My neighborhood growing up

My neighborhood growing up
19th Street, Port Townsend

Sunday, July 28, 2013

I'm not falling down laughing!

Well, I've had better days.  Meaning yesterday.  I was so tired (from yard work I guess?) that I fell asleep in my recliner at 7:30 pm.  Got up at 9:30 and decided to go to bed.  I have a note on my pillow reminding me to move the bird feeder out front from its pole to the porch (so the deer don't clean me out during the night). The pole is in this little raised garden area surrounded with big rocks and I'm always real careful stepping in and out as I knew I could lose my footing.  Yesterday that happened.

I'm still amazed at how quickly and how HARD a person can fall.  Unfortunately, my face hit first right onto the sidewalk.  I was stunned and laid there a few seconds wondering ....can I get up? So thankful it was mostly dark and no cars were going by.  It's worse when your accident is observed and people want to rescue you.  I wobbled into the house leaving a trail of blood all the way.  Took one look at my bloody face and shirt and knew that I was in for a few days of pain.

I got a large abrasion line down the length of my stomach, a battered knee, scraped wrist, and managed to loosen my front teeth and break the tip off of one.  My nose hurt and my chin has a big bruise on it.  I bandaged myself up and put ice on the lip and crawled into bed. Never did cry, though.
At 3 a.m. I woke up and the damn lip was still bleeding so I thought perhaps I might need a stitch.

Debated with myself on whether I wanted to deal with the ER.  My past experiences there have been less than good.  I took off hoping for the best. Had the roads to myself, of course.  Not a soul in the waiting room.  This is good, I thought.  I was taken back within 5 minutes.  A doctor immediately came in and introduced himself, took a quick look at my lip and said we'd put some glue suture on it (or something like that) and I never saw him again!

The medical assistant took my blood pressure and applied some gel to numb my bottom lip. Said it would take a "couple minutes" and he'd be back.  Meanwhile, an office girl shows up with clipboard to have me sign consent forms.  An hour later I was still sitting there...and getting steamed by the minute!

If the place had been busy with patients, I might have had more patience of my own but.... I heard one guy say:  "Well, I knew it was too good to last but at least we only have two patients."  I wondered why I was being left there so long.  Did I really need a suture or not?  Was I considered just another fat lady who fell down so who cares?  Was this the normal routine--  Let them sit so they can bill for an hour of ER time? 

I was reminded of the times I took my dad to ER and we were made to sit for hours.  And more than once, the ER was not that busy.  As I sat there and listened to the banter of how their computer system was acting up, and to their stories shared of their personal life (like you do at work..I get that), I was getting so tired and was in so much discomfort, I thought...this is crazy. I can suffer in my own bed at home if this is the care I can expect.

At 4:30, I made my way for the door and the medical assistant (who was just sitting at his desk looking at his computer) says:  "Ma'am....don't you want your check out instructions?"  NO!   And I came home and went to bed.

I've thought and thought this whole situation over trying to give them the benefit of the doubt as to why I wasn't tended to and sent on my way sooner.  It certainly wasn't because they were swamped with other people.  The ER is  one of those places (at least in small towns) where the speed you're looked at depends on who you are.  My standard remark when I feel I'm being ignored is:  I wonder if the President or the Governor would sit this long.  I suspect not.

I did put a call in to my dentist this morning as my front teeth are  loose and sore and my daughter insists I have to get that chip fixed.  I told her if I was 40 or 50, I might agree but I'm almost 70, and who really cares if I have a piece of my front tooth missing?  She does...so I guess I'll spend some dough at the dentist's office soon.  Sigh.....

I've been discouraged lately that I haven't been able to curtail my eating. Perhaps this is God's way of stepping in and forcing me to get with the program.  I'm sipping coffee through a straw and soft foods are going to be on the menu for several days.  You have to look on the bright side.  If I lose even five pounds, it might be the motivation I need to keep going.

My schedule today is to sit in the recliner, read, nap, and watch videos.  Maybe do some cross stitch and crochet.  Maybe write a letter and surf the net too.  I don't really have anything on my calendar

My morning after picture...
 
One interesting thing I noticed this morning.....the dream I had after I came home from the hospital and went back to bed....It was one of those repeat dreams of not being able to find my car.  This time I was lost in the hospital and no matter what door I came out, my car wasn't there.  This took me on a long road trip down very narrow freeways and meeting several people and having several events happening as I went.
 
I ended up in Utica CA among other places and people in my dream this time were Catie, my granddaughter, Sharon, Ruth, Linda, and I forget who else.  I'm sure that means something. Ha ha

Saturday, July 27, 2013

My lawn is going to kill me

Up early again this morning.  Wanted to stay up and watch America's Most Wanted in WA state last night but fatigue set in so I taped it and went to bed.  An hour later I woke up with a terrible bout of foot and toe cramps.  I dealt with it.  Two hours later...again.  Two hours after that...again.  I can't for the life of me figure out what is going on so it's back to Google today to see if I can't pinpoint what I'm doing or if there's something I can go to the health food store and buy.

I absolutely refuse to attribute it to weight or age.  I'm fat but I'm not THAT fat!  I'm old but I'm not THAT old.  I've been taking my vitamins pretty regular and I'm fairly confident I'm drinking enough water. (How can you tell?)  Bananas are a part of my diet and I wear supportive shoes with inserts most of the day. If I switch to bare feet or crocs, it's usually in early evening when I'm too hot to have heavier shoes on and I intend to sit and relax anyhow.

I looked over my diary notes and I did see a couple of notations where I was complaining about toe cramps in 2009 so at least I know this isn't an "all of a sudden" symptom.  It certainly is becoming more frequent, however, and if I don't get some relief so I can sleep, my sweet personality is going to turn.  That's a joke. We all know I'm a crab most of the time. 

