For crying out loud! Enough already!! I don't think there's a single person in the Pacific Northwest that is happy with this situation! Apparently Everett really got dumped on last night. Gabe & Darcy went to church, (Smokey Point) and said they don't have the fresh stuff that we have here. I had to high-step to the car, the snow coming half-way to my knees in places. I'll dump in a few pictures I just took this afternoon. And it's STILL snowing. We're supposed to get another 3" here in Everett. Aaron, I'm ready to take you up on that trade!!
PS - Would somebody please take pity on me and teach me how to put my pix in other than in a column down the right side??
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Sunday, December 14, 2008
BRRRRRR, BUT BEAUTIFUL!!
Yes, we’ve been hit by a cold snap. We have several days of temperatures not out of the 20’s, they say, but I’ve seen our icicles dripping this afternoon. It really didn’t seem all that cold to me this afternoon, but we also didn’t get the extreme wind they were forecasting. I think they got more of that in other areas. This morning we had at least a good four inches of beautiful, pristine snow here. Quite possibly more. Underneath the snow? Pure ice! I walked to Safeway this morning to get a quart of oil for the minivan. It was making noises, and Stanglands asked to borrow it for a week or so while their’s is being repaired. (Seems Robin backed into another car in her driveway. Oops!) Anyway, I checked out the roads while I was on foot. Boy, treacherous. And it will be worse the next few mornings as all the slush freezes at night. Fortunately, I don’t need to be at work until one o’clock tomorrow, and nine o’clock the next two days. Although, I expect to be ready to take Jeana’s shift tomorrow at 7:30 because she lives in Mountlake Terrace, has an old jeep with no heater or defroster, so she may prefer, if I’m offering, to let some other cars beat the ice down a bit before she ventures out.
Anyway, I thought you’d like a few pics. Wish you were here! Do you???
Anyway, I thought you’d like a few pics. Wish you were here! Do you???
Thursday, December 11, 2008
And the #@%%^&* continues...
It's Thursday night. I STILL have no voice. I worked a long day Tuesday, as usual, and it appears that was just too much for my voice. Wedneday, it was gone. As in non-existant. Silent- movie-voice. I couldn't even call my boss to ask if she wanted me to come in. So I went in. They stuck me in an office and gave me filing and computer work to do. Today I was off, so was able to keep very quiet. But tomorrow, I go in, and I'll need to use the phone and do the work required of the front desk. Hope I get a miracle tonight while I sleep!
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Bad Luck Abounds!
Well - to read the last few posts, you'd think either I've had a pitiful run of bad luck, or I only have negative stuff to talk about or - well, I guess that's the way it's been lately. 'Bout time things turn our way for a change huh?
We've had a lot of sickness around here. Of course the kidlets had it bad. Gabe and Darcy had it. Friday I got kicked out of work because I didn't look so good, and of course, being at the front desk it's not a good thing to be there when sick. So, I came home Friday and went to bed. Pretty much stayed there most of Saturday. Dad has some of it too. He had a special concert to play at mid-day Wednesday, for which he was working overtime the last two weeks so he could get off early without losing pay. 'Twas at the Everett Events Center at the Festival of Trees. He went, even tho' he wasn't feeling entirely up to snuff. Had another one on Saturday afternoon, and played that one too. These are what he really enjoys - the Christmas concerts, and they've had precious few of them lately. But this time it doesn't seem to have hurt him any to be out and about, even fighting a cold. But I have the worst cold I can remember in a very long time. Totally congested all night Friday night and all day Saturday. Also had a headache that made me think of Holly's migraines - asked Ric to turn off the lights. And some nausea. Saturday was a bad, bad day. Too miserable to sleep most of the time. Anyway, tmi, I know. Sorry. Welcome to my life. My fever was back tonight, so I called off work tomorrow. And I have no voice, either.
So that's the bad. Let me tell you about the good (that is coming). There is a couple at church who've been wanting us to borrow their lake house for a weekend of R&R. It's available over Christmas, so dad and I are going up Wednesday when I get off work, Christmas Eve, and going to stay through Saturday afternoon. I'd like to stay through Sunday, but since I had to call off my video job today, and this is my month, I figure I should be back for Sunday. Anyway, that's something to look forward to. They say it's not fancy - "just" a mobile home facing the lake with floor to ceiling windows, and all the comforts of home, except for laundry, so we'll take our own linens. Lookin' forward to it though!
This week: I hope to be at work on Tuesday for my 11-hour day. Wednesday 9-5. Thursday I have off, but back in the Spring when our church had an auction to raise money for the building fund, I think it was, I sold a cake that is due this Saturday, so Thursday I'll be making that. Friday, work. Saturday Ric has a concert in the evening, and it's the company Christmas party at WaO, so I told Gabe if they want to go, I'll stay home and babysit for them. Let them have a bit of fun, maybe. And there's lots of weekend gift cert. given out (via drawing) for hotels in the general area because a number of staff have hotel connections, so they get on the phone and beg for favors. And our employees reap the benefit. Hope Gabe's name gets drawn for a nice spot. That would be cool. If they decide not to go to the party, I can go with Ric to his concert. I've gone the last 2 years with him on this one.
Well, that's the update. Hope you all are doing well. Keep those blogs coming - I love'em!! Sorry - no pics on this one - they would scare you!! PS - the car's doing great!
We've had a lot of sickness around here. Of course the kidlets had it bad. Gabe and Darcy had it. Friday I got kicked out of work because I didn't look so good, and of course, being at the front desk it's not a good thing to be there when sick. So, I came home Friday and went to bed. Pretty much stayed there most of Saturday. Dad has some of it too. He had a special concert to play at mid-day Wednesday, for which he was working overtime the last two weeks so he could get off early without losing pay. 'Twas at the Everett Events Center at the Festival of Trees. He went, even tho' he wasn't feeling entirely up to snuff. Had another one on Saturday afternoon, and played that one too. These are what he really enjoys - the Christmas concerts, and they've had precious few of them lately. But this time it doesn't seem to have hurt him any to be out and about, even fighting a cold. But I have the worst cold I can remember in a very long time. Totally congested all night Friday night and all day Saturday. Also had a headache that made me think of Holly's migraines - asked Ric to turn off the lights. And some nausea. Saturday was a bad, bad day. Too miserable to sleep most of the time. Anyway, tmi, I know. Sorry. Welcome to my life. My fever was back tonight, so I called off work tomorrow. And I have no voice, either.
So that's the bad. Let me tell you about the good (that is coming). There is a couple at church who've been wanting us to borrow their lake house for a weekend of R&R. It's available over Christmas, so dad and I are going up Wednesday when I get off work, Christmas Eve, and going to stay through Saturday afternoon. I'd like to stay through Sunday, but since I had to call off my video job today, and this is my month, I figure I should be back for Sunday. Anyway, that's something to look forward to. They say it's not fancy - "just" a mobile home facing the lake with floor to ceiling windows, and all the comforts of home, except for laundry, so we'll take our own linens. Lookin' forward to it though!
This week: I hope to be at work on Tuesday for my 11-hour day. Wednesday 9-5. Thursday I have off, but back in the Spring when our church had an auction to raise money for the building fund, I think it was, I sold a cake that is due this Saturday, so Thursday I'll be making that. Friday, work. Saturday Ric has a concert in the evening, and it's the company Christmas party at WaO, so I told Gabe if they want to go, I'll stay home and babysit for them. Let them have a bit of fun, maybe. And there's lots of weekend gift cert. given out (via drawing) for hotels in the general area because a number of staff have hotel connections, so they get on the phone and beg for favors. And our employees reap the benefit. Hope Gabe's name gets drawn for a nice spot. That would be cool. If they decide not to go to the party, I can go with Ric to his concert. I've gone the last 2 years with him on this one.
Well, that's the update. Hope you all are doing well. Keep those blogs coming - I love'em!! Sorry - no pics on this one - they would scare you!! PS - the car's doing great!
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
OUCH!!
You know I have precious little to say – I get up, go to work, come home, sleep, and the next day it all starts over again. So, this is the most exciting thing to happen to me in the last three weeks, I guess. Sad, huh?
Tuesday morning I came out of the master bath, using the same path I’ve used several times a day for the last 7 or so years. I’ve always managed to do so without slamming my toes into the chest of drawers, but yesterday, the perfect streak ended. (See 1st photo). Only today it is purple all the way up, but I can’t get a picture that isn’t too white. So use your imagination. (Ed. Note: Such as it is, see 2nd photo).
Tuesday is my 13-hour day, right? So halfway through my very long shift, I thought “Hey! Ric has a cell phone w/camera! (Duh!) Maybe I can get some sympathy!" So I took said picture and sent it off.
I got the sympathy, and a return photo. (See 3rd photo). But I was at the front desk when I got his picture, and laughing so hard, the residents wanted to know what I was talking about. So half a dozen or so special residents got to see it too! I think I might have cut my life short a bit by sharing that photo, but it was worth it! ;)
Tuesday morning I came out of the master bath, using the same path I’ve used several times a day for the last 7 or so years. I’ve always managed to do so without slamming my toes into the chest of drawers, but yesterday, the perfect streak ended. (See 1st photo). Only today it is purple all the way up, but I can’t get a picture that isn’t too white. So use your imagination. (Ed. Note: Such as it is, see 2nd photo).
Tuesday is my 13-hour day, right? So halfway through my very long shift, I thought “Hey! Ric has a cell phone w/camera! (Duh!) Maybe I can get some sympathy!" So I took said picture and sent it off.
I got the sympathy, and a return photo. (See 3rd photo). But I was at the front desk when I got his picture, and laughing so hard, the residents wanted to know what I was talking about. So half a dozen or so special residents got to see it too! I think I might have cut my life short a bit by sharing that photo, but it was worth it! ;)
Saturday, October 25, 2008
What's God doing???
