2010-11

While 2010 is ending and 2011 will begin, I want to thank everyone that reads my blog.  I haven't been such a great blogger lately.  I don't know what the new year will bring for my blogging.  Can a person run out of things to say? 

This year has been an okay year for me personally.  No big disasters which I'm grateful.

For some family and friends it's been not so good.  Whether it be financial, health,  family or relationship problems, I hope 2011 will be brighter for them.

I decided no resolutions this year or goals/aspirations/intentions.  I'm just going to try and take life as it comes and hope some changes for the good come about.

I wish all my blogging friends a happy, healthy and prosperous 2011 and be safe if you are going out to celebrate.

Question for Thursday

Hippie and I decided not to buy each other anything for Christmas.  On the years we don't buy something,  he usually still gets me chocolate covered cherries.  This year he did buy me something else;  a pair of Dr. Scholl's slippers.  When I tried them on, they didn't fit.  He was very disappointed we were going to have to take them back.  I tried them on again on Monday without socks.  They were still tight then I felt something in the slippers.  There was card board in the top part that I hadn't noticed, DUH!!  Once I took them out, they fit fine LOL.

What did you get for Christmas?

Fridge

We've been having trouble with our refrigerator again.  We bought a new one yesterday.  I've always had a side by side but this time we bought one with a freezer on the bottom.  I think I'm going to like it.

They didn't have a white one in stock so they had to order it. He said it would take about two weeks but I'm hoping it comes before the in-law Christmas so I don't have to clean the old one before everyone comes LOL.

How was it?

Our Christmas was good but quiet.  We went to see Mom in the morning and spent time with her.

In the afternoon, my brother and his wife came.  We ate too much and talked.  We got gift certificates for Macy's which I wanted.  I've already got them spent. I just need to go and get what I want LOL.  

Later we called our son.  They were going to go to a movie and then go out for Chinese food. 

Now I need to get the bathroom walls washed before the in-laws Christmas but that's not for a couple of weeks.

How was your holiday?

Saturday Centus #34

It's Saturday Centus again - in a nutshell, Jenny Matlock gives us a prompt from either herself or a guest submitter and then we have to write 100 or words less related to the prompt (the prompt doesn't count toward the 100 words) Then link it up to her blog. It's open until the following Saturday, so that means you have all week to participate by either reading or writing. http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/search/label/Saturday%20Centus

While I'm waiting for my brother and sil to come, I figured I'd post my Centus.

The prompt is in bold.

Mary sat quietly praying for some sort of answers.

The white-bearded fat man rolled through the church doors. Mary started to get up to help but he quickly got up.

She watched as he went up to the crèche and prayed.

When he left, she went up to the crèche and noticed a note. She picked it up and it read “Jesus, it’s been a tough year for my family” and then the Serenity Prayer was written out.

Mary thought maybe this is the answer I’m looking for as she started to pray. “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change…..”

The Reason for the Season

Christmas Eve

This is going to be an unusual Christmas Eve.

My sil has to work until 4:00 and they always went to her brother's house after doing Christmas Eve with us.  It would have been too much of hassle.  We decided to change it for this year at least and will do it on Christmas Day.  Who knows this might be our new thing, ha.

As the years go on, I find more and more "traditions" are falling by the wayside.  It's a good thing the older I'm getting the more flexible I'm getting  LOL.  Not that traditions aren't important but as time goes on sometimes things change and it is what it is.

I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas whenever you celebrate ;-)

Questions for Thursday

What is your favorite Christmas movie and song?

Movie - A Christmas Carol with George C Scott

Songs - I have a ton but probably my favorite is O Holy Night.

Random thoughts on Tuesday

1.  My son's girlfriend was in town and is going back today.  She brought us a tin of cookies which I'm going to try to save for when my brother and his wife come for Christmas.  I hope I'm able to and I don't eat them all, ha.

2.  Yesterday at the nursing home, they had a little choir concert.  It reminded me of when I went to see my son perform when he was in grade school.  He was always not very attentive when they were singing.  Mom was similar.  For some reason, she was always a few words behind.  They would be done with the song and she would still be singing.  It seemed like she had a good time though.

3.  Before the concert they had a mass.  I got to see the Priest that my mother says one time before he gave her communion said "meet your maker", ha.  I didn't have the nerve to ask him if he really said it.  

4.  I got almost all of my wall washing done.  I still have to do the main bathroom but I'm not going to get it done by Christmas.  

5.  I hope everyone is done with their Christmas shopping.  We bought a few things and I got them all wrapped pretty quick.

Magellan

It's been a scary few months for my friend, Magellan.

About 14 years ago, she was diagnosed with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia. She was in a "watch and wait" period for a while and then had to have treatment.  She's been in remission for 8 years now.

In August, she went for a regular oncologist appointment and the doctor found her spleen was enlarged.  That set into motion, test after test.

She had to switch doctor's in between finding out what exactly what was going on because of insurance.

After all the tests were done, she now has a totally different diagnosis which is a form of lymphoma.  They suspect she might have had this all along but the tests weren't as sophisticated  back then as they are now.  Luckily the treatment was the same though.

We were quite stressed at first with the news because it can be aggressive but the kind she has is very slow growing. I went with her for the visits and we saw 4 different oncologists.  Two of them were stem cell transplant specialists just to get in the system in case she would ever need it. 

Right now, she is going to be in a "watch and wait" period again.  The doctors also think she will do well with treatment if/when she needs it.

We were thrilled that she doesn't need treatment now.   It felt like a Christmas miracle ;-)

Saturday Centus #33

It's Saturday Centus again - in a nutshell, Jenny Matlock gives us a prompt from either herself or a guest submitter and then we have to write 100 or words less related to the prompt (the prompt doesn't count toward the 100 words)  Then link it up to her blog.  It's open until the following Saturday, so that means you have all week to participate by either reading or writing.  http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/search/label/Saturday%20Centus

Again another difficult one for me.  I worked on this forever taking out words.  It's okay but I had to stop.  I'm so behind right now on stuff I'm supposed to be getting done LOL.   


The prompt is in bold.

Charlie had gotten tickets to Oprah but I couldn’t go.  He called me excitedly and said, “Don’t tell anyone, it was the favorite things show”.   He was going out for coffee with one of the Elves that were handing out the gifts.

What was he thinking? OMG! Elves are soooo 2009, I thought jealously.

Charlie came over later.

 “How was coffee”?

“No chemistry”.

“Charlie? Do you think we have chemistry”?

“I’ve always thought that.  Maybe we should do something about it” and they kissed.

“Who would have thought because of Oprah, we would get our favorite person” he said.

Question for Thursday

Are you spending more, the same, or less then last year on Christmas gifts?

I'm probably going to spend about the same as last year.  I don't have to buy for as many people anymore.  Plus, I either give money now or gift cards. 

Dinner friends

Friday we had our Dinner Friends Christmas dinner.  We had it at someone's home.

One person was unable to come because she had the flu but one of the dinner friend's we haven't seen for a long time came which it was very nice to see her.

Everyone brought either an appetizer or a dessert.  We ordered lasagna, rigatoni and bread from a restaurant.  The hostess made a salad and we all brought a bottle of wine.