The only thing I did out of the ordinary yesterday was completely wear myself out by mowing and weed eating.  I did it in stages so I could rest in between.  The last bout was at 5 pm and I suspect that was a huge mistake.  Way too warm out there, and as I struggled pushing the mower and emptying the bag, I felt myself getting warmer and warmer.  I had morbid thoughts too.  Like:  I sure hope I don't have a heart attack out here. I'd have to wait for the neighbors to spot me from their windows.

I think if I had a self-propelled mower, this whole lawn cutting business wouldn't be such a problem. I may look into that.  When I started with my weed eater, I noticed it was caked with dried grass underneath so I sat down to clean it.  Took off the reel to put on more wire and out jumped dozens of earwigs.  I HATE EARWIGS!  I thought about quitting right then and there but I was already in my "workin' clothes" so I decided to persevere.

When I threw the weedeater to the ground in alarm as the bugs came out, the shield protecting the person who is using the tool broke off. STUPID PLASTIC that everything is made out of these days!
I knew I didn't want to invest in a new tool so I thought I would see if it worked okay without it. It did.

I ended up with a full garbage can full of grass and maybe two wheelbarrows full as well.  This was amazing when I think about how the grass wasn't really growing or tall at all.  It was the dandelions and weeds taking over.  The dust was stirred up plenty as I plowed along and I knew later that night (and this morning) that I was going to suffer with a stuffed up head and annoying cough.  I should have worn a mask but I didn't want to stop and hunt for one.  Not sure I have any in the garage anyhow.

I moved my flowers on the deck all to one side, and hooked up a sprinkler so I can start watering longer than I have been.  I used my old soaker sprinkler (looks like a long green hose) and those things are dreadful to manipulate the first time out of storage.  I kept walking along on top of it trying to get it to lay flat.  Which meant I had to come in and change clothes again 'cause I basically went through the sprinkler without a bathing suit.

This morning I intend to the front lawn.  Again, the grass hasn't grown but the dandelions have. At least the area is small and flat ground. Shouldn't take me any time at all.  Then I'll set up a sprinkler to start watering that area as well.  I may make up another batch of vinegar/salt/Dawn to squirt on the horsetail weeds again. They are turning brown but I see a few new ones trying to get a foothold.

It annoys me sometimes that I had zero interest in gardening, flowers, lawns, etc. when I was younger and could have worked out there nonstop. Now that I'm slower moving and my back hurts the majority of the time, I find I have to curtail my outside chores before I'm ready to call it a day. Odd how that works.  Ironically, I always enjoyed housework and now I find little satisfaction or enjoyment in it.

Yesterday afternoon I sat down to start on a book I'm really interested in reading.  I discovered I had to reread sentences more than once because they just plain weren't sinking in.  Is that my brain cells slowly dying?  Maybe.  I prefer, however, to think it's just my attention span that has gone awry.  I used to read constantly and while I still love books and surround myself with them, I find it difficult to get through one.  I either get sleepy or I lose interest. Usually before I've even given the book a chance. 

I think our tv, computer, videos, etc. have contributed to that.  People (at least some of us) can't concentrate as well as we used to.  I find myself easily distracted but I think a lot of the time it's just because I'm tired.  Here I am....retired and able to stay in bed as long as I please and what happens?
I have to get up because my legs or feet or back hurt....or I'm having bad dreams.  I had some doozies this morning.  And they can be ever so annoying.

Well, my chores today(outside of the front lawn) include writing a letter, mopping the kitchen, and maybe running a load of laundry.  Am also playing with the idea of looking over the neat recipes I've saved from facebook and running to the grocery store to pick up what ingredients I need to make a couple of them.

I can also predict a nap at some point in time.  Maybe sooner than I thought from the way I'm yawning through this blog post today.  Guess I'll get up and get moving.  Have a nice weekend!

Oh...here's a picture that just came in from an email friend....Bill Brown, class of '62.


Friday, July 26, 2013

Pictures,Toe Cramps, Pudding, and ER


I spent a good part of yesterday sorting and filing the photographs on my computer.  I was surprised, once I got going and had a system set up, how quickly I got through all of them.  They’re all on my exterior hard drive so my laptop stays relatively free of clutter.  Now I have to decide what to do with the hundreds that I have on CDs.  Many are duplicates but the disks are the ones I seem to be searching all the time when I need something.  I haven’t quite figured out how to solve this problem but I might move a lot of the pictures from disk to my exterior hard drive so I can keep them in folders there. Means a whole lot more sorting but if I don’t do it, I haven’t solved my problem of having to stop and search each disk all the time.  I’ll have to think on it some more.

I woke up two or three times last night with severe toe cramps.  I notice the pain from the heel tendonitis has let up, though.  Strange.  Sometimes you can google till the cows come home looking for answers on health issues – and still come up dry.  Seems like a lot of the time, ailments are just blamed on age.  I’ve noticed the toes act up soon after taking off my shoes and relaxing in the recliner. That never used to happen.  And now it flares after I’ve been in bed a couple of hours.  Also strange how the calf cramps are absent during these toe flare-ups.  I guess they get to take turns.  Ha ha

Yesterday about 5:30 I get this phone call from Hunter. He says:  “Uhhhhh…I don’t know what to do.”
I figured he was having a problem on ebay cause he’s been bidding on coins (and using my paypal account when he wins something)  I asked him what the problem was and he said:  “I think I broke two toes and I can’t reach my mom ‘cause she’s in a  board meeting for the Campfire Girls.”

I called Jen’s cell and got voice mail. I called Wayne’s cell and got voicemail. I called the campfire house and got voicemail.  Irritation to the max!  That’s what the ‘vibrate’ setting is for!  I called 911 and asked the dispatcher to send an officer to the campfire cabin (nearby their office) to tell Jenni to go home. They wouldn’t. Told me they’d send an aid car if I wanted them to. Grrrr…thanks for nothing!!!

