I had heard about the electronic cigeratte so I decided to do some research.  I found that a company who claim to be the #1 company for the e-cig, was just about to buy the $127 starter kit when I stumbled across a video from a guy saying that any e-cig will do. 

So I typed in e-cig on Google and came to this website e-cig so I started to study and discovered that I could order what ever I wanted, size, color, nicotine level and even the flavor of my brand.  There were really millions of choices!

It’s been about a week now and I am still loving them.  I still smoke real cigs but only a few per day.

and catching you unaware of the passing years.

It seems just yesterday that I was young,

just married and embarking on my new life with my mate.

And yet in a way, it seems like eons ago,

and I wonder where all the years went.

I know that I lived them all…

And I have glimpses of how it was back then and of all my hopes and dreams.

But, here it is — the winter of my life and it catches me by surprise.

How did I get here so fast?

Where did the years go and where did my youth go?

I remember well…

seeing older people through the years and thinking that those older people

were years away from me and that winter was so far off

that I could not fathom it or imagine fully what it would be like.

But, here it is …

my friends are retired and getting gray,

they move slower and I see an older person now.

Some are in better and some worse shape than me,

but, I see the great change.

Not like the ones that I remember who were young and vibrant…

but, like me, their age is beginning to show and we are now those older folks

that we used to see and nev er thought we’d be.

Each day now, I find that just getting a shower is a real target for the day!

And taking a nap is not a treat anymore … it’s mandatory!

Cause if I don’t on my own free will, I just fall asleep where I sit!

And so …

now I enter into this new season of my life — unprepared

for all the aches and pains and the loss of strength and ability

to go and do things that I wish I had done but never did!!

But, at least I know, that though the winter has come, and I’m not sure how long it will last … this I know, that when it’s over…its over.

Yes , I have regrets. There are things I wish I hadn’t done, things I should have done, but indeed, there are many things I’m happy to have done.

It’s all in a lifetime.

So, if you’re not in your winter yet,

let me remind you that it will be here faster than you think.

< div “>So, whatever you would like to accomplish in your life please do it quickly!

Don’t put things off too long!

Life goes by quickly. So, do what you can today,

as you can never be sure whether this is your winter or not!

You have no promise that you will see all the seasons of your life … so,

live for today and say all the things that you  want your loved ones to remember,

and hope that they appreciate and love you for all the things

that you have done for them in all the years past!!

When I was in my 20 or 30’s I made a strong stance to never make a New Years Resolutions because it was just a joke on so many levels.  The usual lose weight, quit smoking… WHATEVER!

Well, as I have learned from the school of hard knocks, we as humans should set goals.  Dammit why did I have to learn this at the ripe old age of 56???  If you don’t set goals and obtain them, well, you can end up in a really bad mess.

So the message here is to set some goals… think about where you want to be in the next 5 or 10 years.

Happy New Year to You!  May you obtain your goals!

The children were nestled all snug in their beds with no thought of their dog that was filling their head.

With mom in her kerchief and I in my cap knew our dog was cold, yet didn’t care about that.

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter I sprang from my bed to see what was the matter. Away to the window I flew like a flash, figuring our dog was free of his chain and into the trash.

The moon on the crest of the new fallen snow gave the luster of mid-day to objects below. When what to my wondering eyes should appear but Santa Claus with his eyes full of tears.

He unchained our dog once so lively and quick… last year’s Christmas present now painfully sick.

More rapid than eagles he called the dog’s name and our dog ran to him despite all of his pain.

“On Dasher, on Dancer, now Prancer and Vixen, on Comet, on Cupid, on Donner and Blitzen!” To the top of the porch to the top of the wall “Let’s find this dog a home where he will be loved by all.”

I knew in an instant there’d be no gifts this year, for Santa had made one thing exceedingly clear. The gift of a dog is not just for the season.

We had gotten the dog for all the wrong reasons. In our haste to think of the kids a cool gift there was one very important thing that we missed. A dog should be family, and cared for the same. You don’t give a gift, and then put it on a chain.

And I heard him explain as he rode out of sight…

“You weren’t given a gift, you were given a life.”

So just like most kids, we wanted a dog.  My parents decided that would be a great Christmas present.

They actually had been planning it for a long time.  They knew that it had to be hypo allergenic because my sister Trudy suffered from asthma and was very allergic to many things.

Looking back I am pretty sure they gave us a couple of choices to entice us in their direction. I remember my Dad asking what kind of dog we wanted and me and my sisters chiming at the same time “A French Poodle”, they were all the rage back then.

We got the most wonderful gift for Christmas, a beautiful black miniature poodle.  My sisters and I named her Babette, Georgette, Corkett Waters… after all she was a French Poodle!

I remember that Christmas morning so vividly!  My Dad put her under the tree and told us to come out, but she fell back to sleep, so he told us to go put our robes on.  As we started down the hall she woke up, my Dad yelled “wait come back” …  and here she came waddling out from under the tree.

Babette was our dog and a member of our family for 18 years.  She was a great friend, we grew up together.  My parents let her have one litter of pups and we kept one named Pixie who really was my Moms dog.  I have so many wonderful memories of them.  I still miss Babette and Pixie will see them at the bridge one day!

My sister Trudy holding Babette, My best friend Leslie with Pixie and my litter sister Linda. Taken in 1967.