12 Things to Remember By Sonia Ricotti

1. Life is short. If you are stressed, worry, eat unhealthy, or focus on the negative "stuff" - your life will end up being even shorter.

2. Your troubles of today are only temporary. Look for the silver lining. If you look hard enough, you will find the silver lining and it will make all the difference in how you perceive your situation and how you feel.

3. When things are good in your life, they will seldom become great. We rarely make changes when things are good. Only when we hit rock-bottom, are we forced to make changes -and that will lead you to greatness. So, if you have hit rock-bottom, hold on to your socks and start celebrating because...your greatest life is just around the corner!

4. Stop staring at the closed door (the negative stuff). Search for all the open doors (opportunities) all around you. There are many.

5. You are perfect. Regardless of what you have been told, what people think, or how people treat you - you are perfect exactly the way you are.

6. The only opinion that counts is your own opinion of yourself.

7. You already have all the answers - they are just lost in the mental fog. Clear your mind of all clutter and negative chatter. Meditate, exercise, journal, and take time to yourself to reflect.

8. Don't follow the crowd. It will only take you places where others want to go.

9. Today is tomorrow, so stop procrastinating. Get out there and start living your greatest life.

10. Be different, be bold, be loving, and always follow your heart.

11. Be conscious of what you are feeding your mind.

12. When the going gets tough - give! No matter how bad things are, there is always someone, somewhere, in a worse situation. Give your time, money, or even just a compliment. Make a difference.

Tickle Those Ivories?

For about the last 6 months or so, I have had a nagging feeling that I need to start playing the piano again. I started in 4th or 5th grade and played for almost 10 years. I took lessons and had a great teacher (even though I had to force myself to practice - sometimes it was such a chore). However, by the time I left for college, I was SO done with it.

When my parents sold the house in Minneapolis and retired up at the lake, they sold the piano and that chapter of my life was over. Since then, I really haven't missed it, even though I have fond memories of the recitals and the fun songs I learned (Little Mermaid songs, John Lennon, pop songs, etc.). One of my favorite memories of playing is when I went with a group of my teacher's students and we played on a grand piano in the middle of Ridgedale Mall in Minnetonka! The other favorite memory I have is doing a duet with my teacher at our annual recital. It was a really fast, hard song and we aced it!

Anyway, for some reason, over the years, I saved all of my music - ALL of it. So the million times I have moved, that music came with me each time. I guess there was a reason I didn't get rid of it. I want to pick up this hobby again! I have a friend who is in a band, and he recommended a few different brands of keyboards that would be good and I plan to buy a used on on craigslist or ebay this summer. It will be a fun activity to do inside since it is the icky hot season here in Texas.

I can't wait!

Message In A Bottle

I saw this article on the Internet recently and was fascinated by it. I am a history buff, especially about WWII - it's amazing what and who can survive such horrific events/times. Maybe this will convince the crazys that think the Holocaust never happened!

Hidden Auschwitz message hailed as rare find

OSWIECIM, Poland – A note hidden in a bottle by Auschwitz prisoners 65 years ago in a desperate attempt to preserve a small piece of themselves was added Wednesday to the archives of the Polish state-run museum dedicated to the memory of the former Nazi death camp's victims.
Museum Director Piotr Cywinski hailed the document — a list of the names of seven camp inmates that was discovered last month — as a rare discovery and a cause for celebration, given that at least three of the prisoners are still living today.


"This is a very clear sign of hope," Cywinski said. "These young people put the message in a bottle to leave a sign. But not only the bottle survived — some of them also survived. This is very moving."
The note, written in pencil on a scrap from a cement bag, was discovered by a construction crew renovating a cellar that was used by Nazis during World War II as a bunker and place to store food. The building is now on the grounds of a vocational school in Oswiecim, a town the Nazis called Auschwitz, whose director handed the note over to Cywinski in a ceremony.


One of the survivors, Waclaw Sobczak, recalled that he and his fellow inmates never expected to survive the camp and wanted to leave behind a trace of their lives.


"We did it so a sign of us would remain after we died," said Sobczak, a diminutive 85 year old with thick white hair. "It was very risky and we had to be very careful putting it in the wall. We wanted at least our names and numbers to be left behind."


Dated Sept. 20, 1944, the note bears the names, camp numbers and hometowns of the seven prisoners — six Roman Catholics from Poland and one Jewish inmate from France. It says that all were between the ages of 18 and 20 and assigned to build an anti-aircraft bunker for camp commanders.


"We agreed that we may not survive and that we will make this message in the bottle, and that we will put down our names and camp numbers and we will leave it in the bunker wall," Sobczak recalled in a brief speech at the handover ceremony.


He said he was "happy and satisfied" to hear the bottle was found, even though it brought back sad memories of the suffering that he endured and witnessed during 18 months as an Auschwitz inmate. He said he either placed it in the wall himself or covered it in cement, but can't remember exactly anymore.


