Another pet picture

Here's our cat Joey getting in the holiday spirit.

Okay, clearly I'm running out of material... I'm crossing my fingers for an epiphany before year end.

Let It Snow...

Cassi is wondering ...what happened to my doghouse?  And when is it going to stop snowing?

Though I guess it is appropriate weather for the first official day of winter...

Mid Week Eye Candy

This has been one of those weeks where every waking hour has been spent on work. Big time bummer. So, as far as material for my blog goes, I got nothin'.

I'm learning, though, that when you've got nothin', it's time for a picture. And here's a good one. This is a shot of the beautiful hand blown glass flowers hanging in the ceiling of the Bellagio Hotel lobby in Las Vegas. I took it during a recent mini vacation as we strolled down the strip.

See, there's that word, "vacation", again...

And Another

Here's another "wish I were there" shot from the same area.
~ sigh~
Is it time for vacation yet?

Random Picture Day

Just digging through my digital photo album from 2008 in search of the perfect Christmas card picture and stumbled upon this. I took this while sipping cocktails in Islamorada, FL, during April vacation - just a few short weeks before I began my biking endeavor.

I don't know about you but I want to be here right now - especially as we approach the first snow/icy mix event of the season.

Calling it a Season

Since I like beginnings, middles and ends, I've decided I need to call an official end to my biking season for 2008.

I haven't been on my bike in 5 weeks (since November 2) for a variety of reasons - some legitimate, some not. So this weekend, my husband packed my bike safely away for the winter and I'm calling it a season.

Total miles for 2008: 1,430

It would have been nice to make it to 1,500 miles or more but I was a newbie and I didn't start until mid May. Maybe that can be one of my goals for next year.

Here's my end of season picture in the cool racing jacket that I got as a gift from our friend, Doug. I wanted to get a pic of me wearing it while I was actually biking, but it just didn't happen. Maybe next year....Until then, I'm officially switching to running for the winter. Depending on the weather and my motivation level, we'll see how it goes...

To PMC or Not To PMC

I'm referring, of course, to the Pan Mass Challenge, the massive bike riding fundraiser for the Jimmy Fund. Should I go for it next August or not?

I said in a previous post that I am a PMC rider wannabe. Sign ups are in mid January for the limited openings for first time riders. If I'm lucky and on the ball, I'll get a spot for the very popular two day ride from Wellesley to Provincetown with my friend Sue, who has ridden it several times in the past.

Biking two long rides back to back will be a challenge. But the bigger challenge, unfortunately, is the $4,200 minimum fundraising requirement. That's pretty steep, especially in this economy. And if I can't raise that amount, the balance goes on my credit card. Ouch.

Something to think about during the next month. But if I don't go for it, at least I know there are plenty of other great riding opportunities awaiting me in 2009.

Never Say Never Wish List

As a follow up to my Never Say Never post, I thought I would make another list. These are the nevers I have been known to say but are not yet proven evidence of the "never say never" principle. That is, they unfortunately still ring true.

I find this annoying. Sometimes I'd prefer if the "never say never" principle was applied uniformly and did not discriminate against certain nevers.

Perhaps the mere act of putting them in writing will stir the powers that be to invoke the "never say never" principle to my list below:

• I will never accomplish all the things on my to do list
• I will never look totally hot in a bikini
  
• I will never make too much money
  
• I will never do absolutely nothing for one whole day
  
• I will never watch all the shows I've recorded on my DVR
• I will never have to dye my hair again
• I will never write a book
  
• I will never finish reading all the books on my nightstand
• I will never be up to date with all of my photo albums

And here are a few thrown in for the benefit of my husband:

• I will never stop back seat driving
• I will never learn how to operate the power tractor
• I will never stop being right
  

There. I've said them out loud. Keep your fingers crossed. With any luck, I'll be able to report back soon with further proof that you should "never say never."

Never Say Never

File this under things I think about when I'm biking (or running or listening to music or doing nothing in particular):

The expression - "Never say Never" - has tripped me up a few times in my life. Sometimes for the good, sometimes for the not so good. But I think I'm getting wiser as the years go by. That is, I'm learning to never say never. Or at least when I do, I catch myself and try to rephrase.

Because often, you see, "never" isn't really never. As proof of my theory, here is a smattering of things I've said "never" to that really weren't never:

• I'll never drive a minivan - I've been driving one for 8 years now. Despite adding a few personal touches (as those who have seen it know), the fact remains that I still drive a minivan.
  
• I'll never get a dog - We've had a great golden retriever named Cassi in our family for the past 6+ years. Despite a very scary close call at age 9 with an unleashed, poorly trained attack dog, I actually agreed to get a dog and now go so far as to describe myself as a "dog person".
  
• I'll never go back to work full time until my kids go to college - My three year anniversary of full time employment was two days ago.
  
• I'll never be a morning person - Here's evidence to the contrary.
• I'll never be able to bike 100 miles in one day - More evidence to the contrary.
  
• I'll never eat sushi - One of my favorite restaurants is Sushi Inaka.
  
• I'll never be friends with my ex-boyfriend - I now consider him one of my oldest friends.
  
• I'll never understand statistics - I can now explain the difference between R squared and R squared adjusted in the unlikely event that anyone is interested.
• I'll never listen to KISS 108 - Not by choice, but this is one unfortunate reality of having 12 year old daughter.
  

These are the some of the nevers I'll admit to publicly that have taught me to never say never. Of course, there is a whole host of nevers that I'll never admit to here. Wait, let me rephase that...