*Happy* Thanksgiving

Here's wishing everyone a great day filled with family, friends, and enough turkey drugs to bring down a rhino. It'll just be me and my parents for the feast.. nice and quiet. As long as there's sweet potatoes with marshmallows, I'll be happy. I always apologize early for the after-effects of the baked beans.. with crossed fingers. (Beano is forbidden here) Mom was a head cook for years, so the woman can make some mean beans. And everything else, for that matter. I'm sure to wake up to the smell of baking turkey.. hell, she'll probly put it in the oven before I get to bed. I can almost smell it now...

Well, no more going to 5 different places for the holidays, anymore. Not that I ever minded. Oh, well... *sighs*

Life Is Funny

Maybe 'cruel' is the word I'm looking for. My car hauling and traveling adventures are over. We are no longer together. I have no ill feelings towards him, and still love him, matter of fact. A part of me always will. The reason, is that we are simply too drastically different. Regardless of all the plans a couple have, if both people aren't happy, it just isn't going to work. We still care about each other, and he really is being great about everything. We have joint custody of Lucky.. he'll let me have him whenever I want. Lucky'll be going back on the road - that was never even an issue. He needs Lucky. And I'll miss them both.

Pennsylvania Bound

Looks like we're heading home for Thanksgiving a wee bit early! In a way I'm pissed, because we need the money. Then again, Mike just told me for the last 2 short trips we took, we made... *drumroll please*... $192!! WOO HOO!! BOOK THE FREAKIN' CRUISE!!! For the first week, we actually owed *them* over $300. So after they took that money out of the next trip, that's what was left over. Think truck drivers are rich?? Think again..

But now I'll be able to catch up on my clay xmas orders. I even told Mike maybe we better just work through Thanksgiving. But he said no., we'll be alright. We'll see!! *sighs*

Bad Day

It was too good to be true... I was feeling better, not crying throughout the day. We pulled into the port here in Los Angeles, where there were 3 trucks already sitting. Beside us on our left, sat Charlie's truck. I didn't realize it at first, as our own truck was blocking the view of the truck number. I always look. When I walked around to the drivers side from the back of our truck, Mike says to me "We outta see if that guy wants $20 for his step." (Charlie had our shop weld a step onto the top cover of his APU unit, which is under the passenger side door. I always told Charlie I wanted it.) I gave Mike a puzzled look. "You didn't see what truck it was, did you? It's Charlie's truck.." A wave of sickness came over me and settled in my stomache. I turned and looked. I almost hate myself for the gory images I made my mind envision. The things that happened just feet away from where I was standing. Each time I walked by the cab of his truck, I looked at the bunk. Knowing that his life ended.. right.. THERE... Ok, I have to stop now.

New Stuff

Most who read this, also knows about my Flickr page. But just in case, here's the link to it. http://www.flickr.com/photos/clayrplayr/ I just uploaded the pics of the snowmen & snowgirls I made while home. I'll try to add a sample here, but internet is painfully slow here in Oklahoma. Along with the yellow gals here, I also made some in blue and green. Pink is next. (Why such a color was ever invented, I'll never know.)

And here's a sneak peek of special-order mugs I made for my friend Chris. The letters need touched up, then they need completely glazed, but you get the jist. More pics of the process is also on my Flickr page. After I dotted the lizards back with pearly blue paint, it just totally *popped*! The yellow ones got pearl purple dots. I'm most worried about the leaves on the handle breaking during shipping. I really should have made them thicker. Guess I still can. But I'm afraid of what the paint will do in the heat. The more I think about it, the more I want to re-do the handles. I never actually put 'Puerto Rico' anywhere on the mugs. Maybe I can tie that in there somewhere on the handle. Gotta think on it...

Back To Work

It was bound to happen sometime. This throws off our schedule for being home for Thanksgiving, but we'll figure something out. As long as we are home for xmas, that's way more important. We rushed out here to New Jersey, and our load isn't even ready yet. So here we sit in the VPC parking lot, locked in. No facilities, no nothing. We have to wait til morning for someone to turn in a vehicle going to Los Angeles. That could take all day, and we still have to load. At least I inspected everything before it got dark. We can't make California by Monday morning anyways. Well, we *could*.. but we're not. On our way back across I-80, we are gonna stop home and grab Mike's coat and the air cleaner we bought for the truck. SOMEBODY, but I wont mention names.. *a'hem* left them on the porch. Not I. Oh, well - this will give me a chance to grab the book I forgot. Since I'm not bringing crafts along this trip, I was gonna bring a book or 2 I got from my friend Connie. *waves* I got Sharon Osborn's biography, and the one by Marsha Brady. McCormick? Sorry, her first name excapes me.

I'd like to thank everyone who sent me emails with thier condolences. It's very much appreciated. I had a dream a few nights after we found out. Not sure what it meant. I'll have to talk to NJ and Debbie about that. Nothing earth-shattering, but it makes sense.

Besides the obvious, it's been the most relaxing time home I've ever spent. I did a few xmas orders, and I'll try to upload them on my Flickr site this week. Worked with my dad on his model train board he is putting together, too. Yesterday during the race, - Poor Ryan!!! :( - I was spraying that self-puffing foam stuff on a mountain he made. I helped a wee bit earlier in the week, but he did most of it. Today he painted it. When we get home again, I will help him add some little stones to it in various places. Wish I would have taken a pic yesterday - I love taking before and after pics. But what I do have pics of, is what I've been working on, clay-wise. Six of my nieces 8 snowmen are done, and I am almost done with some mugs/cups a friend wanted me to make. They turned out awesome, if I may say so myself. I'll show them to her first and see what she thinks. They aren't done yet.. I wanna see if she wants me to add anything before I put the glaze on it.

Well, that's all the catch-up I have for now. Talk to you guys later..