Almost Gypsy Soul

Bryan took some classes in broadcasting in college and he is the music encyclopedia. I have invited him to be the music behind my blog. Each month he will make a new playlist for my blog. So make sure you hit play if you don't already hear Bryan's music. And here is a little note from the music man himself: Song, music and the written word… it’s a powerful medium to convey thoughts, feelings, or pretty much any emotion.   Everyone has a song that takes them back to a simpler time, a lost love, heartbreak, or whatever.   It makes you feel nostalgic, angry, happy, gets you in the “party mode”, it makes you laugh or cry.   So, in keeping with the theme of this blog (kind of), and Jen’s anxiety about turning 30, I have pulled a few songs off the shelf to try to make a few points; 1) turning 30 is not that big of a deal, 2) life is an adventure, enjoy the ride, and 3) it’s not the destination, it’s the journey that matters. The first song in the list comes fr...

kindness. Especially in the Christmas season, I find myself wanting to leave the house less and less. People are in a hurry, they are rude, pushy and pretty much annoy me. When did I get to be so heartless? Christmas is a time when we should all be happy, helpful and hospitable. When did we stop caring about others? How awful is it that I sometimes have to "plan" random acts of kindness, I just get wrapped up in my own life and whats going on that I forget the battles that others are fighting are probably much larger than my own. Last week, shopping in said hurried, pushy and rude environment, I made my way to the dressing room where I saw some money on the floor. I almost left it there because it wasn't mine, but decided I should pick it up before someone who it didn't belong to did. While trying on my clothes, I contemplated on what to do with $200 in cash I had found on the fitting room floor. I knew if it were mine, I'd want it back. I knew I hop...

My positive thought for the day, keep reading for my sarcastic thought for the day. And I have one of these...... And when all else fails....follow this advice. YAY! Its finally Friday! almost.

Mike is my dad. Mike is a semi-pro hoarder. Mike is extremely hard to shop for. So this year we decided to do an HGTV makeover....complete with homework. I was home a couple weekends ago to start re-painting Mike's bedroom, his task was to clean up all the junk he'd managed to "store" in his room. I finished paining 2 walls and touching up some trim and gave him the homework to finish "decluttering" and to throw his read mail away......He actually did it. Amazing! So Little Sister, Little Sister's boyfriend, Sister and I went HGTV on his room and here is the result. PS. Mike is Kansas State Alumni. And if you are ever in the neighborhood of the 80828 and want have a good time on Christmas, swing by Mikes. We have Home Alone, the original on VHS showing on the big screen to celebrate the holidays. "Hey guys! I'm eating junk and watching rubbish, you better come out and stop me!" ~Kevin McAlester

In the spirit of the giving season I thought about sending a care package to WDC, it would have to be quite large as I would need approximately 250 gift packages as there is about 252 "congressional pairs" (with a few leftovers of course). A congressional pair....what is this crazy talking about. A "congressional pair" is 1 democrat and 1 republican. BUT in the spirit of doing my part I have decided I'd better save some money and have decided that I'll send a gift to the leading "Congressional Pair", President Obama and Speaker Boehner. What could a thirty something from the southwest corner of Wyoming possibly have to give to 2 of the most powerful men in the country that they actually need????  Now, speaking from experience I'm convinced that this shirt holds the secret to our great Nation rising once again. My mother (bless her heart) was tired of Sister and I fighting, on the verge of losing it she screamed " Ge...

Everyday I watch/listen to the news as I eat my breakfast, get dressed and otherwise get ready to trot off to my place of employment. Everyday this week I've stopped to listen about the funerals and memorials honoring all the kiddos and brave adults whose lives were cut short last week in CT. I've heard people ask "Where was God when this happened" He was there. So was the devil. As we start to try to heal from tragedies such as this one we must remember what is important, what kind of values do we want to pass on to our children so that they may pass them on to theirs someday. Hold them tight, love them, discipline them, teach them respect of others as well as themselves and remember there is a God, we just need to believe, serve and trust. Try and put your arms around the 100 year old tree Climb up on a horse and let it run full speed Take a look out at the world from 30,000 feet on your next flight Watch a flock of birds against the morning sun ...

A controversial subject to be sure. Sure they are neat, wild animals, cool to see (maybe I don't know I've never seen one in the wild, but I wonder have they seen me?) You've all heard it, they were here first, they are so beautiful etc etc. They sound so precious....an integral part of preserving the American West.....but how costly are they? Table 1. Total wolf mortality in WY from 2003 through September 30, 2012. Cause of Mortality 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012  Total Control                    18     29    ...

The most coveted of all coveted items in one's closet......the ugly sweater. A disgrace and embarrassment all those years growing up has turned into the one of the season's best! Ugly sweaters are so awesome that 3 Canadians wrote a 152 page book about the do's and don'ts of ugly sweater parties! Its a bestseller....maybe. As I wore my ugly sweater with pride today at work, I wondered what exactly is the history of THE ugly sweater? Well its really a quite fascinating tale as told by Martha McCarthy: 'Twas the Night Before Finals: The History of The Ugly Christmas Sweater Party... Ugly Christmas Sweater Parties originated like the Post-it note: by accident. No, a 3M scientist was not goofing around in a lab, but the birth of the legendary Ugly Xmas Party tradition was one big fat accident. It started with elementary education teachers. They began sporting the sweaters like it was their job. This had a trickle down effect...slowly but surely i...

If you can pin it, you can do it!   So after months and months of pinning, I admit "I have a Pinterest problem" AND I've finally started actually DOING some of the stuff that I pin. We had junk food, games and Christmas lights for the big kids....and the little kids too! For my delicious junk food I tried out these rattlesnake bites and they get a big ole' standing ovation (and not just from me)! And how easy are they you say? Well I'd give them a 2 - as in super easy. I'm not really into measuring things when I cook but here is the recipe I used as a guideline, hopefully I'll be able to recreate them next time....... 1 pound ground beef (I used breakfast sausage) 1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies (I used jalapenos) 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, cubed 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin 1/4 teaspoon chili powder 3 tubes (8 ounces each ) refrigerated crescent rolls Directions In a large skillet, cook beef and chilies over...