Hmmm - Two days after we bought a replacement, we got a call from the Everett Police Department, telling us to come pick up the van within 30 minutes or it would be impounded - with BIG fees. It was found behind Denny's on Evergreen Way. Cop had it started without a key. Great! They ripped out the CD player - but it didn't work anyway! A bit of righteous justice?? Or just me giving in to a bit of unrighteous "HA!!" Guess we'll sell it - the replacement has 20K fewer miles on it - and the way I drive, that could be 2 years-worth of driving.
Friday, October 24, 2008
WHEEEEELS!!!!
Okay. Sorry, Aaron. I forgot to title the post, and absolutely cannot figure out how to go back and do it. So consider this the title: WHEEEEELS!!!
Well, here she is. Fifty-four feet and two tons of beauty, grace, and soooo smooooooth! Well, I exaggerate a bit – about the length and weight, but it kinda feels like that when I’m in it! But the smooooooth part is not exaggerated one bit. O my goodness. I don’t know if I’ve ever ridden in a car that has that smooth of a ride. They are doing major tear-up work on 41st east of Colby to tie in to all the freeway work they’ve been doing. We drove over a section where they’ve stripped the top layer of blacktop off. You know how rough that can be? Well, maybe you don’t. Our van didn’t really have any shocks (or struts) to speak of. I was used to a pretty rough ride. And if I remember correctly, the minivan is built on a truck chassis anyway. But this car – I can’t believe I’m driving such a luxurious car. NOW, it is old. It has a lot of miles on it (147k). And with that in mind, there are a few things… But I gotta tell you, when I depress the accelerator, it GOES!!! And when I get in, and turn the key, the seat goes back to where I left it. Why does it have to do that? Because when I turn it off, it moves back to give me room to get out. J How fun! I am so thankful. Got this from “our” mechanic – goes to our church, owns his own shop, and he’s honest. And we told him we needed a car that would give us 3 years, at least, of good, reliable service. This is what he had. Plan to have it paid off in about 15 months, Lord willing, and then continue to put the payment into the bank to hopefully build up a nice down payment on something that will be more in line with what I would like eventually. At this point, that looks like a dark blue Jeep Liberty. Cute, huh? That’s all for now. We are thankful for what we have, and if you come visit, would love to give you a ride in our piece of unexpected luxury!
Thursday, October 9, 2008
Well, it's been a D-A-Y
Got up, a little PT for the knees, shower, shampoo, came down to eat breakfast and look at the paper. Went back upstairs about 8:15 to curl my hair and get ready for work. Next thing I hear is Gabe "Hey mom, where's your car???" I ran back downstairs, and he was right. Just a whole lot of empty space where the car should have been. I'll be brief:
- The police officer said most likely someone wanted to take a joy ride - ostensibly to drive a drug dealer from Point A to Point B
- He also said if I see my car, DO NOT get in and drive it away - if an officer sees it and runs plates, I'll have a whole lot of guns pointed at me! Okay. No problem there!
- They usually recover them, and they are okay.
- The insurance company took my info and said call them if it's recovered. Give it a week or so. That's fine. Dad will be home in a week or so!
At work I was getting a glass of ice water. Got the ice, moved the glass to the water spigot, and again pressed the ice lever. Oops! I really didn't want to complain at work, but out of my mouth came "Boy, you wake up to having your car stolen and the day just goes downhill!" One of our residents was standing there. He said "You need a car? I'm selling my Ford minivan - new [rebuilt, I imagine] engine, tranny, tires, brakes, and [I think,] shocks. Inside and out, looks brand new, I wouldn't be ashamed to sell it to anyone." For a reasonable price, although more than I have, but also in better shape than mine was. He said he wouldn't be afraid to take it anywhere. And it's older, so the insurance would be lower than on a newer car.
So we have some decisions to make. We covet your prayers on our behalf, that we would be wise, and that we would get what we need from our car, assuming we don't get it back.
I sent Ric an email after things settled down a bit, and I'll share some of it here:
Here are some things to be thankful for that I've thought of:
- We could have been facing a big repair bill shortly that we were unaware of. This could be a blessing, with God's financial protection that we can't see.
- There was no accident.
- No injuries.
- No garage door opener which would make us a target for physical danger.
- Nothing of real value in the car (Except 7 new grocery bags that I just bought, and had used maybe twice! ):
- Any myriad of a number of other things that haven't come to my mind yet.
As I was praying in the car (oops! "truck"), the scripture came to my mind: "Be still, and know that I am God." I thought that was good advice! I've had a fair grip on my emotions today, for which I am thankful.
I plan to get a good night's sleep and face the world again tomorrow. Sometime. (And yes, honey, the security feature is set on the pickup!)
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Separation...
Well, this, thankfully, will not be a permanent separation! Dad is at the airport, heading for MT for 2 weeks while Josh does a missions opportunity thing. Dad's role will be to help and support Holly, especially with Su. He'll also be teaching a special "elective" (dad's elective, actually) for 45 minutes each school day. He's NERVOUS! ;) This trip also is seeming to serve as a distraction for the Bookends regarding daddy being gone for 2 weeks. Please join us in praying that all goes well - for Josh, for those in Hardin, and for me here at home (read: my very old car works, furnace works, toilets work, etc. ad nauseum)
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Labor Day Week
Labor Day, Monday, September 01, 2008
Well, it was fun reading your fun things you all did this weekend. Me – I worked Labor Day, 7:30 a to 3:30 p. Well, it was more like 4:15 by the time I left. Gabe relieved me at 3:30, and it’s very easy to just stop to talk – work can be very interesting at Washington Oakes! ;) But I’ll leave those stories for another time. . .
After work, Ric and I went shopping for a new printer. We’d been looking a little, and happened on a whiz-bang machine: HP C7280. It’s an all-in-one scanner, copier, fax, printer. We’d like to get rid of our scanner, and eventually our fax/phone, (if I can figure out how to make the new fax part work) and have it all in one, and then just a smaller cordless phone on the counter – maybe one with a few handsets w/docking stations, and ALWAYS a speaker phone! That’s for family visits! ;) But that will be down the road. The new printer will be helpful for dad and enlarging his music more easily, and it does a wonderful job of printing photos, for those occasions when I actually print them. Will print directly from the memory cards. Nice. Even has a little readout screen on the front, about the same size as the camera. [Edit. Comment, 9/7/08 - Finally got the printer working tonight, after dad spent over 5 hours online with tech support in the Philippines for the installation! :( Here's hoping the rest of the learning curve will go a little better!]
I gotta tell ya, Staples has an amazing deal. We bought a $40 policy – not exactly an extended warranty - it's much more. It’s covered for 2 years, 100%. And if we decide at the end of 2 years we want to upgrade, they will give us full price to trade in on another model. How do they make any money? INK! Although this machine’s ink is pretty reasonable compared to what we’ve been paying for our Epson ink. AND, Staples has a rewards program of 10% return on all paper/ink purchases, and mail services. Too bad that doesn’t include printers, too!
This is getting long again. I started out to tell you that I had fun with Noah outside, Saturday, I think it was. Took pictures that will be self explanatory, and then practiced with my camera a little on my yard. If you’ve not seen the yard in a while, enjoy!
Well, it was fun reading your fun things you all did this weekend. Me – I worked Labor Day, 7:30 a to 3:30 p. Well, it was more like 4:15 by the time I left. Gabe relieved me at 3:30, and it’s very easy to just stop to talk – work can be very interesting at Washington Oakes! ;) But I’ll leave those stories for another time. . .
After work, Ric and I went shopping for a new printer. We’d been looking a little, and happened on a whiz-bang machine: HP C7280. It’s an all-in-one scanner, copier, fax, printer. We’d like to get rid of our scanner, and eventually our fax/phone, (if I can figure out how to make the new fax part work) and have it all in one, and then just a smaller cordless phone on the counter – maybe one with a few handsets w/docking stations, and ALWAYS a speaker phone! That’s for family visits! ;) But that will be down the road. The new printer will be helpful for dad and enlarging his music more easily, and it does a wonderful job of printing photos, for those occasions when I actually print them. Will print directly from the memory cards. Nice. Even has a little readout screen on the front, about the same size as the camera. [Edit. Comment, 9/7/08 - Finally got the printer working tonight, after dad spent over 5 hours online with tech support in the Philippines for the installation! :( Here's hoping the rest of the learning curve will go a little better!]
I gotta tell ya, Staples has an amazing deal. We bought a $40 policy – not exactly an extended warranty - it's much more. It’s covered for 2 years, 100%. And if we decide at the end of 2 years we want to upgrade, they will give us full price to trade in on another model. How do they make any money? INK! Although this machine’s ink is pretty reasonable compared to what we’ve been paying for our Epson ink. AND, Staples has a rewards program of 10% return on all paper/ink purchases, and mail services. Too bad that doesn’t include printers, too!
This is getting long again. I started out to tell you that I had fun with Noah outside, Saturday, I think it was. Took pictures that will be self explanatory, and then practiced with my camera a little on my yard. If you’ve not seen the yard in a while, enjoy!
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Birthday and the Fair
Gabe’s Birthday:
August 24 – Gabe’s birthday. We celebrated on Saturday the 23rd so that we could go to the Evergreen State Fair on Sunday, leaving the house to Gabe and Darcy to celebrate Gabe’s birthday as they wanted to.
Saturday’s requested birthday menu: Tamale Pie, Carne Asada (I found tri-tip asada instead), a Spanish Rice “type thing” (I settled for Mexican Rice a Roni), and a fruit salad. It was an absolutely gorgeous, perfect August day (unlike today ): We ate outside, and the tamale pie was picturesque! (See photo). Darcy thought I should sell the picture to Pampered Chef. Both Noah and Emma joined us at the table, each in their own child seat on the padded patio chair. They did very well! We didn’t have any mishaps with falling on the patio floor or any such thing. It was a very nice time.
Dessert was a lime cheesecake with cherry topping. An unbelievably easy recipe that, for all its ease, tasted pretty decent.
