Compliments of the Management

Only the best when the Winn family sets out on their road trips....
We drive in style and comfort in our big ole red van.
We dine in the finest fast food establishments available in places like ...
Comanche, Texline, Gustine, and Nageezi. (actually there is no fast food in Nageezi, there is not even a gas station or a stop sign but I like to say it's name anyway)
And we almost NEVER eat at a fast food that is attached to a gas station.
After all we have our high standards to uphold.
Our nights lodgings are always first class as well.
As evidenced by the gift that was waiting for us in our hotel in New Mexico.
Not only was the management offering us it finest guest towel with their compliments....
But they also made sure we understood the many ways that we could use this great gift.
I am certainly going to appreciate the "guest towels" that we collect in our fine eating establishments as well
now that I know just how many uses there are for something
of this quality.
P.S. Isn't my son just the cutest?

Goodbye my friend...

I said goodbye to a dear friend today.
They say that what doesn't break you....makes you stronger....
But what about what you break?
Does that make you stronger?
I stared at the tile floor this afternoon in shock believing that if I just stared long enough my camera would jump back up in place perched upon the brand new tripod I was testing.
CONCENTRATE
CONCENTRATE....
That did NOT just happen.
Well I guess I am getting ahead of myself here....
It all started when I decided to practice my photography skills while showing ya'll my new house and at the same time showing off my excessive Halloween decorations. Multi-tasking....and since I had slept in later this morning than I should it was going to be an atonement of sorts.
I excitedly pulled out my newest toy.
A brand new tripod!
Nothing says professional like a fancy new tripod....
I attached my favorite wide angle lens and aimed it towards my ever increasing stash of Halloween, while contemplating whether or not my home was beginning to look like the shelves at Hobby Lobby.
Click!
What joy to be shooting......
Crash!!
(This part was truly like it is in the movie...slow motion....while the sounds of OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO out of mouth were equally slow)
The crashing thud made my stomach flip flop and I hesitated to look down. I stared at the top of the tripod and blinked a couple of times to make sure.
And then I looked down.
It was on the floor
and there were a couple of pieces of broken plastic scattered around it.
I just froze.
Picking it up would mean I would have to face the consequences.
Was it a total loss?
Minutes seemed to pass...
It's funny how the mind sometimes refuses to process what it does not want to process.
I finally bent down and scooped it up.
I turned it on and all of the right lights and numbers appeared.
Could it be that all would be alright?
Were the camera gods smiling down upon me.
I slowly pressed the shutter release button......
Darkness.
My wide angle lens...
My very FIRST lens ever....
was gone.
I post tonight the last picture that it took,
in memory of a wonderful lens.
I will miss you..
sniff
sniff.
P.S. The lens must have taken the force of the fall since the camera is working fine. I took over 500 shots at a middle school football game tonight. Whew.....)

Quarter Century...Oh Baby!

25 years ago today I met her.
She made it known immediately that my life would never be the same.
We named her Megan.
which means strong.
And we were right on the money with that decision.
She is STRONG
I used to describe her as a 100 watt bulb in a 25 watt socket.
She is BEAUTIFUL
inside and out.
She is INTELLIGENT
I knew I was in trouble when at 2 she was speaking full sentences that started out with, "Well actually Mom."
She is FAITHFUL
Faithful to her family, to her husband, and to the gospel.
She is my FIRST BORN
subject to all the perks and downsides of being my "test case". We had to figure out being a mother and daughter together and she still is the first to enter new frontiers as our relationship develops.
She is ARTICULATE
she speaks her mind and believe me her mind is filled to capacity. She amazes me with her ability to remember and to think and to speak.
She is LOVING
She loves with all her heart and is always there to help out her family with whatever they need.
She is TALENTED
she teaches like a seasoned professional and is there for any of her students to help them and guide them in life's tricky teenage journeys.
She is my Megan and I have been honored to share the last 25 years of my life intertwined with hers.
She is my shinin' pride
A quarter of a century of being her mother.
What an honor and privilege.
I love you Meggie Peggie.
Happy Birthday!

