Ready or Not......

This morning was my last horseback riding lesson before I head to "The Wild West". Terry, my instructor, had a student fall off her horse yesterday and break 4 fingers on her left hand. These are the stories you love hearing before a lesson. We all sign release forms, but the fallen rider has no insurance, and Terry isn't sure if she is going to sue. Needless to say my lesson was very tame. Only walk, trot and posting today. I love to canter, but the posting and trotting are what's getting me saddle worthy. I'm not sure what kind of internet access there will be at the Ranch, but I will keep you posted on my stay. YIPPPEEE!!

Paige is a Rock Star.

OMG!!!   Enough about amusement parks already,  Paige is a Rock Star!!! 

 You got to check it out on You Tube.   Demi Levato sings "This is Me"  with a fan at Patriot Center.  There are a bunch of them.  My favorite is "This is Me"- Demi Levato & Paige fairfax Patriot Center, but they started taping it half way through the song.  On the 2nd one if you look real close you can see Jaws on the side of the stage taking photos.  He's in a blue shirt.   Can you believe it? 

 Paige is to Demi, what Courtney was to Bruce 20 years ago.  I have already sent away for an autograph.   You Rock Paige.

Waterpark On Mushrooms.

This was my very first time to Hershey Park, and I must say I have never seen a water park like the one they have here. The only way I can describe it is something between Tim Burton's

"Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory" and the game "Chutes and Ladders". All the colors are really vivid, and everything seems to move in different directions at the same time.

I don't know how in the world parents with more than 1 child can keep track of them. There were nooks and crannies everywhere. Ladders, slides, water coming out of anything that moved. What happened to the lazy river? We took some photos, and got out of WaterWorld as quickly as possible.

Early Does It.

Having ridden most of the roller coasters before 11:30am was a really smart thing to do. Like most amusement parks in the middle of a 90 degree August 18th day, it starts taking on a life of it's own. The mix of over excited teenagers, and over aged thrill seekers has a smell all of its own, especially in the previously mentioned heat.

With all the major coasters behind us, except for the latest addition "The Fahrenheit", that is where we were headed, or should I say that is where I was headed, pulling Terry along with me. Once we got there, they had a repair sign on it, and were sending the cars empty along the tracks. Now I am all for throwing caution to the wind, but I would really like to see my 54th birthday, so we by passed that and went for the "Coal Cracker"

You can see my brave little warrior ducking behind me so he would get wet. Can you say Wussy?

Heading to Hershey Park

After another full day and some great buys at the NY Gift Show, Terry and I head to Hershey, PA. That's right, Terry is taking me to Hershey Park for my 53rd birthday. Chocolate and roller coasters, does it get any better? So Monday we leave NY and head to "Chocolate Mecca".

When Terry and I reach the park Tuesday morning we are at the gates at 10:00, and I am ready to hit the 1st ride we come to. We reach the Carousel, pick out our ponies, and get settled for the ride to begin. I know I'm in trouble when not 15 seconds in, and maybe 2 up & downs, Terry comments on how fast the ride is going. Oh boy, It's going to be a long day.

I really do have to give Terry credit. He took me to an amusement park, because he knows I'll always be a kid at heart. He didn't complain once about having to wait while I hit all the #5 coasters. He actually went on one of the #4's and a 5. That was all it took, he sat the rest out, having fulfilled his boyfriend duties du jour.

If You Want Something Bad Enough.....

On Friday night before we left for NY, Terry had given me a look inside the birthday weekend he had planned for me. He made sure that Tuesday was covered at the shop, and that Harper and Bear had sitters for the extra days we would be gone.
Terry had made an appointment for a deep tissue massage just for me for Sunday morning at 9am. What a great way to start the day. So much for catching up at the show. All I had to do now was get a cab to "Lather" for an hour of total decadence. I stepped out of the Hotel to hail a cab, and the entire street was blocked of for the New York City Marathon. Can you believe it? That's okay I'll just walk up to Broadway and get one there, nope, Broadway was full of these overzealous runners as well. What drives these people to get up and run 26.2 miles before breakfast. Well it was obvious that my intended route was not going to work.

