tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-177769202024-03-11T21:51:32.486-07:00Jenn's DoingsMy journey through life.Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.comBlogger1588125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-40747390743864989212024-03-03T09:01:00.000-08:002024-03-03T09:01:18.763-08:00March MadnessI am not a basketball fan. Not even close. But, I am doing a March Madness of sorts. Friend France mentioned that she was doing this thing she was calling "March Madness". Her goal is to walk/exercise at least 30 minutes a day for 30 days. That sounds like a solid goal. It sounds like a lot, but why not give it a shot. So I told France I was all in. I'm a believer that the UniverseJenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-75850750841212747302024-02-16T20:05:00.000-08:002024-02-16T20:05:01.904-08:00ScrapbookPaLoozaMotivation is something that is required to do certain things. Getting to the gym, for example, requires motivation. Hell, getting dressed to go to the gym takes motivation. I lack that motivation. Where I don't lack motivation is scrapbooking. It's my creative outlet. I use it to decompress from the work week - and most recently (December) the workday. See what happened was, I realizedJenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-19432840405977900622024-02-13T19:37:00.000-08:002024-02-16T19:36:51.873-08:00What were your parents like?Welcome to another installment of "My Life Story". The card today asks what I assume would be an easy question for most, but may be a bit complicated for me. The question "What were your parents like?"You see I've had two sets of parents with Mom as the common denominator. Let's start with the early years. Mom and my original father, Don, were married young. Mom was just 17 when they Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-85443201639286700432024-01-18T17:47:00.000-08:002024-01-18T17:47:33.969-08:00Where were you born? Is that where you were raised? Welcome to the next installment of me documenting my life. I was amusing myself earlier this week while sketching out this topic by reminding myself that the purpose of documenting your life is often to leave some part of you behind for your kids. Since I have no kids, then the rest of you get to enjoy these little trips. The question on today's card is "Where were you born? Is that where Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-7976823052240363762024-01-07T20:09:00.000-08:002024-01-07T20:10:13.248-08:002024 - Week 1 Done!Phew. I wasn't sure I was going to make it. The first week of 2024 was a killer of a week. Having a shorter week sounds like a good idea at the time, but it ends up being that you still have 40 hours of work to do in only 32 hours. I managed, but just barely. In 2017 - 2018 I had the shittiest time at work. I had a small team and WAY too much work for a single team. Myself and another Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-24231818257959953622023-12-30T08:15:00.000-08:002023-12-30T08:16:08.635-08:0055I'm 55!I'm 55!I'M 55!I'm gonna keep saying it until I believe it. I'm 55!How? How did I get to be 55? (That's a rhetorical question. I know how).Birthday's rarely bother me. It's a number, not a mind set. And up to 55 I've been doing ok with that thought. But 55 is a number to me. A big number. When I was younger, 55 was when people retired. It's when they started getting ready to spendJenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-32931753118669493202023-12-29T12:35:00.000-08:002023-12-29T12:35:19.132-08:00Top 10 Favorite Books of 2023Here we are at the end of 2023! It's been quite a year of reading for me. I've read 45 books (changed my goal from 50 to 45). Only one I really struggled to get through and think I skipped most of it ( West With the Night by Beryl Markham).Of the other 44 there were really obvious standouts. All these books I loved and some I REALLY loved. If a story stays with me, I know it was Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-67331511916410640602023-12-15T20:24:00.000-08:002023-12-16T13:53:03.056-08:00How'd You Get Your Name?Well, here we are, mid-December. Christmas is just 10 days away. How'd that happen? I've been keeping myself busy doing December Daily scrapping. Basically 31 photos with themes you come up with. Then you scrap those pages and tell the story. I've got 6 more pages left to do for December. I've been spending a lot of time thinking about my life and the stories I want to leave behind. I Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-90254177877532625042023-11-23T19:16:00.000-08:002023-11-23T19:16:24.452-08:00Happy