Check THIS out!

Mt . Bohemia, one of the places I used to patrol at WAY up the Keweenaw from Mont Ripley is rated as one of the top 10, unknown, kick-ass world ski destinations! Yeah! I love this place, but most runs are rated expert, and bring a pair of rock skis in case the snow hasn't been falling like it should! A REAL hill...no snow makers!

Check out the article at MSN.

On another note, Monarch opened last week and it hasn't quit snowing up there in the last few days. To top it off, Colorado is under a snow advisory! We don't have much of anything here, just a dusting, but the hills are getting hammered! I'm taking the kids Friday no matter what! Sick or otherwise....see below:

So my partying has caught up with me...I have walking pneumonia. Fabulous. Seems a bit too much cigarette smoke from the bars and restaurants in Michigan, combined with my asthma caused a lung infection. Again, fabulous. Michigan needs to be a smoke-free state too, before Christmas, then I can party again. I feel fine, but am really tired and am having a hard time breathing. Probably why I'm tired.

God I hate girls...

I AM NOT amused this morning. AT ALL. This is the letter I would LOVE to hand out to my team, but have held myself back and dealt with things more calmly. The consequences do stay the same however...


To my dear, sweet girls who failed to show up at practice this morning,

First I would like to express my concerns pertaining to coaching cheerleaders in the first place. I am not, nor ever will be, a perky cheerleader, but took this job because I have a background both stunting and dancing and felt I would be an asset to your team (plus it pays decent). Because of this, I expect you to be the perky cheerleaders you choose to be at 6:30 am as well as during game times. Why you ask? Because you choose 6:30 am practices every other week, and if I'm here doing my best for you, so I expect you to also be here doing your best for me.

Let me also explain to you what 6:30 am practices entail for me, especially this week while I am playing 'mom' to three children ages 6 through 12...I must get up extra early in order to do chores. When I say early, I mean around 4 am. Then I must get three tired children up, make them breakfast, and get them on their way to get ready for school. Then I must come here and unlock the doors to let you all in. Except there was only two people there this morning, and when I called your homes, you were in bed. Since somebody , somewhere has failed to teach you that there are consequences to your actions, I feel that maybe I DO actually need to teach a few of you a lesson or two.

This does NOT make me happy because I am not your mother, your father, your guardian, etc... In fact, I don't have any children of my own! Go figure. But if I did, I'd be kicking their butts right now for irresponsibility. Plus I'm pretty sure I'm getting sick to top it all off...and I don't have anybody to take care of me like you all do. Actually, you are probably lucky I'm getting sick and have almost no voice, this way I'm too tired to get riled up, and can't yell. On the downside, this also means I have no energy to deal with this, so if it occurs again at our next practice, I am kicking you off the team. Also be warned, when you do show up you will be running your little tail-ends off for me all morning and hopefully we will NEVER have a repeat of this 'little' problem.

I just wanted to make sure that we were on all on the same page as each other so communication problems wouldn't be an issue. If you have any questions you know where to reach me.

Miss. McLeod

P.S. For those of you who had a 'real' problem getting into school this morning: When I ask you if you have my phone number, don't lie and say yes because you are too lazy to get a pen to write it down. See what happens when you can't reach me in the morning? Tough.

WooHoo!

It's a REALLY good day! My new Sketcher's came in! I have been looking for a flat to wear with everything...jeans, dress, etc...something that could look okay with all kinds of colors, but mostly black. I know, I always ask the impossible, but look what I found!

Sweet Home Colorado

Today is going to be a good day despite being a Monday. My Bald Eagle is back for the winter! He always sits on the (one) tree next to the road I take into work. I'll have to remember my camera sometime.

Even though it is extrememly isolated out here and lonely on the best of days, I wouldn't change it for the world. Just driving home through the mountians always gets me. Don't get me wrong. It was wonderful to visit friends and I wish I lived closer to family, but, wow, you have to see it to understand.

