Things to do this weekend in Boise

With the holidays in high gear it’s easy to put your relationship on the back burner as you literally shop till you drop, get ready for that big work party, or plan attending the kids’ Christmas programs. In fact, most couples haven’t thought about a romantic evening in weeks because they have full schedules.

It’s important during these stress filled days to spend some quality time together and get away from the hustle and bustle. So why not make it a date night this next weekend? Get that babysitter scheduled, make some diner reservations at your favorite restaurant, and plan an evening of fun and romance.

Per www.boiseonlinemall.com/entertainment/ there are plenty of events going on in the area:

·        Winter Garden aGlow 2011-2012

December 2, 2011 – January 8, 2012

Open daily from 6:00 – 9:00 p.m.

Open Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day

·        Hell’s Belles (All Female Tribute to AC/DC)

December 16, 2011

Doors open at 7:30 p.m. / Show starts at 8:30 p.m.

Tickets: $13.00 - $30.00

·        It’s a Wonderful Life

NNU Little Theatre

December 16, 2011 7:30 p.m.

December 17, 2011 2:00 & 7:30 p.m.

Tickets: Adult w/fee $9.00

               Child $6.00

               At the door $12.00

·        Idaho Steelheads Hockey

December 21, 22, & 23 at 7:10 p.m.

December 30 & 31 at 7:10 p.m.

For ticketing information www.idahosteelheads.com/home.aspx

·       Thunder Mountain Line

North Pole Express

Christmas Party Dinner

Holiday Train

For information http://thundermountainline.com/NorthPoleExpress2011.html

These examples are just a slight few of what is going on out there and with so much to do in our area there really is no reason the two of you cannot take the time to enjoy one another. For any relationship the holidays can be a pressing time. Taking an evening to unwind and relax maybe just what you both need.      

Do not tell me I can't, I will show you I can

Today I was told that my aspirations of becoming a professional writer are nothing but a dream and if I chose to keep pursuing this as a career the caring of my children won't be proficient. And I shouldn’t have decided to marry a man with kids because my goals are far to time-consuming. As much of a slap in the face this was, it really shouldn’t have surprised or affected me as much as it did. Every author I have met all told me that no one will understand or support the crazy desires we have to be published. I’m not sure why I thought this did not apply to me, but this afternoon I learned the hard way that I am not immune to such harsh criticism. 

I've heard most of my life that I would never amount to anything because of where I come from and who I've been raised by. My own grandfather told my mother I would end up pregnant before I saw my senior year in high school therefore, I’d be a dropout. Most others figured I would end up just like her, lying and cheating my way through life. I proved them all wrong; not only did I not end up a pregnant teen, I graduated high school, and I am nothing like my mother. Although, I have to value the woman’s opinion of me because she is the only person who has ever told me that I am capable of doing anything I put my mind to as long as I work hard for it and in no way let someone convince me that I can’t.

For years I supported others and stood for their success standing in the shadows waiting for my time. Well my time never came. It never came because I didn’t pursue any of the opportunities that were laid out before me. There’s a hard lesson that I have learned over the last twenty-five years, you are the only one who can set and reach your goals. Nothing is easy and you have to bust your butt to get things done because no one is going to care what you want to do with your life until you go against the grain. So what if others consider your ambition a pipe dream, success cannot be achieved if you never even try in the first place.

Almost nothing today

In a five by three-foot cubicle surrounded by photographs of my family and artwork from my kids, I sit here contemplating on what I am going to write about this afternoon. It’s cold outside and I’m not feeling well today, so inspiration seems out of my reach. Nevertheless, I must get my writing in. As I contemplate on my writing exercise for the day, my conundrum is suddenly resolved the background image I have set as my screen saver abruptly changes.
The background image on my computer changes from bright lavender to deep dark reds as I have it set to switch to a different one every fifteen minutes. Seeing that I am one of those people who are easily bored to death, change is good for me as I must sit here for eight hours a day looking at this computer screen.
As the first picture becomes visible it reveals an intense close up of only what I can assume is a flower. Bright lavender, green and white in addition to droplets of water streaming on to what looks like long thin petals.  There is a yellow spot in the upper left of the picture. The stigma perhaps? This is the by far the brightest of my backgrounds and it seems to wake me up as it pops up and dazzles me.
The second image is obviously a fall photo of a tree with minimal yellow and orange leaves left on it. The background is dark reddish-orange and blurry so to make out what is back there is impossible. Some of these leafs are as if they are on their last leg with holes starting to emerge in them and the limbs of the tree starting to blacken. This image gives me an impulse to have a cup of hot coco and cozy up by the fireplace.
As the third image appears before me, it is another close up of a purple flower however, the image is more legible. At first glance you can mistake it for an anemone, and then you realize an anemone is not purple and resides under water. This clearly is not underwater. Completely wide open the beige and purple sepals on this flower looks as if they are petrified wood as they curl on the ends. While the cream-colored petals lay against sepals relaxing as the beautiful purple stigma stands out in an orb of a thousand tentacles. I’m keyed up when this image crops up because this scene is so chaotic and exciting.
Subsequently the fourth impression slowly emerges on to the screen in an Ah inspiring instant. The deep burgundy guides your focus to a circular motion around this most unusual photograph of a chrysanthemum flower. Once again a close up shot of breathtaking petals that look as if the blood like color gets darker the further right your eye moves, hence giving the impression of a slanted spiral.  This illusion of movement in the photograph is bewitching as it influences the senses.  
The last image is the grandest of them all. A photo shot directly from above of a group of elongated leaves colored in the coolest of greens. Almost a near resemblance to a blade not a leaf, this extraordinary display of entanglement makes me want to try to touch them. The texture of the leaves bestows an illusion of ridges. Suitably in the center of this piece is a descent into nothingness as your eye falls into a black opening. I really want to touch those blades as curious as I am to find out for myself, are they rough or are they smooth?