The food was fabulous.  I think everyone stuffed themselves.  It was so nice doing it at someone's home because you could finally have a discussion among the 10 of us where everyone could hear what was being said.  

I didn't come home until about 10 but I had such a good time.  What a great way to spend an evening.

Saturday Centus #32

It's Saturday Centus again - in a nutshell, Jenny Matlock gives us a prompt from either herself or a guest submitter and then we have to write 100 or words less related to the prompt (the prompt doesn't count toward the 100 words)  Then link it up to her blog.  It's open until the following Saturday, so that means you have all week to participate by either reading or writing.  http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/search/label/Saturday%20Centus

Very difficult this week, ha.

Prompt is in bold. 

An involuntary gasp of shock escaped my lips when I opened the shoebox and saw the pointy-toed shoes. 

Who would donate these to a homeless shelter I thought, as I put them on the shelf. 

A regular came into the room.  “Can I look around”? 

“Sure Velma”.

“Oh my”, she said.  “I had a pair of shoes like these when I was younger.  They hurt like the dickens but my legs looked fabulous” and we laughed. 

As she looked around some more, I wondered what her story was and how a woman in her 70’s was homeless.

I’d have to get to know her better; there must be some way to get her into an apartment.  

Question for Thursday

What do you do for Christmas?

RIP

God bless you Elizabeth.  Hopefully, you are with your son right now. 

In sisterhood...

Elizabeth

I feel so sad with the news that Elizabeth Edwards is not doing well.  She was first diagnosed when I was having treatments. 

She really brought a face to breast cancer and was a wonderful advocate for health care.

Live in the moment

The day of the outing to the apple orchard came for Mom in November.  I called in the afternoon to make sure it went okay and found out everyone was waiting by the door and the bus broke down so it was canceled. Ugh.

The next day I went to see her and she was gone.  They took her on another outing to a Church that was having entertainment and a Thanksgiving Dinner.  There were supposed to be like 300 people there from different nursing homes. I knew she would enjoy something like that.

The following day when we went, I was so excited to hear about her adventure.  I was surprised that all she remembered doing was  being on the bus.  They were gone from around 11 to 4.  I asked all kinds of trick questions to see if I could get her to remember getting off the bus but no, she insisted they never got off the bus.  She even got a little favor but didn't know where she got it from.  She did say she had a good time though. 

A few days later, I spoke to one of the activities people and told her that Mom didn't remember getting off the bus.  She said the girl that went with them said Mom had a very good time.  She ate all her dinner and enjoyed the entertainment.  I thought maybe because I didn't prep her about this, that is why she didn't remember.

They rescheduled going to the apple orchard.  When I saw Mom on the day after, again she remembered being on the bus but not getting off the bus at all.  She had told me before she went that she wanted to buy maple candy but didn't. I guess even though we had talked about the orchard so much it didn't make a difference in her remembering that she went.

I'm kinda disappointed that she doesn't remember but I told hippie Mom just lives in the moment now.  I guess that's what's important, even if she doesn't remember.

Saturday Centus #31

It's Saturday Centus again - in a nutshell, Jenny Matlock gives us a prompt from either herself or a guest submitter and then we have to write 100 or words less related to the prompt (the prompt doesn't count toward the 100 words)  Then link it up to her blog.  It's open until the following Saturday, so that means you have all week to participate by either reading or writing.  http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/search/label/Saturday%20Centus

OMG, this was such a difficult prompt for me to put into ONLY 100 words.  I got the idea of what I wanted to write pretty quickly but I had to re-work it all morning to get it under 100.   I wish I would have woken up early like last week LOL.

The prompt is in bold.  


Jill's Christmas party was the next day.  She set the tree up weeks ago but had decided to do all the cooking first.  She forgot she needed new lights. 

The bin of tangled up holiday lights that she saw when she got to the store really stressed her out.

She started to leave but it was the only place still open.

When she got back to the bin the lights were untangled.

She noticed a stuffed Santa Claus sitting next to them.  "Thanks, Santa", she said.

As she was leaving she heard "Ho, ho, ho".  She turned around and saw Santa wink at her or did she?     

 

Question for Thursday

Since this is in the news and the Republicans think they have a mandate what are your thoughts on the tax cuts?

I really can't get myself too worked up about rich people not getting tax cuts.   They say they will create jobs.  If that's the case, why haven't they been creating jobs already?  Besides, I think the rich have more ways to shelter their money than the poor and middle class.

However, I do believe the income should be higher than $250,000.   Depending on where you live it's not that much if your living in a city that has a higher cost of living.  

Oh and Republicans, be careful thinking you have a mandate that's what the Democrats thought too, ha.  

screw up

I really screwed up this time. 

I tried to change my picture for the header and at first it came out teeny, tiny.  Then I put an old picture of our house that I had when I downloaded picassa that I found.  It had a white border on it that I didn't like.  I tried to put the autumn one back up and it was HUGE.  Now every picture I try to put is  too large.  Ugh!!

Yesterday, I tried to use the old computer but I don't know if I didn't have the patience or what but I couldn't get anything to work on it.

For now, I guess my header will have no picture until I can figure it out...

Saturday Centus #30

This weeks we have a unique prompt supplied by Clearspace...a regular contributor to SC. Here are the instructions for this week:



This weeks prompt writing will be one with a twist. You know those horoscopes in newspapers? One of those will be your new prompt. Pick one randomly from a paper or a website and write a story <100 words about the kind of day that horoscope "predicts".  Go over to see what others did.  http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/search/label/Saturday%20Centus

Libra  Sep. 23 - Oct. 23
 

With the sensitive Moon transiting your twelfth house of secrets and spirituality, you may not care for the company of others now. Make an effort to feed your soul this afternoon, whether you indulge in aroma therapy, yoga or a chocolate ice cream treat. Being alone for any length of time should be therapeutic. Tell your loved ones you need some alone time and then take it!   This is the horoscope I'm writing about and where I got it from.  http://www.newsnet5.com/subindex/lifestyle/horoscope

My 100 words:

I woke up early and went to the computer.  Oh no, another twist for Centus.

As I looked on a web site for a horoscope for the day mine said "you may not care for the company of others now".  So far, it seems correct.  This is usually my favorite thing to do but right now I feel like my head is going to explode. 

I do like the fact that it says I should feed my soul.  I will be putting Christmas decorations up and watching college football but not alone, hmmm.

This is terrible, I know.  The end.

Thanksgiving

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving.

We went in the morning and visited with Mom.  I took her a piece of pumpkin roll that my neighbor made for us.  She loved it.  

We went to my brother's home and ate there. There were 9 of us.  I hadn't eaten anything before we went and I was starved.  After we ate though I was stuffed.  Everything was excellent.  We had a really nice time.

My sister-in-law made a turkey and then her father brought one that was deep fried.  We didn't get to try it there but we got some left over deep fried turkey that we will have today besides a whole lot of other leftovers.

We got home about 6 and I was so tired I napped for a couple of hours and then was up half the night LOL.  I finally had a piece of apple pie which was really good.