Self Portraits at the Tax Office

I was number 48.
They were only on 21 at the Tax Assessor's Office.
They made us sit in pews like we were at a church meeting.
All facing the front like we were being watched.
And we couldn't talk on our cell phones.
Not at all.
So I did the next best thing.
The guy who was sittting next to me slid down to the other end of the pew,
after I took these self portraits.
Why?

Don't make me go all "Terms of Endearment" on you.

My Dad had back surgery this morning.
As the nurses and doctors were bustling around preparing him for surgery...
What was I doing?
Taking pictures of course!
Duh!
I mean why else would I be there?
Actually I can come in handy sometimes for other things as well.
Last night I lay in bed anticipating the 6:00 alarm and staring at the ceiling when my thoughts turned to another surgery my father had about 15 years ago.
He had prostate cancer and decided that the best treatment would surgery. I went with them so that I could sit in the waiting room with my mom who happens to hold the title of "Greatest Worrier in the World".
Seriously...
She has perfected the art of worrying and should teach college level classes at the local university.
There was 5 or 6 other families that were all there waiting for their family members to have the same procedure. We were all told that the nurse would come out when the procedure was begun and then midway through to give us a progress report and then towards the end when they were almost finished. Then the doctor would come out and talk to us about the surgery.
We sat anxiously waiting for the first report as did the other families in the room.
The first report trickled out to each family one by one and we all felt a little relief.
The second report came a couple of hours later like dominoes falling and as each family heard the news they would smile and look a little more comfortable.
That is except Mom and I.
We didn't get out second report.
We waited and waited and waited.
Every time a nurse would come in, we would be hopeful that she was looking for us, only to watch her pass on by.
As the nurses came to the other families to give a final report we were getting downright scared.
Finally a nurse comes up to us and says, "Would you follow me?"
She leads us into a small room that looks like has been set up to resemble someones living room. A tacky one at that.
My eyes scan the room and fall on the box of kleenex and a bible.
This can't be good.
I don't want to say what I am thinking of course because I am there to be the support person.
I am the designated "everything's going to be fine" person.
I try my best to reassure my mother who is at this point looking as frightened as I have ever witnessed.
Both of us are trying to figure out what will come next.
I reassure her again that I am sure that it will be fine.
But I don't know that.
5 minutes pass.
It seems like hours.
I keep saying the same thing over and over to my mother's concerns that my father has passed away.
"We don't know that! Everything will be okay."
Ten minutes pass.
My words are hollow and I have nothing left new to say.
Everytime I look at my mother's face I feel pain and that makes me
ANGRY.
After the longest 15 minutes I have ever waited through I decide my mother has suffered enough.
I don't know if you have seen the movie, "Terms of Endearment"

But in a nutshell, Shirley Maclaines daughter is dying of cancer and is in a lot of pain.
When it comes to the time she should have another pain pill the nurses are not responding.
In one of my favorite scenes ever, she goes to the nurses station, pounds her fists on the counter and screams for them to get her daughter a pain pill.
It is all that she can do for this person she loves so much.
Take away her pain.
Well I quickly surveyed our "family room" and saw a door marked,
"Medical personnel only"
I got up and opened the door and came face to face with the big metal swinging door marked Surgery.
At this point there was no stopping me.
I pushed them open as hard as I could
And faced a counter of surprised nurses faces.
Before they could even speak I said something to this effect.
"My sweet mother has been sitting in this horrible room thinking that her husband is dead for over 15 minutes now and I don't care what it takes but somebody is going to go and give her information NOW!"
(I can't remember if I pounded my fists or not but I hope so)
The poor nurses were stunned and it took a moment for it to sink in.
"What's your Dad's name?"
John Lauck.
"Oh he is fine and in recovery. His doctor should have been already. He likes to talk to the family privately instead of in the waiting room."
Well la-ti-da!
Couldn't someone have told us that to begin with?
One of the best pieces of information I have ever been able to deliver was to my sweet mother that everything was fine, better than fine....it was great!
This morning the nurse told us before my dad went in that this doctor will take us into a private room to discuss the surgery.
It's a good thing they told me.
I don't think they want me to go all "Shirley Maclaine" on them.
Nobody wants to see that again.

