Semi Sweet Chock-a-holic Sheet

I hope everyone had an awesome Christmas and New Year’s. Sorry it’s so late, but I haven’t been able to post for a while. I’ve been off the truck in Columbia, SC for over 3 weeks. I had a great time seeing family and friends that I hadn’t seen in a long long time. I stayed at my dad’s house most of the time, but spent a couple nights with my friend Katie Jane. Girl… that was fun, he he he:-)

I had a wonderful Christmas and New Year’s. Of course, I had about 10 too many big Christmas dinners! With so many different families…who KNOW how to cook…and KNOW how to do it right…I just couldn’t resist…lol. I’m sure I gained at least 10 pounds over the last 3 weeks, but just to let ya’ll know, it was well worth every ounce. So thank you all who treated me with such deliciously good food and gracious hospitality. How will I ever repay ya? It’s gonna be hard getting back to eating right, cuz being in this truck all day, I hardly ever get any exercise.

Through the internet I’ve discovered two business opportunities for myself that I believe I can do while on the truck. I may have told some of you already, but I’m thinking about freight brokering and also possibly selling the world’s first and only certified organic skin care products (which is an amazing revolution that is rapidly growing with the economy). I’m very interested in freight brokering because I already know so much about how the service works and I’m constantly around drivers, shippers, and receivers. In a few days I plan to begin the online/phone training I’ll need to get licensed.

I’m also interested in becoming a representative to sell an organic skin care line for an Austrailian based company called ONE Group. Since I’m all into eating better and staying away from all the toxins, chemicals, and preservatives that are in so much of the foods we eat, I recently went on a desperate search for skin care products, like shampoo, bodywash, deodorant, toothpaste, cosmetics, etc. that are natural or organic. Meaning they don’t contain the harmful toxins and chemicals that may possibly be the root cause of some of the diseases, cancers, and sickness that have always been around but seem to be rapidly growing in number since we’ve been adding all these artificial and potentially harmful additives to all the essential products we use everyday. So, I’ve finally found something I honestly did not believe existed. It was created over 10 years ago and is now the first and only skin care line that is certified organic, healthy, and ultimately nutritious for your body. I’ve only just begun learning about it, and I’m already so excited about selling these products because I believe the word needs to get out there. Eating mostly natural or organic foods have proven to significantly reduce sickness and help control weight over the past couple years in my own life. So I strongly believe that by using these basic products, which are tested to food grade standards (meaning it’s safe to literally drink the shampoo for example) they will hopefully clear up my skin/hair problems. In the long run, the most comforting thing for me will be knowing that I’m doing the best I can for my entire body to be healthy and stay healthy for a longer pain-free life. As recent studies have shown: what we apply to our skin is absorbed into areas as deep as the blood stream, which may prevent internal problems as well, not only external, skin related problems. I not only desire to make a profit off this effort and hard work, but my goal and desire is to share with others this opportunity to feed their skin with pure and wholesome products in their natural state, preserved in a natural way, and with a vision to protect the environment by a natural system of incouraging reproduction.

Pretty soon I’ll have my product order in, my website set up, and newspapers and cards to hand out to begin business. Hopefully within a month or so I’ll have the authority to broker freight and on the side be a traveling representative for ONE Group. I’m pumped up and ready to get busy…I can handle it. And bring on the business…cuz I’m stickin’ to it.

Lordy Lordy you’re twenty and four,

You’re that star about to soar.

 

All those years may have flown out the door,

But I hope you enjoy many many more.

 

If the Lord decides to take you before,

There is a heaven for you to explore,

With treasures and gifts to you galore.

 

But I’m tellin’ you here on this floor,

That you’ve touched our hearts to the very core,

The reason today your birth we adore.

 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Jason Shane, from your friend in “the other lane” LOL

I had a little extra time today, and this is what became of it.  It may sound all mushy and romantic, but it’s only because I desire a more intimate relationship with my heavenly Father.  He’s protected me so far, so I’m left without excuse or reason not to fully worship Him alone and depend upon His Word.  But even without this promise of hope and assurance, my entire being is now saying ”be bold about Jesus” and “be bold NOW” because time is running out! We can’t just stand by and watch the lost sheep perish and live the rest of their life, and ultimately their eternity, in total misery!