It rained the whole day although that was better then what they were first predicting last week which was snow. 

Hopefully, the next few days we'll get the house decorated.  I've almost got all the walls washed.  I also did my Christmas cards.  They just need to be sealed and stamped, yippee.

Saturday Centus #29

It's Saturday Centus again - in a nutshell, Jenny Matlock gives us a prompt from either herself or a guest submitter and then we have to write 100 or words less related to the prompt (the prompt doesn't count toward the 100 words)  Then link it up to her blog.  It's open until the following Saturday, so that means you have all week to participate by either reading or writing. http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/search/label/Saturday%20Centus

The prompt is in bold.  

"Pardon me," said Tom T. Urkee as Sheila walked by the bench. "Can I help you?" she said.

"Do you know where I live?'

"Yes, sir" and she gathered up his things.   "I'll take you there."

Mr. Urkee was 90 years old. Gossip in town was that he was not well.

They walked silently until they came to his home about a block away.  "Here, you are". 

"How about some tea?

"That would be nice", she said. 

He was the richest man in town and she was excited to see his beautiful home.

He opened the door and she was amazed by what she saw. 

Scarce

I'm going to be scarce for awhile.  I didn't realize Thanksgiving is only a week and half a way, duh!  If I even hope to come close to reaching my goal of getting most of the walls washed before then, I'm going to have to stay off the computer and only come on sporadically.

Thanksgiving weekend we usually put our Christmas tree and other decorations up.  So I'm going to be pretty busy with that too.

You are probably overwhelmed with blog posts right now like me anyhow and with so much to do before the holidays will be happy to have a few less posts in your reader LOL.

Saturday Centus #28

It's Saturday Centus again - in a nutshell, Jenny Matlock gives us a prompt from either herself or a guest submitter and then we have to write 100 or words less related to the prompt (the prompt doesn't count toward the 100 words)  Then link it up to her blog.  It's open until the following Saturday, so that means you have all week to participate by either reading or writing.  http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/search/label/Saturday%20Centus

I want to say sometimes when I do Saturday Centus, I'm trying to work on some feelings I have.   If your looking for a happy, uplifting Centus this is not it LOL.    

Prompt in bold ;-)

The early November sunshine cast golden rays on the trees all around her.  Sarah loved this time of year.  However, she had memories of a November when she had chemo and while she didn't dwell on it, it was forefront in her mind lately.

She remembered the loss of control.  How her life revolved around her treatments and how she felt.   How she saw everyone's life around her going as normal and thought how could that be.

She thought about the people she knew in her life now that were dealing with treatments or would soon be and felt anger and sadness.   Sometimes life is not fair.

Friday random thoughts

1.  I was shocked.  SHOCKED, I tell you, with what happened to Marlene on the Big C.  I never saw it coming.  I'm sorry there's only 1 more episode left.  I heard it's coming back but I'm not sure when.  I really love it. 

2.  I've been busy all week with the wall washing.  I'm getting there, slowly but surely, but there's still a lot to do. My goal is to get everything pretty much done by Thanksgiving.

3.  Wednesday I went and bought one of those microfiber blankets like I bought Mom for myself.  I'll be all warm and cozy when I lay on the couch.  

4.  I'm taking a mental health day today.  Hippie went fishing and it seemed like the perfect day to do it.  As you can see by posting this so late, I even slept in LOL.  I might try to get caught up with my blog reading.  400 behind, ha.

5.  I look so forward to Saturday Centus.  I love trying to figure something to write, even when the prompt is difficult, ha.

Question for Thursday

When you go outside in the winter do you go more for fashion or warmth?


Warmth, warmth.  I always wear a hat on my head and gloves.  Usually no scarf though because I don't like something around my neck.  Most women I hang with don't wear a hat but I can't stand for my head and ears to be cold.  I'd rather be warm then look good, ha.

Pink Panther

My son bought this years ago from a thrift store.  A velvet painting.  I also have one from Mom's house. It's a matador with a bull.  I have that one hiding down the basement lol.  Anyone have any velvet paintings?

Weather

Some people in our area over the weekend had snow that stuck overnight but not us.  We had snow Friday night but by the morning it was gone.

I think this week might be our Indian summer.  Temps in the 60's and sunny.  

Computer

The guy came and fixed my computer.  It's working great.  I ended up buying a new router since mine was ancient.  He re-downloaded my printer which somehow got lost and fixed it so that shouldn't happen anymore.  He was here for over two hours because when he deleted the thing that was causing my computer to freeze up he lost the CD driver and couldn't get it back but finally called someone and they figured it out. 

It sounds like I screwed it up when I downloaded the program to my camera because it wasn't compatible and when I deleted it something didn't delete and was causing the problem.  I found out I can just download my pictures right from the camera onto the computer.   I downloaded Picasa so I can edit my picture but it's something new I have to learn, ugh!!  I don't know when I'm going to have the time, what with all the cleaning and getting ready for the holidays, ha.  I still haven't even learned everything about my new computer and Windows 7 yet.

Edited:  I typed this just last week and suddenly on Friday, I lost my printer again.  I called the Geek Squad and they took over my computer and fixed it again.  Because their guy installed it if it goes out, they'll fix it for no cost.  We'll see.    

Saturday Centus #27

It's Saturday Centus again - in a nutshell, Jenny Matlock gives us a prompt from either herself or a guest submitter and then we have to write 100 or words less related to the prompt (the prompt doesn't count toward the 100 words)  Then link it up to her blog.  It's open until the following Saturday, so that means you have all week to participate by either reading or writing.  http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/search/label/Saturday%20Centus  

Prompt in bold ;-)

Dear Marcy,

I hope you are doing well.  I just wanted to drop you a note and say, see you soon.

                                                                     Misty.

"So, you and Misty back together again".

"It will be great to see her", Marcy said.

"Yeah, there's an article in the newspaper you'll find interesting", as Janice began to read,  "It was the 11th Anniversary of the robbery of Greedy Bank.  After all these years, the money has never been found". 

"I wonder where it is" Marcy giggled as she heard the clanging of the door. "Just a few more days and I'm out of here".    

Friday random thoughts

1.  Always before Halloween, they have the staff at the nursing home dress up for Halloween and they parade through the whole facility.  This year besides doing that they gave each resident some candy and they had kids come in so they could pass them out.  Mom said she had the best time.

2. Well, the election is over.  Hopefully, it will be a while before we start seeing commercials again although the presidential election is only 2 years away so I bet it won't be long, ha.  I'm sure some people are thrilled with what happened on election day.  I'm not one of them.  I hope I'm wrong.  Be prepared to probably hear a lot of moaning, groaning and complaining LOL.

3.  I already have a complaint about the Fair and Balanced station complaining about all the other media having a bias towards the democrats but they are fair and balanced.  Do they think anyone believes them, ha. 

4.  This has got to be one of the dumbest groups on Survivor @@.

5.  I guess I pretty much decided I'm not going to be doing  Alphabe-Thursday because I can't come up with something to do.  I decided I'm going to pose a question every Thursday.  Some I will answer and some I'm going to just throw out.  I hope if you read on Thursday you will participate.