I drove over to pick up Hunter and he hopped on one foot out to my car so I could drive him to the ER.Naturally, the damn place was crowded.They put a paper ID on his wrist and another on me since I’d brought him in.  This annoyed me too, but what are you going to do when our world is full of lying, cheating scumbags who try to use the system to their own advantage.  I do not like ERs.  My distaste for them has magnified since my stepmother died(lack of ER care as far as I’m concerned) and I’ll never forget the discomfort they put my dad through in his last days.  It seems like no matter where you go, ERs everywhere are cells from hell.  And they certainly aren’t hustling around quickly like you see on TV.  More like slow motion and socializing. Okay, enough on that subject. I could write a thousand words but it would only work me up into a lather. Or is it a dither? Ha!

 

 
 
 

I watched FB to see if Jenni would post something while in the ER and she wrote:

“The amount of smelly loud and annoying people in the ER is burning my nose and eyeballs and sucking the intelligence from me.”

Later that evening I thought I would practice texting so I sent a couple of messages to her. (took me forever to figure out how to use the exclamatory sign)  She texted me back that Hunter was proud of me for texting.

Poor Sammy. He didn’t know what to think when nobody picked him up at the usual time and then I left the house for a while at a time I never leave the house.  When Wayne finally came to get him, he was beside himself with happiness.  It cracks me up when he starts “talking”--  I should have taped it. Next time I will.

Made a library run yesterday afternoon as I book I put on reserve was in.  Thanks Coke!  I think I’m going to like this author from Bend.  Just my cup of tea. I ordered three of hers on half.com and am starting “Homestead”  (Jane Kirkpatrick)  Saw a wreck on the highway on my way there. Small pickup truck smashed in but I don’t think anyone was hurt.  I had noticed the traffic was extra heavy as I sat my turn trying to get onto the highway.  The accident was just a couple blocks from where I was sitting.

I finished watching the Netflix series “Orange is the new Black” and oh, how I hated to see it end.  ‘Course they’ll have a second season, I’m sure.  Really really good, and based on fact about this woman sent to a women’s prison. I had to google it to see what the real person looked like.  I suspect because I have a half-sister in prison, I found the story line especially intriguing.  The characters were portrayed like nothing I’ve ever seen before.   My favorite was Kate Mulgrew from Star Trek who played Red, the head cook in the kitchen.

Gonna make a bread pudding today. I bought a loaf of white bread (why I don’t know) and while it makes good toasted cheese sandwiches or French toast, it’s not really my favorite for toast or regular sandwiches.  And I do love bread pudding! I use this recipe in my 1955 Betty Crocker cookbook.

Well, it’s almost 9 a.m. I guess I’ll wait until 9:30 or 10 to crank up that noisy weed eater. Then I’ll come back inside and do fun stuff.

Below is an assortment of various pictures I came across on disk yesterday. Gives you an idea of how difficult filing can be.
                 the Red Hats visiting in front of Vivian's house in Green Acres a few years back
 
                                            The old barn on San Juan Avenue is gone now

An old basketball photo from the 50's

                             Barbara Shaw driving the ladies to see "Mame" in Seattle
                                  The old Reeds store in Hadlock

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Still Sorting...

I made  good headway  on my photo sorting project today.  I'm probably doing a few things the long way but I haven't quite figured out all the little tricks  of using the control key and such.
I pretty much depend on click and drag to my desktop and then to other folders as needed.  I do have to pay attention, however, as I've found if I don't send the relocated files on the desktop to the recycle bin AFTER I've sent it to its new folder, then I can be in a world of hurt with duplicate files.  I think I emptied the recycle bin of over 3000 items yesterday and maybe 5000 today.  Whew!

I put all my alumni and reunion pictures  in their own place outside of "My Photos." Now they're in "Alumni Data."  I'll have to go in there another day and resort again.
Tomorrow I'm working on "friends" and "family".  That requires a number of subfolders such as MY KIDS (and then they each get their own folder) MY GRANDKIDS (again separate folders) MY COUSINS, MY FOLKS, MY SIBLINGS, MY AUNTS, MY UNCLES.

I'm still working on trying to figure out how to categorize FRIENDS.  Some friends I have a ton of pictures of so they get their own folders and then I put their family in each of those.  I worked on PORT TOWNSEND AND PORT ANGELES yesterday.  That took some doing as I gave folders to Water St, Taylor St, Chetzemoka, the hospital, Uptown, etc.

I know I'm just making work for myself but I should be able to find pictures when I want them.  At least that's the plan.  I have about 4 photo boxes that are separated by file cards too.  And maybe half a dozen albums.  I'm a little nervous about sorting through everything on disk.  That's my real problem area as I kept putting things on disk to get them off my hard drive.  Yeah, that's gonna be tricky.

Once I get this done, I'll go back to genealogy. I'm hoping to do up a Blankenship line inserting pictures as I go.  And then I'll do other lines of my family, as well.  Wish I was getting paid for the time I spend on these projects. I'd have a few dollars in my wallet.

I make a point of doing my house and yard chores first 'cause once I sit down, I don't want to quit until my hand hurts.  Which it does now so I'm quitting for the day.  I need to go out in the kitchen and make the two packages of ground turkey I bought into patties for the freezer.  Hamburgers make a quick and easy meal and if the patties are already fixed, I'm more apt to use them.

I didn't get too much accomplished today.  One load of laundry, one trip to Safeway, one letter written, 20 minutes of bike riding, and maybe a half hour of weeding.  My evenings have been pretty much mirroring what I did the night before.....work a crossword while eating dinner, clean up the kitchen (or not), watch Wheel, and then watch 'Orange is the new black' on Netflix while I do cross stitch. 

