"NOW IS NOT THE TIME TO GO TO SLEEP" ** "We, as a people, are being bullied by fear tactics into believing this has anything to do with protecting our country from attack. I have to leave it up to you as intelligent people to dig for your own information on that subject because it is wide and deep and you will not be able to come to sound conclusions unless you are open-minded enough to go outside of the norm of the controlled press we are fed everyday." -Sheryl Crow
Posted 7:33 AM by Kerry O.

It's a dry heat, all right ** Phoenix officially recorded just 2.82 inches of rain in 2002 - equalling the record set in 1956, the National Weather Service reported. The normal annual rainfall in Phoenix is 8.29 inches.
Posted 1:35 PM by Kerry O.

Would you? ** If you married someone and found out a month later they had done something bad in the recent past (bad in a legal way, but not harmful to another person) that may or may not come back to haunt them, what would you do? If it didn't for 18 months, then popped up out of the blue and showed signs of getting ugly for a while, would you throw in the towel and let them go at it alone, solve their own problem? Or would you stand by them? Is there a point when love isn't enough to give you courage?

No, I didn't do this. It's about someone else who's having a very rough time right now. It's making me think about the black and white of right and wrong, and about the nature of love and perserverence. I just wonder what others think. I don't have the right words of comfort in what must be a very scary time.
Posted 12:41 PM by Kerry O.

Useless knowledge ** Oh, and Joe won't usually play trivia games, so his appreciation of my vast library of useless knowledge isn't fully developed. But when we were asked a trivia question during Cranium at a particularly pivotal moment, he was suitably impressed by me knowing that Francis Ford Coppola's Oscar-award-winning nephew is Nicolas Cage. In fact, I pretty much had jaws dropping all around on that one, which I knew before the question was fully asked. Damn, I wish I could put this one useless talent to work for me. And don't suggest Jeopardy. I'd choke on TV.
Posted 10:15 AM by Kerry O.

Ponderings ** How can something as seemingly innocent as yogurt give me heartburn? Ugh. It's coming earlier and earlier every day. Thank GOD for Zantac.
Posted 9:35 AM by Kerry O.

The year of the baby ** Well, it's a new year, and my thoughts have shifted to baby. Sorry, but it was bound to happen, right? Today we are 30 weeks pregnant, and that is just amazing to me. The holidays were a nice distraction, but there are no more distractions now. Only planning and preparation. And there's a lot of that to be done.

Anyway, the party was a hit, and it was a nice size. We had about 15 people, I suppose, and it was cheerful. Thankfully nobody drank anywhere near too much, but most drank just enough to be having a good time (except me, of course, though I had just as good a time without it!). I stayed awake until midnight, but retired shortly thereafter, before the guests left. Joe was up before me on New Year's Day, and when I woke up I was a whirlwind of activity tearing all of the Christmas decorations down and packing them up. I was accused of nesting, which is interesting. That's about how I feel about it!

We spent the rest of New Year's Day at Tom and Talmar's, playing board games. We wanted something a little less "cerebral" than our normal games, so we played our first (and second and third) game of Cranium. Fun game, and everyone got pretty rowdy. When one left and we were down to a manageable 6 people, we played our beloved Settlers of Catan. Joe - who is a poor sport sometimes - won 3 out of the 4 games we played yesterday. Imagine his delight. He was nearly floating. It turned out to be a lovely day, wasted away with good friends. *sigh* Just as it should be. Hope yours was great, too!
Posted 8:38 AM by Kerry O.

Today ** It is so, so hard to stay focused on work today. And I'm covering for 2 other people, so you'd think that would keep me busy. Nope. Nada. I could so fall asleep right now.
Posted 2:23 PM by Kerry O.

12.31.02 ** Another year gone. No profound words have I, just a wish for a healthy, happy, and prosperous coming year for all.

As for tonight, I've had a couple of responses, so feel free to come, and to bring your friends and family! We shall all be ready to party. Well, okay, probably everyone except me. I'll just be trying to stay awake. :-) The puppy won't know what hit her with all these people around, so if she jumps on you, I'm sorry. We're trying to train her. She'll stop after the first couple of jumps, I promise. By midnight, she'll be snoozing on my feet somewhere.

Anyway, Happy New Year to all, and be safe. Don't drive if you don't have to, whether you're drinking or not, and remember to kiss the ones you love. Huzzah!
Posted 1:20 PM by Kerry O.

Working stiffs ** My heart broke this morning when I left for work. I woke up and got ready while Princess ran outside to bark at things, go potty, and run back in to doze on the bed while she waited for me to emerge. When I did, she yawned sleepily at me and wagged her tail, ready to wake up and play. Poor baby. She followed me in to the living room and curled up next to me on the couch while I put my shoes on and checked the news. Then I picked her up, kissed her and put her in her crate, where she is and will be for a total of at least nine hours. Since she wasn't fully awake, she didn't fight, she just walked gently in the crate and sat down. Poor thing. Joe has to work today on a surprise irrigation run from 4 a.m. to 4 p.m. He had to get up at 2:45 a.m. just to get there. Ugh. And we get to do it all again tomorrow too.

Speaking of tomorrow, if I know you IRL....... We're having a New Year's Eve Party!!! I'm a slacker and we haven't called everyone, but if your name is Michelle B., or Kendra W., or Ember S., or Damian G., or Virginia D. or any other groovy name that graces my real life, get your butts to our house at 7:00 p.m. tomorrow! I'll be sleeping prior to that (I'll definitely need a nap to make it to midnight! LOL!), but we're partying from 7:00 to whenever. You can write me email at work for more details, or call me this evening. 'Kay? Kay.
Posted 11:26 AM by Kerry O.