6. Yippee!!  Time change over the weekend.  Don't forget to change your clocks.

7.  We may get our first bit of snow today and/or tomorrow.  I doubt it will stick because our ground is pretty warm yet but, we'll see.

Question for Thursday

What do you do for Thanksgiving; cook, go to a restaurant or take stuff.   Do you celebrate with others?

We usually had Thanksgiving at our house. 

Last year, we had Thanksgiving at my brother's house since his in-laws weren't going to Florida until after Thanksgiving.  Same thing this year.  We enjoy being a guest very much.  So we will be celebrating with my brother and his in-laws.

I will be taking a dessert.

We'll probably go see Mom before we go.

Oh Deer

Monday morning I'm looking out the back patio doors and I see a deer in my neighbor's yard caddy corner behind me.  I tried to take pictures but it saw me and it went on the other side of their shed.  I called the neighbor and told her there was a deer in her yard and while I'm talking to her on the phone she looks outside and says the deer's leg is hurt.  Then it comes back where I can see it and it's limping.  The neighbor calls the police and the deer is eating but can't stand on the one leg.  The police come and my neighbor tells them not to shoot it in her yard just that she wanted it out of her yard.  The police start going back and the deer and the police have a stare off (kinda like me and the squirrels in that one AlphabeThursday post LOL).   They start going a little towards it and believe it or not the deer jumps over the fence on three legs and takes off.

The police said they were at an accident earlier where a car and deer had an accident so we're thinking this might have been the deer.  I went to the front and the deer was headed towards the woods.

Here's the one picture I got but you have to click on it, because I didn't have time to zoom in on it before it saw me.  I was so excited when I saw the police come then that I forgot all about the camera.  If I would have had my wits about me, I probably could have gotten a shot of the deer jumping over the fence.  Oh well, hopefully, the deer will be okay.  

Election Day

Earn the right to complain - Vote, heh, heh.

Wow

I almost got tricked on Halloween.  We had 98 kids come.  Wow, we haven't had that many in years.  I ended up with 7 candies left, whew!!  I sat on the front steps the whole night.  It was in the 40's.  I wore my winter hat, coat,  gloves and sat on a cushion, ha.   Hippie brought me hot chocolate and coffee.  I didn't really start getting cold until the last 1/2 hour.  We have it from 6 to 8.  I still don't care much for trick or treat starting in the daylight.

Saturday Centus #26

It's Saturday Centus again - in a nutshell, Jenny Matlock gives us a prompt from either herself or a guest submitter and then we have to write 100 or words less related to the prompt (the prompt doesn't count toward the 100 words)  Then link it up to her blog.  It's open until the following Saturday, so that means you have all week to participate by either reading or writing.

STOP, STOP, STOP  That trickster Jenny decided to shake it up.   Same info above except you can only go up to 50 words.   As usual the prompt is in bold. http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/search/label/Saturday%20Centus

"Abraham Lincoln was a lot shorter then I thought he would be", Frankie said.

"He was the tallest President ever though.  Make sure you type that in our report".

"Okay, Bob".

"Just think if we lived at that time, Mr. Johnson wouldn't be our teacher he would be a slave". 

"Ugh, Frankie, so would we".

"That would have been so not cool". 

Friday random thoughts

1.  I decided to volunteer to have Christmas for hippies family. I just need to decide on a date. I need to now get my house in tip top shape.  I know they don't care but it gives me a reason to get my butt in gear lol.

2. Our son was able to get a temp job at a Halloween store.  Some of the time, he's the person outside standing by the street with the costume on waving to people.  He told us some people wave, some honk and one girl flashed him but fortunately, she had her bra on.  I guess this is one of those stories he'll always have.

3.  Did you ever see something so beautiful it almost takes your breath away?  I happened to look out the patio doors Tuesday evening.  All the trees in our backyard and the neighbors seemed to be lit up.  I went outside and they were all a brilliant orange.  I never saw our trees that amazing.  It was near dusk and I think because of the rain we had, the sky was pink, the trees really showed what they could do.  Later in the evening, I talked to Magellan (she lives on the next street) and she was seeing and taking pictures at the same time.  She said she saw a rainbow which I didn't see until I looked at my pictures.  I think I was too mesmerized by the trees, ha.

4.  It's supposed to be in the high 40's or low 50's for Halloween but no rain, thank goodness.  We'll see how many kids we get this year.  We're giving out Reese's cups, 3 musketeers, kit kats and twizzlers.  How about you?

A qoute

This is the last thing I'm going to do for breast cancer awareness month.  I saw this quote and thought it was such a telling quote on what it feels like to be going through cancer/treatments. 

"During chemo, you're more tired than you've ever been.  It's like a cloud passing over the sun, and suddenly you're out.  You don't know how you'll answer the door when your groceries are delivered.  But you also find that you're stronger than you've ever been.  You're clear.  Your mortality is at optimal distance, not up so close that it obscures everything else, but close enough to give you depth perception.  Previously, it has taken you weeks, months, or years to discover the meaning of an experience.  Now it's instantaneous".  ~Melissa Bank

Shrink the Whale

I found these 9 affirmations after I was diagnosed with breast cancer.  They were very helpful to me.  I thought they may be helpful to others as well no matter if your dealing with cancer or another illness.

Nine affirmations to help Shrink the Whale

by the Rev. Dr. Lynn Vanderhoof, D.min., Thomas Jefferson University Health System

1. Knowledge: The more I know of my own condition, the better; to be unaware is to be frightened.

2. Decision-making: The more informed decisions I actually make for myself, the more I feel in charge and the less helpless I feel.

3. Belief in my physician: The more I can trust my doctors, the more confidence I will have in my treatment plan.

4. Support: Especially talking to others who have been through the same or a similar experience, and knowing they have come out the other side, is reassuring.

5. Timeliness: The smaller the delay from discovery to diagnostic testing to report to treatment, the less time there is for me to mentally live the "worst-case scenario."

6. Faith: Awareness that there is some being or force greater than myself helps me keep myself and my issues in better perspective.

7. Humor: An ability to laugh with others, to laugh at myself and even at the indignities inherent to treating cancer, keeps me emotionally balanced.

8. Being heard: Stating my needs in as clear a way as possible and insisting the healthcare professionals with whom I am working take my questions/needs seriously is essential to a healing process.

9. Counting myself part of the healthcare team: No one can know my body like I can, no one can know what symptoms are unusual for me like I can, and this makes my contribution central to my own healing.

Computer

Isn't this the way it always is.  The Geek Squad is coming today. I wanted them to reset up my computer.  I thought my son's friend might not have done it correctly since I've been having a lot of trouble with it freezing up.  Since I made the appointment I haven't been having the problem LOL.  Oh well, I'll see what they say.

Documentary

On Saturday, I watched a documentary called Standing in the Shadows of Motown on the Sundance channel.  It was about the musicians called the Funk Brothers who played on the albums of the Motown stars when they were in Detroit.  I guess I never thought that much at the time about who played the music.  If you ever get the chance to watch it, I found it very interesting. It was made in 2002.  It also brought back many memories of Motown songs which I love/loved.  Has anyone seen this?

