Thoughts From a Frazzled Mind

Monday morning I headed to work full of trepidation, still in shock to think that Sally would no longer be our leader.  Sue and I talked for a long time about the ramifications, but of course since we didn't have any information all we could do was speculate.  Finally we got a message that we were to go to the Salt Lake Campus for a meeting with the CEO of the company.  Finally we would get some answers.  Since the meeting was scheduled for afternoon, we called Sally and asked her if she would like to meet Sue and I for lunch before the meeting. It was great to talk to her.  She truly is a good friend.  She let us know how much she enjoyed working with us and let us know that she expected to be included in many lunches in the future.  I just love that lady. After lunch we headed to the meeting, which was actually very good.  The CEO told us that he wanted to know what our questions and concerns were and just opened up the floor.  ...

The annual Memorial weekend wood carving jamboree was again held in Boise and of course Kim, his brother, Dave, and I were exited to go.  But, to add to the fun, this year their other brother, Doug, flew up from California and joined us!  Doug is a novice carver, but no one was worried about him catching on quickly. The Olsen brothers were fortunate to have another Olsen, Ryan, as their instructor.  Ryan has quite a history with the Olsens beginning years ago when Ross and Joan attended with us when it was held in Twin Falls.  Ryan was quickly "adopted" by Ross and Joan when they found that he had come to the Jamboree alone.  That first year Ryan attended Cleve Taylor's class with Kim and Joan.  It was his first year carving and the knife he used to carve with was an old kitchen steak knife!  Cleve took pity on the new, yet talented, carver and donated a few tools to him. Every year since, Kim and Dave have made a really big deal about joining with...

Memorial Day weekend is just about my favorite weekend of the year. It is not because it is the day we honor our dead that are no longer with us as well as those who have lost their lives to fight for our freedoms - although honoring them is very important. No, the reason it is my favorite is because it is the "Wood Carving Jamboree"! Although I am not a wood carver, I LOVE this weekend because I join Kim and his brother David and travel to Idaho. The boys spend 3 full days carving with some of the best carvers in the nation - therefore they are very happy. I, on the other hand, am very happy because I get to spend 3 full days all alone doing whatever I feel like doing! I used to haul all of my scrapbooking paraphernalia with me and then spread paper, photos, stickers, etc all over the room. However the last few years have been extremely nice since I now do all of my scrappin ' on my laptop, so I don't have to carry so much stuff - only my computer bag. This...