Vadrum Meets William Tell (Drum Video)

I just love this guy! He is so talented.




http://www.andreavadrucci.com/

I am so pooped!

I am exhausted!  We have 10 more days in Texas and still have a lot of packing to do.  Luckily, Jerry's last day at work was yesterday, so he'll be here all week to finish up the packing.  I'm doing all I can, but the hysterectomy was only 2 weeks ago and I'm still on lifting and bending (not to mention sex) restrictions for 6 more weeks.  It's very frustrating!

I can get a box together, but it takes twice as long as it should and when I'm done filling and sealing it, I can't move it.  I have to wait for Jerry to come home and move it our of my way to do another.  So basically, I've been able to pack one box a day.  Not very productive, but now that he's going to be home, it should move much faster.

For a very do-it-myself independent woman, this is near torture!  Jerry is so sweet though.  He saw a trash bag tied up to go out and got mad at me for lifting it.  I had to explain to him that I carried the trash to the bag a couple pieces at a time.  Not exactly fast, but it got the job done!

Unpacking should go a lot faster since we're only going to unpack the things we absolutely need for daily living and we are taking the time to label the boxes very clearly and detailed.  No unnecessary unpacking.

I just wish we hadn't found out I needed surgery a month before the move.  Bad timing, but it was not something I could put off with my medical history.  Unfortunately it adds a bit of urgency to things that otherwise might be able to wait.

Looking forward to getting to the east coast, just hope the kids behave on the trip.  Other than Romeo, none of them have been on a long car trip and none of them have come close to a 25 hour trip. 

Lucky for me, I'm spoiled and Jerry wants me to relax and read and play games the whole way and not worry about doing any of the driving.  So with a little Dramamine, it should be smooth sailing for me!

Yay!! We got the Slumber Party house!!

Well, I think we got the house!  Whew!  What a load off.  I can relax a little bit now. 

All of my peeps have an open invitation to visit anytime!  This goes out especially to all my relatives in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine!  The entire top floor is a big game room and I think we could fit everyone up there for a big old slumber party (only 1 bath, but we'll make it work).  The house is less than 2 miles to Downtown "Party Central" Richmond, Shockoe Bottom, we're an hour from the beach and I think 2 hours from the mountains.

Chuck & Val, I expect you guys to take Val's vacation down in Virginia next year and bring the cutest nephew on the planet with you!

 

Jennifer, I expect you and Stephanie to come down for a girls weekend when you can get a sitter,  Uncle Joey, there is a golf course nearby if you need a weekend away with free room and board.  All the other brothers, sisters, cousins, Aunts and Uncles are welcome, even if you just need someplace to crash on Spring Break (for the younger ones).

I am so excited to be finally closer in distance to my family.  I hope the closer distance will help make us closer as well.

Needfire - Young, Free and Celtic

This is an awesome Celtic Rock band and this is one of my favorite songs.  This son is on my iPod in my "get down" playlist.  Song doesn't actually start until 1:30 into the video.

You can download one of their albums that has 2 of my favorite songs on it (Young, Free & Celtic/Walking Back to Austin).  The album is only $5.94 to download!

Greeting cards you'll most likely never see on a Hallmark...

"Looking back over the years that we've been together, I can't help but wonder:...
What was I thinking?"

"Congratulations on your wedding day!....
Too bad no one likes your wife."

"How could two people as beautiful as you....
have such an ugly baby?"

"I've always wanted to have someone to hold, someone to love....
After having met you, I've changed my mind."

"I must admit, you brought Religion in my life....
I never believed in Hell until I met you."

"As the days go by, I think of how lucky I am....
that you're not here to ruin it for me."

"As you grow older, Mum, I think of all the gifts you've given me.
Like the need for therapy..."

"Thanks for being a part of my life!!!....
I never knew what evil was before this!"

"Before you go,....
I would like you to take this knife out of my back. You'll probably need it again."

"Someday I hope to get married....
but not to you."

"You look great for your age....
Almost Lifelike!"

"When we were together, you always said you'd die for me....
Now that we've broken up, I think it's time you kept your promise."

"I knew the day would come when you would leave me for my best friend....
So here's his leash, water bowl and chew toys."

