tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77709632024-03-07T19:34:48.790-05:00paltry, sage, rose merry & timejthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.comBlogger889125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-7780430038900329222015-07-29T08:38:00.001-04:002015-07-29T09:30:24.803-04:00Turtles and FrogsWe have a fairly large pond next to our house. This is a view from Google Maps Earth.<br />
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Kev had it built several years ago. Unfortunately, it does not have a lot of nice, cold spring fed activity going on... so during the summer months, it gradually gets more and more shallow. But that's ok, because it's pretty deep on one end. The shallow end does suffer the most. This cycle makes our pond what it is, with the plant growth and critters that live in it.<br />
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We stocked it with fish a few times through the years, but the winter before last killed pretty much all of our fish. This happened to ponds all around our area. As it was explained to me, there was too much snow on top of the iced-over pond, causing extreme cold temps... too cold for the fish. Last summer, I noticed a few fish whenever I'd mow around the pond. This year, though, none so far. And what that winter didn't kill, the herons have done their best to catch and eat. But the frogs and turtles are having a heyday!<br />
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When mowing the other day, I noticed the big patch of horsetails and how the center is all bent over and forms like a mat of horsetails.<br />
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My first thought was that it looked like a deer bedding area, but the horsetails are basically floating on the water... so, no, not deer. Then I saw the turtles.<br />
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Painted turtles. I've seen a lot of turtles swimming on the surface of the pond. A few on the sides of the pond, but those turtles disappear into the pond immediately. They are all very much aware of my presence whenever I'm near. Obviously, the lawn mower is a big clue for them, but even walking quietly... basically trying to stalk them for a photo, they know I'm there, and they do not stick around. </div>
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The turtles that are out swimming in the pond are constantly diving and resurfacing, trying to avoid me. There are so many that the whole, entire pond surface is slowly popping with turtle heads all the time.<br />
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It's pretty good entertainment when I'm mowing. Little buggers will not let me get a good photo, though. At one time, I counted to 23 and then lost count... too much diving and resurfacing activity. Suffice to say there are a lot of turtles in our pond. They eat a lot of plants, but the turtles also eat frogs. We have a lot of frogs now... I'm supposing it's because we now have no fish, so there's no fish feasting on them, and since no fish, the birds that prey on fish, and also frogs, are not visiting our pond much these days. Banner time for baby frogs.<br />
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I took this video while mowing; this was around the end of June. There were thousands of baby frogs.<br />
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There a still a lot of frogs, but not as many as the baby boom in the video would make one expect to find. Though, whenever there are any on the edge and I get close to them, those suckers jump in and disappear almost as fast as the turtles... so an accurate idea of the true population is pretty much impossible for me. And I suppose if I were a frog in that turtle-filled pond, I'd be extra jumpy, too.<br />
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Some of the larger, older frogs, were very cooperative in letting me get a photo... possibly because they've lived that long and gotten that big, they have less worry about turtles and other dangers.<br />
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I could have posted a lot more photos... so many frogs! Beautiful, beautiful frogs. Of the many, many things that I will miss about living here in this house on this property, the pond is in the top of the list. We are definitely building a new pond at our new house.<br />
<br />jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-48157902636257435212015-07-25T08:49:00.005-04:002015-07-25T08:50:23.040-04:00Homemade Pizza PieMany years ago, my folks started getting deliveries from Sysco, which is basically a restaurant supplier. My dad placed the order and handled the boxes that arrived. That lasted for a few years, and during that time, their freezers and cupboards were full all the time. Joycie and Sammy loved it. Gramma and Grampa had HUGE boxes of Honey Nut Cheerios and Oreos. Then a Sam's Club came to a nearby town and then Gordon's, and so on. No more Sysco deliveries. I think they quit doing residential orders. I think my dad is still using styrofoam cups and lids from those Sysco years...<br />
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One thing they always had was frozen pizza dough balls. Dad and Mom would make the best pizza. Usually just tomato sauce with very few if any spices, lotsa, lotsa cheese and spicy good pepperoni. Really good pizza. Then, as it usually goes, the homemade pizza time waned.<br />
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I made a ton of pizza during that time, too. Had a lot of pizza parties. Bought some great pizza pans on sale after Christmas one year, the insulated kind with holes in it to make a nice well-baked bottom crust. I bought 8 of those large pizza pans, and used all 8 of them on many, many evenings.<br />
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We still buy take out pizza all the time. Last week, we spent over $55 on 2 pizzas and breadsticks from a local pizzeria (not a chain). Really good pizza. But then we make our own, and wonder why we ever buy pizza. Ours is so much better.<br />
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Now that it's usually just me and Kev for dinner, my favorite pan to make pizza in is an old Sunbeam electric fry pan; the kind that unscrews from the plastic feet and handles. That leaves a screw on the bottom of the pan, so it doesn't set on my counter flat... but three thick hand-crocheted potholders that my Mom made do the trick. It makes a nice kind of deep dish pizza. Thick crust anyway. Yum.<br />
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A few years ago, I caught a TV show on one of the food channels that is about 2 guys from New Jersey (I think) that go around and highlight pizzerias. Kinda like Diners, Drive-ins & Dives, only all pizza, all the time. They were at Buddy's in Detroit, and they showed how they make pizza there. Cheese on the dough then sauce. That's my style now, too.<br />
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I buy frozen pizza dough balls from Gordon's, the 17 oz. size. They come larger, I think, but 17 oz. is perfect.<br />
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I get a couple of balls out of the freezer in the morning, put them each in a gallon-size bag and liberally add olive oil. Then moosh them around in the bag so the dough and bag are both coated well with the oil. If I get them out later than planned, I'll set them on the stove top and turn the oven on.</div>
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Then let them set all day. They thaw and rise.<br />
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When I'm ready to make the pizza, I turn the oven on to regular bake (not convection) to 500 degrees F. It takes my oven quite a while to get to 500 degrees. Then I, once again liberally, coat the bottom of my pan with olive oil. Liberally and olive oil are words that go together often in our kitchen. Then put the dough in the pan; it deflates as you do it. Because I use so much olive oil, the dough slips right out of the bag.<br />
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I push the dough around and stretch it here and there to fill out the pan. Then I sprinkle on garlic powder, salt and pepper. I know the pepper is kinda odd, but Kev and I love black pepper. Next is the cheese. I don't use mozarella; I use a cheese I buy from an Amish store called "Farmer's Cheese." It's a kinda soft cheese, like moz, but it's creamier... it's really, really good. I buy a whole log of it at the store's deli counter, then take it home, cut it in chunks and freeze it. Sometimes I shred it and sometimes I just crumble it apart.<br />
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I use a LOT of cheese for one pizza. Then I put on the sauce, which for this pizza is plain tomato paste to which I added some beef broth to thin it out just a bit. I also use just tomato sauce (a large can) to which I add paste (a small can). Whatever is handy and whatever I feel like using. No herbs. I usually make more than I need, so I freeze the rest in bags, each bag enough for one pizza. It's pretty handy, coz I just cut the corner off the bag and squirt it all over. I also have been using a lot of Vadalia onions that I froze. I got them on sale (19 cents per pound!) and bought a huge bag, peeled them, cut them in half, sealed them in bags and froze them. I take them out of the freezer, in the microwave for 15 seconds, and easy to cut and slice. So easy and so good. Just as I was finishing making our pizza, Joycie called me and suggested putting parmesan cheese around the edge, so I did that this time. I had sent home a bag of dough for Joyce and Mike to make for their dinner (Joyce had the really good parm, I had the standard Kraft). Good call, Joycie!<br />
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Then I wait, for the oven, and also for the pizza dough and toppings to get to know one another really well while they're waiting in that pan. It's really good if you can just let it rest for about a half hour or more even. Since Kev was still outside working when I made this pizza, I had plenty of time to wait. Then into the oven, and for this pizza that's just cheese and onion (my fav), 8 minutes, turn the pan so the front's to the back for even baking, and then another 5 minutes. (With more toppings, more like 8 minutes then another 8 or 9 minutes. Not long though, coz 500 is pretty hot.)<br />
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Smells so good. And because of the liberally applied olive oil, nice and crispy, and slips right out of the pan onto the cutting board.<br />
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Two pieces is super filling. Kev ate 3 and then took the last 3 into work for his lunch the next day.<br />
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It's not really good to nuke the leftover pieces... soggyish. Kev put them in foil and heated them up in the toaster oven they have at work. Really excellent that way.<br />
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This pizza was so good, that I made pizza again last night. Cheeseburger pizza, which is ketchup squirted on top of the sauce (that's on top of the Farmer's cheese), then fried ground beef (lots of it, and fried really dark), then onion, then some good shredded cheddar, then a bit more sauce (tomato sauce and paste this time) with a little more squirts of ketchup. Freakin' yum!<br />
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And the best part, easy clean up, and doesn't cost $55...<br />
<br />jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-41421083548831157512015-07-23T10:14:00.000-04:002015-07-23T10:14:55.928-04:00Joyce MarleneBeing with baby Nora has brought back so many memories of being with my babies. Especially, of course, Joycie. Not only because Nora is her daughter, but also because she looks like her momma.<br />
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When Nora was first born, she looked more like Mike than Joyce. As the months passed, though, Nora began to resemble Joyce.<br />
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Joycie is on the left and Nora on the right. Both photos taken after their bath and in their Daddy's arms. And when I think about the years ahead with Nora, I can't help but remember all the years of my baby girl growing and changing and becoming the wonderful woman she is today.<br />
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Having an adult daughter who has given me a granddaughter is kinda like a surreal experience. I still have those moments when I think of Joyce as a I did when she was, for example, still in high school. Sometimes, though not real often, it's like my brain doesn't want to admit that Joyce is now a grown up, capable, smart, strong woman. She's all of that and beautiful and amazing. Joyce is also a very talented writer. Composition was always her strength throughout her school years, especially high school and college, and during her post-grad studies. I love reading what she writes. Which is why I'm so happy that Joyce has started her own blog.<br />
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<br />jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-71249068700335883022015-07-21T15:28:00.000-04:002015-07-21T15:32:55.356-04:00Nora GraceMy good friend, Merrie, has told me many times that I am "livin' the dream". She is, as she usually is, spot on. <br />
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My mom and dad took care of our two kids while Kev and I worked full-time. I always knew how very fortunate we were to have Joyce and Sam cared for by their grandparents. Without them willing to do so, our lives would have taken a very different course. I wouldn't have worked full-time, and we've had a lot of fun through the years paid for by that income. Opportunities and experiences that wouldn't have been possible otherwise.<br />
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My dream was to be able to babysit my grandchildren. Back in 2010 when I turned 50, I had all the points I needed to be able to retire with full pension benefits. I didn't retire then because Sam was still in high school and our mortgage was (and is) still alive and kicking. Then Joyce and Mike married in 2012, and I began to feel pressure (of my own making)... worried I wouldn't be able to retire before those two gave me a grandbaby.<br />
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Unexpectedly, but very, very happily, I did retire toward the end of 2012, and then waited until late in 2014 for my babysitting years to commence. Nora Grace was born on September 26, 2014.<br />
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All the stuff you hear and read and all those sayings posted on facebook about how great it is to be a grandparent... it's all true. So true. It's truly amazing. It's fucking awesome!<br />
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Nora is the love of my life. Kev is completely smitten as well. I keep telling my daughter that she and Mike must procreate again soon, because this much love is gonna suffocate our little Nora.<br />
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Nora is almost 10 months old. She is a happy, beautiful, smart little baby girl. She's almost walking, seriously, any minute now. She's waving bye-bye and saying bye; she's blowing kisses. She dances to music, especially when the theme to "Doc McStuffins" comes on the TV. She is too adorable for words.</div>
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I love, love, love babysitting her every weekday. It's a lot more work and commitment than I thought it'd be, and I believe I had a pretty good idea beforehand. But it's made me so happy. Too happy for words. I'm livin' the dream. </div>