 

Dear Love, my Prince,

On account of this wince

My affections affirm to consist

To whomever I seem to exist

 

An experience never felt since

There standing in Your presence

Now gently take me by the wrist

You are God, my only perfectionist

 

Down this road You have contestants

In opposition to Your true essence

Their eyes may solely see a shiny pence

I believe they lack a thorough rinse

 

You hold qualities to numerous to list

These weak knees abate to persist

Creating a beauty more golden than grist

My lips, therefore, long to be kissed

I’m sure this will be difficult to understand. It is for me, and I wrote it. But it’s poetry, and it can have several different meanings and interpretations, right? My mind comes alive at night, and this one took literally a whole night to compose. Sounds crazy, I know, but once I get started on something, I can’t stop, till it’s finished. So, here goes nothing…

               I’m left to surmise under this scintillating moon

               This paltry heart in love so soon

               Constantly burning a game in flame

               A cause to cry or therefore explain

 

               To portray a feeling without strain and pain

               Not even density itself could remain to contain

               No ink or utter of a single tune

               Could hide aspiration bursting from its cocoon

 

               O Lord, so altruistic in eternal boon

               One sacrifice for mankind bound by wicked doom

               Those crimson tears did surge not stain

               Such an ease for Abel but a drain for Cain

 

               Obscuring her horizon arrives a gallant groom

               She brings an alabaster box reserving costly purfume

               Seeking His true love amidst all evil aim

               Searching crowds of people calling out her lover’s name

 

               Her moment has now come late in the afternoon

               Not regarding imperfections He bestows some growing room

               This girl pours forth all former mundane shame

               A welcome for which reason He was lain to slain

 

               Running captivated to the point of sudden swoon

               Of unconditioned love with passion to resume

               Into the outstretched arms that hold fast to that claim

               Knowing it’s His character I ascertain to obtain

Well, ya probably wouldn’t know, if you’re not a “truckie.”  A chock is not only my misspelled abbreviation for a ”chocoholic,” it’s something I deal with almost everyday.  To me, from a distance, they actually look like huge Hershey’s Chocolate Kisses thrown all over the ground around shipper’s and receiver’s dock doors.  I wish…right! Then I’d be in heaven…cuz I LOVE chocolate…especially dark chocolate (that’s really were I got my title from).  I’m really all-sweet (personality), and semi sweet(business).  I really wouldn’t know how to describe it to ya, but Webster does a pretty fine job… he say’s it’s a wedge for blocking the movement of a wheel.  Now, whether it works or not, he doesn’t say, go figure!  That’s what us “trucker’s” were put out here for.  So, from 3 yrs experience in the chocking business, I’ve learned ONE very important life lesson…and that is… if you WANT YOUR WHEELS TO ROLL, REMOVE THE WEDGE.

You wouldn’t believe me if I told ya, but I’m gonna tell ya anyway. We were cruising across southern New Mexico on Hwy 70 headed to Texas the other day, when all of a sudden we see this stuff…I said “it’s snow”, Mama said “no it ain’t cold enough to be snow”. I just thought they got a little light dusting awhile back and it’s just melted off the little shrubs sticking up out of the ground. She said, “It’s Panama City Beach sand.” I was like…sure, out here in New Mexico. To settle this dispute, we finally get to a border patrol or check station (a what-cha-ma-call-it) where the officer asks you if you’re an American citizen or not. I wanted to say “Si Senor” especially since this guy didn’t look American himself, but I refrained myself. He was a friendly and helpful fellow though. He told us it was the White Sands National Monument, a natural wonder to many people who pass through there. So see, I’m not the only wondering…perhaps a little mistaken, person out here, it just comes ‘naturally’. He, he, he.

We stopped at the little museum about it, but since they were closing, we couldn’t stay long. We found out it covers over 200 square miles of land in that area, and the sand is actually finely ground sediment of gypsum. Being in the vast White Sands Missle Range probably helps preserve it a little, what ya think? That is until they decide to make a target of the stuff…but surely they wouldn’t dare do such a thing…lol. It’s too pretty.

