Top 10 Reasons Why Trick-or-Treating is Better Than Sex

A co-worker who knows how much I love Halloween put this on my desk yesterday and I thought I would share this with all of you.  I think it's cute and rather humorous!  I'll try to have some pictures with a write up about my Tricky Treat Costume Bike Ride early next week.

Also, I want to wish everyone a HAPPY HALLOWEEN!  I hope you manage to get some good candy and have fun!

Halloween Bike Ride, an oil painting I did based on photos from earlier Tricky Treat Bike Rides.

Here's the Top 10 Reasons:
Why Trick-or-Treating is Better than Sex.... 

10. You are guaranteed to get at least a little something in the sack.


9. If you get tired, wait ten minutes and go back at it again.

8. The stranger you look, the easier it is to get some.

7. You don’t have to compliment the person who gave it to you.

6. The person you are with doesn’t fantasize you’re something else, you already are.

5. If you get a stomach ache, it won’t last nine months.

4. If you wear leather and chains, no one thinks you’re kinky.

3. Doesn’t matter if kids hear you moaning and groaning.

2. Less guilt the next morning.

AND the number ...
1. If you don’t get what you want at one place, you can always go next door to get some more

Ground Hog Day Lessons?

This morning I was talking with a fellow co-worker and he mentioned that it felt like Ground Hog Day. I had to rather agree with him today; especially when I woke up to snow being on the ground. Today had that strange feeling of dejas vous about it and sometimes I tend to wonder if I might be locked up in the same day. Days seem to blend in together and I seem to be lost in time.

(Photo: Snow on the tree this morning outside my window.)

I almost believe that maybe I’m destined to live over and over the same day until I learn what ever I am supposed to learn. I’m just hoping that my learning curve kicks in sooner than later. Lately, it seems that I’ve been running into some strange problems during these Ground Hog Days.

I’ve played “Furniture Jenga” twice in the last week. Yep, they didn’t come to clean the carpets the first time! So I got to move my furniture twice. It all started when I called my apartment manager the day before to warn that there were two wet oil paintings hanging on the wall in the bedroom. I just told her that they needed to be careful around them. She passed the message on to the assistant manager since she was on vacation the next day. Well, it’s sort of like passing the word down the line…you know where the word starts as one thing and as it’s passed down from one person to another the word slowly gets changed. Thus, I guess the carpet cleaners were afraid to show. But yesterday, I finally got the issue worked out and now I have cleaned carpets. Can I say lesson #1 learned? Watch what you say because you never know how it may be taken.


Problem #2 has been occurring at work. I arranged for a shipment to be picked up last Thursday from a supplier. The freight company showed up to pick it up on Thursday but the supplier didn’t have it ready to be shipped. Friday the supplier was closed for some strange reason. The weekend, of course, everyone was closed. Then, the freight company was TOO busy to pick up the shipment on Monday. Finally, after calling everyone and their mother on Tuesday the shipment was picked up and is on its way. The whole time my boss was over my shoulder and wringing his hands. The lesson learned this time? Hmmm… Try to follow up more often on things to ensure results?


The third problem happened last night, while I was unaware and enjoying a local haunted house with friends. My yahoo email account was hacked into with a virus. OUCH! I’m currently emailing with Yahoo Email to get it straightened out. I apologize to all of you who may have received an email virus. A warning out to all of you that if you should happen to receive an email from me with nothing in the subject line, DO NOT OPEN IT! Lesson learned on this one? I’m SO glad I keep most of my pass words underneath my keyboard! :)


That’s all for problems though if any of you are good in with the weather gods I ask for you to put in a request for good weather for this Saturday’s Tricky Treat Bike Ride. Otherwise, I have all these prizes that I’ve put together that I won’t know what to do with. Darn it! I just may have to claim them all for myself. :)

Furniture Jenga~!

Last night after coming home from my water color painting class, I rolled up my sleeves and started in on a game of Furniture Jenga. Why you might ask? Am I, perhaps, insane? Or maybe this is part of a new workout theory? Or is it just that I don’t get enough excitement that I need to be plying stacks of furniture into my kitchen just for fun of it? NO! All this game of Furniture Jenga was in preparation for having my carpets cleaned.