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It's also made me appreciate my mom and dad so much more, and my appreciation for them already ran very deep. </div>
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Nora is very observant; she is constantly watching everything. Her resting face is very serious, so her smiles really light her up. She has 5 teeth already. She never took to a pacifier. When she's tired, she loves to suck on the end of her blankets... whichever one is handy. When I rock her to sleep, I hum the Christmas carol, "We Three Kings," and this week, she's begun to hum with me. She's well used to being photographed already, and she loves to see photos of herself. And videos. I've given her toys that belonged to her momma and her Uncle Sam as babies, and she loves them. Makes my heart flip-flop.<br />
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From the very beginning, Nora has screeched with happiness. Joyce and Mike make her screech a great deal! I love watching the three of them together. Nora screeching with gusto and so happy that her little body is just jumping and wiggling. The more we laugh, the more she screeches. Her screeches can get pretty piercing. I'm enjoying them, even with bleeding ear drums... soon enough, I think her screeches will be replaced with words as she learns more and more verbal communication. Or at least that's the plan... sometime before Kindergarten anyway.jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-25031672583144999052015-07-19T18:35:00.000-04:002015-07-19T18:36:59.005-04:00Sultans of SwingIt's another hot and muggy day. I went into the pottery studio... the air conditioned pottery studio. And I played and had fun and went out to lunch with my friend, Carl.<br />
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Kev worked all day. Seriously, the man never stops. He got called into work this morning, and didn't get back home until early afternoon. Then, in the hottest heat of the day, he works on putting CWF on the cedar siding of our huge-ass two-story house. He's been doing that gigantic project for weeks. And it's fucking hard work.<br />
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Sam was home this weekend, and he helped Kev yesterday. The two of them moved a ton of boxes out of the house (and... very likely, literally a ton), as well as a 3-piece 8'x10' wall of bookcases and other furniture, odds and ends. They put all that into the pole barn, as we're trying to clear out the house as much as possible... she goes on the market in two weeks.<br />
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Kev could hardly move last night; he was so tired. Still sore this morning. And he's out there as I type this, still working. He's loading up the pickup for another load to the dump. But I'm in the very cool house (Kev had the AC set to 73, and I moved to 69 as soon as I got home), playing around on my laptop, high as a kite, listening to Kev's radio blaring classic rock.<br />
Currently: Fleetwood Mac.<br />
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When they moved stuff out of the house yesterday, Kev found 3 old radios. Boomboxes, man. When's the last time you used one of those? He actually almost went and bought one when he started on the CWF project, so he could blast music and make the job go faster. Wish I'd known he wanted one. Better late than never, as music is most definitely blasting now... and I think he actually finished the last of the cedar siding this afternoon. Not to worry, he has plenty of blasting hours ahead, coz the porch isn't finished. Such a fucking ton of work. For Kevin. Poor old man.<br />
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We always used to blast rock and roll on a radio whenever we worked around the house and property. Back in our younger years. Back when it was called "rock and roll" instead of "classic rock". (And now our old Coleman cooler isn't just a cooler, it's a vintage cooler!)<br />
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Music was with us nearly everywhere we went and in most everything we did. That music will now trigger so many memories, especially from camping trips and other road trips. Campfires with just us two or with family on so many, many summer evenings. Always music. Usually loud music. That changed quite a bit after we had Joycie, then six years later, Sammy. Kids gotta get a nap sometime...<br />
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It's nice to hear it again, coming from outside. And I totally forgot how abrasive some commercials are on classic rock stations. Such noise! Shit, I'm old!<br />
<br />
Gimme three steps, gimme three steps, mister, gimme three steps towards the door...jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-89845287021566669062013-03-25T07:44:00.000-04:002013-03-25T17:11:50.944-04:00Incontinence in Women<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">As a
young girl and then a young woman, I heard a lot of things about being pregnant
and having babies. I was pregnant for
our daughter in 1988 when I was 28 years old.
That was the year I discovered that there were a lot of things that no
one ever told me. Oh, women joke about
having to pee often, but they don’t really tell you all the gory details.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">I was
pregnant again the following year, but miscarried at about 12 weeks. And then pregnant again about a year after
that, and again miscarried at about 14 weeks.
In each of those pregnancies, I was already wearing maternity clothes by
the time I miscarried… meaning I was big in the belly area. And even though I was no longer pregnant
after the miscarriage, my body felt pregnant.
My uterus was all “dusted and cleaned” out, but it was still enlarged,
putting additional pressure on a full bladder, so all the frequent need to
urinate that comes with pregnancy for months was an experience I had to go
through to some extent during those times.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">My
fourth and final pregnancy was in 1994, when our son was born. Sam was a big baby, and during the final
weeks of pregnancy, I believe he kept his feet on my bladder 24-7. I peed often.
No, really. I peed OFTEN.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">Peeing
often affects the size of your bladder.
Who knew?... But even if you have never experienced a pregnancy, we are
still taught as young children that when you have that urge to pee, quick!
hurry! run and go pee! Good girl! GOOD girl!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">The
size of your bladder has an impact on incontinence. As adult women, we actually can train our
bladders to be smaller or larger. The
more often we give into the urge to pee, that is, if we pee frequently, the
smaller we train our bladder to be.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">And
those Kegel exercises we learn about are not really explained very well. I heard about those, of course, long before
pregnancies. Probably covered in several
articles in Cosmopolitan. Keep that area
tight, women, and your man/men will appreciate it and so will you! A tight tata will give you a more intense
orgasm! And who doesn’t want that?!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">Forget
that! The most important aspect of
exercising “that area,” aka your pelvic floor, is to prevent incontinence later
in life. Seriously, if you’re in your 20’s,
pay heed – you will care about this all too soon! Much more than you will care about more
intense orgasms. Not that you won’t care
about that… just not as much as caring about being able not to piss yourself.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">And
those Kegel exercises are usually explained by telling you to stop urination
mid-stream, and then work those muscles.
Ever hear a woman in the stall next to you peeing like she’s turning a
faucet on, then off, then on, then off… Kegel!
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">As
years went by, I found myself doing what so many, many women do:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">1) Squeezing legs together for sneezing or
coughing<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">2) Leaking a little (or a lot) with a great bout
of laughter<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">3) Staying away from trampolines and horseback
riding<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">4) Etc etc etc<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">5) and oh yeah, wearing panty protection 24-7<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">And
then I hit the perfect storm for incontinence when I was 48 years old. In mid-January 2008, I had a neck surgery to
repair my C6 vertebrae to remove a piece of it that was broken off and pressing
into my spinal cord. As a result, my C5,
C6 and C7 are fused with steel rods and brackets. The morning after that surgery, I felt
supreme relief. But then, I got an
infection and ended up with a second surgery a couple of weeks later on the
same site to remove a big pocket of puss.
Then under anesthetic a third time to have a PIC line inserted, and I
took antibiotics for 3 months.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">During
that time, I was taking pain medications – Vicodin, Valium and Flexeril, and I
think Darvocet was in there, too. I
spent a lot of time on our sofa, because that ended up being the spot I could
find some comfort laying down. The
antibiotics made me so ill that between that and the physical pain emanating
from my neck, I pretty much lived on that sofa for weeks and weeks. At age 48, that was my first major experience
with incontinence. One day, instead of
taking Vicodin, I decided to switch it up and take Darvocet. My prescription for Vicodin was for me to
take 2 pills, so I took 2 Darvocet without thinking, but I should have taken
only 1 pill. I was zonked out for over
12 hours. I remember feeling my body
sink very, very deeply into the sofa.
Then I woke up on a very cold, wet sofa cushion. Holy crap.
My husband, Kevin, had tried to wake me and was actually to the point of
being excessively worried when I finally decided to return to the land of the
living. And then he took such good care
of me, helping me to get off the sofa, out of my soaking wet nightgown and into
the shower. He took the cover off the
sofa cushion, washed the cover and tried to wash the piss out of the
cushion. He dried my tears, took a
cushion from the love seat and put it on the sofa for me. And major kudos to Flexsteel, the brand of
our sofa and loveseat – because our sofa
has a lifetime warranty on the cushions, and Flexsteel didn’t even care that I
ruined the cushion by pissing on it!
When I called them to order a new cushion, they sent me one free – didn’t
even charge me postage!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">When I
eventually returned to sleeping in our bed on a regular basis, I learned
something else new… when you get out of your bed, you don’t really even think
about it. Likely you sit up and swing
your feet to the floor in a smooth motion, and probably most people reading
this sentence right now are trying to think to themselves, “How is it exactly
that I do get out of bed? Hmmm…” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">What I
learned was that after my neck surgery I could no longer just “get out of bed.” Instead of rising up and swing my feet to the
floor, I had to roll almost over onto my stomach and push myself up. So every morning, with that full morning
bladder and not yet fully awake, I would try to get out of bed the usual way by
a 48-year force of habit, which would send screaming red hot pokers of pain
from my neck through my entire body. And
then I would pee, a little or not so little depending on the day and the level
of pain. Oh, good times.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">That
was the year that my body went to hell in a handbasket, including my bladder
and pelvic floor muscles. I was going to
physical therapy for my neck, and then I found myself going to physical therapy
for incontinence. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">And I
bless that physical therapist for her fine teaching skills, amazing, wonderful
bedside manner and empathy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">Here’s
what I learned and want to pass on to every woman I can. And if you’re in your 20’s reading this and
think this doesn’t apply to you, baby, think again. You’ll be 40 all too soon.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">First,
train your bladder to be larger. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">On
your first morning pee, make sure you empty your bladder as much as you
can. And isn’t that a wonderful
feeling? My 4th favorite feeling.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">Also,
try waiting as long as possible between urinations throughout your day, and
again, take time to fully empty your bladder.
This is to train your bladder to be as large as possible. Size does matter, ladies. And helps you to sleep through the night
without having to get up and go pee when you should be deep into REM sleep.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">After
your morning starts, you’ve had coffee or whatever, you should try not peeing
more than every 4 or 5 hours throughout your day and evening. Obviously if your schedule is to pee every
hour, you’re going to have to build yourself up to a longer length of time
between urinations. And in the evening,
wait until just prior to bed to pee. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">Do NOT
start and stop your pee stream. This
actually can do more to cause incontinence than to prevent it!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">Exercise
your pelvic floor muscles often. You can
do this almost anytime – driving in your car, sitting in a chair, even walking
with your grocery cart. But here’s the
catch:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">These
exercises should <b><u>start</u></b> at
your sphincter muscle, i.e., your butthole, yes, your butthole. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">Tighten
that anal opening and then take that tightening all the way up to your urinary
tract opening, i.e., your pee hole. You
should be able to tighten that whole area without feeling the movement on the
outside of your hip or butt. These are
your pelvic floor muscles; it’s not just about your dainty little lady parts… it
has to include your asshole. Hear me and
listen.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">Exercises
include tightening in 3 steps, start with your butthole and tighten and hold,
count of 5, move forward a bit and tighten and hold count of 5, and then move forward
to your pee hole, tighten and hold count of 5, release, count of 5 and start
again, doing at least 5 reps. Another
exercise is to tighten the entire area all together, count of 5, release, count
of 5, 10, 15, etc, and again 5 reps.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">So
that’s the secret I learned: train your bladder to be as large as possible and
exercise your pelvic floor muscles correctly and often. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">Pass
it on.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">Caveat: If
you’re really having trouble with incontinence, tell your doctor and get to a
physical therapist, preferably a woman PT who has been trained for incontinence. The physical therapy was slightly
uncomfortable/disconcerting for me initially – I had to pull my pants down so
she could stick these sensors on my butt for a machine to measure the muscle
movement, and of course, talking out loud about your butthole to anyone is a
rather unique conversation… but it’s worth it.
