Edit:I
finally got the picture to attach so I thought I would let everyone
take a peak.  The text is the same though, so if you read it
yesterday skip it today.  
Now I
feel like I can start pick out pictures to post.  Tell me if you
think I should make them bigger or smaller would you?  Also you
can click on the picture to make it bigger than what's in the blog.

We had the best time in Rome.  We got back to the apt. at about
4am Mon. morning and literally fell into bed.  When we woke up
about noon Mon. it felt like I had tried to swallow a live coal and the
thing got stuck halfway down my throat.  My nose was running like
a sieve and my head was throbbing with every heartbeat,  all my
muscles felt like they had been pounded with a meat mallet.  It
was bizarre.  I'm just so very grateful that it didn't ruin our
trip.  So for the last couple of days I have been in bed
recovering from the lightning cold virus from hell.  I feel really
bad too because I was probably contagious the whole time
I was in Rome and didn't know it which means that soon it will not only
be all over Rome courtesy of our tour guide but it will also be in
Kentucky and New York City.  Sorry!!!  This is why I wash my
hands so often!!  Not that it did me any good since my husband
thinks he's the one that gave it to me in the first place.  But
seriously I find it very weird that I felt fine up until we got
home,  my immune system has perfect timing. 

I
have started the slow wade thru of pictures.  I took 390......umm
yeah!  So there's bound to be at least 10 or 12 worth
sharing. 

One
of my favorite pictures so far was my first glimpse of St.Peter's thru
the window of the vatican museum.  We had come in from the metro
and hadn't seen anything but the entrance to the museum and the all of
a sudden you go around a corner and there it is out the window. 
WOW!  I wanted to post it today so you could at least see one but
once again my picture editor isn't working.  I've tried attaching
it a half dozen times and it won't show. So sorry. 

We got lucky on a couple things.  The first one was going when we
did.  One week after the huge memorial for Pope John-Paul II and
one week before Easter Sunday.  We were there on Palm Sunday and
the National elections which was bad enough but a week earlier or later
..... we were told the crowds were ten times worse, that 250,000 people
came for the memorial. And Easter at the Vatican!  I can't even
imagine!  But we had great timing crowd wise.  After Easter
and it starts getting to hot and even more crowded, and in Feb. many
things are still on Winter hours and it's rainy.
The weather was perfect in Rome.  When we left Germany it was 9C (48.2F)
and raining.  In Italy it was 19C (66F) then it got to about 21C (69.8F) and sunny.  THE SUN! 
You just have no idea!  For three days I walked around with my
face turned up. (yes, I had sunscreen.)  When we landed at
Midnight Mon. it was 4C (39F) and yup! Raining! and its been raining ever
since and the temp has not gone over 9C.  This Spring is going to
eventually be gorgeous, I can't imagine all the flowers that will bloom
thanks to all the rain, but meantime I'm losing my mind.  I can
still feel the warmth sitting on the colosseum.  (I still can't
believe I sat in the colosseum.)  It was Sunday, our last day in
Rome and I was draggin' butt from all the running around we had done
for the past three days.  There was a ledge and I just sat myself
down.  At first people just stared but then this old lady sat next
to me and in about 2 minutes the whole ledge was full of groaning
women.  Believe me those warm rocks felt like the most comfy couch
ever.  I would have sat there a whole lot longer too except our
guide was getting to far ahead and I didn't want to totally lose the
guy. 

More about Rome later.
Time for another nap.  lol, maybe I'm turning into a cat.
I'll keep trying to figure out why my pictures won't attach.      If anyone knows what's going on will you drop me a line. 

Friday Mike showed up.  That was really cool for me because ever
since the %#&* company my husband works for transfered my shopping
partner 2 hours west things haven't been the same.  Funny thing
is, the company never asks me what I want.(bastages)   I've been
lobbying to get
him back ever since the transfer....rofl.  It's hard losing your
best shopping partner.  Just ask Bear man, now he has to take me
and he does but its just not as much fun when you know someone is just
going thru the motions and is faking an enthusiasm for yarn or whatever
has caught my fancy.   So Sat. we went off to Rothenburg
for the Spring Fest and the rain actually stayed mostly away.  It
was one of those Spring days that if it started sprinkling we only had
to wait about five minutes and it quit.  Then it was sunny
again.  I think I popped open the umbrella about 4 times, and put
on and took off my coat about 8 times.  It's the first time I've
ever lived in a place where the cliche "Don't like the weather? 
Wait ten minutes."  is really true.  I've heard that all my
life but this April in Germany it's really true.  So while I was
in Rothenburg I got the flowers for my man.   One for each
year.  12 roses and a mixture of tulips and  daffodils for
the other
12.  For some reason this is the only picture I took and its not
very good, oh well.

