We got some overnight!

Very exciting, made for a fun drive to the bus stop this morning.

That storm moving in from over the ocean (see it in the photo?) is gonna melt it all, though... :(

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day don't seem to be enough, remember to 'Take Care of the Golf Balls'...

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar.
Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous 'yes.'

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

'Now,' said the professor as the laughter subsided, 'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things---your family, your children, your health, your friends, and your favorite passions---and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.'

He went on. 'The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car. The sand is everything else---the small stuff.'

'If you put the sand into the jar first,' he continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Spend time with your children, with your parents. Visit with grandparents. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first---the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled and said, 'I'm glad you asked. The coffee just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.'

Please share this with someone you care about.

I JUST DID

Ok, yeah, I know I haven't *really* seen EVERYTHING, but I'm a little closer to it now than I was a few days ago...

So, we're driving home after school Tuesday, heading up our mountain road, nothing unusual, when I get a "feeling" from D-1, who is in the front passenger seat. I look over at her, and she says, "Back there... like... up there... there was... like... this thing... animal... with horns... like... a bull!" (Whew!) I said, "What? Really?" I mean, we live in the mountains. With mountain terrain, and trees, and stuff. So I backed up the car. Holy crap. Sure enough, on someone's property, which at that point goes fairly steeply up from the road, was a bull. With very large horns. About 50 feet away. But he wasn't moving. I said, "Is he real?" D-1 said, "Of course he is." I said, "But he's not moving." D-2 said, "I think he's moving..." I said, "It doesn't look like he's moving. Maybe he's fake, and someone just put him there for fun." (Like something *I* would do :) Then he wiggled an ear. And turned his head. Oh, yeah, he's very real. D-1 said, "Let's go, before he charges the car!" I said, "He's not going to charge the car." She said, "He might..." I said, "Yeah, he might, but our horses are faster that his bull!" We stayed long enough for me to get one snapshot with my phone.

We looked for him yesterday, but didn't see him.

We looked for him again today. Nope. I said to the girls, "Maybe he was some kind of mystical creature." D-1 said, "No, mom, it was a bull."

Spoilsport.

:P

OK, not all of it, just this section of it.

Though I am closer than ever to being back in my own space (and am, really), there is still sooo much that needs to be done immediately.

I have spent the majority of the past two weeks going through EVERYTHING I've had at my mom's, doing one of four things with it: packing to take home, packing to go to storage, packing it to go to goodwill, or throwing it in the garbage. I am so happy to finally have a "home" to call my own again, but it also means settling things out elsewhere. But so be it. I am so exhausted, but I'm looking forward to some awesome escape moments in the next 24 hours.

Starting with lunch tomorrow with a beautiful woman.

I've seen a number of bobcats, the occasional adult cougar (probably the same one), and a few cougar cubs (so cute!).

So now I finally got to see a bear for the first time... THREE of them! A mamma and two cubs. I was driving down the road (outside the gate, for those that will know) when I came around a bend, and there they were! All I could see of the mamma was her (huge) backside and legs as she was already diving into the brush, but the cubs (about the size of an average golden retriever) were content to sit in obliviousland while they continued with whatever game they were playing. I'm sure mamma was verbally reprimanding them to GET-YOUR-ASSES-OFF-THE-ROAD-IMMEDIATELY-OR-YOU-BOTH-ARE-GOING-TO-BE-GROUNDED!!! But I wasn't going to roll down my window and try to hear what she had to say.

Eventually, just as the others do, they left. Don't they know I just want to pet them, scratch them behind the ears, feel their soft fur? But they keep moving on. Do I smell bad?

{Sigh}