My Dilemma

Well I told you I have a dilemma with my new job...right?
Here it is in a nutshell.....
MUSIC!
I am sure you are scratching your head and wondering if I belong in a nutshell.
I have spent the past 25 years either listening to Disney soundtracks or giving up control of my car radio to the frantic fingers of my teenagers whose attention spans rarely ever let me hear what I wanted to listen to.
But no more.
I am in my car, well Bill's car, alone with nothing but the real estate signs rattling in the back.
So I turn on the radio.
My music of choice?
Er...well...mmm....okay okay.
I ADMIT IT! I like the current music and I like rap!
And by that I don't mean that I like to appear really cool in front of my kids or their friends by cranking up todays current hits and dancing in a style that they think was invented at the age of dinosaurs.
I mean I "secretly" like it and would rather not anyone know it.
After all I am a mature woman and proud of that fact.
But I am a product of the 70's and the disco beat still runs through my veins....
I wasn't born an old lady you know.

I once "got down" to the likes of the Earth Wind and Fire, the Commodores, Brick and the very infancy of rap music.
And even though the kids of today wouldn't admit it the beat is really still the same.
Infectious.
My problem is that since I have so much time to drive and think.....
I also have time to pay attention to the lyrics.
I mean...I knew some of them were not that great but I started to see a horrible pattern developing. A message woven like an ugly tapestry through the pounding of the mesmerizing beats.
Women are only used for one thing.
and
Guys should really just push that agenda until they get what they want.
The messages though repugnant to ME don't change my views but strengthen my desire to eradicate them.
I remember the first time I actually listened to the lyrics of "Tonight" by Enrique Iglesias.

I know you want me
I made it obvious that I want you too
So put it on me
Let's remove the space between me and you
Now rock your body
D#$@ I like the way that you move
So give it to me
Cause I already know what you wanna do

Here's the situation
Been to every nation
Nobody’s ever made me feel the way that you do
You know my motivation
Give in my reputation
Please excuse I don't mean to be rude

But tonight I'm loving you
Oh you know
That tonight I'm loving you
Oh you know
That tonight I'm loving you
I couldn't believe that given his "reputation" and knowing his "motivation" that ANY woman would want him. He does say "excuse me and I don't mean to be rude" and all but seriously!!
Enrique!....I don't care if you were the last man on earth and I was twenty years younger and the worlds fate depended on us procreating would I EVER let you come within 10 feet of my you international twerp!
It goes on to say a bunch of more offensive things which I guess are supposed to make a girl swoon.
Is this really how young girls expect to be wooed?
(I know using the word wooed here is a dead give away that I rode a dinosaur to school but it is a perfectly good word and by the sounds of our society needs to be not only brought back but defined!)
Ne-Yo's current song takes it even a step farther with the lyrics...

excuse me
but i might drink a little bit more than i should tonight
and i might take you home with me if i could tonight
and i think you should let me cause i look good tonight
and we might not get tomorrow

grab somebody sexy tell ‘em hey
give me everything tonight
give me everything tonight
give me everything tonight
give me everything tonight
Really!
Should I count myself lucky that you started with the word "excuse me" and were honest about the fact that you are drunk and did you REALLY just say that there might not be tomorrow?
Wow someone else used that line in a really popular book.
It's called the BIBLE and his name was Satan.
So thanks but no thanks....(see I have manners too)

And Maroon 5's new one...Moves like Jagger

I don't need try to control you
Look into my eyes and I'll own you
With them the moves like jagger.

