The sun came out

Turned out to be a pretty nice day. I talked myself into going for a walk downtown.  Picked up Joyce Lee Adams and we put in about 20 minutes near the waterfront.

Afterwards I stopped by Walgreens to pick up some pictures. My sister had sent me this memory lap quilt she had made and I absolutely LOVE IT!  Below are pictures I took....

 I'm not real positive what this one depicts. My comic book collection I think.

 This was one of my favorites. When I was a teen, I would sometimes sneak out my window to meet up with friends and go beer-drinking. Janie's job was to help me get back in the window when I returned.

 This represents the nearby Kai Tai Lagoon which was always a part of our life.

 Another favorite shows grandpa's old barn with the huge tree out front that still stands.

 Grandpa had over 200 chickens (and ducks and geese) so this scene was particularly memorable.

This is the tree in the front yard of our pink house on San Juan Avenue. Good memories there too.

I think I'm going to try to do some applique wall quilts telling stories.  I have a lot to learn on how to put them together but they've always been my favorite.

When I came out of Walgreens, I stopped to use my free promo code on the Red Box machine to get a movie.  Except I forgot to put I the numbers and out popped The Butler.  I decided to try again and get a second movie.  Got The Family with Robert Deniro.  As I was going to my car, my clicker wouldn't open the door and I started to panic.  Then I realized I was pushing the lock button.  Yeah, it's starting.

Noticed that the Meryl Streep movie of August Osage County is playing downtown at the Lincoln. I think I might go see that tomorrow afternoon, even if I have to go alone. 

I cut out material for two  more quilt squares this morning and for a "church lady" pattern I've made before for a banner.  Got my CZ retirement invite in the mail so I intend to come to town for that. They're always a lot of fun and I know everybody there.  Good photo opportunity and I like the food.

Was sorry to hear that one of the "new friends" I recently got acquainted with here in town died yesterday after heart surgery.  Karen Bittner Meehan and I met up at Walmart one day and got together about three times.  She was class of '65.

Hard to believe that February appears tomorrow.  I'm sure looking forward to the Super Bowl.

Movin' right along...

Funny how some mornings you can wake up feeling more energetic than usual.  Wonder why that is. Especially since I went to bed very very tired and achy. At any rate, I'm taking advantage of it. My self-cleaning oven is doing it's job so I'm staying out of the kitchen until it's done.  Even with the sliding glass door open, it's still strong smelling.

I did up the dishes, ran a load of laundry, mailed off a gift to Ruthie, picked up my Hit 5 ticket for the next ten days, rearranged the frontroom, and even wiped down my car.  What  a job! This is my second white car but the way this one is shaped, it seems to pick up and hold dirt like no car I've ever had before.  Filthy within minutes.

I wrote to an author that I like (J.A. Jance) and received a reply a few minutes ago.   Red Box sent me a promo code to use the next time I pick up a movie so I think I'll use it soon as it's only good for two weeks.  Always like free movies.  Also signed up for MGo  and am getting two free movies from them streaming in on the tv set.

I was kind of hopeful this morning when both shoulders weren't bothering me hardly at all.  By the time I finished wiping down the car and rearranging the living room, however, the soreness was back with a vengeance.  That irritates the hell out of me as my thinking is ...it should improve with exercise, not worsen.  Now it pains me to even pick up a glass of V-8 juice sitting nearby.  Rats!

I watched an interesting documentary on Netflix a couple nights back -- about Tent City in Nashville. Later on I'll probably cut out two more quilt squares to work on.  I find if I cut and sew just two at a time, I'm more apt to stick with it.  I'm still having problems with perfection on anything with triangles but I'll get the hang of it eventually. My two yesterday are the ones on top.

Well, guess I'll go make up some banana  cookie dough, put away the laundry, climb on the exercise bike, fix lunch, and sit down to work a crossword puzzle and then my jigsaw.  Such a tough life I have right now.

And here's a song I love singing along to in my car 'cause I know all the words and I really sound good with Johnny.

Cute commercial I got in an email today

Morning observations

I picked up the twins at 8:55 a.m. and I had to chuckle as I pulled into their driveway.  The last few weeks they've been standing outside waiting for me.  All because they're afraid one or the other will get out of turn as to who gets to sit in the front.  Ha ha  I remember doing that.  I thought it was Hunter's turn and told Maddie to climb in the back but she informed me I was mistaken.  Not the first time.

As I drove downtown to return my movies, I couldn't help but notice all the people walking around without coats or hats.  (Teens only)  Since it was raining (and very dark and gray out) I figured it must be a "kid thing." All the adults had proper clothing.  I know. I sound like a grandma.

