My neighborhood growing up

My neighborhood growing up
19th Street, Port Townsend

Friday, July 29, 2011

Weeding, Sewing, and hanging out

I can't figure out why I've been so worn out these past weeks.  I suppose it's because I'm old now and the body just can't take as much as it used to.  I guess.  Still...it does seem like I'm not able to do as much as I think I should be able to do.  The kids and I worked on Jenni's flower bed along the sidewalk and while it took a couple of hours, it wasn't that difficult and I did have a little stool to sit on as I weeded along.

My foot didn't bother me while working but as soon as I finished, I could tell anything else I wanted to do was going to have to be sitting down.  The foot plagued me the rest of the day. I've got my fingers crossed that I'll get it diagnosed and healed next week when I visit the podiatrist.

Maddie wanted to treat us to lunch so I let her throw $3 in the pot as we drove through Jack in the Box for burgers. We parked down on the lookout bluff and watched ships with my binoculars.  I would have gone down to the sand sculptures too but I knew walking wasn't going to be pleasant.  Irritating to not be able to do simple activities with the grandkids.

We did notice a garage sale sign in the neighborhood so we drove there.  It was a friend of Jenni's and I spent $17.50.  Got two very large sacks of thread for $2 each. I was thrilled. Also got some material, some toys, and this really neat art decoration of a junk yard. Hard to explain what it's made of.  Metal maybe?  Anyhow, Hunter and I thought it was terrific.
I sat down at the sewing machine to get started on some projects and pretty soon, Maddie was cutting out pieces of cloth to make her teddy bear a dress. Hunter was bored but since Maddie and I seemed to be enjoying ourselves, he decided he wanted to learn how to sew too. I taught him how to thread a needle but he kept eyeing my machine.


As he started sewing his material, I suspected my sewing machine was going to be a favorite toy with both of them.
"Hey! This is fun!"  he said.  "And I always thought sewing was boring."

"Maybe you'll be a tailor when you grow up?"
No, that's not in my plans.

"Well, what do you plan to do?"
I'm gonna cut lawns during college and then I'll probably be a carpenter or an engineer.

Maddie says:  "I'm gonna be a dentist.  Or maybe a dental hygienist."
Good.  We need a dentist in the family. One who will work on me for free!

I got a call from an old neighbor I had in Green Acres and she told me three of the neighbors died.  Odd that I didn't see any of their names in the obits. I'm always reading the obits.

Well, I'm halfway packed for our Great Wolf Water Park outing tomorrow. I'll finish up in the morning.  My ear tinnitis is running its usual after supper hum.  I'm going to have to do some more research on that ailment.  I wonder if eating is tied in somehow.  Or yawning.  I've been doing that a lot too.

Will write more next Monday.

Morning chores

Me and the twins decided to surprise Jen & Wayne so we spent a couple hours weeding this morning.  It was actually kind of fun.




Thursday, July 28, 2011

Where'd he go?

I waited all day for Mr. Tractor Man to show up and work on cutting down more scotch broom but he never did show.  I hope he didn't decide the job was to much.

I spent about an hour and a half to two hours pulling weeds and tidying up the front garden area.  Amazes me how much work is required for such a little area.  Hunter and I emptied two full wheelbarrows of weeds, and I could have easily put in another hour. 

Tomorrow I may work on the side of the house.  I can only do small areas at a time before my back and knees give out. Thank God for the little campstool I have.  I don't know why I'm so tired. It's only a little after 8 pm and I feel like I need to go to bed.  I suspect the fact that I wake up several times a night is depriving me of needed rest. I bet I turn over 17 times or more.  I'm thinking maybe I should try to work a nap in now and then. It might help me stay up longer at night.  I know.  Whine...whine...whine.  And I've yawned four times since writing this paragraph.

My Netflix movie last night was 'Barney's Version' with Paul Giamatti. I really liked it A LOT!

Jenni asked me tonight if I felt comfortable driving a stick in case she needed a rest while driving this weekend.  I was pretty sure I could drive a stick since that's what I learned on but we decided to have me drive around the block to see.  I guess it's kind of like riding a bike....once you do it, you can always do it.

