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Happliy rang in the my new age with a treat visit and dinner in London with my favourite Canadians Brother Chris Craig and Pilot Dave. (see Air Canada offical hat below)

Even got to have a drink with the whole flight deck. Me and several pilot men. I felt petite and ladylike. And giggly.

If you are even in Ontario and want a BEAUTIFUL B&B visit with fancy-ass Chris Craig cooked breakfasts, go see them and pet their giant cat.
www.tynavon.ca

On board I'm the Captain, so climb aboard ... 

things I am trying to do

learn to drive on the left side of the road

• without hitting the curb
• or swearing like a mobster
• or injuring my 20-year driving experienced ego
• or panicking at a 2-laned roundabout

ride my bike in the cold

• without bitching
• and getting muddy trousers

work out like a person who loves working out

• while trying not to obsess about my tick-tick in my head until white dress time
• without getting mad about my lack of instant and immediate and show-stopping results (what, that spinning class didn't drop a dress size? the OUTRAGE)

plan 2 weddings

• without becoming a person who cares very very much about placecards
• without making hundreds of tiny lists and then taking a nap
• without obsessing about everyone matching
• while hoping that things will just work out more or less

but I AM on the A List

At least the cool jobs list. Thanks to Andy and Tom for boosting my day and validating that coaches are happening, helpful and darned hip. Sorry for all that alliteration.

per By Marty Nemko
U.S. News & World Report

Excellent Careers for 2006

Personal coach.

I predict that demand for the services of psychologists and other psychotherapists will fade (see the entry for psychologist, below). There will always be a need, however, for professionals willing to help clients address their practical problems. This doesn't need to entail thorough exploration of family history or traumatic childhood events but someone to help the client set goals, develop an action plan to achieve them, keep on task, and be supportive when the client feels scared or deflated. Some psychotherapists, who practice cognitive or rational-emotive therapy, do those things, but personal coaches, also known as career and life coaches, can be adequately trained in far less time.

Here is the whole article to see if your job is cool too...

hoodlums

Well happy new year...

my bike was just stolen!

New blue sporty bike -- innocently just put outside our gate while I went through the house to grab my coat and key -- maybe 3 minutes -- and POOF. Vanished.

Doesn't help that schools let out at this time and we have a well worn path from all the 10-16 year old yobbettes past our house.

Where am I, DC? Everyone I know has has a bike or 3 pinched there. Now both Mark & qualify as crime victims.

And poor greenie has a flat. Whoa is me. I am without mobility. And after all my fun behind the wheel in heated Saab seats the last 2 months.

Good thing we are going to start ME driving this weekend as part of our new year improvements. Still I am annoyed and sputtering.

Bye Bye Bluey, we hardly knew yee.

celeb sighting

Ritz Carlton Georgetown, breakfast (that darned nice Helena's treat)
looking handsome
Bill Pullman
If you don't remember who he is

2005 greatest hits

• Fit camp member of the month
• Getting engaged
• My Bell Époque 1910 ring
• Dark hair
• CPCC
• Part time receptionist
• Laundry on the line
• Library books
• Kaiser Chiefs
• Green bike
• Blue bike
• Family visits
• School tour in England
• Bournemouth
• Aqua class
• Herbed black olives
• Helena Sweet
• Wedding plan – take 3
• DC months
• US dollars
• J Jill jeans
• Pearls
• Full heart

Happy New Year to all...

Mark is very tall 

I have 100 chins, but this was too cute to pass up with us in front of the National Xmas tree. 

Babs with bubbly 

merry little christmas eve at barbara's house 

double date at the fantastic Viridian 

holiday G-town Clyde's lunch 

grown up night out 

Fool's brunch with Kirby, Andy, MJaffe & David 

one too many spinokopetas 

The Bate... always the bride, never the bridesmaid. 

I had a dream

I was about to walk down the aisle to get married and at the last minute I decided to put my contacts in. I left everyone waiting while I searched for contact solution. For some reason it hadn't occurred to me to put them in before and I was panicked, "Why am I wearing my glasses???"

