I need to post about the metaphysical fair... and I will .. but today I'm just so excited....

It's official - I'm going to Twicon! Holy Schnikies! Yeah, yeah.... I know... we all always sort of smirk about the Trekkies - or whoever else is going to conventions of whatever their particular fandom. But you know what? Why? If it is something you love, you really enjoy, have a passion about and love to share with others - why is a convention something to scoff about? Yes, there are some "crazies" - their whole world evolves around whatever fandom they're in. Extremes are never healthy. But mostly - I would like to think - a convention is just a place where you can get together with other people who share a passion. A place to meet new people, to discuss, to enjoy and just generally have a great time.

And that's what Angie and I are going to do - have a great time! I'm not even sure why I never went to a HP convention? I guess I just didn't know there were any? Maybe they weren't advertised as much as Twicon. Truth be told - if it wasn't for Angie I probably wouldn't know about Twicon. I've always been the bigger HP fan (as oppposed to Twilight). Some of my friends may smirk at that - seeing all the Twilight memorabilia I have at home. But seriously - I love the Twilight saga - but if somebody other than Rob would have been cast as Edward I probably would not be AS nuts about it as I am right now. Nevertheless, this will be a once in a lifetime experience (well.... that's a figure of speech - I may go to other conventions, if I enjoy this) - but you know what I mean. An opportunity presented itself and you just have to grab those. I'm a firm believer that life is all about experiences, of trying new things every now and then - stepping out of your comfort zone sometimes.

To make a long story short - We finally registered! They gave us a last minute incentive (as if we needed one of those... LOL) - if we were registered by the 29th of April we had a chance to get into an exclusive VIP afterparty - with a chance to rub elbows with some of the guests! Unfortunately Angie didn't get in - but I did! OMG! I didn't want to go without her, but she's making me..... LOL...... I'm hoping there is a chance that I can go in for a little bit and then give her my ticket so she can go in. We'll see.

But we are both going to the 100 Monkeys concert - for all of you who don't know (and I didn't until recently) - that's Jackson Rathbone's band!!!! There were only a limited number of tickets and they sold out withing like 30 minutes. I don't know how many times I hit "refresh" on that darn website. And then I was only able to buy ONE ticket - where it said you could buy more than one. So I had to text Angie to ask her password, praying that she would be able to answer. I figured she would have her phone close by, because she wanted to know how the ticket snatching went. But she didn't answer right away! I was sweating bullets, sending another text - "SCREAMING" at her She finally texted back. Then I was so nervous I think I capitalized the password and it didn't work. When I finally got into her account I was so freaked out I think I held my breath the whole time. But then I finally put all my credit card info in and hit "continue" and - tataaaaaa!!!! I had a ticket for her as well. Shortly after that the link went down on the site. So yes... a close call! But yeah... this was Angie's event. So if I had gotten only one ticket - SHE was going in - regardless!!!!!!!

Now it looks like there will be another nailbiter at the horizon. There will be a special, exclusive Q&A with Jackson Rathbone. (I think I need to get some of his other work, to familiarize myself more... LOL) - There will only be 500 tickets, so I'm pretty sure Angie and I both have to hit "refresh" at our respective computers to be able to get in! But again - if we get only one ticket between the two of us - SHE is going in! The cool thing about this one is, that - there will be 25 selected who will get an opportunity to meet him up close and personal!!!! Yeah.... she SO WILL get that!!!!!!

There is also a call for Fanfic - they'll select a winner and they'll get some prices, including a chance to be featured in a little "pamphlet" from Twicon and display on a website. That would be kind of cool, so I'm working on that - as is Angie! I'm not holding my breath - but nothing dared is nothing gained.

Needless to say - can you tell I'm stoked? It'll be a lot of fun - and the only way it could be better is if my BFF could go with as well. "The Twilight girls" united - as we were for the movie premiere! We'll miss you, Cynde - it won't be the same without you !!!!!!

ET's 'Twilight' 'New Moon' Exclusive!

