And her name is....

Suki.

Yep that is the one that is sticking. We had kicked it around a bit. Then today, I had a stressful day and was watching the Gilmore Girls when Sookie laughed about something. She has the greatest smile and infectious laugh that I thought it was perfect for our little girl that makes the house so happy. Ok, I am running off to make dinner.

mphbtks...we..fwghot a gnkcat.....

I am pretty much drugged out on Darvocet and my mouth hurts, but I wanted to write it down that we got her!! I wanted to remember the day we got her so I thought I would pop it down here. She is so petite and loving and beautiful. I am completely in love. We are keeping her in the bedroom, we don't want to scare or make Colin uncomfortable, so they will be introduced very slowly.

She loves to play and constantly wants to be rubbed and scratched.

Uhm.. she has a lot of names right now. Mariska, Beyonce, Josephine....ya know. Justin calls her "what's her name." I think we might name her after one of the Gilmore Girls... I will let ya know.

So at work, I have been complaining and moaning about my mouth surgery in the morning...and they sent me this link.

I guess things could be worse. Unfortunately for my co-workers, I am still gonna moan and whine about *my* troubles.

Such a nice Sunday. We got up late, there was a nice light snow all day. We got our errands done early. Lovely doghnuts from the shop near our house. Snuggling up in the late afternoon for a nap. I made comfort food, fighting against the cold trying to press in through the walls. A gorgoeus fire, Colin curled up in his spot, Justin, it was the best kind of Sunday.

Cats and Brits...

The search is on... we need a new housemate. We want to find a new pet-friend - so we spent the afternoon doing a mass shelter run. I looked over some cuties at Petfinder, and we realized that we could hit about 4 area shelters if we planned our trip right. I am not sure if we found anything or not, but I fell in love a lot. I am like a 3 year old - "I want the kitty, I want the puppy! That one and that one..and please can I have him." Eh.. not one of my more dignified mornings I suppose. We actually did find one promising canidate.

An 8-month old black kitten. She is solid black with big golden eyes. I fell in love at first sight, and I think maybe Justin is a little, although cautious, smitten as well. She is small, so Colin will not be intimidated. She is a female, so Colin will not be annoyed with the machismo of another boy. She is short-haired, so Jamie will get some lovin when it gets cold. She has lots of personality and wants to play a lot, so Justin will be thrilled-they can aggravate each other. I think it will work out all-around. Justin says we should wait, and come back next week, I want her NOW. But he is right.

We had an art contest with McDonald's Ice Cream Cones, I have to admit it... I am soooooooo much more talented than him.

Saturday night was very special... I was suprised with an in-town visit from a very dear friend who lives across the Atlantic :) Thank you for the wonderful company. Justin and I had lots of fun.

For dinner, we took hiim to Famous Daves! woohoo. What better way to say "Enjoy America" than with some yummy as hell corn muffins from a chain that is actually worth "loving it". Who knew a KY girl and Memphis boy would find Q' love at a chain that originated in Minnesota. Those Yankees get some things right. My friend loved it. He had never had corn muffins/bread before and loved the brisket. He has promised to come back and visit us, if just for Dave's.

Great night. I have known my friend from online for years, and never imagined we would ever get to spend and evening together. The one word that keeps coming to mind is delightful. He and Justin are dangerous together (wicked humors and about as aggravating as I can stand), but I count this as one of the best evenings in a long time.

I am a terrible insomniac. I sleep about 4 - 5 hours a night, and often find myself up and looking for something to do long before my boyfriend ever stirs. A few days ago, I was reading the news sites on the web, and came across an article about the effects of blood sugar on cancer risk.

Now.. I am not afraid of snakes or spiders. I am pretty down to earth in my unreasonable fears of things, but CANCER is the A-1 fear in my heart. My worries are not completely baseless. My mother died of cancer when she was only 54, and I have never known my biological father - or his family history, so I have some legitimate concern for being so concerned.

The article discussed how a blood sugar level over 140 created a much greater risk for individuals to get cancer in general and pancreatic cancer specifically. Ala Chicken Little, I went into panic mode. I have been a diabetic (Type 2) for a couple of years now. I can, and do, watch my sugars from time to time; however, most of the time I am running in the high 200-400's. I have hard time taking this seriously, and I have no idea why. I think mostly it is because, I think that if this is just something I can handle with diet and exercise, then it must not be that terribly important. I mean, if the doctor just advises me to eat a healthy diet, well then that is his usual advice and it is not something real. I am not like those people with Juvenile Diabetes. I make my own insulin still, I am reasonably healthy (except for a back problem that has developed over the last couple of months), so I have a hard time accepting that I have a disease. This article, with its very warnings and predictions was a huge kick in the bum for me.

I had already promised my boyfriend ( the single most supportive and good person in the world) , my doctor, my co-workers and I think maybe some randon strangers as well, that I would try and be better this year. I am trying a new vegetable recipe every week. One of these days, I will like veggies, I promise.

When I was a little girl. All things were cooked in one method - fry it up in the big iron skillet. Potatoes? Fried. Chicken? Fried. Greens? Fried. Bologna? Fried. You name it... my mother could find away to fry it. We even had fried toast alot. No really, not french toast, but regular, run of the mill, bread buttered up and fried. Learning how to cook well, with diversity and an eye to the nutritional values has been a great journey for me. From being a willing product of my youth, to becoming a responsible product of my own, I am excited and a bit weary of my follow through. We shall see I guess.

I have a serious case of wanderlust. This feeling is nothing new. I constantly want to go. Usually this is settled by a weekend trip somewhere, or just an overnight affair. However, I am currently grounded, almost literally. Since November, I have been limited because of a back injury/condition... who knows what it is.

To paraphrase Joni, by way of the Counting Crows, "you don't know what you got til it's gone." Justin egged me on all summer about going for a walk. I, being an ice fisherman by heritage, loathed the idea of spending all evening out in the oppressive heat. Now, I wish I had walked all over Beulah. The ironic, I think this will qualify as ironic, thing is that we had just recently started to go out taking walks with each other in nature-y places. We walked Raven's Run and I thought I would have to have him push me up some of the hills. We went on a weekend trip to Eastern Kentucky just to see the hills and forest, and I think that is when the trouble started. I am not sure if it was the bed or the walk or the drive that aggravated my back, but since then, I have been in nearly constant pain.

I missed Thanksgiving, Justin went to his father's house. They were sweet and thoughtful enough to send leftovers. I missed his birthday, my birthday, Christmas... my favorite time of the year... late fall just faded away from me, and I feel the loss profoundly. Hopefully, with this beginning of a new year, I will be able to move on and get over what is holding me down.

Justin and I are wanting to go to so many places. I have still never been to Chicago, and he really wants to go back, so that is always on our back burner. I, oddly enough, miss Memphis and would like for us to go back there, as well as take a trip on through so Justino can see his mom and sister. I know he misses them a lot, and I feel so bad for that. He sacrificed a lot to move to KY and be with me... and I am the luckiest, most grateful girl in the world.

Anyway... all of that rambling was only to say... Happy New Year world. I hope that next year we can get out on your roads and see the world more.