Grrrrr!

My Latest Gripe

I am not ashamed to admit that I am a big NASCAR fan. I enjoy watching the races and cheering on Jeff Gordon’s #24, as well as several other drivers and teams. My hunny and I have a lot of fun razzing each other about our favorite drivers. A couple years ago we had the opportunity to go to a NASCAR race in SoCal, and it was awesome. In fact, we’re hoping to go again, at least once, this year, as well.

With all that said, I have a new Gripe. It isn’t directed towards NASCAR, but towards their biggest sponsor, Nextel (aka Sprint). The saddest part is that I am a Sprint customer for my cell phone, and I am so angered by their actions that I am seriously considering paying the early termination fee and switching carriers. “Why?”, you may ask (and even if you didn’t), well, I’ll tell you….Sprint has decided that it is afraid of competition, and has banned all other mobile phone service providers from sponsoring teams/cars in the races! WHAT? This is anti-American! YES…it is. America is the land of freedom and opportunity. That is why this “Ban” is anti-American.

For those of you not familiar with NASCAR, each Team has to come up with sponsorship for their car(s)/driver(s), and this sponsorship literally costs millions of dollars each year, so it isn’t easy to find companies willing to fork over the money to get their logos put on a car. The larger the logo the more the $$, so the sponsors like DuPont (Jeff Gordon’s primary sponsor), (AAA, Mark Martin’s sponsor), and all the many others who have their logos ALL over specific cars have put much moola into sponsoring that car, thus getting advertisement as their logo goes flying around the track numerous time each Sunday (and occasional Saturday nights).

So, now, the team that has Cingular as their sponsor, and has had them for many years, is now out of luck. See, Cingular was grandfathered in, when Sprint took over sponsoring the elite division of NASCAR, but now AT&T has taken over and is phasing out the Cingular brand name, and wants to change Cingular logos to AT&T. The problem is that Sprint is afraid of competition and is whining that they will not allow it. Sprint (who owns NEXTEL) has the highest, TOP DOG line of sponsorship that is available for the series, and they can’t stand a tiny car driving around with a competitor’s name. It doesn’t make sense.

When Ford sponsors a weekly race, I don’t see them banning Chevy, Dodge or Pontiac from that race. When Lowe’s Motor Speedway has a race, I don’t see them banning the Home Depot car from racing on their track. That is because this is America and the land of opportunity. I believe the AT&T should have the freedom to fork over millions of dollars to sponsor a racing team that just wants to go out there and do what they have a passion for.

I know I am just one voice, and my tiny opinion wont change a darn thing, but once again…America is the land of the free and freedom of speech is one of my constitutional rights!

With all that said, I will return you to your regularly scheduled blogging.

Thank you!

This is me, after the race, in front of Jeff Gordon's Souvenir shop. Go Gordon! (oh and yes, I had blue hair...purple, too, but it doesn't show up so well in this pic! =-) )

This is my hunny with in front of his favorite driver's (Mark Martin) souvenir truck.

This is the California Speedway. The race cars are lined up down pit row, just itchin' to get going, while there is a line up of the Red SSR's that the drivers ride around in as they are introduced.

What Would YOU do?

Ok, so my question today for “What would you do…” is …”If you won a multi-million dollar jackpot?”

Quite often my hunny and I spend time just dreaming of what we could do with more money. Aside from the usual, buy a house and “Overhauling” our cars, the scenarios that bring us the most excitement to think about are being able to do things for our friends and loved ones.

