Bottoms Up!

Bottoms Up!
Originally uploaded by Nieve44/La Luz

Casual morn on this last day of the year. My neighbors gave me some grapefruit from their tree and I made some fresh squeezed juice to make my own concoction of grapefruit, orange, some bottled apple juice and cranberry juice as well as adding some blueberries. As you can see I didn't bother to take the seeds out...to much trouble. Quite tasty and no, no alcohol--not yet at least. Maybe just a glass of bubbly tonight. My friend is house sitting and we're having a low key dinner, playing a game of scrabble, watching Dick Clark's New Years' eve party from NYC and calling it a night. We're both broke but such is life! Happy New Year to you and yours. Be safe out there. Here's to 2009!

Mi Arbolito

Mi Arbolito
Originally uploaded by Nieve44/La Luz

Funny in that my mom didn't put up a tree this year but she has all the gifts-wrapped already. I have the tree and I have no gifts under the tree. I usually don't start wrapping till Christmas Eve anyway. The tree needs more lights, IMHO and is barren at the top. There was another tree that I had my eye on but it was already spoken for. BTW, I was at a Kroger supermarket yesterday and they were giving away trees-FREE! I almost brought one home to put in the backyard. I remember one Christmas, years ago I was heading to the Medical Center to pick up my roomate then and cars were dodging something in the road and when it came my turn to veer to the left, there was this Christmas tree that fell off the back of somebody's car. I pulled over to move the tree out of the road and then I realized, heck why not bring it home. It was a beautiful high end tree valued around $70. Imagine paying that kind of money, getting home and realizing the tree is not there!? My roomie and I were moving into a condo that late December and there wasn't much in the condo at the time but that beautiful tree. Before she headed home for the holidays we put a fire in the fireplace, popped some popcorn and decorated the tree. It was pretty barren but it was a beautiful tree. We had fun laughing, singing Christmas carols and decorating that tree.

Smasty!

Word of the day...

Last night while driving home in the fog and mist, I text message (while waiting at the red light) my niece to "be careful driving because it was masty". I actually meant to type nasty but was in a hurry because I was sitting at the light. She said her and co-workers just laughed at that. As my niece was driving home, she had her windows down and for some reason there was just a bad smell all around Houston and so she texted me to tell me it was "smasty"....S for smelly, M for misty and 'asty" for nasty and thus she came up with a new word-SMASTY! We went and did some quick Christmas shopping after she got home and while driving around we were just cracking up at the word. A goofy evening we had!

Crappy Wrapped

Phrase of the day...

We just got done having our office holiday luncheon complete with a white elephant Christmas gift exchange and someone made the comment that, "crappy wrapped gifts are the best gifts". Note to self...always go for the crappy wrapped gifts! ;-)

No Home for the Holidays

from the Houston Chronicle today and it reads...

Toughen up before you look at this ...

Dogs orphaned by Hurricane Ike. Some deaf or going blind.

Young and playful or aging and fond of laps,

these animals have no home for the holidays.

See if you can resist them.

I wish I could take them all and give them a home for the holidays. Just breaks my heart and melts it as the same time. So much was lost and taken from Hurricane Ike. My prayers go out to those who lost so much. I have a lot to be thankful for. Ok, I'm getting my Christmas spirit back.

Bah Humbug

Bah Humbug
Originally uploaded by Nieve44/La Luz

Another sleepless night here in Htown, which kind of goes with the foul mood I was in earlier yesterday afternoon. For months I had been planning a long awaited vacation to New Mexico...specifically Albuquerque and Santa Fe. I was going to attend the Ottmar Liebert Concert in Rio Rancho and meet up with two fellow fanmencas... Desert Diva/Cheryl and Linda but the show was cancelled! Even as early as Saturday morn we were eagerly making plans to meet up on Thursday and take in the spirit of the season by spending time in Santa Fe. Then the ball dropped and talk about major dissappointment and now major "bah humbug" and I think I speak for Cheryl and Linda as well. All weekend I was in denial about the cancellation but the final blow came when I cancelled my flight Monday afternoon. Thankfully, Southwest Airlines gave me a refund credit for future travel so yeah for Southwest but boo for Rio Rancho and the venue that cancelled the concert. Needless to say my Christmas Spirit has all but dissappeared, gone! Not to mention that I am now going to work Thursday and Friday of this week as well. I was all set for an early holiday vacation!

Just for laughs

WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
My great grandmother

WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED?

Yesterday, watching the funeral of a cop who was killed last week here in Houston.

DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?
No!

DO YOU HAVE KIDS?
only if I can count my niece and nephews!

IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?
no comment! ;-)

DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT?
What's that?

DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS
Yes

WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP?
Absolutely not! I'm the biggest chicken!

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL?
Lucky Charms of course!

DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF?

Hardly ever

DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG?

Yes

FAVORITE ICE CREAM?
Dulce de Leche

WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE?
Attitude

RED OR PINK?
Red

WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF?

how blind I am-

I hate wearing glasses and can't wear my contacts like I used to.


WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST
Calvin, my old parakeet--I swear he was human!

WHAT COLOR SHOES ARE YOU WEARING?

White-sneakers

WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE?

Apple fritter

WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW?
Music by Ottmar Liebert of course!

IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE?
Purple

FAVORITE SMELLS?
Anything on a grill

WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?

Jane

FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH?

Football

Hair Color
highlighted black ;-)

EYE COLOR?
boring brown

DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS?
not like I used to :-(

FAVORITE FOOD?
Chinese

SCARY MOVIES OR SAPPY ENDINGS?
Sappy endings

LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED?
Alvin & the Chipmunks-love that movie!

WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING?
Pink

SUMMER OR WINTER?
Winter-

I detest summer

HUGS OR KISSES?
Depends on who I'm with!

FAVORITE DESSERT?
Cannoli

WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW?

Daily Om

WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD

Buddha

WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON TV LAST NIGHT?
Nada

FAVORITE SOUND?
the sound of water-

I still wash my dishes by hand!

ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES?
None

WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME???
Europe

DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT?
Nope

WHERE WERE YOU BORN?
Corpus Christi, Texas

Christmas Traditions

1205081359p.jpg
Originally uploaded by Nieve44/La Luz

Welcome to the Christmas edition of getting to know your friends. From an email I got...

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? There's a difference!?



2. Real tree or Artificial? This year-Real!



3. When do you put up the tree? Definitely, not on Thanksgiving or the day after!



4. When do you take the tree down? Sometime after Jan 1st. and before holiday break is over.



5. Do you like eggnog? Too much!


6. Favorite gift received as a child? Hmmm, can't remember and must not have been that good if I don't remember!


7. Hardest person to buy for? Mom!


8. Easiest person to buy for? Dad!



9. Do you have a nativity scene? Sadly, I broke the last one I had. Definitely need to get another one.



10. Mail or email Christmas cards? No e-cards 4 me!



11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? A bad cold!

12. Favorite Christmas Movie/Music? Winter Rose by Ottmar Liebert.



13. When do you start shopping? Sometime after the 15th!



14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Dare I tell?

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Tamales, of course!



16. Lights on the tree? Never enough!



17. Favorite Christmas song? Rocking around the Christmas Tree!


18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Mostly travel before Christmas.



19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer's? Si, Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen,Comet, Cupid, Donder, Blitzen. Rudolph ...Chulo!? ;-)


21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Depends who I am celebrating with.



22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? If it feels like summer when it should be winter!


23. Favorite ornament theme or color? Penguins!

24. Favorite for Christmas dinner? Back home with family in Corpus.



25. What do you want for Christmas this year? The same thing I always want year after year...A white Christmas!

Why Can't We...

Cute video,

a little on the long side but worth watching if you have time

message...

Why can't we be friends...

sometimes you just have to put down the gloves

and hug it out instead.

Something we could all learn from!

Cozumel

Cozumel
Originally uploaded by Nieve44/La Luz

Way Back When! From a Spring Break trip to Cozumel in 1981 or maybe 1982. I need to go back there someday! Sadly, I forgot the girls names that I went with as we lost touch with one another. We has so much fun nonetheless. Looking forward to my next "girls adventure" later this month, although I don't think either one of us will be posing in swimsuits! Parkas maybe! ;-)

Vespers

Vespers
Originally uploaded by Nieve44/La Luz

Glorious, cool and crisp morning here. The cool front finally came in last night and brought some much needed rain along with it. Time for some music to complement the morning.

Last night I finished washing the dishes and was putting plates away when I saw this reflection. Listening to chant music by the Cistercian Monks, hence the title. For a truly uplifting experience give this music a listening too.

The Girls...

The girls
Originally uploaded by Nieve44/La Luz

in the Rivera fam...minus my mom who was on the phone. This may well be the last Thanksgiving at my parent's home as they are looking to sell their home and move to Katy. We've been doing Thanksgiving at my mom's for many, many years--except for those years when we headed to Corpus Christi. My parents' have lived in their home for well over 45 years. We'll see what the next year brings. I will miss having them "around the corner" (more or less) from me but the house is getting to be too much for dad to take care of with his illness-Parkinsons. He's been very reluctant to sell the house because of so many memories but the house needs lots of work and sadly it might be a tear down. Lots of changes coming around in the near future. Some good and some not so good. See the boys here.

