Christmas Eve 2009

I went with my parents to Animal Kingdom on Christmas Eve and was amazed by how close we could get to some of the animals. I was able to get some fabulous pictures of the tigers. The bats there are very creepy. The way they walk on the ropes and their wings are thin, like stretchable latex. The only bad part of my visit to the theme park was the Safari ride. I could have taken tons of cool pictures if the driver was able to slow down and/or stop at different spots along the tour. Seriously, the animals weren't going to get us if we stopped for, oh say a minute. Plus, the ride was really bumpy! Try taking pictures when your hand is constantly moving up and down from the vibrations of the jeep. Aside from the Safari, an excellent choice for a family outting. A pleasant drama free day!

Click below to see some of the photos from the trip:

Animal Kingdom Photo's

2009: A Year in Review

I’ve decided it’s time for me to begin the Christmas card tradition of mailing Christmas cards along with a recap of my year…what fun!!!

So here is the one I wrote for those of you who didn't get a card from me (most likely due to not having your mailing address):

My year started off with going to Iowa in January for my Great Aunt Emma’s 90th birthday party. I always love going to Iowa because there’s always tons of home cooked meals and great story telling. The temperature got to below zero while I was there and there was plenty of snow on the ground. My mom and I had a snowball fight in my Aunt Emma’s backyard every day we were there.

From January to April, I was consumed with work and coaching soccer. I coached three teams, two as a head coach and one as an assistant coach. One of the team’s was a U-13 traveling team which consumed most of my energy, both physically and emotionally. The players were great but there were a handful of unbearable parents. By the end of the season, I was ready for a much needed break from coaching.

In mid-April, I went with my parents, Grams, and my cousin Mike plus the boys (Alfalfa & Spanky) to Fiesta Key down in the Keys. We camped out for the weekend in one tent, yup just one tent for five people & two dogs! We tried to go fishing in the boat but it was too rough the whole weekend, so we settled for casting off the bridges.

In late June to early July, I went on an adventure to do some family history research. I met several new relatives, some I knew I had and others I didn’t. I drove from Naples to Iowa all by myself with everything but the kitchen sink in my SUV. I stayed at my Great Aunt Emma’s while I researched my family tree. I learnt a lot while I was there and came back with a massive amount of family pictures & information I am still sorting through. Every day was a hoot with my Aunt Emma and my cousins; I had a great time & still laugh when I think about the trip. I think I can sum it up in one joke my Aunt told…Why did the man die in the round barn? (See scroll down for the answer)

When I got back from Iowa, I was busy with work until my next big trip. My Grandma always wanted to go to Rio de Janeiro, so in October it became reality. I went with my Grandma, Mom, and Aunt Sue down there for a week. We visited Corcovado, Sugar Loaf, H’Stern museum, Copacabana Beach and much more… I spent my last day exploring the Jardim Botanical garden which was breath-taking while my fellow travelers went shopping.

Since October, I have been busy playing soccer in three adult leagues, hanging out with friends, getting the flu/cold for a month (not swine), being a bridesmaid in a good friend’s wedding, and the list goes on…

The biggest news this year is I decided to go back & work for RSM McGladrey, Inc. on the audit side. My couple of years of working three quarters of the year and coming & going when I wanted to is over…back to the public accounting world of 60 hour weeks and only two weeks vacation.

Rio de Janeiro Trip 2009

I went to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil with some of my family (Grams, an Aunt, & Moms). We stayed in a pretty nice hotel which looked out to the Copacabana Beach. The best part about it was, we could walk across the street and were at the beach. Not that the beach is a huge deal for me, given I live five minutes away from the beach on a daily basis. However, being able to see mountains in the horizon is a whole other view. The sceneries in Rio are breath taking! I took so many pictures of the town, mountain views, flowers in the botanical garden, the Christ Statue, etc...

The food was awesome there, too. Every meal we had was perfect and always huge portions. Viasete was our favorite restaurant, we ate there twice! But I have to say my favorite food while I was there was the last thing I ate and I believe the cheapest. In American dollars it was less than three dollars. It was pizza in a cone! Yup a cone...the cone was the pizza dough and the cone was filled with tomato sauce, cheese, and whatever toppings you would like. It was amazing and delicious!!!

We did a lot of sight seeing and were able to accomplish a lot in such a small time frame. We used the public bus system to get everywhere we wanted to go. I was a little nervous using the bus system due to several buses being put on fire by gang members the day before we left for Rio. Everything went smoothly though with no troubles or scares. We visited Corcovado (the Christ Statue) and used the Congo Train to go up the mountain to the statue, the Hard Rock Cafe, Sugar Loaf Mountain, downtown historic district, H'Stern, and I went to the Botanical Garden (you know me - never am able to stay with the crowd). Plus did some shopping and went to the beach a couple of times.

All in all it was a wonderful trip!


Below is a compilation of photos I took while I was at the Jardim Botanico.