I tried for all the world to get a good picture of Gabe, but you know Gabe. So, I think I’ll just post what I have. If he doesn’t like them, maybe he’ll figure out how to let me take a nice photo. Do ya think???
The Fair:
It sprinkled off and on when we got there – nothing to worry about. This is Washington, after all, even though it’s August, and we would expect better. Dad left his cap in the truck, and I was in capris and sandals. Bad move! After we’d been there an hour, it began to P-O-U-R! I may have ruined my nice black Birkenstocks. At any rate, I think I ruined the bottoms of my feet! They absorbed a bit of dye from the sandals. We can’t decide if it’s just because we’re getting older, and aren’t in much need of “stuff” or if the commercial sheds have gone downhill. We think the commercial sheds have gone downhill. Lots of window vendors, gutter vendors (appropriate!), a sock display with thousands of socks, and some various and sundry booths. One booth had an aloe-based cream supposed to be really good for eczema. A small jar, maybe an inch and a half across and not quite as tall went for $20. Dad would go through that in one day! So obviously it stayed there.
I decided what I wanted to eat, and stuck to it. Success! Not that I ate great, but I didn’t go overboard. I started out with an Italian chicken wrap that was really huge. But it had a lot of lettuce. Then some ice cream, and then just before we left, I splurged on an elephant ear. They have turned healthy! Whole wheat and honey bread dough. ;) Unless you want to count the grease they’re fried in, and the butter, and sugar they’re drenched with. I dumped all the excess sugar and cinnamon off, and there was still plenty on there. But it was tasty! I came home and ate some yogurt for protein to counteract all that sugar!
I won’t enumerate dad’s eating . . .We enjoyed it, but it would have been more fun if the weather had cooperated a bit more. Dad got really tired, but every place we wanted to sit and rest was wet. So we came home probably earlier than we normally would have, but it was satisfying. I think my fair yen has been quenched for a couple more years!
August 24 – Gabe’s birthday. We celebrated on Saturday the 23rd so that we could go to the Evergreen State Fair on Sunday, leaving the house to Gabe and Darcy to celebrate Gabe’s birthday as they wanted to.
Saturday’s requested birthday menu: Tamale Pie, Carne Asada (I found tri-tip asada instead), a Spanish Rice “type thing” (I settled for Mexican Rice a Roni), and a fruit salad. It was an absolutely gorgeous, perfect August day (unlike today ): We ate outside, and the tamale pie was picturesque! (See photo). Darcy thought I should sell the picture to Pampered Chef. Both Noah and Emma joined us at the table, each in their own child seat on the padded patio chair. They did very well! We didn’t have any mishaps with falling on the patio floor or any such thing. It was a very nice time.
Dessert was a lime cheesecake with cherry topping. An unbelievably easy recipe that, for all its ease, tasted pretty decent.
I tried for all the world to get a good picture of Gabe, but you know Gabe. So, I think I’ll just post what I have. If he doesn’t like them, maybe he’ll figure out how to let me take a nice photo. Do ya think???
The Fair:
It sprinkled off and on when we got there – nothing to worry about. This is Washington, after all, even though it’s August, and we would expect better. Dad left his cap in the truck, and I was in capris and sandals. Bad move! After we’d been there an hour, it began to P-O-U-R! I may have ruined my nice black Birkenstocks. At any rate, I think I ruined the bottoms of my feet! They absorbed a bit of dye from the sandals. We can’t decide if it’s just because we’re getting older, and aren’t in much need of “stuff” or if the commercial sheds have gone downhill. We think the commercial sheds have gone downhill. Lots of window vendors, gutter vendors (appropriate!), a sock display with thousands of socks, and some various and sundry booths. One booth had an aloe-based cream supposed to be really good for eczema. A small jar, maybe an inch and a half across and not quite as tall went for $20. Dad would go through that in one day! So obviously it stayed there.
I decided what I wanted to eat, and stuck to it. Success! Not that I ate great, but I didn’t go overboard. I started out with an Italian chicken wrap that was really huge. But it had a lot of lettuce. Then some ice cream, and then just before we left, I splurged on an elephant ear. They have turned healthy! Whole wheat and honey bread dough. ;) Unless you want to count the grease they’re fried in, and the butter, and sugar they’re drenched with. I dumped all the excess sugar and cinnamon off, and there was still plenty on there. But it was tasty! I came home and ate some yogurt for protein to counteract all that sugar!
I won’t enumerate dad’s eating . . .We enjoyed it, but it would have been more fun if the weather had cooperated a bit more. Dad got really tired, but every place we wanted to sit and rest was wet. So we came home probably earlier than we normally would have, but it was satisfying. I think my fair yen has been quenched for a couple more years!
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Summer Vacations - 2008
Just for you, Aaron, a title! And thank you for giving me the title in the first place! ;)
Okay. In July we went to Montana, but I'm guessing all of you already knew that. Why am I telling you what you already know??? Anyway, I promised to blog, and since we've taken 2 trips in 9 weeks, blog I will. As follows:
First, to Montana over Little Big Horn Days and July 4th. Saw Hannah and Isaiah in a parade. Josh preached at the community service, and we just generally had a super good time. Took Hannah and Isaiah to their first circus. That was a hoot! It was a small (although 3-ring) circus, suitable for a small town. But we went to the afternoon showing on a week day, so it was very sparsely attended. We were able to sit so close! The kids really enjoyed it, and we really enjoyed the kids. Also enjoyed watching Hannah ride an elephant. Also watched the bookends in a soccer practice another day!
It wasn't just about Hannah and Isaiah though. We got some good time with Su, and after a day or two, she began to wake up in a really bad mood. The adults couldn't figure it out, but Hannah had a thought: she thought perhaps Su thought we were no longer there. So I showed myself to Su, and she settled right down! Seems she liked having G-ma and G-pa there. That felt really good!
We also attended the church service the morning we left, and the former pastor was there. That turned out to be a very moving meeting - we were so thankful that God allowed us to be there on that particular Sunday.
Holly and I spent lots of time in R&R - Resting and Relating. It was a very restful visit, and we loved every minute there. Thank you, Josh and Holly, for a great week plus, and for your restful hospitality.
After a couple weeks of work, we took off again for the southern kids. We fly into San Jose, rent a car, and drive south 3 hours on 101 to San Luis Obispo. Surely a slice of heaven on earth - at least weather-ly speaking. Very moderate climate (usually). And although I don't consider myself a beach bum, I do enjoy the beaches they have there. We visited Pismo and Avila Beaches, and Morrow Bay. Pismo has the finest sand I've ever seen. It's almost powdery! A few miles away, Avila Beach sand was so warm, we couldn't walk barefoot on it, and had to crouch under the pier in the shade, where I, of course, hit my head. Every Thursday night they have a farmers' market downtown, where they block off several blocks of a main street. It was very much a fair-like atmosphere - at least where the eating was concerned! Corn on the cob dripping with butter, tri tip, pork, beef, & chicken kabobs, hot dogs, I could go on and on, but the pounds like to pile on just at the thought! Every Thursday night! And their weather almost always cooperates. One of the things I think we enjoyed the most (if you can tell by the number of times we went) was Bali's. It's a serve-yourself yogurt place - about 7 kinds of yogurt, I think. And then bins upon bins upon bins of add-ons. A diabetic's nightmare, and a sweet-tooth's delight! I think we hit that place 3 or 4 times! You took a styro cup (and not a 6-oz cup, either!), from about 10-12 oz all the way to 32 oz cups. Select your yogurt(s), and mix in whatever toppings you wanted. Then pay by the ounce. Thankfully, they always had a sugar-free, fat-free yogurt for me. And it was really yummy. We went to the Old Country Buffet for breakfast this morning, and they had a mini-bar of the same thing. Only it was so far removed from Bali's, I didn't even connect the two until Ric said "It's not Bali's, is it?" No, not quite. I'm gonna miss that place!
Spending time with Taylor and TJ was awesome. We saw a t-shirt at Morrow Bay that I wish I had bought for Tay: it said "Yes I'm a girl. Yes I'm an athlete. Yes I can kick your butt!" She's all girly-girl, and at the same time, loves to play hard and tease her brother. TJ is the most amazing carbon copy of his daddy. It took me a couple of days to get used to that. And throughout the week, he kept doing things that Aaron did, which I had forgotten about, but had a flashback when Tommy did it. He has the cutest way of beckoning you to come when he wants something. Wish I had gotten that on video.
And it was good just being with Aaron and Courtney. Although Courtney had to work a few days while we were there, since she just started, we still had good time together. I hope she was able to rest up after we left. She was pretty busy with company and work, too.
You know, I could go on and on. There's just so much to say, but I promised to start making them not quite so long. So I'm going to quit and try to get a few pictures added. Tomorrow I go back to work, and work an extra half-day for the next 3 weeks. It's a good thing I feel rested!
Until next time. Sayonara.
Okay. In July we went to Montana, but I'm guessing all of you already knew that. Why am I telling you what you already know??? Anyway, I promised to blog, and since we've taken 2 trips in 9 weeks, blog I will. As follows:
First, to Montana over Little Big Horn Days and July 4th. Saw Hannah and Isaiah in a parade. Josh preached at the community service, and we just generally had a super good time. Took Hannah and Isaiah to their first circus. That was a hoot! It was a small (although 3-ring) circus, suitable for a small town. But we went to the afternoon showing on a week day, so it was very sparsely attended. We were able to sit so close! The kids really enjoyed it, and we really enjoyed the kids. Also enjoyed watching Hannah ride an elephant. Also watched the bookends in a soccer practice another day!
It wasn't just about Hannah and Isaiah though. We got some good time with Su, and after a day or two, she began to wake up in a really bad mood. The adults couldn't figure it out, but Hannah had a thought: she thought perhaps Su thought we were no longer there. So I showed myself to Su, and she settled right down! Seems she liked having G-ma and G-pa there. That felt really good!