Yesterday was crazy once I got home! I visited with Lisa and Dave in Conifer for a few hours. Her girls are beautiful! They are so cute and funny! I picked up Maverick and Dixie at the vets' (who are friend's of mine). Mav just got fixed, poor bugger, and pretty much spent the rest of the afternoon walking sideways due to whatever drugs he was given. He looked like a few people I know on a REALLY good night. I wanted what he was having. Sedona's still at one of my student's but I'm picking her up on my way into Alamosa for dance tonight. Everyone looked good back home, but one of my bossy mares pinned Kelly's little paint filly up against the wall and she cut her heel up while I was doing chores. Luckily I caught it right away and wrapped it up so it won't separate and scar. No rest for the wicked! Here we go again! It's always something...

So other than a long drive and playing vet nothing new except a LOT of sunshine and blue skies!

She's ALIVE!

I've been in a perpetual state of drunkeness or hangover since the day I arrived. So if some of this doesn't make sense bear with me. Cool thing is I'm sitting in the truck writing this as my dad drives me to the airport. I love this broadband stuff. Oh - and I LOVE dunkin' donuts!

Idiot wonder here thought I had a 6am flight this morning. Try 8:10. BIG difference. I'm such a moron. Dad stumbled across that fact last night. I could have stayed out longer;(

Yes, yes, to quell any doubt, I have survived my ten year reunion. It was, to say the least, interesting. Let's begin where it all started shall we?

Reunion

For starters, my brother tentatively made plans to go to the restaurant early with me and his girlfriend to 'scope' out the situation, get a decent meal and get a few cocktails down. Notice I say 'tentatively'. He didn't pick me up until 8:30. Half hour AFTER the reunion had started, so already the scoping out bit is down the drain.

We arrive, they get a few drinks, I wander into the reunion shaking from nerves, sign in, and make a beeline for the bar. A few girls I played ball with walked in right after me, and not only did they not even say hi, they ignored me completely. Great way to start out. Seems some things never change at all.

So, whiskey in hand, I head back to my little bro and check out the people still wandering in until I see a girl who thought she was 'all that and then some'; now was as large as a cow pass by...so my whiskey induced strength kicked in and I felt brave enough to apply myself to the situation...laughing all the way! I think I hurt myself laughing that night at similar situations. My abs still hurt. Either that or the winter insulation is kicking in and I need to do more crunches...

Once inside yet again, I immediately saw an old friend whom was always a good back-up date for the many events I never had a date for. I figured he'd turned into a major hottie, and I was SOOOO right! He seemed alone, we were having a great conversation, I'm thinking, "wow! I should have picked up on this 10 years ago! What a dumbass I was (well, still am but let's not go there)!" and then the pictures of the wife and kid come out. *Sigh* Oh well. He looks great. His wife is beautiful. His kid is adorable. I seriously couldn't be happier for him because he was one of the nicest guys in the school. So we're going to keep in touch and get together at Christmas so I can meet the rest of the family.

Moving on...$60.00 ticket, no food but munchies, no top shelf liquor, and only about 2 hours until we have to start paying...and this place isn't cheap. No reunion stuff either, like pictures, or who's changed, or anything like that...I think strange, but maybe good. There are people I didn't mingle with back then and I don't want to mingle with them now.

Some people didn't change at all. The little whores still looked like little whores. The potheads were still potheads. Some girls who deserved to stay beautiful did, and others didn't. And then there were the people who changed A LOT! Like a girl who I swear only kept me around as a charity friend case...who was HUGE! And the bald, fat guys I didn't recognize until I realized they were some of the most popular guys back in high school! I laughed so hard, and some of the people I was with just didn't get it! I guess we were on different levels back than too. It may be evil, but it makes me feel good. I'm allowed that every now and then.

Surprisingly, a few guys made there way over to me for introductions, only to figure out who I was. I'm thinking I made an impression? Good, that's EXACTLY what I wanted to do! I discovered that guys do maybe like a chick who can take care of herself. Or perhaps they're just tired of the rich, whining attitude of so many girls from Birmingham, and I was a refreshing change? Or maybe my redneck, cowgirl ways are scary so they just decided to be nice so I didn't hurt them?

I did my best to drink $60 worth of liquor. Didn't happen. I have to remember that even though I'm at sea level it doesn't mean I can drink like I used to in college. I ALREADY killed my liver. Of course I arrived home around 2 am starving and my dad was still up, so we ordered a pizza (yeah for city food!) and stayed up talking.