Then it's off to bed to read.  If I'm lucky, I'll get 3 or 4 pages read before nodding off.  So annoying!
I ordered three paperback books on half.com today. Each one was 75 cents but the damn postage shot my total paypal bill up to $11.  Still, I guess that's a good price.  Bought a series set by Jane Kirkpatrick. Thanks Coke. I think I'm going to like them.

Sammy is here again today as Jenni's doors are still being installed. The flooring guy came by to measure this morning so she can get that problem fixed up soon too. Well, guess I'll get going.......

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Sammy's back

Sammy got dropped off at gramma's house again this morning. Jenni is having new doors installed throughout her house and Sammy would be underfoot big time!  He also can't be trusted if the front door is left open. He's off like a flash to the house across the street where two other dogs live and he only sees them from his window.  No amount of calling him works either.  He goes deaf when he's free.

Jenni was having an especially rotten day yesterday.  Discovered some leak that had been leaking for a long time (kitchen sink or dishwasher perhaps?) had caused some major damage under her floor.
She recently had new tile put down and now she's had to rip it all up and order a guy to come back with new stuff.  Huge expense and headache as it means moving everything in the kitchen again--not to mention paying for new flooring.

I rode my bike for about 20 minutes early this morning but it was a little nippy.  I could have lasted longer if my upper left arm wasn't so dang sore.  I really need to figure out what to do about this problem. It's been continuing for weeks and I wince using that arm for just about everything.  Strange how the lower part of my body (mainly hips, knees, and feet) will not bother me as much when the upper body is taking its turn.

Not too much on the agenda today. Am playing with the idea of giving Sammy a bath in the bathtub. A little concerned about getting on my knees but maybe if I make up a knee pad with blankets and pillows?  I'll think about it.

Also need to weed eat dandelions but weatherman says our weather is cooling later so I'm holding out for that. Much easier to work out there with cooler temperatures.  Both sides of the house don't see the sun much. Especially the west side.  It's nice and flat on that side of the house, though, so it could be made to look a lot nicer than it is.
 
The other side of the house is the difficult area.  Especially near the back deck. The land was never leveled and it's difficult to walk along there because of the slight slope.  I think it needs  filler of some kind but not sure if that means dirt or rocks.  I'm not knowledgeable enough about outdoor landscape techniques to know what to do about it. 
 
And when you get right down to the nitty gritty, I never care one way or the other unless it's spring or summer, and I happen to be outside more than usual.  It's always easier to forget the flaws of the yard when the weather is damp, wet, windy, snowy, and otherwise ICKY!  I am going to get those tall weeds chopped down this week, though; I'm sick of looking at them.  And I might even take my stool out there and see about digging up each and every weed one by one.  I'll make up my mind on that once I get started and see how much abuse my body is taking.  ha ha

Well, I've got to get a little birthday present mailed off to my sister, pick up my Hit 5 ticket for the week, and get started on my picture project again.  I really had fun with it yesterday.  I stayed with the "Port Townsend photos" and made various subfolders within that.  Found a few odds and ends that didn't belong there so I promptly put them up on Facebook. 

Here's some pictures of the twins at age 1 and 13 and two Mary took at the lake this past weekend. Her whole gang was down there and they had two boats. When I asked the twins the "funnest fun" they had, they both said innertubing.  (I think that's when the boat pulls them through the water)



Monday, July 22, 2013

To Disco Bay and Back

Just got back from Disco Bay to pick up the four teenagers from their  5-day camping trip. They had a lot of fun but I think they were happy to get home too.  Maddie especially missed her electronics. No service where they were.

Sure was a lot of traffic both ways. And lots of road construction too.  One nice thing was a parade of classic cars coming towards us most of the way home. Never did find out where the car show  was.

The outfit where I sent my book to be printed called and said my pdf files were fine and the book was good to go.  I was so relieved.  If they arrive before I head in for the county fair on the 9th, I'll bring a stack to leave at Don's Pharmacy.  Think I may pack a bunch around with me too.  Easy enough to hawk them as I tour the fair booths, and buzz around town.

Made a small batch of chocolate chip cookies yesterday. Found this recipe in my cookbook (the one I made) that I had never tried.  I was very pleased with them too as the prep was super quick.

1/3 C. butter or margarine
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla

Beat the above ingredients and add:

1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup Equal (I suppose you could use sugar too)

Stir in:
3/4  cup flour
1/8 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
then stir in:
1/2 cup chocolate chips

Drop on ungreased (but I greased mine) cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 10-13 minutes.  Only made about 18 cookies but that was plenty.

My cousin, Cindy, in Gig Harbor is having two weddings this summer. Her son is marrying in August and her daughter in September. Here's Mirinda with some friends in Portland. She's the one who is a flight attendant.
I started my photo project this morning and I'm really having a lot of fun with it. Going to take me a while to get it done, though. I have so many folders within folders of when I was just finding a spot to put anything anywhere.  It is kind of neat to see pictures I'd forgotten about, though.  Here's one of Maizy, the dog who was a delight to photograph but who was a devil dog to live with. Jenni had to give him to another family because he was destroying her house.  They're much happier with Sammy now.




Sunday, July 21, 2013

Sunday Morning

Even though it's a bit overcast out there, I suspect it's gonna be warm when it burns off.  I got a late start riding my bike this morning and since I have a few chores to attend to, I thought I'd just ride up and down my street.  As usual, it was my upper arms hurting more than anything else but I gave up after 15 minutes because I was way too warm.  I wonder if I'll ever reach that stage of life when I can wear shorts and don't care how it looks.  I'll probably  never see that day.  Awful hard having low self-esteem sometimes. 

I'm sitting here with the window open and trying to cool down.  Probably should drink cold water instead of a second cup of coffee.  I sometimes change clothes (and shoes) two or three times a day depending on what I'm doing or how my body temperature is regulating.

