It's My Birthday, Bitches!!

An office tradition is to bring in a treat on one's birthday. So, last week I started searching for unique cupcakes to make in honor of my last year in the 30's.

Both of my bosses are big fans of the Cuba Libre..and I thought...hmm...rum, coca cola, and lime..in a cupcake...okay..Go for it! And I did!!

The first batch completely collapsed in on me and were not salvageable. :(

The looked like this:




They were edible though... and I had a few quick bites before I peeled them off the pan and threw them away!!

So, I decided to move onto a Chocolate Chip Sour Cream Coffee Cake. Perfect!! It turned out like this and was a HUGE hit today! 2 cups of Sugar in this and everyone is crawling on the ceiling today. :)



After a few minutes thought and not wanting those Cuba Libre Cupcakes get the best of me...I attempted them again. I WILL NOT FAIL AT CUPCAKES!!

And yes...they are monogrammed as It's My Birthday!! You'll notice a few of them have a K and a P on them. They are in honor of my coworker, Koti, who is now in India and having his engagement party today with 500 of his closest friends.



This is what my kitchen looked like when all was said and done....notice my laptop on the counter..didn't want to be away from online friends and especially Facebook for too long of a time!! :)



While I was waiting for stuff to bake, I dug out my birthday present to myself. A pair of Guess flip flops that I scored for $5 at the outlet mall!! I cannot wait to have a warm occasion to wear them!! (and yes, I know I'm overdue for a pedicure...but I cannot think about such things when it's -20f!).

Thanksgiving in Playa Del Carmen

Needing a break from my life here in Wisconsin, and just missing my future home like crazy, I decided to plan a short (6 day) vacation back to Playa. I planned my vacation around the Thanksgiving holiday, as it is a paid dayoff from work.

A week before Thanksgiving, I received a suprise invitation from an American living in Playa. Sara, who along with her husband Steve, graciously included me in the day's events. Sara is best friends with my Playa friend, Heather, who is from Chicago. The invite caught me a bit off guard as I am not a true local yet, and it made me a bit teary.

I arrived in Playa around 2pm on Thanksgiving at the rented condo of my friend Maggie and her niece, Steph. I quickly unpacked, and headed down to the internet cafe to try and let Heather know I was there and would be getting credits for Mexican cell phone soon. I then popped next door to the 'Off the Vine' and bought 2 bottle of blanco and 2 bottles of tinto as well as a bottle of Pomegranite Tequila as a hostess gift from the always helpful and gorgeous, Alex.

Feeling frantic about my lack of time, I hurried back to the condo and dropped off the wine and made my way to the nearest OXXO, a convience store in Playa (think 7-11). They did not have the Amigo cards I needed to replenish my phone credits, but the do now offer an online way of getting credits. You simply give them your phone number they enter it into the computer with the number of credits you want and presto, you can talk again!! EXCELLENT! No more ruining my nails in an attempt to scratch off the gooey grey stuff on those cards!!

Finally, just as I am about to call Heather she calls me. I think she senses my panic and my ever dwindling time to get to the party and she calmly tells me to relax, I am on Mexico time now. I am not showered yet and I decide to have Susie come pick me up as I muled down two jugs of protein powder and some Charmin for her, plus I have a whole truckload of Rag magazines for Heather.

Back to the condo and I quickly shower and have enough time to share a glass of wine with my roomies, Maggie and Steph, before Susie comes to retrieve me.

Me and Maggie



Arriving at the party, and I'm in awe of Sara's cute house and the Thanksgiving table. She actually managed to put a table together for all of us in her living room!!



I am quickly introduced to several people. All are expats from their home countries now living in Playa. I mingle about and help out where I can. The house smells awesome!!

Here is the hostess Sara and the awesome Heather!!



This is sweet sweet Susie and her yummy Pumpkin bars. Susie is originally from Ohio and now lives in Mexico in a gorgeous palapa. I hope to get to visit there someday soon!! I've only seen pictures.



This is Heather's dentist. I briefly told him that I need a crown for one of my molars and he graciously pulls out on of his dentist tools to have a look.



Kidding of course!! Jorge does the honors of cutting the turkey.



Jorge continues the turkey slaughter and Michael (Heather's Guy), steps in to help. Susie takes photos.



And then I cut the pork!!



Michael and I take a moment out of our duties to pose...



And then we start fighting over who gets the wishbone.



We all sit down to dinner and Sara does the toast!! I just remember being thankful for being invited and getting to share in this holiday tradition in such a lovely home with lovely people.



Someone gives Heather a baby and I don't get to see or talk to her the rest of the evening. *smiles*



And Susie finds the cat!!



After dinner, we retreat to the back patio for some more wine and chit chat. Then, it's back indoors to help with the cleanup. I do remember sharing a shot of La Pinta with Heather and Sara. By this time, Susie is ready to head home, and she offers me a ride. Since it was my travel day and I was exhausted, I accept, even though part of me wants to stay. Susie drops me off near the condo and I walk the rest of the way home reflecting on the nights events and just happy to be in Playa.

I just want to say THANK YOU to Sara and Steve (and Heather too) for welcoming me into their home. You cannot know how wonderful your invitation made me feel. I'm not a local yet, but hope to be someday and I hope to return the favor when that does happen. Thanks so much! Gracias!