So worth it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br /></span>jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-39390084388364479972013-01-13T20:24:00.001-05:002013-01-13T20:25:52.127-05:00Thy leaves are so unchanging!<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">Our
Christmas tree has been de-decorated for quite some time now, but Kev only just
today took the lights off and carted the tree out of the living room. We’ve
been enjoying the lights so much that we both procrastinated. The tree was
surprisingly still keeping its needles well, mostly losing them only by the
small clumps the cats chewed off (mostly Fat Murray). We got the
smallest tree we’ve ever had in this house... since 1993. This
year’s tree was once again a Frasier Fir (our favorite kind), and it was only a
little bit over six foot tall. Our typical Christmas tree has been
closer to twelve feet, so this tree at first seemed tiny.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">Kevin
and Sam went over to the Christmas tree lot that we always go to, and they
picked this tree out together. I was still recuperating from the
knee surgery I had in early December, so I didn't go with them. (Arthroscopic
surgery for torn meniscus... the most common of knee injuries... of
course!) The tree was the only Christmas decorating we did this
year, foregoing all of the other stuff... Sam, Kev and I all had trouble
getting into the decorating spirit this year. Me because of my knee,
Kev because of so many extra hours he had at work, and Sam because I am pretty
sure that if any further decorating got done, he’d be hauling boxes up and down
the stairs all by himself. Not a lot of fun.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">So now
our living room is so much bigger! Isn’t it nuts how the day you
take the tree down, your room grows.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">I
thought the cats would be pissed off at Kev, but once he moved the loveseat
back where it goes (where the tree was), they both plopped their butts on it
and went to sleep. The cats enjoyed the tree immensely... I thought
they'd miss it more...<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">Kevin
also got the Meyer snow plow on the old ’78 Chevy pickup today. Kev
uses the tractor to plow our driveway, so he gave the old truck to Mike and Joyce
for their incredibly long, straight driveway. The plow hasn’t been on the old
truck in about five years, but Kev said it went on pretty easily and worked
like a charm. That old truck is rusting out like crazy, but she’s
still dependable as heck. Love that old truck. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">We’ve
had a spell of nice weather... the annual January thaw. This past week
was lovely. It started to get cold and a freezing rain began just as
Kev finished with the old truck this afternoon. Shortly after he got inside for evening,
it turned to big, fat flakes of snow. Now it’s snowing small and
fast. Little snow, big snow. That means it should
accumulate. Yay! Love the snow.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">Sam
wants to do some more senior photos in the snow... he did a <a href="http://www.briandanielphotography.com/vend/#/page/5ed0/sam-tyrrell/" target="_blank">photo shoot</a> in the
fall with the beautiful autumn colors. So here’s hoping we get a lot
of beautiful snow, because I would like to have some photos of Sam in the snow,
too. The same photographer who did Joyce and Mike’s <a href="http://www.briandanielphotography.com/vend/#/set/5a14/" target="_blank">engagement</a>
photos and <a href="http://www.briandanielphotography.com/vend/#/set/5ccc/" target="_blank">wedding</a> is doing Sam’s senior photos, and he’s so good. Joyce
and Mike did their engagement photos in the snow, and they were awesome
photos. There is something about snow... I have loved snow
since I was little. I love the first snow... I can smell it in the
air. It’s a wonderful smell that first snow. Like the first cold
morning you can really smell autumn. Makes you wanna hug the air.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">This
past week, I have finally been able to get back into the pottery
studio. I didn’t get in there hardly at all during December, due to
my knee. I had two tears in the meniscus of my right knee, so it was
very painful for a while. After the surgery, it was amazing how the pain was
gone. I had pain from surgery, but that deep, intense inside pain
was magically gone. Very nice. Then almost exactly two
weeks after the surgery, I fell outside on the frozen ground directly onto that
knee. I was afraid I had done some damage to the meniscus, but I
didn’t... but... I did bruise my patella. The surgeon said it would
just take time to heal. And then he said he could give me a shot of
steroids into the knee which would help with the pain. I said, “Now,
please.” That was Monday afternoon, and by Tuesday morning, I was
raring to get into the studio. Wasn’t even limping! I’ve
been making things like a woman possessed. I’ve missed clay so
much. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">Most
recently, I made eight tumblers which are currently in the kiln, just bisque
fired over this weekend. I will hopefully be able to glaze them all
tomorrow, and they’ll go through a glaze firing this week. These are a
test lot, because I’ve taken on a commission to make 200 stoneware
tumblers which must each hold 20 ounces. I had made a luncheon set
of stoneware dishes last year that’s still at the Serendipity 181 shop
downtown, and a husband and wife saw them there. They are opening a
pub just down the street from Serendipity 181, and they want the 200 tumblers
to look just like the ones they saw at the shop for their “mug club” at their
pub. I am very excited about this project. And
nervous. 200 tumblers by May 1st. Gonna be fun!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">But I
don’t wanna do only tumblers from now until May. I’ve been dreaming
ideas for clay... I have more ideas than time! That’s a lovely
feeling. Since I’ve been selling pieces at Serendipity 181 (which is
an artist consignment shop), it’s like I’ve been freed up to try <i>anything</i> with
clay. I don’t have to make something that I want in my house or I
want to give to a family member or friend... I can’t make any crazy thing I
want! And, the pieces sell. It’s awesome. Gives
me money to keep my clay habit going. I love being at the studio,
being there with my friends, working with clay, creating something and then
seeing it come out of the glaze firing. Opening a kiln from a glaze
firing is like Christmas morning. So freakin’ fun. And
now my fingers are itching to get into clay <i>right now</i>!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">This
past Saturday I worked at the studio from 9am until about 2pm. It is
amazing to me how many muscles are used when making stuff at the studio. Being
forced to take a month away from it, this week has reminded me... but it is a
wonderful type of soreness. By 2pm on Saturday, though, I felt
almost too tired to drive myself home. Joyce worked the front desk
at the studio, and she was busy working, but she was <i>there </i>(I
love it when she's there), and we had lunch together. Joyce helped
me take care of a couple of things when I was cleaning up... she carried the
heavy things for me because she could see I was struggling by that point.
I got out into my car to leave and realized I had left my water on the table...
totally too pooped to go back in and get it so I called Joyce. Setting in
my car on the other side of the glass door, I talked with her and told her I
left my water... she laughed at me and then got it and ran it out to me.
Love that girl. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">I made
some ridiculous little salt and pepper shakers yesterday... I used a plaster
mold of a baby face, so the shaker is a baby’s head. Joycie said
they’re freaky. I like ‘em! It’s a Duncan mold from the
1960’s that I bought at an estate sale last summer, along with about one
hundred other molds. I took quite a few into the studio for everyone
to use, mostly simple shapes we can use for slump or hump molds. I
also have quite a few in my garage that I picked up for a friend, and this
included 2 Duncan baby doll molds, a boy and a girl. There are also
little hands/arms and feet/legs parts in these molds... I might try using those
for something wacky, too. These plaster molds are meant for
slip-casting, but I am just pressing clay into the mold, using the bit I want
of the face... we don’t do slip-casting at the pottery studio. I do a lot
of hand-building (that is, instead of throwing on a wheel), and I like using
plaster molds for some things. I will have pottery on the mind all
through the night now. Sometimes I get up in the middle of the night to
write down stuff, so I can remember my pottery ideas/dreams. Often I
can’t make sense of what I wrote. But it’s damn fun.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">Life
is so good. I love being retired. I worked for 35 years, and I have
not missed it at all, not for one minute. I'm so happy. A bad day
in retirement is still better than the best day working. I am
totally grinning as I type this!!!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";">Sam
and Allie are at the movies tonight. Sam just texted me and asked me
to set up a timer to record Honey Boo Boo on TLC. I did it, though I
could feel brain cells dying from it. That’s crap TV Big
Time. And my son and his girlfriend wanna watch
it. Sigh. Our family enjoys our TV. Kev
and I are hooked on a lot of shows... Blue Bloods, CSI, Elementary, Bones, CSI
New York, Castle, Rizzoli & Isles, Rookie Blue, Person of Interest, Sons of
Anarchy, Justified, and so on... so basically anything to do with
crime! We also like New Girl, Parenthood, Revenge... And
I have to have my Big Bang Theory weekly fix. Many of the TV shows
we watch are not Sam’s choice. Now that we have the Dish Hopper, we
share the DVR with Sam... before the hopper, we had a DVR in the living room
and another upstairs, so we never saw what shows Sam
recorded. I know I sound old when I say this, but I can’t
believe the shit Sam watches! Damn kids, get off my lawn!</span></div>
<br />jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-41429146736154858332013-01-01T20:32:00.000-05:002013-01-01T20:32:02.163-05:00Ready or not...<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">...it's 2013! I don't think Wiley is all that ready...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr23cA9AYacZC75Y6DU8Qi_bICmPq5YNnRw2hK9OxnioqpeCdVcKDZSgGiPL3eBXWVF93Hw-41DjNS-uImIgVkd_pymBicnZvTM51HYrg_NxcjUxr0TU6MtrxgxTl6bs7LFvVV/s1600/2013-01-01_Wiley.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr23cA9AYacZC75Y6DU8Qi_bICmPq5YNnRw2hK9OxnioqpeCdVcKDZSgGiPL3eBXWVF93Hw-41DjNS-uImIgVkd_pymBicnZvTM51HYrg_NxcjUxr0TU6MtrxgxTl6bs7LFvVV/s640/2013-01-01_Wiley.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Kev and I have had a super quiet day, if you don't count the football noises coming from the TV off and on since this afternoon. It's been nice starting the new year off with a day of no urgency, no to do lists, just rest and laziness. Unfortunately, both of us have kinda felt a little bit crappy today, so looks like our 2013 is probably going to begin fighting the cold/flu that's been going around a lot. Could be worse... someone could have taken our photograph while laying spread eagle with our privates in full view, just to make fun of us...</span>jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-47658373463887447202012-12-31T11:55:00.001-05:002012-12-31T11:57:06.834-05:00Breathe... just breathe<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">OK, do this
with me… take a huge, deep breath in,
fill up your lungs, fill ’em up, fill ’em to almost bursting, and... now let it
all out. Ahhh...</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">So,
2012. Last day. In many ways, I say good riddance. But it’s
also been a milestone year in my life.
Our baby girl got married. That
was awesome and still so hard to believe.
Time flies. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">And after
working at the same company for 35 years, 2 months and 24 days, I retired. That was also awesome.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">So this last
day of 2012 deserves some note. Somehow
my mind settled on a blog post. Probably
because one of my sisters (<i>Hi Kathy!</i>) asked me yesterday when I was going to
start blogging again. Not the first time
I’ve been asked that question. A good
friend with whom I’ve reconnected (<i>Hi Carla!</i>) has asked me that a few times,
along with other friends and family, and some people I didn’t even know
read my blog.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I’ve tried
to start blogging again before, because I do remember how much I enjoyed
it. I enjoy writing, and I enjoy
journaling the things in my life, important and unimportant stuff. I never wrote blog posts because I wanted
someone else to read them; I enjoyed it because I read them, and I
enjoyed the writing. I enjoyed the
photos, too. So why did I stop
blogging?...</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I stopped
writing because I felt like the creative juices had been mostly all sucked out
of me. What little I had left, I devoted
to pottery. On many days, I felt like
the clay studio saved me from doing things I would regret (and possibly end up
in jail for). Pottery is now a passion
for me, creating crap out of clay. I
love it. I love my friends at the studio
and the time I spend there with them.
