FIT

Hey Qap, this vanity plate is for YOU.  Here is to a healthy and FIT (or FITTER) 2013 and in the coming years!

CINDERELLA

Whose shoe in the snow
J. Edgar Hoover, maybe
Or Cinderella
I found it glittered under the bright sun when I went outside to check on himself who loves to grill in the middle of winter.  He decided to have red meat (a big juicy steak) one more time to celebrate the new year and before we once again try to eat more healthy food.  He did not see the shoe after walking by the spot a few times going from the garage to the patio.  Only when I asked if there was a phone call from J. Edgar Hoover or Cinderella asking about this party shoe that Ralphie noticed the shoe in the snow. 

How did the shoe get to this particular spot?  It looks like someone gently placed it there.  The night before we heard noises from outside, not sure if it came from next door neighbor or somewhere else.  It was around 2300 hours and I was ready to call the authority to put an end to the drunken party.  Perhaps the boyfriend got drunk and threw the shoe over the fence.  We checked and there was no other marks on the snow from the fence to where the shoe landed in perfect spot.  That would be too far from the other side of the fence to the spot near our garage.

Did it come from the northside house?  It couldn't.  It would have gotten under the table or the chairs.  Plus, the shoe could not fly over the rock or the bench to where it finally landed.

Was the shoe thrown from the southside, over the fence?  Again, there was no marks on the snow to indicate that someone was standing on the other side while throwing the shoe.  Besides, the shoe would not land perfectly without bouncing off the tree and the shed.

If someone was in our backyard and placed the shoe there, then how come there are no footprints in the snow?  Your assignment to solve this case, if you choose to accept it.

FIRST THURSDAY RAMBLING (2013)

One more time - Happy New Year!  I thought these images from the Butterfly House would be a good start - positive, beautiful thoughts and acceptance that life goes on (the lifespan of a butterfly, dependent on the breed, could be only a few days or up to a year - no 100 years old butterfly). Spread your wings, fly high and enjoy each moment in the sun.  I found an article in the Grand Haven Tribune (at www.grandhaventribune.com) about a professional cyclist currently living on a sailboat.  You could read her blog at www.alwaysgoblog.wordpress.com.  I have thought of her comment, "Tickets are issued.  Only a few check-in for the journey of their dreams", where is your ticket? 

We missed the Times Square New Year ball-drop ceremony again!  Ralphie was already in bed and I continued watching the Twilight Zone Marathon.  I was supposed to keep watch but I fell asleep on the sofa and did not hear the clock striked at midnight.  2012 quietly left and 2013 casually came without bothering to wake us up for the celebration.

We had a few flurries on the last day of 2012, not enough for accumulation.  After putting in a couple of volunteer hours at the Butterfly House, I went to the store to return two sweaters and a necklace Ralphie had given me.  Next year I will remember to actually go to the store, look and touch before putting the items on my wish list.  The sweaters only looked good in the catalog and the necklace was actually a tiny, wimpy piece.  After the store, I visited a parishioner who had hip and knee surgery.  I brought her Holy Communion since she could not drive to attend Mass.   

I completed the 50 hours of volunteer in 2012 to qualify for an honorary membership with the Garden.  The regular membership is $65, that comes out to be $1.30 per volunteer hour.  I know you don't calculate wages when you volunteer.  I would rather get a good paying job so I could afford the $65 annual membership than putting in volunteer hours (at $1.30 per hour) while being unemployed.  OK, let's put a stop to this negative thinking! 

Ralphie was off the whole week of Christmas and finally went back to work on the 2nd.  The Director of Quality quit last month and moved to Nashville for a better job.  Ralphie told the company that he is happy with being Quality Engineer, doing the work without the pressure of being a manager.  The company already found a replacement and the new Director will start on Jan. 14th.  He and his family will be moving to St. Louis from Charlotte, North Carolina. Come to think of it, we have been in St. Louis 18+ years.  Ralphie said that pretty soon I will be more St. Louisian than being Vietnamese since I left Viet Nam when I was 19 years old.  I might have to make up stories about going to John F. Kennedy High School in Manchester! 

SERENE

Happy New Year to you - may 2013 be a year of SERENE, good health, joyful moments, and a highest sense of fulfillment in life (in whatever you are trying to accomplish or hope for).