No More Classes...

Well, another semester of classes finished! And i thought i would be done with school forever...but as a Nationally Registered EMT, i have to recertify and take a refresher course every two years...not to mention the CE hours i have to take during the two years! But the class is definately a good thing....especially since we dont run on that many calls up here in the canyon! The class keeps our skills sharp!
2006 brought some very difficult calls to run on....we had about 5 code blacks in a row, one of them being a local that we all knew....one being incredibly graphic....and then we lost a very dear friend....the paramedic who trained us... to a nasty car accident involving a semi.
As volunteers, these tough calls make it difficult to continue...and many of us had to take a break for a while to regroup! After all...why do we torture ourselves doing something that we arent even paid for! Living with the images...the nightmares...the fear! Why do we continue to do this to ourselves? Why....because someone has to do it....and why not be me! Im young (relatively)...strong....and I want to do for my community, so that someday, someone else will come forward to do the same! Is that too much to ask, volunteering a few hours of my time so that people can feel more safe and secure? It is very satisfying to know i did what i could to make someone feel more comfortable! And if other folks can do it, why not me!
We are here to help people....help our neighbors....our friends...our loved ones.....and thats what its all about!

80's Flashback...

Rummaging thru some old photos, i came accross this one.....and after the long list of 80's concerts, i thought it only appropriate to post this photo! After all....this was the summer of the US Festival....Aqua Net...numerous ear piercings....bon fires at the beach...blond highlights complete with a tail in the back...lounging around the neighbors pool...and your basic laziness that comes with being in your teens during the summer! Just look how carefree we are! Im seated between my best friends from high school.....julie and kelly! The three of us were quite a team...and usually Julie's brother Guy was with us. Besides, he was the only one with a license, and someone had to drive us around to all of our adventures :) This photo brings back many hilarious memories...most of which i wont mention here ;) After all, we have kids of our own now, and we cant let them in on our little secrets :) Just thought you might enjoy a picture to go with the timeframe of my last blog!
Have a fabulous day!

My Concert Journeys

A friend of mine compiled a list of all the concerts she had ever been to.....including the year...and then posted them on myspace.....or should i say......herspace :) hehehe
Anyways, Nynaeve....it looked like fun.....so i think i shall give it a try!
I will not go in chronological order, or put the years down for that matter.....as i cannot remember and i dont feel like digging out all my old concert stubs!
So here goes.......

As i said before my very first concert was

Oingo Boingo & the Police

the rest of the order is random........

the Sparks (saw these guys a few times....and even went to a few after parties with em)

Berlin

the Plimsouls

Oingo Boingo (many times....and often at Magic Mountain)

Flock of Seagulls

the Go-Go's at the Hollywood Bowl (get this...the Red Hot Chilly Peppers opened for them)

Adam Ant

J.Geils (U2 actually opened for these guys.....thats how long ago this show was)

U2 (when they were no longer a cover band) heheheheh

Toy Dolls & the Butthole Surfers

Squeeze

Wall of Voodoo & Los Lobos

Ozzy (bark at the moon tour)

Def Leppard (when the drummer still had two hands)

Slayer

THE US FESTIVAL in 1983
Divinyls
INXS
Wall of Voodoo
Oingo Boingo
the English Beat
Flock of Seagulls
Stray Cats
Men at Work
the Clash

hmmmmm.....are we seeing a very 80's pattern here :) hehehehe

Ziggy Marley & the B-52's

Grateful Dead (too many times to even count....miss you Jerry!)
one year i even got to see Bob Dylan open for the Dead....most excellent

Joe Cocker opened for Stevie Ray Vaughan (it was one of Vaughan's last shows...he died two months later)

Jimmy Buffet

Telluride Blues Fest
Little Feat and for some reason i cant think of any of the others :) hehehehe

more Grateful Dead.......

and thats about all i can think of right now!
Hey.....that was fun! Some of you guys should try it....id love to see what you come up with!
If i think of any more, ill add them to the comments list!
Hope you enjoyed my Concert Journeys~
Cheers~
lisajo

p.s. just for fun, i posted a picture of the last record i ever bought......after that it was CD's man! :) hehehehe

Christmas Rag Quilt

Well, i always wanted to make one of these rag quilts.....and after being snowed in for almost two weeks, i was able to finish one. I wanted to make Jordyn something special for her first Christmas, so this is what i came up with. Its three layers of flannel, so its very warm and soft. I wanted it to be reflective of winter, but without the typical christmas colors and theme....so i opted for blues. I really enjoyed making this style of quilt, it was a lot of fun......and Jordyn seems to like it too :)
I also finished a crocheted baby afghan i had started back when i was pregnant. Nothing like being cooped up in the house to help you finish up those neglected projects! :D
Well....gotta run.....fabric calls!
Have a creative day!

Happy New Year ~ 2007!!!