Television was irritating AGAIN today.  If I have to hear those three seniors saying "What were you thinking?" in regards to writing your congressman about the health bill, I think I'll puke! Some organization obviously has too much money in their coffer to have that annoying commercial run several times a day for weeks on end. 

And dear God, do we really have to hear about Jennifer Lopez divorcing her husband, Arnold's son being hurt in a accident and Oprah helping Marie through the throng of reporters, or Paris Hilton being warned not to go near the riot area, or hearing about Amy Winehouse maybe dying because she quit drinking?

I don't understand all the hoopla about the politicians fighting each other about the budget and taxes, etc.  I vaguely understand some of it but actually, it's confusing to me.  Why are we in danger of being in arrears?  I thought WE were the country giving giving giving to everyone else all the time.  All of a sudden, our credit rating is going down the toilet? 

What I do know is that I'm pretty sure those fatcats are going to make my Edwards Jones money go down.  I'm not as informed as I should be about how stocks work. I do know they go up and down and that they want us to sit it out.  Like what else am I going to do?!

Okay. Enough complaining for tonight. Time to hit the sack.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Oh Joy! Thank you Lord!

As I turned to head up my street this morning after leaving the dentist office, I noticed a flatbed truck parked near my house. "Wonder what that is", I muttered to myself.

 As I got closer, I realized it was a man with a tractor mowing down the scotch broom.  He was standing on the street (trying to figure out where the five electric boxes might be) and I slowed, rolled down my window, and yelled:  "I THINK I LOVE YOU!"

He grinned and said it was probably going to take two days to get the job finished. I asked him if the owner was going to start building. He said he didn't know about that but he may have been getting some static from the city to get rid of the stuff.  It's a happy day. ( called Hunter at his other gramma's house to tell him about it, and I think he was excited too.)

I feel kind of sorry for Mr. Tractor Man. He plows down one row slowly as that stuff doesn't cut easily and then he has to walk back through and see if he can spot a power box.  Not a fun way to make a living.  I don't imagine the birds are particularly thrilled, however.

I stopped at Safeway to buy a couple items and noticed these plant stakes on sale for $1.99. I thought they were terribly pretty so I bought three of them.
Well, I've got a free day ahead of me. Think I'll write Harry Gauthier a birthday note (his daughter is throwing him a party on Saturday but I can't make it) and then I'll start another blog posting for the Leader.  Mary gave me some Redskin Review high school papers from 1981 so I'm going to share some of those articles.

Then it will be sewing while I listen to a book on tape, a tiny bit of ironing, and relaxing with a crossword puzzle.  Ahhh...retirement can be blissful.

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Rearranging

Hunter just cooked some popcorn in the microwave and boy, does it smell good. I didn't think I wanted any but ended up taking about a cup. I hardly ever make popcorn and I don't know why. I do love it.

I spent about a half hour sorting photos again. Figured if I kept at it little by little, it wouldn't become a project that required too much time.  I often get into my photo boxes to look for something or another and if I'm in a hurry, I don't file them back where they belong.  My pictures project has taken on a life of its own.  I have a few albums, three photo boxes sorted by category, and hundreds and hundreds on disk and hard drive.  I do intend to get them sorted just the way I want them.

And eventually, I'm going to use several in a family and friend memoir.  I'm still playing around with ideas in my head of how I want to put it together.

Yesterday I kept hunting for a Tupperware lid for this oblong container I had put picnic sandwiches in.  I thought it might be buried in my pan and skillet shelves and I didn't have anybody here to get down on their knees and crawl back in there to look.  Never did locate it.
I got to thinking about how often I get into my various baking and cookie pans and how I'm always struggling to retrieve something that has worked itself to the back.

Not sure why it took me so long to decide to rearrange where I keep stuff in the kitchen. I think you just get used to something being in one spot and you deal with the inconvenience.  I'm now using space more suited to the needs of my body not wanting to squat or get on all fours.  And to think I had perfectly fine shelving in the hallway that was chest high--and empty.