I love to watch documentaries.  Unfortunately, I don't get to see many.  Usually it's when I'm flipping through the channels and just happen on one.

Saturday Centus #25

It's Saturday Centus again - in a nutshell, Jenny Matlock gives us a prompt from either herself or a guest submitter and then we have to write 100 or words less related to the prompt (the prompt doesn't count toward the 100 words)  Then link it up to her blog.  It's open until the following Saturday, so that means you have all week to participate by either reading or writing. http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/2010/10/saturday-centus-scary-story.html

For some reason I had a very difficult time with this prompt.  Oh well.  Prompt is in bold.  

"This is the scariest story I've ever heard, Grandma".  

"Missy, that's why voting is so important".

"I was so happy to be voting for the first time now I'm not so sure.  Who do I vote for?"

"You need to find out what the candidates stand for". 

"Who are you voting for Grandma"?


"I'll be voting for the person I think will be best for our country".   

"Mom and dad won't tell me either but I know they don't agree".

"That's the beauty of voting, Missy.  You have the right to make your own choices".

"Okay, Gram.  I think I'll get started I've got a lot to learn". 

Friday random thoughts

1.  I finally got the money that was held back in escrow for the water from Mom's house.  It only took 6 months. I'm so happy that chapter is closed.

2.  Hippie and I were in Penney's buying Mom a couple of blankets for her bed and he talked me into buying myself a pair of winter shoes for my birthday.   Boy, I don't know what's come over me;  first, I bought jeans now shoes lol.

3.  Anyone watching Survivor?  I don't know if I've finally had enough of Survivor all these years or its just this group of people I don't care for.

4. Tuesday I have the Geek Squad coming over for the new computer.  I've been having issues with it.  I don't know if it's me or the computer.  We'll see.

59

 It's hard to believe I'm 59 today.  Wow!!

Last month, I celebrated my birthday with the Dinner Friends.  Here's the desert they got me. 

A tip to help

Tip:  If you know someone that is going through cancer treatments, don't be afraid to call occasionally.  They may not feel up to talking.  That's okay.  Try again another time. It was my experience, that I always felt like talking the week before I had to have chemo because by then I was feeling stronger.  If/when you do talk to them, if they want to talk about what's going on with them -  listen. Also, tell them what's going on with your life, the good and the bad.  They will be interested and would like to talk about other things besides themselves.

  " Cancer is a word, not a sentence" John Diamond

Pop or soda?

The high school I went to got closed down this year.  Budget cuts I guess.  One fond memory I have is when I used to walk home with my girlfriend.  We used to stop every day on the way home from school and buy a bottle of RC to drink.  I still favor RC as opposed to Pepsi or Coca Cola.

Do you say pop or soda?  We say pop but for some reason from early on my son started calling it soda.  I don't know where he learned it from - not us lol.

Saturday Centus #24

It's Saturday Centus again - in a nutshell, Jenny Matlock gives us a prompt from either herself or a guest submitter and then we have to write 100 or words less related to the prompt (the prompt doesn't count toward the 100 words)  Then link it up to her blog.  It's open until the following Saturday, so that means you have all week to participate by either reading or writing  http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/The prompt is in bold.

"Trick or treat!" they shouted as the door opened.  

"Oh my, two pirates.  Whatever will I do"?

"It's Billy and Sam, grandma.  Don't be afraid".

"Billy and Sam?  You fooled me" as they laughed. 

"Come on in and have some hot chocolate" as their parents drove off waving. 

"When it gets a little darker, grandpa will take you to trick or treat". 

Suddenly they heard, "Ahoy, Matey's ".

When they turned around they squealed with delight.  "Grandpa, you're a pirate just like us".

"Let's get a picture" grandma said. 

"This is going to be the best Halloween ever", Billy said as they waited for their picture to be taken.

Friday random thoughts

1. I hadn't bought new jeans in probably 6 years but it was time.  I mentioned it to one of my friends about a month ago and kept putting it off but we finally went over the weekend.  I was hoping I would be the same size and that my jeans had just shrunk so much from being old and washed 200 or so times.  No such luck, I had to go up a size.  I bought cheap jeans.  I'm hoping I don't stay this size.  I'm hoping the next time, I'm headed in the right direction.  I think instead of hoping, I need to take action, ugh!

2.  I think when the elections are over in November "enthusiastic" should be stricken from the English language.

3.  I decided to sign Mom up for road trips at the nursing home.  I don't know why I didn't do it sooner since we can't get her in the truck to take her anywhere.  Tuesday,  she told me some people went to a Columbus Day parade in a place we have in Cleveland called Little Italy.  I talked to the receptionist and she said the residents that went were in the parade and just sat in the bus and threw candy out.  Mom would have loved that.  I signed her up to go in November to an apple orchard.  She used to take us there when we were young.  I think she'll love it.  They usually have 2 or 3 outings a month.  We'll see if she likes it and how it goes.

4.  The rescue of the Chilean mine workers, wow!!  I was glued to the TV. 

5.  I have an amazing video below this post.  I was spellbound when I heard this guy on TV.  Good for him.  Hopefully, it will help some kid out there some day.   

6. Happy 64th birthday, Hippie.

Joel Burns tells gay teens "it gets better" - AMAZING

A tip to help

Tip:  If you know someone going through cancer treatments, send them cards (not just once).  You don't have to write a lot.  Just let them know you are thinking of them. It will mean the world to them.


"The only courage that matters is the kind that gets you from one moment to the next".  ~Mignon McLaughlin
 

A couple of views at Nursing Home

I should have been a PR person

A couple of weeks ago, we were sitting with mom in the lobby of the nursing home and there were some people waiting to get a tour of the nursing home.  Mom and I were talking about arts and crafts and the one woman asked me how long mom's been there and if I liked the place.

I really think the nursing home could hire me. I went on and on how much I loved the place lol.   I only wish I thought of more stuff to tell them about it.

Saturday Centus #23

It's Saturday Centus again - in a nutshell, Jenny Matlock gives us a prompt from either herself or a guest submitter and then we have to write 100 or words less related to the prompt (the prompt doesn't count toward the 100 words)  Then link it up to her blog.  It's open until the following Saturday, so that means you have all week to participate by either reading or writing  http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/ The prompt is in bold.

Last week, I think some people got the wrong impression of my post.  I was not referring to myself in it.

This is my Centus for this week.  I have really been bothered about the suicides of kids being bullied.  

"If I had a hammer I'd hit those kids over the heads with it" Janice said.

"Oh yeah, that would solve everything", chuckled Cindy.  "I really think we need to go and talk to Mrs. Smith.  I'm tired of being treated this way". 

"Will it do any good or just make it worse"?

"I've been reading about kids committing suicide because of being bullied.   Some kids here might not have anyone to talk to like we have each other. I think it's time we took a stand".   

They walked into the classroom and said, "Mrs. Smith, can we talk to you"?

"Sure, girls ". 

Friday random thoughts

1.  Over the weekend I was watching hoarders on TLC.  After it was over some episodes of the new show, Sister Wives came on.  It looked like something I would like but so far - not so much.  Anyone see it?  What did you think?

