The decLARAtion of me: "FYI....you are excessively blogging"

I was told this on V-Day after i posed my annual "Thing i love" post. Really Brett, really?
This is my therapy, my release, my partly creative side. And i love to write. Remember, i did write a thesis in college.....142 pages. It is located in the Duke Library if you feel like reading it. I have a copy too if you don't feel like traveling that far. :)

I'm on vacation this week. Well, it is more like a "stay-cation" for part of the week and then a trip to Boston to see Karen and Amol at the end of the week. SOOOOO excited! I mean, soooo excited!!! I've never been to Boston before....and holy crap, it is going to be C.O.L.D! I'm freezing down here in Charleston....so i am not quite sure i will be able to tolerate the weather. Thank goodness wine keeps you warm. And so does hanging out with good friends. :)

And speaking of Karen, i stole this from her FB page
It is Jimmy Kimmel and Justin Timberlake rapping/singing about the history of rap. It is amazing. Watch it. Watch it now!!

And now i have to give a shout out to my dear friend Jen Sample, who not only is my friend and Taylor's friend, but also our hairstylist. She just opened up Holy City Barber shop on King Street (up near Butcher and Bee). It is a great place where you (if you are a guy) or your man (if you are a woman) can get hair cuts, straight razor shaves, libations, and hangover remedies. Men- go see her. Women- send your man to her.
684 King Street.
Tues-Fri 11a-7p and Sat 10a-6p

And if you are my friend on Facebook (which is usually how most people read my blog),you will remember the old female dog that i found on VDay, running down the road towards a busy street without a collar. She stayed in my bathroom that night, i posted her pic on Pet Helpers and Craigslist and Facebook. And the next morning, i was going to take her to Pet Helpers after i got back from work.

Here i am with her last Friday morning (please excuse the hair and oh yeah, totally wearing the same jacket because i AM COLD!!!)

So i went to work and conference and got home at 1:30 (ish) on Friday and found a message on my home phone. A lady from about 2 subdivisions over had lost her dog and she called Pet Helpers, who told her that i had posted pics of a lost dog matching their dog's description the night before, and gave her my phone number. So the dog, Cecelia, who is 13, deaf, mostly blind, and has seizures, started her adventure Valentines Day night after a neighbor left their gate open. It took the family about a hour before they noticed she was gone, and by then she had already gone about 1/3 mile, down many streets, and ran by my house, which is when i caught her. The family searched for her all night because and was very distraught....apparently this lady's husband got the dog in college, before they got married, and he was so upset. So she called and left a message. I called her back, told her that i "thought" this was her dog, and she came flying up the road about 5 minutes later. Her young son in tote, i opened the front door, the lady peeked inside to see Cecelia sitting at the top of the landing in the front hall, like she owned the place, and she burst into tears and hugged me again and again. This was her dog. :)
Heartwarming, right?
Well, last night in our mailbox we got this, from Cecelia's family, Ben, Kristen, Parker and Sam Johnson. I love the picture of the dog dreaming about home.

In all honesty, it only makes sense to me to take in a stray and see if they have a family, collar, chip, etc. The dog looked well loved and cared for, so i knew she hadn't been abandoned or had been abused. I can only hope that if my dogs get out, that people have kind enough hearts to do the same.
Now, if you see THIS dog running around, luckily he has a collar with his name and my phone number, but please make sure to give him milk at night before bed and he loves to snuggle.
Isn't my baby the most beautiful boy ever?

And since i am keeping up with my New Years resolution and taking more pictures, this is what i have been doing over my vacation. Painting and getting the house ready to sell!
1st two pictures are of Taylor's bathroom- pretty new green color.
Last picture is of the master bathroom- blue/grey color.
Today- painting my bedroom- will post pictures later of completed project!