Caller ID

I could talk about this for days…

I think whoever invented caller ID was a godsend. I mean think about when there was not caller ID and you had two choices: pick the phone up or wait for the answer machine to get it. Nowadays you can just check the number and decide whether or not you want to take the call. Now if a person calls you and you miss the call, do you call them back? I think you should only have to call a person back when they leave you a message. It all goes back to the old days when there was no caller ID, if a person didn’t leave a message how were you to know to call them back. There was no way of knowing they even called you in the first place. I know people can see when they have missed a call but I still don’t think it warrants a callback. Also, if you a call a cell phone and it goes directly to a person’s voice mail then it won’t register a missed call on their cell phone. I love the people who call you and say I’ve called you “X” times, why haven’t you called me back. Really? Have you left a message? No. Then I didn’t think it was important.

Now there are a select few people that I do call back whether they leave a message or not. One being my parents and close relatives, and two being my issue free friends. There are some friends that only call you for favors or to discuss issues and these calls warrant a voice message first. I want to know what needs to be discussed and how long the phone call will last. Then there are the friends and other people you know, who if you answer the phone you are going to be on the phone for a good half hour or more. Which gets me to the soccer side…

Do you really think I am going to answer my phone when I know I am going to be drilled for answers? I don’t think so….I really feel some people just like to hear themselves talk. Really? Is it necessary. I don’t understand how I received a few phone calls from some parents for an entire year while others were almost weekly. When the majority of parents called it was to ask one or two questions and the phone call lasted a max of five minutes. I would always answer these calls when I had my phone. Those weekly callers would stay on the phone anywhere from fifteen to ninety minutes. It was and still is a toss-up whether or not I answer the phone which is why I love caller ID. You have to be in a good mood in order to handle certain people’s phone calls. I know others can attest to this! Even if you are in a good mood sometimes you may still not answer the phone call. For me, I know I may get in a bad mood after the phone call, so I avoid it until later. Other times it may be the weekend...PEOPLE HAVE LIVES. And the last thing a person needs to do on their relaxing weekend is to field questions and listen to soccer parents. We are not friends. Think of my phone like it’s a business phone and it is only open for business on weekdays from 9-5 pm. If you call during any other time, then I probably will see the caller ID and not pick up the phone. Now you do have to understand there are times that I may not have my cell phone on me which is why leaving a voice message is necessary. When I check my missed calls after several hours, do I call them back if they have not left a voice message? I don’t think so…

To shave or not to shave...

Okay I know most women shave their legs and armpits on a daily basis. Is it necessary to shave other areas of your body too?

I feel if people have noticeable hairs on their toes, then they should shave the hairs. It’s just a spot that needs to be hairless. Legs are a given for women, shave. Now what about for guys? Some swimmers and track athletes shave their legs for performance reasons. Should guys shave their legs for their appearance? I don’t think so…I believe that guys should not have to shave any part of their bodies. Whether it be their legs, arms, chest, or back. Do I think some males would look better with their backs or chests smooth, hell yeah! Is it a turn off when a guy has excessive back hair, oh yeah! Yvette, I know you would disagree with me on the chest and back... What about arms? Now when I was in college a lot of girls and guys shaved their arms. I did not. If you shave once, then don’t your hairs grow back darker and rougher? Why would you want to shave your arms for the rest of your life? If you don’t keep up shaving your arms, then the hairs are going grow back darker then the hairs you originally had. Maybe an alternative to shaving your arms if you have noticeable hair is dying your arm hair blonde or natural color. Now for the big debate...a person’s private parts? Okay now some women shave completely, others not at all, and then there are the in between people who either manage their area with a trimming fashion, or the select few who make designs/shapes. Are designs really necessary??? Okay yes I think a person should trim their area enough so that when you wear a bathing suit there are no hairs sticking out. Now should a person shave completely? I understand this is a preference and some women do it because their “man” likes it but I just don’t get it. Are you trying to be like you were as a child when you had no hair to shave? Or does your guy not want to get hair accidently in his…not going to go there (that is a whole other blog for another day).

For those people who know me, know this…I usually shave my legs every two days or so and have been known to wait a week or so to shave my legs. I have to defend this for three reasons, one I wear pants to work, two I don’t have a boyfriend/finance/husband, and finally I was not going out anywhere special. I shave my armpits of course daily. I don’t shave my arms at all! And the rest is not for public discussion…

Oh and I almost completely forgot which is better to shave, wax, or laser treatment???

Letting Go & Choices Made...

Parents these days have to be with their children all the time. They have a hard time letting go. And they fight the battles their children should be fighting. How is the child going to be able to survive in the workplace and/or integrate with the rest of their age group. Here's an example, I was talking with a college recruiter from a top accounting firm and she stated the firm has started having tours with the potential employee and their parents. Many parents have even attended job fairs with the child. There has even been parents calling the employer after their child's interview asking questions about how things went, what is the time frame for an offer, etc... Isn't this the responsibility of the child? Or should say YOUNG ADULT!

I think this all stems from a parent not letting go in the earlier years. I'm not saying a kid hits 13 and you say "okay you're on your own now." But I do think you need to step back a little and start letting them make some decisions. This also means the child will have to start dealing with the consequences of the decisions they make.