We also attended the church service the morning we left, and the former pastor was there. That turned out to be a very moving meeting - we were so thankful that God allowed us to be there on that particular Sunday.
Holly and I spent lots of time in R&R - Resting and Relating. It was a very restful visit, and we loved every minute there. Thank you, Josh and Holly, for a great week plus, and for your restful hospitality.
After a couple weeks of work, we took off again for the southern kids. We fly into San Jose, rent a car, and drive south 3 hours on 101 to San Luis Obispo. Surely a slice of heaven on earth - at least weather-ly speaking. Very moderate climate (usually). And although I don't consider myself a beach bum, I do enjoy the beaches they have there. We visited Pismo and Avila Beaches, and Morrow Bay. Pismo has the finest sand I've ever seen. It's almost powdery! A few miles away, Avila Beach sand was so warm, we couldn't walk barefoot on it, and had to crouch under the pier in the shade, where I, of course, hit my head. Every Thursday night they have a farmers' market downtown, where they block off several blocks of a main street. It was very much a fair-like atmosphere - at least where the eating was concerned! Corn on the cob dripping with butter, tri tip, pork, beef, & chicken kabobs, hot dogs, I could go on and on, but the pounds like to pile on just at the thought! Every Thursday night! And their weather almost always cooperates. One of the things I think we enjoyed the most (if you can tell by the number of times we went) was Bali's. It's a serve-yourself yogurt place - about 7 kinds of yogurt, I think. And then bins upon bins upon bins of add-ons. A diabetic's nightmare, and a sweet-tooth's delight! I think we hit that place 3 or 4 times! You took a styro cup (and not a 6-oz cup, either!), from about 10-12 oz all the way to 32 oz cups. Select your yogurt(s), and mix in whatever toppings you wanted. Then pay by the ounce. Thankfully, they always had a sugar-free, fat-free yogurt for me. And it was really yummy. We went to the Old Country Buffet for breakfast this morning, and they had a mini-bar of the same thing. Only it was so far removed from Bali's, I didn't even connect the two until Ric said "It's not Bali's, is it?" No, not quite. I'm gonna miss that place!
Spending time with Taylor and TJ was awesome. We saw a t-shirt at Morrow Bay that I wish I had bought for Tay: it said "Yes I'm a girl. Yes I'm an athlete. Yes I can kick your butt!" She's all girly-girl, and at the same time, loves to play hard and tease her brother. TJ is the most amazing carbon copy of his daddy. It took me a couple of days to get used to that. And throughout the week, he kept doing things that Aaron did, which I had forgotten about, but had a flashback when Tommy did it. He has the cutest way of beckoning you to come when he wants something. Wish I had gotten that on video.
And it was good just being with Aaron and Courtney. Although Courtney had to work a few days while we were there, since she just started, we still had good time together. I hope she was able to rest up after we left. She was pretty busy with company and work, too.
You know, I could go on and on. There's just so much to say, but I promised to start making them not quite so long. So I'm going to quit and try to get a few pictures added. Tomorrow I go back to work, and work an extra half-day for the next 3 weeks. It's a good thing I feel rested!
Until next time. Sayonara.
Friday, August 1, 2008
Tuesday, July 15: I can't believe it's been over a month since I've blogged. I can hardly even believe I'm blogging, period!The video system is coming along. A week ago I was feeling pretty confident, not feeling the need for my mentor's input. Only trouble was that I couldn't get what I saw on the laptop screen to transfer to the big white screen. Ken looked at it and couldn't figure it out, either. Of course, everyone knows I'm new at it, and they all think they can figure it out, even though they have had no training on it. So in a panic, Kaydee came rushing in just before church started, and took one quick look, and held up the video projector cable, waving it in my face. I had failed to connect the video projector to the laptop. Aaaarrrgggghhh.
Tuesday, July 29: And that's the way it goes - two weeks gone by, and I couldn't even finish a post. Continuing with the video projection system: Two Sundays ago, I messed up the current/next screen prompt. Kaydee had to rescue me on that. A simple matter of a drop-down menu having the correct options selected. Then, last Sunday there was another small glitch: I had been asked to make an announcement slide for a 50th anniversary love offering for Wes & Jene. I made it, no problem. But I couldn't figure out how to get it timed to part of the 20-second loop for pre-service slides. So Kaydee to the rescue again. One of these times, it is my sincerest hope that I will be able to do a whole Sunday without her intervention!
Other news: Had a great 9 days in Hardin with Josh, Holly and family. Very relaxing and fun to jump into their lives for a few days and just live with them. Didn't do a lot of sightseeing - been there and done that, although I'm not opposed to return outings. We did reprise the museum trip. That's always interesting. They have a great museum there. Also had dinner with one couple from their church. They have a beautiful property next to a river, with lots of space for the kids to run. Always have a great time with them.
Friday, August 1: And now I find myself getting ready for another trip. We'll soon be winging our way to San Jose, to travel on to SLO. Looking forward to that very much. Guess I should be reserving a car, huh? Why do I always procrastinate on that???
It's been very busy at work. I've been working a lot of hours, and filling in for Ginger. Again. She's had yet another foot surgery, and will be out for 3 weeks. But my boss said I couldn't do her job for 3 weeks again. She needs me on the front desk. That was fine with me. There is another substitute who is helping out, but needs to adjust the schedule a bit to fit everything in. The trouble with that is that it really messes with their minds. A day off here, an hour late there, and every Thursday a different room - I really feel sorry for the poor residents. It's tough on them. Especially on one who is declining at a rapid rate right now. I hate that part of the job.
Gabe worked with me last Monday and Tuesday evening for training. We were deleting some files for people who had moved out (or died). He clicked on one for the main rolodex file, then hit "delete" and poof. Gone! He kinda looked at it, blinked, and said "that's harsh!" Yeah, it's harsh. Just one click of a button, and there's no indication that the person ever existed. I hate that part, too!
Well, this has gone on way too long. I'll try to keep them shorter and more frequent from now on. Sorry for the marathon.
Tuesday, July 29: And that's the way it goes - two weeks gone by, and I couldn't even finish a post. Continuing with the video projection system: Two Sundays ago, I messed up the current/next screen prompt. Kaydee had to rescue me on that. A simple matter of a drop-down menu having the correct options selected. Then, last Sunday there was another small glitch: I had been asked to make an announcement slide for a 50th anniversary love offering for Wes & Jene. I made it, no problem. But I couldn't figure out how to get it timed to part of the 20-second loop for pre-service slides. So Kaydee to the rescue again. One of these times, it is my sincerest hope that I will be able to do a whole Sunday without her intervention!
Other news: Had a great 9 days in Hardin with Josh, Holly and family. Very relaxing and fun to jump into their lives for a few days and just live with them. Didn't do a lot of sightseeing - been there and done that, although I'm not opposed to return outings. We did reprise the museum trip. That's always interesting. They have a great museum there. Also had dinner with one couple from their church. They have a beautiful property next to a river, with lots of space for the kids to run. Always have a great time with them.
Friday, August 1: And now I find myself getting ready for another trip. We'll soon be winging our way to San Jose, to travel on to SLO. Looking forward to that very much. Guess I should be reserving a car, huh? Why do I always procrastinate on that???
It's been very busy at work. I've been working a lot of hours, and filling in for Ginger. Again. She's had yet another foot surgery, and will be out for 3 weeks. But my boss said I couldn't do her job for 3 weeks again. She needs me on the front desk. That was fine with me. There is another substitute who is helping out, but needs to adjust the schedule a bit to fit everything in. The trouble with that is that it really messes with their minds. A day off here, an hour late there, and every Thursday a different room - I really feel sorry for the poor residents. It's tough on them. Especially on one who is declining at a rapid rate right now. I hate that part of the job.
Gabe worked with me last Monday and Tuesday evening for training. We were deleting some files for people who had moved out (or died). He clicked on one for the main rolodex file, then hit "delete" and poof. Gone! He kinda looked at it, blinked, and said "that's harsh!" Yeah, it's harsh. Just one click of a button, and there's no indication that the person ever existed. I hate that part, too!
Well, this has gone on way too long. I'll try to keep them shorter and more frequent from now on. Sorry for the marathon.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Video Projection
Well, here I am again. Not a whole lot new, but I'm at work and bored. Fifty minutes to go, and have all my work done, as well as a few other people's. And I'm trying to stay away from the molasses crinkles in the Bistro (only 5 last time I looked, and I promised Gabe I'd not eat all the cookies if he was following my shift ;) and the brownie which I snagged from the kitchen. It's staring at me, and I'm pretty much avoiding it. Think I'll save that for him, too, in spite of the fact that he's not a chocolate lover.
Sunday last, Kaydee skipped town to spend Father's Day with her folks at Leavenworth, and left me to run the video by myself. Wes is on 2 weeks' vacation, so Jesse was preaching. Jesse can't preach without playing a video clip. This time it was from "Hook". But that was a little beyond my abilities (for a first solo run, anyway), so told him no. Was hopeful that he'd have to do without, but the sound tech managed to do it from his equipment. Darn! I really dislike those video clips in the Sunday morning service. Youth groups - fine. Sunday morning with a church full of 50- to 70-somethings. Eh. Anyway, the video process worked pretty smoothly. No major glitches. Actually, I was a bit late getting one song up because a couple of people directly in front of me were playing musical chairs - like moving the chairs, not just bodies. Very distracting. If nothing else, this job is forcing me to hone my focusing skills. Anyway, I was encouraged for the first solo run. We'll see if she wants to meet Friday, or if she lets me run with it this week. I enjoy it. It's a lot of fun.
I think that's going to be it for this time. Blessings.