So I brought the flowers in and he was surprised and I think secretly
pleased.  Guys like flowers too, whether they would actually buy
them for themselves is another thing.  Me, I'll buy myself
flowers.  Maybe I should say I buy them for the house.  Nah,
they're for me, they just brighten the house up.  But these
flowers we're for him and I think he liked them.  Mike had invited
us out to dinner to celebrate our anniversary and when he came and
picked us up I was still getting ready so I wasn't in the room but I
could hear them talking about them.  Or me as it turned out.
Mike: "So we're you surprised?"
Bear:  "yeah, but they're okay."
Mike: "I thought she should have went all roses."
Bear:  "If you think all 24 year were rosy....well let's just say
we had our daffodil years too. This is a good mix, not all red but not
all yellow and orange either. Some roses, tulips, daffodils yeah a good mix."
Mike: "Never is all roses is it?"
Bear:  "Nope, but wouldn't that be dull."
Mike: "She's not dull, that's for sure."
Bear: "I'll say! but I wouldn't have it any other way."
pause.....
Bear: "Are you about done in there?  I'm starving!"  and that
was that, hmm.  Makes me wonder what they talked about all those
months they carpooled.

Since I was done and basically just being nosy by then, I came out and we left.  We went to Burg Colmberg.
It was SO wonderful.  This was taken from the castle wall.  Looking toward home.

If you go straight across the fields for about 15 miles you'll run
smack into our town.  We went to late to get really good pictures
so click on the red link up there.  This is the place that I wanted to
go at Christmas and we didn't.  I got so ticked off about that one
that when we were eating supper and it was casually mentioned, I flared
up again
Bear said "Geez, Liz just go get a room."  But you know since he's
taking me to Rome on Friday I thought that would be a bit much, and
since he only said it to shut me up,  I will allow that maybe its
time to let that one die.  Spoiled much?

This was the first time I've ever eaten in a castle and unless he has
another life I don't know about,  it was a first for my husband
too.  Castles are smoky.  Those big fireplaces, the ones big
enough to roast a whole ox in....they're smoky.  Luckily the
ceilings are pretty high and I've had wood heat in my house for years
so we're pretty used to the smell of wood smoke.  There was a
renaissance party there
at the same time so that was cool.  The clothes were
fantastic.  Every little detail perfect from the lace caps to the
shoes.  And you could tell these people were there for the
atmosphere and were ready to party.  The tables and such were
pretty normal for every German restaurant I've ever been in so nothing
cool about that.  But 2 foot thick rock walls and arched doorways,
lead glass windows and a beamed ceiling that looked like it was cut
from an old growth forest, that is unusual.   When the three
of us go out to eat we order three different things.  That's so we
can share or at least get a nibble.  So we got Beef steak with
bacon and mushroom wrap, Pork tips in pepper sauce and Veal strips in
cream sauce.  three different potato's too.  Can you say we
ate it ALL.  It was so yummy that there wasn't one scrap left
anywhere.  And then to top it all off we got three different
deserts too.  We never get desert but it was our special dinner.
(I went to the gym twice already this week and plan on going back
tomorrow) We got apple strudel, homemade vanilla ice cream with hot
raspberry sauce and we got a dish of vanilla with chocolate whiskey
sauce.  Nobody shared....rofl.  It was one bite of each
persons and then hands off its mine.  I had the raspberries, so
bloody good I could cry.  So that was our anniversary and dinner
thanks to Mike's surprise trip back.  And we weren't going to do
anything.  Glad he came home. 

We leave for Frankfurt Thursday evening and fly to Italy on Friday
morning.  I have a feeling we're going to feel like cattle on this
plane, but I would rather spend the money in Rome than on the airline
seat.  So I will put up with a lot of discomfort for a cheap
ticket.  Don't know if I'll get the chance to go around and say
bye before we go so if I don't here's an Auf Wiedersehn, Arrivederci,
Goodbye. 

In exactly one week I'll be 45.  But its all good because in
exactly one week I will be in Rome with my husband.  I am so
excited that last night laying in bed I caught myself making lists in
my head. 

extra memory card for camera...check
extra battery for same...check
battery charger...check
dork in bed with light out and no pen or paper....check!

