Phone Calls From OVER THERE

He calls me at 3:00 a.m. now to say he is having a good lunch and all is well. He also calls his Grandma but she's not nearly as easy to wake up, nor as likely to really put much emotion into the conversation. He asked her about it - she said "Reuben, it's 3:00 in the morning!" to which he replied "No it's not Grandma it's 11:00 o'clock and besides, Mom never complains about what time I call her." You know Grandmas do love their boys, but she asked him to try to call her just before he goes to bed.

Oh, I don't care when he calls - just as long as he actually calls. The reception is a little bit better than what we probably remember from watching M*A*S*H but not that much better. Phone cards are expensive and when a soldier gets one without many people to call back home he or she lends it to someone else - I think when I get really rich I'm going to donate a bunch of phone cards to the soldiers and call it "Operation E.T." It's a good plan! Maybe I can get a break if I buy a 1,000,000 of them at at time!

So, all is well in the Middle East in case you haven't heard. The soldiers are bored and that's a good thing. They have been sitting around the pool playing cards and listening to their iPods. They go swimming still, they don't have the Memorial Day to Labor Day schedule where he is - and they tend to care less if you wear Boomer Sooner basketball shorts for swim trunks apparently. No one really keeps an eye out on you I'm told, but since you're old enough to go to war I guess they figure you're old enough to swim without a life guard. Who would guard the guard at that point? What would that look like?

Baby boy has been given a new assignment - I can tell you all about it since you'll never see him - - he's stealth. He's quick. He's agile so - he's been chosen to drive the medics from Point A to Point B. Please God, tell me one of the medics is going back in the humvee with Reuben to get back to his base. I realize he'll have no problem actually making it to Point B because he'll be driving at least one medic at that time who will probably or certainly will know where Point B is exactly - but getting back? Getting back could pose a problem - he'll need someone to navigate - or perhaps he'll just stay put and become a medic's assistant until such time that one or the other of them needs to get back to Point B! That seems like a more likely scenario.

Reuben called me to day to say he and Lucy were back together. I have my Steve, my little Ford Focus, and Reuben has his Lucy - a big monstrous tank type vehicle with eight wheels and she's huge!!! He said she missed him, she had one flat tire that was adjusted and replaced, but other than that she was a little dusty but good to go. You know he missed her too. He actually sleeps with Lucy - or did in Alaska, I don't know how he'll fare sleeping inside a tank in the desert heat? Maybe he should consider popping the top since he may actually want to breathe again - his Lucy can hold a few men/women, but because he's the driver she belongs to him. He won't have her when he's driving medics - but when he's knocking over buildings, rolling over trees, doing all the things he's been looking forward to - he and Lucy will be an unstoppable team. Some of the officers in his unit swear he duct tapes his right foot to the pedals...it just seems that way.

Before the boy went into the Army he had 8 speeding tickets - the Army simply put that information to good use. Who says they aren't efficient? Well, I got the call this morning around 11:00 a.m. CENTRAL time saying he was retiring, putting Lucy up, and headed for last chow - as opposed to first, second, third and fourth chow I'm told. At least they feed them over there! I told him it would be OK to go ahead and call his Grandma now if he wanted to....mid day is fine with old people.

Hypnosis - Mind Bending

I'll try to write this blog during the mp3 hypnosis session going on inside of my ears. According to the man in my head I'm feeling every cell of my body, I'm being instructed to take a slow breath. I feel my muscles relaxing and I am in complete control of every thought I choose to have - wow, I love these tapes. Interestingly, I'm actually hearing better, my memory is more clear, and apparently I'm optimistic and dynamic too.....and did you know that exercise charges my body and my mind, I can do anything! While noticing that my iPod was way under loaded I decided to find free downloads to fill up several gigs of memory. I already have more than 2000 songs and 2000 photos on the thing - yes, those 2000 include a few of dogs and cats - I put photos of everything I love: houses, rooms in houses that are wonderfully decorated. Wait, I'm suppose to take a deep and slow breath again - I am now wide awake, and I am aware of my thoughts. 