Happy New Year!
As i put away the Christmas decorations, i realize that Jordyn has officially taken over our living room. I thought, at first, that our house was overflowing with holiday crap, but now that its all packed up, i realize its Jordyns crap that has taken over! Our house has become a colorful world of plastic toys and furry animals.....all accompanied by cheesy music! aka JORDYNLAND!!!
But what can i say......the color is certainly a welcome change in winter! Especially after two back to back blizzards......one giving us over three feet of snow, and after just barely digging ourselves out....we got another one with over a foot! However, being cooped up in a cabin with Jordyn is a lot of fun! Never a dull moment.....oh, and did i mention she got me out of most of the snow shovelling? Well someone has to stay inside and watch the baby! hehehe :) Yes...having a baby around certainly makes my world more colorful......and i love it!
Cheers!

The Last Time I Saw My Father

Christmas 2002 was the last time i saw my father.
I could not afford to come home for Christmas that year, so my mom, knowing my dad would not be around for another Christmas, paid for my ticket home. My mom and dad had been divorced for many years, so this generous gift from my mom was definitely in the spirit of the season! We had found out about a month earlier, that dad could no longer go thru any more chemo treatments or surgeries....the best the doctors could do at this time was "make him comfortable".
On Christmas evening, as we gathered together at Denise's house, i stepped outside for a breath of fresh air. We all knew this would be our last Christmas together...and though words were never expressed...you could see it in our faces. The happy "front" we had displayed all week was wearing on me, and i needed a moment of solitude. I walked out onto the driveway to admire the beautiful evening when i discovered my dad standing out there doing the same thing. We looked at each other, and as all Westropes do, we proceeded to joke and make light of the situation that i believe we were both feeling. Siting in Denises driveway was a giant, uber 80's RV, very similar to the one in the movie Stripes....in fact thats what they called it.....the urban assault vehicle :)
My dad quoted the movie Christmas Vacation......"it looks so nice parked in my driveway"...to which i responded....."but dont you go falling in love with it Clark, cause we're takin it with us when we leave here next month"!
He smiled at me and we stood together quietly for a while staring up at the sky and looking at the stars. No more words were exchanged...and they werent needed....our love for each other, and this moment (which we knew would be one of our last), was expressed in our eyes. After a while, we both headed back inside to join the festivities.
When i hugged him goodbye, for the last time, and watched him drive away, i was sad but no longer troubled, for all that needed to be said was already spoken. My father died February 8th, 2003.
Every Christmas, i think of that brief, but wonderful moment, spent on Denises driveway...and when the stars are out, i step outside for a quiet moment of reflection and think of my father.
I miss you dad!
Love Lisa

Holiday Retrospect ~

Well, the tree has been trimmed...the stockings hung...santas and snowmen adorn the cabin...and jordyn quietly naps in her swing to the music of Charlie Brown Christmas in front of a toasty fire! For many the holidays mean stress...malls...crowds...and over consumption....but to me it brings up wonderful memories of childhood and the magic of the season!
My mom would play holiday records while we decorated the tree, making fun of the silly ornaments we made over the years.
The santa made of an old toilet paper roll and construction paper missing a leg....the polaroid picture of TJ with cotton balls glued around the edges creating a frame...the angel Denise made that, over time, had hair like don king....and the badly sculpted clay bells we all made in miss Guerthes class in the fourth grade...but to my mom, these were treasures! Treasures i didnt understand until i had a child of my own. These ornaments capture a moment in time...a snapshot of our youth...and a way to revisit the past! Every time they are pulled out of the box, stories roll out along with them. Remember the time....didnt you make this....what happened to.......and then soon we are laughing and sharing our version of the same tale!
When i moved to Colorado, Christy and i would go to Gwens house and do the same thing.....in fact, one year, while teasing Gwen about the ornaments, we made her cry. I guess we didnt realize how important those ornaments were and still are! We laugh about it now, but i still feel bad about making her cry. But now i understand, and find myself getting nostalgic over my own silly ornaments. I have one particular ornament that i hang every year....its a lenox christmas package with my name on the tag....a gift from my father. Every year i can say i have a present under the tree from my father, even though he passed away 3 years ago. Of course the real gift he gave to me, his love of life...sense of humor...and of course, my blue eyes.....which i passed on to Jordyn!
Jordyn, only 4 1/2 months old is already taking part in these holiday traditions...Here is a photo of her as she models her daddys old Christmas outfit from 1968, and i must say...it looks like new! Grandma kristie preserved it well! Just as i hope to preserve some of the Westrope....Bruen....Sattler Holiday traditions!

May peace come to us all this Holiday Season!
Love lisajo

My 5 Christmas Senses.....
see........the colors, lights and twinkles of a tree, while snow falls lightly on the ground
hear......the sounds of "its a wonderful life" playing on the television, laughter and the crackle of a fire
smell.....the scent of a warm fire on a cold night with something yummie cooking on the stove....perhaps lasagna
taste......the warm rush of cocoa with mini marshmallows....sometimes with just a hint of peppermint schnapps :)
touch.....a hug and the love that touches my heart when i think of my family