Got a letter from my gym yesterday that they are closing! Bummer. I really enjoyed the short trip from The Colony to Carrollton three times a week. Now I will have to travel to Park and Preston in south Plano. The facility looks fantastic though. And such a deal! I paid $12/mo for 24 months for the small facility in Carrollton, but the facility in Plano will honor the membership and it’s a really nice place. There is a cardio theater (watch a movie while on an ellipical)and a full size pool as well as a big variey of classes. Unfortunately, the only early morning classes are yoga. Sad for me because I will have to contend with traffic, but good in a way, because "Shakespeare for Insomniacs" is wearing out this insomniac imposter.

Hi all,

It's been a little while so I thought I'd catch everyone up.

 

I just got back from Ray Roberts State Park. Enjoyed a cool (read cold) campout with Troop 281 and new Scout Zak.  There's a fire ban on, so only cooking with campstoves. BRRRR...  I slept good. Found a hibernating bear and cuddled right up.   My favorite part of camping is hearing the coyotes. They remind me of a room full of jr. highers.

So, now that Zak is a Boy Scout, my campouts are a little on the pedestrian side.  Just look out for my own stuff. Very cool. I did forget my tarp, my flashlight and my book.  I felt very sad at "lights out" time, because once the sun set, I never had "lights on". And no book! That won't happen again!

Speaking of books, I'm teaching a "Shakespeare for Insomniacs" class. It runs 10:00-12:00am 4 nights a week. Unfortunately, I am not an insomniac, so my very early rise (4:45am) 3 times a week to go to the gym is really difficult. The class itself is going really well. We're doing Macbeth. And for those of you in the class, get ready for (dis)Order in the Court! Next up is The Merchant of Venice and then a short comedy.

I'm happy to say I have no one enrolled in the Lindsey Lohan Knockoff Rehab Program. My Philmont training is requiring me to carry weight in my backpack and hike. Anyone entering the program from here on out has to hike with me to Walmart carrying an external frame backpack, load up with groceries and hike with me home. Paper or plastic? Neither.....BACKPACK!

Valentines Day was fun. I delivered cookie bouquets to various places in Plano.  Plano is big! I'm not a delivery person by nature, but my paycheck came last week, so I'll be doing thaqt job again next year!

Thanks for stopping by.....

 

I just completed 2 more miles in 20 minutes. That's three times this week. (I also take a spin class, a boot camp class and mess with the stairclimber each week).

Next week I start tempo runs once a week. This is supposed to help run faster overall. I don't know...

It goes like this: walk 1/2 mile, run 1/2 mile at 9 mph, walk 4 minutes 30 seconds, run 1/2 mile at 9 mph, walk 1/2 mile.

The rest of the runs at 2.25 mile in 22.5 minutes.

All this for a faster 5k.

My numbers are great ! Cholesterol at 178 and pulse at 68. This in spite of my teens!

 

 

 

 

This is why women should not take men shopping against
their will.

After Mr. and Mrs. Gusnell retired, Mrs. Gusnell
insisted her husband accompany her on her trips to Wal-Mart.

Unfortunately, Mr. Gusnell was like most men ,he found
shopping boring andpreferred to get in and get out.

Equally unfortunately, Mrs. Gusnell was like most women ,she loved to browse. One day Mrs. Gusnell received the following letter from her local Wal-Mart.

Dear Mrs. Gusnell,

Over the past six months, your husband has been
causing quite a commotion in our store. We cannot tolerate this behavior and may be forced to ban
both of you from the store. Our complaints against Mr.
Gusnell are listed below and are documented by our video surveillance cameras.

