CoCo's Corner

This afternoon I went in for a mani and a pedi.  While in there, a little old man walked in and talked to one of the workers there.  Next thing I knew, he was walking in with a woman.  The woman was his wife and she seemed to be very frail and walked with a cane.  He walked her to a chair at the desk to get a manicure.  Just as she got to the chair, she realized she needed to use the restroom.  The gentleman gently and sweetly walked her to the restroom and waited for her, then walked her back to the chair when she was finished.  He then made himself comfortable on a chair in the waiting area while she got her manicure.  It was like one of the sweetest exhibitions of true and complete love I've ever seen. When you're growing up, you think of your parents as old.  Your parents never seem young to you.  I've suddenly realized that the memories I have of them, I am now older than they are in those memories.  Pictures I look at of t...

I FINALLY lost another six pounds.  It's been a slow journey.  The last time I got a five pound star was November 14.  Now I'm at 36 pounds down.  That has been a ten month journey.  I'm not losing fast,but I'm losing.  Slow, surely, slowly and sometimes even more slowly than that.  But, I'm losing. Today, Ted and I had to go sign some papers to refinance our house.  Taking seven years off our loan!!  WOOT. Anyway, I put a pair of jeans on and they were really, really big!!  So I told Ted, these jeans are going in the bag when I get home. So  - when I got home, I decided it was time to do some purging!! That's a big pile of clothes All bagged up!! I went through my closet to get rid of anything that was too large.  I don't intend on going back to my large size, so I decided it was time to get them out of my closet.  Anything that was too large was thrown out.  Including a beautiful jacket that I got three...

I'm starting this before I head to my Weight Watchers meeting in about a half hour.  So - it will start before I get the determination on how this week has been for me. It's been a struggle this month.  Slow going but I ended strong!! This month has been a struggle.  I gained the first week.  The second week, I lost all that I gained, plus another .6 pounds.  The next week, I was exactly the same.  So for the month of August - until this point - I've lost .6 pounds the entire month.  That is less than one pound!!! Turtle time.  Plateau time.  My body just didn't like what I was doing and was reacting by not doing much of anything.  I was frustrated to say the least.  I didn't know what to do to change what was going on. This last weekend, Ted and I went to visit his mother and his sisters in Joplin, Missouri.  We flew into Kansas City late Friday night.  We then drove the three hours it takes to get to Joplin on S...

OK - I know that is a pretty disturbing title.  But, oh my GOSH!!!!  I am bloated!!!!  Honestly, with as much hot air that has been leaving me, I don't know why I don't have a string attached to my feet and I'm floating along instead of walking.  Honestly, what the heck?!??!??! I don't know what is causing it - but I'm truly a fart machine.  Now, honestly, I know it's the diet.  I know it's what I'm eating.  But, I'm not really sure what the culprit is. My food intake is a lot of veggies and fruits.  Fruits have become my passion.  And I'm eating a lot of them.   And to make it worse, my favorite has been cherries.  I have been eating them like they are candy.  And since it's the last part of the cherry crop, I've been buying them a lot.  Like a bag a day or every other day.  I was doing this knowing I really wouldn't get any more until next summer. Now - I've never been a crazy cherry eater.  I liked the...

OK - I know, I know, I know.  I do this a lot.  But, for some reason, this time feels completely different. I have struggled with my weight for years.  It seems like when KayeLynn was three years old and diagnosed with leukemia, I lost all control of my own self and started to gain weight.  I was never good with diet, I never had to be as a child and a young woman.  I could eat an entire pizza and nothing phased me.  Well, growing up, having children, living life - things change.  Honestly, I had no idea how to change it.  I never had to watch what I ate - and I didn't.  Plain and simple.  I raised my kids on fast food, fattening food, "what's for dessert" and not a lot of activity. A couple years after George died, I decided I was going to get control of my life.  I joined Weight Watchers.  I had a lot of success with it.  With some ups and downs.  I lost around fifty pounds and I kept it off.  Kept it off f...

