as a writer, sometimes my job isn't to write at all. sometimes my job is simply to listen.

today i am writing articles for my harley-davidson client. we do a really nice newsletter that features lots of customers and their riding stories. it's like dessert for me.

the main thing i am always concerned about when calling customers for their stories is that i don't want to bother people when they are busy. i make sure and tell them it will only take a few minutes...and then we start to talk.

the first guy was in his 60s and really just needed to talk. he bought his harley last month so he could take a cross country trip with his father's ashes this summer. his dad passed away on Christmas eve and this ride was going to be the man's way of honoring his memory. we talked about his dad and growing up in montana. we talked about his dad's last days and how hard they were. my friend on the phone cried a couple of times. i did my best not to cry back. i always try to end things on a good note, so we talked about the fancy new bike before i said good-bye. he didn't want to get off the phone. i asked him to email me a photo of him and his father. it's a wonderful picture of two men in cowboy hats, smiling into the sun.

the second guy was a lonely man who just bought a fancy new 2013 switchback. the story was supposed to be about his customer experience--and it will be. but MY story is about a guy who's wife left him, took everything he had and this motorcycle is the first step in building his life back. we talked a lot about starting over and all the new friends he'll meet on the road. the harley community is a brotherhood, i told him. he sounded relieved. then he told me he really can't afford the bike but he just needed it. i told him i understood.

my third story is about a sweet old couple in their 80s who just bought a trike--their 4th bike together. they were set up on a blind date 15 years ago by someone at the dealership and got married. they've been riding and in love ever since. they were talking to me poolside in florida and kept interrupting each other and laughing. we talked for 45 minutes.

so that's been my afternoon. now i have to write up these stories...but i wanted to share the REAL stories here.

aren't people great?

perhaps we can just call this blog my monthly newsletter. sigh.

things have been crazier than they've been in a long time around here, lots of big work in my world and hectic schedules for the j boys. sure makes the time fly by.

as for schedules, get this. my "homeboy" big j--the kid who LOVES his free time at home--has gotten himself involved in jazz band, tennis, hockey, reffing and church youth group. jazz band practice at 7 three mornings a week, tennis two nights a week, hockey three nights a week plus games on the weekend and church every Wednesday. what the...?  all i can say is it's a good thing gas is below the $3 mark right now. i feel like i live in my big silver taxi but i am proud of how responsible the big kid is becoming. the jazz band thing was something he tried out for all on his own, no helicopter required.

little j is in the process of growing his hair long and has his sights set on blue tips. it was always in the cards for my crazy little man, but i didn't know he'd be dying his hair in third grade. i don't have a problem with blue hair. it's just one of those things we'll have to do when dad's not looking. :)

in happy, proud and braggy news, both j boys pulled in straight A report cards this quarter. whoop whoop. now if i can just get them to clean up after themselves, stop arguing and eat more vegetables, the world would be golden.

the husband is on his last week in a thumb sling and dying to get back to his hockey team. where he will probably end up breaking something else.

i would love to tell you more but time is ticking and work is waiting. just wanted you all (mom) to know we're still alive up here.

stay warm!

so the holidays are really over. bummer. we had so much fun on our world tour of colorado. as usual, my photos suck and have nothing to do with Christmas, but i can make a story out of anything. here goes:

santa brought the boys compound bows, nice ones. real ones (yikes). they had a blast shooting them at grandma's. apparently big j is left-eye dominant and has to shoot left-handed, if you are wondering. my second shot was almost a bullseye, if you are also wondering. after that it was all downhill. 

ask him and i'm sure big j will tell you baby goats were his highlight. these little fluffballs were so cute. soft like bunnies and just plain cuddley. i want one. or ten. 

little j is holding the one we called "cry baby." he bawled like a baby the whole time, which caused josh to keep a wary eye on mama goat. don't you love the way little j is holding him?

this is the face of a j boy on a road trip. we never hear complaints from the back seat, even when the drive is 17 hours. we loooovvvvveeee our road trips. which is good, since we are on the road more weekends than not. 

these are the mountains that hold my heart. i love the rockies. photos never do them justice, though. don't you just want to hike all over that?

this is my mom and my grandma and the wiener dog, who had a great time also. i think he wants to herd cattle when he grows up like his cousin jasper, the australian shepard. hey, a dog can dream. 

i forgot to even get my camera out for the rest of our trip, which involved a great time at my grandma gwen's house and also while at the husband's sister's house for a nite. we sure had fun. i loved watching my kids listen to my aunt sandy tell her jaw-dropping stories about ghosts and foxes and sky diving and all her friends who play for the denver broncos. i remember listening to her stories when i was a kid and never wanting her to stop talking. at midnight, i think i decided it would be ok this time :) 

thanks for the great memories, family of mine. love you and miss you all.