I cleaned up my birdhouses a few days back and last time I was at Wal-Mart, I stood there debating on whether or not to buy more seed.  You'd think it would be a whole lot cheaper than it is.  I decided to get some and hoped enough time had lapsed that the pigeons wouldn't come pecking.  Silly me.  This morning I noticed a dozen out there pecking at the ground with one "in charge" who was on the bird feeder flapping his wings to knock more seed out! Grrrr... I decided I'm winning this contest one way or the other.

I emptied all the birdfeeders into one and brought it around to the front of the house where I can watch it from my computer.  I have goldfinch "bags" hanging in this area and one hummingbird feeder.  The deer can't get to the seed in the bags and my solution for keeping them from this bird feeder is to put a note on my pillow to bring in the feeder at night and sit it inside the door.  I do like a challenge sometimes.

I replaced the batteries in four of my solar lights yesterday and now three of them are working great. I'm going to play with the fourth one again today and see if another battery is needed. I may have to check out three other lights as well.  I have 17 altogether.  I liked the way Jenni had hers surrounding their garden so I put 4 around my two trees.
 
Sammy, Jenni and Wayne's dog, spent the night.  He never gives up seeing if I'll relent letting him sleep with me. (he gets to at his house) but no, gramma is mean....use your own bed.  He often sleeps in my back closet in his bed for hours. We think he's part cat.  Last night, though, he thought my recliner was a good spot to sack out.  I was okay with that.
 
About 2:30 I heard my sliding glass door blinds rustling and I knew he was looking to go outside. The screen has a hole in it from when Joe's dog stayed over so Sammy thinks it was made for him.  Anyhow, I got up and let him out.  Then I had to go get my camera.  Darn night setting didn't work that well but if you look real close, you can see Sammy on the left.
He stood on the porch for quite a while with one paw held up.  He usually does that when he's looking stuff over and deciding whether or not to pursue. (I guess?)  Anyhow, he started growling and letting little yaps out and wasn't moving.  Then he went down the steps and slowly approached the solar lights around the two trees.  Every time they would change color, he'd growl again.  He finally got up close and when they weren't running, he decided he was safe.  ha ha ha ha


I finished up my book yesterday.  Walked around in circles trying to get my nerve up to hit Send. It's on it's way, though, and while I'm fairly confident I can sell the copies I had printed, I still worry the pages will turn out the way they're supposed to.  I think it will be interesting read for most people....especially those who never read my blog online.  I should have my delivery in 7-10 days so I might bring a stack of them in on Aug. 9th when I attend the county fair.  (A Port Angeles friend is going with me)

They'll be sold at Don's Pharmacy downtown and through the mail.  I may try to set up a book signing in town too.  Have to check on that.

My ancestry.com subscription expires next weekend but I still intend to work on genealogy using free websites.  Have a lot of stuff to get in order and organized in folders.  I love that part of it.

Today I'm taking the broom outside to sweep down various spider nests I've seen around my fence and gates and eaves.  One came crawling out of the solar light I was working on yesterday and I was a little sissy baby and screamed.  That made me very leery of the rest of the lights I had to open.

Dandelions continue to flourish like dandelions can do.  I've got them especially bad on the two sides of the house.  Hoping Hunter will weed eat for me this week. I wonder if I was to sit out there and dig out each weed one by one with my little weed puller tool, if I could be done with them. They're a foot high in some places and I feel like going to war with them.

 I'm going to Discovery Bay tomorrow to meet Mary with the four kids so she doesn't have to drive all the way to Port Angeles.  Today I'm fixing a pan of enchiladas and sitting down to try and figure out exactly how I want my photos filed.  I could have so many subfolders, I'd get overrun with my desire to have everything neat and tidy.  It'll be fun once I get going, though. Kind of like cleaning out closets. You never know what you're gonna find.

Well, he's probably not going to like it but I think Sammy was scratching way too much yesterday so I'm giving him a bath. Gonna have to use the kitchen sink 'cause I'm not sure I can feel comfortable enough on my knees to use the tub.  We'll see...  Maybe I'll post an after picture of him on Facebook.

Saturday, July 20, 2013

Saturday morning

Well, let's see....what should I complain about today?  Oh, I know...our President!  I wasn't over the moon happy when he got reelected but I wasn't that upset either given our choice of who else we had to choose from.  I've been increasingly disenchanted with him this term. Yesterday I was really pissed!  When the President goes on national TV getting the continual coverage his comments are going to get (we'll forever be hearing this latest speech!) I object when he enters into a controversy like the Zimmerman trial.  He has no business adding to the fire like that.

The trial was held the way our system operates.  Granted, the jury may get things wrong sometimes. Case in point - OJ Simpson. BUT... supposedly the jury verdict is the verdict.  Our President does not need to be using his office to state "that could have been me."  Those words alone lets everyone who wants to protest to take to the streets. Which they will.  He preaches about how we're getting better at race relations.  Ha!  Not when he goes on TV to spout off about a case.

He thinks he can do anything he wants. That was never more obvious than his "surprise appearance" at a press conference yesterday.  I'm looking forward to getting another President.  And yes, I know this trial was all about race.  Everybody knows that.  If that had been two white guys fighting, it never would have made the headlines. Or if it had been two Hispanics, or two whites....same thing.  Sadly, I wouldn't be surprised if some juries are swayed because they're afraid of the backlash of blacks.  Does that sound biased or prejudiced?  Probably to some it does, but that doesn't mean I can't have my opinion.

Attitudes change with the generations and we are getting better. My kids and grandkids don't see skin color most of the time.  I think my attitude is better than my folks' generation and their attitudes were better than the generation before them.  Everyone knows that humans are a quarrelsome lot.  There's fighting going on around the globe and there always will be.