"We have been friends for a very long time....
What do you say we call it quits?"

"I'm so miserable without you....
It's almost like you're here."

"Congratulations on your new bundle of joy....
Did you ever find out who the father was?"

"You are such a good friend that if we were on a sinking ship and there was only one life jacket....
I'd miss you heaps and think of you often."

"Your friends and I wanted to do something special for your birthday....
So we're having you put to sleep."

"Your kisses are sweet, your hugs are passionate....
But compared to your sister, they're only second rate."

You're an 80's child if...

You had a crush on one of the New Kids on the Block members.

You wanted to be on Star Search. (Come on, we all did)

You can remember what Michael Jackson looked like before his nose fell off.

You wore a banana clip or one of those slap on wrist bands at some point during your youth.

You wore French rolls on the bottom of your splatter painted jeans.

You had slouch socks, and puff painted your own shirt at least once.

You owned a doll with 'Xavier Roberts' signed on it's butt.

You know the profound meaning of ''Wax on, Wax off.''

You can name at least half of the members of the elite ''Brat Pack.''

You can remember watching Full House and Saved by the Bell for endless hours!!!!!!

You have seen at least 10 episodes of Fraggle Rock.

You know that another name for a keyboard is a ''Synthesizer.''

You hold a special place in your heart for ''Back to the Future.''

You know where to go if you ''Wanna go where everybody knows your name.''

You thought Molly Ringwald was REALLY cool. (Was there an 80's movie she WASN'T in?)

You know what ''Sike'' means.

You fell victim to 80's fashion: big hair, crimped, combed over to the side, and you wore spandex pants

You wanted to be a Goonie - (hey u guyz!!)

You owned an extensive collection of Cabbage Patch Kids and trolls.

You actually saw Ted Danson as the MacDaddy he played ''Sam'' to be.

You ever wore fluorescent -neon if you will clothing...(or nail polish)

You could break dance, or wished you could. (I said hip hop....)

You remember when ATARI was a state of the art video game system. (Remember Pong)

You know all the words to ''Ice Ice Baby''.

You remember MC hammer well.

You can still sing the rap to "Fresh Prince of Bel Air"

You own any cassettes.

You were led to believe that in the year 2000 we'd all be living on the moon.

You remember and/or own any of the CareBear Glass collection from PizzaHut.

Poltergeist freaked you out.

You carried your lunch to school in a Gremlins or an ET lunchbox.

You have ever pondered why Smurfette was the ONLY female smurf.

You wanted to communicate with some being named Cinergy.

You wanted to have an alien like Alf living in your house.

You wore biker shorts underneath a short skirt and felt stylish.

You wore tights under shorts and felt stylish.

You ever had a Swatch Watch.

You actually spent countless hours trying to perfect the care-bear stare.

You remember when Saturday Night Live was funny.

You had Wonder Woman or Superman underwear.

You wanted to be The Hulk for Halloween.

You Believed that ''By the power of Greyskull, you HAD the power''

You thought that Transformers were more than meets the eye.

Partying ''like it's 1999'' seemed SO far away!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you can identify with at least half of this list then you, my friend, are a ''Child of the 80's.''

Deglon Meeting Knife Set, Stainless Steel Knives

Amazon.com: Deglon Meeting Knife Set, Stainless Steel Knives and Block, Set of 4: Kitchen & Dining

I absolutely love this knife set!  It's dropped $300 since I started watching it.  If it drops another $400, it is gonna be in my kitchen!!

The Deglon Meeting Knife Set is practical, durable and a work of art. Designed by Mia Schmallenbach and produced by Deglon, it won first prize in the 5th European Cutlery Design Award. This lovely set is made of high quality stainless steel and seemingly appears to be created from a single block of stainless steel. Each knife nests within the set. To remove each knife, simply press down near the tip of the blade and life knife away by the handle. Set includes a 3-1/4-inch paring knife, 5-1/4-inch utility knife, 8-inch chef knife, 8-3/4-inch slicer and matching stainless steel block. Occasionally, use a steel to sharpen. Hand wash and dry, recommended. Made in France by Deglon. Deglon - handcrafter of quality cutlery since 1821. Limited lifetime warranty.