I just had the oddest and freakiest experience.  And because I vent and get things out through writing, I'm writing it down. I worked this morning.  When I was done, I headed home to eat some lunch and head to the dentist's office.  I'm working on an implant and I developed an infection around the implant, so I've had to go back and forth to my dentist to see if it was clearing up - or if it has to be taken out until the infection clears up.  The good news is that everything seems to be clearing up and that is good. That is not what this is about. My dentist is in Stansbury Park.  So - it's about a half hour drive from my house.  I headed there and got on U201 headed west bound.  When I got around the Kennecott area, there was just a strange heaviness to the air.  I remember just watching everything that was going on.  There were a bunch of train cars, that obviously hauled some type of natural gas or something.  There was an engin...

Today, after we finished eating our lunch, I told Ted I had something to say to him.  So he asked me what I wanted.  I said, "hold on, I have to be hugging you first". I pulled him into an embrace and held him close.  I whispered into his ear, "I was really worried about us spending so much time together, but now I'm so happy we do." You see, Ted started a new job about two and a half months ago.  He now works from home.  That means he is home ALL THE TIME.  I work every other week, so I am home ALOT.   Meaning, this was going to be a lot of together time.  Him just feet away, in his dungeonous home office, while I was just a few feet away, spending my time in the upper level of our home.  And the days I do work, I'm home at 11:30 in the morning and spend a few hours before going back to work.  So - here we are together again. I am not going to lie.  I thought it was going to be a very difficult transition.  I wasn't sure...

April - it's been an odd month.  Just new things happening and old things starting up again.  The weather has been one of those usual up and downs.  That time of year when it can be 75 degrees and lovely outside and twelve hours later the wind starts up.  The wind blows in the clouds and the storms start.  Mother Nature will flip a coin and decide if you are going to get snow or get rain - but, usually you end up with both.  Two days later, it will be 75 degrees again. You can literally go from wearing flip-flops and capris to long sleeves and snow boots in the span of twelve hours.  But, hey - wait another twelve hours and it will change again.  It just  means it is Spring in Utah. I was so in love with the Houston Space Cow.  He was in the lobby by the Delta check in counter. The month started out with me working in a totally different world.  I got the call that they needed a few extra agents in Houston because of the c...

I do not know what is wrong with me.  Hopefully, it's just because it's January and I absolutely hate January.  To me, January is the very worst month; it's cold and it's gray and there is just nothing good about it.  But, to say the least, I am ornery and mean and cranky and just plain hard to get along with. I feel it in my work hours, in my home hours, in my errand hours, in every hour. I went to the grocery store - and these are the people I called idiots, under my breath, in the hour I was gone: the girl at the McDonalds drive-through.  I was the only one there in line, the only other person there was still at the board ordering.  "did you get the two apple juices?" - no, "did you get the two sausage McMuffins?" - no.  Blank stare.  I ordered the Diet Coke.  "oh - OK".  the dude that kept inching further and further backwards as he backed up to park.  He kept getting closer and closer to my car.  He would put it in ...

I was thinking today how lucky I am to have Ted in my life.  Here are my top ten reasons why I am so danged lucky.  He's pretty awesome. When I have a virus in my computer, he stops everything to fix it and make it better. When I get dressed and ready to go, he'll say, "well hello gorgeous". He loves to touch, caress, hug and kiss me. On the days I work, I work double shifts.  I work early morning, come home to eat and take a nap, then work a night shift.  When I get home, my bed is turned down so I can climb in and go to sleep for about an 60-90 minutes.  Plus the remote is on the pillow, so I can turn the tv on before I fall asleep. He makes me breakfast every Saturday morning. He wishes me a "happy monthaversary" every twelfth day of the month - for the day we got married. Plus he adds up the number of months. He just likes hanging out with me.  Whether we are sitting on the couch, driving about town, yard sale-ing, or travelling.  He ju...

