Coleslilwitch’s blog

Decided to stick close to home with this week's entry. This is the evil Darth Mittens. Yes, she is also a Steelers' fan. :) She's all ready for today's game between the Steelers and the Ravens. If we win, we clinch the division.

If you want to take part in this fun animal photo meme, stop over at Camera Critters headquarters and learn all the details.

Photo Hunter: Favorite

This week's theme for Photo Hunt is favorite. I'm choosing my favorite place to visit - Gettysburg, PA. I know it might sound strange, but when we go to the town, I always feel at peace. It's a sad place, you can feel the weight of the thousands of young men and boys who were taken too soon, but it feels like I'm home. We try to get there every year.

Devil's Den is one of those places where hundreds were killed during battle. When it came time to clean up the bodies, the people just threw them in the cracks of the rocks. Until they began to decompose, then they had to try and scoop them out. Didn't work too well.

It's not a gruesome place at all. Last time we were there, Randy and I stayed on the rocks until the park closed at 10 p.m. I wasn't scared at all, even when he had me step back inside the rocks for a photo. Maybe I was there in a previous life and that's why I love it so much?

If you want to take part in the fun, stop over at Photo Hunt central and find out all the details.

Please say a prayer to your chosen deity

I rarely do things like this, but I'm pretty scared right now. My cousin is in the hospital and they have no idea what's wrong with her. She's on oxygen and morphine and they're doing tons of blood tests. They think she might have an infection around her heart or maybe some unknown viral infection or who knows? The docs sure haven't got a clue.

If you have a minute, please say a prayer to your chosen deity for Denise. She has three daughters and a grandchild on the way. She's worried it's something contagious and has passed it on to the baby to be.

Here she is during A's Sweet 16 party dancing with her youngest daughter.

Stampede Wrestling

Saturday, Randy and I drove up to Erie for our first exposure to Stampede Pro Wrestling. We had no idea what to expect. We've been to MANY independent shows over the years and some were pretty good and some were, well, not.

We went to the mall first, had to have my Hot Topic fix. Yes, it is an addiction shopping at that store. No, they don't sponsor me even though I talk about them all the time. Of course, I'm more than willing to showcase their products anytime - fairy shirts, messenger bags and cool earrings are always welcome here. :)

We get to the arena and meet the promoter. Geoff, we can't thank you enough for making us feel welcome. He introduced us to all the wrestlers and we did some backstage posed photos. Everyone was great to work with. Being able to boss around these buff bods is always fun for me!

The show itself was amazingly good. The wrestlers have a lot of great skills and had no problems pulling off some really high-flying moves. They were selling the moves and there were a few times I simply put the camera down and watched. Now, anyone who knows me realizes what that means. I NEVER see anything, except frame by frame. For me to put down the camera and just watch, well, it's unique.

The show ended with a woman being set on fire. Well, not really set on fire, but the big heel J-Rocc threw fire at the champ Bill Collier, he ducked and it hit his manager. Really great stuff! Not expecting that, but sure enjoyed it.

We're hoping to get back to more shows in the future. The almost three hour drive makes it hard in the winter, but it's well worth it!

September 11

It's a day I'll never forget, just like every other American. I watched the second plane hit live on TV. My in-laws were on a bus trip to Atlantic City, NJ, so I was frantic trying to reach them. The hotel phone just rang and rang. We didn't even have an address where they were, so I was going crazy worrying.

My MIL finally called around 2 p.m., to say that FIL had been rushed to hospital with his heart. I told her to give me the address and I'd be there in 12 hours. She kept insisting she was fine, but she was crying. Of course, I wasn't going to listen to her, I had to be there. Randy had just started a new job that week and couldn't go or he'd be fired. I ran to my mother and asked her if she'd go. She grabbed her toothbrush, called her boss and we left. I had my camera and a change of clothes and that's it.

It was so eerie driving on the Interstate. Very little traffic. We finally had to stop around midnight to sleep. We were back on the road by 6 a.m. and got to NJ by noon. MIL just cried and cried when we pulled in. We had no idea what to expect. Would there be more attacks? Was FIL ok? What would happen? We were there a week before he was released and we could drive home. Got lost in Philadelphia. All the street signs had been removed to prevent terrorists from finding the Liberty Bell, etc.. What a nightmare. We were in the ghetto trying to find out how to get home.

It's a day I'll never forget on more than one level. I think that's when the in-laws realized just how far I would go for them. Family is everything to me. I don't work full time just so I'm always available when someone needs me.

One other eerie coincidence is the week before, my 9-year old daughter had said we would be on the beach that week. I just laughed because there was no way, it was mid-September and they were in school. As I stood on the beach, looking at the Atlantic Ocean on Sept. 12, it hit me what she had said. She was right.

Worldless Wednesday

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Been out of touch

Sorry it's been a few days since my last post. We went on a mini-vacation to visit with a friend over the long weekend, then yesterday, I woke up with such a migraine I wanted to just curl up in a ball and not move ever again.

Hubby took me to the doc, who took one look at me and called in a VERY strong pain killer. (Read what they give terminal cancer patients) I took one and spent the rest of the day sleeping. The pain is so much less today. Those pills are a true miracle.

I've dealt with these horrors for over 16 years now. Usually, I'd have ended up in the hospital when it got this bad. The pills made it possible for me to stay home. At least the kids were able to walk in the room quietly and see I was still here. It scares them when I'm this ill. They're so young to have to deal with all this. They've had to go to the store because I literally couldn't stand up it hurt so bad.

I must have been VERY naughty in a previous life to deserve all of this. Sure hope I had fun!

Skywatch Friday

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