The lady behind me at Safeway was muttering over and over....oh my...oh dear...oh I wish I could see better...hmmm...oh my..oh my.   I looked over at her and she smiled sweetly.  I couldn't help but wonder how she got to the store that early.  Meaning....was she driving herself?  Some days I feel I'm not all that far away from her muddled mind.

I picked up a can of oven cleaner and then read on Facebook (from my daughter) that my range is self-cleaning.  I went to check and yep!  I'm an idiot.  Mainly because I FINALLY remembered we had that conversation before and I was pleased to find my oven was self-cleaning.  You'd think I'd remember something like that....who likes to clean ovens?!

I signed up for MGo tv online this morning.  Allows you to stream in movies for $4 or $5.  New ones too.  I won't watch on my computer as I prefer my recliner and television viewing. I already have Netflix streaming in but you can't get the new releases like MGo allows.  And they gave me two free ones for signing up.  I'm gonna' watch The Butler and Blue Jasmine.  Even if I end up renting now and then, it's still cheaper than the $10 at the theater -- plus I have to drive seven miles one way to get there.  And yes, I realize seven miles is nothing but if I don't go to a matinee, I have to drive home in the dark and that's not my favorite past time.  But even more than that is having to sit for two hours and then get up and try to walk.  Ha ha

Well, I think I'll go look for my stove directions and see if I can figure out how to clean the oven while I sleep.  It sure is dark outside and it's raining steadily.  Glad I've got indoor hobbies planned.  First thing, though, is to climb on the exercise bike and put in a minimum of 15 minutes.  Both shoulders continue to hurt pretty much 24/7 and I suspect this problem (whatever it is) isn't going to go away for a while.  I'm hopeful that sooner or later.....


Maddie (8th grader) shared  some "quips" this guy at school taught her....

If you were a nose, I'd pick you.
Is your dad a baker? -Cause you have hot buns.

A couple others too but I've forgotten them already.

Oh good lord!  Time to change the channel.  The View is one of those shows that makes me want to gag.

Out of Town

Saturday morning I drove to Gig Harbor or somewhere around that area and then Jenni took over the wheel and drove the rest of the way to Mary and Andy's house in Renton.  Maddie went with us and we stayed the night. The following morning, Jen drove to Gig Harbor and then I took over for the rest of the drive home. Tiring day.  Didn't get home until 2 pm as we had to make a few stops along the way.

The next morning I picked up Linda and Joanne and I drove to Silverdale so we could visit Ruth for a while. She's looking better but still has a lot of therapy ahead, I think.  Her left arm is pretty useless and she needs assistance to get out of bed and into her wheelchair.  Having spent one night in a nursing home myself a while back, I know the frustration of having to wait for someone to come and help you.  Ruth doesn't put up with any nonsense, though, and she starts hollaring for someone to come and help her if she has to sit too long. She has a very loud alarm on her bed that goes off if she falls out of bed or attempts to get out on her own. She's threatened to get herself down to the floor and crawl to the hallway if she has to wait too long for assistance.  I suspect she'd do it too.

The baby shower for Jacob was especially nice.  We ended up sitting out on the deck when Mary and Andy opened gifts.  It actually got a tad warm out there.  Mary's gang from Port Townsend worked on planning and hosting the shower and they did a bang up job.  Wonderful food, fun decorations, and over the top gift baskets for the guests who won drawings.

                                                       Kim,Shari,Candi,Jenny,Mary, Tami

                             Keith & Kevin Sawka, Mary's cousins who came from West Seattle

                                           Rosemary Keene (Mary's aunt) holding Jake

                                                           me, Jocelyn, and Catie

                                   Keith's daughters on staircase with Maddie and Catie

                  Jenni changing Jake next to wall art Mary and Andy put up in the nursery

                                                      Onesies decorating the fireplace

                            Andy on the front porch trying to stay out of the way

                                             Various friends from here and there

                                                                     Gifts galore

                                  Candi and Jenni finishing up some last minute decorating

                                Mary and Tami on the stairs admiring the "prince"

                                   Jenny and Candi fixing decorations over the refreshments

                                                               More guests enjoying the sun

I was too tired to stay up Sunday night and watch the Grammys so I taped it and then ended up fast forwarding through almost the whole show.   Beyonce led off the program by shaking her butt at everyone.
I found it disgusting.  Ha Ha  Yeah, I'm just jealous.  Still, though....it was too much and she obviously thinks very highly of herself.