2. Tuesday when leaving the nursing home there was an elderly woman struggling to carry things inside from the parking lot.  I told her I would help and grabbed a very long brown paper bag from her.  As we were walking towards the door, the woman told me her husband had both his legs amputated and she was bringing the right prosthetic leg so he could do rehab with it.  Oh my!

3.  Never in my wildest dreams could I have come up with a candidate that would start a campaign ad with "I'm not a witch".

4.  A couple of people might have gotten the wrong impression on my Saturday Centus post last week.   I was not talking about myself.
 

A tip to help

If you know someone that is going through cancer treatments, offer your help.  Some times it's hard to accept help.  Most people won't call and ask.  Call occasionally with suggestions of things you can do.  Bring a meal, drive their kids to school or activities, pick up groceries, drive them to the doctors, sit with them during  treatments, clean their house, do yard work etc.  Also, support their caregiver.  They are going through a tough time too. 

"Women agonize... over cancer; we take as a personal threat the lump in every friend's breast".  ~Martha Weinman Lear

Baby it's cold outside

I had to put the furnace on this past weekend to take the chill off the house and to make sure it worked.

We've been in the 40's overnight but that's okay with me ;-)

Think before you pink

Just because a company or organization slaps pink on something doesn't mean they are making a donation towards breast cancer.  Before you buy or donate, investigate to understand how much and where your money is going.  Is the product your buying something that could contribute to breast cancer?  Some companies might even being using the cause not to help breast cancer but to help themselves. 

If you'd like to find out more,  please click here:
  http://thinkbeforeyoupink.org/

Saturday Centus - Special Challenge

It's Saturday Centus day but it's a special challenge.  Instead of the usual prompt we have to write 100 words relating to a picture.  Go over to Jenny's and see the picture It's a pumpkin patch.  The link will be up until next Saturday, so join in. http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/



Since this is breast cancer awareness month,  this is going to be in honor of Stage 4 breast cancer gals.

October the most fabulous month of the year.  I always loved fall.  The start of cooler weather; the start of the holidays.  Now though I go into it with trepidation.

After so many years being cancer free suddenly to be Stage 4 is so unbelievable.  They say it's a chronic disease now.  That's a nice way to put it, I guess.

I pulled into the farm and head right for the pumpkin patch.

I see Shelly with her head scarf and I want to run away.  She comes to me, hugs me and says, "I know" and she really does.  

October Breast Cancer Awareness

I want to start off breast cancer awareness month with a reminder to get a mammogram if you haven't....  It could save your life.

About 70% to 80% of women diagnosed with breast cancer have no family history of it.   

Breast cancer awareness also means to me, to be aware that there are 1000's and 1000's of women living with Stage 4 breast cancer.  There is no cure for them yet. They are old, young,  grandmothers, mothers, married and single women.

Estimated statistics from the National Institute of Health for 2010:

New cases: 207,090 (female); 1,970 (male)

Deaths: 39,840 (female); 390 (male)

Wordless Wednesday

Water

I finally got Mom's final water bill.  Yippee!!

Pictures not taken

Behind the parking lot at the nursing home is a little pond.  By the side of it, there is a rock half inside the water and half out.  Several times, we've seen little turtles sunning themselves on it but whenever I tried to take a picture or even move onto the grass, they always jump into the pond. They must have good senses because I don't even get that close to them but somehow they know I'm coming, ha. 

Those pesky squirrels have really been doing a number on the sunflowers.  One day when we were pulling out of the driveway, there was a squirrel sitting on the top of the stalk eating the sunflower seeds like a king or queen.  It would have been a great photo.

I think I'm never going to be a good photographer, lol.

Saturday Centus #21

It's Saturday Centus again - in a nutshell, Jenny Matlock gives us a prompt from either herself or a guest submitter and then we have to write 100 or words less related to the prompt (the prompt doesn't count toward the 100 words)  Then link it up to her blog.  It's open until the following Saturday, so that means you have all week to participate by either reading or writing a Centus,  The prompt is in bold.  Check out other Centus' at http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/search/label/Saturday%20Centus

He never dreamed when he blew out the candles on his cake what would happen next. 

There was a knock at the door. The police came in and said, "Mr. Jones? Mr. Tom Jones? You are under arrest". 

"You are aware I'm the mayor, right?  What's this about"?

As they handcuffed him and put him in the cruiser he was stunned.

They drove him straight to City Hall. He couldn't understand what was happening.  As they took him out and walked in the doors, he heard "Surprise" and everyone was clapping.

From behind, his wife came and whispered in his ear "He who thinks he can never be surprised.  Gotcha".

Friday random thoughts

1.  Water Company -  Good news - Got a bill - Bad news - It was wrong.  Talked to two different people on Tuesday.  Spent roughly over 3 hours on the phone.  Think I got it straightened out, again.  We'll see when the next bill comes.

2.  Pundits, politicians, cable news channels, etc. Some of you sound nutty.  Where do you come up with this stuff?  I'd like to think when the election is over in November things will calm down but I pretty much think hell will freeze over first. 

3.  I had to turn the air conditioner back on this week but Saturday it's supposed to cool off to the 60's.

4.  No Alphabe-Thursday for me, at least not yet.  I haven't been able to figure out an angle to what I want to write.  Hopefully, I'll figure out something soon and will be able to get back in the groove.  I will try to read though.

5. Speaking of that,  I think I have too many blogs in my reader.  There's about 220 and there's others I'd like to add.  I'm having a hard time keeping up and commenting though.  I know I could delete some but any solutions other than that?

Wordless Wednesay

Antique ?

Mom gave me this lamp years ago.  Hippie cleaned it up.  There is a tiny crack in one of the panes of glass.  She had it for years and years.  The base is very heavy. Mom says its brass but we're not sure. I can't even pick it up.   As far as I can tell there are no markings on it to tell me where it was made.  Anyone have any ideas of how I could find out?  It sits on the end table next to the couch.

PSA Stat counters

I hadn't checked my stats for a long time.  One day I did.  I noticed this person from Cleveland was coming onto my blog and reading.  However, they were reading dozens and dozens of pages at one time for weeks every day.  I couldn't imagine who would be that interested in my boring blog lol.

I finally checked my ISP number and it was me, ha, ha, ha.

I forgot with the new computer, I hadn't gone to the site to tell it not to count me in the stats. Duh!!

PSA - If you see the same ISP number on your stats a lot, you might not have it turned off. Just sayin' ;-)

Saturday Centus #20

It's Saturday Centus again - in a nutshell, Jenny Matlock gives us a prompt from either herself or a guest submitter and then we have to write 100 or words less related to the prompt (the prompt doesn't count toward the 100 words)  Then link it up to her blog.  It's open until the following Saturday, so that means you have all week to participate by either reading or writing a Centus,  The prompt is in bold.  Check out other Centus' at
http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/2010/09/saturday-centus-week-20.html

She remembered when they first moved into the house.  No furniture. No kids. All they had were each other.  That first night they slept on the floor, drank wine and it happened. Red wine on the carpet. 

 

"This is never going to come out," she thought as she scrubbed at the spot on the worn carpet.

