I treat my pets like family members...

Which is why I am so upset about finding a stray older dog at 2:30am on Easter Sunday..

My hubby and I had been for a night out with friends, I was the designated driver so didn't drink. We dropped our friend at her house around 2am, and proceeded to make our way home. The road that we take home has a 55mph speed limit, most people fluctuate between 55 and 60 - as you do. We were 10 minutes from home, when out of the corner of my eye I saw something walking nonchalantly into the road. I realised that it was a dog, slowed down, swerved, and he walked right behind our car. I travelled for another 4 minutes or so, and had to turn around to find the dog. He walked toward a wooded area, my husband said he was probably 'walking home', across a highway??? I knew that it would play on my mind if I didn't at least try to find the dog, it must have been a little confused to be walking across the road like that with cars speeding past.
Car turned around, we headed in the direction that the dog went. We passed 5 or 6 Deer, happily chewing away on grass. Hubby said "The dog obviously didn't pass here, the Deer would have run away". So we backtracked a little, and I headed to a small industrial park. Hubby said that the dog wouldn't go into a brightly lit park, he was probably looking for shelter if he was lost...
I thought otherwise, and thought if he was as confused as I thought he was, he might have thought the lights were houses. We circled the park, and were just on or way out, when we spotted him. An old grey faced Beagle. We got out of the car, crouched down and called him over. He was a little nervous at first, but jumped into my drivers seat as the door was open- he was obviously used to car travel! Hubby put him into the back of our car, and we were headed home to call the Humane Society, maybe he was microchipped and someone was missing him?
Just as we turned the car around a Police Car came cruising by - probably wondered what we were up to at 2:30am in an industrial area? We told him what happened and he took charge of the dog.
When we looked closer, the dog was pretty chunky around the shoulders, in fact, he was so fat that we thought he had a tumour, until we realised that it was both sides!
The dog was very sweet, very friendly, and just looked relieved to be with people.
He is now in the Humane Society. Nobody has claimed him. He isn't microchipped. I put out an advert on Craigslist, saying where we found the dog, a brief description, what time etc... but nobody appears to be looking for him.

It is heartbreaking to think that maybe someone just got bored of him, he is an older dog, grey, overweight, and probably 'lost his appeal'.

It breaks my heart to see this going on. He probably devoted his entire life doting on a family, loving them, missing them, being pleased to see them when they came home, and would have defended them if need be. And this is the treatment that he gets..

We have 2 cats and 2 dogs. If we didn't, I would have taken him in to live out the last few years of his life happily.

The Humane Society predicted him to be around 10 years old. So, in dog years that is around 70. Who would do such a cruel, heartless thing?
I am praying that he finds a loving family soon. We did what we could to help him, I hope that it was enough?....

Gym etiquette...

My best friend and I were in the gym yesterday, getting back into our workout routine after a break of about 5 weeks. We were both happy to get back there, summer is coming, and we need to carry on working toward the goals that we had set last summer.
Toward the end of our workout, we were using machines in the weights room. My friend went to go get a paper towel to wipe down the machine after we had finished, and when she came back she said to me "wow, that guy behind us was really staring at your butt while you were using the machine".
I am not naive, and realise that people do 'glance' in the gym, but to be so blatantly obvious about it kind of irked me a little.
This is not the first time that this has happened either. It isn't as if we are walking around (as some girls do) wearing teeny tiny hot pants (I have seen bigger underwear), with our boobs hanging out asking for the wrong kind of attention. We are just there to try to lose weight and get fit. Don't get me wrong, if someone glanced at you and appreciated how you looked, then great, what a confidence boost! But to stare- not falling far short of drooling, come on...Isn't there a line that you shouldn't cross?

One guy walked past when I was with my husband one day, and did the same thing- butt starer!. I thought maybe he was stupid, but in reality, I think it is a total lack of respect.

This isn't the only thing that pisses me off there. The girls wearing shorts with half of their butts hanging out, or - as we have seen several times- girls wearing boys boxers running around the track! Can they not read the very obvious sign that faces you when you walk into the gym? It clearly states a dress code! And not the less is more dress code that they seem to adopt.

Also ,people.. When you leave pools of butt sweat all over a machine, please take the time and effort- all of 30 seconds of it- to walk over to the sanitation stations, and clean up after yourself. Is it really that difficult?