On my christmas list

on my christmas list
Originally uploaded by ♥Rebecca♥

Well not my photo or title but I just cracked up when I saw this on Rebecca's flickr photo stream! She writes, "I saw a kid in a conveniece store last night wearing this shirt" and she closes with this....I need one! I think we all could agree with the shirt at times.

Pushing Daisies

1123080852a.jpg
Originally uploaded by Nieve44/La Luz

First vacation day starts off with meditation something that I hadn't been doing in quite a while. Got to enjoy a nice bowl of "Honey Bunches of Oats" and now listening to Up Close-the Binaural Sessions. It's so nice to not have to rush off to work and take in the morning light in the house, which is one of the reasons I fell in love with my house.

The photo is from my front porch planter. The flowers are left over from a few weeks back and were getting wilted but instead of throwing them into the trash, I de-stemmed them and tossed them in the planter where they have brought color into my world over and over again. So here's to pushing daisies!

#77

#77
Originally uploaded by Nieve44/La Luz

Birthday Boy!
Happy Birthday Dad!

#22

#22
Originally uploaded by Nieve44/La Luz

Happy Birthday Greg.

He's single ladies!

Human Wheels

the blink of an I
Originally uploaded by Nieve44/La Luz

Human wheels spin round and round
While the clock keeps the pace
Human wheels spin round and round
Help the light to my face...

This land, today, my tears shall taste
And take into its dark embrace
This love, who in my beating heart endures
Assured, by every sun that burns
The dust to which this flesh shall return
It is the ancient, dreaming dust of God.

...rocking the house tonight, listening to iTunes, Last FM and dancing in my chair, ahh but I find myself wanting to go dancing at the club, "Cherry Bomb". Love the oldies, remember when John Mellencamp was Johnny Cougar? I thought he was the bomb! Well, time to go to sleep but , "A'int Even Done with the Night"! Good night, sweet dreams and always remember, "I Saw You First"!

Manic TueMonday

....idea/thoughts borrowed from here and since today is Tuesday and not Monday hence the title!

What was the first thing you thought when you looked at yourself in the mirror today?

Do I have to put on makeup?

Do you have a recurring nightmare? If so, explain.

Unfortunately, yes I do and it has to do with my parakeets who are now outside in the back porch. They are inside their cage, which is encased in another 4 foot iron cage to protect them from outside predators...i.e., cats! Still, the cats tend to prowl the late night and stir up the birds. This in turn has awaken me in a panic from my sleep, and I rush to the window to peek out and make sure they're ok.

List three foods you can’t stand:

Hmm, I wish there were more than I can't stand because then I might be a little thinner

but oysters, liver, and vienna sausages are definitely a turn off!

Lethargy

Word of the Day:

Lethargy

Not sure what's got me dragging this week!

The weather (84 today), bike run from Saturday, or change in time

but I am feeling the sluggishness for sure!

Additionally, new office at work is HOT.

We are melting away!

Last night, I couldn't stay awake and was in bed by 10:30

and still woke up feeling like I hadn't slept at all!

I'm even taking vitamins and still no relief!

UGH!

I need a vacation, been working too many hours

but it'll have to wait till Thanksgiving week. :-(

Official Bike Ride!

Originally uploaded by Nieve44/La Luz

My first ""official" bike ride. My nephew/Greg and I joined others with Bike Barn of Houston on their "Day of the Dead" tour. It was only supposed to be two hours but ended up being more like 4 because of so many riders. We had a police escort along the entire tour, which was nice.

One thing I forgot to bring during the bike ride last night was a camera. We toured some interesting sights and I managed to capture this one on my cameraphone. There were so many bikers there that it was impossible to walk the cemetery and it was dark-very dark--even with our bike lights. I never knew this cemetery exisisted and would love to return--but in daylight!

I really enjoyed the bike ride and thanks to my nephew for pushing me to go. I just bought the bike last week and still getting used to riding on it and wasn't sure if I was ready for such a run that was supposed to last two hours. Last Sunday I rode out to the bayou from my house which was a little over 1/2 an hour and I was tired--especially in the last 10 minutes.

Kudos again to my nephew as he is training for the MS150 next year and was such a cutie in his new biker shorts. I meant to get a picture of him as well. Because of our new interest in biking he and I have developed a closer bond with one another and I look forward to other bike rides together.