November Update

Hola Mis Amigos and Amigas!!


I know it's been just over a month since my last post/update. Sorries!! From the looks of my Blog Tracker, many of you are still stopping by here on an almost daily basis to see if I posted anything new or interesting. Thank you for sticking with me!!

Well, lots of stuff going on right now! My life seems to be full of drama...other people's drama, which is okay by me. I'm simply floating through life right now and taking each day as it comes.

My good news is that I'm leaving for Mexico on Thanksgiving. I'll be in Playa visiting friends, doing some Scuba diving, eating, drinking, and of course beaching it for 6 nights/7days. I had orginally thought about canceling the trip, but my friend Maggie invited me to stay with her in her condo this time around. A generous offer that I couldn't pass up. I'm looking forward to hanging out with Maggie and her niece!! Some wonderful friends have also invited me to celebrate Thanksgiving with them. A gesture that truly touched my heart!

Also, I've hired a new realtor. For those of you following my pitful attempts at selling my townhouse and moving to Mexico, you'll know that I put it up for sale on June 3rd as "For Sale with Owner". I had to do the showings and some of the marketing...and the listing agent handled the negotiations and closing (if there had been an offer). Now, almost 6 months later, my house still sits on the market (and yes, I know that the housing market sucks right now...but I am optimistic). I've decided to turn over the sale of my house to Carol from First Weber. I liked her spunky attitude and no nonsense approach. It'll be great and a stress relief to have someone else working for me. I know that this will cost me a bit more, but it's really not about the money anymore. It's about a change of life...lifestyle. So, I'm optimistic again. When I return home, there will be a shiny new For Sale sign on my front lawn.

For those of you that don't live in Wisconsin, we received our first significant snow fall overnight. About 3 inches of the wet stuff came down and blanketed the grass, streets, and trees. I drove into work early this morning and got 4 wheel it through unplowed streets. It was actually very pretty, but I know I'll soon be over this.

Please keep your fingers crossed for me that the I'll sell this house soon!! I'm looking forward to starting my new life in Playa!

Besos to you all!!

One Year Ago Today....

I arrived in Playa one year ago today for 5 weeks. I was so completely nervous and a bit scared about traveling alone for this long not knowing anyone, really.

I never would have imagined what a truly wonderful experience this turned out to be. Probably one of the best things I ever did in my life! And the people you see here on this video are those that I keep close to heart!

(and yes, I did lose a bit of weight over the course of my stay and beyond)

Whack a Mole No Longer

Thanks everyone for your sympathies and encouraging words. Even though I didn’t respond to each one, you all have touched me deeply. I thank you. I’ve heard through word of mouth that there are many out there reading my blog who were quite concerned about me, and I’m sorry if my posts alarmed anyone. Yes, I am usually chipper and upbeat and could roll with the punches, but not this time. All of these things hit me in quick succession and with great strength and I felt just like a Whack a Mole at the amusement park. Except, I wasn’t amused. But, I’m okay now. I am! :)

This past weekend was a glorious one in Wisconsin. The perfect autumn day. The turning leaves are in full color now…skies were bright blue…and the weather was warm. I managed to get a 2 hour hike in on Sunday. I hiked until my head was clear, the tears dried up, and my heart started feeling light again. I could have hiked longer, but the park was really filling up with people out enjoying the day. When I’m in the park it’s usually quite empty and I much prefer the feeling of solitude.

Wednesday Night I have my first Realtor interview. She wants to do a Market analysis and tell me about the company. I’m getting excited again about the prospect of selling my home. But I’ll be realistic this time. Again, I know the market is bad now, but homes are still selling here and mine will be one of them someday.

The funeral for Don is set for Friday. It will be in Illinois as most of our family is from the Chicago area. Originally, I thought it was going to be in New Hampshire. Thursday night, when I found out about my Uncle’s death, I emailed my boss and told him that I would cancel my Mexico vacation in order to have the time off to attend my Uncle’s funeral. Friday he called me into the office and told me by no means was I to cancel anything and that I was covered if I wanted to fly out east. I told him that we probably wouldn’t go because airfare was steep for the two of us (Mom and I). A few minutes later, he called me back into his office and told me that he was gifting me frequent flyer miles for both my mom and I to use. I choked up on the spot. These people are truly wonderful people to work for…and I’ve said it before, I cannot imagine working for anyone else. They treat us all like family and truly believe that family and family issues come first. I’m so lucky. We found out at the end of the day that the funeral would be in Illinois, so I profusely thanked him for his generous offer and told him that Mom and I were deeply appreciative and touched.

My mom called this morning and asked if I’d do a reading at the service. Of course, I would be honored. Don always said I was his favorite niece. He was my bud! I’m going to miss him so.

What's a Blog Mommy?

While typing up my next blog entry in MSWORD, I noticed the little red swiggly line under the word 'Blog'. Hmmm....I guess Gates and Co are not very progressive with today's lingo. How could they not update their dictionary with the word 'Blog'??

Here are their suggestions for me to use instead of 'Blog'. As far as I know you cannot read any one of these.....

bog

boc

blot

blob

blow

Safe Journeys and Goodbye for Now.....

Last night I put together a post thanking everyone for their kind words since my last post. I was really doing okay and I don't think I conveyed that enough in my last post. My thought was to post it this afternoon with a cute little picture that I found.

