Name: Anduin Anduin
From: California, United States
About me: I'm a So Cal girl born and raised. I've known my husband for over 19 years and we've been married for 15. My cat is also 15 years old and his name is Yoshi. He is the ruler of the house and has me under complete submission using his super feline mind control abilities.
Anduin's World
FAVORITE SAYINGS, THINGS I LIVE BY: If you don't ask, you don't get, What doesn't kill you makes you stronger, and Just because you can, doesn't mean you should.
Thursday, April 09, 2009
So, yeah...
I haven't said much lately. It's not that I haven't had anything to say, it's that I've had big, life changing things to deal with and I'm not comfortable talking about it. So, until things settle down or get resolved you won't see much activity here. Thanks for stopping by anyways. I appreciate it.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Happy New Year!
I hope everyone has a safe New Year celebration and wish you all the best in 2009.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Ask...
and you shall receive. In my last post I was bitching about the weather, how it's not been cold, no rain etc. That very night it rained. All night long and all day the next day. And, it's been cold too. We've had snow in our mountains all week long and the forecast is calling for more rain, cold and possibly snow in the high desert as low as 4000 feet. Sweet. This is what I was hoping for.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Just Can't Get Into It...
This year has gone by so fast. Too fast. It seems like every year is going by faster and faster. Living in Southern California, the seasons are minimal. Today is December 14th and it's bright and sunny outside. A little bit cooler than it's been which is nice but still nothing like it should be. This year has been hotter too. As I look outside my window I see trees that are just barely starting to change their colors. So seasonally, it only feels like autumn, when really we should be in the dead of winter. Maybe that's why I can't get into the Christmas spirit this year. No tree, no decorations. I still haven't put them away from last year. They've been sitting in a corner of the living room all year. Now that it's time to put them up, I don't feel like it. That's been the theme of this year for me. I've lost interest in a lot of things. I don't feel depressed (no more than usual), so I wonder what's wrong. I somehow think it's linked to the weather. Normally, in years past, this time of year would be cold and rainy. It would be time to pull out the sweaters and jackets and try to remember where I put my gloves. This year, I've worn my jacket once or twice. I made the mistake of wearing a sweater to work one day last week and was hot and uncomfortable all day. It just doesn't feel right. I've lived in SoCal all my life and I remember that we used to have seasons of a sort. This is supposed to be the rainy season.
Anyways, enough of that. We've had a good year besides all of the complaining. Our families are still intact, we still have jobs, a roof over our heads and food in our stomachs. I know we've been fortunate compared to many people that have been hit so hard by the economy. My husband and I live simply and within our means. We don't have a lot, which means that we are not stretched out financially. We've cut down on a lot of extras and haven't traveled as much but we are still living our lives relative to what we are used to. I'm very thankful for that. I'm seeing more evidence of the struggles of everday people whenever I go to the gas station or grocery store. People are begging for help from strangers. This isn't normal for where I live. We just don't see this happening regularly. I've helped when I can but I always walk away feeling torn. Did I do enough or did I just get scammed? I don't know. I guess it doesn't matter as long as I'm still willing to help people. I hope all of you have a safe holiday season and lets hope that 2009 will be the best year we've had in a long time. Be safe all.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
It Was 20 Years Ago Today...
that my husband and I had our first date. We went out to dinner to celebrate and told our waiter what we were celebrating. He was surprised by our comment and asked if we actually remembered the date, because he has a difficult time remembering his last shift. I guess if his last shift was as memorable as our first date, he would never forget it.
For some reason, the 20 year anniversary of our first date is having an impact on me. I'm just finding it hard to believe that we've been together that long. That's a really long time don't you think? In this day and age even. I guess that I'm just really proud of us for sticking with it. It wasn't easy in the beginning, but things got better. We somehow managed to get our act together and are stable and prospering. No more drama, no more stress, our life is pretty low key and mellow. We've learned to let each other be who we are and we support each other in our desires and passions.
As an anniversary gift, my husband bought me a special toy. No, not THAT kind of toy! Jeeze...
He bought me an iPhone. Thank you honey, you know I love it. I love you too, more than you'll ever know.