I got other little odds and ends done today as well. Hemmed a pair of pants, ironed two pieces of clothing, started a cross stitch wall hanging, cleaned the refrigerator shelves, took the memory foam off my mattress, picked some peas, watered the grass, mailed 20 disks out, sat in Jenni's house for over an hour while the plumber installed a new hot water tank, and rehung the wind chime over my bed so it wasn't directly over my face.  I hope to die in bed someday but am not particularly fond of dying with a sharp chime piece coming down on my skull. ha ha


Sammy is in here with me now watching the kids ride their bikes in the street. I know he'd like to be out there too but my foot is keeping me from walks right now. Will be interesting to find out if it's broken toes again.  I did pull out the walking boot I had a few years ago and it was for the same foot causing me grief now.  I won't be that surprised if the doctor diagnoses broken toes.
I had a VHS tape playing in the VCR that was 50's music.  I just loved it when Hunter said:  "Hey! I like that song.  He really sings good."   (Buddy Holly - That'll be the Day) Later, when I asked Maddie to help me sort pictures, she said:  "Well, okay, but can we change the channel? That music is annoying."   hee hee

I've been trying for weeks to take some good pictures of the gold finches feeding out front. Yesterday, by carefully hiding myself behind the cracked door, I caught this one.
Well, I'm too tired to write a Leader blog today but maybe tomorrow when I get back from the dentist.

Who I watched on TV when I was a kid

Do you remember Stan Boreson?  I do...  I watched him every afternoon.  He was born in 1925 in Everett.



Still performing....

Monday, July 25, 2011

They really do grow up too fast

Took a picture of my grandson, Hunter, at North Beach this afternoon. After looking at it on my computer, I realized again that time is passing way too fast.


I made a quick stop by Chetzemoka Park again as I wanted to get some shots of the entrance and the path leading in. It's changed a lot since I was a kid and the road in was twice as wide.



this is the same view but looking out towards the street

the restroom has been upgraded a bit



We had a little birthday picnic at North Beach for my sister but didn't stay too long as it was kind of chilly.  I had walked her dog, Newman, down to the beach and on the way back, two standard poodles thought he looked awfully interesting.

The twins were looking for beach glass and did find a little bit. Had we stayed longer, I'm sure we could have found more.  You can usually always find beach glass at North Beach. Here's Maddie walking up the shoreline.

The kids wanted to visit Elevated Ice Cream to buy candy so we made a trip downtown. Stopped at Penny Saver on the way out of town and ran into Barbara Blowers.

Barb took a picture of me and Virginia with a bumper sticker I'd bought in the store. Unfortunately, though, they were kind of old and the stickiness was gone as they wouldn't adhere to my bumper.  I took it back inside and exchanged it for a lottery ticket.

Well, I'm tired so guess I'll turn off the computer for the night and see how long I can stay up to watch TV.  I'm betting it's not going to be long.  All that driving and fresh air did me in.

Sunday, July 24, 2011

Dinner guests

Today my oldest daughter, Sue,and her husband, Paul, came over for dinner along with Sue's daughter, Catie.  Also dining with Paul's folks from L.A.  Evelyn & Lee Weinstein.  We had a nice visit and they brought me flowers.

I finished seeding the strip of lawn off the back porch this morning. Ended up being a lot harder than I thought it would, but then it got hot quickly and my left foot was throbbing. I did put some fencing around it and am hoping it deters the dog. I have no idea if I did it correctly but I suppose I'll find out one way or another once the grass comes up or doesn 't.



I had planned to serve dinner on the porch but it was way too hot out there so we ate in the house.  I had the umbrella up and about an hour after company left, I heard this loud woosh bang. Went outside and couldn't find my umbrella anywhere.  I walked around to the front of the house and there it was stuck on my bird feeders.  If it hadn't of caught, it probably would have sailed over into the scotch broom.  Kind of scared me really. It could have caused an accident if it went airborne and hit a car.    I usually tie it flat when not in use. Now I'm going to have to remember to always keep an eye on it.