When I first found out that we were indeed moving to Colorado (I think that was back in November) I started looking for jobs. When I couldn't really come up with any interesting prospects other than Administrative Assistants or store clerks (NOT that there is anything wrong with that to make an honest living) I paused for a minute. I figured this would be the time to find a job that I really love - something that I WANT to do so that work isn't work. I've been in a job that was hard and stressful for long enough. I got out so that I can follow my dream. And while that dream is being worked on I need something to sustain myself. So why not go towards that direction in that respect as well.

So I googled "doggy day care in Colorado Springs" to see if there was a market here for that kind of thing, thinking that I could run my own petsitting business if push came to shove. I came across a few websites. But this one caught my eye. It is called Lucky Dog. I immediately  had a good feeling about it. I browsed their site and looked to see if they were hiring. All it said was that they are always looking for pet lovers to add to their staff. But there was no application process. Well, I emailed the general manager directly. Well, she must have liked something I said or something she saw in my resumee, because she said to come by and fill out an application as soon as I got there and to make sure to tell the receptionist there that she wanted to talk to me personally.

Well ... the time had finally come. I went and filled out the application. The owner didn't really have time to interview me, she told me beforehand that she was busy this week. Nevertheless, while I sat there filling stuff out, she walked by and introduced herself. On my way home - not a half hour later, the location manager called me back and said they don't really have a full-time position on their staff just yet, but they are starting up their petsitting business and would like to bring me in on an on-call basis for that and then move me into a full shift once a spot becomes available. Was I interested in that?

WAS I? Heck yes! All that without an interview!?!?!?!?! She proceeds to tell me that they already have a client lined up that they need me for for next week. Can I come by tomorrow to do a quick interview, fill out some paperwork and then head out to the client for an initial consultation? Ummm... Sure.... no problem!

So today was my "interview" - which was really just more a tour of the facility and some explanation on how stuff works. Then I headed out with the other sitter, who proceeded to give me the paperwork for the client and said - "well - you know what you're doing anyway. Here is our paperwork - I'll just observe and you can interview the client". Alrighty then ... no problem! Piece of cake!

My point is, I guess, that if something is right everything just falls into place. I mean, yes, sometimes you have to work hard for what you really want - but still - if everything is right there it works out as well. And it's not that I haven't worked hard for the experience that undoubtedly helped me here landing this job. I am so grateful that some people just are able to look at others and see what's there without any bullcrap games. I mean - these people don't know me from Jack. All they know is what's in my resumee and what I've told them. I don't even know if they called any of the references yet. But somehow seeing me and really listening to me was enough to convince this lady to talk about me to the rest of her staff and to basically hire me on the spot, without really an interview. And today I  was already part of the team. I mean - she showed me around and I didn't have the feeling of somebody new coming in, but they already made me feel like I was supposed to be there.

I am so blessed! Thank you Angels!

Well.... I already posted a whole album about the new house on facebook yesterday. So I thought I'd just add the pictures of the treck to COS on here, since there is a little more story to tell.....

Of course, when we first got here we didn't have internet yet, so I couldn't really report from the third day. Luckily the hotels along the way provided me with my daily "fix".... LOL.... Did you know, btw, that all the rest stations on the highways now offer free wireless internet? I guess a lot of truckers use that now, as well. And why not?

OK.. so here it goes. Prepare for another onslaught of photos!

This is how we started out. This is the view I had for three days! Did you notice by the way, how low the MPV sits? ;P - packed to the gills - I'm telling you!

We did this a lot! We usually drove 1 1/2 to 2 hours then either gas, pp, or stretching break. Sometimes all of the above! I believe this was in Selma, AL

This is the view into my car. :O - Cedric on the bottom, Silvester on top, cooler at hand - and this is literally and physically the ONLY room in this car - the driver's seat.

The second morning - Monroe, LA! We are all packed up again and ready to go.

Sylvi's car looked similar to mine, except that her "backseat" was relatively open, with Rygar occupying one seat, Sierra the other and Moritz on the floor (can't see him). But behind that was the same wall that you could find in mine!

