Vermont Visit

   My sisters and I just spent a couple of days in Vermont.  We had a wonderful time despite the frigid weather.  The warmest day hit 20 degrees, and the rest went downhill from there.  The locals say that there is not much difference once the temperature falls below zero, except that hats and scarfs are a must.
   My niece plays basketball at a college near Stowe, and she had home games on Friday night and Saturday.  We enjoyed lovely meals and shopped in the village near campus.  We crammed a lot into two days, and yet it was laid back and relaxed.  Once we found the restaurant that stays open late, and the back roads that save time, it was a piece of cake.
   The campus was small, and we were given a tour of all the important areas.  The dining hall, campus store, and library were within walking distance of the dorms and gymnasium.  The dorm room was adequate, but needed a rug to warm things up.  We found three matching rugs, and now the room has a doormat, a runner near the desk, and an area rug to make walking barefoot more comfortable.  It made us happy to supply something useful and needed.
    Due to snowy driving conditions, the sisters spent more than nine hours driving together.  It's amazing that we always have something to talk about, and we can spend hours catching up.  A snow shower that was not expected to amount to much, dumped about six inches of snow on the roads in about three hours. That caused us to head home while we still had some daylight.  The hills of Vermont are beautiful, and we had the road to ourselves as we spent almost an hour getting to the highway.  We stopped for dinner and filled up the car. Thankfully, the snow had subsided for the last hour of our journey.
     We plan to go back up for softball season, and see the Green Mountains during the spring.  In the meantime, I'll send goofy cards and text messages.  With today's technology, we can view live pod casts of the games, and keep in touch real time....and the beat goes on.....the beat goes on........
    

Some Days are Better Than Others

   Most days are complicated, and today was one of those days.  I will call it a combination of good, bad, and ugly.  Yesterday was supposed to be a rainy day with temperatures close to 40 degrees, but due to a cold front, it snowed the entire day.  It was snowing this morning, and everything we planned to do yesterday, now had to be finished by 3pm today, because wanted to watch the Patriot's and Bronco's Playoff game.
    There were quite a few good things that happened today.  We had an appointment to see a litter of puppies as we are planning to get a new dog.  It took and hour to get there, and the snow had created a winter wonderland.  It was the type of snow that clung to branches, and houses and road signs.  Luckily, the roads were not icy, and we felt safe driving the country roads.  The pups were adorable, and we will take one of the females home by the end of February!  All of this was really good stuff, and we got all the errands done with plenty of time to spare.
    The game was exciting, but our team lost, which can justify a bad day in our house.  New England did not play well, and they needed to play their best game of the year in order to beat Denver.  A couple of lucky bounces may have helped, but our football season came to a screeching  halt today.  I believe that New England  fans are pretty fortunate to have such great teams in all sports. That makes us believe that we always have a good chance to win every game.  I hope that does not make me a sports snob.  I hope it just makes me a true sports fanatic.
     The ugly part of today was watching some of the brutal hits, and unsportsmanlike behavior that accompany both playoff games today.  This season, the Patriots had many season ending injuries to our starters and top players.  Other teams saw injuries end their hopes of getting into the playoffs, but the Patriots did their best to overcome all obstacles, and win with the guys on the field.  New England had more rookies starting games than any other team, and that will be good for next year.
    Congratulations to Denver and Seattle, who will battle in the Super Bowl Game in two weeks.  I wish both teams luck, and we will be watching.  I tend to watch all the commercials, and get snacks during the game when the Patriots aren't playing, but I'll still enjoy it ....and the beat goes on.....the beat goes on.....
   

   

My New Year's Wish List

   Each new year brings hope and anticipation for good things to come.  I've written down a few goals that I will work on during 2014.  New Year's resolutions are tough, because they are almost impossible to achieve. I've decided to call it a wish list, because it will encourage me to take some risks.
  I would like to take a trip,  grow my business, and get one of my Matt and Muggzy books published. This year I will accentuate the positive, and expect great things.
  I recently turned sixty, and I cut out the horoscope for those born on my birthday.  I laminated it, and will use it as a bookmark.  It will be exciting to see what, if anything actually comes true.  Apparently, I'm a cosmic favorite these days, and I must be sure and want things for myself and others.  I should be greedy for love, goodness, and health.  I was also promised that one of my minor,  but very fond wishes will come true. I do ask for my blessings every day, and so I cannot wait to see what will happen.
  I will be increasingly active in the next three months, and I can expect good things physically, socially, an intellectually.  I should take some 'before' pictures, because February will bring an 'after' to my domestic scene.  All of these seem excellent, and I look forward to the improvements in store for me.  I can expect a promotion in May, and I even have a list of my lucky numbers.
  I received many birthday wishes on face book, and I updated that I was partying like I was only 59!  My niece treated me to a fabulous pedicure, and my godson gave me a gift bag with some wonderful things.  We went to dinner and a movie, and I now have new earrings, clothes, jar candles and gift cards. My birthday lunch was cancelled due to a snowstorm, but my cousins have been kind and generous.  I'm told that more gifts are on the way, including tickets to see the Jersey Boys when they come to our area.
   This year, my thank you notes, and emails will include wishes for lots of love, happiness and good health for all of us.  I love the sentiment and I do believe in the power of positive thinking.  I'll document my progress on my wish list, and chronicle any time one of my wishes come true....and the beat goes on.....the beat goes on.......