As I waited for company to arrive, I took the lasagna out of the oven, turned on the broiler and stuck the garlic bread under the element.  Went in to sit at the computer for a minute and Catie arrived so I ran out to take a picture of her with her new car.
As we hugged hello and returned to the house, all of a sudden I remembered my garlic bread.
Yep!  Did it again. Burnt!  Catie scraped off the black crud for me so they were eatable.  Meanwhile, the smoke alarms started going off to beat the band.  Loud little buggers too!  I turned on the fans and hoped the burnt smell would go away before company came.  The neighbor asked me later what happened as she heard the alarm inside her house.  I told her it was just the old forgetful lady next door burning her dinner again.

Catie delivered the reunion DVDs that Mary burned for me but I have to play each one first to make sure it took.  I'll deliver some to PT tomorrow when I go in but the rest will have to be mailed Tuesday or Wednesday.

Hmmm...I just noticed both my hummingbird feeders are empty of nectar.  I wonder if they evaporated in the heat. Doesn't seem like the birds could go through that much that quickly.  Or maybe they did.  Will have to make some fresh juice tomorrow afternoon.

Here's a picture of me, Catie, and Sue.

Maddie stopped in for a minute so I took a quick picture of her and Catie too. I should have taken more time, though, as it didn't come out too clear.


just because..

Decided to make a second quick post today as I want to look at this picture enlarged and it shows up better on my blog.  Probably not of interest to anyone except family members.
Was taken at Lincoln Creek School near Doty or Galvin in the 20's. Picture says "last day of school; going on a picnic."
Pictured are:
 Aunt Velna 3rd from left in back row
Uncle Arthur, far right in back row
Aunt Elva: far left in 2nd row
Uncle George: 4th from left, 1st row

Taking a Break

Expecting dinner guests today so I decided to get the food prepared and in the fridge.  I put on my VHS tapes of classic country songs and turned it up to sing along as I took my time making supper.
Tossed salad, garlic bread, lemonade, lasagna, and lemon pie. (Which Wayne and I had a piece of yesterday)  It's all in the fridge and dishes are washed so I can relax the rest of the day.  Well, not really.  I still have to go outside and get that grass seed scattered and more topsoil added.  I'll do that in a few minutes and then see if I can't do something with my hair.

Ha! Who am I kidding?!  My hair is a lost cause.

There's a light breeze blowing so it shouldn't be too difficult shoveling dirt around out there. Once that's done, I think I'll settle in at the sewing machine for a while.  Need to remember to keep my front door locked too.

Normally, it's locked all the time.  Just a reminder of these days we live in.  I was outside sweeping the steps and hanging the flag so I had left the door unlocked when I came back in.
As I was working at the range stirring tomato sauce and singing along to my country tunes, I feel someone tap on my shoulder.

I about went through the roof!  There's Maddie grinning at me.  "HI GRAMMA! Whatcha' doin;?"
Needless to say, I gave her a piece of my mind about coming up behind people like that.

'I'M OLD, 'YA KNOW!  YOU TRYIN' TO GIVE ME A HEART ATTACK OR SOMETHING?!"

She smiled sweetly but I know she thought it was funny.  She was bike riding with a girl friend and needed to make a quick stop to pick up some of her favorite candy she knew I had in the candy dish. I bought them because I knew I wouldn't eat them but the twins would. Swedish Fish.

Watched 'The Rite' last night. Horror film about the devil with Anthony Hopkins. Stupid.  Netflix is probably going to go by the wayside before fall sets in. Just too hard to find movies worth the money sometimes.  I do like the variety, however, and if you search you can usually find stuff you haven't seen. My next four are: Barney's Version, 3 backyards, That evening sun, and Accidents Happen.  I haven't heard of any of them except Barney.

I came across Paul Newman's movie 'Cool Hand Luke' on TCM yesterday but it was hard to watch.  I don't like those movies where the bad guys are really bad and never seem to die at the end.  Sometimes I can't watch any movie with bad villians just because it makes me nervous to have to wait until the end of the show  before they get what's comin' to them.

Got a couple of 1981 Redskin Review high school newspapers from my daughter yesterday so I'll have something fun to write about for my next Leader blog. Maybe I'll start work on that this afternoon.