It’s fucking awesome. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">But I had
nothing leftover to give to my blog.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I tried, but
it was difficult and the results were lame.
It all started in 2007, well, really before that, when I was driving my
old LeSabre and some guy rear-ended me.
In that accident, I now believe that my C6 (neck) vertebrae was
fractured, slightly and not detected.
Long story, short (and previously documented in this blog), I ended up
with neck surgery in January of 2008.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">But the pain
that started in 2007 is what started the sucking of creative juices. The clincher was 2008. First the surgery to fix my neck, then the
infection, then the 2nd surgery to get the infection, then the
antibiotics for months, and then... then I returned to work in May of 2008. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">It was the
returning to work that started the final, big sucking.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My boss at
that time, let’s call him M, is an engineer who had worked himself up through
the ranks to his first position with people reports. He was a micro-managing, nit-picking,
argumentative, patronizing know-it-all.
An asshole.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">From that
time after returning to work until early this year, I had to report to that
asshole. He made my life at work
miserable, and the misery seeped into my personal life.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I would work
Monday through Friday, go to the pottery studio on Saturdays, though sometimes
(often) also have to do some company work at home early in the morning before going into
the studio, and sometimes afterwards as well. My job was busy, too much work for a 40-hour work week. I hated the overtime it always required.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">But then Sundays... oh, the Sundays.
Many of them I spent unable to get myself out of bed. All day long.
My husband is amazing. His understanding
during those times was truly heroic.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I would lie
there in bed and do a lot of fantasizing.
My enjoyment of reading murder mysteries and watching TV shows like
“CSI” really paid off in those fantasies.
So many ways for M to suffer and die.
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">He’s from
Canada, and I somehow really focused on that.
I went from liking Canada to disliking Canada and all things
Canadian. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">He was such
an awful boss. Through my more than
three decades working at that company, I had a lot of bosses. I switched jobs a few times, through the years working in three very
different functions at the company. I
spent my first decade working in Marketing, my second in Legal and my final
decade in Human Resources with a dotted line to Finance. So I’ve known
a variety of supervising styles. On a
scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the worst at people management, I would give M
a solid 10 average. In over 35 years,
with all those other many, many bosses I’ve had, I was lucky enough to have a
couple of 1’s and 2’s, mostly 3’s, some 4’s, and sadly a few 5’s... and some pretty
awful 6’s. That’s the gap between how
bad M was to all the many others... on my scale, a 6 is terrible, so a 10 is
truly, truly terrible – a lack of people management skill level sufficient to
cause harm. M was well and truly that
bad.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I really
hated M during those days, months and years.
Now, however, I could give a rat’s ass about him. He no longer has the power to force me to
summon the energy required to hate him.
I’m not saying I like him. If I
ever see him again, I will thoroughly ignore him. And hope Kevin doesn’t recognize him and beat
the shit out of him. I’m not joking
about that – it is a real and valid fear I have that we will run into M at the
Meijer store and Kev will recognize him and kick his ass. This was a frequent fantasy, and however much
I would still enjoy seeing that happen, the resulting problems we would have
wouldn’t be worth it. I think...</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Anyway, I
still don’t like Canada.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">And what is
worse than a micro-managing, nit-picking, argumentative, overbearing SOB for a
boss?... a submarine bitch.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Early this
year, M was replaced by D. Someone high
up made the so very perceptive and sensible decision to move M to a position
where he had no people reports. D is a
woman who has had years of experience supervising people. At first, we – that is, myself and many
others in our department of about 50 souls, with more than half being
contractors, so truly affected were really only those of us left that were
actual employees of the company – anyway, we thought D was a big improvement, a start to
getting things fixed.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">At first, I
liked D. She and I had some good
talks. But then... I noticed we could not
really connect. D is a woman who is
about 50 years old, and she has spent her entire career life at the company. She is a local girl, I know this because a
good friend of mine also went to the same local high school. That same friend’s mother-in-law is good
friends with D’s mother, who is not all there mentally now and living in a
facility of some sort. D herself told me
once how she didn’t marry until very late in life, close to 40, and was only
married for a few years because she could not get along with her husband’s
teenage children. I heard from another
person who also reported to D, let’s call her J, that D got herself a great,
big nice house out of the deal, that is, she got the man’s lake-front house in
the divorce. I also know that D has one
sibling, a brother who lives in California and with whom D does not appear to
have much contact, according to the aforementioned mother-in-law. I believe it was J who also told me that D
has no pets.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">This is life in the town where I live and the company where I worked... everyone knows everyone's business.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">And then I
began to notice D's office. Really
notice it. D has a lot of stuff around
her office, so it was misleading for me at first. Because when I took the time to really look
at the stuff, I realized everything in her office was related to her career at
the company. Every. Single.
Thing. All about the company and her
various positions through the years. Not
one thing related to a personal life. No
photos, no travel mementos from vacations.
That’s when I realized I could never connect with that woman. D lives in a big house with no pets - no dog,
no cat, not even a fish. I am confident
in surmising she also has no living house plants; D is definitely the fake fern
kind of gal. She is the only living
thing in that great big house. D has no
close family, no husband, apparently no boyfriend or girlfriend, no children, not even nieces
and nephews. No substantive personal life. Her entire life is the company.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">My running
joke this past summer was how when D would die, her headstone would read: “Here
lies D. Married to The Company. Marriage consummated.” Fellow older company employees would easily get
that joke, because those of us left who had been around for a long time know
that if you stay with the company long enough, you’ll get fucked good in the end. D certainly doesn’t seem to realize that, as
it would seem she has devoted her adult life to the company. Sad, really.
But, then again, she is a bitch, so the bitch gets what she deserves.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">In the end,
I totally and completely disliked D. And
J, too, because she is one of the most two-faced, mean-spirited, hypocritical co-workers I
have ever had the displeasure to know. J
thinks she is awesome, funny and well-liked.
She’s a woman about 50 who clearly has no idea that she has a long
reputation for being a two-faced back-stabber. She’s awful. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">J’s awfulness is followed closely by two other co-workers, let’s call
them T and A, which yes, that phrase you’re thinking of now after reading “T
and A” is pretty accurate. T is a woman
nearing 50 who is full of herself and totally irritating. My nickname for her was Stomping
Interruptus. T used to be fat but had a
stomach surgery and lost a lot of weight.
Good for her, of course. But
after her weight loss, she became this loud, way over-confident creature. Loud walking and loud talking. She’d stomp into my cubicle and bark out her
question with no concern whatsoever about what I was doing before she arrived. But then, of course, whatever she had was Much
More Important. I used “over-confident”
because T is a smart person, but she is not quite as intelligent as she
believes herself to be. T has a college
degree, and how she achieved that without learning how to speak proper English
is beyond me... her knowledge of grammar is so poor that when she would talk with
me, I could feel my brain flinch. Think,
“I ain’t got no idea” and “he don’t have it” and "we can't get no help on that" and so on. Since she talks a lot, well, I flinched a
lot.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">And A... well, A is a sad case. He is a young man, not getting any
younger. Nearing 30 now. And living at home with mom and dad is kind
of sad. He seems to be a troubled
person. I believe I know why, but giving
my theory on such a private matter on a publicly available blog is not
something I feel I should do. Basically,
A was a pain in the ass to work with because he is so fucking moody. And A foolishly glommed onto J as his
mentor. In the end, A was as much of a
two-faced bitch as J.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">I mention J,
T and A because those three people were the co-workers with whom I had to
spend my workdays, closely working
with them and sitting very close to them since our boss D had decided to
reorganize our department and consequently move most all of us physically so
our physical locations in the cubicle hive would support our new
organization. I ended up sharing a
corner style open cubicle space with three workstations with T and A, with J
occupying a cubicle right next to us.
It. Was. Awful.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">But, in the
end, I was lucky. So very, very fucking
lucky. Because 2012 was the year that
the company decided to once again weed out the old folks. That little golden carrot was dangled in
front of our collective faces, but shhh... don’t tell anyone, it’s a Big Secret (that
everyone knows).</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">One morning
in September, J made me so angry that I sat at my desk space, staring into my
computer monitor trying to not have the top of my head blow off and trying to
not have a heart attack. I seriously
felt my heart painfully jumping in my chest.
It finally stopped the moment of my epiphany... the moment I realized “THIS IS NOT WORTH
IT.” Fuck the mortgage. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">And I was
able to get out of there. Thank
God. And thank God I was able to get
enough of a carrot that I don’t have to go out and try to find a job to
supplement my pension. Thank God and Kevin, who works his ass off week in and week out and brings home the bacon. Kev is the provider, the protector, the comforter, the center compass bearing of my life. I love that man.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">So I had my epiphany, and then the best part - I was able to get out of there within a couple of days of my epiphany. Cue the music:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;"><i>The problem
is all inside your head, she said to me</i></span></div>
<i style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif;">The answer is easy if you take it logically</i><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><i>
</i></span>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><i>I'd like to help you in your struggle to be free</i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><i>
<div style="text-align: left;">
There must be 50 ways to leave your lover</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
She said it's really not my habit to intrude</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Furthermore, I hope my meaning won't be lost or misconstrued</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
So I repeat myself, at the risk of being cruel</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
There must be 50 ways to leave your lover</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Just slip out the back, Jack</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Make a new plan, Stan</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Don't need to be coy, Roy</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Just listen to me</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Hop on the bus, Gus</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Don't need to discuss much</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Just drop off the key, Lee</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
And get yourself free</div>
</i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">And I
am. Free. So very free.
And it feels so very, very good.
Writing this blog post is the most I’ve thought about M, D, J, T and A
in weeks and weeks. So lovely to be
free. After working at the company for more than
35 years, dropping off my key and slipping out the back wasn’t really how I
planned to go, but it worked for me. Not one second of regret.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">It wasn't all bad - I also have good memories from my working years, because I worked with some amazing, wonderful people
through the years. Some I plan to stay in touch with.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">But I’m
free. My finger tells the story. I have one finger that I call my Stress Bird. It’s my middle finger on my right hand. Whenever I get stressed to a certain point,
the skin on the left side of that finger starts to turn hard, painfully
so. And then the hard skin gets scaly
and breaks and bleeds and hurts like fucking hell. And it spreads to cover almost my entire
fingertip. Gross, I know. It would look gross, too. I would lie in bed and feel my fingertip
throb with pain. Lots of bandages and
ointments but nothing would fix it. I
saw a couple of doctors years ago, and it is some kind of virus, like a wart is a virus,
or shingles, etc. Nothing that a
medicine could fix, but it is not contagious.
Through the years, it has never spread to any other part of my body and
nor have I passed it onto any family member.
Through 2008 until September 2012, my poor bird was hurting almost
constantly. Within two weeks of
retiring, my finger was pink, pretty and healthy. That, to me, tells the story. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">And now that
I’ve gotten this long-winded bag of crap story off my chest and onto this blog post, maybe I can start to
feel the creative urge to blog often again.