After one of the stretching breaks Sierra decided she had enough of the backseat and wanted a shot at my driver's seat! Silvester didn't think that was funny!

The second night. The hotel in Vernon, TX. As you can see Cedric wasn't really that stressed out or concerned about the whole trip thing. Somehow he found a way to entertain himself. (oh... and yeah... that is Nemo's tail hanging out of the litter box.... LOL)

As long as his fluffy blue pillow is there, Silvester can sleep anywhere. Poor thing had it worst of everybody, though. Motion sickness is no fun, and he promptly threw up every single day. But then the medicine kicked in and he at least was able to sleep most of the time. He used the time in the hotel wisely to recover.

When we went to bed Lucy had found her own accomodations - in my travel bag ...

... but when we woke up the next morning Nemo occupied that same spot!

The third day started out early, but a little rough. We had to stop several times for various reasons. One of them was that Max found a way to exploit a weak spot in the construction of the kennel door and escaped into the car!

 

Ahhhhh.... New Mexico and Mesas in the background!

And this is the first time we saw the Colorado Rockies (very faintly in this picture through the glass with the crack.... LOL)! Not much longer! Are we there yet?

YESSSSSSSS!

Hal got us "Welcome Home" balloons. How cute is that?

Together again!

And I already have a "view" picture on the facebook. But this is a little different angle and not zoomed in. Still very stunning, no?

And this was yesterday! Beautiful sunset. Same view from our backyard!

I love it here! Everything seems to be right up my ally. You can get EVERYthing organic! Everybody is very conscious and into recycling. The people are very genuinely friendly and Customer Service still seems to be very valued here. It just feels like home. Yay!

Poor Silvester! I should have never let him eat anything in the morning. I know better. But he didn't eat much last night, so I let him. *sigh*. We were doing good for about an hour and a half. then all of a sudden Silvester started panting and threw up. I wasn't fast enough this time. It went everywhere..... *sigh*. However, the natural pet travel stuff works fine. He is not drooling as much as he did when I moved from NC to GA. As a matter of fact. Today there was almost none - and he slept for most of the way after he threw up. But I'm a little worried now. Tonight he's not drinking and eating like he did yesterday. And he didn't want to sit on me either. I think he's mad at me. Only one more day ..... and then hopefully they'll rejoice in the new house.

Cedric and Nemo seem content now - getting used to the new routine. Even Lucy tonight is eating and walking around. Sylvi tells me Max keeps hiding under the bed in the other room and Sierra is worried, because I'm not there. I left my sweater on her bed. Maybe that'll help.

I know.... I know.... we crazy kids and our pets. Well.... that's me..... they get taken care of, before myself.

Alright.... so today we started from Monroe, LA, stopped in Shreveport to clean up Silvester, crossed into Texas shortly thereafter, circled around Dallas (that was CRAZY! - People are driving like mad. I thought NC was bad, but that was crazy. I was not mentally prepared for that. As soon as we got past that I found out that really everything is bigger in Texas. A HUGE bug splat on my windshield.... YUK!

So seriously, the first day we do 3 states and the next .... one ... Texas.... OY!

Furthermore..... TX is flat - which is good, because you can see for miles - bad, because it's really windy! Have you ever driven with a load on your top and a car loaded to the gills when a wind gust catches you? Yeah... NOT fun! But we made good time. Little more miles but higher speed limits make for better time! Yay.

Tomorrow - will be LOOOOOOONG. Please keep sending us good vibes - it's working!

Gosh.... I love wifi and my nice laptop (which my BFF convinced me and helped me to get) that allows me to surf quickly and reliably!

PS: Done with Brsinger - started on Bitten.

Yay! for free wireless internet!

I figured it's easier to write here on the xanga and post the link than blog on facebook. So here it goes!

So it finally begins. The adventure, the journey, the first day of the rest of our lives was today! Sylvi and I got up at 5 am. I knew that last "little" things always take longer than you think. Yesterday already we loaded up both cars, save for the air mattresses, bedding, food, kitchen stuff and, of course, the animals. We got up and started pulling everything together .... and it just kept coming. You think you have everything.... but then there is something else, and again, and another little this and another little that. Ughhh... I was sweating it to the very end. Everything is stuffed to the gills, there is no wiggle room! But it's all in there.