Labels: anniversary, iphone
Wednesday, October 01, 2008
Thought for the Day...
Blindness. There's a movie out right now with this title. Apparently a virus causes mass blindness. I don't know much more than that but it made me think. What would happen if every single person in the world became blind? How would we function? So many of the things we value would become unimportant. Money would be useless, how would we know what was being exchanged? How would we provide food and supplies to the whole world? Everything would have to become localized. We'd all have to learn to fend for ourselves, grow our own food, make our own clothes, protect ourselves. It would take some time to get used to but our other senses would learn to compensate for the loss of sight. Still, how many would survive? Would humans become extinct? Killed off by natural disasters, disease, animals, famine or each other? If humans did survive, would future generations adapt to the loss of sight and develop extreme senses of smell, hearing or intuition? I've only ever thought of what I would do if I became blind, but what about the whole world? Let me know what you think.
Friday, September 12, 2008
Cool Pic
This is a photo I took at the Huntington Library in the Japanese Garden last month. I did a little creative editing, cropping, etc. I think it turned out quite well. I'm thinking of printing and framing it. I don't have any pictures on my walls. Except for the bathroom. Otherwise, there's nothing. Might as well put my own stuff up there.
Saturday, August 09, 2008
This is just a bummer...
Bernie Mac passed away this morning from complications of pneumonia. He was only 50 years old.
Friday, August 01, 2008
The Cruise and such...
I wrote a few weeks ago about my birthday and the cruise that my husband had planned as a surprise birthday gift. It's been a crazy few weeks since we came back and I haven't really felt like doing anything since then. I do want to talk about the cruise now though. If you've ever thought of going on one, I seriously suggest you do it. I had the best time ever on my cruise. My husband and I both did actually. There were so many things about it that I enjoyed. The staff on the ship were exceptional and I think that made the whole trip so enjoyable. They really appreciate the people that work on the ship and it shows in their attitudes. Every place we went on the ship, we were treated with courtesy and respect and a joyous attitude. Our room steward always greeted us with a smile and seemed genuinely happy to see us every time. Whenever we came back to our cabin it was always tidied up, the bed was straightened and we had clean towels. In the evening there would be a cute towel animal on the bed wearing our sunglasses. Little surprises like that really made the trip. On the first night in the dining room we were all a little tense and were trying to relax. We were seated at a table with another couple that we didn't know and conversation was just the basics. Where are you from and what do you do type of thing. After dinner the entire wait staff began to dance around the dining room, some were balancing things on their heads like flower vases or ketchup bottles, while others were doing magic tricks. The whole atmosphere changed at that moment and set the tone for the rest of the trip. Everyone laughed and got up and danced and had a great time. What an ice-breaker that was. It was at that point that we really began to relax and knew that we were going to have a great time. There were so many experiences on those three days at sea, many of which my husband wrote about here, here and here. He did a great job so I won't go on about it. You can see pictures of the trip on his Flickr page too.
Other things that have happened lately? Well, we had a really big earthquake a few days ago that scared the beejeebers out of me. It was a 5.4 and the epicenter was only about 10 miles from my work. I've lived in Southern California all of my life so I'm used to the idea of earthquakes and I'm not too scared of them. Terrified of the "Big One" but it hasn't hit yet. Most of the earthquakes I've felt in the last 10 years have been while I was at work, sitting at my desk on the second floor. When an earthquake hits, it's a very startling sensation. All of a sudden there is this violent motion without much of an introduction. It's just a jolt, and then a rumbling or rolling motion that lasts for about 15 - 20 seconds or so. Every time this has happened, I've stayed in my chair and rode it out. Last year we had an earthquake that came on strong and lasted for what felt like a long time. I almost got under my desk that time. The earthquake that happened two days ago hit so hard I actually screamed and dove under my desk. I've never, ever done that before. It felt like it lasted a long time too. I'm guessing about 30 seconds, the first 15 seconds with violent shaking motions and then it finally eased out to rumbling. My co-worker is from Minnesota and doesn't know what to do during an earthquake. She panics and runs. I had to tell her to get under her desk because she was calling out to me asking what she should do. I've always told her to stay put when there's a quake but she seems to have no control over her actions. I've also told her before that if we ever have the big one and I'm missing, look under my desk. I'm not going anywhere. Which makes me think that it's a good place to put an earthquake survival kit. Food and water, maybe a book to read while they dig me out. All joking aside, it was kind of scary. They say the big one is over due and the region we live in has several faults. The big one will be devastating. I hope I never have to know what that's going to be like.