It's been two weeks of things spiraling downward...one after the other. If I could reach out my hand and just catch one of them. I feel so helpless...


I just got a call from my mom. My Uncle Don passed away sometime in the last few days. He was all alone.


Don and were buds. We talked about alot of things. Books, movies, current events. He had a brilliant mind and had hoped to one day finish his degree and become a college professor. But his health had been deteriorating for some time. I feel terrible because he called me two weeks ago and I was too busy gathering up garbage for pickup the next day to talk to him. I promised I'd call on the weekend. I never did.



I'm so sorry Don that I didn't take the time to talk to you or call you back.


Just know that I love you....and I hope you've found peace.

The Sun Will Come Out...

My life has been a rollercoaster lately. Or at least my emotions have been riding the gamut of highs and lows. There has been lots of doom and gloom in my life lately and I found myself standing on the precipice of darkness. I don’t go there often in my life, but when I do it’s hard for me to rise above and pull myself out.

Last week there was a cascading effect that wouldn’t stop and I wanted to crawl away and hide for a bit. But, I found myself realizing that the things affecting me so negatively were things I had no control over. I cannot control people and I cannot control situations. I can only control myself and the way I respond to those things both good and bad around me. After wallowing all day on the couch yesterday with waterworks in full force, I decided enough was enough. It’s time to move on.

Today, I awoke with a determination to put a smile on my face no matter what. I focused on the little things that make my happy. My kitty cat, Reese, snuggling me when the alarm goes off. He seems to know that the alarm means that I’m gone most of the day so he tries to lay on my head so I won’t move out of bed. He never does it on the weekends. I thought I’d have to stop at the grocery store on my way into work to pick up breakfast, but when I was packing up my laptop, I was pleasantly surprised to find a Banana Nut Bread Cliff bar. (I’ve become so addicted to these). Oh..and I lost 2 pounds over the weekend from eating right, drinking water, and working out.

I also sent out emails to realtors in my area to let them know about my condo and that I was interested in meeting with them once my current contract is up on Dec 3rd. I already got 5 responses from agents eager to meet with me and some advice as well. It makes me feel great to know that I might have someone working for me to sell my condo in the near future. I feel that if I can meet with them now, I can look over the information and make an informed decision instead of having to rush into a new one. I’ll be all ready to roll from my current company to the next. In the meantime, the now have links to my place if they should have a potential buyer for me.

Our economy is the crapper right now. I know this. But, being optimistic has got to have it rewards, right

Don't Vote!!

Stars like Dustin Hoffman, Halle Berry, Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, Jamie Foxx, Eva Longoria, Jennifer Aniston, Ellen DeGeneres, Kevin Bacon, Kyra Sedgwick and more, took the time to make this "5 Friends" video telling, make that urging, everyone NOT to vote.

That's right. NOT vote. So you should watch it.

For one thing, it's funny.

And you get to see Sarah Silverman take off her bra.

Then send this blog item to five friends.

C'mon, you got five friends, right? OK, four, send it to four.

I Hear You....

...but I don't fully understand. I don't think I'll ever understand.


And because Love battles by Pablo Neruda


And because love battles
not only in its burning agricultures
but also in the mouth of men and women,
I will finish off by taking the path away
to those who between my chest and your fragrance
want to interpose their obscure plant.

About me, nothing worse
they will tell you, my love,
than what I told you.

I lived in the prairies
before I got to know you
and I did not wait love but I was
laying in wait for and I jumped on the rose.

What more can they tell you?
I am neither good nor bad but a man,
and they will then associate the danger
of my life, which you know
and which with your passion you shared.

And good, this danger
is danger of love, of complete love
for all life,
for all lives,
and if this love brings us
the death and the prisons,
I am sure that your big eyes,
as when I kiss them,
will then close with pride,
into double pride, love,
with your pride and my pride.

But to my ears they will come before
to wear down the tour
of the sweet and hard love which binds us,
and they will say: “The one
you love,
is not a woman for you,
Why do you love her? I think
you could find one more beautiful,
more serious, more deep,
more other, you understand me, look how she’s light,
and what a head she has,
and look at how she dresses,
and etcetera and etcetera”.

And I in these lines say:
Like this I want you, love,
love, Like this I love you,
as you dress
and how your hair lifts up
and how your mouth smiles,
light as the water
of the spring upon the pure stones,
Like this I love you, beloved.

To bread I do not ask to teach me
but only not to lack during every day of life.
I don’t know anything about light, from where
it comes nor where it goes,
I only want the light to light up,
I do not ask to the night
explanations,
I wait for it and it envelops me,
And so you, bread and light
And shadow are.

You came to my life
with what you were bringing,
made of light and bread and shadow I expected you,
and Like this I need you,
Like this I love you,
and to those who want to hear tomorrow
that which I will not tell them, let them read it here,
and let them back off today because it is early
for these arguments.

Tomorrow we will only give them
a leaf of the tree of our love, a leaf
which will fall on the earth
like if it had been made by our lips
like a kiss which falls
from our invincible heights
to show the fire and the tenderness
of a true love.

