the last few mispronunciations of theirs. Go figure, I spoke to my babies like babies and not 30 year olds and they still drop all their kid-speak way too soon if you ask me.
What a terrible Mommy I am for letting them go around saying things like "callapetter" and "fisk-it" and "bonina".
*sigh*
Callapetter is about all I have left, the last remnant beyond some loose teeth and awkward growth spurts.

(Says the Mom who threw out bottles at 10 months old and had a party about it! hehe)

I was definitely meant to have little boys. There is never any question about that. :) I can't wait to have our OWN dirt to dig up to their hearts content. Gardens to plant, trees to grow, tree-houses to build. Our very own dirt track for hot wheels that can stay there for years.
*sigh*
We are all ready for that.

That said...it is official. Mike's retirement has been approved and we are done. Done with the military. Done with living overseas (most likely, at least for now anyway). Done. We will be heading back to the states early in the spring. To Texas? Can't really say for sure. No matter where it is, we'll be a lot closer so we can't complain about that now can we? So long as we can get there in a car or take advantage of some of those cheap state to state flights....I think we have nothing to complain about. ;)
Am I happy? Yes and no. I won't even sugar coat it.  ;)
I am happy to be nearer our family. I am happy to get some completely self-indulgent conveniences back. I'm happy about the opportunity to take my boys to do some things we always talked about. I'm happy at the idea of getting to buy our own home, to make it OURS. I am definitely happy to get OUT of this limbo HELL we are currently in. Hi, I am Miss All or Nothing, remember?
I am, however, VERY sad to leave England. I am the freak that LOVES the weather here. I love the area, the people, the history, the beauty. I'm still in awe of this weird early dark stuff even, still fascinated by it when I think I'm supposed to HATE it already? I am sad that we were just not in the position to get to visit all the grand places we'd imagined upon arriving here. I am sad that the likelihood of those trips are again further away than closer. I am sad to leave the great friends we've made here. Mostly, it is all the things I did not get to see yet, there are just too many things to see and do here. It is somewhat overwhelming really, sometimes we end up doing stuff we've done previously just because we could not decide what new to do.
I might mention one more time...I'm SAD to leave this climate.
I found it humorous that when we walked out of the airport in Abilene, I had do some short breaths just to get used to the dust in the air. I could smell it everywhere, which was unexpected. It felt so heavy and dirty! Mike kept giving me goofy looks the whole time we were there and I mentioned it repeatedly. I was just shocked by it, I guess.
So when we landed back here at Heathrow, walked out of the airport in the middle of London. Where there are buses, taxis, airplanes and cars out the wazoo.... we all collectively, w/out thinking, sucked in a HUGE breath and sighed really big.
Even in the midst of smog and city filth...we still involuntarily took a huge breath as though we had not had one in a month. Funny indeed. :)

*tap*tap*tap...is this thing on??