My beautiful new piece of art!

So, I signed my divorce papers this last week! Let the party planning commence!

I was off work for Thursday afternoon and all day Friday last week. Spent Thursday afternoon with friends at the pool, relaxing and then had a karaoke show Thursday night here in Ely. Good time all around.

Friday morning, I was signed up to do a Meals on Wheels route. Even though I had the day off work, I chose to go in and do my route anyway, because I felt like doing something good for the community. Seeing all the old people made me smile, and know that my volunteering is worth something.

On the way home, I drove past a tattoo shop and almost literally had to wrench my car away from turning into the parking lot. It wasn't the shop I wanted to go to, but the urge hit me that hard! So I turned to head towards the other shop and ended up stopping myself at the interstate and came home. Two reasons: 1) I hadn't thought through clearly what I wanted and 2) I wanted someone to come with me. So I head home, working through my thoughts. I wanted something that symbolized my strength and courage to move on with my life, but was feminine and still meaningful.

As I was driving home, Jen texted me asking what I was up to. I had thought she was working so I called her right away and asked what she was up to. She ended up not having to work, so I told her that she was coming with me to get a tattoo! I came home and started looking at designs. I had decided I wanted a tiger lily, my favorite flower ever- ditch variety please!

So I looked up the symbolism of the tiger lily... "The symbolism of the tiger lily is like other lilies in that they symbolize the feminine principle reflecting the qualities of mercy, compassion, kindness and unconditional love. Lilies are associated with the planet Venus, the water element and the goddesses Venus, [...]. However the Tiger Lily represents the more powerful aspects of femininity.
The tiger lily symbolizes female courage. It is a good flower for a career woman to carry in her bouquet down the aisle, and it's bold orange symbolizes personal wealth and career success.
The fact that the tiger lily is bright orange also speaks of joy, productivity and pride. The brown freckles on the flower's petals allude to the concept of always being in touch with one's creativity."

OMG, how perfect!!! So off we went, and Jeremiah happened to have an opening so he got started on the design. Here's the final product!!! It's not a great picture, but you get the idea. And it's so much prettier in person!

Update 3/4/11

Well, things have been going pretty good. I've got the steady part time job doing karaoke every Saturday night- it doesn't pay much, especially since I share the show with one of my close friends, but hey- I'm getting paid to do something I LOVE. Can't beat that!!

Spring is right around the corner, and it's constantly on my mind. I've been thinking about trips that I'd like to do....the short little getaway by myself, especially. I'm debating on what I want to do-whether I want to go to a bed and breakfast, or if I want to go a bit more extravagent (on limited funds!!) and fly south, enjoy the beach. I don't know yet. I'll just have to keep it in the back of my head.

Another one of my things- to find a beer I actually like. Yeah, still no luck on that front! I tried Coors Light and Michelob Ultra Light....blech to both!! LOL! I've had someone tell me that I need to try a fruitier beer, maybe Leiney's Berry Weiss. So I'll have to check that out sometime.

Let's see...new tattoo. Oh boy, I'm getting an itch, that's for sure! I haven't totally decided yet on what I'm going to get, but it's going to have something to do with strength or happiness. That will happen this summer!

Learning how to take a compliment well...I think I'm doing pretty darn good with that! I've had compliments on my hair, and on the weight I've lost. But I accept them gracefully and gratefully, and move on from the subject :)

The regular "game" night hasn't happened yet, but I am having regular nights out with my friends, so I just could possibly count that. Games would be fun too, though!

As for making a difference in someone's life like many have made in mine, I'm making progress on that all the time. That is a never ending one. I've had a couple friends make comments about that one item, and tell me how much I have done for them, and what it means to them. In turn, it really means a lot to me.

Gosh, I think that's about all for my update. See you next time!