Off to the backyard now. The sooner I get that seed scattered, the sooner I can rest. Here's a picture I took this morning. Sure is hard to catch good photos of those goldfinches. One day there were four or five sitting out there but they disappeared before I could get my camera in place.

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Saturday morning around the house and yard

I got up a few minutes past 7 a.m. and decided it was time to put the memory foam back on my bed.  Body has been terribly achy all this week.  Which is nothing new, I guess. Seems like my body is always ailing me in one spot or another.  Sure am glad I made a podiatrist appointment yesterday as the bottom of my foot continues to hurt.  Can't get in for 11 days but just as well. If it still hurts by that time, I'll know for sure an appointment was necessary.  Doesn't hurt to touch but there's a gnawing ache  and it looks swollen in that area.  I found a piece of foam to stick inside my shoe for now as I can tell it's not the kind of ache that soaking will help.

I wonder if I've broken a couple of toes again.  I did that a few years back but never did establish how I did it.  Just old bones I guess.  Old bones that are probably none too happy carrying around  this overweight body.  But then again, if you've got weak bones, you can just as easily break a toe being a skinny minny.  At least that what the doctor told me.

I forced myself to keep moving and keep busy this morning but I was almost tempted to give in and settle into the recliner.  Sitting here right now is just another excuse to not be up and about but I have completed some tasks.  (here comes the boring part so you can scroll thru fast if you want; I'll completely understand).

I retrieved  the memory foam out of the closet and pulled it thru the house to toss up on the mattress. Then I put on clean sheets, washed a load of laundry, did up the dishes, rearranged some knickknacks (have to accomodate the OCD when it hits), watered the flowers outside and took pictures, rearranged the bird feeders so I can see them better from my window, wrote a couple of emails, called my son-in-law to beg a favor, put fresh finch food in a feeder, took my vitamins, and settled down to blog with a cup of coffee, piece of toast, and a yogurt.

If Wayne has time this afternoon, I'm hoping he'll help me load up some dirt from the airport nursery for the strip of lawn off the backporch where I want to plant good grass seed.
I can't judge how much topsoil it needs. Probably kind of a silly project-- having a strip of lawn that is nice but you do what you can do.

Here's some other photos I snapped around the yard...

I guess you'd have to enlarge click this one to see it's my peas.

 

I stuck some wild flower seeds in the front of this box and while I don't have any beans yet, I do have a few pretty flowers in bloom.

I can't remember who gave me this rose plant. Maybe my daughter, Mary. I vaguely think I transplanted it from my Green Acres lot.

I really need to write down what seeds I'm planting where since my memory doesn't function that well anymore.  These leaves look like something familiar but I don't know what. Again, you'll have to click enlarge to see them.  I do remember putting some sunflower seeds in this little strip along the fence.  Probably doesn't get enough sun, though. I think I see one sunflower stem in here.

This was a pot in the backyard that I moved to the front. Put some blue flowers in the middle and surrounded them with (I don't know what?) around the outside. Onions maybe?  I notice a little mushroom growing there.  How do they show up?  Was my dirt mossy or something?  I suppose I could google the answer but I'm not sure how to word it.

I filled the birdbath with fresh water and apparently, this finch appreciated the effort.

This is the back of the Clallam County fair shirt that Jenni got for me. I'm wearing it now. Haven't decided if I'll go to the fair or not.  Probably I will since it's more or less across the street from me. Still, it's not as much fun as the Jefferson County Fair.  And I'm going to that on August 12. Try to come by as I'll have a ton of pictures to give away.

Here are five counted cross stitch designs I've finished and will probably make into small wall hangings. I think I'll work on them today. Intend to sew strips of fabric around each one making a quilt-like design for hanging.  Or I may make a couple of greeting cards out of one or two. Only problem is, I'm not real good at crafty stuff like that and my cards usually look kinda lame.

Well, the mail lady just arrived. I got a movie from Netflix (an Anthony Hopkins flick called The Rite) so I guess I know what I'll be doing later tonight.  Tomorrow morning I'm fixing a pan of lasagna, a tossed salad, and a garlic bread for dinner guests.  Oh good...better pictures to share on my blog.

