Dana Daily

I cannot stop coughing. This all started when I woke up with a sore throat and almost no voice. I never did lose my voice completely, but I have a cough that just won't quit. I'm over it. When I wake up tomorrow morning, I better be feeling 100%. Woe is me.

For my portfolio course this session, I am required to keep a writing notebook (either electronic or paper). I've been keeping a writing notebook for a long time now, my blog. What you, as the reader don't know, is that I have many entries written, or partially written. When thoughts come to me I type a few lines or a few paragraphs. Some of these never get posted for a myriad of reasons. They're not what I deem good enough, interesting enough, or they are far too personal. Others have specific dates for posting. For example, Sarah's birthday is coming up next month and I've already started my annual entry in honor of her birth day. At any rate, I find myself drafting blog entries in my mind at odd times (in the shower, lately) and as soon as I can get to a computer I start typing. I can't imagine not having somewhere to log these thoughts. I'm kind of in awe of those students in my WRITING program who do not have a writing notebook or journal. Maybe t...

Gosh that makes me feel 16 years old again, and not in a good way. Sal and I celebrated the 3rd anniversary of our first date. . .apart. He woke up sick and opted to keep his germs in Ohio. It was probably our Pennsylvania germs that made him ill in the first place though. The girls and I went to church as we do every Sunday, and it was the first mass Sal and I missed since we started attending together. It was definitely different without him there, a little lonely, I think. Hopefully our fourth "anniversary" will be more enjoyable, even though it falls on a Monday.

I must admit, the doors on this home were not a favorite feature when I bought this place. I planned to replace the doors sooner, but it has taken over two months to see this project through. The doors were special ordered due to their odd sizes, and trying to coordinate my schedule and the installer's was quite a feat. Apparently, I'm a busy woman. This picture is from the MLS listing that was online when the house was for sale. This doesn't give you the clearest image of the front door, but enough of it, I'm sure. I was limited in storm door options as some would have cost me a $1000 or more due to the odd size. Because I don't have air conditioning, I need a storm door for air circulation during the spring/summer. The front and back match. From the inside, here is the front door. I love the decorative design on top. Here is the old back door, from the inside. No tears were shed when this wooden door with the awful mini-blinds was replaced with somethi...

Valentine's Day was so much fun. In fact, I think it was my best ever. Sal took me to Lancelot's in Steubenville and we had a lovely time. One of his former students was our server. She had only nice things to say about him (no surprise there, of course). This past weekend, we spent some time hanging out in Pittsburgh doing all sorts of fun things and crossing items off my birthday bucket list . on the incline We rode the incline, number 6 on my list, and had a slight disagreement over a super cute picture of Sal on the Mount Washington Overlook that I took and he promptly deleted. Then we went to the John Heinz History Center, number 3 on my list. We spent a few hours checking it out. I saved him a few bucks on the price of my admission by whipping out my student ID (half price baby). My favorite exhibit were rooms that were decorated in a vintage 1940s to 1950s style. The main exhibit, Stars and Stripes, runs until June 17, 2012. There's more information abo...

Sal had such an adverse reaction to my suggestion of building a snowman, that I whined, begged, pleaded, and finally demanded that he help me create this little masterpiece of snow. Looks like he had fun, no? I love that you were such a good sport, Sal <3 Thanks for humoring me!

Sal, a huge Cleveland Indians fan, was appalled at my wearing of a Red Sox shirt. I did, however, win brownie points with the New England side of his family.  February 4, 2012 - our first picture together We were talking on the phone tonight and he said he missed me. I told him I missed him as well, but that eventually he will refer to me as "the old lady" and I will be "ordinary". He laughed and said that he was confident "Dana" and "ordinary" would never be used in the same sentence. I promise you, the same can be said for him. He's cute, funny, smart, and talented. He makes my world better just by being in it.

I was 23 years old when I drove the little red Sunfire off the lot at Crivelli's with only 7 miles on it. After 10 years, 168k miles, and many memories, it's time to say good-bye. This car outlasted 4 boyfriends and 1 husband. It has gotten me faithfully and reliably to 3 jobs. This is the 5th address it has brought me home to night after night. This car also brought newborn Sarah home from the hospital and she repaid the favor over the years by getting carsick in it numerous times. I'm ready to start a new chapter with a new car . Introducing my brand new 2011 Honda CR-V. I hope it serves me as well as my little Sunfire.