It would take a little more than you prancing around like creepy Mick Jagger to control me and you would NEVER even have a shot in you know where to own me.
Now I don't like to get on a soapbox about things like this and  I am past the point where I could be influenced by this pap, but, I still feel guilty.
I teach a Sunday school class of 12 and 13 year old young men and young women that might not exactly know who they really are yet and lyrics like these could really mess somebody up.
I don't want to become a crusader for better music since that rarely ever works.
I still remember a stake fireside when I was a youth were they tried to explain the impact that music was having on our teen age minds.
When they brought up the lyrics to "Momma's got a squeeze box", and said that there was a "double meaning" to it, we actually could not contain our laughter.
Laughed out loud there sitting on the church pews.
We thought that they were just so not with it and we were so impervious to any effects from music.
Now the lyrics to songs are not even encoded with secret messages about sexuality.
They just come out and boldly demand it.
(Well they do say excuse me and I don't mean to be rude)

And so I worry about the young people who are constantly barraged with these messages.
And I wonder what more I can do......
And I wonder if that means I have to stop listening to it too.
P.S. Excuse me Rihanna!! I don't mean to be rude but you are nasty.

New House...New Job....New Me!

So hard to know where to begin after my blogging absence.
There have been so many changes that have happened.
Should I start with the one that I get the most questions about?
........my chunkier highlights?
Nah...
I'll save that for another day.
Let's talk about my new J O B!
Yes a JOB!
(Not that the last 25 years of raising children, running the house, chauffeuring, volunteer work, church callings, and assorted miscellaneous duties have been all fun and games)
But someone is going to finally compensate me with cash dollars for my time.
WHAT A CONCEPT!
p.s. the photography doesn't count until I make enough money to cover the cost of my equipment and therefore make it from the minus to the plus column.
It kinda just fell into my lap.
I was talking to my real estate agent Bill Moore about our house that we are trying to sell
(Did I tell you I have a NEW house.....different post than today though)
He asked me if I knew any young people that could use a part time job as a runner,
I didn't.
But I jokingly said that if he didn't sell my house quickly then I would certainly need him to hire me.
We both chuckled.
And that was the extent of the conversation.
That night as I was thinking about the day, it struck me like in the cartoons where the mouse hits the cat with a frying pan....
WHY NOT!
I could be a runner!!!
(Now to all those who know me and are snickering at the thought of my job title having the word "runner" in it, I want you to know two things...First I am a new woman regarding exercise....another post for another day AND Bill has upgraded my title to "Courier" in deference to advanced years of maturity)
So I emailed Bill and asked for the job.
It's actually perfect for me right now.
It is very flexible.
I get to take pictures of houses. Love that of course.
And the one part I thought I wouldn't like.....
the driving
is actually turning out to be one of my favorite parts!
Who'd have thunk it!

I get to drive a Scion with Bill's face on it which can sometimes attract some stares.
I get to use my new muscles placing and removing heavy signs from our Houston drought parched soil.
I get to see different parts of the city.
Today I saw a HUMONGOUS cross I never knew existed.
I get to listen to music on the radio.
I never know what my assignment will be or what danger lies ahead.
Kinda like a real estate James Bond.

 This was a fun sign to retrieve.
All in all it has been a really great fit for me.
I only have one dilemma...
And it has to do with the music......
And that my friends will be my next post.
I'm going to need your help on this one.
(Someone asked me if it was embarrassing to drive a  car with advertising and I said, "Heck no! It could always be worse.)

P.S. If you are looking to sell or buy a house and want a great real estate agent call Bill Moore
        Need the number?
        It's right on the car!

Missing you.....

