Monday, August 20, 2012

New Blog...

I have a new blog....rather I have moved from Blogger to WordPress.

You can read the new posts here: http://christasconfessions.com/

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Day in Review - Back to the Grind

Well, I am back from Florida...it was a great trip.  If you didn't see the posts (or skipped them because they were so boring) you will know that we had a wonderful visit to the sunshine state that was filled with food (I put on 4 pounds) drinks (see previous 4 pound note) sun (will get to this in a moment) and fun.

I missed my little doggie but she was in good hands. She spent the week playing with her cousins Lily and Josie.  (As a side note, she has been sleeping about 20 hours a day since we got home. She is either exhausted or depressed)
She caught me taking the picture!

So the best news out of this whole trip was that "Todd" and "Sarah" bought a beautiful home in Bradenton. It was definitely unexpected but I absolutely believe that it was meant to be. They spent my inheritance on this house but I guess I will get some use out of it since it is a free place to stay in sunny Florida. It is in an "older adult" (Old people) private community but us young ens' can stay for up to 30 days each year. The truth is, it is right on the shores of a gorgeous lagoon, the neighbors are far enough away to be comfortable and it will be a wonderful retreat for the entire family. (Let me know if you want to rent it for a week, season, whatever...I will put you in touch with "Todd")

If I wasn't afraid of the little lizards everywhere, I would sit by those palms and write


Let's talk about my sunburn for a minute.  Before anyone preaches to me about wearing sunscreen...i DID...I just neglected to reapply after going into the ocean and rinsing off in the shower (my legs).  Aside from my legs, the rest of my body was perfectly fine and even got a bit of color. So this sunburn was bad...being outside all day with no protection is not good for me...I am no fool, believe me, I always wear something when out in the sun. I know what will happen and I know it will be bad....this was kind of bad...

Though there were no blisters or anything, my legs, ankles and feet pretty much swelled up on top of the sunburn. I did a bit of research and it seems like swelling is a common occurrence. "Granny" and "Sarah" also got a bit of swelling. Mine was way worse though.  I could barely walk by Friday and Saturday, sitting in the car from Anna Maria Island to South Carolina was pretty tough.  By Saturday night I was definitely teetering on the edge of insanity.  I was in pain, exhausted, uncomfortable...all I can say is I learned a lesson about applying and reapplying and reapplying and reapplying and reapplying sunscreen.

By the next day I was on the mend and today, a week after Sunburn 2012 occurred, the pain is gone and all that is left is the unbearable itching that many of you are likely familiar with after a sunburn.Every step I take and every move I make I am dropping DNA all over the place. I really hope the worst is over, but I suspect it is going to take my legs a few more days to get back to normal. As I try to see the positive, I have brand new skin all over the place, so that is probably good, right?

I think the best part of being in Florida was simply the relaxation of it all.  I was really at my wits end before I went and I think I really realized that you need to give yourself a break every once in awhile. I was inspired there and feel energized even now. That is probably a good thing.  I had a great idea for a story and you never know where things like that can take you.

I know this is kind of a boring post...nothing very unusual or funny has happened except the reptilian way I am shedding skin. Have you read the new poetry section? Check it out here.

I have been really into planning my new music blog...I can't decide who to feature first though. Gotye? Rachael Owens? The Autumn Portrait? Bodhi Jones? Someone else?  If you have suggestions, let me know.  I am trying to stick to Indie bands/artists but will certainly consider others. Gotye is about to blow up since his song is going to be on Glee in 2 weeks.

Ahh...what to do, what to do...

Friday, March 23, 2012

Trip to Florida - Last Day in the Sun

Today is our last day in Florida. We are leaving at 6am tomorrow morning. Last day at the beach (I am not going however because I currently am the approximate color of a lobster). We have some shopping to do, last minute souvenirs to buy and a trip to see the new house once again.

It is always hard to leave, but much easier now that I know I can come back at any time (assuming the inspection goes through!).

Off to the shops!

Thursday, March 22, 2012

Trip to Florida - Lucky Morning

Reminder - No animals were harmed in the making of this blog post. Any animal that is mentioned was deceased unless specified.

Went to the beach this morning, then out to breakfast. We have been looking for shells all week, specifically whole sand dollar shells. We have had zero luck until today. We finally found one whole sand dollar shell.  I seriously almost dived into the ocean to get it, but I finally go it. Soaked from my toes to shoulders, we continued to walk down the beach.

About 15 minutes later, we had turned around and headed back. I glanced down into the surf and saw...a starfish...just hanging out in the sand. I called for my dad because I was half afraid of it and I am also terrified of fish so I wanted to make sure there were no fish around. A random man came over with a fluorescent green shirt and no pants. He told me it was alright to pick it up and I should see if it was alive.  It certainly was alive.  It was soft and moving along my palms.  It was an extremely cool experience and nothing like the hard starfish you see in the stores.  It was very pliable and you could see all of it's little feet move.  We took pictures and my dad took it way out into the sea, hopefully safe from harm.. 

Me holding the live starfish.


Not two feet down the shore, I look down and see another starfish...this time, I had no fear and picked it right up. It was hard and not moving, obviously dead. We ended up bringing it back, did some research and have now begun the preservation process.  It was an extremely cool morning and very lucky.  One whole sand dollar shell and two starfish (though one was dead).

Back to the beach today for just a bit.  Mom and dad bought a house down here so there are meetings to go to and papers to sign...all of it needs to be done by tomorrow.  A little wrench in our plans and some things have needed to be left out of our plans, but now that we know we can come down whenever we want, it doesn't seem so bad.


Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Trip to Florida - Trip to Johns Pass

After a celebratory evening (my parent's bought a second home down here!) we retired earlier (some of us (not me!) needed to go to bed more than others) than normal. We are back in business and on our way to Johns Pass which is supposedly a great shopping location. It is also supposed to be very fun. All of our plans have gotten turned around due to the house buying extravaganza but all of us are excited.

Who is coming down to FL for vacation??

Here are some pics from yesterday at Siesta Key and my sister Margarita from this morning.


Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Trip to Florida - Off to Siesta Key

We had a great morning today. Walk on the beach, went out to breakfast at Ginny & Jane E's then back to the beach for about 2 hours. Back to the house for a quick lunch and cocktails and now off to Siesta Key. I have never been there but I have heard great things about it from "Todd", "Sarah" and my friend Laurel.

Will keep you posted...

Meanwhile we saw a crane in our back yard and I had a delicious margarita. Speaking of margaritas, my sisters Tia and Margarita were able to spend some bonding time with their mom. Pics of our morning are below.