Sunday last, Kaydee skipped town to spend Father's Day with her folks at Leavenworth, and left me to run the video by myself. Wes is on 2 weeks' vacation, so Jesse was preaching. Jesse can't preach without playing a video clip. This time it was from "Hook". But that was a little beyond my abilities (for a first solo run, anyway), so told him no. Was hopeful that he'd have to do without, but the sound tech managed to do it from his equipment. Darn! I really dislike those video clips in the Sunday morning service. Youth groups - fine. Sunday morning with a church full of 50- to 70-somethings. Eh. Anyway, the video process worked pretty smoothly. No major glitches. Actually, I was a bit late getting one song up because a couple of people directly in front of me were playing musical chairs - like moving the chairs, not just bodies. Very distracting. If nothing else, this job is forcing me to hone my focusing skills. Anyway, I was encouraged for the first solo run. We'll see if she wants to meet Friday, or if she lets me run with it this week. I enjoy it. It's a lot of fun.
I think that's going to be it for this time. Blessings.
Friday, June 6, 2008
Cake decorating?
This seems to have come out of left field, but my cake decorating box is in the house, at the ready. Sunday the Mexico team is having a finger food potluck and silent auction, and I felt prompted - repeatedly - to donate a certificate for a cake. But since the church merge, many don't know what I can do, so thought I should take an actual cake as well. So, I have a white cake cooling, lemon filling in the refrigerator, and icing ingredients standing by. Tomorrow I will decorate an oval cake into a basket of roses for the auction, and I'm taking my filled chocolate cupcakes for the finger food potluck - with flowers, of course. Hopefully that might spark some bidding on the cake! The certificate will be a future item, but I'm requiring a couple weeks' notice. Don't want that interferring with my vacations! (Edited: Pictures added on request. I'm not used to this; I'm TiReD!!)
Saturday June 21st is Posit Science graduation at work. Last time, December just after Christmas, I had them make the cake at work, ice it, and I just decorated it. The cake was embarrasing! :( It was truly one of the worst cakes I've ever eaten. SO - you know me. I had to open my big mouth and say I wanted to make the next one. That falls on June 21st. June 25 is my big dinner with my cousins, Lorraine and Bob, and Dennis and Betty. The 27th we leave for Montana (yea! YIKES!) How did I get myself so booked up??? And just got an email from Bob & Sue saying they're coming over from Goldendale where they now live, on the weekend of June 21st. Okay. NO MORE BEFORE MONTANA!! Anyway, consequently, today I went shopping and got a few articles of clothing, desperately needed. And I'm waiting on a new pair of shoes that have been ordered. Happened on a couple of incredible sales: at one store, buy one, get one for $1. Got a pair of jeans for a buck, plus had a coupon for a free tee. At the other store, buy one, get one 50% off, and a coupon for a free tank. With purchase of $25, which is not hard to do these days. Anyway, felt like I hit the jackpot today :)
Monday I took my computer glasses out of my purse and they fell into 2 pieces. Had no time until today to get to Costco. Thought they were new in September, but only the lenses were new. The frames were six years old! No wonder they fell apart! Didn't really plan on buying new glasses right now, but gotta have 'em.
Remember I said I was learning the video projector ministry at church? Well, she sent the laptop home with me today. I'm scheduled every Sunday through mid-September, with the exception of my vacation Sundays, at my request so I can get fairly comfortable with it. This old dog is still learning new tricks! My favorite trick (which I haven't used yet) is the instant slide that I can click on that will immediately throw a message on the screen: "It's not my fault!"
There was more, but it has flown the coop. As usual. So that's my week. Hope you're all doing well.
Saturday June 21st is Posit Science graduation at work. Last time, December just after Christmas, I had them make the cake at work, ice it, and I just decorated it. The cake was embarrasing! :( It was truly one of the worst cakes I've ever eaten. SO - you know me. I had to open my big mouth and say I wanted to make the next one. That falls on June 21st. June 25 is my big dinner with my cousins, Lorraine and Bob, and Dennis and Betty. The 27th we leave for Montana (yea! YIKES!) How did I get myself so booked up??? And just got an email from Bob & Sue saying they're coming over from Goldendale where they now live, on the weekend of June 21st. Okay. NO MORE BEFORE MONTANA!! Anyway, consequently, today I went shopping and got a few articles of clothing, desperately needed. And I'm waiting on a new pair of shoes that have been ordered. Happened on a couple of incredible sales: at one store, buy one, get one for $1. Got a pair of jeans for a buck, plus had a coupon for a free tee. At the other store, buy one, get one 50% off, and a coupon for a free tank. With purchase of $25, which is not hard to do these days. Anyway, felt like I hit the jackpot today :)
Monday I took my computer glasses out of my purse and they fell into 2 pieces. Had no time until today to get to Costco. Thought they were new in September, but only the lenses were new. The frames were six years old! No wonder they fell apart! Didn't really plan on buying new glasses right now, but gotta have 'em.
Remember I said I was learning the video projector ministry at church? Well, she sent the laptop home with me today. I'm scheduled every Sunday through mid-September, with the exception of my vacation Sundays, at my request so I can get fairly comfortable with it. This old dog is still learning new tricks! My favorite trick (which I haven't used yet) is the instant slide that I can click on that will immediately throw a message on the screen: "It's not my fault!"
There was more, but it has flown the coop. As usual. So that's my week. Hope you're all doing well.
Sunday, June 1, 2008
Relay for Life
Yesterday, May 31st was the National Cancer Society of America’s Relay for Life. I’ve never done anything like this before, but my good friend Karen Thiessen is dealing with her fourth outbreak of melanoma. She decided to sponsor a team, and well, everybody loves Karen! She had a huge support system with her.
It was quite a thing to be a part of. I’ll try not to be too long-winded about it, but here goes:
It was held at Cascade High School. Karen had to have a booth set up (as did all 40 teams) with some kind of fund raiser going on in each booth the whole time. Karen did silent auction gift baskets. I think she had 15-17 baskets, most of them quite huge. Everything in them was donated. From the silent auction alone, she raised well over $900. Wow.
The Relay took place on the running track. Almost all of the booths were on the inside ring of the track. There was a bandstand, speakers, several different bands, etc. Our support role was to collect monies beforehand, and walk. Each team had to have a representative on the track at all times – for 24 hours. There were 40 teams in this particular relay. In the evening, they put out white slightly-larger-than-lunch-bag size bags that people had decorated with names of someone they wanted to honor or remember. Each bag cost $5 to enter. They had a block of wood in the bottom with a light stick inside. A luminary. I kid you not, those bags were lined up side to side, sometimes touching even, all the way around the inside track of that racetrack. That’s a quarter of a mile, I’m told. I can’t even begin to imagine how many there were. As I walked around and around the track, looking at the bags, I was overwhelmed with the stories represented. Some indicated a message of “miss you”, while others communicated a message of “keep the faith” or “there’s always hope”.
Aunt Lorraine and her new husband came up and Lorraine and I walked for an hour and a quarter, from 11:45a to 1:00 p. I felt tired but fine. But today. . . Today I stood up from a counter stool and my knees buckled under me. Three times! I had to literally catch myself on the counter or I’d have been on the floor. I feel a little like a light case of shin splints as well. But it’s minor. Anyway, Lorraine and Bob went home afterwards, and I went to my home. I hadn’t really known what to do with the bags, having never done anything like this before, and having no confidence in my creative self. But I came home and did up a bag. When dad got home from work, we went back to the field and I paid my $5 to enter a bag. We chatted for a bit, and left. At 10pm, we went back to the field for the luminary ceremony. It was really quite touching, seeing all those bags, and again, wondering about the stories behind each. It was poignant timing in that our church lost a 50-something fella to cancer on Wednesday. His name was added to more than one bag that I saw.
Kaydee told me this morning that Karen raised well over $4000 with her booth and donations. And last night Karen said that there had been a glitch in her new experimental treatment she was to be starting, but that it has been un-glitched, and she will be getting information from the doctors about starting treatment some time this week. I have to wonder, melanoma being the most deadly form of cancer, what will the bags from her friends and family say on them next year?
Please pray for Karen and her family as she prepares to start a new treatment. Her spirit is amazing. And she is at complete peace.
It was quite a thing to be a part of. I’ll try not to be too long-winded about it, but here goes:
It was held at Cascade High School. Karen had to have a booth set up (as did all 40 teams) with some kind of fund raiser going on in each booth the whole time. Karen did silent auction gift baskets. I think she had 15-17 baskets, most of them quite huge. Everything in them was donated. From the silent auction alone, she raised well over $900. Wow.
The Relay took place on the running track. Almost all of the booths were on the inside ring of the track. There was a bandstand, speakers, several different bands, etc. Our support role was to collect monies beforehand, and walk. Each team had to have a representative on the track at all times – for 24 hours. There were 40 teams in this particular relay. In the evening, they put out white slightly-larger-than-lunch-bag size bags that people had decorated with names of someone they wanted to honor or remember. Each bag cost $5 to enter. They had a block of wood in the bottom with a light stick inside. A luminary. I kid you not, those bags were lined up side to side, sometimes touching even, all the way around the inside track of that racetrack. That’s a quarter of a mile, I’m told. I can’t even begin to imagine how many there were. As I walked around and around the track, looking at the bags, I was overwhelmed with the stories represented. Some indicated a message of “miss you”, while others communicated a message of “keep the faith” or “there’s always hope”.
Aunt Lorraine and her new husband came up and Lorraine and I walked for an hour and a quarter, from 11:45a to 1:00 p. I felt tired but fine. But today. . . Today I stood up from a counter stool and my knees buckled under me. Three times! I had to literally catch myself on the counter or I’d have been on the floor. I feel a little like a light case of shin splints as well. But it’s minor. Anyway, Lorraine and Bob went home afterwards, and I went to my home. I hadn’t really known what to do with the bags, having never done anything like this before, and having no confidence in my creative self. But I came home and did up a bag. When dad got home from work, we went back to the field and I paid my $5 to enter a bag. We chatted for a bit, and left. At 10pm, we went back to the field for the luminary ceremony. It was really quite touching, seeing all those bags, and again, wondering about the stories behind each. It was poignant timing in that our church lost a 50-something fella to cancer on Wednesday. His name was added to more than one bag that I saw.