OK, where was I? Oh yes, the iPod. OK, I have pictures of animals doing silly things, landscapes, waterscapes, my kids, my friends, me, I have pictures of nothingness - space, nebula...you can't beat a great nebula! God is so super cool - wait...I'm hearing oceans now. I have an urge to cast a line out there but not really - I don't want to catch anything, I just like the waves. I like the dolphins...why is it always dolphins? I think it's because we hear them better than we do the whales, but the bin aural beats of the bells in this tape tell me specifically to listen for the whales - the secrets are in their voices. 

Next time I tell someone I hear voices they'd better understand where I'm coming from. Prosperity, weight loss, it doesn't matter, whatever you want you can find it online and it's free if you know where to look. I have been studying positive attitude and mind cleansing, and working hand in hand with the principles behind mind over matter; but you know, you can get caught up in these things and spend a lot of money on meditation tapes and CDs with those all important bin aural beats that do all the mind work - the moaning, the pressing of the mind impressions telling me to think constantly over and over again about whatever it is that I am truly desiring - is it really this powerful? 

Can I use these new powers to mind-stalk someone? Is that even a word? (OK, but more importantly, is it illegal? Can the man get a warrant to stop me from thinking really great thoughts involving him and I involving ourselves in deep slow breathing?) LOL

 Water, crashing crashing, wave over wave, lowly bells, lowly tones, relaxing - oh, and now a voice, a low thumping voice seems like it's coming from the black rocks just under the tide - I'm suppose to think now, hold on - there we go....I'm fine. I got this thing from one of those new age silly sites and really it's worth the free trial but I won't buy the program. I like the concept of being led into a great relaxation, but I'm far to controlling to allow myself to be led. I must do the leading -- I don't trust others to lead me usually.  They tend to lead me where THEY want me, not where I need to go. 

OK, so there's that. Apparently, I am now completely relaxed. I love you. I love me. We are all happy happy and joyful people, and there must be a reason to eat chocolate right about now.

Dreaming - Explosions, Building, Telephone Wires

I dream in vivid color, and in vivid hearing apparently! I saw nothing of the explosion, but I heard it. That makes a difference when you're dreaming.

I woke up to the feeling of a hard cold wet nose in my eye-socket, but that didn't stop me from grabbing the journal I'm writing in right now, and a pen. I took the dogs out, but I stayed a little longer in the dew-grass morning. This time I had to write down every last detail that I could remember from last night's dream, and it was a lot of detailing let me tell you. SIX full pages of constant scratching out my thoughts. When I write in my journal I usually like to do so in a way that I can read it back to myself later, but I was in such a big hurry - I didn't want to lose a single thought or vision.

My friend Maria came out to walk her beautiful little sheltie. She's Italian, and you hear her before she arrives...."Maria, I can't talk. I have to write this out" She understood and sat down at the park bench outside our house in the commons. I didn't say "boo" to her, I wrote, and I bent over my work hurriedly - eventually Maria left, and I stayed outside creative and awe-struck because every single detail was so vivid - so real. I wrote it all out, and I took it all back inside with the dogs and immediately began looking up the main points. IT IS FANTASTIC!

Now, when you tell people that you had a vivid dream about an exploding office building, and they know you were a survivor of the Oklahoma City Bombing, they probably think you were just reliving it - I wasn't in that building. I was outside. Besides, I saw the blast and smoke in person. This one, I was privy only to the sound.

I remember so much of it. I remember the clothes I was wearing, the conversation I had with my co-workers. I remember the people I saw, the tiny little details about a Halloween party, and the fact that I almost stole a pink rabbit weather sock, but I knew it would be wrong and I put it back - I love it! I have morals in my dreams!!

OK...here goes: I worked in a building with people I shared office space with. I had a good job, and it was easy enough. I had a good station, windows, lots of room, and we could wear what we wanted. It was a "firm" but I didn't hold a big position, I was average, in fact, I was rather low on the totem! We had a party, a Halloween party, and I enjoyed myself. I took quite a bit of candy home to the kids in a sack and almost came close to taking something that didn't belong to me, but I thought it would be wrong and I didn't do it. I went to the bathroom where I changed my clothes. Now, this is very important, as NO ONE else changed, it was just me, and I went back to work.