And while I'm on a roll about complaints....I'm definitely going to rethink what I buy and where I buy it in the way of groceries.  Every time I go to the store, I see increases.  This is REALLY pissing me off!  Yesterday it was Safeway's bagels.  They've had them two for a dollar for a while and now they're back to 69 cents each.  Just like that.  Well, guess what?  I'm not buying them.  Which is a good thing really. I need to cut down on my carbs.

It's not just baked goods, though; it's everything.  Albertsons did away with their shoppers card which you don't have to swipe anymore to get sale prices but.... I've noticed their prices are not comparable to other places.  I definitely need to change my routine for buying food. You wouldn't think it would be that big a deal just buying for one but when you're on a fixed income, anything you buy takes some thought.  Granted there are lots of ways I could cut down.  Like lotto tickets but I do have my priorities.

Speaking of gambling, I hear 7 Cedars Casino is bringing bingo back next month. They're going to play in the lounge where music is performed on weekend nights.  Three times a week I think I heard. Course I won't go unless it's a special occasion and I'm asked to tag along.  Just thought I'd mention it.

And thank you to Arlis and Rose Johnson about replacing batteries in my solar lights. I'm going to look into that today.

Jenni and Wayne are going to Emerald Queen Casino today for a Ted Nugent concert and they'll stay overnight.  Sammy the dog is coming to Gramma's house. Yesterday I sat at Jenni's while the plumber installed a new sink.
I went bike riding this morning at 6:11 a.m. but I should have worn a hat as my ears were cold. I cut it short after about 12 minutes around the block.  I may go out again later.  I managed to spook two deer while pedaling down the alley.  Sure glad I have a fenced yard as I suspect they'd come in during the night and eat my flowers.  Yesterday I sprayed the horsetail weeds at curbside.  Used a recipe of white vinegar, salt, and Dawn dish soap.  Took a before picture so I can take an "after" shot later to see if it works.

My backyard needs weedeating around the fence and while the grass isn't growing much, the dandelions are a foot high in places. I should go out and chop everything down but I spent the entire day yesterday blowing my nose. Didn't stop until 6 pm or so.  Probably aggravated with the a/c I had running in the car.  Sure am thankful we aren't having the high temps seen elsewhere in the country. I would HATE that.

Am watching a Netflix series called 'Orange is the new Black'.  Very entertaining.  About a women's prison.  Switches back and forth between the prison inmates and how they were in the outside world before coming to jail.  A comedy and pretty good writing.

Found an interesting website you might want to look at...stilltasty.com
About preserving foods and what you can freeze, etc.  Worth a look.

Had to change my phone again. Am back to a cell phone I had in a shoebox. Will still use my Iphone (or whatever it's called) for getting on the internet while sitting in my recliner.  I do like it for that. the phone feature, though, was just causing me too much aggravation.  People couldn't understand my messages, my calls were going straight to voice mail and my calls weren't connecting well.  Perhaps my battery is bad?  Although I thought when you charge it, that makes it good.  Our new technology is a challenge a lot of the time.  And it never ends.

Hmmm.. sure been a lot of different traffic turning around on my street. Must be a yard sale down the block.   Think I'll go check it out.  Got a fun day planned.  Will continue to edit my book and should be ready to send it off next week.  Also plan to work on filing my pictures and researching genealogy some more.  My ancestry.com subscription runs out next weekend so I'll to visit the free sites.

Here's a picture of two of my half sisters. The top one is Kate in Pennsylvania. The bottom is Marion in N.C.

And this is a cartoon I got in an email yesterday. There were quite a few about seniors but this was my favorite.

A little later...

Went three houses down and the people that Hunter babysits for are having the sale. They're moving by Coulee Dam.  I bought these shelves which I'll see if the twins want for their bedrooms. Only $3 for the set.

Thursday, July 18, 2013

House Sitting

Went over to Jenni's at 8 a.m. so I could be there when the guy came to put in her new formica countertops. She calls it "redneck formica" 'cause it looks like granite. Ha Ha This is the before and after shots. The guy works for Home Depot and was dispatched out of Auburn. He lives in Kent and is scheduled to go to Hadlock next, and then Yelm.  A plumber is coming tomorrow to install the new sink and hook up the pipes under.  I'll go sit for that too.  Sammy went nuts as I put him outside while the guys were working.

Noticed a whole lot of flags in Jenni's back yard and she said it was Hunter's "tractor course" for riding his tractor that he got running all on his own!  As long as I was there, I took some pictures of her garden area with solar lights all around it, Sammy sitting in the yard, the tall trees surrounding her house, and the front walkway with her cute lawn art.







And yeah, I know taking pictures of trees is kinda lame but I thought they were neat as I stood there and looked up.  I don't think I'd like big trees surrounding my  house. Phone reception totally sucked the whole time I was there.

Took the kids to the mall and made them pose for a picture before they left with Catie. (She's  in the middle)  I was surprised how easily she got all four kids' stuff into her trunk.  I walked through Target but didn't find anything of interest.  Thought their prices weren't all that good either.
                                             Maddie, J.D. , Catie, Hunter, Malcolm
Here's an old  photo I saw in a library book yesterday.  Taken in 1950. Cars lined up for the opening of the bridge that goes over to Indian Island.

We noticed a whole lot of old cars coming into PA  as we were heading out yesterday. Must be a car show around. I'll have to look at the paper again.

Another interesting picture I saw in a library book was this one of women who worked at a steam laundry at 603 Washington Street in PT.  I think that's  across from the Memorial Field Gate or maybe down a couple doors.
Anyhow, it caught my interest because I have an old newspaper photo that shows my mom working at a laundry about a block away in the early 50's.  Her business was on Monroe & Washington but I think it was a different place.