I've asked Jenni if we can take a side trip down to Galvin next Sunday after our stay at Great Wolf Water Park near Chehalis.  Or is it Centralia?  I never can remember. Anyhow, I'm looking forward to that even if Galvin is just a tiny place. Always wanted to see where my dad was born. What I'd really like (if I knew how to do it) would be to figure out where exactly their farm was in Galvin so I could ride by to take pictures.  I wonder if there's a way to research that.  Maybe I'll write to Lewis County genealogical society and see if they know.

Friday, July 22, 2011

Wal-Mart sucks a lot of the time!

Nothing like a trip to Walmart to perk up the day.  Place is too big to navigate for one thing. I went to the return desk to exchange a bike helmet for Jenni. The girl told me to go get another and bring it back to the desk so she could do paper work.  Of course when I got back, I'm 4th in line and she's working ever so slowly. In earlier days, a kid might have run to retrieve a new helment for an  old lady.

I turn around to the lady behind me and say: "I just hate this store sometimes!"  We immediately bonded as she told me it's not near as good a store as it was when they were smaller. Customer service has taken a nose dive and like me, she waits until her list is long enough to make the trip worthwhile.

By the time I got to the front of the line, the cash register ran out of paper so the clerk monkeyed around with that. Kept putting the paper in backwards.  Then I have to show my drivers license and sign a return receipt.  What a bunch of baloney!

And I've noticed the food prices aren't that great anymore either.  When I get to the checkout lines, there's two open. People lining up everywhere.  Most opt out to try and check themselves out. I wasn't about to as I had way too much.

I'd brought my own bags so the clerk proceeds to fill them so heavy, I can't lift them off the counter. I make her take some stuff out.  And my stop at the pharmacy was a bust too.  I presented the prescription for eye drops and they not only didn't have it in stock, they don't have the generic either and want to order it. When she said it was $70, I decided the hell with that jazz. I'll buy over the counter drops.

I went to YouTube and was surprised at the dozens and dozens of videos you could watch about Walmart.  Some were terribly gross. This one wasn't too bad....

End of the week

Well, here it is....Friday again.  Today I think I'll run over to Walmart. I'm having Sue and her husband and his folks to dinner on Sunday and I need to buy all the ingredients to make supper. Plan on lasagna, garlic bread, salad, and dessert.  Maybe we'll even get to eat out on the deck.  I hardly ever fix a nice dinner anymore. Hope I can manage.  Ha!

Watched Blue Valentine last night, and liked it a lot.  Ryan Gosling was terrific.  So was Michelle Williams.  Made me a little teary at the end. Just when I think I might not find anything worth watching on Netflix, I browse a little deeper and manage to add half a dozen more.

While looking for car pictures yesterday, I came across this one of Ruth and me with Hef. He really thought he was hot stuff but I wasn't impressed.
My daughter was in a meeting at work and emailed me a picture she took on her phone. The motivational speaker was John Curley. Speech was: "How to change your luck in 7/10 of a second."  She said he was quite good.

And here's one I found of cousins Jimmy and Linda in their yard. Probably taken in 1962 or 1963. That two-story house in the background belonged to neighbor, Mary McCullem.  It burned down and now my cousin, Tyler Johnson, lives on that corner with his family.
Well, guess I'll get my shopping list together and head across town. Kids are due back from camp today but not sure if they're coming here or to the other grandma's house. I need to make an appt with a podiatrist today too.  Wonder how long before I can get in.  I've decided if I'm going to be paying out these high medical premiums, I might as well see a doctor when something is out of whack.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Cousins & Cars

I've been trying to figure out for some time now exactly what I want my next project to be. I need to make a decision as it's a whole lot easier crawling out of bed each morning when I have a goal.  I'm taking baby steps for now. I think that's why I signed up for the echo blog.  It'll help me jumpstart my writing.

