Christmas Preparations

It's a short 15 days until Christmas. The tree is decorated. Cards have been mailed. Most of my shopping is done. Some gifts are wrapped and waiting. And I've started making candy. Of course there are many, many more things on my "Christmas To Do List." There are seven more days of school in 2008, and then I'll rush to finish everything up. I love this time of year so much, I just wish it didn't rush by so darn quick.

It's a small world....

That thought always takes me by surprise, but I'm not sure why. I often see people who are "out of context". Today we buried my Aunt Velma. She passed suddenly earlier this week. The service was very nice, and it was good to see my cousins. But during the funeral I kept thinking I knew the funeral director. I just knew his face, but I couldn't place where. It wasn't' until the minister mentioned the director's first name that I realized I'd gone to high school with the man. After the service I took a few moments to ask him if my suspicions were correct, and we spent a little time catching up. Who knew that 20 years after he graduated this man would be helping my cousins bury their mother in a small, rural town 35 miles from where we both grew up. It truly is a small, small world.

Storybook Land

There's a staple of the holiday season in Albany. It's called Storybook Land, and for the last 30 years the creators have built dioramas from favorite children's' stories. At the same time they collect money and foodstuffs for charity. It's been probably 28 years since I last visited, but tonight my parents and I took Lys. It was a lot of fun, there were lots of people, and Santa was waiting at the end of the tour.

For Erin....

Erin and I have been friends for a long time. Since high school. But not the same school. We grew up on opposite sides of the state, and met at Oregon Business Week. The camp experience was not really memorable, but the friendship is. We now live less than ten miles apart. So, getting together for dinner(tonight we had Japanese), shopping or a movie is much easier.

I am Thankful....

It's the season to reflect upon what is good and right in life. So, I'm going to share my Thankful List.

I am Thankful for....

• Faith
• Family
• Friends
• Kitter
• Health
• Work
• Creativity
• Humor
• Honesty
• Balance
• Strength

Here is wishing you a very....

Follow up...and other things.

I can't believe we're well into November already, and it's been so eventful!

November 1 - OSU Homecoming parade. Short and sweet. See the previous blog entry for pictures. But I found out after a chat with my Dad that OSU used to have really major Homecoming parades. Until one year a student fell off a flat-bed truck on the parade route and was run over the truck.

November 2 - Dad, Eric and the rest of the Great Elk Hunters came home from hunting, ending the elk hunting widowhood of the wives. Unfortunately, it was a lousy year for hunting. Good thing all the elk meat from 2007 wasn't eaten yet. I do love my elk steak!

November 4 - The Historic Election. Hopes are high, and it's going to take a miracle for the man to achieve all those hopes. My advice to all...Keep Praying.

November 7 - Would've been my Grams' 92nd Birthday. It's been almost eight years since she passed and I still miss her very much.

I also had a great dinner with Erin. I love having some of my friends close by!

November 8 - I woke up to rain. It lulled me back to sleep in my soft flannel cocoon. When I finally did surface, it was a good day to hunker down and do nothing. I love those days!

Tomorrow we're having a family dinner. It's one of those little things I'm so thankful for. The three years I was away really brought home how much my family and spending time with them mean to me.

Gotta Love a Parade

There's just about a parade. Whether they are big or small, like this one, they just make me smile. These are some pictures from the OSU Homecoming Parade held on November 1. I don't remember there ever being a homecoming parade for OSU before, but I could be wrong about that. Either way, I hope this tradition continues.