There's a nice breeze out today so the temperature is just right.  I'm going to pull the trash bins out to the alley before I forget and later I'll spray the horsetail weeds out front. I keep calling it horsehair. Anyhow, I read that vinegar, salt, and Dawn soap will kill the stuff so I'm going to try it out. My son-in-law, Andy, left a handy dandy sprayer here when they did the curbside area so I'm going to test it out. I have my other son-in-law stopping in after work to show me how it operates. I can't figure out how to put the liquid in.  I'm probably making it harder  than it is but nothing new there.

The more I think about Jenni's solar night lights surrounding her garden area, the more I think I might need to invest in some myself.  For some reason, half my lights aren't working now.  Do they just wear out over time?

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

My book is done

Well, at least I think my book is done. I may give it one more read-through to see if I can find any typos.  I've read it and edited it again and again and at some point you just have to say OK...I'm done now...and hope for the best.

One day I'm pleased with it and am sure it will be enjoyed.  The next day, self doubt creeps in, and I wonder if I'm being realistic.  I guess that's normal.  Most of the time, I'm okay with the finished product, and am eager to get it printed and OUT THERE for people to read.

Yesterday I called the outfit that is going to print it so I could get another lesson on saving to pdf. I'd watched their tutorials but this one section was leaving me unsure.  (Embedding fonts)  Now that I have that accomplished, I'm ready to send it off.

I'm driving to Silverdale Mall this afternoon. Taking four kids to Target parking lot so Catie  can pick them up and take them on to Mary and Andy's house in Renton. They're going camping at Mayfield Lake near Mossyrock. I had to google it 'cause I wasn't sure where that was.

Been studying up on horsehair weeds (Love Google!) and I think I'm going to buy a big bottle of vinegar at Target today. Found this .....

Common horsetail, Equisetum arvense was the first vascular plant seen recovering after the 1980 Mount St. Helens eruption and therein lies the answer. Equisetum arvense is found in areas with soil with little or no nutritional content, for example, gravel pits. Simply raising the nutritional content of your soil by adding generous quantities of composted materials will, in time, get rid of your horsetail.

After some hit and miss - I have found the answer - plain vinegar straight out of the bottle sprayed onto the soil just around the offending weed (s). With no rain in the next 24 hours - they turn brown and die. Also no new ones! Love it! Then in 2 weeks’ time I can plant anything and it will grow quite nicely. The dead weed patch is about 2 inches in diameter so nothing nearby gets damaged. I also tried that on some clover in the lawn and it worked too! I think I just put Monsanto (Roundup) out of business.
 
This  is why I'm concerned...  First picture is the curbside project completed by Mary and Andy (and Hunter) a few weeks ago.  Second picture is how the curb looks now.  Apparently horsehair is very tough to control and thrives under black plastic and bark!
 


I cleaned up all my birdhouses yesterday but haven't hung them back up yet.  Am hoping the pigeons
(who already look well fed) will lose interest in this neighborhood and move elsewhere.  As I've sat here typing this morning, however, I've noticed several flocks swooping in to have breakfast along the curb in front of my house and the others on this block.  They must sleep in the grassy field area across from my driveway.  (And yes, I can hardly believe this whole subject is even interesting to me)  ha ha

 
It is fun to watch the crows in the backyard, though.  I've been keeping water in the bird bath and yesterday as I was filling it with fresh water, several sat on the wire overhead cawing at me.  Or perhaps cawing at fellow crows to tell them the old fat lady is using the hose again.
 
Watched a terrific movie on Netflix two nights ago.  Red with Tom Sizemore.  2008.  I recommend.
 
Now that my book is finished, I think I'll get back into genealogy again.  Also have my photo project sitting in the wings waiting for me to get them filed and sorted.  I think I'll wait until fall to start sewing again.  I do miss it.
 
Got some scanning I need to attend to now so I'll close this and maybe write more tonight...or tomorrow. Sending a speedy recovery to Les Walden in Swedish in Seattle.  Poor guy had a stroke a couple days after his birthday party at the Legion.

 

Monday, July 15, 2013

My Book.......


A few months ago I started working on an idea I had for a book. I’d been writing a blog for the Leader for a couple of years called ‘Town Kid.’ It had to do with various aspects of my life in Port Townsend. I wrote a second blog for six months called ‘What Do you Say’ where I posed various questions to readers. I edited these two blogs into a book I think you’ll enjoy. It’s paperback, regular binding, light green cover, 6X9 in size, has about 182 pages, several pictures, and lots of Port Townsend names.  I also included many of the comments I received while writing these blogs.  I’m just about ready to send it to the printer so I thought I would get busy with the advertising and promotion.

The book will be for sale at Don’s Pharmacy in Port Townsend; on eBay (once the books arrive and I post it there); and I’ll be taking orders for books to be mailed.  I’ve kept the price low ($10.00) but I’ll need to charge $12.50 when mailing because of postage costs. If you’d like a copy mailed, send your request to cedarrose61@hotmail.com.  I may try to come into PT to sell at some time also.
 
The book should be available  in August.  I’m real happy with how it turned out and I think you’ll enjoy it. I’d appreciate it if you’d spread the word.  Thank you so much!
 
Shown below are a "copy" of how the front and back covers will look.


 
 

Sunday, July 14, 2013

The middle of July

It's about 10:30 a.m. Sunday morning and I've been up for four hours.  Did 20 minutes outside on the bike at 7 and I probably could have done more except my left upper arm was aching too much. I can't believe this tendonitis (or whatever it is) is still hanging on.  It's been weeks. I woke up at 4:30 and 6:30 with horrendous foot and toe cramps.  Guess I'd better pull out my literature and read up again on what I need to be taking.  I've been real lax on drinking vinegar, taking Vit E, potassium, magnesium, and even my calcium tablet. That'll teach me!

One website I visited this morning suggested wearing shoes to bed so your toes can't curl during sleep. Yeah, like I'm gonna do that!  From what I've read, the problem is brought on by age a lot of the time.  Seems like age contributes to a hell of a lot of discomfort in my life these days!