1. June 15: Took 24 boxes of condoms and randomly put
them in people's carts when they weren't looking.

2. July 2: Set all the alarm clocks in Housewares to
go off at 5-minute intervals.

3. July 7: Made a trail of tomato juice on the floor
leading to the women's restroom.

4. July 19: Walked up to an employee and told her in
an official voice,'Code 3 in Housewares. Get on it right away.'

5. August 4: Went to the Service Desk and tried to put
a bag of M&Ms on layaway.

6. September 14: Moved a 'CAUTION - WET FLOOR' sign to
a carpeted area.

7. September 15: Set up a tent in the camping
department and told other shoppers he'd invite them in if they would bring pillows and blankets from
the bedding department.

8. September 23: When a clerk asked if they could help
him he began crying and screamed, 'Why can't you people just leave me alone?'

9. October 4: Looked right into the security camera
and used it as a mirror while he picked his nose.

10. November 10: While handling guns in the hunting
department, he asked the clerk where the anti-depressants were.

11. December 3: Darted around the store suspiciously
while loudly humming the ' Mission Impossible' theme.

12. December 6: In the auto department, he practiced
his 'Madonna look'by using different sizes of funnels.

13. December 18: Hid in a clothing rack and when
people browsed through, yelled 'PICK ME! PICK ME!'

14. December 21: When an announcement came over the
loud speaker, he assumed a fetal position and screamed 'OH NO! IT'S THOSE VOICES AGAIN!'

And last, but not least

15. December 23: Went into a fitting room, shut the
door, waited a while, then yelled very loudly, 'Hey! There's no toilet paper in here!'

I went shopping at Albertsons yesterday. And what a day! The bill would have been $62.90, but after all my little bits of paper I paid $13.10 for 10 Warm Delites, 10 cans of Grands! biscuits, 4 bags of Betty Crocker Cookie mix and 6 boxes of Toaster Struedel.

Teens in the house acting as if they forgot their brains? No problem! I'm ready!

 

For those of  you just dying to know my marathon decision,........no. I'll not be running the marathon in Dallas in December. Just the veterans Day 5k, the Turkey Trot (hey they let dogs enter the race - the dogs get a neckerchief and a bib with a number - how cool is that? A dog at a turkey trot!) and I think a mayors race 5k the day before the marathon.

On the real estate front...we found renters for our mobile home. They have agreed to make the repairs and  I'll reimburse them. They'll also pay for their own utilities, get their own liablity insurance, mow the lawn and pay rent. Hooray!

 

 

 

Hey,

Today is my friend Ken's birthday. He's older than me, so we'll see how he fares.

  I beat my record Saturday. 9 miles in 2 hours 3 minutes! Boast, boast, boast. That's 3 minutes better than the week before. Smirk.  Guess those weekday workouts are paying off.

I do need to make a decision on whether to run the Dallas Marathon in December. If a person runs the Dallas, Austin and Houston Marathons.....they would get a free jacket.....I need a new jacket......hmmm.

Well, gotta run!

-Lori

This is the letter I sent our lawyer after getting another short letter about the stupid release. RELEASE FROM WHAT???

 

 

Sharon Braughtigam, LLP

32 White Street

PO Box 210

Fredonia, New York 14063

Re: Ludwig to Norton

 

Dear Ms. Braughtigam:

I have received two releases from you regarding the above listed property.  I have chosen not to sign the releases because after reducing the price of the property by $1000.00, guaranteeing the well and guaranteeing the septic system, something changed and Jim Norton rejected the counter offer.  Jim Norton had previously accepted the counter offer, but changed his mind.  If there is any recourse to holding him to this agreement, I may wish to pursue it.

I feel that I am entitled to the courtesy of communication concerning the breakdown of this agreement. I have heard nothing at all from my realtors (since August 4, 2007), the buyer's lawyer, or the buyer himself.  The first I knew of a change was your very curt letter of two sentences, delivering the news to me approximately two weeks ago.

I insist that I be treated with dignity and respect, and will do no one's bidding until the communication breakdown is resolved.

Very sincerely,

Lori Ludwig

Got a bothersome habit to break? Want to "get away from it all"; that is stop the use of illegal substances and risking underage exposure?  Have I got the plan for you....