Also, there has to be consequences for choices people make, whether that be the parent or the child. Great example, there were try-outs for the Naples Sharks about a week ago and the dates had been posted for several weeks. Every parent was aware that there would be two try-outs and a possibility of an alternate try-out date due to weather conditions. The second try-out date was cancelled due to weather and the club used the alternate try-out date for selections. One parent had the audacity to show up to the alternate try-out date without her children and ask for a private try-out at another time. Really?!? Her children had gone to a concert in Orlando on that day which was a choice they had made. They should not get an additional try-out, this is not a perfect world. They made a choice to go to a concert, and the consequence should be they forgo a second try-out and may not make the soccer team. Their parent should not step in to make their lives easier. Are they going to do this all their lives? So when their child hits the age of getting a job, are they going to call an employer and say, "my child needs another interview date due to us having a vacation planned for 2 months now." Yeah right!

Parking in Driveways

I consider myself a very nice person. I have told my neighbor he may use my driveway to park cars on when he has guests. Now I have had to remind him that I need to be able to still get out of my garage. I really do not like to confront people to retract what I offered to them but I feel I am going to have to.

If you have a half empty driveway, would you have your guest park in a neighbor's driveway? Not just in their driveway for a couple hours but overnight! Then to make matters worse they park in a way that it takes a person at least five minutes to maneuver around to get out of the driveway.

I wouldn't mind if his driveway was full of cars but he only has one car parked in his driveway every time I find a car parked in my driveway in the morning.

And I know one of his excuses is he has a roommate and they each get half the driveway. Is that my problem? NO!!!! Park on his damn side of the driveway before you start parking in my driveway. Or better yet, get a job that covers your expenses without needing a roommate to help out.

IT IS SO ANNOYING!!!!!!!

He is the kind of person that will ask for your help to do something but then when you need help he always has an excuse. Yup I'm done being nice.

Now how should I tell him...how about...I don't mind you parking cars in my driveway when your driveway is full. If I come out in the morning one more time with a car parked in my driveway and yours half empty, then you'll have to pick the car up at the tow company. I'm not going to text you asking to move the car at 7 am, I'm just going to call and have it towed. Nice and simple.

Spell checking & proofreading

How do people send emails out, publish pamphlets or brochures, etc. without checking for spelling errors? Most email programs have spell check, and outlook even has an option to automatically spell check your email before it is sent out. Honestly, people click the button before you send an email out! Let's play a game...Below are excerpts of emails I have received from fellow non-spell checkers. Can you figure out which word(s) are misspelled?

"Hope everyone also brings their game faces and kick butt attitute."

"It's necesary for everyone to be to the fields an hour beforehand."

"are we playing the memprial day tournamnet or not?"

"when do we ned to be to the fields?"

I understand that I am human and I admit I have sent emails out without checking for spelling when I am in a hurry. It's no excuse I know. I send at least fifteen emails out per day and I am very spell check & grammar conscience. Now let's play another game, can you find the grammar errors from these email excerpts?

"Sorry to bearer of bad news but RSL will be unable to come down play."

"Let only hope that the up coming tournaments and league games run as smoothly..."

"Thanks again to everyone without every ones efforts we wouldn't have has such a successful weekend!"

"...I will need to cal them and extend the invitation, as them maybe on vacation at not receiving the message."

"your all very good soccer players"

"hi couch"

Honestly people, would it hurt to look over your email before you send it out. Most of the above emails were not just sent to me but were also sent to 10+ people. I understand that most email programs on the internet do not have a grammar option. Would it hurt to take a few extra minutes to read through your email before pressing the send button?

Trust me, when people receive emails with basic grammar errors and/or spelling errors, they do not think very highly of you. Especially when you continually send out emails with errors. Once, twice, even three times fine but anymore than that you need to go back to school. You're definitely not smarter than a fifth grader!

Tax on Soft Drinks...What!?!

Okay I understand we are in a recession. I understand there are people walking the streets uninsured. But why do we need to cover their insurance? Okay since it seems there is no getting around covering the 1.5 trillion dollars over the next 10 years for the 50 million uninsured Americans. These amounts breakdown to $3,000 per uninsured American per year.

The Senate Finance Committee (SFC) has already suggested increasing alcohol taxes which will account for $60 billion of the required funds. As much as I dislike this suggestion, I cannot blame the government for increasing the taxes on alcohol. Whenever the economy is down people drink more. People are losing money with their stocks, some losing jobs, losing houses, etc… What better to companion depression with but with alcohol.

So where is the other $1.44 trillion dollars going to come from? The SFC is looking to start taxing soft drinks that contribute to the obesity in America. I do not think it is fair to only start taxing soft drinks if it is due to obesity. I believe there should be taxes on fast food chains where fried foods are located. As with the suggestion that no taxes will be levied on diet drinks, I would suggest the same for taxes on grilled and non-fried foods found in fast food chains. Do I want the government to start taxing soft drinks? Of course not!

Where should the funds come from then??? Legalize marijuana and tax the hell out of it? How about taxes on pornographic materials? Tax bibles?