BOOC, M

Yeah, where to even start on this one....Nathan and I had been chatting through Facebook posts about Chris. Nathan got on a role made comment after comment of things to include in the 'gift package'. One was a hammer..you know, to hit yourself over the head (because obvious isn't good enough), an alarm clock (as Nathan said...'you know....WAKE UP'), a bottle of Visine (to obviously clear his clouded eyes), tissues (to wipe anything from his eyes that would disturb his vision), etc. These kept coming. Nathan is such a great guy. So the next throw out by Nathan was 'you could just call it...Box Of Obvious Clues, Moron! Hence, BOOC, M!~ ha ha. I about fell off the chair when I read that...P E R F E C T! So off I went to fill up the BOOC, M. I found all kinds of 'other' stuff to put in there, that wasn't so obvious, but from me! Who knows if he will ever 'get it'. I mean the box, but yeah, I could kind of say it the other way too. Too many times the circle is coming around, he gets so close and then I run! There's alot of chemistry there, so who knows. I do know that there is no price that someone can pay for happiness, no matter how much you tell yourself otherwise. One day, its too late! And how much time is wasted on unhappiness. I try to live each day to the fullest and surround myself with the people I love. They are the ones that put a smile on my face. And life is alot more fun with a smile!

Waking up in Vegas...

On the way to Vegas. I just passed Chris working at RDU. Kind of weird. I looked and there he was. Wish he was going too. Maybe another time. With all the wedding chapels out there, maybe I could knock him out and make him marry me? You think? Another reunion of sorts....facebook style! Alicia used to be my boss at American Express. When we were outsourced, she moved to Phoenix and even though I had gone out there a couple of times after that, it had been probably 10 years since I had seen her. We found each other, again, through Facebook! I think my bucket list is to reunite with all the people I haven't seen in years... I guess thats another post! Alicia and her friends had gone to Vegas in November but when she asked me, I couldn't get the time scheduled. My schedule is worked out 6-12 weeks in advance, so if I don't plan ahead (way ahead) it usually doesn't work out! I ended up throwing out a date in March and the next thing I knew, Alicia had it set up. The girls were going to be tracked out, so we made it a long weekend. The countdown was on..... You think I would forget Bob? On a trip to Vegas? No way...what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas...don't worry Bob knows the slogan! The flight attendant loved helping me out with the pictures.

The first place we hit was Fremont Street (Old Vegas). The girls would love it! The city that never sleeps. I can see why! Fremont Street has screens the entire length of the boardwalk. At certain times they play songs with coordinating songs. Pretty cool and loud! We got to see about 4 different videos! Of course it was NCAA tournament time, and as I turned around in the Stratosphere, these guys walked in, so, of course I had to get a pic! And then I sent it to Mike! Patty, played for WVU in 74. And come to find out, her nephew goes to school with Brianna at Charleston Catholic. What a small world! I definately wasn't used to the 0900 basketball game start times...so we headed down to the area they had set up with HUGE screens playing all the different games. We were, of course, wanting to watch the WVU game. As you can see, Bob was enjoying this Vegas trip! Vegas, at night! Beautiful! There's an energy level that is hard to describe. Its no wonder that no one ever sleeps. There's way too much to do! As days went on, I really wish Chris would have been here. I hope that one day I can just blurt out how much I miss him. This trip would have been GREAT with us just being here. I took a ton of pictures but wanted to get some at night with all the lights.

Outside the Bellagio, waiting on the fountain show. We got to see several during the day and at night. Totally awesome, and to some great music. Of course, I HAD to get a picture of this store! Hard Rock dude, loves Bob! I told the girls Elvis was still alive...they didnt believe me even after I showed them this picture!

Wait are we in NYC? Oh no, thats New York, New York. Its amazing how each hotel tries to outdo the others. They are all beautiful!

Stratosphere with the lovely rides on top! Highest point in Vegas! Next stop.....the TOP!

We also went to a Jeff Dunham show. It was hilarious! All in all we had a blast! Definately want to go back! Maybe next time I can drag Chris and then drag him through a wedding chapel. Hopefully I will come back and add some more...but for now, I need to get many posts posted!