I did like Taylor Swift's performance (and I usually don't much care for her music). I had to chuckle, though, when they made a to-do later of her response at not winning.  Paul McCartney and Ringo were pretty good but Ringo by himself didn't impress me all that much.  I always look forward to the oldtimers getting a tiny part in the show and this year it was Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, Merle Haggard, and Blake Shelton.
Willie, Kris, and my beloved Merle are all gettin' old and sadly, none of them sounded all that great.  Not sure why they even put Blake in there with them except to maybe make the songs not sound as bad as they actually were.  Too bad too 'cause Kris and Merle used to be the best entertainment around.

I rented two movies from Red Box this morning and watched them this afternoon.  Last Vegas and Capt. Phillips.  I thought for sure I was going to enjoy the Vegas flick but it fell flat. Only two things made me laugh and they were both from Morgan Freeman.  Glad I only paid a dollar to see them.  Capt. Phillips with Tom Hanks was excellent.  Why he didn't get a nomination is pure politics I think.  The Oscars often end up like that, though.  Those who should get the nod often don't.

After visiting Ruth yesterday, Linda, Joanne, and I went to Red Robin for lunch.  Really good sandwich but their clam chowder was only so-so.  I always like clam chowder but theirs was kind of watered down.  I was exhausted when I fell in bed last night and had planned to sit around all day today  Ended up running five errands, though.

I don't think I have anything else planned.  Superbowl on Sunday, of course.  Probably work on my jigsaw a bit and my quilt squares.  Should probably climb on that exercise bike too as my knees have been paining me quite a bit.  I wonder if it's the rainy weather.  Well, I think that's it for now.  I wasn't going to blog today as I couldn't get in the mood to sit down and type but I wasn't in the mood to listen to the president's speech either.  He should be done pretty soon.

Pigeons are continuing to stake out my bird seed area at the bottom of the yard.  I chase them off every time they land.  I'm also chasing off the neighbor's cats -- one who brazenly walks across my back porch and tries to hit the hanging feeder with her paw.

Friday morning

I was kind of surprised to see all the white frosty roofs out my window this morning.  Although it is January so why I'm surprised is weird.

I've managed to fool around on the computer all morning long.  I hadn't intended to do that but sometimes, I end up losing myself with one project or another. Today I wanted to test out my camera against my two cell phones and ipod to see which one was giving me the best photo.  I'm kind of leaning towards my old T-Mobile cell.  I'll take all of them to the shower tomorrow, at any rate as I'm sure I will get my fill of photo ops.

I did get my red cardinal bird puzzle glued onto a cardboard backing yesterday.  Now I have to try and figure out the directions on using the Velcro hangers you attach to the back.  You'd think that would be a non problem but it has me stumped.  I never was good with story problems.

You can find anything on YouTube, by the way. Yesterday I came across a how-to post of using Mod Podge to secure a puzzle together.  My framed finished look is pretty lame but I don't care.  It's only going to be hung for my own enjoyment anyhow.  Think I'll put it in my bedroom.

As I was cleaning out my various camera pictures, I came across this one that Maddie or Hunter took of Sammy a while back.

My yen for a dog has passed. For now anyway.  If I really really really wanted a dog, I would have secured one years ago.  My problem is I want one with no responsibility, expense, or trouble.  Ha Ha

Mailman just drove up so I guess I'll go see if he left me anything besides catalogs and junk mail.
Well...as usual...nothing but junk.  A catalog from AARP encouraging me to take a cruise. Yeah, like I can afford that!  A bill to pay my car insurance for six months.  UGH!  And a notice from Medicare that they paid my one night stay at that horrible nursing home in September. $184.  They should have paid me for the emotional stress I endured.


I've been yawning ever since I got up at 7.  Not a good way to start the day.  I had a restless night.   I don't think I've slept like a baby for a long, long time.  If my bladder isn't waking me up, it's nightmares, dry mouth, or sore shoulders.  I guess I should be thankful I have a comfortable bed, warm blankets, a roof over my head, and a toilet steps away.  I am thankful for all those things but I still wish I could wake up rested and ready to meet the world with zip in my step.

Took a couple pictures of yesterday and today. Think I'll post them on Facebook just because I'm trying to avoid all the chores on my list and pounding away on computer keys is a good diversion.

Material overload

I was in a buying mood at Joanne's a couple days ago and spent over $30 on fat squares so I could have lots of material on hand to make various quilt pattern pieces.  Today I opened up one of my storage bins to sort through my collection and was dismayed (and kind of tickled) to find a TON of material that I had forgotten was there.  I like having an excess of material in the house.  I feel the same way about cookies and ice cream and books.  They're comforting.