So also in current news, my anniversary is Sunday.  24
years.  I know certain people who read me aren't even 24 years
old...lol.  It's very weird being married this long because on a
day to day basis I don't even think about how long I've been
married.  I'm to busy doing the daily job of living.  Then we
both forgot about it because we're busy planning this 4 day weekend to
Rome.  And all of a sudden there it is in my face.....one of the
reasons for going to Rome.  I've been married over half my
life.   My sister called me last week and in the course of
conversation she asked me how long we had been married and when I told
her all she said was "holy shit that's a long time."  Then it
dawned on me it really is.  No one in my immediate family has been
married longer except our parents who divorced after 28 years. 
And they would have divorced earlier except mom waited until we were
mostly grown out of a fear dad would kidnap us. (that's a different
tale, for a different day) suffice it to say it wouldn't have gone
anywhere near 28 years if moi hadn't made a surprise arrival 5 years
after my nearest sister.  I am the only one in my family that
hasn't been married twice or more.  So I consider myself damn
lucky.  I should have bought a lottery ticket the day I met Bear
man.  If only I had known.  The fates should have been
singing a hallelujah chorus or something else equally attention
getting.  But NO instead I get an ordinary work day and an
ordinary meeting....sheesh. 

So anyway I got to thinking that I should get something for the man
even though this trip is anniv/b-day rolled into one.   I
wracked my brain for a time, (about 2 mins.) and came up with
flowers.  I never buy him flowers and he and I both love
flowers.  Especially after a long Winter of shades in gray and
white.  My thought is this, he would rather eat my cooking than go
out.  I cook almost ever day so nothing really special about even
the most "special meal".  He doesn't need any more junk.  He
doesn't have a desk for a pen set or blotter or other businessy
things.  He wouldn't be caught dead in a tie and he doesn't wear
cologne.  That pretty much leaves washing his car for him or
flowers.  and the flowers won out over the manual labor.  See
how unromantic you can get after 24 years.  Of course we've never
been the "all romance" channel anyway.  More like the "Do It Yourself"
channel.  But it seems to be working so let's not mess with a good
thing.  We love each other and after 24 years the shiny newness
might have worn off but the good solid craftmanship still
remains.  And really is there a better gift than that?

Liz and Bear on a park bench.  Ochsenfurt, Germany. Summer 2005

Someday I want to be one of those little
old couples that you see now and again.  They are walking
somewhere, holding hands and you think how sweet.  I figure were
only about 26 years from there, so its totally doable.  And what
fun and adventure will we have in the next 26 years.  Life's
exciting isn't it? 
Gotta run.  Hope everyone has a great
weekend! 

  Today is the Vernal Equinox, while I would love to run outside
and celebrate, since its only 41 degrees I think I'll refrain, I might
slip on the ice.  Luckily it's all melting under the brilliant
sunshine we have today and, despite the temperature and the brisk
wind accompanying it, it really does feel like Spring.  I thought it
felt like Spring yesterday too.  We went down to the lake and
walked around it, its that small.(Bear man says it's an overgrown
pond.)  The ice is very thin and though the ducks could stand on
it I doubt it would hold the weight of the swans.  So here I was
in my heavy Winter coat, leather gloves and scarf on head but I still
thought it felt like Spring.  It was more than just the sunshine
it must be an internal clock. 

About three weeks ago I was thinking about our anniversary and my
birthday.  Both of which are in the first week of April.  And
I thought hmm, April in Paris.  But that didn't last more than a
thought because as romantic as it sounds April in Paris is mostly rainy
and cold.  If I want cold I'll stay right where I am, but the
cheap ticket on ryanair were calling me....loudly and my feet are
really itchy after this never-ending Winter.  Then my Bear man
said Rome would be warmer.  Hah! That'll teach him to speak
without thinking.  So guess who's going to ROME?  I booked
the Bed and Breakfast and the cheap flight on Mon.  I have the
tour guide picked out and all we have to do is settle on an
itinerary.  If you have to turn 45 might as well do it in
Rome. 

If your wondering what's paying for this little trip I'll tell you
because I'm actually very proud of it.  Remember I quit smoking a
little over 6 months ago and Bear man quit just over 2 months
ago.  Well every night I put either a 2 eu or a 1 eu coin in my
old purple ashtray.  If I have both I put in both.  It's
added up in a hurry even though its not really as much money as we
spent smoking.  Isn't that amazing.  Not only do we get all
the benefits of not smoking we get to go to Rome, Italy.  Now
that's what I call a reward. 

Bear man doesn't know this but as soon as we get back I'm going to
start saving for our 25th anniversary......I'm thinking Greece........