My mother is in the hospital.  I'm trying to maintain a semblance of normal.  She is completely whackadoodle - my  new word to describe what she is going through right now, completely out of her head in some aspects and completely cognizant in others.  She doesn't really know what is going on in her reality right now.  I go from laughing at the things she says to wanting to cry because I really don't know what is going on in her world.  Is it the end?  Is she close to the veil and that is why she is seeing and doing things that I don't understand?  Or is it that she is just out of her normal routine and it's thrown her 87-year-old brain into a tailspin?  I don't know. I'm totally exhausted.  My brain is fried right now.  I haven't bathed since Sunday, because I just can't find the time nor the energy.  I have spent hours and hours at the hospital.  I spent hours trying to maintain my own life.  I've not spent hours ...

I'm not getting any younger. I'm not getting any healthier - anway by my habits. I'm not getting any skinnier - again, by my habits. I'm just not getting. My 16-hour day the other day is still causing me effects.  Ankles are a bit tender.  I could hardly move at all yesteray.  But, this has nothing to do with vitamins. That whole routine about the definition of crazy, I am the definition of crazy.  Doing the same thing over and over and over and over again expecting a different result.  OK, that may be a bit of an overstatement - because on most things, I am a bit socially acceptable and sane.  I don't fart in public.  I don't talk to myself - very loudly - in public.  I don't throw medications in the air and call them confetti.  I don't scream obscenities without a reason. So, for the  most part, I can be considered sane. But, battling for healthy habits is where the line between sane and insane starts. I have started ...

I did this once before on a blog challenge.  Decided to do it again.  For starters, just to keep you in the know, I set up a swap at work so I could have a day off in the future for an important birthday party. Wake up to alarm at 4:30 - after going to bed at about midnight. Get out of bed Put makeup on Get dressed Did hair Brushed teeth Kissed Ted goodbye Read my text messages that were waiting for me Replied to one text Got in my car to drive to airport Talked to BFF on the phone Stopped at McDonalds for breakfast Continued driving to airport, parked my car, got on bus to ride to terminal Clocked in to work Emily's shift Saw Marsan and her daughter in the bathroom.  Hugged her and chatted a bit. Worked first flight Ate some Easter breakfast with the other people working in the concourse that I have only worked in a couple of times and don't know hardly any of the people.  Need to get to know Candace better - she is freaking hysterical!!! Worke...

Chaos:  noun - a situation where everything is confused and in a mess I am living in chaos right now. We are in the process of completely remodeling my living room.  I mean completely.  We have torn the fireplace out from the middle of one wall and are moving it to a corner.  That meant tearing walls out and then having to mud and patch where the holes and such were.  The tile that was in front of the old fireplace spot has been torn out.  The carpet in the one corner has been cut away.  There is a hole in my wall where the fireplace will vent to the outside.  There is dirt, dust, sheetrock gunk and general ick around everywhere.  Once the fireplace is done, painting will need to be done and the new flooring laid down.  Once that is done, then we can put in new furniture and decorate.  But, in the meantime, my living room looks like a hoarder's dream, little pathways between boxes and furniture.  Boxes of DVDs, knickknac...

I survived my first "busiest travel season" which in the rest of the world equates to the Christmas and New Years holiday time.  I'm not sure how I did it, because when it all boiled down to it, I ended up pushing myself to the very, very limit.  I worked out some trades and somehow had myself working all but one day since and including Christmas day.  I ended up with some painful ankles and shin splints - the explanation on that to follow.  But, the biggest news is, I survived it.   I agreed to work Christmas day for someone who was offering to work two shifts in exchange for that.  Well, that worked out nicely in my favor, so I jumped on it.  I had intended to find someone I felt deserved it off anyway and cover it for them.  The selfish side in me decided that the two for one offer couldn't be refused.  It worked out for the both of us, she got to be home on Christmas and I now have two days off.  I then worked my four shifts. ...