Hey....
(head nod)
What's new?
(awkward silence)
So..um....yeah......guess it's been awhile.
(head bowed a little, eyes staring towards my feet)
So um...I don't know if you are still interested or whatever...but...
(looking up at little while fidgeting with my keyboard)
I did a few things this summer....
(awkward pause #2)
I mean if you are interested....
Um, that is..... unless you are following some other blogger.
Which I would sooooo totally understand....TOTALLY.
But you know whatever, cause no big deal.....
It's just that I moved unexpectedly, went to Europe, got two new jobs, lost 50 pounds, climbed a mountain, changed my perspectives and decided to go "chunkier" on the highlights on my hair.
But no biggee...
It's just that I had a story or two....
And....
(blushing a little bit)
I missed ya'll.

You're a TURTLE!

I hope you enjoyed my list of 25 things about me and then 25 more things....
Someone challenged #23....
He shall remain nameless.
I am sure that he would want it that way.
P.S. You can read his writings at boyceinthewilderness.blogspot.com
Anyway....
It is not something that I would claim without a fair amount of certainty....
I can look at a person and tell what animal they would be.
It's a gift.
The very first time was at church.
Sometimes surprisingly enough my mind can wander in the three hours of worship each Sabbath.
I happened to glance at a man sitting across the room listening reverently to the speaker and I knew right away.
TURTLE.
easy smeasy.....
But that was when my skills were still young and underdeveloped.
Turtles are easy to pick out.
So are bears.
They are the fundamental ABC's of animal game.
As the years have passed I have sharpened my skill.
Some people are very easy to guess. They resemble an animal close enough as to not even have to think much about it.
Some people take some time to figure out.
Sometimes it has taken me days......
It is not just facial qualities either. It is also the personality of the person. It is their essence.
Don't be jealous...
It's just a gift.
And I will try and use it only for good.....
or when the speaker is droning on in a meeting.

The Last 25.....or as my spooky computer says, 1-25

Well I am sure you are all just sitting by your computers....
waiting for the conclusion of the 50 things you might not know about me.
And since I have never been one to want to disappoint.....
For some odd reason my computer changed the numbers that I copied and pasted from 25 to 50 to now saying 1 to 25 again.
I did NOT ask it to make that change.
I find it highly suspicious that it knew how to and made that "executive decision" without my consent.
It is almost spooky...
But that's okay with me as you will read in number 17 which was really suppose to be number 42.
Now I KNOW my laptop is male....only a man would change something you didn't want changed.
Here we go:

1.      I like rap music but feel too guilty about it’s lyrics so I don’t listen to it.

2.      I was a disco dancer in the 70’s.

3.      I love to play Nintendo but only the old school Donkey Kong and Mario World.

4.      I can name at least 25 Pokemon characters.

5.      I know all of the words to The Devil Went Down to Georgia and Convoy.

6.      I liked CB radios when I was a teen and went by the handle “The Dimpled Darlin”

7.      I think cowboys are handsome.

8.      I have been in 46 of the 50 states.

9.     Todd has been trying to take me to Hawaii for 27 years now but we always end up spending any extra money on trips for our whole family.

10. I love turquoise jewelry and silver jewelry.

11. I hate olives

12. I want to like olives so every year I eat one just to make sure things haven’t changed.

13. I make really good candy but I cannot bake.

14. I do not like to follow recipes and so I only cook what I want to put in something.

15. I do not know my right from my left without looking at my hands and seeing which one makes an “L” with my thumb and fingers.

16. I almost failed my drivers test because of that.

17. I LOVE spooky stories and anything Halloween related.

18. I think that graveyards are so amazing and I have a favorite headstone and a favorite graveyard.

19. I am never scared speaking in front of crowds big or small.

20. But I am scared to go to Guatemala.

21. I keep having nightmares that Todd won’t get a good picture of me hugging Jack when I first see him and I want that picture so I can look at it forever.

22. I believe that if you don’t have a picture of something it just might not have happened.

23. I can look at anyone and decide what animal they are most like.

24. My favorite sound in the whole world is when I make one of my family laugh out loud.

25. My Heavenly Father has blessed me with the most amazing parents, brothers and sister, husband, children and friends and I know that I have been blessed beyond belief.

Half of 50 is 25........