One last thing that has happened in the last two weeks. On July 24th, Christopher Laurie, the son of Pastor Greg Laurie of Harvest Christian Church died in a car accident on the 91 freeway. Harvest is a customer of ours. We do most of their printing for them and Christopher was the the art director for the church. He often came into the plant for presschecks and such. On the morning of the 24th the salesman for the account called in to work and said that he had passed the aftermath of an accident on the freeway and felt that he recognized the vehicle by it's markings. He said that the car belonged to Christopher. The accident occured just before the exit to our building. The rest of the morning he tried to contact Christopher through Harvest and finally spoke to someone to tell them what he thought might have happened. My co-worker and I were hoping that it wouldn't be him but around 4:00 in the afternoon it was confirmed that he had died in the crash. I didn't know the man, never spoke a word to him but his death has still affected me. It just proves that no one is immune to this type of thing. I come from a church background and many people will try to say that God will protect your family so that nothing bad will happen to them. I used to believe that but I know it just doesn't work that way. Bad things happen to everyone. No one is immune or exempt. It is what it is. My heart goes out to the whole family. Christopher leaves behind a pregnant wife and a little daughter. I know that their faith will keep them strong. I know that they won't lose their faith in God because of this loss. God didn't cause this to happen. It just happened and there is nothing any of us can do about it. My prayers go out to the family, I know what they are going through.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Its That Time Again...
I finally did it. I turned 40 today. They say that 40 is the new 30. Like my 30's were all that. Anyways, my husband has gone all out and planned a surprise trip for me. We're going on a cruise! I'm really excited about it and I'm totally looking forward to the next four days. The ship leaves San Pedro, California and will cruise on down to Ensenda, Mexico. I hear it's called the "party cruise". Cool, I'm up for that. My other surprise from hubby was a new Nikon D40X. He got one about six months ago and I've been quietly yearning for one ever since. I wasn't expecting all of this attention but I'm definitely enjoying it. As my co-worker said, "You only turn 40 once", to which I replied that all of our birthdays fall under that saying. Yeah, I'm a smart ass. I'm 40 now, what'cha gonna do?
I also want to wish my first blog friend Mark a very Happy Birthday. He and I were both born on July 11th. That makes him extra special to me. Happy Birthday Mark, I hope you have a great time of it.
And a very special thank you to my husband. Honey, I wasn't expecting anything and you really surprised me with everything. I hope you know how much I appreciate all that you've done to make this a special time for me. I love you lots.
Monday, June 23, 2008
Over and Out...
"I think it's the duty of the comedian to find out where the line is drawn and cross it deliberately" -- George Carlin
Aptly said George...you did just that. You made us laugh, but more importantly you made us think. We will miss your intelligence and ever questioning nature.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Time Changes Everything
April 10th was our 15 year wedding anniversary. We celebrated it by going back to the place where we got married - Las Vegas. We drove by the place once known as the Candlelight Chapel, only to find that it had been torn down. A new casino will take it's place. We were both a bit bummed out by that. Since we've been together so many things have disappeared. The restaurant where we had our first date was torn down and now a Walgreens stands in its place. The movie theater we went to after that dinner is now a church and the secluded street where the date ended is now a busy retail center. We can't recreate our first date and now we can't go back and renew our vows at the chapel. Kind of disappointing how quickly things change. Vegas is all about the new . Most of the older casino's are gone and these big mega resort casino's are taking their place. It's more expensive too. Remember the great $3.99 buffet deals you could get in Vegas? Gone. I miss the old. I guess that must mean that I'm getting old too. Kind of sucks, that.