Jinx the Jinx

So, I've been doing everything I can in order to prepare for my move to Mexico. I've asked my employers (they said yes or this wouldn't have been possible), I put the townhouse up for sale, I got rid of ALOT of clothes and shoes not to mention ALL of my winter clothes, re-homed one of my cats, re-discovered this blog to keep my friend and family informed, made an appointment with the dentist (and since cancelled...but I'll get there), and got all my necessary shots.

Evidently, the Universe thought I was over prepared. And is now playing games with me. Because there haven't been any good offers on the house, yet. Hey, I even buried St. Joe in the yard!!!

So, in an attempt to get my house to sell, I've decided that I'm going to play a little reverse psychology on the Universe. Trying to jinx the jinx by doing things that don't scream "I wanna move".

So today, instead of planning for a move to Mexico. I planned for a vacation in Mexico with a full intent on going there and coming back.

I'm a sly one...aren't I???

Anyone have suggestions on how to fool the Universe?

Open My House to You

It's a beautiful fall Sunday afternoon here in Wisconsin and I've been cleaning all morning and now I'm sitting on the couch waiting for the hordes of people, who are dying to buy my house, show up.

I did manage a little bit of outdoor time today. I went to my favorite greenhouse, Ebert's, which is just up the road from me and bought these beautiful mums!! Aren't they gorgeous? I had a $20 gift certificate, plus they had a discount if I bought 3 and then gave me a free one on the way out. All in all, it cost my $10 for these beauties. I just hope I don't killthem in the next week.





So...I did promise to post before and after pics of my newly painted bedroom.

Before is was a 'Sexy Boudoir.





And now..it's the boringest of beige. We repositioned the bed a bit and it makes the room look a lot larger. The comforter is on loaner from my Mom, so please don't think that is my taste. Too country for me.







Okay...I'm bored. Somebody entertain me for the next 2 1/2 hours!!

A weekend Away from Home

Yes, I know I promised pictures of my newly painted room, but I’m just not feeling the love for it at the moment. None of my room accessories match the Boring Beige walls.

But, I did have a rather nice weekend away from home as I took an overnight trip to Chicago to see friends and family.

My Saturday afternoon started off with what was supposed to be a quick trip to Mayfair Mall. I’ve been having problems with my DVR and the cable company has a store at the mall where one can quickly exchange hardware. I’ve been putting this off for a few months as I am really not a mall shopper. Okay…I HATE going to the mall. *gasp* I know. I don’t know when my hatred for the mall started or why, but I’m just not a mall shopper. I shop only when I need to and usually it’s at Kohl’s or Marshall’s which are right up the street from where I work. I also do a lot of online shopping as well.

Anyway, I arrive at the mall around 2pm and quickly find that they’ve added new restaurants and stand alone stores in the parking lot, which greatly reduces the amount of parking spaces available. After about a ½ hour of driving endlessly up and down isles and just missing empty spots by thismuch, I’m ready to call it a day. And then finally, the heaven’s open up and shine a bright light down a parking spot I can call my own. Phew. Into the store I go and the whole exchange process takes me 5 minutes. No lie. With new DVR in hand, I made my way back through the mall and suddenly discovered that I DID want to shop. Sephora, J.Jill and others were beckoning. But, I had to keep walking as I had a huge piece of hardware in my hand.

I was soon back on the highway and headed south into Illinois were I got to spend time with my Playa friend, Heather, and her friends and family. Heather was home from Mexico for a few weeks for various events including her birthday. It was a pleasant time visiting with her family and a few of her friends. Michael was there too, her bf. Good food…delish brownies…and the funniest book every written was read aloud by Heather. Wing Chop to the Neck!! LOL!!! After a few hours, we decided to hit a tavern to meet up with Heather’s Aunts. But sadly, I had to cut my evening short due very bad indigestion from all the yummy food, sweets, and beer that I consumed. My tummy just wasn’t having it anymore. Here are a few pics:

Heather and me with her gfriends, Amy and Beth


Indiana Michael and his boozer sidekick Heather.



Heather has a demon child. Didn't you know?




After saying goodbye to Heather with promises of seeing her in Mexico soon, I was on my way south again to my great deal of a hotel that I bid on Priceline. A bid of $45 got me a fantastic room at the Hyatt in Deerfield. It was actually two rooms (a sitting are with desk and an oversized chair and a bedroom area with a king size bed).

6am, Sunday morning, I woke up to rain, rain, and more rain. I had about a 40 minute drive south to Lakeshore Drive in Chicago for the Alzheimer’s Memory Walk. I was walking with my dad, aunt, uncles, and cousins in honor of my Grandfather who passed away nearly 3 years ago and suffered from the disease. I had great difficulty getting to the Lakefront as many streets were blocked off due to flooding. After an 1 ½ of driving, I FINALLY made it to the Lakefront and was so happy to see my family. We walked in the rain…which was sometimes a whipping blinding downpour, but it was fun and it was for a worthy cause. Afterwards, I drove to my cousin’s house in Brookfield for lunch and then made the 2 hour drive home (which took me nearly 3 hours due to the heavy rain and heavy Chicago construction) where I crashed out and had myself a 2 hour nap.

My dad and me before the walk.



Still nothing new on the house. I’m just going to be doing one Open House a month now. My listing agent told me that only 3% of sold houses come from someone attending an Open House. In December, my contract is up with this agent and I’ll think I’ll move onto a bigger company. That is, if my house hasn’t sold yet. Please keep these positive thoughts coming my way!!