Thanksgiving!That's a wrap. Another Thanksgiving is over and done. Phew. I always forget how much work it is. I tell myself it's not that much and yet I'm always exhausted when it's done. As is tradition, the festivities started with clam dip. It's tradition. Mine never tastes as good as Mom's did, but I still make it every year. Next the bird goes in. I cook mine in a bag every year and I'm so gladJenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-59067719922518622782023-11-19T13:49:00.000-08:002023-11-19T13:49:14.010-08:00Missing StoriesNot long ago I stumbled onto a hard drive that belonged to mom. On it I found folders and folders of photos. Amongst those folders were so many of my baby pictures I've never seen. Being the second child, I have long since come to grips with having fewer baby photos than my older sister. I get it. The first on is exciting. The second is - well - the second. And, to be fair, we didn't take Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-19553540193550581962023-10-31T18:39:00.002-07:002023-10-31T18:39:36.353-07:00Happy Halloween!Yes, it's here Halloween. I have the bowl of candy out on the porch with a note that says, "Help yourself." I don't care if someone takes the entire bowl of candy or just one piece. I just don't want them to ring the doorbell - drives the cats crazy. As Halloween got closer I started looking through photos of past costumes. Here's what I know for a fact, we hardly took Halloween photos. And Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-61088976985577206122023-09-30T12:47:00.050-07:002023-10-07T11:02:45.385-07:00Day 10 - Algarve - Azeitao - LisbonToday we leave the Algarve and head back to Lisbon. I'm ready to be home. I think I've hit the end of my social capabilities. I'm tired. I'm sick and I'm ready to be home in my own bed. Don't get me wrong though. I have enjoyed Portugal and this trip thoroughly. There just comes a time when I'm ready to be done with all the traveling. On our way to Lisbon today we stopped at a tile facility.Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-33061823576224818692023-09-29T12:46:00.075-07:002023-10-29T10:36:27.261-07:00Day 9 - The AlgarveHere we are! Lagos in The Algarve! It's beautiful here. The cold, and the fact we're at the end of our tour, has me a little exhausted so I'm going to lay low for the next couple of days. We arrived and were greeted by the craziest hotel I've ever been in. The Tivoli hotel is a combination of several properties and as such the layout is very confusing. I've never been in a hotel where you Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-43739318428872298982023-09-28T12:46:00.053-07:002023-10-07T10:06:59.162-07:00Day 8 - Evora - The AlgarveHere we are in Evora. Me and a vicious cold. Janet got it a couple of days ago and I knew it was just a matter of time before I get it. We had to find a pharmacy to get ourselves some cold medicine and what not. We had dinner in the hotel last night as a group. The worst meal of the trip so far. They didn't put out signs as to what things were so we were guessing at what we were eating. Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-7837340868407052572023-09-27T12:46:00.050-07:002023-10-07T09:49:05.606-07:00Day 7 - Belmonte - Castelo de Vide - EvoraHeaded north again. Our first stop is Belmonte. A quaint little town in the hills. We're only here to see the a Jewish museum and olive oil making. After that, we'll be off headed to Evora. The town itself is cute. More tiny alley ways that lead to some unknown destination. I met this guy in one of those alleys. Belmonte isn't overly interesting. But the Jewish museum was. I didn't Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-36348228032982582872023-09-26T12:45:00.091-07:002023-10-28T09:23:44.825-07:00Day 6 - Guimaraes - Penafiel - ViseuDay 6 already! Man, it's going fast. And by "fast" I mean I can barely remember what we've done already. That's one of the things I love about the Globus tours; they really stuff it full. It's also what I hate about them. Today we left Porto and headed north. Our first stop is Guimaraes. The little I knew about this town was that Alonso Enrique, the founder of Portugal, was born here. And, Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-87736529651936063822023-09-25T12:42:00.094-07:002023-10-03T20:06:52.424-07:00Day 5 - PortoWhat a beautiful city! Porto is officially my favorite in Northern Portugal (Obidos being my other favorite). Porto's streets are lined with buildings covered in colorful tiles. That, along with their paint pallet for buildings being colorful, every where