From the Desk 5/22/2008

This morning I woke up feeling refreshed and ready for more hiking this afternoon. I ate some breakfast and then headed off to work determined to learn about Dreamweaver and work on more featured items for the website. I got to work and began the day by tackling a major part of the new signs list for the smaller stores. I also created a 5"x 8" card that we will get printed and trimmed and send to the stores as a blank sign that they may use as temporary signs with handwritten information. This way if signs are going to be handwritten at least they will be on a uniform card that has a semi-professional look to it. (as opposed to the notebook paper signs I saw when visiting the stores….I cringed each time I saw one) I think it turned out very nicely. I also looked over some quotes I received for comparison from local printers to see if they could compete with CCC in Florida. Unfortunately, their pricing is almost consistently double what Florida charges for the same quantity on the same paper. I'm certain we'll find a happy medium locally; it will just take some time to track the right printer down.

For lunch today, I went back to the apartment, but at least I ate food that I already had instead of eating out yet again. I also made a request for an appointment at the Townlake Kaiser facility to see a doctor so I can continue to receive my prescriptions. Unfortunately I will not be able to see them until June 6th. The rest of the afternoon seemed to drag on forever, but I was able to answer some emails and get some work done on a flyer for Kenny. Mike took some time to sit down with me and teach me the basics of Dreamweaver so now I can alter more pages of our website and keep them updated with appropriate marketing information. He also tried to cancel on Stacy and I for our hiking trip after work today, but we wouldn't let him. We came to the agreement that we would meet him at Pine Mountain State Park in Cartersville (20 miles away) to go for a hike on the East Loop trail. It wasn't ideal since it wasn't as close, but at least it was a chance to do something active for another day in a row. I played around with Dreamweaver for the remainder of the afternoon and found that it is a fairly easy program to navigate, but I also know that I would never want to spend all my time working with it. 5:00 rolled around and I went home to do a few things before I picked up Stacy and we meet Mike for hiking at 7:00.

I was able to eat some dinner and call Comcast to upgrade my cable service and activate my modem so I no longer had to rent theirs. I also was able to finish all the laundry I planned on doing before my guests arrived this weekend. I made a short list of things I needed to get from Target sometime before Saturday afternoon. I attempted to work on the reception DVD before leaving for hiking, but time ran out and I didn't get very far. I dropped my car off at Stacy's as she had volunteered to drive us up to the trail where we met Mike and his golden retriever, Cheyenne. The drive up to Pine Mountain Trail in Cartersville wasn't that bad and the trail was very nice. The weather was almost perfect at 78 degrees with a slight breeze. The trail climbed from 914 ft. to 1521ft. over 1.5 miles. The climb was very steep in parts and then leveled out in between climbs. I enjoyed this trail a little more than Kennesaw Mountain for two reasons. First, it had more variation instead of being all up hill and then all down hill. Second, the view from the top was absolutely breathtaking as you can see by the pictures here. We all paused at the top while Mike's dog Cheyenne, took a water break and then looked ready to take a nap. We descended rather quickly crossing a couple of bridges along the way. We arrived back in the parking lot at 8:15 and Stacy and I headed back to her house so I could get my car and then get home in time to watch the Grey's Anatomy 2 hours season finale. The finale was very good, but it kind of makes me sad that the season is over already and I'll have to wait until the fall for new episodes to return to ABC. I faded into sleep pretty quickly as this was my third day in a row hiking at least 2 miles each day.


Meditation for the day: I decided to use the lyrics from a song that I heard for the first time today when I had my iTunes on shuffle. It is inconceivable that I have listened to every single song in my library, so I think God can still speak through unusual avenues. The song is called "Storm" by Lifehouse. Here are the lyrics:

How long have I been in this storm?
So overwhelmed by the ocean's shapeless form
Water's getting harder to tread
With these waves crashing over my head

If I could just see you
Everything would be all right
If I'd see you
This darkness would turn to light

And I will walk on water
And you will catch me if I fall
And I will get lost into your eyes
I know everything will be alright
I know everything is alright

I know you didn't bring me out here to drown
So why am I ten feet under and upside down
Barely surviving has become my purpose
Because I'm so used to living underneath the surface

If I could just see you
Everything would be all right
If i'd see you
This darkness would turn to light

And I will walk on water
And you will catch me if I fall
And I know everything will be alright
I know everything will be alright