Happy Bithday Dad

Quote of the day

I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul.
- Invictus by William Ernest Henley



Happy Birthday Dad

Today is my Dad's Birthday. Steve and I invited my parents over for dinner a couple of days ago. We cooked a yummy dinner of roast beef, veggies, roast spuds, Yorkshire Pudding and gravy. Actually, Steve did most of the cooking and I helped. Wish I'd taken a pic because it looked and tasted delicious.



A good time was had by all and Dad loved his card and  Avatar DVD.

KB's World





Feeling good today. Enjoyed a wonderful few days off with Steve.  We decided Dad wouldn't mind if we watched his Birthday pressie before we gave it to him. I really enjoyed the movie but I didn't think it was as great as I'd been led to believe. 

We spent the rest of our time preparing for Mum and Dad's visit. We also caught up on a few of the cooking shows we enjoy watching and had a yummy lunch at our favourite Japanese restaurant (click here to read KB1's review). All in all, a busy but fun few days off.

Thanks to everyone who voted in my poll. I'm happy we all enjoy the same content and I'll continue on as normal.

Today I'm grateful for...the love of my family.

Coming up...  KB's Bookshelf

See ya later
Love KB
xxx

Living With Whitesnake

Quote for the day

Failure is only the opportunity to begin again - more intelligently.
-Henry Ford


Follow the link to read more about... Living With Whitesnake


KB's World

I'm soooooooo tired. Steve has been working for the past 10 days with a break of just one day. I have to be up at 6am to take him to work and I'm not exactly a morning person. Looking forward to a few days off to spend together and catch up on sleep.  Dad's birthday dinner is coming up next week too, should be a good night.

Our landlady hired some men to chop down a huge tree that was in our back garden. It's a shame to cut down such a beautiful tree but now it's gone, I realise how much light it was blocking out.

Steve and I watched the All Blacks/Springboks game last night. All Blacks won AGAIN, woohoo!

That's all from me today.
Have a great day/night
Love
KB
XXX


Today I am grateful for...the working week being almost over (for us anyway).

Coming up...KB's Bookshelf

Flash 55 - Harry Down

Dad and Steve arrived at the takeaway shop to place their order. The shop owner has trouble understanding English. She asked Dad what name to put the order under and because my Dad’s surname is hard to pronounce, he replied, ‘Just put Harry down.’

A short time later… ‘Harry Down, order ready for Harry Down.’


Flash Fiction - Each Friday, I compose a short story of 55 words - no more, no less. If you would like to join in the fun and games... post your story and report to the boss G-MAN. If you're not interested in contributing a story, feel free to read the other entries. I'm sure any comments you have would be appreciated.

Happy reading and writing!
Love KB
XXX

Readers' Poll

Quote of the day

What you are today comes from your thoughts of yesterday and your present thoughts build your life of tomorrow. Your life is the creation of your mind.
- Buddha



Readers' Poll  

I appear to have lost some of my regular readers...eek! I think it's because I usually do my best work when miserable, hence the lack of posts, hehe. I decided to do a little poll so you guys (all 3 of you) can tell me what you enjoy reading about the most. Maybe it will inspire me to write a bit more. The poll box is on the side bar under the pic of KB & Whitesnake.



KB's World

All is well with us. I've been catching up on a few fiddly projects I've been putting off. Feels good to be tackling them head on  rather than putting them off . The main issue I have is working the knots out of Coco's coat. She's very nervous around the clippers and her coat is getting more and more tangled. I've been sitting with her for a little time each day and slowly combing out the knots. We're making huge progress and she doesn't seem to mind it as much as she used to.

In other news, Steve has given up smoking and I'm so proud of him! I really must get off the computer and on with my day. I'll write more on that next time.

Have a great day/night.

Love KB
XXX


Today I'm grateful for...
Steve for taking such a huge step towards better health.


Coming Up
Living With Whitesnake





   



   

Coco's World

Quote for the day

Be joyful, because it is humanly possible.
- Wendell Berry



Coco's World

Time for my hair cut


Please let it be over soon!


I miss my hair


I'm sooooooooooo cold



Smokers' Corner



I'm gonna miss smoking with Dad when he gives it up





KB's World

It's 11.20 and I'm still in my PJs....whoops! Had a productive day yesterday, managed to fit in a half hour walk and a Yoga session too. Feeling a bit headachy today so planning to take it easy as much as possible. Apart from that, everything is good. Looking forward to catching up with my parents tomorrow too.

Have a great day,
Love KB
XXX


Today, I'm grateful for...all the days I haven't had a headache. Does that count for today? Hehe!

Coming up...Readers' Poll.