I was finally able to get my old version editor back.  Who says
bitching doesn't help?  If I hadn't I never would have got an
answer. w00t! happy girl!

So here's pictures like I promised.  If you want to you can skip
the pics and just go to the bottom for my latest entry for the "idiot
of the year" award.  I bet it would draw more viewers than the
Oscars.

We
went over to Speyer a while back and went to the sister museum of
Sinsheim.  This Volkswagon was evidently made for weddings and was extremely
popular in its day.  After I got to looking at it I thought well
why not?  After all the body of a vehicles is just a shell to
cover the engine and other working parts and a crash bubble.  So
if your not to worried about safety or getting bugs in your eyes then
why not cover it in wrought iron?

Wouldn't that make a conversation piece at the wedding?

Every time I walk under a plane or submarine or whatever else they have
decided to display 50 feet off the ground I am convinced that it has
waited years just to fall on my head.  Now logically I know this
plane and the other hundreds of things that are suspended will not
fall.  But isn't an irrational fear by its very nature
irrational?  And its not like I duck and run, it just makes me a
tad uncomfortable to walk under what I consider to be an inadequate
display stand.

Now
here's a car I would like to get behind the wheel of, can
you imagine?  I bet this will move on down the road and it would
probably feel like driving a smooth running tank.  lol. 
These always put me in the mind of a big Hollywood thirties era
movie.    The glamour years.

Now isn't this interesting?

Okay I'm done this is just a fluff filler, so don't feel real bad about
thinking or even saying what the hell?  It's the tail end of
Winter and it's snowed every single day for the last 2 weeks.  I
haven't got  much going on here and am getting VERY ready for
Spring. 

Oh!  I do have another entrant for idiot of the year awards.

I went online and ordered some scrapbooking supplies, this was
Feb.24th.    The company sent a further Email that my
order had been shipped on Feb 27th (Mon) and should arrive in 4 to 10
business days.  So I quickly counted and thought cool it should be
at the post office.  Specially since 9 of those days are postal
working days.  Ha!  It wasn't there.  Now since there
have been a lot of times that I have thought a package should be here
and it's arrived a week or so later than it should I finally decided to
ask.
Me:  Excuse me.  Does the army stack packages somewhere until they have enough to ship over from the states?
postal worker:  NO! Why on Earth would they do that?
Me:  Well my package should have arrived by now but I thought if they stack them well it might take longer.
p.w.:  Did it ship priority mail?
Me: I have no idea.
p.w:  Ah, well then there you go.  It could take 4 to 8 weeks then.
Me:  4 TO 8 WEEKS!!! 
p.w.  Well sure, see what they do is they all get sent to N.Y. and
put in a shipping container. When the container is full they send it
over.
Me:  So they do stack them.
p.w. Now why would they stack them?  They send 'em over one at a time.
Me:  Not the containers, the packages inside the containers. 
You just said they wait until they have a full container.  So if
my package is the very first one into the container its going to take a
lot longer than it would if it was the last one into the container.
Right?
p.w. Ma'am, I have no idea what you just said.
Me: 
Me:  That's okay, it will get here when it gets here.
p.w.  Now that's a fine attitude ma'am, you have a nice day.

A German General said of the American Army during his debriefing after WWII
"The reasons the American Army does so well in wartime, is that war is
chaos, and the American Army practices it on a daily basis."

amen brother, I hear you. 

Contrary to popular opinion I'm still not dead.  I just hate this
new editor.  Mine is not working properly and for some reason I
can't switch back to the old one.   My biggest gripe is I
know it will do no good to write one of the guys eg; Marc, John etc
because I'm sure their Email as well as comment boxes are
flooded.  By the time they separate the wheat from the chaff in
their comments all the problems should be resolved. (crossing toes and
fingers)  I hate it when I go to one of their sites and there is
almost a thousand comments of this type....."sweet" "wow" "2propz
dude"   How is a legitimate concern going to be heard. 
My very favorite was this one "i just felt
like commenting you..because, well my stomach hurts. <3" 
Okaaaay, whatever.  There are many that do address the problems
with the editor.  For instance in the first 50 comments alone
there were 6 or 8 that said "slow to load" or variations of,  so I
imagine if that hold true for the entire 900 some comments poor Marc
has been told that the new editor is slow to load about 50 to 75
times.  I never thought he was stupid so he probaly already knew
that it was slow to load, after all he did type his own blog entry on
(gasp) the new editor.  I really wish they would run 2 comment
boards for all new content, one for general props and one for
complaint/suggestions.  And I would also say its always a good
idea to read thru some of the previous comments to see if your concern
has already been addressed.  I read about  200 comments and
found a very well written comment about the very same problems I'm
having, so I didn't need to leave my 2propz dude to clutter thing up
even further.  okay, I'm done ranting about something you guys
could probably care less about.
But I will be glad when this thing is fixed.  There will be no pictures until it is and I'm getting tired of waiting.