Before hitting the highway we had the air pressure in the tires checked, because - well - we were sitting pretty low... LOL

We finally got on the road at 11 am. With a 5 year old and two big dogs some fairly frequent stops were in order. And yes, Cynde, I "was being safe" (LOL) and we stopped about every 2 hours, for pee breaks and doggie-stretching-legs breaks. We crossed Alabama and Mississippi (waving to Angie as we passed by Jackson) and are now settled in at Monroe, Louisiana for the night. I can't believe how hot it is here. I guess we ARE further South. Everything in my room is fairly calm. Nemo, Silvester and Cedric are sleeping right next to me on my bed. They couldn't use the other Queen bed in here.... oh no.... they gotta sleep with me! (LOL). Lucy is the only one that's really unsettled. She keeps walking off and hiding, poor thing. Silvester did a lot better than when I moved from NC to GA. Seems that the natural travel pet remedy helps a little bit. He still threw up a couple of times and drooled a little bit. But he also slept a lot without drooling (which he didn't do last time) and he didn't pant.

Just two more days to go.......

I think that's a good tagline for my blog today. I wasn't going to write this until I actually achieved goal, but I am 1.8 pounds away and I just blew my mind a couple of days ago, so I decided it was time. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Here is the story from the beginning:

A little over two years ago my size 20 jeans started to get snug - and really, I needed a 22 but I could never find jeans that I liked on me anyway. I actually had to look into men's jeans. Somehow I had gained 40-some pounds since I moved to the US. Now - I was always the heavy kid, never small by any means. But I thought "well, I'm getting older and I'm likely to gain more weight as the body's metabolism slows down. If I gain at the same rate I'll be close to 300 pounds when I'm 50." That scared me! A LOT! Apart from borderline high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes was another concern for me (runs in the family). At one point my hair actually started falling out like crazy. Then it got greasy so fast and so much that it never looked clean - even right after I washed it. I wore my hair in a ponytail for months, because I didn't know what else to do. I started getting winded just walking up the two flights of stairs to my appartment. I couldn't really blame that on "being out of shape" anymore. I knew I had to do something, but the prospect of having to lose 70 to 80 pounds seemed daunting to me. I have never been able to stay on a diet long enough to lose that kind of weight. And I was afraid that if I didn't lose it fast I wouldn't stick with it.

Then my friend Angie lost a lot of weight on Medifast. I looked into it, but I could not imagine following that strict plan. Nevertheless her weight loss pushed me into more research. Then my sis decided to check out Weight Watchers. I had always thought that all those companies are like little "secret societies" or something. I thought "they are a business and they're only after your money, trying to sell you their high-priced foods." I was reluctant and decided to see if it worked for her. She was successful immediately and was gung-ho about it - she had the best time and loved going to her meetings. So after a couple of weeks I decided to give it a try. I'm not the "rah-rah meeting" type of girl, so I decided to go it on my own and signed up online. I was willing to give it a month or two and see what happens. I couldn't imagine it working without me doing any kind of exercise and because I thought "I'm not really eating that much now - there is no way I can eat less in order to lose any weight"

Well - my eyes were opened. On the program I had to eat sooooo much that I seriously doubted their sanity. Some days I couldn't even get all the points that were alloted to me and I had to drink some extra milk or eat a yogurth at night in order to get them all in. Yet - the first week I lost 3 pounds ... and the second and I kept losing usually at a pace of 2 pounds per week. Turns out I wasn't eating enough and I surely wasn't eating the right kinds of food. Every week, then every month I waited for that point when the shoe would drop and  I wouldn't lose anymore. And I did hit a couple of plateaus - but generally I kept going down. Hallelujah! As I said, my eyes were opened. I learned portion control and better eating choices. I learned to read and pay attention to nutrition labels. I had to restructure my life. But that's what it's all about. It is not a diet. It is a lifestyle change. That is one big realization to make and that thought had always scared me in the past. Why? Maybe because I thought it meant I could never ever have the foods I loved anymore. No more pasta, bread or chocolate..... But now I learned that this wasn't true at all. I could still have all that stuff - just not as much and in different ways. So ... that's what "lifestyle-change" meant.