Kaydee told me this morning that Karen raised well over $4000 with her booth and donations. And last night Karen said that there had been a glitch in her new experimental treatment she was to be starting, but that it has been un-glitched, and she will be getting information from the doctors about starting treatment some time this week. I have to wonder, melanoma being the most deadly form of cancer, what will the bags from her friends and family say on them next year?
Please pray for Karen and her family as she prepares to start a new treatment. Her spirit is amazing. And she is at complete peace.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Work - not all bad :)
Okay - pardon a bit of self back-patting, if you don't mind. Hope not too many people other than my kids read this! ;)
Tomorrow we are having a party. a HUGE Party, with a capital "P". It is the centennial birthday celebration of our center - or main - building, which had its start as Washington Elementary School. We have people living at Washington Oakes who went to school there, taught there, and had one who was instrumental in turning it into what it is today. So there's a Party. The CEO of all of Leisure Care (according to the internet, 29 properties - and counting) will be there, as will the mayor of Everett. It's a REALLY big deal. They sent out a thousand hand-made invitations. Everybody who gets a paycheck from Washington Oakes has something to do with the preparation for this Party. Tuesday night, it occurred to me that we might need extra brochures. So I made up 12, plus those that were already done, so we had 20. Today the Marketing Dept. decided we needed 50. I started putting them together. Then the Front Desk (FD) Supv. asked Marketing where the info is for the Father's Day Gala. They are supposed to go out tomorrow (Friday), and we had yet to see one piece of paper for that. The gal who used to put those together has gone on to greener pastures after 7+ years there. The 2 marketing reps are up to their eyeballs with The Party, so they wanted their co-worker to make up the flyer. Only she's not too comfy on the computer. Pretty soon they brought it down for me to do, and she was going to do the brochures. Only she ended up doing something else. So . . . I put together all the brochures (they are fairly elaborate with 17 separate sheets of paper, plus the closure and 2 business cards tucked into little slits that don't open easily, all without popping the glued edge open), plus making up a flyer for the first time. Got approval from the chef, the GM, the marketing dept., ran 550 copies. Showed 80-yr. old Japanese co-worker how to fold them so we could put the mailing label on as a seal, no envelope. Hopefully they won't end up upside down, crooked, etc. like he did last time. Nurse called FD to see if we smelled something burning. (No.) No more than 10 seconds later, the emergency cord was pulled, setting off a cacophony of bells and whistles, claiming a fire in apt. 236, north building, east wing. ALL staff runs when an emergency cord is pulled. Except FD, who stays put to be Command Central. Called Fire Dept. Chaos reigned. Residents call to find out what's going on. Are we evacuating? (Not at this time.) One problematic staff member who won't SHUT UP tried to involve the FD supv. in a discourse about what was happening, why, where, when, etc. Thing is, at a time like this, it's basic info, do as told, get off the phone. Anyway, I digress. Turned out there were no flames. They think a resident put something in the microwave, and possibly mis-set it for too long (like 30 minutes instead of 30 seconds), and fell asleep. Woke up by the smoke alarm going off, and smoke so thick she could hardly breathe. Anyway, remember The Party? Can you imagine what all has been going on for 3 weeks to get ready for this? New paint. Cleaned carpets, 5 yards of bark distributed in the flower beds. Power washing the outside. Tile cleaners to clean grout. Scrubbing tile floors with a scrub brush. Replacing tile in bathrooms. On and on it goes. It's just a good thing the fire was in the north building and not the central, main building. Oh - did I mention that yesterday the south building had one of their 2 hot water tanks blow? Leaks from the 3rd floor to the 2nd floor. Today, water turned off all day to replace both HUGE tanks. Good grief. Can anything more go wrong???
Anyway, I did the brochures and invitations on top of all the other things I normally do, plus a bunch of stuff I didn't mention. I worked over about 20 minutes is all. It was a good day - felt really good about all that I got accomplished. On top of that, I got some kudos from the kitchen staff last week for handling the life enhancement class in a way they appreciated - and wished the regular teacher would handle them.
It feels good to know I'm where I'm supposed to be! PTL And thanks for listening :)
Tomorrow we are having a party. a HUGE Party, with a capital "P". It is the centennial birthday celebration of our center - or main - building, which had its start as Washington Elementary School. We have people living at Washington Oakes who went to school there, taught there, and had one who was instrumental in turning it into what it is today. So there's a Party. The CEO of all of Leisure Care (according to the internet, 29 properties - and counting) will be there, as will the mayor of Everett. It's a REALLY big deal. They sent out a thousand hand-made invitations. Everybody who gets a paycheck from Washington Oakes has something to do with the preparation for this Party. Tuesday night, it occurred to me that we might need extra brochures. So I made up 12, plus those that were already done, so we had 20. Today the Marketing Dept. decided we needed 50. I started putting them together. Then the Front Desk (FD) Supv. asked Marketing where the info is for the Father's Day Gala. They are supposed to go out tomorrow (Friday), and we had yet to see one piece of paper for that. The gal who used to put those together has gone on to greener pastures after 7+ years there. The 2 marketing reps are up to their eyeballs with The Party, so they wanted their co-worker to make up the flyer. Only she's not too comfy on the computer. Pretty soon they brought it down for me to do, and she was going to do the brochures. Only she ended up doing something else. So . . . I put together all the brochures (they are fairly elaborate with 17 separate sheets of paper, plus the closure and 2 business cards tucked into little slits that don't open easily, all without popping the glued edge open), plus making up a flyer for the first time. Got approval from the chef, the GM, the marketing dept., ran 550 copies. Showed 80-yr. old Japanese co-worker how to fold them so we could put the mailing label on as a seal, no envelope. Hopefully they won't end up upside down, crooked, etc. like he did last time. Nurse called FD to see if we smelled something burning. (No.) No more than 10 seconds later, the emergency cord was pulled, setting off a cacophony of bells and whistles, claiming a fire in apt. 236, north building, east wing. ALL staff runs when an emergency cord is pulled. Except FD, who stays put to be Command Central. Called Fire Dept. Chaos reigned. Residents call to find out what's going on. Are we evacuating? (Not at this time.) One problematic staff member who won't SHUT UP tried to involve the FD supv. in a discourse about what was happening, why, where, when, etc. Thing is, at a time like this, it's basic info, do as told, get off the phone. Anyway, I digress. Turned out there were no flames. They think a resident put something in the microwave, and possibly mis-set it for too long (like 30 minutes instead of 30 seconds), and fell asleep. Woke up by the smoke alarm going off, and smoke so thick she could hardly breathe. Anyway, remember The Party? Can you imagine what all has been going on for 3 weeks to get ready for this? New paint. Cleaned carpets, 5 yards of bark distributed in the flower beds. Power washing the outside. Tile cleaners to clean grout. Scrubbing tile floors with a scrub brush. Replacing tile in bathrooms. On and on it goes. It's just a good thing the fire was in the north building and not the central, main building. Oh - did I mention that yesterday the south building had one of their 2 hot water tanks blow? Leaks from the 3rd floor to the 2nd floor. Today, water turned off all day to replace both HUGE tanks. Good grief. Can anything more go wrong???
Anyway, I did the brochures and invitations on top of all the other things I normally do, plus a bunch of stuff I didn't mention. I worked over about 20 minutes is all. It was a good day - felt really good about all that I got accomplished. On top of that, I got some kudos from the kitchen staff last week for handling the life enhancement class in a way they appreciated - and wished the regular teacher would handle them.
It feels good to know I'm where I'm supposed to be! PTL And thanks for listening :)
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
WOE IS ME...
WOE IS ME… ALAS AND ALACK, I AM UNDONE!!! (Mom said I was to make this dramatic). Pestilence, plague, sack cloth and ashes; and… and… oh well - my garbage disposal died.
Now listen - that may not be a big deal to some of you who are mechanical inclined or not befuddled by electrical do-dadery. But that’s not my lot in life. The last time I was under the sink, trying to tighten the ring on the soap dispenser that is part of the sink, I almost got stuck!! No kidding…pipes, drains, cords, water lines, hoses, disposal… there just isn’t that much room under there; not for a king sized old boy like me. I couldn’t even get a hold of the soap dispenser ring. So when it came to changing the disposal I just admitted defeat. I went to Home Depot, bought one, scheduled some one to come out and install it and took it home.
That was last Friday – black Friday. They said they would be out next Friday, a week later - for a princely sum. Like they say, you never realize just how dependant you are on something until you don’t have it. Every time I stuffed something down the disposal, the non-working disposal, I had to dig it out and walk it over to the garage. Oh, that reminds me – I have to take the garbage out tonight; please don’t let me forget. Anyway I didn’t think Mom would like that stuff sitting down there until the garbage disposal changing man came out.
So… imagine my surprise when Gabe called me up asking where I keep the plumber’s putty… right, like I keep plumber’s putty on hand. If it can’t be repaired with scotch tape, duct tape or Gorilla Glue, I’m out of luck. When I got home Gabe and the old disposal out and the new one completely installed. HALLELUJAH! What a sweet deal!!!!!! I got to call up the disposal changing person cancel the appointment. The crazy thing is so quite I had to throw a carrot down there to made sure it was working…eerie.
Thanks a lot Gabe; I really appreciate what you did - it is really neat to have that taken care of (see how handy he is)!
Now listen - that may not be a big deal to some of you who are mechanical inclined or not befuddled by electrical do-dadery. But that’s not my lot in life. The last time I was under the sink, trying to tighten the ring on the soap dispenser that is part of the sink, I almost got stuck!! No kidding…pipes, drains, cords, water lines, hoses, disposal… there just isn’t that much room under there; not for a king sized old boy like me. I couldn’t even get a hold of the soap dispenser ring. So when it came to changing the disposal I just admitted defeat. I went to Home Depot, bought one, scheduled some one to come out and install it and took it home.