 

Ralph always the tightwad and controller, would never replace it.  All these years having to put a piece of furniture over it had taken its toll on her. 

 

Just like she gave up on her marriage and divorced, she gave up on the carpet and started ripping it out.   She was in control now and could do what she wanted.

Friday random thoughts

1.  Last Thursday at the nursing home they had a book/other stuff sale.  I was pretty lucky and honed in on something for my Christmas gift exchange with the Dinner Friends already.  Unless, I find something else or  decide to keep it, you never know lol.  This is the second year I just accidentally happened on to the gift exchange early.

2.  I'm starting to get some pictures on my new computer from the old one but it's going to be slow going.  For some reason I can't get them to go into a zip file unless I do it individually.  Right now I'm having to do each one separately which will take forever.  I installed the software for the camera on the new computer and it worked off and on, then I found out it's not compatible.  No updates for windows 7 either. Looks like I need a new camera ;-(   Any suggestions for a camera, cheap and easy to figure out ?  

3. So, this is Oprah's last season.  I have watched her religiously some years and not so much others.  I decided I would really try to watch since I was there for the beginning.  How about you?

4. I called the Water Company last Friday and I talked to someone that I thought was really going to help me get mom's bill.  Apparently, she said they sent it out on August 4th but we didn't get it.  I asked her if they sent it to my address and she said it looks like they sent it to the wrong address and she corrected it.  It's on dad's name so it probably went back to the water company.  Then she said she would call me back because she couldn't get a hold of anyone to generate the bill.  I haven't heard back from her and so far no bill either.   Oh Heather, so far you have disappointed me.  I guess I'll wait another couple of weeks and if I don't hear something, I will have to try again.
 
5. I lost a couple of followers.  Then I got a couple of new followers.  I was trying to catch up to following some of my followers that I wasn't following and started following myself, AGAIN @@.  I finally remembered how to stop but I think I might have deleted a follower.  If you were a follower and I deleted you, come follow me again.  If you wanted to just stop following me that's fine.   If you follow me and I don't follow you, give me a shout out.   Did you follow all that LOL?

Alphabe-Thursday

Today is the last day of summer school at Alphabe-Thursday, the color is rainbow mystery.

                                            What could it be?

                                            It's a box but what is in the box?

I bought this years ago from Current and it's filled with cards that I've bought over the years.  Isn't it colorful?

Check out what others have done for their Alphabe-Thursday Rainbow Mystery   
http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/2010/09/rainbow-summer-school-extravaganza.html

Wordless Wednesday

Summer overview

I am not completely blind to the fact that we will still have some warm/hot weather but I can't help but relish the cooler weather we've been having the last couple of weeks.  I've had to wear long sleeve shirts when I go out and some days when I wake up, I put sweatpants on lol. I love not having the air conditioner on. It's going to save some money on our electric bill too.

Our gardens didn't do that great this year.  We had enough cucumbers although not as much as usual.  Green beans were good but one garden something ate them.  Our tomatoes were pretty much a bust.  It may have something to do with the gardens getting over run with weeds, ha.  Who knows.

The neighbor behind us sprayed his weeds by our fence/garden a couple of weeks ago, so me being the paranoid person I am, had hippie get rid of that garden.

We have some bigger tomatoes by the garden next to the porch but I'd be really surprised if we've gotten a dozen bigger tomatoes this year so far.

Our marigolds in the front did extremely well.  They are all tall and bushy.

Last year, hardly any of the mums came up.  This year a lot came up.   The mums got cut back a little later because they usually get so tall and spindly that the first big rain they lay flat.  I'm wondering now if they will be able to be seen from the street because the marigolds seem to be dwarfing them in size and buds are on them. If you click on the picture you can see the mums barely behind the marigolds.

 
I've been thinking though when they bloom I might just use them this year for cut flowers inside the house and take some for mom.  I haven't done that in a few years.

More and more trees around are starting to change colors.  Oh how I love that.

I know some people will miss summer but not me ;-)

Eat Pray Love

I went with Magellan and we saw Eat Pray Love on Saturday.

I thought it was okay but I was expecting to love it and was disappointed that I didn't.  It did have some good quotable lines that naturally we forgot when we got out. Does that mean they were not so quotable or just bad memories,ha,ha.  I thought the movie was too long. 

Did anyone see it and what did you think?

I never read the book and was wondering if I would have liked it better if I had. Although Magellan didn't read the book and she liked it a lot.

We had an older couple sit in front of us.  We thought they were married and then we overheard them talking about each others grandchildren.  We think they were on a date.  It goes to show, it's never too late ;-)

When we left the movies, we decided to go out and eat.  The twizzlers I ate at the movies apparently wasn't enough for supper for me.  We had hamburgers, french fries (which I really didn't eat many) and chocolate milkshakes.  I would say that was a perfect ending.

Saturday Centus #19

It's Saturday Centus again - in a nutshell, Jenny Matlock gives us a prompt from either herself or a guest submitter and then we have to write 100 or words less related to the prompt (the prompt doesn't count toward the 100 words)  Then link it up to her blog.  It's open until the following Saturday, so that means you have all week to participate by either reading or writing a Centus,  The prompt is in bold.    Check out to see what others have written  http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/search/label/Saturday%20Centus

WEEK 19 PROMPT

I got up late.  I made coffee and then went to the computer as usual.  I saw something had happened in New York and went to the living room.

I stood frozen in front of the flickering images on my TV. 

It was hard to wrap my brain around what I was seeing. People jumping, buildings collapsing, people running through the streets to get away from the voluminous smoke.

I watched TV for days non-stop.  I went from sadness to anger and everywhere in between.

One thing I knew for sure, this would change who America was and we would never be the same.   Little did I know.

33 years

Today is our wedding anniversary.  I thought I'd tell 33 reasons why I love hippie.

1.   He puts up with me.

2.   He agreed it was good that I be a stay at home mom.

3.   He's my live in chauffeur (but I mean that in a nice way).

4.  When I'm sick, he takes care of me.

5.  He's an excellent father.

6.  He's been generous and helpful to Mom.

7.   He's willing to help my friends with anything.

8.   We have the same views, regarding money.

9.   He doesn't complain if the house isn't spic and span.

10. He returns things to the store because he knows I don't like to do it.

11. When we go somewhere he opens the door and if it's raining he'll drop me off at the door so I don't get wet.

12. If I'm not coming home until dark, he puts the porch light on for me and opens the door so I don't have to use my key.

13. He brings me candy bars home just for a treat.

14. He gets teary eyed when something very good or very bad happens.

15. He brought my sister-in-laws and brother-in-laws into my life.  They've always made me feel like family.

16. He doesn't care if some days I don't cook.

17. He's a great cook.

18. He does all the grocery shopping.

19. If we are having a party, he helps me get everything ready.

20. If there's snow outside and he doesn't get a chance to snow blow, he always makes sure there's a path on the porch and to the vehicle for me to walk.

21.He plants flowers in the front not because he wants them but because he knows I like them.