When I got to my station no one was working, they were just sitting around talking - like you would if you just came back from a party and it was too late to start a new project. I went to the law office next door and chatted with old neighbors - friends, and returned to finish the day's work. I noticed I needed another envelope, but didn't have one, so I went back to the law firm and borrowed one, a bubble wrapped envelope,and I went to the mail drop to drop it off. The men in the hall told me to go around the other side of the building to drop it off - the mail slot had been moved.

Not only had the mail slot been moved, there were more men on the other side of the hall replacing every single doorknob in the building. Our office was on the top floor. I teased these guys about making it a union issue and taking their time. They laughed. I laughed. I went back to work.

I noticed a single woman in traditional Muslim clothing sitting at the end of the hall in the office. I saw a woman in a skirt and blouse talking on a phone which was hardwired into the wall - literally the wires were plugged unprotected into the outlet. I thought "that's not good" and I saw the wires expanding. The Muslim woman was silent - and the wires grew. I was now standing at a door at the end of the hall next to the Muslim woman - who reached into her wrapped dress and pulled out a gun, but I wasn't frightened. She wasn't going to hurt me.

There was a GIANT explosion...HUGE noise and I heard people screaming, but not for help. They were yelling "Fire" and not really asking for help. I turned to the Muslim woman and saw smoke coming at us - the doors behind me were locked. I could see through the crack where they came together that it was a rather loose lock. I began hitting it. She held her gun up and fired into the crack to make it more loose to help me. She then ran off to help the others - I left.

I went through doors, through open windows, down into a stairwell, and down more stairs. I went through walls like they were nothing, and I found myself near a garage where I knew my car was parked, but I saw TV reporters and didn't want to explain why I left without helping. I also didn't want to explain what had happened because I didn't know more than what they did - a loud explosion, but I remembered the wires. I left my car and I walked toward the street - I headed WEST, and that was important, I was leaving my home and going West.

A man returned to the building and it was no longer in trouble, it was all OK, and it was completely intact. There were no problems with people being in distress, and there was money and a 1/2 body on a table - I don't know why - but the body wasn't real - it was meant to be fake. I was to continue to go West. To not go back.

*********************************************************

Now, that's the dream, and when I looked it up I was thrilled. I was on the top floor - not that great of a position in my town, my building, my Oklahoma - but I was at the highest level I could or can reach here. I have to leave. I will leave. I will become something new, someone new, and I will do it out west. I changed, no one else changed, just me. All is well, no one is hurt, no one needs me. I don't need the past - I need to head off to the future....the explosion is an indicator that it will happen quickly, and without pain. I must overcome a small obstacle first, and even though I don't know what that is - I know I will overcome it. I believe in me. This will happen. I may even have to leave Steve (car) and find a new way to get around. That may be the small issue. I'll do it.

As for the Muslim woman who sat quietly and ended up helping not only me but others? I think it shows me a lesson of trust that is far deeper than I have ever seen before. I need to reach out and trust even those we are trained and taught to distrust. I need to believe in others and their abilities to love. She returned to help.

Thank you Jesus - I love to dream.

Faith the Dog Foundation - Coming Sooner!

Well, we have a mission statement! Here it is: (I borrowed it from a friend in L.A. that does this for a living.)

"The mission of the foundation called Faith the Dog is to share the inspiring story of Faith the Dog with lower income communities and/or organizations and to support Faith's continued life needs, training, and medical needs so that she can continue to share joy and bring faith to those that she meets. We provide motivational and inspirational speaking and interactive workshops for lower income schools, organizations, churches, communities, and desire to benefit these groups to the best of our abilities."

Soon, very soon, as soon as Monday, I will filing the necessary papers to get the foundation off the ground. I'm allowed to accept contributions and donations as long as I save them and keep them separated from my personal checking account. I have a savings account they will sit in until the Foundation is up and running, and I have an attorney and an accountant to keep me in line! I also have Mike Laris of the Washington Post to keep me in check too. No one else needs to bother writing or asking me what my guidelines are, or what I'm doing with the money. Mike scared the bejeebes out of me in 2008 when he asked me about donations I was giving away and didn't keep records of because I literally gave them all away - but apparently that's not the way to do it! I have since become a bit more educated and I have learned to do things in a more professional and business type manner - no more simple hand-shakes! This is America! Do it right or get written up about - do it correctly and you may still be written up about! Freedom of the Press you know.