So here I am a little over two years later and (almost) 75 pounds lighter. Losing is at a much slower pace now and not as easy anymore. However, it is still going down and not back up. I am NEVER going back. I know, I know "never say never" but in this instant I can and I will. I don't EVER want to be where I was anymore. How did I let myself get to that point anyway? I gave away all my big clothes. As soon as they started falling off of me and looked really baggy I gave them away. No more holding on to something "in case" I gain some weight.

So this is where the "mind-blowing" episode comes in. Sis took me to get a new pair of jeans that fits right instead of her hand-me-downs, which are starting to slide down as well. I bought a size 8! ...... I have never in my life been a size 8! I didn't know or think that I could be a size 8. I have wide hip bones, so I thought..... but apparently  I can! It just is mind-boggling to me. I mean - I see my before pictures and I can hardly believe that that is me. And I see myself now in the mirror or in pictures and I can see the difference. But my mindset is still not all caught up. In my mind I'm still the pudgy ugly duckling. And then every once in a while I look at a new picture or I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror and I go "WOW - is that me?" Like - sometimes I will walk by a picture window and catch a reflection of myself and not recognize myself, I will literally not realize that this is me. It is a very weird and schizophrenic feeling. Don't get me wrong. I am very, very proud of what I have accomplished and I am celebrating. But it is also weird and strange in a way and somehow the brain needs some time to catch up.

For example, the 8 is still snug. There are still some areas on my body that I do not like. There are still a few more fat-pockets than I would like. And I guess that - in my eyes - won't allow myself to measure up to those beautiful Hollywood women with their perfect bodies. (no... no... I know.... ) But if I look at where I have been I am certifiably skinny! That doesn't even sound right - "me" and "skinny" in the same sentence. But I am! And only now do I realize how much I loathed myself, and how much I was in denial then. I still do not "love" my body, but I am definitely proud of what I have accomplished and I do want to show it off. Gone are the days of bulky sweaters and XXL T-shirts to drape over the pants to hide the belly and hips. I will actually buy clothes that are close to my body and that show contours. Who would have thunk it? So what if a little roll still shows above the belt-line? It's there - I'm human. Maybe it'll go away, maybe it won't. I know I have some more work to do. I have to start exercising and try to tone my body, get rid of some of the flab of extra skin and weak muscle tissue.

But for the first time in my life I'm mostly ok with how I look in my body!

Thank you so much to Angie and Sis for inspiring me to start, to Cynde for supporting me and not unintentionally sabotaging me but always being right there with me when I tried to figure out what I can eat - especially in the beginning when I was like a lunatic with my "complete food companion" and my points calculator, and again for Sis for the continuing support and encouragement. We did it SIS!

If I can only inspire one other person to take that step and trust this program to work, then all my hard work has been worth it and it's the best thanks of all!

I put it up on my flixster on facebook, but not everybody seems to read it there. So here is my review for Inkheart. The first part is spoiler free with only a little "hint" that will not spoil your movie-going experience. I added a spoiler warning at the point where you should stop reading, if you prefer to be suprised at the theater!

I have been waiting for this movie to come out for over a year! I love the book Inkheart and I love the whole story about Brendan Fraser being the inspiration for Mo and him playing him. So when the release date for this movie kept being pushed back I was more than concerned, even though the first trailers looked very promising. But as the "real" opening date approached, the trailers seemed to be hinting at a completely changed story. I am soooo relieved (for the first time in my life) that the previews were edited to make it completely misleading! This movie was very well adapted. The scenery, the sets were just as I imagined. Paul Bettany as Dustfinger - excellent, Helen Mirren as Elenor - brilliant! Farid was just as I imagined.