Lindsey Lohans rehab has many appealing activities all with the goal of kicking the habit.  Some of these include:

- horseback riding                                                     

-hiking

-group therapy

-personal reflection

-exercise

-cooperative sharing of facilities maintenance

and others.

For little or no cost, you, too can have a rehab program that rivals the trendiest of rehabs. That's right! Kick the habit all from the comfort of your own community and home.

This is the plan.

Begin your day at 4:30 am.  Under no circumstances should you take a day off or start any later (unless you are going camping - that has it's own therapies).

Grab the dogs and head out into the great outdoors. Walk, walk, walk,walk,walk,walk walk. That's it! Everyday 5-8 miles. This should take you 1.5 to 2 hours. Pressed for time? Run 3+ miles!

After a refreshing breakfast, complete an assigned chore, such as move all the furniture and shampoo the carpets, clean the family bathroom until it sparkles, weed the dog run, clean the attic, clean the garage, etc. These tasks should take 45 minutes to an hour.

Go to work or school as usual.

Sometime during the day, write a 4 page paper. This should happen everyday (except if you are going camping). In our program, we have limited the choice of topics to the following:

1. Second hand smoking

2. Litigation on tobacco companies

3. Smoking Cessation

4. Smoking Benefits

5. Smoking and Pregnancy

6. Effects of Smoking on The Body

7. Personal and National Monetary Cost of Smoking

8. Lung Cancer/ Emphysema

9. Smoking Bans

10. Trends in Smoking

11. The Tobacco Plant (types, how grown, etc)

12. Smoking and Housefires

13. Chewing Tobacco

14. Marijuana: Should it Be Legal?

and others if necessary.

Repetition is an excellent way for a resident to remember basic stances when placed in a compromising situation. This is at the discretion of the small group leader and should include 50 repetitions for 10 days.

Finally, group therapy. This is important to begin with a confession contract. Signed and dated, this contract ensures that all news that a parent may hear through the grapevine is disclosed at the time of signing the contract. Any other relevant confessions are to be made at that time. Failure to report such news or to distort the timeline disclosed at the time of signing will result in a $100 fine per offense.

All that is missing is horseback riding. Our program has incorporated a minivan riding activity in the everyday schedule. While the resident cannot use their car, complimentary rides will be given by the small group leader to church and work. Almost the same.

Cell phone use, time with friends, and car use will be gradually restored after 10-20 days of the rehab program.

All suggestions and comments will be welcomed.

 

We put our mobile home on two acres up for sale in the Great State of New York. 

Just for review for those that don't know, the propane ran out one winter, and the water pipes froze.  We had to replace the pump to the well, and we disclosed that the hot water heater and possibly other pipes were faulty.

The realtors approached us and asked if we wanted to sell as they had a potential buyer waiting in the wings. We said sure, and took the realtors suggestion of $42,900.

Since the realtors had a buyer in mind already, the first offer came in in no time. $35000. We said no; $41,000. They said $38,000 cash. Deal.

Then they said "Hey what's this about a hot water heater and frozen pipes?". So we agreed to let a building inspector have a look and make a recommendation at the buyers expense. The inspector said we will need a new hot water tank and there is a long PVC pipe that will have to be replaced under the house.

So we said that's great, we're going to sell the place "as is" since they've already had a building inspector take a look and that would free up money from the escrow account after closing.

Well that was a deal breaker. HMMMPH. Ok, we'll make nice. Drop the price to $37000, guarantee the well and the septic system. That will tie up $20,000 until all the certificates have been issued.  The buyers said "sure".

Our lawyer said we would need an affidavit to make the changes and would get right on it. That was two weeks ago.

Two days ago, we got a letter from the lawyer that the buyers would not accept the counter offer and we will need to sign the release enclosed.

Well, what are we releasing them from? What happened? I haven't heard from our real estate agents in weeks. Hmmph. I'm not signing anything unless I get an explanation.

So I filed the release away, and when folks there are tired of not hearing anything, they can contact me.