Farewell to Randy Pausch...

I just want to encourage everyone to read "The Last Lecture." For those who do not know, Randy Pausch was a Carnegie Mellon professor who was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2006. He was given 3-6 months to live. He passed away last Friday, July 25th. Dr. Pausch was 47 years old. His last lecture was an honest and humble account of how to savor every moment in life. He was truly an inspiration, and anyone can benefit from reading his story.

My friend Anna.....

My friend Anna is involved in a launch of a new company.....check it out:

I'd like to invite everyone to check this out... (973) 854-6963 - 3 minute recordingwww.mygenewize.com/ernieo. Ernie and I are very excited and confident that this is an opportunity that we will be very happy that we did NOT miss. We recently became involved with 12-year publicly traded biotechnical company called GeneLink. They are about to launch (this Friday, Aug. 1st) their new product through their wholly-owned division called GeneWize. The product is a customized, DNA-guided nutritional supplement based on your own personalized DNA analysis. Getting in on ANYTHING this early would be huge, but I do feel that this will be the future of nutrition. It will be more effective AND economical in that we will only get what we NEED and can actually USE vs. guessing. More than anything else, the fact that we are on board PRE-LAUNCH with this opportunity is what really has us excited. Please investigate this as much or as little as need be and give me and/or Ernie a call/email. Thanks,Anna Ojea (Abril)(561) 543-3526annaojea@yahoo.com

Amber Alert...

My inner child is lost. She was last seen getting her ass kicked by these two gangsta chicks:

What? They don't look so tough? Not even with the "Beware I'm allergic to Peanuts" sticker plastered on the little one?

Well, think again.

At the shore this weekend, my kids wanted me to go on the rides with them. When I said "no way" my nephew asked..."Aunt Deb, what happened to your inner child?" He's 9, by the way.

So, that got me thinking... There was a time when I'd go on the rides. Swim in the ocean (ok...those of you who know me know that I was never an ocean swimmer, but go with me on this one...) Or at least frolic in the sand a little. Fine, by frolic I mean not get all bent out of shape if some sand gets on any part of my body except my feet. But now I'm just tired. And I think... "Where IS my inner child?"

I continued to ponder this as I drove up to Rutgers University, my alma mater, to meet up with my other nephew, who is 18.

Ahh, the memories. I thought back to those days with such joy, such vivid memories. "It wasn't so long ago that I trolled these streets," I said. My nephew pointed out that lots has changed since "back then." After all, it was a "very long time ago." Almost 20 years.

Here he is visiting me at RU back in 1991... and now.

Holy crap!! Seriously?? Where did that time go? Seems like yesterday. I feel like I could still go to the Knight Club or Olde Queens Tavern and fit right in... that is, if those places still exist.

So, although my kids would like to meet my "inner child" on the "Music Express" on the OC boardwalk, I'm pretty happy that my "inner 22 year old" is still alive and kicking.

Meet me at Olde Queens. I'll kick your butt in a beer chugging contest.

There comes a day.......

There comes a day when you realize you have to watch what you say....yesterday was one of those days. It's Sunday afternoon and we have no baseball games to get to so my husband takes Austin to his friend's baseball game, Adam is at a friends house and it's just me an my little princess at home. I was thinking quiet time watch a little tv, relax NOT. My little princess is bored, nobody is around so we decide to play some games. Monopoly lasted an hour (I must have been playing the game wrong all these years) my little princess told me the rules are a little different now...ok so I believed her....after Monopoly we played LIFE (now I never knew the rules on how to play this game) and instead of reading the directions I decided I COULD MAKE UP THE RULES...she did not like that very much my little princess who is BY THE BOOK! Well in between playing these fun games I needed a little break was a little hungry so I sneak into the kitchen while she is setting up the game....so I think I have some time...and even though I am on a diet, I think one donut can't hurt I have been working out...in the meantime my little princess appears in the kitchen ready for the game...she asks me if I plan on eating that donut and how many points is that donut (if you don't know about points then you don't know about weight watchers)....well of course I respond by letting her know it is ok because I worked out this morning....not good enough...now picture this....my little princess standing in the kitchen with her hands firmly planted on her hips, clenched fists..and she says..."Don't you dare think you can come running to me to complain about your weight, I am not going to want to hear it" and walks out of the room....so I sit there and contemplate do I eat this donut or do I walk away...30 seconds later she is in the kitchen again..and she now is a little testy...again she tells me " I told you I don't want to hear it", and walks out....well now I am a little anxious what do I do...and is she going to walk in again....I was actually worried that she would come into the kitchen again...so before I got yelled at again, I quickly put the donut away and went back to playing the game of LIFE...isn't that ironic....