I busied myself here and there around the house this morning...unloaded the dishwasher, washed a sink of dishes, put Drano down the sink, monkeyed around with my solar lights as they haven't all been working, watered all my flowers, folded laundry, and TOOK MY VITAMINS! 

Nothing else on my agenda although I may go outside to pull weeds and plant the fox glove seeds Linda Pedersen gave me yesterday.  Stopped by Ruth Kvinsland's and looked over her flowers. They're all lookin' mighty fine.

On the way home from PT, I stopped in Sequim to visit an old neighbor and took a picture of the crocosmia plant in my old yard next door to her. She gave me those cuttings and more for my house here and they're taking off like wildflowers.
I also took a picture of the eucalyptus tree I planted a few years ago in my yard.  It was just a little thing then but it grew  -- and then the sucker died!  Still kinda' cool looking, though.  She uses it to hang her decorations on.  The lady who bought my house doesn't keep up the yard so Vivian goes out there to make it pretty.
The old neighborhood continues to change everytime I stop by.  More and more people dying or moving on.  Several of the mobiles have been bought by this P.A. guy who is making a mobile home park.  Been a life saver for several of the people who wanted to get out of that park.

I stopped by Sunny Farms to buy some cherries and plums and green onions. Planned to make fried rice when I got home but I was too tired to cook.  I had made a quick stop at the casino to spend $20 (I do that every now and again) and for once....I walked out with more money.  Not a lot but enough to make me happy. I played $30 and won $80. Then I stopped to fill up my tank at Safeway. So much for the extra money in my pocket.

For those who don't do Facebook, here's the pictures I took at Les Walden's birthday party at the Legion yesterday.
 

                                                      Les and Patti Walden
 Posters that Patti had made up showing Les through the years.  Really cool!

 Some of Les' cartoons. He's quite talented. A lot of his friends that are into Models were there too. (the kind you put together; not the kind you drool at)  ha ha
 One of two cakes. This was a clever idea. They were trying to raise money for a pool table for the legion.
 Les and Ginger Jacobsen dancing. Charlie Ferris was the entertainment and he was quite good. You can google him to find out more.
 Bruce Chesterfield and Bert Bennett catching up. They barely recognized each other.
 Clara Ford and Denny North. I didn't recognize Denny at his 50th reunion last month and I didn't recognize him again!  Love my memory.  It continues to remind me I'm losing it.
 Herb Evanson showed up as I was leaving so I didn't get to visit with him.
 Bert & Joanne Bennett. So good to see them. Today is Joanne's birthday.
 Ruth Kvinsland, Tom Moss, and Linda Pedersen, all classmates of Les'.
Me and Linda Silvas meeting for the first time. She's an author (Mama Bear, Baby Bear: A Native American Lore) and she does lectures all over the country. She lives in Sequim and we had a great visit sharing writing tips and how to get published.  My book is almost ready to be sent to the printer.
 my sister, Janie Lammers, Charlie Ferris (out of PA) and Ginger Jacobsen.

My sister showed me this cloth book she made for her great grandson.  It's really clever. Even has a squeaky toy in it.


She gave me this little Donald Duck toy while I was there. I do like Donald. Set him up by my favorite knickknacks.
And of course I can't let a blog post go by without showing my latest bird picture. Here are three goldfinch lunching outside my office window.

The last time I was at the library, I was looking for some stuff for Mary Gaboury. Couldn't find what I wanted but I did find this 1946 Leader story on the Rhody candidates. I thought it was kind of interesting.
I watched a really good movie last night. Picked it up at the library.  2009 with Christopher Plummer called My Dog Tulip.  I groaned when I put it in as I saw it was a cartoon.  I don't usually like cartoons movies but this one was OVER THE MOON GOOD!  Got this from Wikipedia......
My Dog Tulip is an American independent animated feature film based on the 1956 memoir of the same name by J. R. Ackerley, BBC editor, novelist and memoirist. The film tells the story of Ackerley's fifteen-year relationship with his Alsatian dog (German Shepherd) Queenie, who had been renamed Tulip for the book. The film – geared toward an adult audience– was adapted, directed and animated by Paul Fierlinger with backgrounds and characters painted by his wife, Sandra Fierlinger.
Christopher Plummer narrated Ackerley's voice, Isabella Rossellini provided the voice of the veterinarian, and Lynn Redgrave provided the voice (in her last film performance) of Ackerley's sister Nancy.
As with the original book, the film gives detailed descriptions of the dog's bowel movements and sex life – received as "positively juvenile and helping the film achieve realism and avoid anthropomorphism
 
My sister told me about this movie with Tom Sizemore called "Red" that was especially good. She tried to get it on Netflix but there was a long wait.  I have Netflix "streaming" and was able to get it so I'm watching it tonight.
She gave me a loaf of bread that this local bakery donates to her apartment house now and again.  OMG!  It is soooooo good. Especially toasted with jam. Pane d'Amore's organic sourdough wheat.
Great stuff!

I had an accident in my car this morning. I should say "on my car".

It doesn't actually look that bad but it is a nasty scratch. Dammit!  I was getting on my bike and heading out the garage door when I swerved and the bike mirror hit the car fender near the gas tank opening.  Just call me Grace.  It is pretty pathetic to see me starting and stopping on my bike, but oh well....it's not as bad as seeing me getting up off my knees.  That is really sad! And it doesn't happen often. I have to be darn desperate to get down on the floor on all fours.

I  finished the third season of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and I laughed and laughed and laughed until my sides hurt.  The final episode (The Grand Opening) was hilarious.  Well, I suppose some people would be offended; in fact I know they would be but not me!  I thought the writing was top notch A+.
Definitely colorful language but probably one of the funniest episodes I've ever seen.  That Larry David is FUNNY FUNNY!

Okay.  That's it for now.  Some days I have lots to yak about and today was one of those.