I am not a very lucky person, so I am used to not winning anything.  I have bought scratch and win tickets before and I think one time I won enough money to cover the cost of the ticket.  Other than that, I have never won anything in my life.

That is why I was really surprised when I got a phone call from a radio station saying that I had won a pair of concert tickets through a draw I had entered my name into.  I was really excited because it was the first real prize that I had ever won in my entire life and I guess, I was just completely shocked.

I was thinking about it later, and I wondered if my name was the only one in the draw.  I know that’s not true and I guess I just got lucky this one time but I’ll tell you what, I am going to go to this concert and I’m going to enjoy myself because it will probably be the only concert I will ever attend for free in my life.

Every year when my birthday rolls around, I start to get depressed. I would love to stay young forever and if I could just give up on birthdays for good, I certainly would. My husband does his part to try and cheer me up by throwing grand parties and giving me great gifts, but really what I want is the opposite.

For a long time, I did not get why he didn’t understand that I don’t want a big deal made over something that makes me so sad. I would always put on a happy face for him and pretend that everything was perfect, but inside, I hated the whole thing and I usually went to bed in tears.

This year, however, my birthday was perfect. He came home from work and gave me a pair of theatre tickets and told me to get dressed for a dinner out. We went out, just the two of us to a fancy dinner and to the theatre. He never once mentioned that it was my birthday and we had a great time. He finally got it!

When you are talking to my husband, you can tell that some of the best times of his life were spent when he was in Scouts. He talks about his experiences constantly and it makes me feel as though I was there for some of the experiences. Some of the things that he and his troop did were a lot of fun. On that same note, some of the things were downright stupid and they are lucky to still be alive today.

One of these such events was a camping trip that they had taken one year. At this particular trip, he and the other guys decided that it would be a good idea to smoke cigarettes in their tent. They were sitting around in there smoking and lighting various things on fire. They created so many fumes that they had to bail out the windows. It is a wonder that they did not burn their tent to the ground.

Another time, when they were at a winter campout, they decided to go exploring on some private property. They came across a cabin and decided to build snowmen on the deck of it. They owners came by and the boys all ran away. The owner yelled at them and started shooting at them with a shotgun. So, like I said they are all lucky to still be alive today.

I have never been really big on birthdays. Not that I don’t like a good party, but I hate the yearly reminder that I am getting older. This year, though, was different. I got NBA tickets for my birthday. I absolutely love basketball. The problem is that we don’t have a team near us, but my husband decided that we would take a road trip and go see a game. I am very excited about that.

We have always wanted to go, but with three kids and the games being so far away, it has always been out of our budget. This year, my husband said that he found some cheap NBA tickets and could not pass up the opportunity. My parents are coming to stay with the kids and we are going to make a long weekend of it.

I was so surprised that my husband would buy NBA tickets and be able to keep it a surprise from me. I think he was almost as excited to see me open the gift as I am to go to the game. It is not too much longer now. If birthdays were like this every year, I just may not mind having them anymore.

Now that spring is just about here, it is time to think about what I am going to do for summer.  Sure, I will have to work, but I thought that maybe this year I could go to summer school.

No, I am not thinking of going to college to take a class.  I have done this in the past and it was fun, but I am thinking about something more along the lines of Golf school, so that I can improve my game.

Now, I could get golf instruction at one of the many schools in my state, but I thought it would be nicer to make it more of a vacation.  So, I have decided to register in an Arizona Golf School as I have always wanted to go there.

Looking at the course curriculum, it looks like a pretty intensive course, but since I love golf so much, I think it will be really fun.  I can’t wait to have the opportunity to learn from Pros, and come back home to beat my buddies at the game.  Too bad I have to wait until it is summer…

I have been taking piano lessons since I was five years old. My mother never learned to play and it was important for her that my sister and I learn and master piano at a young age. My father’s family is very musical and I definitely got some of their talent.

My sister can read sheet music and I would say that she is a better piano player than I am. However, I can play by ear and I have more musical ability and a better ear for music than she does. I love to sing and I have been told that I have a great singing voice. I have been singing solos in church since I was knee high to a grasshopper and my dad and I often sing duets together.

I also play numerous musical instruments, such as the flute and the trumpet. I play these all by ear, so it sometimes takes me a bit to pick out a song. But once I have picked it out, I can usually play a piece pretty flawlessly. I do love music and I love to play music. I love to listen to music; all kinds, and I love to sing. Music is a big part of who I am.

A little while ago, I went to see a comedic hypnotist and somehow landed myself on stage. I did not think it would work; I was very skeptical. Imagine my surprise when it did work. I was completely shocked when I cam out of the hypnosis. I was shocked and I was fascinated. I knew I had to learn more about this practice.

I decided to purchase one of his hypnosis training CD’s and see if it would work for me. I also did a lot of reading research on the subject. I learned about the many different kinds of hypnosis and I also learned how useful hypnosis can be in many different areas. Hypnosis is used for many reasons, ranging from helping people to quit smoking to helping solve crimes.

I was most interested in covert hypnosis, which is the ability to influence someone’s mind without them knowing it. I wanted to try this, but was not being so successful at it. I suppose, in order to be a good hypnotist, one needs a lot more training than just listening to a CD. Someday, I would like to take proper training, in order to help other people.

The local craft store in our town recently had a design your own t shirt contest. My daughter worked on her drawings for a month before the contest, perfecting every little detail. She was sure that she would win and I knew if the contest was judged by determination, the prize would be hers.

We went down to the store the day of the contest and bought a make your own t shirt kit. She sat down and promptly got to work. She took her time and, four hours later had a beautiful T shirt. Even I was amazed at her end result. She did end up winning and I was so proud of her creativity.

She won a gift certificate to the store and one to a local restaurant. She used her certificate to buy a few more kits for building custom t shirts. She can now be seen, most likely any day of the week, wearing one of her very own designs. And they are all very nice.

My friends and I are in a scrapbooking club that meets once a month. We get together and pool money to order Canadian scrapbook supplies. It is a fun night out and we get to do what we love and we also get a little something out of it.

It is hard to come by scrapbook supplies Canada at wholesale prices. We have ordered from the States a few times, but with the shipping and duty, it ends up costing us so much, that we may as well not be buying in wholesale. It would end up being cheaper to go down to the store and buy the stuff.

We did, however, end up finding a dealer on scrapbooking supplies Canada that was interested in having our club as a client. We have been getting some great deals and are happy at finding the company. We are meeting tonight to place our next order. Hmm…I think I need some embellishments this time.

I just recently had a chance to look over an immigration interview sample. I was curious about what types of questions were asked to people who wanted to become citizens, and it just so happens that I was in the right place at the right time. It is helpful, as I am strongly thinking about a career in immigration when I am finished with college.

I even got to write a citizenship practice test. It was a lot harder than I thought it would be and I have been a citizen of this country since the day I was born. The people that write these tests really must love our country to learn things that even I don’t know.

I was told that the Ontario G1 test is one of the hardest and also one of the most widely taken tests in the country - as most countries don’t require a driving test to drive. I am glad that my citizenship does not depend on me taking it and I must say that anyone who passes these tests definitely deserves to be here.