I do know I want to concentrate on memoir writing and family history.  I'd like to write a book too but I haven't quite decided where to take that--it keeps coming back to memoir writing. Nothing like writing about yourself to keep interested in the topic. ha ha

I emailed two cousins this morning that I had located via Facebook.  Haven't met either of them but maybe someday.  My family history interest keeps focusing back on my grandpa's siblings and parents.  Not sure why but that's the time frame I'm most interested in learning about. How they lived, where they lived, what they did for a living, etc.

I'll always regret I didn't take more notes when my grandpa, uncles, aunts, and dad were alive. I have a few pictures I'd really like to identify--which is why I'm gungho to find other cousin links. Sooner or later I'm gonna find somebody who has pictures with names written on the back.

The lady I wrote this morning lives in Bend, OR and she told me she's going to a wedding in Eugene this weekend. She wrote:

 I am hoping to sit down with my husband's grandpa, he is Elizabeth Blankenship's grandson, and talk. I've also talked to my husband's aunt who, after this weekend, is going to get some stuff together. I also need to send an e-mail to Elizabeth Blankenship's other grandson, I'm hoping they have some helpful stuff (like pictures!).

I'm really excited about what she finds. Elizabeth was my grandpa's sister and she married a guy named Thomason.

Another cousin I found in Albany, OR is related to Mary Maude Holt Skaggs, a sister of my grandmother, Viola Mae Holt.  She had lots of data and pictures too. Below is Arthur Lewis Steele standing by his dad's car.(Arthur Thomas Steele)
This picture made me realize how much I wish I had taken better photos of the cars we owned over the years.  For some reason, I can remember the cars of my childhood a lot better than the ones of my adulthood. I had to call my ex-husband to find out what cars we had after we finished with the '57 Chevy station wagon that my dad gave us. (my teenage car)

He rattled them all off, remembering the colors, who we bought them from, who we sold them to, and even who hit us while driving them.
A white Mercury Comet, a 59 Chevy wagon, a blue Buick, a red LTD, and a tan Dodge wagon.

I wonder if he's correct  ( hee hee)  29 years divorced and I still have my doubts he's right.  And now I have to go round up pictures because I'm curious of what I have in my collection. Be back later......

Found a few odds and ends of car pictures but some are just in the background.  These aren't in gospel order of when they appeared in my life but I got as close as I could. I'm terribly vague on years and models so if you see anything you recognize, I'd love to hear what it is exactly.


1947 Chevy (I think) At any rate, it's the stick I learned to drive in.

International pick up truck. Also 1947 I think. Maybe later.
 1957 Chevy Stationwagon.  Had such good times in this car.
This must be the Comet we had. Mercury Comet?

Kind of looks like this is the same car. Not sure who belongs to that one on the right. It kind of looks like a convertible.

Is this a Mercury?  I can't tell.

 Same car as the one shown above maybe?
Forgot the year but this is a Horizon. Looked nice but boy, did it cause me mechanical wear and tear in the pocketbook. Seems like it was always breaking down.

First car I bought myself after getting divorced. LTD but I don't know the year. Maybe I got this before the Horizon.  I really liked this car. Sold it to an Arey.
My Nissan Sentra. Another unreliable car.

Dad sold me (or did he give me?) his blue Mazda.

Ford pick up I bought from a neighbor in Hadlock. This was a pretty good truck for me. Sue has it now.

My latest. 1999 Toyoto Avalon. The most reliable car I've ever had. Gettin' kind of hard to get in and out of, though. I'd like to have a car that sits higher.  Unless I win some money, though, it probably isn't going to happen. My social security checks just aren't stretching far enough to take on a car payment. I already complain about cable taking too much. But then you know that.

Well, the day has moved right along since I decided to go look at pictures. Jen picked up Sammy and says the kids get home from camp tomorrow.  I've got a Netflix movie to watch tonight--Blue Valentine.  Last night I watched Denzil Washington in a train flick called Unstoppable.  I'll give it a C.

Boy, the birds are zooming to beat the band across the street.  Think I'll stop and watch them a bit and then see about finding something easy for supper. I'm not in the mood to cook (again) so I may go for easy and have a waffle.