Baby Jake went to the doctor this morning and his weight has gone from 8-9 to 11-3 on this -- his one- month birthday.  I know that's probably boring news to most but not to me.

Made a quick run to the corner grocery as I was out of stamps. I bought a book of "forever" as the price goes up next Monday. Cost me $9.80 for a book of 20.  Going to have to be real particular on what I mail out these days.

Well, that's long enough for a rest period. I did get the kitchen floor mopped, the laundry done, material ironed, and my bird jigsaw puzzle mod podged onto a piece of cardboard.  Now, so I can feel especially proud of myself when I hit the sack tonight, I think I'll climb on the exercise bike.

A dozen pigeons blew in to help themselves to my latest bird seed so I'm chasing them off everytime I see them land.  I wouldn't  care so much if they just pecked at whatever they could find on the ground but they send in one to perch on a feeder and while he's flapping his wings to beat the band so he spill all the seeds out for his buddies, they end up cleaning me out.  Seeds are getting too expensive to treat them to dinner everyday.  If this keeps up, I just may get a dog.

My Thursday chores

I know.  Could the subject of my chores be anything but boring?  Ha!  I don't let boring subjects stop me, however, if I'm in a blogging mood.  That would be obvious if you looked over my previous posts.  With that said....here's my prospective day.

My chore list is actually rather short...unload the dishwasher, wash a load of laundry, and mop the kitchen floor.  I'm not especially looking forward to the floor but I'll deal with it.  Every time I look out the front window and see my garden area near the front door, I tell myself it wouldn't kill me to go out there and pull some weeds.  I'm a little bit intimidated right now, though.  I took a nasty fall in that area last July and it screwed up several months of my life.  I'm also continuing to suffer with arm and shoulder pain so I imagine clawing around with a hoe and such wouldn't go over real big with the biceps.  Still.... the first halfway decent sunny day that comes along, I think I'll try to put in a half hour or so.  Resting my arms hasn't helped so why not put them to work?

I got up at 7 this morning as I had hobbies I wanted to work on.  After I got the coffee brewing, I sat down at Google to look up something.  Still amazes me how it can read my mind and finish my sentence -- no matter how queer the subject matter is.  I wrote:  Do I need to prewash fabric and one of the choices it gave me to choose was "fat quarters."  Which is what I wanted.  Love computers when I'm not hating them.

Unfortunately, the answer wasn't much help.  They listed a number of reasons why you should and then listed why you shouldn't bother.  I guess I'll make up my own mind.

I sat too long at my jigsaw puzzle yesterday so I'm planning to sidestep that card table as much as possible today. I have other things to play around with.  Like my quilt squares.  Also need to work on my genealogy/story/picture project.  It's kind of evolving as I go as I'm still not completely sure if I like the way it's going.

I turned off the tv even sooner than I normally would and switched to Pandora music.  I am not fond of news stories that I have to listen to a second or third time and their "lead" stories were all heard last night on the evening news.  I'm also not interested in that stupid Justin Bieber's bad behavior, and give me a break!  How many times do we need to listen to that football rant!!!  It was actually kind of entertaining so what's the big deal?  I'll tell you....the reporters try so hard to make a mountain out of molehill so they can justify their paychecks.  Listening to that crap is about as interesting as reading my blog.  Ha ha

Got some cute cartoons in an email this morning.  Here's a couple that made me laugh.....

I enjoyed that second picture because it's something I wish I had the nerve to do.  And who knows, the more I think about it, the more I just might do it someday.  When I run errands early in the morning, I usually take a certain route through downtown just so I can observe the homeless.  I know that sounds cheeky but I find their lifestyle very fascinating.  This one particular older woman I've seen in various spots sitting with her little cart and her cardboard sign.  I've sometimes thought I'd like to stop and visit with her but I doubt she'd welcome the company. Who knows, though. I just might.  Maybe she'll let me take her picture in exchange for a dollar or two.  I need to do different things this year.

Well, time to get busy. First thing I'm gonna do is switch my laptop to a different table so I'm looking out the window as I type.  My foot keeps getting caught on the wire from my keyboard right now and  I'm always looking for another excuse to rearrange.

Here's the latest picture that Mary posted on Facebook of Jacob.  Man, do they ever grow fast!!

Rainy day. Good time to shop

I picked up the twins and took them to school at 9 a.m. and decided since I was already out and about, I might as well hit Walmart across town.  I browsed around looking at this and that.  Was irritated to find their fat squares in the material department were selling for 97 cents a piece.  I had just paid $1.99 a piece at Joanne's.  Hate it when that happens.  Especially when I buy 15 of them!