Native Union - Moshi Moshi Pop Phones - AWESOME!!!

 I simply had to write about my new toy.  Plug it in, set your ringtone to “Classic Ring” or “Old Fashioned” depending on your phone, then sit back, close your eyes and wait for a phone call. 

If you were born before 1985, you will be instantly transported back to your teen years.  Long nights spent gabbing on the phone to your BFF about the cute boy in class while your parents are yelling at you in the background to stop tying up the phone line (remember, there was only one phone in the house and most of us didn’t have call waiting until the 90’s) twisting the cord around your fingers until it was so mangled when you hung up the phone the cord was now permanently stuck in a big ball! 

Ahhhhhh… I can almost smell the Aqua Net!

The Body Odd - SAD in the summer? Sunshine depression rare, but real

The Body Odd - SAD in the summer? Sunshine depression rare, but real

Many of us can hardly wait for summer to arrive, but a small number of people are much happier when it's over. You've no doubt heard of Seasonal AffectiveDisorder, the wintertime mood disorder -- but some get SAD in the summer.

As hot weather approaches, those with summer SAD sleep less, eat less, and lose weight. They're extremely irritable and agitated. (It's the reverse for people with winter SAD, who sleep more, gain weight and crave high-carb foods, and tend to slow down and socially hibernate from late fall to early spring.)

Summer-onset depression is thought to affect less than 1 percent of the population, making it much rarer than the winter variety experienced by an estimated 5 percent of people.

In its most severe form, people with summer seasonal depression may be more at risk for suicide than cold-weather SAD, says Dr. Norman Rosenthal, a clinical professor of psychiatry at Georgetown University Medical School, who has studied both types and first helped discover their existence. "Suicide is more of a concern when people are depressed and agitated rather than depressed and lethargic," he explains.

When summer depression was first recognized in 1986, Rosenthal said that mental health professionals suspected the cause was the heat and humidity. That, he said, lent itself to the idea that a cold shower, air conditioning, swimming in cold lakes or heading North would relieve symptoms. Although these treatments for hot-weather depression are useful for some, they lack the staying power that light-box therapy has on winter SAD. 

'The light is cutting though me like a knife'
A person with summer SAD can stay inside, crank up the AC, and darken the room but then go outside into the heat and it's as if they've never been treated, explains Rosenthal, the author of "Winter Blues."

Another idea is that it might be the light itself that's aggravating sufferers, whether it's the intensity of sunlight or the angle it's coming at people. One of Rosenthal's summer depression patients describes it as "feeling like the light is cutting though me like a knife."

Still another possibility is that there may be two kinds of warm-weather depression, says Dr. Alfred Lewy, a professor of psychiatry at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland. He suggests there might be one group of people who have an unpleasant reaction to the heat and humidity -- a discomfort with the climate. But even in Portland where summers aren't that hot or humid, he's seen patients struggle with summer depression.

Lewy suspects the cause in a second group might be that the body's natural clock, it's circadian rhythms, are misaligning in summer. Instead of cueing to dawn, the longer daylight is causing some vulnerable people to cue to dusk. Cueing to dusk shortens the typical body clock and delays a person's sleep-wake cycle. This mismatch, theorizes Lewy, may be triggering depression.

He successfully treated a person with summer depression with a combination of getting early morning sunlight (30 to 60 minutes daily), which shifts the body clock forward, and low-dose melatonin, a hormone that helps regulate sleep-wake cycles. Severe symptoms may also benefit from antidepressants.

Do you secretly -- or perhaps not-so-secretly -- loathe the summer months? What helps you get through them?

My Robotic Hysterectomy Post Op Experience

****THIS POST IS A DESCRIPTIVE NARRATIVE OF MY EXPERIENCE****

IF YOU DON’T WANT TO READ A NO HOLDS BARRED DESCRIPTION OF MY EXPERIENCE AND HOW I DEALT WITH DIFFERENT ASPECTS OF AFTERCARE, THEN LEAVE NOW. 
IF YOU DO WANT TO READ ABOUT MY EXPERIENCE TO MAYBE HELP WHEN YOU ARE GOING THROUGH IT, THEN CLICK “READ MORE”