I'm excited to say that the Mission Statement basically states it all - we have every good and faithful intention to help those who can not afford to bring Faith and I out to their area. Now, we all know that I can't go everywhere or see everyone that asks, but we can try to do 10-12 shows a year using the money that is donated by others who are more fortunate. The money will go to help further and better Faith's life, condition, medical needs, traveling, lodging, insurance, all sorts of things that need to be covered and things I've been paying for on my own most of the time and giving away - my agents and managers are saying "No More" to me. I have to be more frugal, and I have to look at this as being a bit more organized. I'd give the world everything I owned and that's my own fault. I need to be a little more selfish than that.

I am taking a salary, and I asked the accountants and the friend in L.A. who sets up 501c3 accounts for a living what the best amount would be. Being in Oklahoma I will accept less than when I move to L.A., a complete 1099 or whatever form is needed will be filed and I will report every single penny - I promise. I don't have to, but I'm keeping receipts from my own personal use too from my own salary, just to be able to prove everything - I don't like accusations. How many times do we hear that going on in the world of non-profits? I know I was a witness to it, and it hurt my feelings as well as damaged my perspective on what a non-profit was all about - I want to be the best run, most organized foundation in the world if possible. Let's see how I do...my attorney is awesome, my accountant is awesome too.

I've hired my family - which is typical - to be on the Board. I think it's only right to give them responsibilities if I am putting them on the payroll part time. They have to submit time cards and show workability too - 10 hours a week. Reuben will be allowed to have his duties suspended for 1 year while he's in Iraq, but he will remain on the Board for decision making purposes and will not be paid during his suspended time frame. (Doesn't that sound official? Suspended time frame.) Anyway, it's going to be my full time position, and I'll speak and write part time. I will also submit time cards and journals of my work so that it can be fully in compliance and anyone who requests a look can do so if they are warranted to do so. I'll leave that stuff up to the attorney - you'll probably have to go to her office or something to review the time cards and what we did - but it will be filed and filed correctly!

I've never been a a CEO/President/Janitor before! This is exciting! I can't wait to get it started. If you care to donate please do - contact me at: faith@faiththedog.net to find out where - we'll have a PayPal button on the site soon. Lots of love to you all for your support, and hopefully we'll get to the communities fast fast....starting with Flint, Michigan! As promised.

Start Me Up! Let Me Go!

Wow!!! I've been having some great fun today. I spoke with Frank, and for those of you who don't know who Frank is - he is Frank P. Shines, one of corporate America's best and most dynamic motivational speakers. We are going to be joining forces and working together as we travel about the nation speaking to Top 100 companies and a few that didn't quite make the cut - I have to say that for the benefit of my friends at several of the greatest companies in the world that happen to be smaller but quite fun. Frank and I are gearing up and writing, emailing, booking, speaking to, and just hob-knobbing if you will, with some really cool people.

This morning alone I spoke with the public relations people at CBS, Google, Methodist Hospital Systems, and MY FAVORITE - Starbucks. I can't say that I've been to more than 500 CBS locations, but I can say that Faith and I have personally visited more than 500 Starbucks locations! Yes, we really have! As a rule I have to speak to the associates, buy a cup of coffee and sit there to drink it in order to count it - there was ONE in St. Louis that I just drove through. I never count the drive throughs - but I loved the guy at the window. He was going to sporting event and had his hair all spiked and dyed....he was on his way out the door so it was OK.

Frank and I will be booking for a while, and as the dates become too tight I'll back off on my writing to corporate gurus and magistrates...I love talking to these guys. Marketing and Communications people are the best - they've seen everything, met everyone, done crazy stunts in order to get their audience. Radio stations like Clear Channel - completely bonkers!!! I love you guys. So, if you're out there and you work for a Fortune 50, a Top 100, or just have a real need to hire Frank and I do deliver not only the best inspirational message with Faith, but the best corporate needs message and a means of showing and proving the methods of how change in technology is a good thing, and it's an inevitable thing - just give me or Frank a shout! We're out there proving you can do it! YOU CAN!