I picked up some Greek yogurt as I heard it was better for you.  Then I threw a can of Spam in my basket. How's that for a conflict of interest?    I thought about buying a Seahawks t-shirt which were on display just as you walk in the door but they were $15 and $20 and all they had was black and dark blue.  I might have bought one if the colors were lighter.  I already have a lot of black and dark blue shirts. I'm sure they'll sell, though.

I headed for the underpants department and that sure took a while.  You can't just wear any old brief when you're 70 and used to a certain style that you've worn all your life.  Must have been a lot of women my size thinking the same thing because I searched for quite a while until I found what I wanted. Yeah, I share everything on this stupid blog.

I wasn't going to but I picked up a bag of bird seed and came home and filled six of the feeders in the backyard.  I've been thinking about getting a dog.  I do this every few months and then I back out. Decide that the costs would probably hurt my budget a bit.  Also kind of worry about vet bills. It's hard enough to pay my own medical insurance obligations. Still..... there are days when I think I really want a dog.  Not a little one especially.  Maybe medium to large.  Not large large but golden retriever size or smaller.

I always notice dogs waiting in cars when I go out shopping somewhere.  More than once I've wished I had a dog waiting for me in my car.  Sometimes I tell myself that having a dog would make me get out and walk more.  It might but then again, it might not.  I can deal with picking up poop but wouldn't relish having a dog that went in the house. 

Every time I watch the championship dog shows, my longing for a dog kicks in again.  Course I go through the same thing when the Golden Globe and Oscars come on and I think I need to see every picture nominated.  I'll just have to wait and see how this evolves.  I talked about getting a dog the minute I retired, and here I am retired for over ten years and I even have a fenced yard.  Perhaps I don't really want the responsibility.  I'll think on it some more.

I was looking through my book collection this morning and came across some that I forgot I had. I've got one battered paperback from 1968 called 'Who's Who in TV'.   It's always interesting to leaf through and see those stars of the past.  Also came across a little book of Shakespeare's play "As you like it."    It's hardbound and called a pocket classic. This particular volume is 1909. I've never read it but I like having old books around.

A 1959 paperback called 'The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner' looks pretty good and I've heard of it before so I think I'll put it by my bed to start when I finish the John Grisham novel I'm into right now.

I posted a short note on Facebook this morning complaining about reality tv shows and how stupid they are.  I have never understood why 'The Bachelor' continues to get the press it does season after season.  It's so degrading to women, I can't understand why women like it.  Maybe I'd feel different if they did an actual reality show of women looking for men and used women that were older, fatter, and not phony baloney like the dames we see on the show now. 

I could get involved in a show like that.  Especially if they used a bachelor who was just a plain ole bachelor and not someone good looking with money.  When I stopped to buy a couple of bagels at Safeway this morning (I only pick up two if they're two for a dollar--- if they put the price back up to 59 cents a piece, it pisses me off!)  Anyhow, the girl behind the counter said hello and asked me if she could help me find something.  I told her:  Well, I'm kind of looking for a boyfriend. Can you help with that?

She laughed and told me I didn't need one; I only thought I did.    As I was leaving the store, I saw an old lady sitting waiting for the bus.  I thought I would do a good deed and asked her if she wanted me to give her a lift.   She told me she would love that but she had called dial-a-ride and if she wasn't there, they'd yell at her and she'd get in trouble.  hee hee

Anyhow, back to reality tv....some of those shows are kind of entertaining. At least for a while.  I've never watched Duck Dynasty but I know a lot of people who love it.  Maybe I'll give it a try sometime and see if I'm missing anything.  Hoarders can be fascinating because you know that is real.
No one could stage a scene like they show.  And they're AWFUL!  Perhaps I'm too critical but I never once felt pity for those people who allow cameras to come in and see how they live.  And I'm especially disgusted when they allow a whole crew to clean up the joint!  Lazy, lazy, lazy.

Dog the Bounty Hunter cracks me up every single time I come across it.  I won't come across it anymore since I cancelled a lot of my cable channels to save money but I did get several chuckles from that guy and his wife.  I think because they act so sincere and serious. Maybe they're putting us all on.  If so, that's pretty  good acting.

I used to follow Survivor but after a few years, I got sick of hearing OH...MY.....GOD!!!!  This was after they were given some feast to dine on.  I don't call that surviving.  I bet I could tune in and still hear those words.  I also didn't like the back stabbing but I guess that's what ratings are all about.  Seems like my daughter always enjoyed Big Brother and I never could figure out why.  I think it's an age thing.

