the first day of the rest of my life. again.

yesterday was my birthday. another year older.
i am 47 years old.

lemme say it again, in case you missed it. f-o-r-t-y-s-e-v-e-n.

gaaaah.

again, if i had known i was gonna live this long, i'd taken better care of myself.
but i didn't, so i might as well start now right?? right???

oh well.

47.

i realize it's not that old in the scheme of things and most days, i don't feel that old. some days, however, i feel much, MUCH older.

like now.

you see, not only did i have a birthday yesterday, i had the distinct honor of being sick -on.my.birthday.

actually, all week. the Husband has had typhoid/yellow fever/creeping crud for almost a week, and i was feeling pretty dang proud of myself that i had avoided it. that was until Wednesday morning came and i was calling the police, trying to report a hit & run on my bum.

and i proceeded to sleep the majority of the time. Wednesday, Thursday and yesterday. well, scratch that...not last night so much.

like a dumbass, i over medicated myself with cough medicine and Mucenix and could NOT get to sleep until about 2:30 this morning...whereupon i immediately woke up at 6:30 with the cheerful May Gray streaming in my face.

stupid sun. there ought to be a law.

and there ought to be a law against being sick on your birthday.

it s-u-u-u-u-u-cks.

did it effect my appetite? unfortunately not, except for the fact that the Husband's tummy did not like him, so therefore i had no appetite.

oh well. soup and grilled cheese is still good.

47. three years away from 50. eight years away from AARP membership.

and i'm still standing. over medicated, but standing.

goin' Hollywood.

my No. Cal. friends were down this past weekend...apparently he needed a Disneyland fix and while they were down, we made plans to hit Paramount Studios in L.A.

the only studio we've ever toured was Universal. my friends have toured Universal, Warner Bros and now Paramount.

the tour was different than Universal in that at Universal, you get about 100 people in a tram and while you see actual working sets, there is a lot that's already set up for tours. Paramount & Warner is smaller and there's nothing already set up. if you see something filming, good on you. no huge King Kong audioanamatronic...no set up of props.

a small group was nice..easier to ask questions. our tour guide stopped a lot, showed us some sets from upcoming Nickelodeon shows, saw the area where Lucille Ball had her home on set set up...landscaped to be like her personal home. we saw them filming Dirty Sexy Money, feeling sorry for the extras, dressed for a New York Fall/Winter in a Southern California unseasonably warm fall.

oh, and the Hollywood sign.

every time i see the logo, i think of the Brady Bunch.

filming Dirty Sexy Money = hurry up and wait. we watched 'em set up the scene, wait, bring the cars in, wait, wait, wait...then we left.

the famous gate. i didn't realize it was so famous, but our guide said it's the most photographed studio opening ever.

who knew?

in other news...

the birthday party went well...the birthday girl does NOT look one, she looks older and THAT can cause a problem for mommy & daddy when she gets older.

i can't post any photos, momma never said i could, and i didn't ask because i was totally busy. the Birthday Girl, however, is just getting her walking legs and has a full head of curly hair..and looks exactly like her grandma..daddy's momma.

the park they had the party at was amazing...Irvine Regional was part of the Irvine Ranch at one point...the Irvine family owned over 100,000 acres of land in the O.C., which makes up about 1/4 of the county.

daaaaaang.

the park has pony rides, a train, pedal boats AND a zoo. in the winter, the train ride takes you to see Santa.

i'm all over that.

the only downside from the weekend was all that great outdoors wreaked havoc on my allergies...and i paid for it yesterday, feeling miserable and stuffy.

ah-choo, y'all.

Viva Lost Wages.

we be back.

i'm still poor.

my friend's grandma celebrated her 95th birthday yesterday. she won more on the slots than i did.

i did, however, win myself a lovely head cold.

i am still in my pyjamas while others of our traveling party are at work. (neeener, neener, neeeee-ner!)

photos will follow...soon as i feel better.

bless you.

sick.
bad cold.
head hurts.
too much snot.
(too much information?)
lotsa NyQuil.
Husband getting it now.
i'm not popular.



(speaking of, he's going back for a second interview as we speak. more info...)

well, if you must ask...

no. i have not taken five pictures this year.
not even one.

i am, however, quite familiar with all the crap that's on daytime tv.

and how dang comfy our recliner is.

and also how snuggly i can be under two quilts.

what? oh. sorry. let me back up a little.

12/31
cough. cough. cough.
no big. it's windy today. really windy. this is likely allergies. especially since my eyes are watering. i still am heading out to dinner.

1/1 - day one
did anyone get the name of that truck? the one that blindsided me? the one that was carrying a load of snot, has left me weak AND in charge of their cargo? because i need to report their company to the BBB. leaving me with all this crap is NOT good business practices. oh well. a little NyQuil tonight and i will be as fresh as a daisy tomorrow.

1/2 - day two - possession
great googly moogly. i have been possessed by a snot demon. NyQuil has no power here. i feel as if i've been mugged by an elephant. i need an exorcism on my sinuses. i need to complete my Last Will and Testament. then i realize i don't have any real possessions to leave. great.

1/3 - day three - the coronation of Queen Snot
i am dying. i hurt. i cough and pee a little. niiice. 45 freaking years old and i'm peeing my pants. not to mention a (cough cough pee) friend sends me a photo of her bbq brisket dinner that she's ready to enjoy. i thought we were friends. i was wrong. i vow that if i survive i will hunt her down. and make her watch me eat a bbq brisket. with grits. and fresh biscuits with apple butter. and yes, bread pudding for dessert.

1/4 - day four - i will survive.
wow.
i feel...almost human.
i guess i will survive this.
i've even decided to get nasal spray..which i hate using. but i'm really tired of not breathing.
and i really hate that my last week of vacation being sick.

can i get a do-over for this week?

happy 2008.

y'know, back in the day, i could not imagine me being 45.

i mean..sheesh! that was so old.

i remember being in 5th grade, and our teacher was getting married. we actually had the cahones to stand there and say that she'd better hurry up and have babies...she didn't have too many good years left.

looking back, it's a miracle she even promoted us to the 6th grade.

now - 45 doesn't seem that old. on most days.

today? i feel 85.

last night, Husband and i continued a tradition we started when we began dating - we have dinner at a teppan restaurant (like Benihana).

and, as the afternoon progressed, i kept coughing. not a good sign.

right now, i'm planted in our recliner, with two quilts over me, still coughing and my legs hurt like a mofo.

what a great way to start out the new year! get sick!!

thankfully - the Husband left to go shooting with his friend. and i'm fine with that, because he's a crummy nurse. i'd rather suffer in silence.

or suffer here on the blog.

so - now that i finished whining, let me share three goals (i ain't a-saying resolutions, i hate that word). feel free to join in.

1. take a photo a day in '08. quite the idea i picked up here.
2. complete 100 layouts in '08 (blatantly stolen from Linda. i have my doubts on this one , but i'm gonna give it a shot.)
3. (and this should be #1) rejoining Weight Watchers and get back on track. Melissa has inspired me every.dang.day. and i need to do this for no one but me.

not sure how i'm gonna start the photo a day in '08 today...me feeling like crap and it's as windy as all get out out there. matter of fact, i think i just saw a house and some broad on a broom twist by.

but i'm gonna give it a shot. because every day we get a chance to make a new beginning.

and i get to make one with Theraflu.