It's Christmas time.  I haven't been feeling it so much this year.  It's been like that for the last few years.  It's just kind of work.  I think it's more work than I want to put in. Decorating, shopping, buying, wrapping, more decorating, cards, more shopping, mailing, delivering, driving, cooking, more wrapping, baking, more decorating.   Just work.  Once it's all done, especially the decorating, I'm good.  I get up in the morning, I turn on my tree, it's on until I go to bed. Once the presents are bought, it's a good feeling - there is  nothing more I love than giving a gift.  I love giving a gift a Brazilian more times more than I like receiving a gift.   Once the presents are wrapped, I love the sight of them.  Once the stockings are hung, I'm very excited that they are there.  I think it's just the effort it takes to get to that point.  It's almost exhausting.  You throw in there your  normal life and ...

The trees are all orange and yellow.  The weather changing from hot to cool and crisp.  The season from summer to fall and then to winter.  The holidays are starting to get closer.  Things change - it's the world, it's life. This year, my life has changed immensely.  I await the birth of my eighth grandchild, a beautiful baby girl who will arrive in a couple of weeks.  I went from working forty exhausting hours a week at the airline gates to sixteen hours working in the lobby.  A drastic change for me, but an invited one. Semi-retirement; a concept I didn't think was possible, but after figuring things out - it's perfect for me; 16 to 24 hours a week means more time with family.  I'm very excited to finish up this month in the lobby and go back to the gates that I love. I'm getting older.  Ted is getting older.  But, that isn't stopping us.  We're bound and determined to spend our lives doing whatever we can to spend these yea...

The airport is an amazing place to be.  People watching there is extraordinary type of fun.  Thursdays, the "working girls" head to Vegas.  Families galore heading to John Wayne Airport or Orlando Airport.  Businessmen, hoping to get upgraded to first class, heading to their next appointment, meeting or wherever they go - and they go so often, they get those upgrades quite a bit. I think the thing that excites me the most is the awe that people have when they get here and see the mountains.  And they are probably just seeing that kind of beauty for the very first time.  It's something that we residents take for granted for the most part.  It's something we see every day.  But, when you see the excitement that comes from people arriving here - they stand their entire families in front of the windows so they can take a picture with the mountains as the background, you realize that we get to see this every day.  They stand and take photo after...

Tomorrow marks two months from my official retirement from my old life.  I've now been working at my new job for about six weeks.  Here are some things I've found in that time: I love watching people.  I always knew that, but, the airport is the most amazing place to watch people, to see how people act, etc.   I have no idea how to recognize celebrities.  I don't know how many times I've had someone say, "do you know who that was?" and not realize who they are.  The only one I actually recognized I didn't recognize their face, I recognized their name as they were boarding. I was spoiled for 32 years.   I had a job that was sitting down - hence my Chelsea dubbed, "big, big butt" was born.  I am now on my feet and running and walking and standing and sweating.  It's awesome!!  But, I'm pretty much exhausted all of the time. Now I'm working at a place where you eat lunch and you are all together.  So seeing how differently peopl...

Don't keep going if you might get grossed out by my ugly toe. What it looked like when it happened.  Bloody ugly toe. Back in December, I was reaching in my pantry and reached behind a jar of peanut butter.  It was about four and a half feet up.  I knocked it over and it toppled down and landed on the big toe on my right foot.  I said some pretty colorful words and the longer I stood there, the more it started to just hurt - and it hurt bad. I started to just sob.  Ted and KayeLynn just kept trying to figure out how to deal with me. Once the tears stopped, I just started to shake and shake.  Ted told me I was in a form of shock, because the pain had been so intense.  I thought the toe was broken, but it wasn't.  It bled a little bit - over the next couple of days.  The day I did this was the day I had just had a pedicure - so I just left the polish on and left the toe alone. One month later Ugly blister! When I went four weeks l...