So here I am last night looking at my pint sized kitchen and trying to figure how to fit as much of my living room furniture, and possibly some of my bedroom into that space. Now let me preface that my living room is a living room as well it serves as a dining room too. It was a vertical jigsaw puzzle that needed to be solved and just may prove how much of a warped mind I might have.

I started first with the bulky loveseat on its side. Nope! Not going to work. After a few more gruntingly laborious attempts, the loveseat ended up on its back facing up. It left plenty of room for stacking chairs, tables, pillows (why does there always seem to be an excess of pillows?), and what not. Next, my dining room bistro set, then an end table, and then … well, you get the picture. I arranged a few times over and ended up putting some of the more “weather proof” items on my ¼ pint sized balcony.

I went to bed last night with a small sense of accomplishment that I had only my futon, an alarm clock, and my cell phone out in the carpeted areas. After getting ready for work in the morning, I dragged the wooden futon frame into the bathroom. It fit just barely, and left just enough room for the futon mattress. It had maybe taken me 10 minutes top to move the futon frame into the bathroom. The futon mattress, however, was a whole different beast all together. It was like trying to move a huge dead body. (Not that I would actually know how to handle a dead body.)  It took me a total of 30 minutes to wrestle that darn mattress into a slim place between the futon frame and the bathroom door.  Whew!  What a relief!

It was after this wrestling match with the futon mattress I looked down and discovered I shouldn’t have worn my black work clothes to do this job. Being that I already running a bit late I tried to just slap some of the dust off of my black clothes. As I’m heading towards the door, I remember my lunch that happens to be in the refrig in the kitchen. Oooopps! In the refrig that I can not open the door to because there’s a huge stack of furniture in front of. Darn!

So I’m writing a note to self—No black dress clothes to move furniture in and have a back up plan for lunch because you are an idiot and won’t be able to open the buried refrig door.  On a positive note, I know what’s for dinner tonight!  Of course, that’s after I un-bury it!  DOH!

Like Christmas in October!

It’s not that far away from my favorite holiday—Halloween! I’m like a big kid the night before Christmas when it comes to Halloween. I love the decorations; black cats, pumpkins, bats, and scarecrows. But my absolute favorite thing to do is dressing up. I find it really amusing going dressed up in full costume to a neighbor’s or friend’s and engage in small talk; knowing that they have no clue that it’s me that they are talking to. The aspect of the candy, well, let’s just say I try NOT to partake of this part; for as the saying goes,” a moment on the lips and forever upon the hips.” But I will admit to being a bit partial to candy corn.

Myself as Ragged Ann and Doug as Genie last year doing the door prize drawings.

This holiday really has become special in the last few years as I’ve been “hosting” a Tricky Treat Costume Ride for my bike club. It's a wonderful way to combine costumes and cycling together!  This year will be the fourth ride that I’ve done. I always hold this bike ride the last Saturday before Halloween. It’s kind of become a fun social event. Prizes awarded to best costumes and door prizes too.

Jay as the Tin Man strutting off in his costume.



Last year's Wizard of Oz Costumed Trio

There’s a costume contest before the bike ride. Everyone is invited to “strut” their costumed-self in front of group. There are prizes for the top four best costumes. The crowd judges by clapping and cheering for whom they think is best. It seems that the competition is getting stiffer every year as the costumes are getting more elaborate.



Doug, as the Head Hunter, and myself as a Clown in 2008.

It seems to me that it’s getting more fun each and every year. Last year there were about 25 people that attended. But one person, Doug, a fellow bike club member, had initially set the bar high when it came to being in costume. He has shown up as a pirate, a head hunter, and last year as a Genie. To put it in a mild manner, he REALLY gets into this dressing up in a costume. In fact, I remember jaws dropping when he pulled up in his vehicle as the Head Hunter.


Doug, as the Pirate in 2007!



Here's the group picture from last year.