Welcome to the NY Transit System, aka,"The Subway". After asking a few touristy questions I got on the first correct train.

...then another question to a very nice young guy,who pointed me in the right direction for the 4,5,6 train. Two blocks, and I was at The Spa. Now I'm sure you know that if I was going to the dentist, or going to workout my resolve to get there would not have been as strong as it was for this massage. Aaaahhhh! It was wonderful. Thanks Terry.

The Big Apple

One of the best parts of my job is getting to go to all the shows that might have anything new and different pertaining to dogs and cats. Well last week was the New York Gift Show. One of my favorites. What makes the NYGS different from the usual dog & cat shows that I go to, is the NYGS has everything from linens to china, furniture to jewelry, unique fashions to garden gnomes, and everything in between, and to me it's all at cost. There is just so much to see and never enough time, luckily I can always pass up the garden gnomes.
I usually do this trip alone, it's easier for me because I only have myself to worry about. Well on this trip I invited Terry to join me. We left Annapolis around 9:00, I usually leave at 6:30. I had to stop by the store to pick up business cards and my camera....details,details. The drive was petty uneventful beside the usual rest stop at J. Fenimore Cooper. We got to our hotel and checked in, the walked to the Javitz Center. By the time we got started it was already 3:00 and the show closes at 6:00. Oh well, I'll get alot done tomorrow.
We headed to Broadway for a great meal not having any idea where we were going. Terry took a side road here and a turn there and "Voila" a great Spanish Taverna. It was an absolutely fantastic meal, but if I had a gun to my head and had to take someone there, I would never be able to find it again. Thank God that Terry has a sense of direction.

Best of the Worst

We all have our own ways of coping. There is nothing wrong with coping mechanism, it one of those things that lets us know we are human. Mine used to be to hook up with my best friends, Jack Daniels or Jim Beam. I dropped those 2 and replaced them with Ben & Jerry, but now I have a real boyfriend. I have been solo for so long that I have sort of forgotten the art of sharing, except with K-9s. The way I cope now is by filling my plate so full with outside stimulus that I'm too preoccupied to deal with the problem at hand (ie: my mother's death). So during and after the funeral proceedings, I was constantly agreeing to take other peoples dogs in to keep myself busy. The problem with this was that I totally forgot that I had offered to be with Terry during a very hard time for him. The anniversary of his wife's death was this week. Instead of keeping my promise to him, to be by his side, I have 8 dogs at my house. Needless to say, Terry is not the dog lover that I am, but then again, who is? I know, I know, I have said I'm never doing this again, but I'm just a girl who can't say no. .... anyway I have officially given myself top honors for "Worst Girlfriend of the Month".

Adult Outing

On Sunday Kris, Terry and I decided to have an Adult Outing.
We got tickets for the matinee, "Spring Awakening" playing at The Kennedy Center.
Since none of us wanted to drive into DC, we opted for the metro. We missed the train that would have guaranteed an on time arrival by seconds. I'm sure we would have made it if I didn't insist on helping Kris with the math involved in a 2 person, round trip fare. Kris had it totally in control until I stepped in. Funny how word problems have actually gotten harder as I've gotten older. So, as we approach the platform, we see our train slowly pulling away. 15 minutes for the next train, plus expected delays. Great. Now I have turned it into "The Amazing Race". As soon as we pull into the station, we run up the stairs and jump onto the waiting shuttle. We pick up our tickets from call waiting and go directly to our seats. No sooner do we sit down, then the lights go up. We made it just in the nick.
Walking into "Spring Awakening" I knew absolutely nothing about it, except Kris told me there were some masturbating scene that had some puritan sect up in arms. It was basically a coming of age piece set in the early 1900's. It amazes me how little things have changed when it comes to affairs of the heart. We have certainly come a long way in talking to our youth about the consequences that go along with sex, but I think that's because there is so much more involved.... Thank you Baby Jesus for dogs.
From the Theatre we went to P.F.Chang's for Adult Dinner. I used the gift certificate that John gave me for watching his dog Layla. I love Adult Outings!!!