The other two known survivors are Albert Veissid, a French Jew, and Kazimierz Czekalski, a Pole from the city of Lodz.
The others on the list are Bronislaw Jankowiak and Stanislaw Dubla, who both died after the war, while nothing is known of the fate of two more, Waldemar Bialobrzeski and Jan Jazik.


At least 1.1 million people, mostly Jews — but also non-Jewish Poles, Gypsies and others — died in Auschwitz-Birkenau's gas chambers, or from starvation, disease and forced labor, between 1940 and its 1945 liberation by Soviet troops.


Cywinski said most surviving documents from Auschwitz were produced by the Nazis.

"We don't get many documents written by inmates. It's rare," he said.


He also appealed to the wider public to hunt through their attics and basements to see if more such documents still exist.

GREEN Cleaning

A weird thing has happened the last few times I have cleaned my shower/bathroom with Clorox Clean Up (with bleach).....my eyes just start burning and turn very red. This also started when I decided in order to be efficient, that I should clean the shower when I was in there taking a shower - no ruining clothes with the bleach cleaner, the shower is getting wet anyway, etc. My friend Erin and I thought that maybe the problem was the heat/steam mixed with the bleach that was irritating my eyes so much, as opposed to the many times before that I have used this cleaner and hadn't had a problem.

At any rate, when I was at Lowe's a couple weeks ago (buying paint, of course), I saw an endcap that was displaying some cleaners called Greenworks (coincidentally also made by Clorox).

For whatever reason, I stopped and looked at those cleaners (reminding myself that I have been meaning to find a milder bathroom cleaner to see if that would be easier on my eyes). Well, the price was reasonable and the bottles said that the cleaner is all-natural and no harsh chemicals are in them - GREAT! So I bought the bathroom cleaner and just tried it out over the weekend.

I used the same process of cleaning as I did with the bleach cleaner and NO EYE PROBLEMS AT ALL! And this new cleaner smells great - CLEAN, not overpowering like bleach can be at times.

I would highly recommend this product for cleaning. I felt like it did just as good of a job on my bathroom as the harsh bleach cleaner did and it smells great and isn't so hard on your eyes/sinuses.

Here's some information from Clorox/Greenworks' website:

GREEN WORKS FACT SHEET

Green Works™ OverviewClorox is leveraging its world-class expertise in the household cleaning category to develop a new platform of natural cleaning products called Green Works. These products are made with natural, plant-based ingredients and clean as well as conventional cleaners on most soils. Green Works products are a practical way for consumers to live a greener lifestyle without compromising performance.

All Green Works natural cleaners are made using plant-based ingredients derived from coconuts, as well as essential oils. The products are formulated using biodegradable ingredients, are packaged in bottles that can be recycled and not tested on animals.

In lab and in-home blind consumer testing, Green Works products performed as well or better than the leading conventional cleaners in its category.

Green Works™ Natural Cleaning Wipes, Green Works Natural Dishwashing Liquid, Natural All-Purpose Cleaner, Natural Glass & Surface Cleaner, Natural Glass Cleaner, Natural Toilet Bowl Cleaner and Natural Dilutable Cleaner products have been recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for using environmentally preferable chemistry, and carry the EPA’s “Design for Environment” certification logo.

Green Works™ Products: The Green Works product line includes cleaning products for use in the home, including the kitchen and bathroom that range in price from $2.99 to $3.59:

Rangers Game - Part Deux

Last week, my boss asked me if I wanted to go to a Rangers day game with him and one of our payment processing vendors. OF COURSE I did! We had lunch in Arlington near the ballpark and then headed over to the game. The seats were amazing - the 5th row up from the Rangers dugout along the 1st base line!

I got some great pictures since we were so close.....and I also got a major sunburn on my arms!

What a fabulous way to spend a Thursday afternoon!

Is it just me or do other people like when some players choose to wear their socks in the old-school style?

I love this action shot of a pitch!

Guacamole Saturday

Last Saturday, I tackled the project of painting my master bathroom - the color: Guacamole! Now, I PROMISE that the color is not as obnoxious as these pictures portray. The lighting in this bathroom is weird because there are a bunch of very bright lights and no windows with natural light, so it looks more like lime green in the pictures. I can assure you that it doesn't look like that in reality! But anyway, the colors in there are now 'guacamole' and a deep purple for towels and rugs. I love it!

Strangely, I don't have any "BEFORE" pics, so the "AFTER" pics will have to do!

Bubble Popped

About a week ago, a huge storm came through Dallas/Fort Worth and tore down the Dallas Cowboys practice facility (a dome-like structure) in Irving. It was not that far from where I work (also in Irving), but luckily I was at home in Arlington since it was over the weekend. Why they were holding a rookie mini-camp in there when this huge storm was rolling through is beyond me, but they were. There were 12 people injured, including one talent scout that was paralyzed from the waist down from his injuries.

Here's a full article:

12 hurt as roof collapses at Dallas Cowboys practice facility

IRVING — A frazzled Dallas Cowboys head coach Wade Phillips sat in a chair putting on a pair of dry socks as he tried to explain what he saw.