That’s my hope. I would like to
backtrack and blog about the important events that have happened in the past
few years, so that years from now, when my memory engine is running low on oil,
I can read about them and better remember them, and enjoy those moments again
through my journal. Fingers crossed. And hey, thanks for reading this all the way to the end - you're awesome!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">I am one lucky, free woman. Life is good.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><a href="http://youtu.be/t9K-Fp00piQ" target="_blank">Breathe... just breathe...</a></span></span>jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-13782051988844682262012-05-09T06:54:00.001-04:002012-05-09T07:52:47.226-04:00Hump Day and why notThis Saturday is my baby girl's wedding shower. It still seems a little surreal to see those words typed out on my computer screen. Where did all the years go... Joycie is 23 years old now, and the age I was when I married her dad. It fills my heart to see her so happy with Mike. The wedding is in 38 days. But we'll have none of the last-minute craziness because Joyce is super duper organized. As with any big life event, I'm wishing I had lost weight. Eh. Fuck it. I'm 52 years old and so tired of that feeling. Back when I was young, in my teens and twenties, I always felt so much that I needed to lose weight, and of course now looking at those photos I wanna go back and kick my young self in the head and say ENJOY IT, YOU SILLY TWIT. Coz I looked pretty good. <br />
<br />
I guess I'm just feeling a bit overwhelmed. I'm not freaking out because Joyce is marrying our wonderful Mike, not at all. I'm so happy. It's just been a lot of stuff going on this past year or so, busy, busy... Probably I need a fucking vacation. Ha! Instead, I drive a lot lately, to and from work, to and from wherever Sam needs to go (that's a long story), and so on.<br />
<br />
And what the heck is it with all the crap people put on their vehicles... I've seen a few of those "in loving memory" window decals lately. I don't get it. Yesterday I saw one that was "in loving memory of my daughter" then followed with name, date of birth, date of death, etc. Why? I get it that people have so many different forms of grief, but window decals are the current equivalent of a bumper sticker. Bumper stickers, by their nature, are meant to announce such things as your opinions and your political beliefs to the world. I don't understand wanting to announce the death of someone you love, such as a child, to the world by a plastic window decal on your pickup truck. <br />
<br />
And those small white oval stickers with letters on them... those suck. What is the point? You cannot tell what they are about, not while driving. I've seen one on a car at work that I finally got to see close up because I walked by the car in the parking lot. It's for some island where the dude apparently went golfing. But unless you're standing close to that stupid oval sticker, you would never know that. Give me a "Say Ya To Da U.P." bumper sticker in big letters any day! <br />
<br />
What's my bumper sticker of choice on my car? Which is my old Caddy, by the way, since Sam's driving the Rendezvous. It's rust. And that's actually not by choice. The damn thing is starting to rust out all over. Sigh. <br />
<br />
Kevin's been going crazy landscaping lately. New topic, btw. I had a large herb garden for about 20 years, and next to it a rock garden. Both had been looking pretty bad lately since they've been mostly neglected since 2007. Kev dismantled, dug out, excavated with his tractor and planted grass. I was initially a bit upset, but that lasted about 10 minutes. And then I was all eh, fuck it. It really looks nice now. Kev plans to put in a patio-like area off the deck with a nice fire pit in it. We'll plant some herbs around it. He's getting the yard all spruced up (with no spruce trees involved) because he's preparing for Sammy's high school graduation open house next year. Crazy. <br />
<br />
Wiley says hello to everyone and wants to know where the hell you've all been. Oh, wait, that's us who has been absent from this blog! Hahahaha. eh. Fuck it. You all are busy too, right.jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-38291835105281546642012-01-15T12:18:00.005-05:002012-01-15T15:14:05.128-05:00...and as it always has, rock crushes scissors...I don't believe in New Year's resolutions. They're about as effective for me as To Do lists. I suck at both. I do better with Goals. One goal can kick 4 New Year's resolutions' asses. My latest long-term goal is simple... when I get home, usually from work, my goal is to almost immediately NOT set my fat behind in my recliner. Because when I do that, I usually stay there for pretty much the duration of the evening. Nothing gets done. Recently, I have even asked Kevin to handle the damn TV remote control because my right hand hurts (too much computer time lately).<br /><br />I have been working a lot of long days the past few weeks, what with the annual crunch time at work (4th quarter and year-end close). I'm sore and tired. The chair beckons even as I am driving home.<br /><br />I have several projects at home in varying stages of completion. I blame it on the damn chair.<br /><br />I am super duper behind on my paperwork at home. I blame it on the damn chair.<br /><br />I not only did not lose any weight last year, but I now weigh 7 pounds more than I did this time in 2011. I blame it on the damn chair. Well, truly I blame it jointly with certain aspects of my job. And the damn chair.<br /><br />Because I, of course, am perfect at accomplishing everything I set out to do, but my perfection has been derailed, by no fault of mine, by that damn chair. SIGH.<br /><br />I would get rid of that chair entirely (and Lord knows, I should - between me and Wiley, it has rips and tears and kinda looks like crapola), and Kev and Joyce have both suggested it... but I WILL KILL THE PERSON WHO DARES TO TAKE MY CHAIR AWAY. That is not me talking, by the way, it is the damn chair.<br /><br />Wiley loves to lay in the chair sometimes during the day when we're gone. While he sleeps and lays his head on either arm, he drools, so the material covering the arms is rather stiff with dried dog drool. And though this grosses Kevin out, I find it endearing. It's not any dried dog drool, it's my Wiley's drool. Plus this makes my chair less likely to be occupied by other people.<br /><br />My short-term goal today is to get laundry done and while doing the laundry, get some job work done... I brought my company laptop home again this weekend. It's nice I can get work done from home, but it stains my weekend. SIGH.<br /><br />As it is currently past noon, the day is technically half over, and I am still in my pajamas and not yet started laundry. As a further means of procrastination, I decided to write this blog post. It had been so long since I've posted, I actually forgot my blogger.com password and had to look it up. Now that's sad.<br /><br />On the plus side of procrastination efforts, I have gotten all caught up on my eBay feedback. That would remain a strange statement without an explanation... I've been buying beads and findings on eBay, all sweet, pretty things for 99 cents or so with free shipping, and many from far-away lands (i.e., China, Hong Kong, New Jersey, etc). I receive small padded envelopes in the mail on practically a daily basis. This led our inquisitive postal delivery guy to ask my daughter about it one day when he had to hand-deliver a large package from Amazon at Christmastime. She was a bit taken aback by his blunt question. I told her she should have said it was all about sex toys. Big business in sex toys. Especially those from foreign places like New Jersey.<br /><br />A friend of mine at the pottery studio makes a lot of ceramic pendants, and she uses them to make jewelry, along with many other beautiful things out of which she makes jewelry. I don't wear necklaces... I used to, but I found after my neck surgeries, that they tend to irritate the big scar at the back of my neck. But I have found that I enjoy making ceramic pendants. Which is why I got into buying all the jewelry beads and crap on eBay. I've also become somewhat obsessed with making pieces of pottery using leaves, dried weeds and other plant pieces. Which I have also used making pendants. Stay tuned for photos sometime soon, or so... No promises. Bet you could guess that huh.<br /><br />Joyce and Mike have left today already as they have a meeting at the church with the sister. At the church in which they will be married this June. I'm not sure who "the sister" is and why they have to meet with her, but it's a requirement of the Catholic church where they will be married. There's much I don't understand about Catholicism, and I'm pretty certain that's not gonna change. Tomorrow will be five months from their wedding day.<br /><br />Sammy is still working at McDonalds. He still dislikes it, but it's money. Which that boy goes through like water.<br /><br />My procrastination now must end. Kev is in our bedroom, and I hear the vacuum running. You don't realize how dangerous that situation is. He might throw away something good. Not of his, of mine. His claim that I have hoarder tendencies is completely unfounded. Packrats are an entirely different species from hoarders.jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-78094184542979355982011-08-21T09:15:00.000-04:002011-08-21T09:16:37.035-04:00Make a new plan, Stan!I left the air conditioner set to 69 degrees last night and woke up freezing.
<br />
<br />Kev and Sam are off on their boys weekend together, and Joyce and Mike spent the night over at Bay City, so you would think I'd have a nice, quiet evening with the house all to myself. But no. Murray and Ollie make a surprising amount of noise for 2 such small kittens. They are apparently curious about everything, and will try <em>anything</em> to investigate. Also, I deeply regret purchasing those cat toys Sam selected... the ones that have little bells or make noise.
<br />
<br />Another purchase at PetSmart was a covered cat litter box with a swinging front door. We have this downstairs right now, and it will stay where it is until both kittens are done with their recovery from getting fixed and declawed (which won't happen for at least another month). Then it's going elsewhere. I don't really care where, just not in the far corner of our livingroom. A place where Wiley cannot get to it, preferably, since my formerly amazing dog has decided that litter-covered cat turds are treats. Gag.
<br />
<br />I keep seeing this little Chevy S10 red pickup truck on M-20:
<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG7OmowIJ2Ka94W2tSQ9nPq7i5U3LYj9SLlZaJnHJmtGVI00lcd-2Q_ID8WOOCXdtFBfGhPG001uqwLXtYVo-4HZ5zroPhTPwaiGV8Tk2an9DY2BZz3yY_aRHykEtgiD8YshcW/s1600/11Aug20-babysilverado.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 243px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG7OmowIJ2Ka94W2tSQ9nPq7i5U3LYj9SLlZaJnHJmtGVI00lcd-2Q_ID8WOOCXdtFBfGhPG001uqwLXtYVo-4HZ5zroPhTPwaiGV8Tk2an9DY2BZz3yY_aRHykEtgiD8YshcW/s400/11Aug20-babysilverado.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643293231273278130" /></a>
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<br />I am hating football season. Sam is doing two-a-days now, and his knee is a major source of pain. Along with other varied and many bruises and injuries. Like how his teammate managed to poke Sam in both eyes during practice. Sam's eyes were very red; it made me feel so sick to look at his eyes... words can't do it justice. So we made a trip to Urgent Care to check on any corneal damage. We had to go into the "eye room" where the doctor put that yellow dye in each of his eyes, then turned off the lights in the room and held the blacklight up to Sam's face. My freaky purple boy...
<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj_2qvluojs73JuCZclz60YbnxsE-t6FKcOIDl1wPowU0z_CEOQTfmnc-Bq07zbLODm-gx1ZUHGexFcEvu37Z4CGZYb2pSVeve4fQ3JTmH2lmnmJb8Qo8NN3y7MuaGYFyZa-On/s1600/11Aug20-bluesam.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj_2qvluojs73JuCZclz60YbnxsE-t6FKcOIDl1wPowU0z_CEOQTfmnc-Bq07zbLODm-gx1ZUHGexFcEvu37Z4CGZYb2pSVeve4fQ3JTmH2lmnmJb8Qo8NN3y7MuaGYFyZa-On/s400/11Aug20-bluesam.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643278360896531650" /></a>
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<br />No lasting damage thank goodness. Unlike his knee, by the way. Our final visit to the surgeon a couple of weeks ago went like this: It Didn't Take. That's what the doc said. The cadaver ligament patch to Sam's PCL apparently didn't work. Sam was told to wear his brace and play football like he doesn't have a knee injury. All that for nothing. I can't explain how I feel because once again, words can't do it justice.
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<br />On my way home from work the other day I saw 2 young men walking on a sidewalk along M-20. Even from a distance I could tell they weren't the type of men I'd invite over to my house for a visit. As I got closer, I saw one of them, a very tanned, very skinny young man with is shirt off and thrown over his shoulders and his jeans so far down that mostly his entire boxer-covered ass was in view (how in the hell he can walk like that, I don't know)... anyway... he had a tattoo that was below his belly button but above his low slung boxers. That was the only tattoo I could see on his torso, and it was odd. Got me wondering... if it had been on his back, it'd be called a tramp stamp, so what is it called on the front?... this required an answer from the Internets! Go ahead, Google (or Bing or whatever) "tramp stamp" and perhaps you, too, will be educated as I was. I did not know it stood for something that specific to some people. And what is a male equivalent of tramp you ask?... there is <a target="new" href="http://www.dailywritingtips.com/whats-a-male-mistress/">none</a>, i.e., "Words for a promiscuous woman are invariably derogatory, but words for a promiscuous man are frequently perceived as compliments."