After all of that moaning, I have to say that I really do love going to the gym!
It definitely kept me sane when my husband was deployed for 6 months. I feel happier after I have worked out, and certainly I feel healthier for it.

The gym is also a place for 'Star spotting'. We have a few famous look-a-like guys. There is Donald Trump- whose combed over hair never moves when he is running around the track. Willie Nelson, who trains like a champ on the elliptical. Chuck Norris- a guy who walks around like he owns the gym.. (there is always one)...  Bill Gates- who actually is now a friend of ours.

The gym is supposed to be a place where you can feel comfortable working out, without being gawked at. Clean, comfortable, and a place where you can get on and do what you need to do. It is just a shame that sometimes it doesn't feel like that.

homesickness, family, and life long friends...

As I previously said, I arrived in Nebraska June of 2008. I was so happy to be back with my husband, after our year long battle with immigration. We were naive about that entire procedure, and thought that as he was Military, and I am English, that the process might not take as long as some others. How wrong we were.... But that is a whole other story! :)


My first proper summer here was really about adjusting:
A different climate- so very humid here.
Different foods- it is surprising just how used to local foods you become!
And the biggest adjustment for me... being further away from my family than I had ever been.


I travelled for a year in 2002, visiting Holland, Belgium, France, Portugal, and eventually Spain (where I was planning to buy a property and start my new life!)
But, throughout my travels, I was never far away from my family. I am fortunate to have a wonderful family, who I am very close with. For those of you who have never been over the pond, you can fly just about anywhere in Europe in a few hours, maybe 6 to Turkey is the longest flight? (not sure, I have never been that far?) So my family were always close if I needed them to be, even while I was travelling. And now, here I was, in a strange place, a different Continent, and the only person that I knew was my husband. I have always been fairly independant, but suddenly I had to rely on Hubby. I was more homesick than I can begin to describe.


I was nervous about meeting people because I am English. I thought that people wouldn't understand my accent, would have nothing in common with me because I am 'European', lots of irrational worries. I was very wrong... I have heard that a lot of people dislike Nebraska (I have my fair share of gripes, that's for sure), but I have met some of the friendliest, most down to earth, genuinely nice people here. The friends that I have made here, I know are lifelong friends. They are my family away from family. I do still get homesick from time to time, but would never have been able to get through some of the hard times that I have had over the past few years, if it wasn't for my friends - who I love like family. Each place that you live is ultimately what you make of it.  Unfortunately in the Military we have to do that every 4 years or so.


I hope that while I have lived here, I have made a small impact on someone's life? Lots of people here have made huge impacts on mine, and if I have done the same for just one person, then I can leave Nebraska happy!

How did I get here?

Is anybody going to read this, or am I just finding an outlet to vent- other than my best friend and my long suffering husband?

I have been living here in Nebraska for 3 years, and still I am not adjusted to life in the Midwest, the 'Great Plains'
I grew up in East London. Dirty, busy, crowded, limited 'green spaces'. We didn't have a back yard until I was 11. Before that my younger sister and I used to play along a concrete landing, 4 feet wide and about 50 ft long! I always dreamed of living in the countryside, surrounded by farms, lots of animals and wide open spaces.
Be careful what you wish for......

In January 2002, I left London for good. I travelled Europe for a year, and eventually settled in southern Spain, close to my sister, Grandma, Uncle and other family. Spain was always a second home to me. Grandma moved back there from London in 1987, and my sister and I would spend our summer break there every year. It seemed natural to stay there, in my second home.
I loved where I was living. The Mediterranean was my front yard, the Mountains the back yard. I had found paradise! My then husband and I eventually got divorced. So there I was, 30th birthday looming, single and living with my 2 dogs at my sister's house further along the coast. I was Bridget Jones!
After a year, I met an American guy. We got along great, exchanged phone numbers, and email addresses as we lived 2 1/2 hours away from each other. I didn't expect much from it if I am honest, but we kept in touch, dated kind of long distance, did the 'weekend' thing, and went our seperate ways during the work week. He was in the US Air Force, and was stationed in Spain, for about another 6 months, things got serious, we got serious, then he got orders back to the USA. Did I stay or should I go?
I decided to take a chance, life is too short to wonder 'what if', I have always firmly believed that.
After many problems with immigration, I arrived permanantly in June 2008. That is when my love/hate relationship with the Midwest began... and still, it carries on.