Were there changes? Yes, a precious few. I think they were mostly to drive the story forward. There is a lot of back and forth in the book and that needed to be sped up. I do like that there were references to Inkspell and even Inkdeath - so subtle that only avid readers of the books will "get" them.

The ending is very "Hollywood" - an all out feel good happy ending. Which the book has - sort of! The way they did it in the movie will prevent them from making any sequels. Which I don't think is necessarily a bad thing, as I think that the books have "sequel-itis". They are by far not as strong as the first one and seem to have been written because Cornelia didn't want to let the characters go yet. Possibly Brendan Fraser recognized that as well and didn't sign on for more than one movie. Be that as it may - It looks like Inkspell and Inkdeath will only exist in our imaginations.

**** FROM HERE ON SPOILERS ABOUND! ****

Which brings me to the only point I wasn't crazy about with this movie. I can live with Toto bringing Meggie the note to read. I think it didn't come across quite as strong as in the book that they are trying to change the story with the words Fegnolio has written. But it works. What I didn't like is that the note was unfinished and that Maggie makes up the rest "on the fly". AAAAAND it is her who kills Capricorn! I thought that it was an important part of the story that Meggie - after everything Capricorn has done to them - Meggie still couldn't bring herself to kill him. And when it seems that all is lost, Mo steps in and reads the final words to kill Capricorn and send the Shadow away! The book is very dark and this is a PG movie so the filmmakers needed to make the girl a hero - I can understand the need to lighten it up a little. However, I think the book has a stronger finish that way. On the other hand - as I said, there don't appear to be any sequels planned - so they tied up all the lose ends that way. Fine - it doesn't take away from the enjoyment I got from finally seeing it on screen (it does take away 1/2 star). This one will be a "need to own". And If you ever get the chance - get "Dragonrider" and "Inkspell" on audiobook. Brendan Fraser as the narrator of both these Cornelia Funke books gives an outstanding performance and I will never be able to imagine Mo as anybody else but him!

This weeks photochallenge is

Christmas is over - it was time to re-decorate. You like it? I haven't had a chance yet to use this beautiful header that was made for me almost a year ago. And I wasn't quite ready to let Edward go yet. LOL!

One of my "101 missions" is to document progress on those missions in blogs and possibly with pictures. I reported the first completion the other day! Wohoooo! I am also so far making progress on

#22 blogging at least once a week - ahead of schedule on that
#39 WW lifetime - lost another 2 lbs, 4.4 more to go and maintaining for 6 weeks
#61 wii fit 30 min every day - going strong and my sore muscles are proof
#96 speak German with Rygar - a little bit every day
#8 walk dogs every day - I picked up the slack again and did a 45 min walk every day this week so far and
combining it with #6 - taking one good picture a day!

I thought I'd let you decide if the pictures I took are "good" pictures (Can I just tell you, btw, how much I love a digital camera for that purpose! Every aspiring photographer knows that you have to take a gazillion pictures to get one great one. With the regular 35 mm that was always a chore and could get quite costly.) - So out of the 20 or so a day I have taken so far, here are my best shots. Let me know what you think!

12 January 2009 - a little tree sprouting from the remains of his fallen comrade

13 January 2009 - I couldn't decide
I was walking the dogs and noticed the shadows on the street ...

13 January 2009
... so I decided to take it a step further on a whim and do a whimsy self-portrait

14 January 2009 - again I couldn't decide which one to chose
I noticed this mailbox with the fence and the bell, kind of rugged, rural - but the only way I could compose the picture without getting the actual house in the background and ruin the rural effect was to shoot against the sun. Luckily the wind picked up at just the right moment and blew the flag in front of the sun for a nice effect.

 

14 January 2009 - #2
Sometimes I seem to have a certain theme. These plants (somebody help me with the name - lol) were glistening, actually sparkling in the sun. When I tried shooting it, I couldn't get the right effect with my little "point and shoot" camera. However, looking at it from a different angle I think I got a quite stunning shot. I'm always amazed at how good the "point and shoot" is with "against the sun" shots. I never got results that good with my SLR Film Camera, because I could never get the lighting quite right.