I am trying to delete old files on my laptop computer.
I had a virus.
(And not anyone even brought me chicken soup or anything)
I thought that I had totally lost all my pictures and documents because I had to do a complete restore.
Then I realized that the computer is a sneaky little devil.
After I totally added all of the files from a back up location
I realized that everything was still on my computer after all.
Only it was hiding.
And so today I have played hide and go seek with my good friend Mr. Computer.
Yes...he is a guy.
Only a male could be this much trouble.
Anyway long story short
I came across a document that I wrote about a year or so ago.
It was 50 things you might not know about me.
And because I have sensed that you all are waiting patiently for just such a blog post.
I mean who wouldn't.....
I am going to post 25 today
and 25 next time.

So today's installment.........

1.     I am claustrophobic and can really only relax if I sit on the end of a row.

2.     I have a dog and like her but do not like “owning a dog’

3.     When I was little I thought I would grow up to star on a show like the Brady Bunch.

4.     I have known since I was born that God loves me.

5.     I can tie a cherry stem with my mouth.

6.     My favorite body part is my feet.

7.     I can only wear a tee shirt if it is a v neck.

8.     My favorite and lucky number is 8 and I was born on the eighth month and the eighth day.

9.     I am directly related to John Adams and John Quincy Adams.

10. I can pick up a roach with my bare hands

11. But I will scream if a gecko gets anywhere near me.

12. I knew I would marry my husband just a few days after talking to him.

13. I waited for him while he served a mission.

14. I do not like anything with red sauce in it.

15. I thought I hated pizza until I found out I only like it with pesto sauce and only if it is within what I call a pizza window (2 to 7 minutes)

16. Now pizza is one of my favorite foods ever.

17. I do not like spicy foods and believe that people who do have damaged their taste buds.

18. I do not believe there should ever be pain associated with eating.

19. My first car was a bright yellow VW rabbit.

20. I use to collect rabbits. (figurines)

21. I lived in downtown New York when I was five and still remember celebrating my birthday there.

22. I have a soft spot for people who stutter.

23. I feel guilty that I didn’t have more children.

24. I honestly feel that my children are amazing beyond belief.

25. I was bit on the rear end by a German Shepherd when I was 10.

Oh boy wasn't that fun!

I bet you can't wait until the last 25.......

Whatever.

All you had to do was ask.........

I got a sweet message from someone special today...
(I won't mention her name, she is much too modest for a shout out)
She requested that I write again
She is the first person to notice my absence.
How did she know that was all I was waiting for.....
Ok well maybe blaming my blogging absence on ya'll is a little unfair.
But Miss L's comment was really the spark that I needed to get me going again.
It has been quite a while since I have written and there are a myriad of reasons why....and I wrote so many wonderful posts at 2 am while lying in my bed that is really is a shame that I didn't write a one down.
But you see I was in a cocoon.
And everybody knows that there are no laptops in a cocoon.
Duh?
It is no surprise to you I am sure since I warned you that I was joining the ranks of the "empty nesters"
Side note: I hate the term empty nesters and from this time hence it will be banned in my Blogdom. I mean really....just because my children are gone does NOT make my nest empty. HELLO!! Todd and I are still sitting right here....in the nest.....big as day (p.s. working on that).
The nest is not only still occupied.
It's a fine nest.
I mean hey...I can still be a real barrel of monkeys
and as for Todd...... well ever heard of the term "eye candy".
We will henceforth be called the Monkey Eye Candy Party Nest! (don't worry I will work on that one)
End of side note.
I think I have finally exited my chrysalis.
Saved and transformed by a machine.
(oh yea, and the love and support of my family yada yada yada)
My new best friend and saving grace.
My camera.
I am a photographer.
I run my own business...(with a little help from my friends..you know who you are wink wink nudge nudge)
I am reborn.
(My only problem is my boss...she can be a real barrel of monkeys...if you know what I mean)
Thank you for waiting for me
Thank you little Miss L.
Thank you.
I shall not let you down again.