I have never once watched The Kardashians and I never will.  If they even start to discuss them on a talk show, the channel gets changed.  Jerry Springer and Maury, of course, prostitute themselves every single day.  Their studio audience is always full of people who need to move to Russia. 

I've watched American Pickers, Storage Wars, Pawn Stars, Pregnant at 16, Honey Boo Boo, Yukon Men, and Alaska, the Last Frontier.  Except for Alaska, which I even watch reruns of on Netflix, most of those shows get tiresome with the same ole dialogue.  Even some of my favorite situation comedies are coming up short lately.  Sometimes when the kids start growing up, the story lines aren't as funny or they're just the same ole stuff.

Modern Family, for example, always made me laugh out loud every week and I still laugh at the reruns but the new stuff...not so much.  When I think about what shows I would probably miss if I cancelled my cable altogether, it would probably be Wheel of Fortune, a lot of the news programs, certain sports like championship football, world series, the Olympics, and various shows on PBS.
Oldies like Leave it to Beaver, The Waltons, Little House, Andy Griffith, etc. always get at least a few minutes of my time -- even if I've seen them a hundred times already.

I'll follow several shows for a while but it seems like sooner or later, the plots are much the same.  If I could afford it, I'd subscribe to HBO and Showtime but for now, I'm content with watching a lot of them on Netflix.  The computer has become a wealth of entertainment too as you can view a whole lot of television as well as old tv shows on YouTube.

Well, blah blah blah.  I guess I've ranted long enough today.  Think I'll go work on my jigsaw and finish listening to the book I started....The Great Gatsby.  It's pretty good.  There are a of authors that I have never read but always meant to.  Books on tape helps.

I only saw one person that I knew when I was out shopping today.  Brian McConaghy was working in the cell phone store at Walmart.  This picture didn't come out very clear, though.

Birds for Linda F...to see

these pictures aren't the greatest but I'm pretty sure they're not starlings. Not sure what they are.

Still dealing with our electronic world

My cell phone and I have been having an ongoing battle because it insists on turning my ring down or off without being instructed to.  Every time I set the ring on high, I can go back later and see it's changed it self to low.  Naturally, this means I'm missing calls unless the phone is sitting right next to me all the time.  I just might start wearing it around my neck like I did when I was laid up. At least until Mary or Andy can play around with it and see what the problem is.

I've got the ring set for "old time ring" like the phones used to sound in days past.  No chance on me not hearing it or getting the sound mixed up with the television set.  On the other hand, depending on if the phone is on low or high sound, it can go off in the car and almost make you run off the road in fright.  I played around with it last night (again) to try and figure out how to keep it from making a noise everytime someone posted on Facebook or sent me a message.  That can be very annoying if you live alone and the house is generally quiet.  It's even worse if you put the phone by your bed at night to charge it and the damn thing keeps buzzing or flashing.  Electronics are hard on old people!
I thought I'd try a "doorbell" sound for "notifications" but I quickly changed that when it went off this morning and I ran to the door. First though, I had to run to the window to see who was on the porch 'cause I didn't want to open it and find a killer there.  Yeah, I watch too much tv sometimes.  ha ha

This morning my scanner/printer decided to start making noise out of the blue.  I looked at the screen and it registered it was scanning something in black and white.  Well, I know I didn't touch it so what's the deal here?  I turned it off in disgust!

Yesterday I was on Facebook and thought I would see if I could figure out how to set my settings so I didn't have a couple of people's posts always showing up on my newsfeed.  There are a few who just annoy the hell out of me.  I thought I was fixing it but this morning I found I had 32 messages and usually I have anywhere from 2 to 12.  And this is usually after I've posted a picture and got some comments.  The 32 messages were just people posting so now I'm going to have to go back again and see what I did.  The help section on FB is hit and miss as far as I'm concerned.    I know I can "unfriend" somebody but I don't really want to go that far (unless I'm really ticked off!)  ha ha

I was thinking about mounting my cardinal bird puzzle onto a mat today.

When I looked a little closer at the three pictures I picked up at the thrift store to use as a backing form, I realized I might not want to cover them up with a puzzle.  On the other hand, to frame them and put them on my wall will cost me more money, and framing isn't one of my talents.  The first one is three girls and it's even enclosed in plastic so I could frame it easy enough and have a clean looking piece for my wall.

I really do like that picture.  The second one is a picture of waves at the beach.

When I bought it (for a dollar I think) I was only paying attention to the size and strength of the cardboard. I thought it would work as a  good puzzle backing but now I'm thinking I really don't want to lose that neat picture.
The third was a larger picture that I thought I could cut down to size but when I stopped to really look at it, I wondered if covering it was what I really wanted. (click on pic to enlarge)  I knew I didn't actually want to hang that in my house but I did think it was interesting. I googled it and found there is such a place in Artemus, PA. There was a whole article about it.