High Five Me!!!!

I'm an Advanced Open Water diver!! It's official!!!

I received my card in the mail over the weekend. This may not mean much to you, but for me it's certainly a huge accomplishment considering I wasn't even going to complete my Open Water course almost a year ago.

Yay me!!

Now...where do I go from here?

Painting Party...just me and Nan.

Yesterday, my most beautiful and gracious mother, Nan, came over and helped me turn my purple and red bedroom into a borish beige room. Mom had a catering function the night before and didn't get home until well after 2am. She was tired, but she was a trooper and I'm just VERY lucky to have her as my Mom and friend.

The room actually looks okay. Very neutral and I think much more saleable then the sexy boudoir that I had going (deep jewel tones, overstuffed pillows, gorgeous satin fabrics and sconces on the walls). Some of these Midwest type buyers are a bit uptight.

Naturally, we ran out of paint. I knew I should have listened to my gut feeling when the guy at Walmart told me that one coat would be enough (over Purple and Red??). So, Nan is coming back on Wednesday night to help me finish up the paint and move my furniture back.

I was joking that I feared someone would want to come and see the house between now and Wednesday. Shortly thereafter, I received a phone call from a gal asking if she and her friend could come in and see the place. I looked out the window and asked her if she already in my driveway and she laughed 'yes'. I, of course, panicked and said that the condo wasn't showable because I was in the process of painting but I'd run a fact sheet out to her and I hung up. Nan was yelling about me to just let them in and see the place because I might not get another chance. I took a quick look around and realized that the condo was clean, but just a bit disheveled. I ran out and invited them in with a warning about the condition.

There first words upon entering was that my color scheme was beautiful!! The gal that was interested recently moved back to Wisconsin from Okie with her daughter. I smelled 'divorce' but didn't ask. She was sweet but seemed kind of young. She didn't ask many questions, but I sent her off with a fact sheet, my number, and told her to call if she wanted to see the place 'put together'.

I don't think this is the buyer, but I laugh at the irony of the situation. I can go days...weeks without interest but the one day that the place isn't showable is the day that someone wants in.

Joe...keep doing your job!!

I'll post before and after pictures after the room is done.

Summer Lovin Had Me a Blast....

..and summer lovin happened so fast. And it's gone. My summer loving days are gone!!

It's freezing in Wisconsin today!! Okay, technically, not freezing, but I am wearing long pants, long sleeves, and shoes with socks! Closed toed and closed heeled shoes!! The horror!! I left my flip flops laying on the bedroom floor where my cat can attack them. I'm not sure what his obession is with my flip flops, but he LOVES to hug them, sniff them and crazily back kick them. I've had a great and expensive pair of Reef flip flops destroyed by Reese.

Anyway, I cannot remember the last day I was all bundled up like this. It's depressing as it's only the beginning of September and summer is supposed to last until September 21st. On top of the cold, it's also raining. I know I shouldn't complain given the freaky weather of hurricanes and and the hailstorm in Kenya, but I thought my ass would be in Mexico by now.

I need the universe to work with me a bit here. Either find me a buyer...TODAY...or keep summer lasting just a tad bit longer. I'm not asking for much, am I?

And what? No comments from anyone about how I buried a saint in my backyard???


more animals

The Burial of St Joe

A few days back I wrote my 'Need Prozac Now' blog and I received some very supportive comments from some wonderful people. Thank you all for the support I receive through here, facebook, and myspace when I get impatient and whiney!

One of the comments I received was from Mike, a friend from high school. He suggested I bury a St. Joseph statue in the backyard in order to bring me a buyer. He said that his wife did the same thing and within 4 days, she had a buyer for her house. Because I have never heard of the St. Joseph statue, I sort of laughed and dismissed it.

Realizing I was running out of tangible new ideas, I researched the St. Joseph statue and found several sites devoted to St. Joe. I also went onlilne and asked a question about this to my fellow Playa Addicts and friends and had a very funny conversation about this. After another friend of mine verified that she too buried a statue and had a buyer within a week, I was sold. Sort of. Not really truly believing but saying 'what the hey', I ordered an 8" Joe from the internet.

On Sunday afternoon, I arrived home from a day of boating and found St. Joe at my doorstep.



I invited Joe in, we had a bit of a chat about how he was going to find a buyer for me and then I showed him his burial spot amongst the Black Eyed Susans.



I located a shovel, dug the hole, and put St. Joseph in the ground headfirst.



I said the prayer and covered him up. I must admit that in that moment, while saying the prayer, I believed.

I know I still must push ahead, plan another Open House and keep getting the word out. I'll do my part and I hope Joe does his as well. Stay tuned!!

Need Prozac Now!!

Hola! First, thank you to all that have been checking my blog the past week! Thanks for sticking with me. I have nothing new to report on the house. Nada...Nothing. I've been in a really bad funk the past few days...on the verge...and I cannot shake it no matter how hard I try. And it all has to do with my condo not selling (okay...there are a few personal things here and there but mostly it's the inability to move forward with my life).

I have lots of other stuff to share and pics to post just as soon as I can snap out of it.

But, for now...I'll just sort of leave you with this pic of how I'm feeling. It says it all. But don't Cry for Me Argentina...I'll be back feeling happy, soon...I hope!