Saturday

I saw Kara! It was so great to finally see my 'kid' again! She looks absolutely beautiful and her daughters are adorable! Motherhood definitely agrees with her. He parents' house is like a mini Scott daycare. The whole family was there for the holiday! I'm so glad things are working out for her and all our prayers concerning her girls have been answered! I cannot wait to see her again over Christmas if we can find the time.

Went to dinner with the folks and my brother and his girlfriend. Supposedly he's going to propose here sometime soon. NOW I feel old. Since when does your younger sibling find happiness first? That's not fair. Anyway, we went to this expensive restaurant called 'The Moose Preserve' and it's all decorated like the UP! And they have hamburgers called 'The Houghton Burger' and 'The Hancock Burger' and a UP Realty sign on the wall...and I'm thinking, "people pay $20 a meal for this, but avoid the UP and it's backwoods ways like the plague?". How can they honestly make money off that? Do the people up there know about this? Do the people that own the restaurant know that a lot raging alcoholics populate the UP? VERY strange. Why should I pay $20 for a Walleye dinner when I could catch one and make the same thing, but only better? But than again, that's me and I'm strange. So if anyone if jonesin' for some UP surroundings, visit 'The Moose Preserve'. Never mind that most of us never caught a glimpse of a Moose up there...and I was a FORESTER for God's sake!

Anywho - went out for a few drinks last night because I forgot I'm a lightweight despite my convictions I can drink more at sea level. Well, that and a boy was buying, which is always a good reason in anybody's book. And I'm not writing anymore about that because I know he's reading this (ha, ha, ha). Remembered another thing. I shouldn't drink caffeine. Oh yeah! I'm scatter-brained and hyper enough without it! How could I forget? So I basically have gotten no sleep because my blood pressure was a bit up there...I could have been bouncing off a wall if I hadn't been trying to get at least a few hours of sleep. Can anyone say DECAFE?!? For crying out loud...

Maybe I should have pulled an all-nighter afterall...but then things REALLY would have sucked today trying to get chores done, dog's picked up, paper's graded, and driving home from Denver...and this week isn't exactly condusive to catching up on sleep. I have dance Monday night, coaching Tueday and Thursday before school at 6:30 am, babysitting my friend's kids Tuesday and Wednesday while she and her husband attend an out of town conference, a basketball tourny Thursday, skiing Friday with the class I sponsor....ahhhhh! Back to the psychotic schedule I keep. Somewhere in there I think I have a firefighting training also...hmmmm....I need to check my planner....

Signing out all you beautiful people. Until the next time I decide to terrorize the Detroit area! Notice I already have a ticker counting down...

OMG

Ok- I'm freaking out about this whole reunion thing. Really freaking out. I have broken out in hives. I have NEVER broken out in hives before. Luckily they seem to be going away already, maybe.

I can't believe I thought this was a good idea. I HATED high school. What was I thinking when I said I would go? Like it would make me a stronger person by surviving this event? I'm strong enough! I have done many more things people will probably consider me redneck for, but that I'm proud of!

I think I need to call in backup. Big Rock between 8 and 11 pm. I'm on the Maple side of the place, but I know the other side of the bar is open. Hopefully my brother follows through and gets together with his girlfriend and meets me over there. Anybody else want to come save me? I suppose I could still back out, but I flew all the way here AND already paid for the night.

Maybe I'm just retarded, but I've really decided I don't want to go anymore.

Happy Thanksgiving Turkeys!

Thanks to all the wonderful ladies who made it out last night to PAAARRRTTTYY with me! I think there may be some Saturday night cocktails going on also...but not for too late 'cause I have a 6am flight! Anyone who wants to rescue me from my reunion tomorrow night may also (Alanna and Jacko have already offered, so it could be an "Alph Gam's crash my reunion" Reunion. How fun!) . I'll be at Big Rock and wouldn't mind to see a few familiar and FRIENDLY faces!

We need to do this again over Christmas! And for everyone at the Lions game, GO LIONS! Thay are winning for a change right now! Yeah!

Thoughts from last night: I really enjoy the 'no smoking in public places' policy Colorado has employed. Michigan needs to do that. It's amazing...no smoking, stinky hair in the morning...no stinky cloths...I didn't realize how much of a difference it made until last night!