That was last Friday – black Friday. They said they would be out next Friday, a week later - for a princely sum. Like they say, you never realize just how dependant you are on something until you don’t have it. Every time I stuffed something down the disposal, the non-working disposal, I had to dig it out and walk it over to the garage. Oh, that reminds me – I have to take the garbage out tonight; please don’t let me forget. Anyway I didn’t think Mom would like that stuff sitting down there until the garbage disposal changing man came out.
So… imagine my surprise when Gabe called me up asking where I keep the plumber’s putty… right, like I keep plumber’s putty on hand. If it can’t be repaired with scotch tape, duct tape or Gorilla Glue, I’m out of luck. When I got home Gabe and the old disposal out and the new one completely installed. HALLELUJAH! What a sweet deal!!!!!! I got to call up the disposal changing person cancel the appointment. The crazy thing is so quite I had to throw a carrot down there to made sure it was working…eerie.
Thanks a lot Gabe; I really appreciate what you did - it is really neat to have that taken care of (see how handy he is)!
So Refreshing!
After 2 very long days at work, I don't have to go in until 1PM today. So, no alarm! Woke up about 7, thinking "plant! plant! plant!" So I donned work clothes and out I went. The air was heavy with moisture, but I was undaunted! Monday at Wal-Mart, my first stop was in the plants, of course. And since then, this was my first opportunity to plant. By the time I'd finished - 2 hours later - it was definitely showering. I was pretty wet, but boy, did I feel good! :) The summer before last was my first year with the new yard. I went a little crazy with pots (which had been incorporated into the plan by the landscape designer, at my request). But last year was the first year I was working so many more hours, so the pots kind of fell by the wayside. I chastized myself for spending so much on pots the year before, and then not filling them last summer. Well, I've been working at WaO for over a year now, and my body has acclimated. I've really enjoyed potting up this year, in spite of the wet weather. I don't have so many fancy plants, but went with a lot of cheaper ones, which gives more color for the money. I will add a few trailers to existing pots yet, to flesh them out a bit more. And I'd like one hanging pot of begonias. My three favorites - impatiens, fuschia, and begonia - I usually hang along the back side of the house in front of the kitchen window and patio doors. One of each, and I can be happy. So, that's my story for today. Oh - one more thing, but Dad said he'd do that tonight. Check back later!
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
So Tired!
Well, my co-worker, the GM's dad who works most evening shifts, is in Japan this week. So I'm covering his shift, as well as doing my normal thing. It will be a 43.5-hour week for me. Not being too smart, and feeling a desperate need to take advantage of the incredible weather we had last weekend, I worked my tail off in the yard on Saturday, plus a bit on Sunday night - had some bulbs needed planting. Then added Costco and Top Foods to the list on Sunday as well. Of course I went to church too! Monday morning I hit Wal-Mart for my major grocery shopping. That appears to have given a long week a rough start! But tomorrow (Wednesday) I don't have to show up at work until 1PM, so I'll not be setting the alarm. And I just hope to get a little time in the AM to plant some of the flowers I bought at Wal-Mart - if it's not raining again! Dad's working 58 hours a week for some months, now. I don't get much overtime - they really don't like to pay overtime here! - but it all goes into the travel fund. Getting anxious to see those grandkids (and their parents ;) But it makes for tired old bodies!
Anyway, that's all I've got for today. No - one more thing. Anyone who wants to can pray that I'll get some control back on the diet. I just have not been good! :( Thanks.
Anyway, that's all I've got for today. No - one more thing. Anyone who wants to can pray that I'll get some control back on the diet. I just have not been good! :( Thanks.
Monday, May 19, 2008
New post...
Well… it’s been a week or so since the last blog, and not much has really happened. We went to Top Foods and saw a cat on the conveyer belt. As we stood in line we heard the checker holding up a cat, showing it to his co-workers and really making over it. Pat said she saw the cat on the conveyer belt of the checkout counter. I really didn’t what him handling my groceries, so we moved to the next line. The clerk was still making over the cat as the shoppers stacked up in line.
Pat has been hard at it, working in the yard. Planting, weeding, raking, cleaning up and planning.; planning on what to buy next, where to put it. I helped her when I got home from work by holding open the garbage bad so she could put in the weeds she pulled earlier. I had previously filled the yard waste container with grass. She got to use what is probably her most favorite tool, the telescoping rake. She just loves that crazy thing. Not only does the handle telescope in and out, or up and down, she can adjust the width of the span of the tines. They can be set for a full span like any rake, or reduced to span only a few inches. Normally helping her is not dangerous. But while I was holding the bag open for her, she kept swinging around with the rake at port arms and whacking me across the face. I had to stay alert!!
Saturday was a gorgeous day so we fired up the barbie for the first time this year… hamburgers. The next day we followed it up with my personal favorite, HOT DOGS. Yum-yum!! Pat is so thoughtful- she bought two kinds of dogs, reduced fat and reduced sodium (Dr. told me to cut down on salt). Unfortunately, the buns were too big for the dogs. So since I had to use two dogs per bun, I split the difference and had one reduced fat dog and one reduced sodium dog. Of course there were lots and lots of onions. Yum-yummy!
I’m growing my beard back… a good beard can hide a multitude of past sins.
Pat has been hard at it, working in the yard. Planting, weeding, raking, cleaning up and planning.; planning on what to buy next, where to put it. I helped her when I got home from work by holding open the garbage bad so she could put in the weeds she pulled earlier. I had previously filled the yard waste container with grass. She got to use what is probably her most favorite tool, the telescoping rake. She just loves that crazy thing. Not only does the handle telescope in and out, or up and down, she can adjust the width of the span of the tines. They can be set for a full span like any rake, or reduced to span only a few inches. Normally helping her is not dangerous. But while I was holding the bag open for her, she kept swinging around with the rake at port arms and whacking me across the face. I had to stay alert!!
Saturday was a gorgeous day so we fired up the barbie for the first time this year… hamburgers. The next day we followed it up with my personal favorite, HOT DOGS. Yum-yum!! Pat is so thoughtful- she bought two kinds of dogs, reduced fat and reduced sodium (Dr. told me to cut down on salt). Unfortunately, the buns were too big for the dogs. So since I had to use two dogs per bun, I split the difference and had one reduced fat dog and one reduced sodium dog. Of course there were lots and lots of onions. Yum-yummy!
I’m growing my beard back… a good beard can hide a multitude of past sins.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
What an evening...
And what a neat thing it was… tonight I had dinner with my wife Pat. You see, on Mondays and Tuesdays she works evenings so on those days we don’t see much of each other. So I decided to go to her work place tonight and join her for dinner. I have dined with her at work twice before and really enjoyed it. They have wonderful food! But it’s not just the good food; there is another reason why I love eating with her in the dining room.
It has happened each time I’ve eaten there and I was sure it would happen again. We were seated in the dining room, got our food… and I just waited for it to happen. For a while nothing happened and I began to wonder… would it? I noticed a few people looking at us, and I wondered… finally it happened. One of the residents arose, came over to us and asked if I was her husband. Pat introduced us and the lady began to tell me what a wonderful person Pat is and the terrific job she is doing. She wasn’t the only one. Later on another resident did the same and finally a third one. The last one was emphatic about how Pat added to the beauty of the place and how she helped make it such a pleasant place to live.
I know what a beautiful person and blessing she is, but I am so thankful others see it also and take the time to share. I really, really get a kick out of it!!!!
It has happened each time I’ve eaten there and I was sure it would happen again. We were seated in the dining room, got our food… and I just waited for it to happen. For a while nothing happened and I began to wonder… would it? I noticed a few people looking at us, and I wondered… finally it happened. One of the residents arose, came over to us and asked if I was her husband. Pat introduced us and the lady began to tell me what a wonderful person Pat is and the terrific job she is doing. She wasn’t the only one. Later on another resident did the same and finally a third one. The last one was emphatic about how Pat added to the beauty of the place and how she helped make it such a pleasant place to live.
I know what a beautiful person and blessing she is, but I am so thankful others see it also and take the time to share. I really, really get a kick out of it!!!!
Toilets
Aaarrrggghhh. I fear I'm making myself indispensible at work. When I found a job after the church secretary job, I sure didn't expect to be plunging toilets! :( But that's what I had to do tonight. You know, it seems that when people get . . . "older", they forget how to use the toilet. Or perhaps I should say they forget exactly how to care for a toilet. We have more overflows here. For a few residents who have a recurring issue in this area, they are installing "power flush" toilets. You want to stand back when you flush or it just might suck anything too close down! I made sure I emptied my pockets before bending over it! Okay. Enough on that subject. Usually I can call one of the health and wellness gals, but, no luck in that area tonight. I was it. Aarrgghhhhh.
Monday, May 12, 2008
Mother's Day
Saturday Pat and I went with Gabe and his family to Smokey Point Church for the dedication of their children. It was very cool and Pastor Bryce had a real neat prayer for Emma and Noah! It was a real privilege to be a part of it; thanks guys!! Although, it was kind of weird for me to be in church Saturday night, without it being an extra service of our own. The service was warm, friendly and very good. The Pastor was actually preaching along the line of what our pastor is presently preaching... who we are in Christ. Actually, it was a nice way to prepare for our own worship time on Sunday.
For Mother's Day I offered to make Pat a steak dinner and provide her with new books and peaceful, quite place to read them it. But she wanted something different... a day at Molbak's. Molbak's is an up scale yuppie type nursery in Woodenville which not only sales plants and flowers, but furniture, yard art, inside/outside decorations and anything else they can convince you belongs in this category. Mom wanted to go because they expanded their "snack bar" to include soups, sandwiches, salads. lattes, quiche and the like. The line was very long, but the eating area has a big ol' huge fountain in the middle of it and tons on tropical plants all around. Pat enjoyed every bit of it. Even the standing in line... even when she found out they didn't have what we came for. Oh well, she had many other places in mind for us to go to get flowers, and we did. It was very pleasant and relaxing to be able to spend the time with her.