Open House

So, this weekend was my small town's annual festival. Every town in Wisconsin has one in the summer. Usually, the Lion's, Elk's, or Moose Club hosts it. It consists of a beer tent, live music, softball tourney, parade, and sometimes carnival. I took advantage of the timing to host an Open House seeing as there'd be more traffic than usual coming through town.

I painstakingly made a bunch of Open House signs. Since I am a person of little patience sometimes, it was frustrating peeling all those pre-made letters off the sheets and trying to stick them straight on a blank sign. Took me forever. But, I did it and went out this morning before the parade and put up the signs. I was feeling pretty optimistic about getting noticed but now with only 1/2 hour left of the Open House and with only one couple coming through, I'm feeling defeated again.

Well, the good news is the couple LOVED the house. It seems that everyone that comes through "LOVES" it...but no one has bought it. They used to live in the area, across the street to be exact, and now live in the city. They are desperate to move back. They decided to take a drive and saw my sign. Nice couple, showed them the house. I showed them the second bedroom first, and she hates green. Uh oh. 'It's only paint', I say. I told her to prepare herself for my bedroom, she sees the deep red and says it's fine. I say 'no wait...the other half is purple'. She screams, 'We're buying this house!! He loves red and I love purple'. If I would have thought a handshake would have sealed the deal, I would have asked for one right then and there. I did tell her that I'd leave all my handmade window treatments, bed skirt and throw pillows, as they coordinate with the wall colors.

They asked to see the attic. I had to run downstairs for my step stool. As I came back up, they were excitedly talking about putting their house up for sale. I told them I was going to make no secret that I was a motivated seller and they listened all about my intended move to Mexico.

As I walked them out, they told me they needed to prepare their house and put it up for sale. They said my price was right and they really loved the place, but of course, not knowing when and if their house will sell is an entirely different matter.

So, here I sit no closer to Mexico, with yet another interested buyer. I guess I do need to learn patience and realize that I will get to Mexico someday, but just not anytime soon.

Do you believe in signs?

As many of you know, all I can really think about the past few months is packing up and moving to Playa. If you haven't noticed, this whole blog is devoted to this move. Anyway, while in Playa last week, I hung out at a beach club one day by myself. El Pirata, to those in the know. I started thinking about my move and wondering if I was doing the right thing. Could I make the move, could I be build a life, could I make friends, could I maybe find love? Lots of questions ran through my head and the doubting was making me sad. As I do from time to time, I silently asked the universe for a sign. 10 minutes later, this pulled up straight in front of me. Tell me, has anything like this ever happened to you?

Click on the image to for a larger view....

A Playa Beach Wedding

While in Playa last week, I attended the most beautiful, intimate, and fun wedding of Larry and A'ndrea. They are two friends of mine from Texas who love Playa as much as I do. I was touched and honored when A'ndrea asked me to help her get ready for the wedding and also suprised me by designating me an official witness to the ceremony. I put a slideshow together of the ceremony and the reception.

Enjoy!!

Back from my New Home

I'm back after spending 12 incredible days in Playa!! What an amazing time!! I did soo much!! Spent some time with some great friends and made some new ones. I organized a bachelorette party, attended the most beautiful, intimate wedding, celebrated a 40th bday with a great friend, ziplined in the jungle!! And last, I completed my Advanced Certification for diving where I did a deep dive (to 104 feet), dove a shipwreck, did some underwater photography, did night dive, and also saw a shark!!

Oddly enough, I am happy to be home though. Don't get me wrong, I do still want to move, but I was missing home as well.

I did have another showing the week I was gone, so I am glad to know the interest is still there. I'm going to contact Charlotte this week, to let her know I am back and see if she is still interested. Now, I am hoping to be in Playa for Halloween.

I promise to update the blog later this week, but for now I'll just leave you with a quick slide show of the underwater photos I took during one of my dives for certification. Not the best, but not too bad either!

D.I.Y Waxing

I am going on record to state that I do not recommend Home Waxing Kits. There was blood, lots of pain, and there will be scabbing. I do not know when or if I'll be able to get into the Ocean on this trip. Ow!! Ow!! Ow!!

From now on, I'm leaving this up to the professionals!!

Sorry, no pics on this one!

(Go ahead and have your giggle, Heather. It's payback! :) )

Where in the Hell is Matt?

In just one day, I've watched this youtube video on a friend's blog, in an email, on myspace, in a public forum, and on Facebook. I've watched it each time. The first time you'll probably try to find Matt but when you watch it again and again, watch the people around him. The world can use more people like Matt.

14 months in the making, 42 countries, and a cast of thousands

House, Lola, and Hair....

A few updates from this week. Thanks everyone for sending me positive thoughts, emails, and texts regarding the house but...

First, another Open House has come and gone and I had not one visitor. I'm very sad. Feel defeated. The upside is that I have a house clean again! This is the last Open House for about 3 weeks. I leave for Mexico a week from Wednesday and I'll be gone for 12 days. Next Sunday I'm sure I'll be running around getting last minute things done. There isn't much more I can do but sit and wait and wait. I just hope the universe finds me a buyer soon! After this next vacation to Mexico, I have no more vacation time until next January.