Healthy Living

Quote of the day

The body is a sacred garment. It's your first and last garment; it is what you enter life in and what you depart life with, and it should be treated with honour.
- Martha Graham: A Dancer's Life   


Healthy Living

I can't believe it's July already, how did that happen? Half way through the year and all I can think about is how unfit I am :( Whitesnake found a new walking track which is near our house. He's taken Coco there often,  I thought it was about time I tried it out.  It's the perfect length for a daily walk and includes uphill and downhill. I felt a little out of breath on parts of the track, not so bad that I couldn't talk (so it's all good). I thought I was doing quite well until Steve informed me he usually runs up there with Coco. I was not impressed with myself, Steve's older than me, smokes, drinks and eats fatty food and he's STILL fitter than me. Not to matter, I'll be running up there after him in no time, hehe.  

As Steve is always reminding me; I shouldn't beat myself up about the things I can't or haven't done yet but focus on the positive actions I've taken. He's very wise. Let's see, on the health front, I'm walking more than I was, I'm taking less medication for my acid reflux, eating more veges and I've cut down on my alcohol by half. That's pretty good for a couple of month's work. *pats self on back*

I'm going to make health my main focus again this month. My top three priorities are:


- Knowing my numbers

I have a health check annually so I'm aware of where my health is at but I don't have a record of what my results are. I think it's a good idea to note them down so I can mark my progress. I'll record the results I am aware of for now, and ask my Dr for the others when I see him next month.


- Alcohol reduction

I've come so far already with this. My goal for this month is to have no more than 2 standard drinks in one session. Which means I'll be within the 'safe' limit for me. Wow, I've come a long way from drinking a bottle a night to one drink a night. I never thought I'd be able to do it but it was quite easy once I'd made the decision. What a difference being happy in my life can make. I've had all my blood work tested and my liver and everything else is fine. I'm so thankful I could do something about my drinking before any serious damage was done.


- Exercise

This is my biggest struggle because vigorous exercise brings on similar symptoms to a panic attack.In the past, when I was out on a long hike, I would experience shortness of breath, rapid heart beat etc and I thought I was going to have a heart attack, when in fact, I was fine and experiencing a panic attack. Sounds so silly when I write it down but it can be a terrifying experience. Whenever I reach for my walking shoes, there's the fear in the back of my mind of having a panic. At the moment I am walking twice a week, I will increase this to 4-5 times a week including twice a week on the steeper track to really get my heart working.


Well, that should keep me out of too much mischief this month.


KB's World

Everything is going well. Steve and I are feeling much more settled and happy as ever. I'm looking forward to picking him up from work, followed by 3 hours of Survivor on telly. That will keep me smiling but I'm not sure how happy Steve will be about it, hehe.

Take care, stay healthy.
Love KB
XXX



What I'm grateful for in this moment
 -my body for putting up with all the crap I've given it in the past. 


Coming up... Coco's World 


Recommended Reading









         

Farewell Gary

Gary owned the local butcher shop in Ruakaka (the place I used to spend my Summer holidays). Entering his shop could be confused with entering an  Adventure Sports Shop. Pictures of Gary engaged in different pursuits lined the back wall. He would often leave whatever he was doing to greet people, he made me feel like an old friend rather than a customer. He always had a smile on his face and a few cheery words (usually about fishing or skydiving). He appeared happy and full of the joys of life. Below is a copy of an article from NZ Adventure Magazine regarding the circumstances of his death.

Farewell Gary, it was a pleasure knowing you.


June 22, 2010


Filed under News

A New Zealand jumpmaster and parachute instructor has been killed in a parachute accident in Norway.

Northland’s Gary Cullen, 51, owner of the Bream Bay Butchery at Ruakaka, died of his injuries near Lysebotn in Rogaland on Sunday.

He was a tandem jumpmaster for his sister Kelly’s Ballistic Blondes skydiving business in Northland.

His partner Tracey Norton, and a longtime parachuting buddy Frank Conway and wife Helen, had been waiting down below for Mr Cullen to jump off a high piece of ground on Sunday, the Northern Advocate reported.

But a German jumper, Mirko Schmidt, told the online edition of Stavanger’s Aftenblad newspaper the New Zealander did not know the mountain and did not have the proper equipment.

“I would not recommend anyone to try this,” he told the newspaper.
Stein Edvardsen, president of the local base-jumping club — for parachutists who jump from cliffs, towers and buildings, said the New Zealander failed to get the lift he needed from his parachute, which collapsed, and he fell 30m.

Mr Cullen was declared dead at the scene, and police were notified shortly before 11pm local time.
Ms Norton is arranging to bring the body to New Zealand.

Earlier this month, the couple travelled to Italy where he had competed in the world parachuting championships for people over 40, winning two gold medals.

Mr Cullen was not only a New Zealand champion parachutist and skydiver but one of the nation’s top 10 spearfishers, and had also represented his country in that sport, said Spearfishing New Zealand chairman Bob Rosemergy.