I realize that Aaron and Courtney were separated literally by the world, but I hope everyone else had a wonderful Mother's Day!!!
Love ya all,
Dad
For Mother's Day I offered to make Pat a steak dinner and provide her with new books and peaceful, quite place to read them it. But she wanted something different... a day at Molbak's. Molbak's is an up scale yuppie type nursery in Woodenville which not only sales plants and flowers, but furniture, yard art, inside/outside decorations and anything else they can convince you belongs in this category. Mom wanted to go because they expanded their "snack bar" to include soups, sandwiches, salads. lattes, quiche and the like. The line was very long, but the eating area has a big ol' huge fountain in the middle of it and tons on tropical plants all around. Pat enjoyed every bit of it. Even the standing in line... even when she found out they didn't have what we came for. Oh well, she had many other places in mind for us to go to get flowers, and we did. It was very pleasant and relaxing to be able to spend the time with her.
I realize that Aaron and Courtney were separated literally by the world, but I hope everyone else had a wonderful Mother's Day!!!
Love ya all,
Dad
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Ouch!
This looks nastier than it is. Yesterday at one point, I looked down and saw this. I have NO IDEA when I got it, or where. Absolutely blank. It doesn't really hurt. I can feel it every once in a while, if I'm thinking about it. It looks like it should hurt! ;)
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Not much to say
Hi all
Well, I haven't been blogging because I have nothing to say. What I've had to say, I've said on my kids' blogs, and other than that, life goes on. I don't see much point in blogging just to take up space!
The video thing at church is coming along quite nicely. I've pretty much got the normal stuff down, with not too much thinking through the steps. I'm hoping that in a couple more weeks, I'll be able to relax enough at church to sing along with the congregation! I had no idea just how much goes into putting the whole service on the screen.
Oh - I got a raise at work! Yippee! Just 55 cents an hour, but it's better than having that much taken away from me! So I'm not complaining. ;) April 23 was my 1st anniversary there, hence the raise.
I'm looking forward to my day off tomorrow. Lots on my plate: yardwork (if it's not raining, of course), meet with Kaydee, a pedicure for Mother's Day (yea!) and a house to clean because in 5 weeks or so, I'm having that houseful of company and I have a lot of catching up to do. Well, the list could go on and on, but now I'm posting just to be taking up space. Sorry. Y'all have a good weekend.
Well, I haven't been blogging because I have nothing to say. What I've had to say, I've said on my kids' blogs, and other than that, life goes on. I don't see much point in blogging just to take up space!
The video thing at church is coming along quite nicely. I've pretty much got the normal stuff down, with not too much thinking through the steps. I'm hoping that in a couple more weeks, I'll be able to relax enough at church to sing along with the congregation! I had no idea just how much goes into putting the whole service on the screen.
Oh - I got a raise at work! Yippee! Just 55 cents an hour, but it's better than having that much taken away from me! So I'm not complaining. ;) April 23 was my 1st anniversary there, hence the raise.
I'm looking forward to my day off tomorrow. Lots on my plate: yardwork (if it's not raining, of course), meet with Kaydee, a pedicure for Mother's Day (yea!) and a house to clean because in 5 weeks or so, I'm having that houseful of company and I have a lot of catching up to do. Well, the list could go on and on, but now I'm posting just to be taking up space. Sorry. Y'all have a good weekend.
Friday, April 4, 2008
church
I meet every Friday with Kaydee, who's teaching me to run the video projector. It's fun, but there is an awful lot to learn! So, we've been piddling around off and on for a couple of months now, and last month Karen was doing the Sunday morning thing, so in spite of being asked if I wanted to set it up on Fridays, I declined because I felt that Karen should do it if she was doing Sunday mornings. She's not as comfy with it as Kaydee is (but definitely more so than I am!). So, today Kaydee informed me that come this Sunday, I will be handling the laptop during practice, and if it goes okay, also the service. It should be easy - it's just music. Her grandpa is "preaching" so there are no sermon notes to do. But I'm accompanying her grandpa who's singing a closing solo, and I haven't done anything like that in so long, I'm a bit keyed up about that. So Sunday will be a high-adrenaline day for me. But I'm looking forward to it. I don't think God made me to just be a pew warmer. It's been okay for awhile, but I'm getting pretty antsy in the pew! ;)
"The best thing to hold dementia/alzheimers at bay is to learn a new skill and master it."
I'm working at it! Don't want to end up a blubbering burden on one of your doorsteps! ;)
Monday, March 24, 2008
Doin' Better
Okay, reporting in . . . I stayed home all day - and down. Talked to my boss about coming in tomorrow, but not for an eleven-hour day, so my boss suggested instead of doing the split thing, I just work 3:30-10 tomorrow, which gives me a late morning to relax - unless I decide to go grocery shopping at Wal-Mart. Dad offered to stop off at Costco and Top Foods on his way home tomorrow, which I appreciate immensely, so I have made out a list, just for him! ;) Tomorrow night I plan to go back to the comfort of my bed. The chair will need some recuperation time!
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Sick
Well, POOH! I have succumbed to the miserable respiratory thing going around, and am down for the count on Easter Sunday. And I'm gonna miss the Easter breakfast. Aaarrrggghhh. And I'm gonna sleep in the chair so this has less chance of jumping to the other side of the bed in our sleep. And the way I feel, I'll be surprised if I'm ready to go to work on Monday afternoon, but they are already aware of that fact. But, no work - no money. This wasn't in the plans!! And so I'll quit whinning now. Hope y'all get/stay well. And esp. hope dad doesn't get this. Y'all know what happens when he gets sick! :(
Monday, March 17, 2008
Monday
Hi kids
I went in this morning to see if anyone had noticed my email, and was I every surprised! Goodness sakes! Thanks for the supportive response.
Love y'all
I went in this morning to see if anyone had noticed my email, and was I every surprised! Goodness sakes! Thanks for the supportive response.
Love y'all
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Here I Am!
Okay - Holly, you asked for it, so here it is, such as it is. I had something to say when I started this, but it has flown the coop in the effort. :( Well, let me babble for awhile:
Today Ann was at church. She just keeps getting better and better! Amazing girl, she is. And the requisite potluck dinner. Haven't actually had one of those in forever, so it was fun for a change. Next Sunday is Resurrection Sunday, but the following weekend, she'll be with us again, and will have some more varied events over the weekend, so I'm looking forward to that.
Oh yeah! Here's what I was going to start with:
Yesterday we decided to do dinner and a movie. I think the last movie I went to was Pirates of the Carribbean. And before that: Collateral Damage (there's a story behind that one!) So we decided to try it again. Saw "Fool's Gold" with Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson. A very cute pairing, but didn't enjoy the movie all that much :( Which is very disappointing when I only go once in every five years! I don't do 'R' rated movies. This was PG-13, but should have been 'R' in my opinion. There was just too much "stuff", and we discussed leaving. Stayed, but wanted to go home and do a Bible Study afterwards! :( Should have had a clue when we were on our way to a romantic dinner at Old Country Buffet ;) and got stopped for speeding. We were just going under an overpass as dad looked down and said $%$#@&$%)+! I'm going 80 mph! And as he said that, I looked up and saw a cop pointing his radar gun directly at us! AARRGGGHHH. It was less than 30 seconds when dad say another officer coming up on our tail, so pulled over before he even had his lights on. Dad got out his license, I got the registration and insurance, rolled down my window, and were chuckling in a chagrined sort of way as he came up to the door. "You folks in a hurry tonight?" "Didn't think so until I saw I was doing 80 mph!" "Seventy-seven. Where are you heading?" Here's where I decided to beg for mercy and said "Dinner and a movie." He took the info, went back to his car, and there we sat. Dad's thinking "there goes my overtime :(" Pretty soon the occifer came back with our paperwork - no book! He said "I don't want to ruin that perfect record! Just be careful and slow down, okay?" Dad: "Yessir! Thank you very much!"
Well, I do think that should be enough for the first posting. I'll try not to bore you too much in the future!
Today Ann was at church. She just keeps getting better and better! Amazing girl, she is. And the requisite potluck dinner. Haven't actually had one of those in forever, so it was fun for a change. Next Sunday is Resurrection Sunday, but the following weekend, she'll be with us again, and will have some more varied events over the weekend, so I'm looking forward to that.
Oh yeah! Here's what I was going to start with:
Yesterday we decided to do dinner and a movie. I think the last movie I went to was Pirates of the Carribbean. And before that: Collateral Damage (there's a story behind that one!) So we decided to try it again. Saw "Fool's Gold" with Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson. A very cute pairing, but didn't enjoy the movie all that much :( Which is very disappointing when I only go once in every five years! I don't do 'R' rated movies. This was PG-13, but should have been 'R' in my opinion. There was just too much "stuff", and we discussed leaving. Stayed, but wanted to go home and do a Bible Study afterwards! :( Should have had a clue when we were on our way to a romantic dinner at Old Country Buffet ;) and got stopped for speeding. We were just going under an overpass as dad looked down and said $%$#@&$%)+! I'm going 80 mph! And as he said that, I looked up and saw a cop pointing his radar gun directly at us! AARRGGGHHH. It was less than 30 seconds when dad say another officer coming up on our tail, so pulled over before he even had his lights on. Dad got out his license, I got the registration and insurance, rolled down my window, and were chuckling in a chagrined sort of way as he came up to the door. "You folks in a hurry tonight?" "Didn't think so until I saw I was doing 80 mph!" "Seventy-seven. Where are you heading?" Here's where I decided to beg for mercy and said "Dinner and a movie." He took the info, went back to his car, and there we sat. Dad's thinking "there goes my overtime :(" Pretty soon the occifer came back with our paperwork - no book! He said "I don't want to ruin that perfect record! Just be careful and slow down, okay?" Dad: "Yessir! Thank you very much!"
Well, I do think that should be enough for the first posting. I'll try not to bore you too much in the future!
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