you look in the city you are greeted by color that makes the city just THAT much more beautiful. The city is divided in two by the Duoro Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-64307601846446928562023-09-24T12:41:00.000-07:002023-10-21T11:23:43.320-07:00Day 4 - Tomar - Coimbra - PortoToday we start our next visit to yet another monastery. We're in Tomar. Tomar is a small, quaint town that we didn't even get a chance to see. We were there for just a night and had other things on the agenda. Tomar is has an interesting history to it. It's home to the Convento de Cristo, the former headquarters of the Knights Templar. Don't be fooled by the word "Convento" aka Convent. ThisJenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-61585976463150675952023-09-23T17:44:00.151-07:002023-10-02T19:23:53.609-07:00Day 3 - Obidos - Nazaré - Alcobaça - Fátima - TomarOy! Just a day into this tour and I'm exhausted. My body is reminding me just how out of shape I am. I spent most the night dealing with leg cramps. Two things; dehydrated and out of shape! Today I need to find some electrolytes to hopefully help with the cramp thing. We left Lisbon on our ultimate destination of Tomar. But before we get there we have several stops we have to make. I had a Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-65008057699097680112023-09-22T12:39:00.326-07:002023-10-02T17:14:45.012-07:00Day 2 - Lisbon, Cascais and FoodToday was a long one. We were up early and out touring before the cognitive side of me could kick in. A little jet lagged and not drinking coffee is a rough combination. We had breakfast in the hotel. European breakfasts are my favorite. They always have fresh bread, ham and cheese on the buffet and that makes a perfect breakfast for me. I avoid coffee while traveling (never know when you'llJenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-3955036865465645182023-09-21T13:07:00.002-07:002023-10-02T14:24:10.192-07:00Ola from Portugal - Day 1ish Travel DayWe made it! I swear this particular flight felt longer than any other. Still, we managed to make it, as did our luggage so that’s good.We left Seattle at 1:35 ish and arrived in London at 6:30 am. Neither of us slept on the plane very well and we had 4 hours to kill in London. Coffee was a must. We found, big surprise, a Starbucks and we were all set. Heathrow is interesting because Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-76479120868769849312023-09-17T19:45:00.001-07:002023-09-17T19:45:06.564-07:00Portugal or BustWe are so close! We leave Wednesday for Portugal! It'll be a fun adventure that I'm sure will result in great memories, some exhaustion, and maybe a couple extra pounds. I've spent the week getting myself ready for this trip. Following my "process" I've put together from years of experience to get ready for a big trip. Planning for a big trip like this starts month before for me. AlmostJenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-32900438943492941282023-09-04T11:34:00.003-07:002023-09-04T11:34:17.071-07:00The Story of the Mexican MeatloafRandomly stories will pop into my mind of something that happened with the folks and I. I suspect this happens with everyone who loses a parent. Some times the story is funny, other times they make me sad. One story pops up every now and then and it makes me smile. The story of the Mexican Meatloaf. Back in the day, Mom and Dad were really good about trying out new recipes. I suspect that's Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-50426794434544195752023-08-30T08:42:00.006-07:002023-08-30T15:16:06.478-07:00Twenty Years LaterThis weekend I spent some time with my BFF getting caught up. She'd been off at a conference for a week and we hadn't really seen each other before she left. As we sat chatting about nonsense, she says, "It's been 20 years this Wednesday."I didn't even have to ask what she meant. I was immediately sent back 20 years to the day she called to tell me she had cancer. My heart sinks just Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17776920.post-3143128411794765182023-08-10T16:39:00.001-07:002023-08-10T16:39:09.462-07:00Que Pasa?Hello and welcome to another, what feels like, monthly update on the Life of Jenn. I figured it's a good time to do a Currently list. I've not done one for a long time, and this really does cover what's happening in my little world. Currently:Reading:Every year I have a goal to read 50 books (or 15,000 pages). Every year, I get behind somehow and have to play catch up. This year is no Jenn from WAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02751954970298044506noreply@blogger.com0