Empty the car, we are heading to IKEA

Charlotte got an IKEA store in the last year. I love IKEA but the closest one has been Washington DC, so I was excited to know that now I have one 2 hours away. The girls tracked-out and were heading to Dad and Carolyns for 2 weeks while I went to Vegas, so we made the pit-stop on the way. I thought about calling Chris to see if he wanted to tag along. But then Im sure when I mentioned shopping or IKEA he would probably run with his head flying off his shoulders. ha ha It was amazing the number of cars on a Friday that were in the parking lot so early in the morning. As you can see the girls loved the store. As a matter of fact, they said we needed a tractor-trailer like the commercial so we could fill it up. We definately found a ton that we liked. I wished I had taken more pictures of the stuff instead of the kids. We did manage to pick up some small stuff, at least it would fit in the car. ha ha.

We ended up being in the store 2-3 hours. It does take awhile to walk through and actually LOOK at everything. They have soooo much. And of course you find everything you want.

Made sure we got the store hours, you know, just in case I cant remember. Wouldn't want to get there too late. Allison was having a little too much fun with the shopping cart and trying to get it to the car. Their carts go forward/backward and sideways. So that was enough for the girls to be sold. Lets go to IKEA so we can play with the carts. ha ha

Do we really have to leave? Don't worry, we will be back.....very soon!

Kidnapped Bob...

Bob has had a time..I am sitting in Stretcher Triage and get a picture sent to me below...with the message 'he went screaming the entire way'

Then, about the time I read that message and realized Bob was in the tube system, I got the text 'the tube system is now shut down'. OH NO!

We had a follow-up retreat meeting with MLP and I had Bob there and introduced him to the CNO/VP and then stopped by the office and then headed home. Saturday and Sunday I was at Wake, and I knew Bob hadn't seen his friends at Wake in awhile so I was going to take him. Saturday I had forgotten all about him and didn't think about it until I got in the building. So Sunday, I got halfway in the building and looked in my bag and Bob wasn't there. I figured he must have fallen out of the bag. When I got home, I checked the car, no Bob, then I checked all my other bags, no Bob. Where was Bob? I knew I had him Friday. What was I going to do?

Monday I get up, and get ready to get in the shower around 0500 and 14 text pictures come through of Bob and his grand weekend adventures. Allison Paula had Bob. Looks like Bob had an interesting weekend. With a ransom request of gummy bears and that "Bob will be at Rex after 11am on Wednesday". At least I know, Bob isn't gone for good. Whew!

So Wednesday rolls around and I get a call from a co-worker stating that they have seen Bob. I told them, they have to get him back without Allison knowing. They were totally in for scheming with me. Recon Mission successful-approximately 1 hour later I get a call stating 'mission accomplished'. I laughed and laughed. When I left Wake I headed to Rex around 1530 and immediately started asking for Bob. No one knew where Bob was. Bob was in Allisons bag and now he's not. Where or where did Bob go? Little did everyone know I knew where Bob was. he he he he

Reading through my emails that day, was a APB put out on Bob. One reply was that 'I saw him this morning wearing a blue shirt'. ha ha ha... Then Elizabeth had sent a thank you email out for whoever returned her stethascope and they were a lifesaver...Steve Anderson's reply "it was Bob". I busted out laughing. ha ha ha

I came into work the next night and this was taped to the computer monitor:

Hilarious! I love it! Both day shift and night shift were getting into it! Yeah...team building 101!

More adventures to follow!

Shopping for HVAC units...NOT FUN!

A few years ago the heat started messing up, I had a guy come and look at it, and it needed cleaning as well as a heat exchanger. Anyways, it ended up costing around $900. I knew the unit was the same unit when the house was built and the house is about 15 years old, so its time is coming. As soon as he fixed it, it has worked perfectly for years, until this year. Actually it worked until the end of the season. It started doing the same thing, and I knew that I didn't want to dump another $900 when I really need another unit. Even though a new unit is more. The $900 was going to be a temporary fix.

Tarek and Kelly also needed another HVAC unit, however, their air went out last year, so just the opposite. But the 'air' season was coming and they need theirs replaced quicker than I do. Kelly called and got some estimates and the guys (Triangle Comfort) that came out 1st were the ones with the best price. He asked me a bunch of questions about temperatures upstairs/downstairs and the differences. He talked about putting in additional duct work so that it distributed the air better, which would cool more efficiently AND lower my overall bills. For a total of $5374.

Not too bad, actually. I really was hoping for something under $6000. Most of the others were charging close to $6500-$7000. So what a bargain. Tarek and Kelly got theirs done a few weeks back, just in time for the 90 plus degree days we've had and I still have not. The air works, so its not too big of a rush, but I definately need to get in done in the next 6-8 weeks.