Is this premonition of things to come? Should I be glad that I wasn't about to walk down the aisle naked?

sisters in dc! 

See Gale - our annual Chancery lunch is now offically captured... 

Ahhhh the life of a retiree ...
Watching for the UPS man, the afternoon routine. 

Mother Mary, die hard running in 12 degree December 

brown wisconsin girls reunited 

Robi, Maxie & Christine visiting their old/ne/ soon to be home in DC 

Babs and Frank for our 2nd triad beach thanksgiving. 3 people, 5 pies. 

Thanksgiving. Summed up. 

my new dark hair 

mr and mrs

tom and miri on their wedding day 

slurp

Mary and her sugar cube, cotton ball 0f love, piglet of a dog, Miss Vera.

things I am noting since I've been back

• baseball caps. on all walks of humanity
• friendly customer service
• diversity
• suits
• glad handing
• DRIVING (me that is)
• Trader Joes was more exciting in my mind than in reality
• Target was all that and a slice of cheese
• freakishly and somewhat annoyingly warm weather
• money goes FAST
• I miss my bed
• and my boy
• comfort of like minds
• ease of dear friends
• large and fast an efficient appliances -- dishwashers, washing machines and dryers
• bounty of CVS
• still don't want to hear the news
• Cleveland Park has ghosts of Quebec House
• I've seen 2 old bosses and hid
• metro is expensive
• a cab to the hill is oddly cheapish
• planning a wedding is not as fun as one would imagine
• I have more unrequited consumer needs here
• I feel oddly at home but in a time warp

many things

1) SLIM!
Yes, I passed the old certification exam. I am a CPCC... Certified Professional Co Active Coach. Which means I am trained, real and can put it on my business cards. Oops. I already had. (Hopeful thinking?) And jack up those client fees!!! (Nah- not quite yet!)

2) I am in the US!
Airplane travel freaks me out. How can I already be here? I was just there! There doing final laundry and packing and emptying the dishwasher and watchingthe last Six Feet Under (it just finished in the UK.) I was JUST riding in the car to Heathrow with Marko at 7:30 in the a.m., chattering lightly and trying not to be sad that I am not going to see him for 6.5 weeks. (It didn't work, I am sad. ) How can I be here in my new room Helena made for me with chock full of fresh wedding magazines and the latest gossip ones? With 2 drawers just for me and a borrowed bed to boot? With her fridge full of yummy things I love and her adorable 1 year old Oliver in the next room sleeping like a lamb with a noise machine making ocean sounds. Here where I ate a bean burrito for dinner and nearly cried with joy?

My journey was uneventful, but long indeed. I am not a good flier for 7.5 hours, but I was sandwiched in-between 2 delightful very American passengers and we had some fun. Even if I was in the dreaded middle seat. The guy was from Bethesda and talked LOUD, but was funny. Even if I was cringing when he was saying (loudly) how CRAZY the London traffic is and how did people manage not to be hit by cars??? Um, hello, English people are ON this plane with us.

3) I am here til January.
And I plan on taking it slow by immediately going to Target this morning and getting my sweaty fix. Serious junkie jonsing for some new sports bras and the smell of $15 outfits and hair treats. I have promised Mark "Not to go crazy spending money", so I must be controlled. MUST be CONTROLLED in Target.

4) I am planning a wedding.
In DC.
And London.
Yeah.
We have wrestled and wrangled about our wedding locale and have come to the big real and fat conclusion that we need to have one here and one there. So whilst I am here, I shall scout the US locations, secure venue and go through items 1-190 on theknot.com's checklist on How to Drive Yourself Loony in Planning Your Wedding When You Thought You Were A Normal Person. Followed by reading the article. "What, You Haven't THOUGHT about that yet". I may even be brave and try on some of them white things gals wear on that day.

Maybe I better wait until the queso swelling goes down.

nothing slim or clunky

No news is no news on the exam front. Neither slim evidence of my competence nor video of my foibles. Stay tuned. I am rather enjoying this neither here nor there place...

Shiny, happy parents on final evening in Cambridge, Backstreet Bisto. Large glasses of wine.  

October sunrise out our office window. Red skies in morning ...