I'm the comedian, the entertainer - with Faith's inspirational and amazing story of how she overcame obstacles and what the world said couldn't be done - we're in your face, but in a good way. Frank brings education, proven records, evidence of how change is always on the forefront and we need to be prepared for it. When we are, as a group, a community, a company, we can challenge each other to be better than we were and help our company and ourselves grow. It's emotional, but it's something we need to deal with.

Positive energy just busts out everywhere! I love this. This is great. Give me a list of phone numbers and I'm on my way!

Happy Birthday Matrix - 9 today

Behold World - The PERFECT Dog!

Nine years ago today God decided to make a perfect dog. He couldn't make up His mind if it should be a Beagle or a Dachshund - so he blended the two together, and there you have it! MATRIX. My baby puppy was born of two champions, neither of which was suppose to nose the cage of the other during a competition which the little girl dog wasn't allowed to show in since she was in season - so there she was waiting for her friends and family to finish when Mr. Beagle decided to be a bit bold. The result of course was a litter of absolutely adorable puppies, but the owners of the Dachshund decided they weren't worthy - they weren't pure bred dogs. They literally left them at the door of a no-kill shelter when they were very small. Matrix was a bit on the sick side and wasn't adopted immediately. Not until we fell in love.

When we adopted Matrix his name was Lambert. He was around 12 weeks old. He had been wormy, itchy, sickly, and seemed to have asthma. The shelter was apprehensive about letting us have him because he wasn't going to a home without kids or other animals. He was going to MY HOUSE....which in layman's terms means a boat-load of kids in and out, and another boat-load of animals coming and going - because the kids found them and we fostered them until they were claimed. We did have 2 adult male cats at the time too - something the shelter was certain would cause Lambert problems - I drew their attention to the fine writing on the contracts, showing them where they had to prove it was a problem. I adopted Lambert - I immediately changed his name. I wanted to call him Keanu after Keanu Reeves who stars in the Matrix, but the kids were young and couldn't say it. I suggested Neo, the character Keanu played in the movie Matrix - but the dog seemed to like the name Matrix whenever I said it out loud....Matrix it is! For 9 years now he's been Matrix.

Matrix has his own story and I wrote about it in my book about our family and Faith. He was just a few months old when I was forced out of my house - I had to find homes for the cats as well as my new puppy. I was devastated. The deed was done, we allowed a young couple with a new family to adopt him. They turned him out once their baby was born - he was too curious, they were afraid he'd bite. (PLEASE!!!) Anyway, he was found on the Tinker Air Force Base by a Captain who called the vet's number on the tag and finally got a hold of me. I explained the situation, and the good Captain choose to keep Matrix and his name. It wasn't too long however that he was deployed to police a section in Afghanistan - this was 2000.

Matrix was taken to the same no-kill shelter, where he remained Matrix, but a note was put into Lambert's file due to the vet's tag records. They never called me. Had they called me I would have found a way to retrieve him - but they didn't call me. That was OK...Jesus was there, He watched my little dog. Three (3) separate times my dog was adopted by clients. First to a family that returned him after 2 days when he bit the man for grabbing him by the back - he wouldn't hurt a gentle person. The man also complained that Matrix refused to stay outside. He howled - Hello, Beagle! Next he was adopted by a single woman who returned him because he dug in her garden and rooted up every plant she had - HELLO, Dachshund! What did she think she was adopting? A Maltese? Thirdly, he was adopted by a woman who said Matrix refused to sleep in the laundry room, he insisted on burrowing under her sheets and covers at night and sleeping between her legs. Did this woman not read the manuals? Dachshunds sleep on top of couches during the day and under the covers at night, and if you're warm they're THERE! (It's in the manual - I swear. It's called "Dachshunds for Dummies" and if you haven't read it you should! Even if you don't own or want one, you'll love the book.)