After the costume contest, there’s a drawing for “door prizes”. Everyone that shows up gets a raffle ticket and then everyone that dresses up in costume gets an extra ticket. So everyone has two chances to win some fun prizes to take home. I will admit that most of the prizes are bike related but then you have to remember that it is a Halloween bike ride.

Debbie, a pumpkin, and myself as a Black & White Cruella in 2007.

And so, as I’m putting the last touches together for this event I’m finding myself getting more and more excited about it. Just like that little kid the night before Christmas!

Love Your Body 10K Run & Big Bad Voodoo Daddy!

What an amazing weekend I had!  On Saturday morning I woke up early and ran the Love Your Body 10K run that's put on by Wasatch Woman at the wonderful venue of Thanksgiving Point.  I joined 1800 other women to run through the amazing gardens and I would have probably had a better running time... But DARN IT!  I HAD to take some pictures along the way.  It was just too beautiful not to.  Here are some photos from the run...

Then, I came home shower/changed and biked over to Liberty Park to see Big Bad Voodoo Daddy for FREE!  It was the High Road for Human Rights Musical Festival.  Big Bad Voodoo Daddy played a set at 2pm then came back at 6pm and played another set.  I got to hang out with friends and catch a great deal of interesting people watching. And I tell you even on my worst day-- I never considered some of the outfits these people wore out in public.  It was ANYTHING GOES!   I was just waiting for the grampa with the plaid pants and striped shirt to show up at any minute because he would have fit right in~!    Here's some pictures of the concert...



If you look really close in the center, there's a guy with a tye dye shirt and patch quilt pants with a reggae hat on. OMG!



Another band that played in between Big Bad Voodoo Daddy sets.  And I thought Scaw music was dead? NOT! (But maybe it should be?)

The Running Mario Brothers Game...

For weeks now, I’ve been running/walking laps around a local park in the wee hours of the morning. A mid the various individuals (that I can count on one hand) I have seen at the park, I’ve formed a “wave” relationship. You know like the one that you have with the neighbor down the street. You recognize him and never had said a word but you wave at each other when you see each other as you drive by in the car and what not. Well, that in a nut shell is my relationship with Mr. Mario Brothers. I have personally to myself referred to this short Latino man that I see almost even morning run at this park. He rather looks like a Mario Brothers. He always wears a ball cap and has a rather prominent mustache.

Mr. Mario Brother runs the opposite direction as me on the outside running trail of the park. I don’t trust myself to be coordinated enough to run on the trail; so thus I keep to the flat even cement. He is always running smoothly, and always has a perpetual smile under his mustache. He is also always wearing long sleeves and pants even in the middle of the hot summer mornings. Why? I don’t know, but he’s out there running fully clothed each time I see him.


So each morning as I run counter clockwise and Mr. Mario Bros. runs clockwise, I get a wave from him each time we go past each other. I wave back to him of course. Lately, I’ve noticed that when I’m walking I just get a wave from him but if I’m running I get a wave and a thumbs up from him.

So to make my morning run/walk a little more interesting I’ve turned this into a game. A moderate workout equals two waves. A good workout equals two waves and one thumbs up. A real good workout equals three waves and two thumbs up. I’m working towards four waves and three thumbs up—but I may have a heart attack before that ever happens!

Bicycle Training for Dummies…

I rather stumbled on to a new form of cycle training last night. Or should I say in hindsight I discovered that I was training when in fact it was not a “planned” training? You’ve got to love that hindsight is 20/20!

(Photo- Half way up Big Mountain-- I had to stop for a breather... Go Figure!)



Last night as I was doing my usual Tuesday night Emigration Canyon ride, I pulled off to the side about 2 miles in. My back tire felt strange to me. A couple of the guys on the ride stopped with me. One of them, being more mechanically minded than me (like 80% of the population) took a look at my back bike tire. Well, to make a long story short… I was riding my bike with the brake rubbing pretty hard. He managed to release the brake enough so I could still use my brake and ride the rest of the canyon.