I have this plan for a select few people in my life who mean more to me than I can explain. I want to find out what their dream car is, then go down and get a fully decked out/top of the line one, have it set up with the best sound/entertainment center available and add the little touches like seat covers embroidered with some emblem or design that they would treasure. In the glove box, I’d have a “binder type” organizer that would contain various Gas Station gift cards so they wouldn’t have to worry about gas for months, oh and insurance prepaid for a few years. In the back seat they would find a couple bags. One would be a duffle bag and inside it, they’d find a CD holder, but since I don’t know what music they need, I’d fill each CD slot with a $20 gift card to a music store so they could go buy the music they want. There would also be two camera bags inside, one a digital camera, memory cards and multiple back up batteries, and the other would have a video camera and accessories. I’d also include a handheld video game system of some sort with multiple games and accessories, subscriptions to puzzle magazines, and various other entertainment providing paraphernalia. The other bag in the back seat would be a laptop case with the best widescreen laptop available. Of course there would be two CD holders in this bag, as well, one filled with gift cards for computer software and the other filled with gift cards for DVD’s. One other major item that would be sitting in the driver’s seat would be a wallet. In this wallet would be gift cards galore to various restaurants (fast food and fine dining) and grocery stores. In the trunk they’d fine fully loaded Roadside emergency kit with all the necessities, and a suitcase filled with gift cards to various department and shoe stores so they could fill it up with clothes that they could wear on the vacation we had set up for them, the details of which would be included in the front zipper part of the suitcase.

I can’t tell you how fun it is to imagine being able to do that for some deserving people in my life. The stash in the car keeps growing, too.

There are many other things we’d like to do, including buying our parents their dream homes and letting them go hog wild designing and decorating them. My dad would get some land near the house (but out of sight so Mom doesn’t have to see it) for his junk yard and shop, where he can tinker on cars till his hearts content.

I’d have fun planning trips with family and friends to all the places we’ve dreamt of seeing.

There is just so many things that we could do for the people we love, but since the chances or winning the lottery are nil to none, it still brings us pleasure to dream about what we’d do. We also do what we can with the means given to us now. I have learned that life is short and it isn’t often that the outrageous dreams we have come true, so do what you can for those around you with what you have. Just the gestures and the care behind them are what the people who matter will be grateful for.

4 Things

Since I don’t have much time today to do a full blog, I am going to post my responses to an email sent by a good friend of mine. As it is quick and easy to Copy/Paste.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend!

Four jobs I have had in my life

1. Daycare Assistant @ Nancy Sherbino’s Day Care (1^st regular job complete w/payroll)
2. Cashier @ Mervyns Men’s/Shoes Dept. (1^st venture into Retail/Customer Service)
3. Cashier @ NEX2 (on Moffett Field) (1 day only…had a run in with the manager who told me off because I didn’t know the diff between hard liquor and wine---I was 18 and fresh out of a Baptist High School)
4. Cafeteria Worker @Hyles Anderson College (covered partial Room&Board)

Four movies I have watched over and over again

1. Dragonheart (LOVE dragons)
2. Ever After (Drew rocks as Cinderella)
3. The Cutting Edge (One of my long time faves)
4. Practical Magic (Just love this movie)

Four places I have lived
1. Beaufort, South Carolina (Born here)
2. Hawaii (moved away when I was 4…don’t remember a whole lot about it)
3. Lodi, CA (Went to Kindegarten – 2^nd grade there)
4. Oceanside, CA (loved the area. Lived there while I was married)

Four TV shows I love to watch

1. Ghost Whisperer
2. Buffy or Angel Reruns (My Truck’s License plate even pays homage to the great Joss Whedon…Grrr….Argh!!!!)
3. Bones (followed it cause “Angel” was on it, learned to love it cause it’s a great show)
4. Medium (I love this show cause the family dynamics aren’t too “Hollywoodized”…the family is portrayed as a normal family)

A few places I have been on vacation
1. Evansville, Indiana (Met a friend here for the weekend)
2. Surrey, BC (Got to visit my bestest friend who I met online)
3. New Plymouth, ID (Visiting one of my favorite people on earth…Aunt Tammy)
4. Pensacola, FL (Spent a couple weeks with my boyfriend-at-the-time, soon-to-be-ex-husband while he was in training)

Four of my favorite foods
1. Dad’s BBQ’d steaks (he has the best BBQ skills of anyone I know….mmmmmm)
2. Mom’s homemade pizza (yum)
3. Oooey Gooey Mac-n-cheese (mmmmmmmmm) (Not the kind from the box…homemade)
4. Got a three way tie here: Sushi, Meatloaf (my recipe) and Greek food….not sure which to choose so I’ll list them all!