Second, some bittersweet news this week. I found a home for Lola. As many of you know, Lola came to live with me about 5 years ago. Lola was my cousin's cat that she kept at her dad's house in Dallas. Allie's dad was looking to find Lola a new home and I said that if they could find a way to get her to me, I'd take her. Lola was flown here from Dallas with a family friend about a month later. When I started making plans to move to Mexico, I made the decision to only take one cat with me. Since Reese is a bit more older and a bit more aggressive (he doesn't like men and is super possessive of me),and harder to rehome, I decided that he would be the one to accompany me. Lola also has some digestive issues and needs special food which I was unsure if I could purchase in Mexico. So, I put out an Ad on petfinder and was grateful to hear from Crystal and her girls. When Crystal divorced, she and her girls had to give up their family pets. The recently moved into a 3 bedroom townhouse and were ecstatic to find that they could have pets. Crystal and I have been in emailing this week and after I explained in detail all about Lola, they decided they wanted her. Her girls are 8, 10, and 11. I am sure Lola will get much love and attention! Probably more so than she did with me. Lola goes to the vet on Thursday for shots and then Crystal and I meet on Saturday. I'm very happy that Lola is going to a loving home, but also sad and feeling a bit guilty at the same time.

And finally...my hair. As I sit here and type this, I'm very torn on how I feel about my hair. It's near black right now. You see, after a few years of highlighting and coloring, I decided I wanted to try and go back to my natural color. I told Tara (my sister and hair stylist) that I wanted to go dark brown again. Thursday night, I met her at my parent's house and she applied the color. Problem is, my hair soaks up color really well. When we washed out my hair, we realized my hair was very near jet black. Arghh!! I went home that night and washed with a clarifier and deep conditioned it. The next day, I told my boss I was taking a 1/2 day and met Tara again. We shampooed in 2 color lifters and they seemed to work. But only a little bit. The hair color is semi-permanent, but my hair just LOVES to hang onto the color. We noticed in the sunlight that some of the red is coming through and actually looks quite pretty. I just hope over the next week, it fades a bit more. Tara comes back from vacation next weekend and we are going to put some highlights in it. And so begins the cycle again.

Here is a quick photo I took for Joana yesterday...



And that's it for now. Not a very exciting week...but not a very exciting life. I'm just happy I'm going on vacation next week. Hopefully, I'll have some good stories to post when I return.

Day Off!!

Just a quick update: I decided to take today off and forgo on the weekly Open House. My listing agent said there wouldn't be much traffic because of the Holiday weekend.

So, today was my first day this summer out on our family boat. Since my parents were headed to our cabin in Hayward, it was just my sister, Tara, her boyfriend Phil, my brother, Ben, and Tara's friend, Liz on the boat. It was a gorgeous day!!!

The day started out with just Tara and I. Here we are with all the goodies we brought out. Notice the 3 different kinds of beer. I was lucky enough to buy beer today as I forgot my ID. The 18 year old kid insisted on seeing it and yeah, I know he was just doing his job, but he clearly could see I was NOT under the age of 21. All it took was for me to ask to see the manager and I was on my way with my booze....





Then, we decided to take some pictures of us driving the boat. Actually, I did ALL the driving. Besides my dad, I'm the best 'docker' in the family!






There was a Regatta on the lake...



Phil and Ben decided to stop playing video games and join us on the lake. Liz came out at the same too!! And the last shot is of Phil and Tara's dog, Sam. I couldn't believe he sat still long enough for me to snap this photo.







Next week, it's back to having an Open House again on Sunday. I was given an idea on how to draw more people in. I'll have to check it out and post details later this week. Smooches!!

Thing are on the up and up....

Doing SOOO much better today. Thanks for the comments and emails, everyone!! I decided to turn my frown upside down and re-focus my energies on just being positive. Not to sound Polly Anna-ish, but I’m starting to believe that what you put out to the universe is what you get in return. Monday, I was a grumpy bitch and look where that got me.

Yesterday after work, I decided at the last minute to head on over to my parent’s house. I think the child inside me just wanted my mommy and a decent home cooked dinner that only Nan can deliver. I was pleasantly surprised to pull up to the house and find that my brother had unexpectedly shown up for dinner as well. I love my brother and miss him sometimes. He only lives down in Milwaukee, but I feel that the only time I get to see him is when we gather together to celebrate something.

While we waited for Nan to return from the grocery store, we sat outside and enjoyed some drinks and played with my sister’s dog. Actually, I was grossed out by my sister’s dog when I saw him drink his own urine as he was peeing!! But, I just made sure he didn’t come anywhere near me after that.

After dinner, Nan and I took Sam (sister’s dog) for a walk. Actually, he took us for a walk through the neighborhood. We saw a deer and a wild turkey, which isn’t unusual, but we were so swarmed by mosquitoes, that we cut our walk short. Still it felt nice to get some exercise in. When I returned home last night, I felt truly refreshed. I got a great night’s sleep and today, I’m feeling great!!

So, I found out that the condo association is in agreement that we are not going to replace our entire roof. We are only going to repair where needed for now. Also, I was able to find a cheaper place to stay on my vacation and I got my cat sitter to come in every other day, rather than everyday, so I’m saving money there. The mortgage company is reversing my overpayment. And I picked up my car today from the repair shop. They deducted $100 off for my inconvenience and then when I got into my car, THIS was laying on the passenger’s seat.