(Photo- Fall color on way from Emigration towards Big Mountain's base.)


It was as I was riding my bicycle up the rest of the canyon that I got to thinking. My rear brake was probably rubbing pretty hard against my back tire ALL weekend long. That would especially explain why the ride on Saturday seemed harder than usual when I was going up Emigration, and well, that climb to the 7100 ft top of Big Mountain. It had exhausted me, and seemed to take FOR-EV-ER! But the real thing that had amazed me was that somehow I had managed to stay up right riding that mountain at 3.1mph. OMG! I never knew I could ride a bike that slow uphill and stay upright! (Mind Blowing!)

(Photo- The VIEW from the top of Big Mountain.)

So last night as everyone was regrouping at the top of Little Mountain (Emigration’s Summit), one of the guys asked if this was a new form of training by having the brake on. “Kind of like that little old lady driving in the fast lane with the brake on?” Meanwhile I thought to myself, “Yeah, its Bicycle Training for Dummies!” Now

where did I put my dunce helmet?

The Start of Fall Color...

Oh, my favorite time of year-- Fall!  I love the cooler temperatures and the wonders of the leaves turning all those variations from yellowish green to bright red.  But best of all it means my favorite holiday (Halloween!) is not that far away!  Last night during a bike ride up Emigration Canyon, I managed to catch a glimpse of those wonderful colors starting up.  Enjoy!

Vacation with Mom in Omaha...

Yep, I went on another vacation.  This one was a bit longer than my last one and it was with my Mom.  We've discovered a few years ago that it was generally easier for us to get along if we met some where other than spending time on each other's territories.  So this year we decided to meet up in the big city of Omaha,NE.

Downtown Omaha Skyline at Night

I decided to divide up the drive there in two days and had a stop over for the night in Laramie.  I got there early enough to enjoy a bike ride before the sun went down.  I was surprised that for being such a small town that Laramie had so many bike laned/ share the road signs.  But then I realized that it was a college town and I guess that kind of made sense.  After exploring some of the town, I ended up about 5 miles out of town on a two lane highway with wide shoulder and some beautiful scenery.  Check it out....

Wonderful scenery outside of Laramie,WY

Some more of the Big Sky Country I rode my bike in.

The Sunset in Laramie,WY

The next day I ended up in Omaha at about 5PM in the afternoon.  Oooopps!  I'm trying to find my way through rush hour traffic.  Yeah, I didn't quite think this through as well as I should have.  In fact, I ended up getting lost because the traffic would not let me over to the exit I needed to use.  Needless to say I took the scenic round about way to the downtown hotel.  I called the hotel front desk and ended up with getting driving directions over the phone.  "Hello!  I'm a lost Utahn that's supposed to be checking into your hotel about now...But Darn It! I'm just a bit lost..." Laughter came across the other end of the phone.  Tony walked me through and I finally arrived at the hotel.

I'm going to share more about this trip with pictures because I think its more interesting than giving a blow by blow of my vacation.  So here's my trip in pictorial form.  Enjoy!

The highlights of the trip:

Joslyn Art Museum-
I was really looking forward to visiting this Art Museum, and it was not a disappointment.  I got to see 5 original Monet's, a Jackson Pollock, and I also happened upon a smaller Grant Wood painting that I have never seen.  Find out more about this museum by visiting their website - http://www.joslyn.org/

Mom outside of Art Museum under sculpture near children's garden area.

Mom with Atrium in background.

A hanging glass balloon sculpture in the atrium.

Lauritzen Gardens-
This is Omaha's Botanical Center that boasts to having four seasons of beauty.  It had several different themed garden areas to enjoy.  Learn more about it at: http://www.omahabotanicalgardens.org/

A sculpture in one of the garden areas at Lauritzen Gardens.

Mom at the entrance of the Victorian Garden.

Me with the aromatic Rose Garden in the background.

The Train Garden with operating model trains~!

Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge-

The bridge from the side-- it's 3000 ft long and crosses over the Missouri River.

The view from the bridge of the Missouri River.

Mom on the Bridge.