Four places I would rather be right now
1. Driving along the coast with my hunny (Or anywhere else for that matter)
2. The Redwoods/mountains (sooooo peaceful and majestic)
3. Beach (Soooooo relaxing)
4. Disneyland with family and friends (SOooooo much fun!)

Clouds

I just love clouds. To me, they are one of the most gorgeous creations God gave us, along with the ocean and beaches, oh and trees and mountains...who am I kidding, everything that God created is amazing. So, to restate, I LOVE clouds. I love to watch them as they pass by, sometimes lollygagging, while other times they can't seem to get where they are going fast enough. Sometimes they travel in massive groups, and sometimes they are solo. I love to imagine diferent shapes in each one (Dragons are the most common for me) or just stare in awe of how gorgeous they are. To me, they are awesome (in this case the literal meaning of the word...to inspire awe) whether they are crisp, gleaming white, or ominous shades of gray, not to mention the many hues of the rainbow they become at sunrise/sunset. What an amazing canvas God has to "Doodle" on. I really can't express all the wonder that Clouds hold for me. They inspire me beyond words sometimes, but also, they can inspire my words. I wrote the poem below several years ago, and as you can tell, it was inspired by the clouds! I figured that since they seem to be my subject for the day, I'd share this with everyone!

Mystery Of the Clouds

by Kat Mosher

She caught herself starring at the clouds again

Lost in memories that were like the wind

Blowing through her heart and mind

Ghostly images that were left behind

Perhaps from a dream she can’t quite recall

Or maybe they’re not even memories at all.

Maybe they’re fantasies; “imaginations”, per say

But they seem too real…too familiar in some way.

As if she lived them in a lifetime before,

If only there were more details to explore.

When she actually tries to focus on them

They’re gone, forgotten, as if they’d never been

Lost in the clouds, hidden from view

Surrounded by mist and slipper as dew

Just when she thinks something might make sense

She loses that thought in the fog so dense

She just can’t quite figure out the connection

Between the clouds and their distraction

How she could get lost for minutes at a time

Just admiring the clouds…were they a sign?

A sign to what, though? Something from her past?

Could they somehow fill in the blanks, at last.

Were the clouds a clue to the missing years?

Could they explain her hopes and fears.

Perhaps some day she’ll find the keys,

That unlock the cloud’s mysteries.

Until that day, she’ll keep admiring the glory

Of the clouds above and they’re phantom story.

It's All About ME!!!

This was inspired by Gracey's entry today. Her Monday Memory was about the day she learned to stand up for herself, when she was in fourth grade. That got me thinking a bit, and led to my entry today. I have been thinking about when did I become "Me" and I changed the line of thought a bit and started remembering more of when I began to like the "Me" that I am.

I grew up in a Christian school, and though I never intend to go back to the church that the school was a part of, I don't regret that my parents sent me there. It is so scary to think how things may have changed had they not led me down the paths that they did when I was younger.

I was always the "5th wheel on a 4-wheel drive" in my class/school. In our graduating class there were 13 of us (SMALL private school), six guys, seven girls, and I was definitely the "Odd man (girl) out". All the other girls were skinny and popular, and by our Senior year ALL of them were cheerleaders, and the guys were on the team, or popular in their own rights for whatever they did. I wasn't exactly "Shunned", but I definitely was not part of the "IN" group. I think I was tolerated, but never accepted. Now, don't get me wrong, I am not pitying myself here, just trying to explain a little of my school life.