I stayed in bed until almost 9 a.m. this morning. I thought maybe it would allow me to not need a nap later in the day.  Most of the time I just get up because my body hurts to continue to lay there.  For whatever reason, that wasn't the case today and I let myself go back to sleep.  Always interesting to
wake up and remember those weird morning dreams.  I really ought to be writing them down immediately before they leave my consciousness.  This morning I was a very busy girl.  A whole lot of people were in this dream.  Some I knew. Some I didn't.  Two gay guys showed up intending to share this small mountain cabin with me and my husband.  I'm always pissed off when my ex husband shows up and we're still married.  Ha ha 

Anyhow, one of the gay guys wanted to move his mother in, as well.  I objected because he wanted the main bedroom and I had paid for the cabin.  Who knows where the hell that came from!  There were several other people at the cabin too.  Mary and Andy's baby who stood up in his crib, found the specific pacifier he wanted and stuck it in his mouth and went back to sleep.  I kept after my oldest daughter to clean her room and no matter how I tried, my laundry pile continued to grow as visitors kept coming to the cabin.  Dreams can be more interesting than real life sometimes.

Well, the mailman just rang my doorbell and the present from Mary G. is here for Mary and Andy's baby. I'll take the gift over on Saturday.  Also got my SS income tax paper so maybe I'll see if Mary can work me in to her schedule to get my taxes done in the next couple of months.

I may take a stroll through Serenity House and/or Goodwill today to see if I can't find a couple more pieces of cardboard backing to use for puzzle mounting.

Making a little progress

I finished my first quilt square this morning and am looking forward to trying a different pattern every day or two.  I've got the greatest book that is easy to follow --which is why I invested in a bunch of fat squares at the material shop today.

Before I sat down to sew, I was determined to get the border done on this jigsaw puzzle my sister gave me for Christmas.  The pieces are extra large so even though it's 1000-pc I think it should go faster than that darn tulip one that I gave up on disgust.  Unfortunately, this puzzle takes up my whole card table so I have to have a few paper plates of pieces on the side.  Should keep me busy for a while.

I had planned to move to my next project (genealogy work with pictures inserted) but I think I'm going to need a nap first.  I yawned for hours yesterday from 4 pm to 10 pm (had to stay up to see Downton Abbey.  I thought for sure I would be out like a light but I tossed around past midnight.  Probably 'cause I had to go to the doctors this morning.  I hate going to the doctor.

Here's a couple of photos I posted on Facebook today.  50 years ago and 20 years ago.  The first was 11 students from my class that (I think) went to baccalaureate services.  Or maybe it was just the Presbyterian people. The second was taken at my 50th birthday party (a surprise) at Hadlock House.
Hard to believe that was two decades ago.

Issues with electronics

I've accepted the fact that I am always going to be hitting my head against a wall when I'm trying to understand why my computer or my cell phone are pulling the little stunts they seem to engage in now and again.  I still remember those days of my youth when dealing with story problems in arithmetic drove me to tears.  Later on, it was algebra, learning shorthand (although that was kind of fun), learning to drive a stick shift, and sewing my first skirt. 

Life has changed so much from those days in the 50's.  Now I pull up Google on a regular basis to try and diagnose what my latest pain means.  Sigh....  Speaking of which, I went to my knee surgeon this morning for what I thought was a final appt. She still wants to see me in September but I may or may not go.  Apparently the bend in my knee was at 110 degrees (which the physical therapist was aiming for) and my x-rays and leg extension looked fine as well.

Now all I have to do is try and not fall down again.  There are days when I just plain stumble over my own feet.  And I seem to have developed a habit of dropping things way too frequently.  I've come to expect it, in a way.  Especially in the kitchen. Every other utensil I pick up I can drop.  Or at least it seems that way.  I spend a lot of time bending over and saying dammit!  And I NEVER wash the fallen object!  It's off to the silverware drawer so I can pretend I'm living on the edge.  HA!

After I left the doctor's office, I decided to make a run to Joanne's Fabrics. Bought about 15 fat quarters in various colors.  I'm going to play around with making squares again and having all those pretty pieces in my collection gives me comfort. Kind of like when there's candy in the house.

Safeway's gas pumps were empty so I decided spur of the moment to pull in and fill up.  I hate spending money on gas but hate spending it on cable and insurances more.  I plan on having a relaxing hobby day today.  Sewing, puzzle, writing, reading, knitting.  Yeah, retirement suits me.