"I was out on the field. I ran for the door and didn’t make it to the door, and the door fell," he said. "I saw the guys go out the door, and the whole door fell."

Twelve people, including special teams coach Joe DeCamillis, were injured when the Cowboys indoor practice facility collapsed during an intense storm at Saturday’s rookie minicamp. Ten were transported to hospitals; the other two were walk-ins.

DeCamillis suffered broken bones in his lower back.

Dan Reeves, DeCamillis’ father-in-law and a longtime NFL coach, said DeCamillis is going to be OK, but not before having surgery to repair a couple of broken vertebrae. DeCamillis was taken on a stretcher to Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas.

"As far as we know, he has to have some surgery," Reeves said when reached at his Atlanta home Saturday night. "They say he is lucky he is not paralyzed."

Assistant scout Rich Behm was also taken to Parkland with a spinal cord injury.

Seven of the injured were treated at Las Colinas Medical Center in Irving and were expected to be released late last night. Three, including DeCamillis and Behm, were treated at Parkland.

The other two were treated at hospitals in the Baylor Medical system.

One of the injured had been impaled on an object, Irving Mayor Herbert Gears said.

Microburst, not tornado

The storm blew through the area around 3:30 p.m. with wind clocked as high as 64 mph. These winds might have contributed to the roof collapse, according to the National Weather Service. The weather service had not received any reports of tornadic activity, according to meteorologist Greg Patrick.

"This was a unique weather situation," Gears said. "Many teams use these types of structures for practice facilities. It’s something that we will be looking at to make sure that these types of structures aren’t inherently dangerous."

According to AccuWeather.com meteorologists, this damage is the result of a microburst, or winds that suddenly descend from thunderstorms at over 60 mph.

The winds were so intense that a portable toilet outside the structure blew about five feet, effectively blocking one of the exit doors.

What began ominously when the lights above the field started swaying turned into a deep fright when the building’s steel frame began to crumple and eventually crashed down onto the field.

The approximately 70 people inside the structure — including players, coaches, scouts, trainers and journalists — immediately tried to escape as the walls crashed down on them.

Secondary coach Brett Maxie and scout Chris Hall were also injured. According to Phillips, two players had scrapes and bruises, but nothing major.

Some people, such as team scout Henry Sroka, were trapped under a doorframe.

Emergency crews were immediately called to help people trapped underneath the steel frame and the heavy, white canvas-like covers that formed the roof. Players and coaches also helped out.

The tall, tent-like facility was built in 2003. It covers 88,000 square feet and a regulation synthetic-grass field. The peak of the roof is 80 feet.

Cowboys owner Jerry Jones was attending the Kentucky Derby when the accident happened.

"It could have been a lot worse," Cowboys quarterbacks coach Wade Wilson said, about an hour afterward.

The Cowboys canceled today’s final rookie minicamp practice. They will have a team meeting instead.

Staff writers Mitch Mitchell and Clarence E. Hill Jr. contributed to this report.
Mac Engel, 817-390-7760

Back In Black

This past Wednesday and Thursday, I had some work done in my kitchen - a total makeover! The makeover included new black granite tile countertops, a new double sink, a cool new faucet, and a brand new black dishwasher! Whew!

I was worried that all of it wouldn't happen in the right order, with the right parts, and the right experts.......and I was especially worried that I would have to bust out floor tile to get my new dishwasher in its space. The legs of the old dishwasher had to be hacksawed off in order to get it out, but I knew that the new dishwasher was going to have legs on it, so I was pretty worried....but Kevin from Lowe's (well, a contracted plumber that Lowe's hired) worked his magic and got it in there!

To do all of the work, it took me hiring 3 different people (the tile guy, the Lowe's contractor to deliver/install the dishwasher, and another plumber to hook up my new faucet and reconnect the garbage disposal in my new sink. It happened over 2 days and I absolutely love the end result!

If any of you are thinking of re-doing your countertops, but don't want to spend a ton on granite slab, this is a very affordable option - it cost me $1,300 for the materials, labor, plumber's labor & sink (I bought the faucet and dishwasher on my own separately).

OK, here are the "BEFORE" pictures:

Here is a picture of 'the process' - in the middle of the job:

And here are the "AFTER" pics!!

I finally have a dishwasher again - it's been about 2 months with a broken one. I keep starting to wash dishes by hand and catching myself - remembering that I have a working dishwasher now and I can just throw them in there!

The color of the granite is "black galaxy" - black with specks of silver/gold. I love it!

I love my new faucet and deeper sink....when I got the faucet home from Lowe's, I started to worry that the cabinet doors wouldn't 'clear' it - it's so tall! But they do.....by like an inch!

I am super happy with my new kitchen! Now I'm DONE with home projects for a while - except for a little bit more painting......

And after the two days of excitement and contractors.......this is where I found my Maggie....under Grandma Larsen's cedar chest in my office upstairs. She was so curious and wanted to be present for the whole kitchen transformation, but at the end, she was exhausted. All that commotion disrupted her beauty sleep!