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<br />I sure do see some interesting sites along M-20. A while back, on a very hot and muggy day, I saw an old man - he looked close to 80 years old - driving a lawn mower. This old guy had his shirt off, and the effect of gravity on an old person's body was in great evidence. He was bouncing along in his yard, at a pretty good clip, mowing his crappy looking yard without a care in the world. Oddly enough, it was kind of a rewarding site. I think he was probably going so fast so that he got a bit of a breeze, and he clearly didn't give a damn what anybody thought. I liked that. Made me smile.
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<br />I am still adjusting to my CPAP machine plus some other medical issues that are too boring to discuss, but my <a href="http://paltry-sage.blogspot.com/2011/07/wakey-wakey.html">eBay phase</a> continues. I like to choose a word, any word, and search all categories to see what is the most expensive thing. Try it, you will be astounded... or at least you will shake your head just a bit in disgust, as I do. Folks, there are some weird people out there. And also some islands for sale. With waterfalls!
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<br />One category is for selling gift cards and gift certificates. Like if you got a fifty dollar gift card to Appleby's for your birthday but you really just want the cash instead, then sell it on eBay! You will get $48.97 for it. Seriously. Perhaps even $49.97. If you have a Wal-Mart gift card or store credit (from a store return), you could even earn money! For some reason, Wal-Mart gift cards on eBay sometimes sell at auction for more then the value of the card. Will someone please explain that shit to me?! Crazy.
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<br />Speaking of crazy, I regret my search on the word "taxidermy"...
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbVLTXCmivXlb7dMN6fZlAr-ZZzag3UWXaYOXsDhZL7oWpT6pkQRPqe8fVLJCOGH8M0yUrjH_3uCw6m267zETu0ZPGPXDCP3Ru_-kmjD59IIT9w42V1F_aofKwK6VoqpqSsu30/s1600/11Jul15-ebay1spider.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbVLTXCmivXlb7dMN6fZlAr-ZZzag3UWXaYOXsDhZL7oWpT6pkQRPqe8fVLJCOGH8M0yUrjH_3uCw6m267zETu0ZPGPXDCP3Ru_-kmjD59IIT9w42V1F_aofKwK6VoqpqSsu30/s400/11Jul15-ebay1spider.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5629678016365027586" /></a>
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjERTdhTb9-dJDLAdT_IwwxnGayWhECrwHG7J3c0uQiq2K0aS8IU7n9yN-CcxOvfpD9dERq0L-v4K7Hynb8v5UDqWHxY7ZPWOLLw25tXyzLvH0Lyw2MnWKg7z-evtJt0zK3EP0G/s1600/11Jul15-ebay2crowsfeet.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjERTdhTb9-dJDLAdT_IwwxnGayWhECrwHG7J3c0uQiq2K0aS8IU7n9yN-CcxOvfpD9dERq0L-v4K7Hynb8v5UDqWHxY7ZPWOLLw25tXyzLvH0Lyw2MnWKg7z-evtJt0zK3EP0G/s400/11Jul15-ebay2crowsfeet.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5629678013728023026" /></a>
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4OzE8y2gRuTSo7qkyUWfGEQn0Ye4dgvzMu2Rm2v90wPwYZ7xSUt7i4V2GzrnDN2w9bGoF9H4SyLMcPV-u6rd0s3vXMsQqtAxuTwEYydMRldCkGpEle4S2_Z4bj25ONu2-lg0a/s1600/11Jul15-ebay3alligatorfoot.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4OzE8y2gRuTSo7qkyUWfGEQn0Ye4dgvzMu2Rm2v90wPwYZ7xSUt7i4V2GzrnDN2w9bGoF9H4SyLMcPV-u6rd0s3vXMsQqtAxuTwEYydMRldCkGpEle4S2_Z4bj25ONu2-lg0a/s400/11Jul15-ebay3alligatorfoot.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5629678011553265634" /></a>
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<br />And more craziness... people are quite creative in their endeavor to con you out of your cash...
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfjKMNQysesyflGqub6h3RL9qXBaabA8qBzz8EdHbbgkSuHLwR6P3_9VkP6CGNZq9s3CH4-ud4L2YSYGuZnNbcPM-rWVWc52cQAcV_COaEKEPhnCq6woePEF9RgGCtdFP1wKlW/s1600/11Jul15-ebay4secret.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 305px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfjKMNQysesyflGqub6h3RL9qXBaabA8qBzz8EdHbbgkSuHLwR6P3_9VkP6CGNZq9s3CH4-ud4L2YSYGuZnNbcPM-rWVWc52cQAcV_COaEKEPhnCq6woePEF9RgGCtdFP1wKlW/s400/11Jul15-ebay4secret.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5629678003365571810" /></a>
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<br />Something wonderful awaits! Yes, wonderful cash for the seller from the sucker who won that auction. I also rediscovered this eBay category, which I had forgotten existed...
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibGdcg5e7gP_IEJtNlcPczclwPvupyJgISh_iuhQnpEwqur1yT4iWngsQlSmKzhyzmuTdPiwSO2peQQNZ62VMUc2mPPgSEFyJ5R6O8e-ofmefhS-DdKUPEpNlQe9cy-qEmqtjS/s1600/11Jul15-ebay5category.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 375px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibGdcg5e7gP_IEJtNlcPczclwPvupyJgISh_iuhQnpEwqur1yT4iWngsQlSmKzhyzmuTdPiwSO2peQQNZ62VMUc2mPPgSEFyJ5R6O8e-ofmefhS-DdKUPEpNlQe9cy-qEmqtjS/s400/11Jul15-ebay5category.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5629677884684933538" /></a>
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<br />and I found these auctions...
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjELgItYKRngIcchlZB2XIpM0UiNXV_OlDpf3VsjkEwje_kA93lxx75w7HxjrNlrZy7CVu00VMbCv1Vj9jJrdZPKgJB0NIs-l2lLx1tzCDLA5QDPolqgc0lEcEMbdoB-YLfqW7t/s1600/11Jul15-ebay6weird.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 386px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjELgItYKRngIcchlZB2XIpM0UiNXV_OlDpf3VsjkEwje_kA93lxx75w7HxjrNlrZy7CVu00VMbCv1Vj9jJrdZPKgJB0NIs-l2lLx1tzCDLA5QDPolqgc0lEcEMbdoB-YLfqW7t/s400/11Jul15-ebay6weird.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5629677882529283970" /></a>
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<br />I could not resist, and so I did a search for such craziness in <em>completed</em> auctions. Folks, there are some downright less than intelligent people out there...
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz37BUC6eNW_vRtC4767sBNbjsxa0BaUJxwuklQIhGqxoU32ngEv8rwG6X4auIK2SvnDX8twaBSvNtschyphenhyphen49vM_nn4Tfg2IGBArjycLATf9vBA_PLP9vG3fEuz_7GUs8rDx2kX/s1600/11Jul15-ebay7weirdsold.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 309px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz37BUC6eNW_vRtC4767sBNbjsxa0BaUJxwuklQIhGqxoU32ngEv8rwG6X4auIK2SvnDX8twaBSvNtschyphenhyphen49vM_nn4Tfg2IGBArjycLATf9vBA_PLP9vG3fEuz_7GUs8rDx2kX/s400/11Jul15-ebay7weirdsold.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5629677872651139650" /></a>
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<br />One cent, ok maybe, for curiosty's sake... but four bucks on a mystery envelope? That's just dumb. So please see any of my 4,000 auctions for a mystery envelope. Momma needs a new car. But then I'm creating some pretty bad karma for myself, aren't I? Hmmm... but I can just buy some good karma on eBay!...
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik676LRM6EAEWuucsEnR0bPy8f0TLJhI7-RUrERk-WIRtwqP7VNZHaXNCOwaAj2dIU0WEk-HATWvzbtekzbt7-e11a2S35R6mLHWpumEgpOMX_-Mqs1LfXx8qqo98OcqTM8Z4A/s1600/11Jul15-ebay8karma.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 375px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEik676LRM6EAEWuucsEnR0bPy8f0TLJhI7-RUrERk-WIRtwqP7VNZHaXNCOwaAj2dIU0WEk-HATWvzbtekzbt7-e11a2S35R6mLHWpumEgpOMX_-Mqs1LfXx8qqo98OcqTM8Z4A/s400/11Jul15-ebay8karma.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5629677869571469778" /></a>
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<br />Whew!jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-15017528645633329222011-08-15T11:50:00.004-04:002011-08-15T11:52:45.421-04:00I love MichiganLove the nice, cool morning temperatures!