22. He's a homebody, like me.

23. He'll do something even if he doesn't want to, if I want to.

24. He cooks the Thanksgiving turkey and then makes Turkey soup.

25. He doesn't care that I don't look like I did years ago.

26. He knows when I need alone time.

27. He always cleans up after the dog outside.

28. He's a kind person.

29. He's been a good provider.

30. A couple of times, he drove me to Michigan to stay with a friend, went home and came right back a week later to bring me home. 

31. He's always on my side no matter what.

32.He doesn't care if I spend hours on the computer lol.

33. Magellan has always called  hippie a saint.  I wouldn't go that far but he is a wonderful guy.

Mother Mary

When Mom moved here for almost a year, we brought some things to make her feel at home. 

I bought this for her when I was in kindergarten but I suspect she told me what to buy ;-)  It's over 50 years old.  Must be an antique now, ha.  

Another picture, I had in my drafts lol.  

Neighbors

I just want to warn you before you read this, there are some very disturbing things involved in this post about how the neighbor lady passed away.  It is rather shocking.  Just be forewarned if you continue.

When we moved to our home, the neighbors on our driveway side were the original owners of their home.   

We always had our ups and downs with them.  They never had any children.  When my son was little and his friends would come over they were always pretty good about throwing the ball over the fence when the kids would accidentally get it in their yard.

Although there were times that they would get mad at us and stop talking to us.  We would never know what happened but eventually we would start talking to them and all would be well.

They always wanted to take us out to eat and we did go a few times.  They also came over for Thanksgiving when we had it here and would celebrate with our family.  They knew my mom and dad and always enjoyed talking with them.  They even came to my son's high school graduation party.  

As my son got older, they started to get mad at us more often.  I think because my son and his friends used to come and go all hours of the night and their bedroom was by our driveway. I used to holler at them all the time but you know kids that age they just don't think.

The winter before she died, she called up during the night and told me if we didn't stop all the car door slamming she was going to call the police.  That was the last time I spoke with her.

The following spring one day, there was still snow on the ground, I was looking out the front window and I told my husband someone must have thrown garbage in the neighbors apron of the driveway.  When I looked again, I saw it was the neighbor lady laying there.  Her husbands car was parked in the front of the house.  I gave my husband a blanket and told him to put it on her.  (I remembered that from TV your supposed to cover someone so they don't go in shock).  He ran out then I ran out.  The girl next door had already called for an ambulance and was yelling at the neighbor guy.  

To this day, I'm not exactly sure what happened.  She used to walk to the end of the driveway and he would stop and she would get in.  Somehow she ended up in the apron and he ran over her with the car.  He said he thought it was a snowbank.  OMG, it was just terrible.  He kept asking if she was going to be all right.  We think she was already gone.  The police came and put crime tape all around.  I really couldn't tell them anything because I only saw the aftermath.  The girl next door said she saw him run her over and was yelling from her house to tell him to stop but he couldn't hear her.  The neighbor girl never saw though how she ended up on the ground.  The lady did have heart issues and was in the hospital numerous times for it.  They said she died because of the heart issues but I'm not convinced that's the truth.  They did take away the neighbor guys license for a while but then gave it back.  I can't even explain how many months I couldn't get the image out of my mind.  I had never seen anything like that, I hope I never do again.  

I was very surprised when he remarried.  I thought for sure when she died he would shortly after.  They were such a loving couple.  In the summer, they would always be sitting in the backyard and talking to each other.  My husband and I would think what do they have so much to say to each other after all those years of being married.

I think he was close to 90 when it happened and he is 96 and still going strong.

All about Mom

I haven't written about Mom for a while, so here's what's been happening with her over the summer.

She finally had her eyes examined.  I thought she needed new glasses for distance but she's starting to get cataracts in her eyes but not bad enough that anything needs to be done.  She just needed reading glasses.  I also found she has no peripheral vision in her left eye.  He said it could have happened because of a minor stroke sometime.  Also, she has blood behind her eyes because of the diabetes.  So, he's going to see her again in 6 months.

Overall, since I switched doctors and she can see the nurse practitioner any day of the week her health has improved a lot.  She especially hasn't had any problems with her legs swelling. 

One day, hippie had an appointment close to the nursing home and I went and had lunch at the nursing home with her.  I had a hamburger and she had pizza.  It was pretty good.  

Another day, I could smell onions cooking as soon as I went into the day-room. One of the activities people were cooking in an electric skillet and was having a cooking class.  She was making goulash and Mom was right there with her watching.  She said Mom and her were talking about cooking.  Then she asked me about some of the things my Mom used to cook.  I think Mom loved doing that.

I've mentioned how much Mom loves to sing.  They are going to start a choir and Mom's the first one that they asked if she'd like to join.  I think this will be a lot of fun for her.

I'm really pleased that they are finding more creative things to do with the residents.

Happy Labor Day.

Saturday Centus 18

It's Saturday Centus again - in a nutshell, Jenny Matlock gives us a prompt from either herself or a guest submitter and then we have to write 100 or words less related to the prompt (the prompt doesn't count toward the 100 words)  Then link it up to her blog.  It's open until the following Saturday, so that means you have all week to participate by either reading or writing a Centus,  The prompt is in bold.    Check out to see what others have written http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/2010/09/welcome-to-week-eighteen-of-saturday.html

It was a dark and stormy night. 

The woman went to answer the door.  I yelled "Don't open it" but she did and let the slasher in.  The TV went dark.

Outside I could see the whole street was black.

I thought why do people always open the door like that.  What an idiot. 

I laid down starting to doze when the knock came.  I picked up a vase and peered through the door.  It was a hooded figure.  I opened the door and whacked the person on the head.  As they fell to the ground, I saw it was my husband.  Uh oh!

Friday random thoughts

1.  I'm taking off from doing Alphabe-Thursday for a while.  I think I got burned out. 

2.  I'm only about 350 posts behind now.  I'm thinking of just deleting them and starting over.  

3. I had a good taste of fall last week.  Temps in the 70's.   This week not so much.  Over the weekend,  it's going to be fall like weather.   Woo hoo!!  I wonder if I put the few fall decorations I have out if I could trick Mother Nature into keeping it that way, ha!!

4.  Is anyone watching The Big C on Showtime?  I love it so far.  It's really different.

5..  I wonder why they are switching Survivor to Wednesday nights after all these years.

6.  Glenn Beck @@

 7. I went out for pie and coffee on Wednesday with Magellan.  We each got a piece of chocolate peanut butter cup pie.  It was so yummy!!  It was buy one piece get the other one free.  We are going to try to do it once a month.

New Computer & cell phone

My new computer is a HP touch smart 600.  I really didn't need that fancy of a one but I fell in love, ha!

I've got so much to learn about it.  Like how to get my pictures on from my camera.  So for a while, I probably won't be using pictures. Yesterday's pictures I had in a saved post.

I love that it runs so much faster then my old one.  I'm going to be exploring it for a long time if I even ever get it all figured out.  All I have to do is find the time now, ha!

As far as the new cell phone, it's pretty low tech lol even though it's new.  It's just a flip phone, nothing special.  We don't text or really even use the cell phones that much.  I was just tired of having to share with hippie and if he was out, he would have to come home if I was going out with my friends to bring it home to me. 

One high tech item bought and one - not so much.