The very same day that I received full custody of my children was July 27, 2001. I asked my kids to pick a place, any place in the world that they wanted to go because I was willing to take them. I didn't care if they said Disney World. I just didn't care. I would drive them - and we'd sleep in the car if we had to. To my great pleasure they wanted to go to Pets and People, the no-kill shelter. They wanted to play with dogs and cats, walk them, bathe them, love on them, and maybe think about adopting another dog when we signed the lease in a week or so for our new house.

We entered the shelter - We weren't there 5 minutes when the familiar wiggling, pulling, scooting, rooting, howling, barking little mutt came running up to Laura and literally knocked her over! He was so very pleased to hear her voice, he was so elated to smell us, it was as if he was screaming "Hey, there you are. You wouldn't believe the adventure I've had. Let's go home so I can tell you all about it!" I could go into the problem we had with Pets and People not wanting us to readopt our own dog - but suffice it to say the contract we had signed was iron clad. I hadn't returned him to the shelter - they couldn't prove I adopted him to someone else, and therefore he was simply a missing dog when he was returned to them. It was THEIR responsibility to call me - and they didn't. We took Matrix home - for good.

He hasn't changed. Nope, he sleeps under my covers on top of my legs. He eats from Faith's pedestal, so I just let them share a bowl. He refuses to come if I don't give him the regal head nod and ask rather than demand - and he remains the core of my heart's joy. He has always been my dog - and even if Faith is famous and gorgeous, Matrix is still my favorite. She's OK with that - and he's OK with her world travels - I think he rather likes his post. He guards it well when I'm gone, and if I'm here he lets me. God knew EXACTLY what He was doing a few weeks before September 8, 1999 when He blended the two pure bred dogs - just for me.

Happy 9th little boy.

The "Red" Sea

Owen Field - The University of OKLAHOMA!

I know you know this, but I'm in this picture! I could even point me out to you, and you still probably couldn't find me - and I'm rather close to the front too! If you've never had the privilege to go to an Oklahoma Sooner football game let me tell you, there are some things you are definitely missing! For one - the Tailgating. I had to capitalize that word, it's that important. Now I've been to quite a few professional and college games. I've seen stadium tailgating, and I've even (yes) been to Texas tailgating parties, but they don't come close to the scene at near Owen Field - even when the game is away we have a flurry of tailgaters! Blocks and blocks and rows and rows of RVs, trailers, campers, and tents BEFORE you get to the stadium tailgating trucks and vans! We could call it the Magnificent Mile In Norman, but that title is reserved already for the 11 or so car dealerships along I-35 headed into Soonerville.

If you've never seen a sea of crimson or an 81,000 seat stadium packed with 85,000 people chanting OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO U! as the ball is kicked, if you've never been a quarterback for an opposing team trying to hear himself think during a third down conversion - well, you're missing out on the true BOOMER SOONER experience. Of course we have an obnoxious way of celebrating our every score! We have the horse-drawn Sooner Schooner coming out a dozen times every game! We have a band of Roughnecks swinging and waving paddles, cheerleaders lining the end zones practicing their backflips - EVERY TIME WE SCORE - those kids are tired by the 2nd quarter! We love our band! The Pride of Oklahoma! We love our song! We sing it 100 times every game, if you don't know it by the time you arrive you certainly know it by the time you leave!

This week we had a Fly-Over of 4 perfectly aligned Air Force F-16 Fighters! That followed the salute to the troops, the raising of the colors, and the National Anthem which of course was followed by screaming, yelling, sea-waving red and more red - pounding, stomping, booming loud fans - of which there are no others quite like them (us). Texas thinks they have it - they bring it - they bring it every year! We love them for it too - keeps us drinking stadium cold water to keep our voices when we need it at the end of the game - most of the time. It amazes me when I go to Dallas and see Longhorn fans wearing their shirts upside down, I don't understand that - but they do it quite often. (You'd have to love burnt orange to get that last one).

I like to find people at the game who have never been to a Soonerfest. They're the most fun to watch. We'll be texting people from the other sections to go get us a pretzel, promising them we'll go for the next water run - visitors come around that you've known for years, family, friends, people you NEVER see outside of the bleachers, but people you've watched grow up season by season by season....they get so big between January and August sometime! I love to try to explain why we do something - or what the guy behind us is saying when he yells out in his native Chickasaw tongue to "Hang a Half-a-Hundred On Them"...it means to score more than 50 points! It just sounds really cool in his language....almost obscene. You'd think they started selling beer again - but they banned that a few years back - hence the massive Tailgating.