The Piston's Jacket! Boys, don't wear 80's style sports jacket and slide the sleeves up to your elbows. It's strange...and sort of scary.

The 'Rug' - If you are balding, bald gracefully! Don't look like somebody killed a furby and put it on your head. I kept expecting it to start talking. Jennie and I kept trying to get a pic, but they kept coming out blurry...maybe because we were laughing to hard. Bald is sexy! Comb overs and rugs ARE NOT!

As Jennie mentioned...big belts look good on models, but not on normal people. There must have been a sale on big, bright, in your face red patent leather belts too...they seemed to have been everywhere! Patent leather should be outlawed for people over 6 years old.

Mr. B's serves Alph Gam shots (aka, Stoplights) in separate glasses! Three separate shots? It's much better all together!

I love Jennie's Honda Civic! I'm having nostalgia for my old civic...

I don't like long lines to get into bars and snotty doormen. Attitude problems are not sexy, and no chick was checking you out because you thought you were hot shit Mr. 'the rock' doorman! We had much more fun at Mr. B's anyway! Ha!

Guys, unless you live back in Colorado where I live...Nascar hats should be left at home when you are out for the evening.

Thanks to Jennie for finding my 'boyfriend' who looks like he followed me from Colorado. I don't really know how to describe him right now...it was interesting.

Jacko is a great bodyguard. Quiet, but watchful!

Good things come to those who wait, and wait, and wait, and wait...

So my week is better than when I last posted. For starters, I'm sitting at HOME for the first time since I've moved to Colorado working on the internet! It's a fairly expensive service, but I get it through Verizon and it beats having to pay for a home line that I would never use. Plus I bring my laptop with me everywhere so it's very convenient. It is a bit slow when my bars are low, but it's not too bad...

Also - I haven't received my new phone yet, which means.......I'm hooked up to the 'damaged' phone which was suddenly reincarnated this afternoon and is back up to par. That also means I get my $250 back that I was spending to replace this one! Yeah me!

So I decided to post some pics finally of the last few months!

I've also decided to make my own Christmas cards this year, so all of you who have my personal e-mail, SEND ME YOUR ADDRESS! If you don't have my e-mail, send a message out through the AGD list...and I'll try to do that too. I've decided I want to grow up some and actually keep an address book.

Fun List

NINE things you last did:
9. last place you were: In my barn doing chores and feeding horses before having to come into school.
8. last cigarette: I don't smoke
7. last beverage: water
6. last movie watched: A Love Song for Bobby Long
5. last phone call: My mom to tell her my phone is working.
4. last song played: Something’s Gotta Give by Leann Rimes
3. last bubble bath: Last month
2. last time you cried: Night before last
1. last alcoholic drink: Greek Wine

EIGHT have you evers:
8. have you ever dated someone twice: Yes – I’ve been on and off with more than one guy in the past
7. have you ever been cheated on: Probably, but I really don’t want to know the details. I’m not with them anymore anyway.
6. have you ever kissed someone: Ever? Of course, but not in a long while. Today? Ha, ha, ha..
5. have you ever kissed someone you regret: I don’t think so…
4. have you ever fallen in love: Absolutely
3. have you ever lost someone: As in death? Yes. As in physically losing someone? Friends at concerts, students at the amusement park, myself in Greece...
2. have you ever been depressed: Sure
1. have you ever been drunk and thrown up: Who hasn't?

SEVEN things you have on:
7. My ring from Delphi
6. blue jeans
5. Cool bling-bling watch I just bought from Sheplers
4. The bracelet my mom bought me in Sante Fe
3. Cropped ¾ sleeve, dark blue sweater I bought at Walmart (but everyone thinks I got it at an expensive store at the mall in the Springs).
2. Silver twisted necklace
1. Fun boy shorts and sports bra (I was tired this morning and it looked comfortable)

SIX things you did in the past three days:
6. Went to Dance Class
5. Went horseback riding
4. Took my dogs for a walk in the pasture
3. Took Maverick for a walk along the Rio Grande between Dance classes
2. Spoke with my friend Erika back in Michigan
1. Cooked myself an Elk steak dinner, baked potatoes and roasted peppers, but put it away in the fridge since it just didn’t seem right cooking a big dinner with nobody to share it with.