What is it about a simple flower that can brighten one’s day?! The only sucky thing about today is that I got my 2nd round of Hepatitis A and B shots. OUCH!! But, it’s all part of my plan to move forward and live in Mexico.

Boring post, I know, but wanted you to know that I’m feeling better about things.

Smooches!!

The Other Shoe Dropped

I should have known that things were going too well for me. For the past month, I was floating around with the thoughts of moving to Playa in September. I put all my plans into motion and started waiting for everything to fall into place. I should have known better that things wouldn't go so swimmingly for me. They never do.

First, no one came to my Open House yesterday. Tomorrow will be 4 weeks that my place has been on the market and I’ve only had a few bites on it. I also found out that our building may need to have the roof replaced and this could cost each of us a few thousand dollars!!

My friend, Stewart, called my this morning to tell me that he is going to wait another year to do the Whaleshark Tour that we had planned when we meet in Playa in a few short weeks. He wants to wait until his son is old enough to participate. I completely understand, but it doesn’t lessen the fact that I’m disappointed and was truly looking forward to this. It was one of the major reasons why I planned the trip.

After I got off the phone with Stewart, I decided to go into my online checking account and do some balancing when I noticed I deducted my mortgage twice this month!! CRAP!! So, now my checking account sits in the negative. I jumped into my car to go over to the bank and see if they can reverse one of the payments and my car was DOA!! DEAD! I just had the battery cleaned and checked, oil changed, and air conditioner fixed last Thursday, so I was ticked off. I ran back inside the office and asked my boss to jump the car for me. He did this while I was on the phone with the bank trying to make a transfer so my checking account was no longer in the zeros.

After the car started I took it over to the shop where I had the work done. I just have to say that I love the guys there. They were the only bright spot in my day. They were very concerned about what was wrong and had me in a free courtesy car within 5 minutes.

And to top it off, I haven’t been feeling well since Friday. I’ve been having lower abdominal pain and nausea….but it hasn’t been anything strong enough to warrant me going to the doctor just yet. Oh...and I'm developing a heel spur in my right foot. I'm supposed to lay off the running, waitressing, and flip flops...yeah right.

I’m considering postponing my trip to Playa in July....WHAA!!!

This day just sucks!

Edit: Just found out car will be $650.00 and it HAS to be fixed. It's only money, right?

Hurray up and Wait!!!

That’s how I feel at the moment. I’m ready to move to Mexico…TODAY…but my hands are tied until my townhouse sells. As soon as my boss gave me the verbal OK to relocate my job, I started putting all my plans into motion. I called the listing agent for my townhouse, scheduled my first round of necessary shots with my Dr, looked into getting a SKYPE phone, called the vet to make sure that Reese has all his shots in order, scheduled a dental cleaning and exam (which I’ve since canceled), looked into the cost of buying a new laptop, and started throwing away all my old winter clothes and boots. I’m ready…..I wanna go…someone buy my place!!!!

It’s frustrating not knowing when I’ll be able to make the big move. My plan is still the end of August, but as each week goes by, I keep thinking I might not make it there until mid September, early October? I had one VERY interested woman come look at my place at my 2nd Open House. She lives in the apartment across the street from me. She is an AS/400 programmer, so we almost speak the same language. She moved here from Ohio where the job market sucks and took a job 3 miles down the road. She hates living in the apartments as she has 6 people living above her and she there beer parties every weekend outside her bedroom window. She kept commenting about how beautiful my place was and we even measured for her dinning room table. She also asked if I’d be willing to leave my patio furniture, but I told her my mom already called dibs on it. She said she’d be in touch.

A week later, I found out that she called my listing agent and asked a bunch of questions that I had already answered for her. It seems that she didn’t believe me when I said I was moving to Mexico. Okay…who makes up a lie about moving out of the country?! It kind of hurt my feelings cause I was all happy and chatty with her and now I find out that she didn’t believe anything I was saying about my move and the property. But, I’m sensitive that way.

She indicated to my listing agent that she was interested in making an offer, but when my agent asked if she had pre-approval financing, she said no. Rose, my listing agent, said she can put in offer but with a contingency that she’d get financing in ‘x’ number of days. Linda, said she’d be in touch.

That was a week ago. I’m finding I wake up each morning now with a knot in my stomach. My goal is to be in Playa at the end of August, but if I don’t get an offer in the next 3 weeks, it’s not going to happen. My employers are flexible enough that my Consultant contract with them will start when I’m ready to leave. In the meantime, I can only make tentative plans….but I’d really like for them to be solid.

Here is a link to my place!! It’s so cute!! If you know of anyone interested, please send them my way!!

Had I known that the patio furniture would be a deal breaker, I would have thrown it in and dealt with Nan….

Blogging Again!!

I know...I already know what you are thinking!! I'm going to blog for one week and then get bored, busy, or blah and stop posting. I won't!! I promise! I pinky swear that I'll update my blog as often as necessary. That might be daily or weekly (but never monthly or heaven forbid, yearly).

The main purpose of this blog is to keep my friends and famiy updated on my move to Mexico. And if you haven't heard that I am moving to Mexico, then you haven't been doing your part in reading your emails. It true. I'm moving. I cannot wait.

But, before I leave the US of A, there is ALOT of preparation that has to be done. So, my hope it that keep you all informed of how things are progressing.

Stay tuned...more to come. And thanks for reading.