Happy Birthday to my youngest daughter today.  All my kids are in their forties and come November, my oldest will be 50.  Holy cow!  That must mean I'm in my 70's already!  huge sigh......

                                       Jenni, me, Catie, and Mary at a soccer game in 2010

He's so fine!

Good game today but not a runaway surefire thing until the very end.  I got very little accomplished this afternoon but who cares!

the day before the game

I'm kind of looking forward to both football games tomorrow.  I imagine a lot of people are. I went out walking around the neighborhood a little bit this morning. Been a while.  It was sunny out but still a little nippy.  Shouldn't be too much longer before we start doing more outside.

I stopped by the airport nursery to buy a little bird seed and noticed they had a pen of rabbits set up in the middle of the store.  Two store cats were roaming around and one even jumped down into the pen with the rabbits to check out their food.  They chased him out again.

I set up my living room to accommodate my various hobbies.  One corner is for sewing and it will generally be an ongoing messy area as I proceed on one project or another.  I also started a 1000-pc jigsaw on the card table (tulips) and in another corner I set up my exercise bike.  Figured I would get on it more frequently if I had the living room tv and netflix available.  I moved a couple of the bar stools to the back bedroom so I could set up the ironing board when I'm sewing.  My knitting and reading material is sitting by my recliner so all in all, the place looks "busy."

I rearranged my office a little bit too as things weren't flowing just the way I wanted them too.  It's better now.  I had started a book (of sorts) called 27 Neighborhoods and that's my jumping off place to begin inserting photos.  It started out with genealogy background but I imagine it will be all of the place before I'm done.

Read a story about the Everly Brothers in my Rolling Stone Magazine and they listed their choices for their best music.  I knew the first three well (loved them all!) but was unaware of the others. Think I'll see if I can find them on Itunes or YouTube.  Titles included: Don't ask me to be friends, Like everytime before, Lord of the manor, and On the wings of a nightingale.

Guess I'll mosey on out to the kitchen now and see about sewing.  Made a quick run to the library this morning and brought home four books on quilts and 5 or 6 books on tape.  That ought to keep me busy. 

Friday morning

Since I took a 2-1/2 hour nap yesterday, I thought I might have some trouble going to sleep that night. But nope...I was out like a light.  It's 11 a.m. right now and guess who feels like she wants a nap.  Hmmmm...I wonder what my problem is.  Besides the fact that I'm old and old people like naps.

Just got off the phone with social security.  Thankfully, they had an option where you could be called back.  My wait time was 27 minutes but I got a call in less than five.  I was having trouble logging on because they didn't like my password.  You really have to jump through hoops to get in but I guess that's good since we have so many rotten people sitting in front of computers these days.

Since we're halfway into January, I thought I would have been notified by now what my premium for drug insurance is going to be with the penalty for not signing up back in 2005.  Good grief!  Way to rob people!  I have to pay $35 extra a month until I kick the bucket.  That's sure not very Christian.  I also pay $23 as month for the insurance and still have a $300 deductible.  With my AARP supplement going up in April, I figure I'm going to pay about $360 a month.  That's about a third of my SS check.  The only solution is to gamble -- or die.  And the second choice is coming sooner or later.

I've been trying to decide what hobby I want to indulge in right now and I chose three at once.  I'm going to set up a jigsaw, and I'm going top work at my sewing machine, and I'm going to work on my genealogy with pictures project.  I've also got some books stacked by my recliner, an afghan I'm half done with, and oh yeah....that exercise thing.  I'm thankful I have the exercise bike. Thanks Rose!

I cleaned out my garage freezer and put what little was there into the kitchen freezer. Am hoping my son-in-law can come by and see if he can figure out what the problem is. It's not leaking a lot but  I think something is amiss.  I realized as I transferred the food, just how little meat I have on hand.  I probably should make a Costco run and see about stocking up a little.  Or ...  I could go vegetarian and save a ton of money and improve my health.  I could....but it's doubtful it will happen.  I don't actually eat much beef as it is.  Mostly chicken, some pork, fish, and ground turkey.  It's all expensive, though.

All this talk about food has made me hungry. Since it's almost noon, I guess I'll see what I can throw together.  My "looking forward to events" this week include football games on Sunday, a doctor appt on Monday with my knee surgeon, and a baby shower on Saturday.  I'm not actually looking forward to the doctor appt but it should be my last one with her and I'm looking forward to that.

Here's a picture of my biological grandmother on my mother's side.  Wish I knew what town she's standing in.  I'm thinking McCleary maybe?