FIVE people you can tell pretty much anything to (in no order):
5. Kelly
4. Erika
3. Matt
2. Andrea
1. Virginia

FOUR websites visited today:
4. Amazon.com
3. MSN homepage
2. AGD Blogs (I think I can group these together yes?)
1. Victoria’s Secret

THREE things you hope to accomplish today:
3. The article about Greece for the school newspaper
2. My pictures downloaded
1. Get through an after school meeting calmly…

TWO things you hope to do before you die:
2. Get married and start a family
1. Feel like I have been successful and made a difference

ONE reason you’re happy today:
1. My students love me

The (Mis) Adventures of a Monday

Yeah! I have internet at home, but cannot use it because I’m a dumbass. Let me explain. I am cursed. I have the evil eye. I know I do. Somebody, somewhere is thinking nasty thoughts in my direction. And I swear I know who it is…a former student who was back to visit. My mother always said I was cursed and that she blamed her side of the family for it. I should have heeded her advice when I had the chance while I was in Greece, the country that I swear invented this evil eye crap. Everywhere you turn there’s another talisman against it. I was surrounded by them daily, but did I get myself one for insurance against this type of stuff? No, of course not…and I’ve been paying the price! I mean seriously, how many people do you know who have been trapped by beaver?!

So it all started yesterday evening when I went to dance and was forced into a bad mood by the catty little snots that were present. The studio is way overcrowded on Mondays, but I have a VFD meeting tonight and can’t make it tonight. I survived, felt I accomplished nothing and drove 80 miles round trip for nothing as well, and then stopped for gas on the way home…where the evil eye first kicked in. Somehow the fuel injector bottle that was emptying into my gas tank decided to ‘jump’ free as I was putting my card into the reader. Of course it got all over my new North Face jacket I had saved for all summer. I very rarely buy anything REALLY nice or expensive for myself, so I was pretty bummed, but figured I could find a way to clean it at home. Sure enough it ended up in the washer, and I decided to download some pics and update this blog and do something fun before I started studying for the exam I have on Saturday.

Then I couldn’t find the phone. I looked all over, in the house, the truck, outside in case Maverick carried it off to be buried…nowhere. And then it dawned on me where it was. Yup, I washed my brand new Razor phone. No warranty on water damage. Go figure. Thank God I still have my old phone around with all my contacts and everything….Again, buy myself something nice, and within a few weeks I’ve managed to ruin it. So $250 dollars later, I have a new phone in the mail on it’s way to me. Thank God for credit cards.

But it doesn’t end there! Since I was talking with Verizon on my old phone, I had to step outside because it gets such horrid service I don’t get any signal in my house. I left Maverick in the house. Now he is a wonderful pup, but lately he’s been going through a ‘terrible two’ stage and has decided anything moving, not moving, or smelling like it once could have moved needs to be explored, picked up, put in his mouth, buried or chewed up. So once my business was finished and I was feeling a bit poorer than usual, I walk into the carnage of what was once my garbage, a stuffed animal, a pair of shoes (old ones though that were being replaced) and a few hair clips…nothing all that horrid, but still, not behavior that is acceptable by my animals…and then I noticed my camera case laying on the floor…no camera. Oh boy. Maverick already was hiding under the couch, Sedona was playing warden and had him trapped under there by laying in front of the opening, and Dixie was sleeping on the rug in the family room…like a little kid who’s smart enough not to get involved. I’m ranting around the house looking for the camera and finally found it on my bed along with some new decorative tooth marks on it. Thank God it’s fine, my mother had the insight to by me a camera with a titanium cover since I’m such a mess on a good day.

I hate Mondays.

It's Official!

Once again the computers here are on the 'blink' so I'm going to hurry up and post this before it all shuts back down...

I will be back in good 'ol Birmingham late Tuesday night before Thanksgiving until Sunday morning. I wanted to stay another day but couldn't get the time off work.

So for all you chicka's in town...let's get together!

Should be getting internet at home here REAL soon so I can update this thing a bit more often!

E-mail all your numbers if I don't have them and let's have a few nights out! I'm WAY overdue!