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY0ws3BMGMh2XMmFxGoFoaM1-F-8y9-FE_WT0uyjXtuzpK7YhJVV1hyphenhyphenMw8gZBn9IWxLu-7tYv1g4DUh-dT-oQDGMMMMSXDi-iulWyKBfsfzgat4UNDwjnX_eOS1pOzGadraYTe/s1600/11Aug15-fiftyeightdegrees.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 376px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY0ws3BMGMh2XMmFxGoFoaM1-F-8y9-FE_WT0uyjXtuzpK7YhJVV1hyphenhyphenMw8gZBn9IWxLu-7tYv1g4DUh-dT-oQDGMMMMSXDi-iulWyKBfsfzgat4UNDwjnX_eOS1pOzGadraYTe/s400/11Aug15-fiftyeightdegrees.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641110702280991554" /></a>
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<br />Can't wait for the leaves to start turning colors...jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-73179589835233484302011-07-12T06:41:00.026-04:002011-07-16T19:43:11.074-04:00Wakey wakeySince I've been using my CPAP machine, I've not been sleeping well. By well, I mean very long. I used to be in bed for the night about 8 or 9 hours each night, but now I'm lucky if I make it to bed by 11pm and stay there until 4am. I just can't get my mind settled down to be sleepy. My body is tired, but my mind is whirling. I think it's adjusting to the new level of oxygen. And though I think the 4 or so hours of sleep on the CPAP I'm getting are better than the 8 or 9 hours I was previously getting, it just ain't enough downtime...<br /><br />This has made for some interesting nights. And many, many eBay purchases. Right now I have about 12 unopened packages from yesterday's and Saturday's mail. I also found a great place to buy New Balance shoes, <a target="new" href="http://www.joesnewbalanceoutlet.com/">Joe's</a>. Highly recommend Joe's. I also bought 3 used books from Amazon.com sellers, and they're awesome. And cheap! What a deal!<br /><br />I found some real super cool etsy stores... <a target="new" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/dyenah?ref=seller_info">dyenah</a> from California who cold-water dyes vintage textiles, like tablecloths and aprons, and they're beautiful! That's what some of my eBay purchases are... vintage tablecloths because dyenah has inspired me to wanna try <a target="new" href="http://www.vintagedyetopia.com/about.html">cold-water dyeing</a>. But now I've ordered 3 tablecloths from dyenah, too. I couldn't resist... she had them on sale!<br /><br />I've liked etsy for a long time. Before all this late night computer obsession started, this etsy artist, <a target="new" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/solocosmo">Jessica Grundy</a>, easily convinced Joycie and I to purchase several prints... we have plans to use them in a future girl's nursery, among other places. We bought her prints: Roots, Jenny, Swarm, Little Sharpshooter, Duet, Take Warning and Layers. Layers is going in my kitchen area. When the prints arrived, extremely well packaged, I might add, the artist had included a hand-written thank you note and some free goodies. I love etsy shop owners... they're so nice!<br /><br />I like to get on etsy and pick a word to search items... like spike. Search that one and you'll love some of the results. I don't remember what search led me to this awesome <a target="new" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/75691208/steampunk-charm-bracelet">charm bracelet</a>, but it also led me to discover the term, "<a target="new" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steampunk">steampunk</a>." I know! Where the heck have I been?!<br /><br />Tangent: Wikipedia for me is just like the old-fashioned, printed World Book Encyclopedia set we had when I was a kid... I'd look something up, and that would lead me to something else, so I would have to go pull out another letter of the alphabet (there was a book for each letter, for those youngsters reading this), and pretty soon, I was sitting on the floor near the bookcase surrounded by 14 volumes of the encyclopedia. Ahhh... good times. Sometimes on Wikipedia, I get so far linked from my original topic that I forget what I was looking up in the first place. Ahhh... good times.<br /><br />Anyway, back to etsy... this photographer, <a target="new" href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/WildLifePrints">Wild Life Prints</a>, from Nova Scotia, is someone who I think I would really like to meet in person. I'm sure he must be a fun person to be around.<br /><br />These <a target="new" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/28785062/baby-legs-cearmic-salt-and-pepper">salt and pepper shakers</a> made me laugh out loud!<br /><br />This <a target="new" href="http://www.etsy.com/people/Uturn">artist</a>, who lives in Hawaii and makes a lot of masks, inspired me with her <a target="new" href="http://www.etsy.com/transaction/39279613">tomato face mask</a>. By inspired, I mean that I pretty much copied it, and then I made a matching green pepper and jalapeno for my sister, Kathy, to add to her <a target="new" href="http://paltry-sage.blogspot.com/2007/08/pottery-greenwoman.html">collection</a> she puts on the side of their shed near her garden, which collection has grown large enough to expand to another wall of the shed...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv8Gj0HuB7E7LswMkUVC7mlQQ8FMN6wy4nHjqhe4wpr3XjhzavePKS2iDettxzDRde8JDbwqAYDsOYTF77ZiE3_j4ArjI6U_zu0yvWmIHkJs7qVNB4n8SJmB554xh1liVnOId4/s1600/11May13-kathys_salsa_masks.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv8Gj0HuB7E7LswMkUVC7mlQQ8FMN6wy4nHjqhe4wpr3XjhzavePKS2iDettxzDRde8JDbwqAYDsOYTF77ZiE3_j4ArjI6U_zu0yvWmIHkJs7qVNB4n8SJmB554xh1liVnOId4/s400/11May13-kathys_salsa_masks.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5630086588455535170" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcVsd0k7-Hqtc06VKRmWk4uCmViseqcdvSy6yx9Yk6sPM0lDw98_Wu8t7Oa4vOThdzGrvRunPjNsdT4LQ-N1qo58AWgdVcvUqkrdetsv171L2za3EdBayZwhuJgndGsrq9lCFs/s1600/11May13-kathys_shed.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcVsd0k7-Hqtc06VKRmWk4uCmViseqcdvSy6yx9Yk6sPM0lDw98_Wu8t7Oa4vOThdzGrvRunPjNsdT4LQ-N1qo58AWgdVcvUqkrdetsv171L2za3EdBayZwhuJgndGsrq9lCFs/s400/11May13-kathys_shed.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5630086595702572770" /></a><br /><br />And based on <a target="new" href="http://www.etsy.com/transaction/52651584">this item</a> and <a target="new" href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/74498389/one-of-us-is-an-asshole-ceramic">this one</a>, and also <a target="new" href="http://www.etsy.com/transaction/40345942">this one</a>, Uturn is also an etsy artist/shop owner who I'm sure I would like to know.<br /><br />Just like eBay, of course, there's a whole lotta crap on etsy along with all the cool stuff. I know as hours and hours of research lately has proved it. But I still love searching on it. I've been semi-obsessed with wall hooks lately. And this <a target="new" href="http://www.etsy.com/color.php?ref=fp_nav_colors">feature</a> of etsy is awesome.<br /><br />Thanks to my friend, Michelle in California, I've been enjoying some new web sites, like this <a target="new" href="http://www.artfulblogging.com/">one</a>. And thanks to my niece, <a target="new" href="http://livelovelearn-greeneyedgirl.blogspot.com/2011/07/love-birds.html">Michelle</a>, I've been enjoying <a target="new" href="http://www.stumbleupon.com/">StumbleUpon</a>, too. My niece is very talented, by the way...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJt0IpeJjjGA0YJEjarrJDRFp_U4w5Rtr934YFUlLrK71KbqSActHAG-lmEttW_dnnL8gzYemRAd0v1Bu-SKDN7b_LQ9mLKN4WnxBO6lYX_XEdOLdP8YoQcRAiypCic_0q6csD/s1600/11Jun19-michellenecklace.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJt0IpeJjjGA0YJEjarrJDRFp_U4w5Rtr934YFUlLrK71KbqSActHAG-lmEttW_dnnL8gzYemRAd0v1Bu-SKDN7b_LQ9mLKN4WnxBO6lYX_XEdOLdP8YoQcRAiypCic_0q6csD/s400/11Jun19-michellenecklace.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5630086584239493810" /></a><br /><br />I've even begun keeping a list of words, phrases, names of people & things that I hear on the radio, on TV or in conversations, or that I read, such as in magazines at the doctor's office waiting room, that I want to look up later. That Internets! So interesting!<br /><br />I also have been searching for the perfect purse on eBay. And in the process have given away 2 purses to Joycie, 1 to my sister Janet and 2 to my mother-in-law Sharron. Only 1 I've bought is okay, but it's still too small. I've been trying to get a good deal on a Vera Bradley Stephanie now, but those people who sell VB on eBay are crazy. Too much money. But I did find a great Tignanello wallet real cheap. Score! Update since I started writing this post: I forgot! I won a VB Stephanie purse auction, and it arrived and I like it. Still too much moola, though.<br /><br />Along with not getting sleepy enough, I have also discovered that I can't stand to sit for long in the recliner and watch TV in the evenings anymore. Kev and I follow a lot of TV shows. I do mean a lot of them... many shows. We are American TV junkies and proud of it. We rarely ever watch a show that we haven't recorded on the DVR, and we fastmercialize though most of the commercials. We do stop and watch some of the commercials; I'm really enjoying the SubWay ones where the adults talk like little kids. I can't explain why those appeal to me, but they do! Especially the "<a target="new" href="http://youtu.be/iRejZ6-svSs">do you wanna be my boyfriend</a>" one.<br /><br />So anyway, back to my point, which is though I have not only enjoyed vegging in my much-beloved recliner for many evenings, I've craved it often (since 2008), but now... now I sometimes feel like I'm gonna go crazy if I don't get up out of it and move.<br /><br />I think I've been gravitating to the computer because it keeps my mind active. I've been Googling all kinds of junk, er... I mean information. But don't quiz me about it, coz I don't think my short-term memory thing is quite back up to par yet.<br /><br />The many hours, many in a row with no break, spent at my desk in the dining room on either my company laptop working or on my home computer the past couple of weeks has brought up a new problem for me. My poor old feet swelled up like big, fat cantaloupes. Too much arthritis and too many hours hanging down... not used to it, so it caused holy havoc on me feets. At present, I'm wear <a target="new" href="http://www.walgreens.com/search/results.jsp?Ntt=truform&x=17&y=13">old person socks</a>, and I confess I love them. Those socks, along with a dedicated effort to raise my legs as often as possible, have really helped. It's nice to walk again. File that one under "if it ain't one thing, it's another."<br /><br />Curious thing, though... it's taken me about 5 days to actually complete this blog post. That's the other thing about the past couple of weeks... I think the only thing I've been good at, and actually productive at, is the work I've done on my job. With all the stuff at home, I start, I stop, I go back, I get distracted, I stop, I start, I go... ya get the picture. What a mess. And today is Saturday, and at our house, that means that mom goes to the pottery studio. But I didn't make it in there today... I just couldn't <em>get</em> to it. And I wasn't feeling creative. This past week being back at work into the office was hectic and exhausting, and I feel flattened. Flattened and strange.<br /><br />Speaking of strange, I leave you with a photo I took one evening a while back. Joyce and I were on our way home from her trying on wedding dresses, and we passed a church that had a sign that caught my eye...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWRUJlLG9zDGUQVTUGvK6LnR3Sf_SXId5H8vqhfI8FqxHiq5MjNfBIb8sCJiIAyaGYVZ7gCEEyhqt2UfDKg-Ax5jawXUVRQ3bQYDZ0Yu2Lswp1sVoLH-8yb7lpD0w6s541yn-J/s1600/11Mar11-elevator.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWRUJlLG9zDGUQVTUGvK6LnR3Sf_SXId5H8vqhfI8FqxHiq5MjNfBIb8sCJiIAyaGYVZ7gCEEyhqt2UfDKg-Ax5jawXUVRQ3bQYDZ0Yu2Lswp1sVoLH-8yb7lpD0w6s541yn-J/s400/11Mar11-elevator.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5629682457491059666" /></a><br /><br />Good to know.<br /><br />Apropos of nothing, something in my house has been emitting a single, very high-pitch beep every so often, like every 1 hour, 17 minutes and 23 seconds or so, for DAYS. At first I thought it was our smoke detector in the living room telling me of the eminent demise of its battery, but that's not it. I cannot find the source. It is bugging me.jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-19992797949837936512011-07-04T12:51:00.015-04:002011-07-04T14:36:40.040-04:00"No wonder you feel like shit."Among some other physical/medical type issues I've been dealing with on which I won't bore you with the details, I've been not sleeping well. As in snoring loudly, apparently - with the stopping/gagging/choking thing... much to Kevin's unending delight, but waking up in the mornings very tired and with a daily headache of intensity ranging from searing-need-an-ice-pack-gonna-barf to just awful. I have never really slept well, and I have a tendency to wake often through the night. But I thought my increase in problems sleeping was related primarily to the neck issues I had in 2007 that resulted in surgery early 2008. Seems like since back then, really since 2006... I just haven't slept worth a damn.