Morale of the story: Don't tell your kids you are on a diet and don't tell them which one...because if they are anything like my kids....they will ask you to document your daily food intake and daily exercise regimen so they can check it.....oh I failed to mention my little princess is only 8 years old....I better stay in line!!!!!!

Unanswered questions...

This 4th of July weekend left me with many unanswered questions. What does freedom mean to me? What would our forefathers think of our country today? Am I teaching my children to respect our country and not to take our freedom for granted? Well, honestly, I just made those up. I was really asking myself things like, why do I always take the soap and shampoo from hotels? I mean, not just from the Ritz, with the really nice spa type stuff, but I'm talkin' about from the Residence Inn in Somers Point, NJ. Not your top of the line spot. Very mediocre soap and shampoo, but yet, I took the unopened ones home with me...no, I have not stooped so low as to take the ones that have been half used by my family, thank god. But anyway, I take them and put them in my guest bathroom. Why? Do I think that I'm gonna run out of the store bought stuff? Do I think that my guests will feel like they are in a hotel if they have mini unopened soaps that say Residence Inn? Or better yet, do I think they will be impressed with the variety of soaps and shampoos from which to choose, also pointing out the vast travelling that my husband and I have done? (those Portico Eucalyptus soaps from Hyatt are very nice...by the way)

I don't know...like I said...unanswered questions.

Another question that came to my mind this holiday weekend is, why do some men still consider the speedo to be a good choice? Naturally followed by, why do their friends and loved ones fail to inform them that there are options out there? I spent one day on the Ocean City beach this weekend with my friend Dina and her 4 kids. Yes, I said 4. Anyway, as luck would have it, my cameras battery died, but I swear this is true. All of a sudden about 40 men in speedos came jogging down the beach chanting some song in a foreign language. It was the most bizarre thing I've ever seen. So darn funny, but I was too busy seething that I didn't have my camera. I know they were European, but that still does not make the speedo a good choice. Nor does it make hairy armpits OK for women, but that's another story altogether.

But there are also things that will always be...no questions asked...

Little boys will dig big holes...


Little girls will always stop playing to pose for a photo op...




And weekends at the beach with friends and family are truly what memories are made of...No questions asked.

Where's the camera when you need one......

While out shopping at BJ's over the weekend I got a BRIGHT idea or so I thought it was bright. I decided wouldn't it be great to get a raft for my kids. No not a raft that NORMAL people would buy I bought the big one....9.5 feet long. My first indication that this was going to be too big for me to handle should of been when Lexi and I had trouble getting it out of the store into my car. It was in a box but HEAVY! We finally make it fit in the car and we get it home...now what? Well of course Marc has nothing better to do than get it to the shore and blow it up, which he KINDLY offered to do for his family. The kids are thrilled so excited it's big, looks like fun and we will have hours of fun in the bay...NOT. I decided to try it with Lexi and Austin...and this is where the camera would have come in handy...for a good laugh of course. We wobble back and forth and finally get it in the water. Austin has one Orr and I have the other (I think it's called an Orr...what do I know about water sports!). We are in the water and seem to be enjoying the bay and our new raft until....A bigger boat goes by and we can't steer this thing and now we are all over the place...we get it together after my kids are done laughing....OK so back and forth with the Orr's and we are in sync..except that my in sync and Austin's in sync are 2 different in syncs! Laughter ensues and now I am dealing with this raft all by myself....if you could only picture ME on that raft yelling at my kids for laughing so hard....for those of you that know me well; my yelling is not g rated. LOL. And yes my kids did have their flotation devices on....I finally get this thing back on track and we are headed back home only to find my kids are still laughing and can't get it together. All I can say I was definitely comic relief for all my neighbors and their friends. Did I mention I can't move my arms...all that working out and I can't even handle a raft in the bay!