We don't miss a thing at OU...not one thing. Before the game we have talent shows, music shows, radio talk shows, guest speakers, jugglers, athletes from years back signing autographs, cheerleaders and pom girls coming over for photos! We have Boomer and Sooner in costume hugging the kids, face painting, mounted cops, and we even have the ROTC out doing drills! We really know how to throw a party in Norman! OK OK OK....maybe those guys up in Still....Still...Stillwater (hard to say) throw a little get together too - they aren't bad - but what I noticed about them is this - they let the OTHER TEAM party! OH I DON'T THINK SO...I'm not sure the campus sells permits to the opposing team in Norman. I think our built-in excuse is something like "We don't have an inch of space fellas! Sorry, no grass or concrete space between here and I-35!" Better luck next time - BOOMER SOONER!

Oh, just so you know - we won Saturday afternoon 52-26, and I should have worn my visor! My face is Sooner Red today too! Thanks Bob! Thanks guys! I can't see them in 3 week when they play at home again - I'll be in CHICAGO!!!! But I'll be back. I can't wait. Gotta see Vera's grand kids!!

Just for grins I added this link to show you what an outsider thought about OU's game and tailgaters. It's funny. http://www.sportingnews.com/blog/lamadden/tag/OU

Parsley - EAT IT

Not my rabbit!


Yes, yes, that's me - always trying to find something, some way to knock off these last few (OK 20) pounds. I see myself in pictures and I just get so frustrated. That's not me. I'm this size 8 person running around in a size 12 body and I have been for some time now. At least I'm not putting on the size 18 pants that I was in 2005 when I thought I was a size 8 body - you know, in my mind.

So, what to do about it right? Well, there's the obvious - diet correctly, exercise, drink the water, do the right things, give up the fats, and pray about it. I did that. That's how I got from the 205 pounds to the current 160 and that's how I went from the 18 to the 12 jeans. (Don't look at my belly, it's a false positive. What you see isn't really fat - it's skin, and that has to be dealt with when the culprit is completely depleted.)

I found something really cool by accident. Around the neighborhood, around the city actually, women have been experiencing a lot of urinary problems. We have no idea what could cause so many women in one city to have problems, but we are having them, so rather than run to the doctor and get on pills I wanted to see if there was anything homeopathic that could help - I'm going hippy in my old age - it's the reverse Baby Boom thing I guess. What I found was on my plate. Parsley. Turns out parsley has more vitamins A, C, and K than most any other foods. So much so that eating it can benefit a body in ways I had never imagined...including, wait for it...weight loss!! YES, that stubborn last 10...OK, OK, 20 pounds is being combated now with parsley. I will say that NO I'm not mixing it in what is commonly known as Parsley Tea, which is a blend of my own morning urine, hot steamed water, and parsley, I'm just eating the raw vegetation.

Parsley is favored by many cultures as a means to clear up prostate problems, kidney problems, urinary tracts, and even revive one's sex drive - which makes sense if it's helping out the same body-area that hosts the sexual organs yes? Of course yes! So, even though I don't have a prostate, and I'm not a man, I can at least look forward to a healthy body when and where that event ever takes place again - and if I have a piece of green parsley in my teeth - he'll just have to ignore it and smile with me right? Right!

I guess since I'm not a nutritionist and I'm not a medical doctor I shouldn't rattle off all the good benefits of eating clumps and clumps of parsley to you, but you can look it up for yourself like I did. Here's some really good news - parsley is really cheap and it cuts easily, cleans easily, stores in the frig for a very long time, and it's right there! You can just be the rabbit you always wanted to be and just - hey, I just thought of something - rabbits eat a lot of parsley! You know that old saying about sex and rabbits - there you go! They eat carrots to keep their eyes clear so they can find their mate, and they eat parsley to ... make them smile! Besides the little guy from Monty Python, I've never encountered an unhappy bunny.

Oh, and parsley has fiber, so eat it for that too!