Continuing down the road a ways, it starts to snow…well, sleet at first… then light snow… then major blizzard conditions as we went up in elevation. Sure Mama, “ain’t cold enough to snow,” whatever. It was getting bad enough to shutdown, but uh…where? We’re out in the middle of nowhere, remember. Roads were covered with a nice layer of solid ice, we start slippin’ around a little. And when ya think it couldn’t get worse…goin’ up the hill the 4-wheeler in front of us slows down, so we slow down, so much so that when we tried to get goin’ again the gears got jammed and only grinded until we came to a complete stop in the middle of the road (I guess in the middle lane, couldn’t see the lines). Tires only spun and spun… we backed down the hill and slid far enough left so others could pass us on the right until we almost hit the curb trying to get traction. A nice female police officer pulls behind us with her lights on and gets out and helps direct traffic around us. She told us to sit tight until a tow truck came. We did not want to get towed and definatly didn’t want to pay for it, since technically we were rolling on ice. Opps! We started to pray that God would somehow intervene and get us unstuck and out of there safely. He immediately answered our prayers when a snow plow came to our rescue, sprayed dirt on our tires and cleared the snow packed road ahead of us for almost 20 miles it seemed until we came to a large casino/gas station/convienience store with truck parking. We pulled in there and shutdown till later the next morning when the sun finally came out to melt the snow. And we were “on the road again…with more great experiences to come…after these brief messages.” He, he, he.

Well, how was your thanksgiving? Mine was unusual…but in a good way. Instead of the usual family time, turkey, dressing, sweet potatoes etc. we happened to be in Los Angeles and had some extra time to rent a car and take a mini-vacation about 2 hrs north to the Sequoia and Yosemite National Parks. Oh my gosh, let me tell ya, if you’ve never been, it’s something worth the effort to get out there and experience, because I know all the pics we took won’t do it justice!!!

Ohhh and, God miraculously provided us with a place to stay when there was “no vacancy” anywhere except out with the bears. It was almost dark by the time we got into the Sequoia’s Friday night and when we asked the park ranger at the entrance about lodging in the park he said there was nothing (except camping) available. We kinda got ourselves in a sticky situation. He must have felt bad for us poor little girls because, believe it or not, he offered us his place to stay if we didn’t mind staying with a total stranger. We quickly became good friends after he showed us such true Southwestern hospitality! We knew it was God saving us from having to pay almost $200(ridiculous) just for a room for one night. So we took him up on his gracious offer and stayed with the park ranger in his little bachelor home in the woods on top of the mountain.

So, anyhoo, to make a long story longer, after the best food in town and a warm couch to sleep on, we left early the next morning and took the winding road through the beautiful GIANT Sequoia’s. We saw a lot of bear and deer. One hilarious but frightful instance, I got out of the car to take a picture of mama and cubs foraging a few feet from the road, when I guess I got too close for comfort, because mama jumped at me and GROWLED! Scared the living daylights out of me!!! I’ve never moved so fast in my life getting back in the car and slamming the door shut. Learned my lesson… “bears aren’t all cute and cuddly” like I thought.

Another funny story…a buck dashed out onto the road in front of us and just started casually walking up the road the same direction we’re going. So, we follow him (about a mile or so) pretty closely until we go around a curve and he starts to run…DIRECTLY for 3 people out of their vehicle at an overlook takin’ pictures. The look on their faces and their reactions when they see us chasing this big buck down the road heading right towards them would have won on America’s Funniest Video’s for sure! …If only I had a video camera! Of course, in the end, the confused, trapped buck finally got brave enough to jump the 3 foot stone wall and went down the steep cliff somehow:-0

Anyway, then we went to Yosemite, which in my opinion is even more magnificent than Sequoia, but both are breath-takingly beautiful. I finally got to camp out for the first time in my life. There’s a little village in the middle of the park where we spent the night in what they called an ‘unheated canvas tent cabin’. I still can’t call it camping, even though it was 20 degrees outside and all we had were blankets piled high to keep us warm. We had a gourmet buffet dinner and breakfast right next door. But don’t let that ruin the scenery for ya, it was still ALL COUNTRY! We had to lock all our food(or anything with a scent) in a bear locker. I was just hoping and praying that, in 20 degree weather, they were hibernating already. Before we left we went ice skating in the outdoor rink (a first for me), which was a lot of fun and I didn’t fall a single time, amazingly, as clumsy as I am! On our way out, my mom got pictures of me only inches from touching some wild deer, that’s how calm they are out there. But of course, afterwards, the people around me said a lot of folks get kicked and bucked by those deer in that park. I said, “OHHH, NOW YA TELL ME.” Well, I still would have tried to touch ‘em. Not sure if that makes me dumb and dangerous or absolutly adventurous, I don’t know?