Now, fast forwarding quite a bit, to the end of my marriage. The best summary of why things ended was "Better off friends" and by separating, I feel like we may have lost the marriage, but in time we were able to mend the friendship, and I am happy to say that we are still friends, nearly 7 years later. Anyway, the year after I moved away from Oceanside and my husband and back home, has to be the year that I learned to really like the person I had become. During that time, I grew up a lot and made MANY self discoveries, including the fact that I am very strong and very resilient. I learned to stop feeling like I was responsible for every thing that went wrong for anyone I knew (self inflicted, trust me), to realizing that I am not that powerful or important (it really isn't ALL about me!), but I am special.

I learned to do things on my own. I used to be paranoid about going out by myself, even to the grocery store. I was worried what people were thinking and saying about me (left over anxieties from High School experiences), until one day it dawned on me once again, I am not that important that EVERYone is focusing solely on me. I took the power back, the power that I had given to others, and I strengthened myself with that power. I still remember one of my defining "Power of Me" moments (this may sound really pathetic), but I ventured to the theater and watched a movie BY MYSELF!!!!! It was just a small little action, which no one around me even knew I was doing, but I did it. I went to the theater alone, bought my ticket alone, got my popcorn alone, sat alone, and completely enjoyed the movie, ALONE!

I walked out of that theater so empowered and jazzed, and I still feel that triumph when I think about that day. That was just one of the many little steps that led me to realize, I am a great person, and I really like me. After all, if I don't like me, why should anyone else?

It does still bother me if I find out that someone doesn't like me, but not nearly like it used to. I have learned that I shouldn't give them the power to make me unhappy. It really is their loss if they choose to not like me, and I really am better off without their negativity in my life.

So, now that I sound like I am completely full of myself, I just want to add, that I still have many moments of weaknesses when I am back down to thinking I'm nothing, but they don't last as long as they used to, and it is because I have surrounded myself with people who love the real me and accept the real me. In fact, I live in a house full of them!

I couldn't be more blessed in this life, and I owe it all to God...He is the one who allows me to be the person I am, and more accurately, HE is the reason I am the person I am.

So, my words of wisdom for today...Be the best You possible, after all, no one else can do that for you!

Pictures from the past month

The holidays and days surrounding them had many opportunities for pictures, so I thought I'd share some of the scenery ones from various road trips we made (I'm sure it's subtle, so I don't think you'll be able to guess one of my favorite places to visit!!! here's a hint...its where the sand and water meet!!!:

These were both taken when my Hunny and I got to go for a ride to the coast on the day after New Year's Day...Gotta love being so close to the ocean!


Theses were taken a couple of weeks before when I needed some "Me" time. Can't beat the therapy of the beach!

And finally, these were taken when a couple friends from work, Mom Dad and I all drove down to a friend's house in Oceanside, CA for her annual Christmas Cookie Baking party (it is quite the commute to get there now...used to be 15 minutes, but since she thought she needed to be closer to her grandbabies, its now more like 7-8 hours...but she and her family are worth every minute!)

Another Year, Another year older!

Happy 2007, Everyone!

Yes, I know we're already nearly two weeks into the new year, but hey, its my first blog of the year, and I do hope everyone has a great year! Ours has been busy already.
We were lucky enough to have a week and a half off from work, so that made the holidays even nicer, but the best part of the holidays was spending time with family. I was able to go on a nice ride to the beach with my hunny the day after New Years, and then got spoiled on my birthday this past weekend. All in all it has been a great year and I plan to keep doing my part to keep it that way.

I'm sorry I'm not able to be very faithful at the blogging thing. Work only allows minimal blog time (breaks/lunch time)and when I get home I don't get on my computer too much, but I will try my best to do better.

Ok, so I know this is a pretty lame blog, but I wanted to let you know I'm still alive and well. I'll post a bit more later, maybe something about dragons! Who knows!

Ok, Happy Wednesday, Everyone!