I think my insurance agent is on drugs.  Now before you say I'm being judgemental let me relate the following.

Yesterday I got a letter from her that had been sent on Feb 7th. She
had put the wrong zip code on it so it was no surprise that it took two
full weeks to get here.  What was surprising was the contents.
Here is a verbatim quote of the body of the letter.....

We have received notification from our underwriter at Argenia that you
will need to sign an updated application.  The application is
enclosed.  We will need a response to this letter by February 9,
2006.  If you have any questions, feel free to call me at the
number listed above.

Umm, yeah first question:   Are you on drugs?  Second
question:    In what alternate universe do you live that the
U.S. Postal service is able to deliver anything from Arkansas to
Germany and back to Arkansas in 2 days?  Even with a correct Zip
code?  Because Yo!  We all need to move there.  And
question three:  What application?  There was no enclosed
application.

So I did what any polite person would do, I called my husband laughed
at her like a loon and then wrote the following Email because its free
and fast and guaranteed to get there same day.

We received your letter dated February 7, today, February 22,
2006.  In
it you request that we sign an updated application (which was not
enclosed) and respond by February 9, 2006.  Even if the letter had
gone to the correct address and contained the application it would
still take longer than 2 days to get from ?.?.? Arkansas to Illesheim,
Germany and then back to you again.   I am sorry we can't
move as quickly as you require.  Can you please send the
application to this correct address.  CMR ??? Box ??? APO AE.
?????.  It normally takes a first class letter 7 to 10 days to
reach us from the U.S.   Sorry for any inconveniences this
may cause.
(Which is code for, plan ahead you dummy. and why did I apologise, grrr? Oh yeah, to be polite.)

Okay, this morning there are three Emails back.  2 are nothing
but attached paper work the third is more paper work with this little
gem attached:
Again, all I'm doing is copy and pasting her words with her typing,
nothing is changed by me except the address to protect privacy.

Oh and P.S. Ms. insurance lady.  I can't print your applications
out because my printer just ran out of ink and the first opportunity I
will have to replace my American ink cartridges is when I drive 45
minutes North to the nearest Army post that carries them.  Also,
my husband is 2 hours West of here Mon. thru Fri. so even if I could
print them we can't both sign them until Friday night, which means the
absolute earliest these will be mailed back to you is Monday the
27th.  And yo, my policy had better not cancel because YOU didn't
allow proper time for an international client.  If you can't
handle us then you shouldn't have agreed to represent us.

.

I remembered a quote I had heard a long time ago and then re-read just
the other day. It goes like this.  "The most important thing a
father can do for his children is love their mother." Theodore Hesburgh
said it.  He should have maybe said also "the reverse is true for
mothers". I said that, but I'm sure its nothing someone smarter hasn't
said before and I don't expect the encyclopedia to start quoting me
now.   There are all kinds of things implied in that quote
that aren't said, such as in
this deep love he feels for  the mother of his children will be
respect, understanding,  kindness,  tolerance,  empathy, support,
etc.   Lots of virtues that people now want from others but
aren't willing to share of themselves.  It is also implied that
these things that are in
this love felt for mom will also be felt exponentially towards the
kids.  Yes, Mr. Hesburgh in an ideal world.  I think June
Cleaver had it in spades.  Ward was quite the man wasn't he? 

I read it all the time right here in these pages the disrespect said
publicly toward ones spouse and it confuses me because I have such a
deep respect and love for my own husband.  I have some of these
virtues so tied up in my head that I'm not really sure where one starts
and one ends.  But I have always wondered at the reasons a person
would or could stay with another person that they did not
respect or love.  Some of it I'm sure is just blowing off steam and some
of it I am equally sure is downright unhappiness.  But in the 24
years I've been married I know you "reap what you sow".  How can you plant peas and expect watermelon to grow?
 I
also know that what you focus on is what is important to you.  So
if you don't show and focus on the virtues that you want to see in your
relationships then after awhile you won't have them, a relationship
survives on positive reenforcement and can founder on negativity. And
you may
find yourself looking back and wondering what you ever saw in this man
or woman  And honestly everyone around you will wonder the same
thing because all they ever hear you say sbout your spouse is negative
and then we wonder why such a smart, fun bright person is tied to such
a toad.