<br /><br />So on Wednesday, June 22nd, I went to the Midland hospital's Sleep Lab for a Sleep Study. One of my sisters did this a few years ago, and I kinda knew I had to do this, but I just didn't want to. The thought of a machine for sleep apnea... well, I just didn't wanna think about it at all. But my headaches have increased in intensity lately, and I feel like crap pretty much all the time. I just got plain sick and tired of waking up every morning feeling sick and tired. Seriously, it began to feel like why even bother <em>going</em> to bed... and sometimes why even bother about <em>anything</em>. I know, I know, let the pity-party jeers commence. But critical times call for critical measures, plus my doctor (who is really a PA, but she's really <em>my doctor</em> - my life, my terms... plus she's awesome and amazing and super duper smart) told me I had to do the sleep study.<br /><br />So I go to the Sleep Lab, not sure what to expect and feeling a bit anxious... but it was not at all like a hospital room, it was actually a bit like a lovely bedroom...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLPkp4OV3qxqYX1CzccofkY8JrYBiTzoATuYb_oCCoQwDMjp7kXpsGg09lzEKr8HZSkQvORdkO7iVJ2HcGZyHuoOSN_mPnzbvi45jG9YmD-tlcDTm2-7w-v2jRzD6jAZEyZl9X/s1600/11Jun23-sleepapnea01.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLPkp4OV3qxqYX1CzccofkY8JrYBiTzoATuYb_oCCoQwDMjp7kXpsGg09lzEKr8HZSkQvORdkO7iVJ2HcGZyHuoOSN_mPnzbvi45jG9YmD-tlcDTm2-7w-v2jRzD6jAZEyZl9X/s400/11Jun23-sleepapnea01.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5625545431744036098" /></a><br /><br />And there was a huge recliner there, where I relaxed and used the hospital's high speed wireless Internet while waiting for my turn to be hooked up and plugged in...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkvbkUtYxKSHfwBu6B4Nnf_KFePy2bXRMcDSPlXvaa_emwBsxn12mKsxQkiHlz_3W8198ElZJD74_9P-9xMyf6d14SfEoYFubs8RNrZuQEG2kj7edFf1lomNrUx7gEqhGVMBEa/s1600/11Jun23-sleepapnea02.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkvbkUtYxKSHfwBu6B4Nnf_KFePy2bXRMcDSPlXvaa_emwBsxn12mKsxQkiHlz_3W8198ElZJD74_9P-9xMyf6d14SfEoYFubs8RNrZuQEG2kj7edFf1lomNrUx7gEqhGVMBEa/s400/11Jun23-sleepapnea02.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5625545426015878434" /></a><br /><br />The documentation I received beforehand warned me that attaching all the wires for the sleep study could take 2 hours, but it didn't... it took less than 20 minutes. The technician puts all these wires all over your head and chest area, plus 2 stretchy belt things around your chest (on women, above the boobs under the armpits) and your belly, both over top of your clothing, plus some more wires on your legs (because they monitor for restless legs, too). Yes, it was a lot of wires, but it wasn't invasive. I didn't have to get undressed at all. I didn't wear pajamas, I wore my comfy Tigers jersey and a pair of stretchy sweatpants, which made me feel more comfortable there. I think I would have felt more, I don't know... anxious or vulnerable in my pajamas. No hospital gowns, either, thank goodness.<br /><br />I also knew you were watched and recorded during the study, by this wall-mounted camera...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiozRvOkwdVXeJXdzIQGQIK65ghzDt4vBqoDjX5pbPo2J_TaagZdAVwVlmGvIjaJKEIcM6_tEDacVBFHnEmnxtB990q1KZiMmajWNjrVJAtCRXME8lFOt-lc84Le0cPbzEYbFda/s1600/11Jun23-sleepapnea03.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiozRvOkwdVXeJXdzIQGQIK65ghzDt4vBqoDjX5pbPo2J_TaagZdAVwVlmGvIjaJKEIcM6_tEDacVBFHnEmnxtB990q1KZiMmajWNjrVJAtCRXME8lFOt-lc84Le0cPbzEYbFda/s400/11Jun23-sleepapnea03.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5625545424055835458" /></a><br /><br />And I also signed a document allowing them to use the results, i.e., the recording I assume, for teaching purposes. At first I didn't want to sign that paper, but then I thought, what the hell, people have to learn somehow, right. Plus, really, what do I care? I have given birth twice, people at hospitals have seen me in much, much worse conditions than snoring loudly while hooked up to a bunch of wires all over my head. And I hope the part when I farted makes them laugh! (Oh, come on! <em>everybody</em> farts!) (I also think I'd like to donate my body once I'm dead... coz those medical students have to get their cadavers from somewhere, right.)<br /><br />I was much more relaxed than I thought I would be for the sleep study, and it was primarily due to this person, Neal...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjtmrLKzMOQToS5ADLcmdMyVZPLI1hK_8_0ilBiZuZraOmWfb1-ZhQNjXZPzqZsk56spYvhy-dZDysp91d3k8B7oqJdONw_IzvtvQzX3_yuB-TD8HNSv5dgHiOjg8ehcpaLgiN/s1600/11Jun23-sleepapnea04.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjtmrLKzMOQToS5ADLcmdMyVZPLI1hK_8_0ilBiZuZraOmWfb1-ZhQNjXZPzqZsk56spYvhy-dZDysp91d3k8B7oqJdONw_IzvtvQzX3_yuB-TD8HNSv5dgHiOjg8ehcpaLgiN/s400/11Jun23-sleepapnea04.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5625544695765002402" /></a><br /><br />Such a smart young man, and when he was hooking me up, he started explaining about sleep apnea, how it happens, what it does to you... all in a very practical way that I could easily understand. Neal put me at ease, and I felt that he was caring and totally non-judgmental... he made me feel comfortable and that I was doing the right thing for myself in going through the sleep study.<br /><br />I have, of course, done my research on the 'net about sleep apnea. <a target="new" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obstructive_sleep_apnea">Wiki</a> explains it ok, and it states this:<br /><em> Most cases of OSA are believed to be caused by:<br /> old age (natural or premature),<br /> brain injury (temporary or permanent),<br /> decreased muscle tone,<br /> increased soft tissue around the airway (sometimes due to obesity), and<br /> structural features that give rise to a narrowed airway.</em><br />I don't really agree with Wiki... frankly some of their listed causes seem like OSA results not causes, and I don't really agree with the order of the listing of their causes, here's why: Neal explained that many of his family members have sleep apnea, primarily because of their related physiological makeup resulting in narrow airways. He also said that sleep apnea isn't always the result of a person being overweight, but a person with sleep apnea who is not being treated for it often will end up overweight because of sleep apnea, due to the resulting lack of energy.<br /><br />It's kind of what came first, the chicken or the egg... <br /><br />I could relate to that. I've been trying to get more exercise in my life, but I just don't ever seem get to it... I know that if I exercise, I will expend all my energy and won't want to do anything else like, for example, go to the pottery studio, and I know if I go to the pottery studio, I usually use up my energy allotment for that day. The last time I really had good exercise was back when I was walking a lot in late April, early May of 2008, once I was off the antibiotics/PICC line and was starting to feel a bit more like myself again... but then once I started back to work half-days I had no energy for walking.<br /><br />Anyway, Neal was awesome. His momma must be very proud and his wife is one lucky lady... her name is Heather, I know coz I inquired about the tiny bit of ink I could see on his arm - and then I got him to let me photograph it... what a great guy, huh?! He designed it himself and got the tattoo the day before their wedding...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYpDoYm3dc8WXREYcnQw6nkAbCUwNEEIwNwTArSZd5nVOPIv8gQSJK6pqoTLRogmzcZTTJ1S15v2d7NON4Mie1kOUZm64s4habQMJJJ1wgC3NbzoM0uxSRfwFJ_DLN4BsMwOUk/s1600/11Jun23-sleepapnea05.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYpDoYm3dc8WXREYcnQw6nkAbCUwNEEIwNwTArSZd5nVOPIv8gQSJK6pqoTLRogmzcZTTJ1S15v2d7NON4Mie1kOUZm64s4habQMJJJ1wgC3NbzoM0uxSRfwFJ_DLN4BsMwOUk/s400/11Jun23-sleepapnea05.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5625544693365495474" /></a><br /><br />So... the sleep study. Neal explained that if they noticed signs of sleep apnea, he would possibly come into my room at about 2am and wake me to try me on a CPAP machine; there was one sitting next to my bed.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiza0qbiF6uTA40_qkzUsbsEUYuOStKumY9vysMiTb_AYJZRIYR5tt5I91xlrdp-C30zZpjfn0VmMEPLCQUhHu1HkuoKMmnT8NGM8dDRUiQFHijVhW0cgP1WpnaIcMMWhOzkjI4/s1600/11Jun23-sleepapnea06.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiza0qbiF6uTA40_qkzUsbsEUYuOStKumY9vysMiTb_AYJZRIYR5tt5I91xlrdp-C30zZpjfn0VmMEPLCQUhHu1HkuoKMmnT8NGM8dDRUiQFHijVhW0cgP1WpnaIcMMWhOzkjI4/s400/11Jun23-sleepapnea06.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5625544685638889122" /></a><br /><br />Neal woke me at about 1am, and he explained that in the study, a person stopping to breathe is called an "event" and 5 events per hour means you are diagnosed with sleep apnea. If you have more than 30 events per hour, that is severe sleep apnea. Neal then told me that I had 112 events per hour. He also said my blood oxygen level dropped to 79 often, when they didn't want it to get below 90. So he put me on a CPAP machine with a pillow instead of a mask, which is kind of like the oxygen tubes in your nose in the hospital. I adjusted to that very well, and then he woke me again around 3am and tried me on the mask, not the full-face kind, just over my nose. I didn't like that so much, but Neal had to wake me up at 6:30am. I woke up in that bed with the mask on my face, and it was the first time in years that I didn't have a headache and I felt actually rested.<br /><br />It was amazing to me.<br /><br />Neal also told me that I never hit <a traget="new" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapid_eye_movement_sleep">REM</a> in that time before 1am, but I did with the CPAP. REM sleep is pretty important.<br /><br />When Neal was unhooking me, using some kind of stuff to take the adhesive off my skin, he and I were talking some more about sleep apnea and what I should expect. He listened so well and answered all the questions I could think of. I have to admit I was a bit distracted because my mind kept interrupting me with, "Holy shit, I feel good, look ma, no headache!" And then I remembered I wanted to take photos, and Neal let me photograph him (such a nice guy!). I forgot to get a photo of myself all hooked up with all the wires, though... that would have been interesting. Then Neal said he'd let me get ready to go and then he'd walk me out, show me to the elevator. So I go into the bathroom to brush my teeth, and I see this in the mirror...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYVMSblbsZ6V78yO0egFUkth6HP4nw7ReOuvoh-c685N3bBL-WO6EEVVTvjX-ykZOwrTA7HXMxXckW9PVgs2cpV9D7Qr-l1JnyqDTIXYfucfYK8IMGexKth5cHa3qxrs3-re9p/s1600/11Jun23-sleepapnea07.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYVMSblbsZ6V78yO0egFUkth6HP4nw7ReOuvoh-c685N3bBL-WO6EEVVTvjX-ykZOwrTA7HXMxXckW9PVgs2cpV9D7Qr-l1JnyqDTIXYfucfYK8IMGexKth5cHa3qxrs3-re9p/s400/11Jun23-sleepapnea07.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5625544332954602946" /></a><br /><br />Cracked me up! Just thinking about carrying on a conversation with Neal and me looking like this... Sah-weet!<br /><br />On my way to Little Chef to meet Kev for breakfast after the study, <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmbG-p8D1jq9XVt4Dgki2Mkzv7az6RfHQiSVcuZbENVJpCGZBewNojQrkUbRpluRCh0xDbfdlzdxx2_-6bSTP9xcH6MtCPrh1ojCqmXTMXIe5E_sWeQCWELy9JZz8_YSoKqYgx/s1600/11Jun23-sleepapnea08.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmbG-p8D1jq9XVt4Dgki2Mkzv7az6RfHQiSVcuZbENVJpCGZBewNojQrkUbRpluRCh0xDbfdlzdxx2_-6bSTP9xcH6MtCPrh1ojCqmXTMXIe5E_sWeQCWELy9JZz8_YSoKqYgx/s400/11Jun23-sleepapnea08.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5625544314016138658" /></a><br /><br />I kept going over all the stuff Neal had said to me. I kept thinking no wonder I'm forgetful, no wonder I have no energy, no wonder... <br /><br />Seriously, my short-term memory has totally sucked the past few years. And my energy level also sucks.<br /><br />I forgot my pillow at the Sleep Lab, by the way. Of course! (It is a special, very expensive pillow that I got because of my neck problems.)<br /><br />So this past Tuesday, I was able to get a CPAP machine. It usually takes a couple of weeks from the date of the sleep study to process all the paperwork to get the machine, but since my sleep apnea was pretty severe, I got pushed up to the top of the stack. Yay! Or ummm... damn.<br /><br />But... what I was dreading, I now urgently desired...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKfhjNAX6mgs0FRer60efWfTx69_26wvPvQ-cA3RI1rPEqtQtrMYH8gvCvkfz7vhPrU2-W9MwIYwB-jqIGdIC9k-HPfXbseZcnqnNMUL3zvUTY607ffKjr6eSuQJIfl9Qlnmq7/s1600/11Jun29-sleepapnea01.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKfhjNAX6mgs0FRer60efWfTx69_26wvPvQ-cA3RI1rPEqtQtrMYH8gvCvkfz7vhPrU2-W9MwIYwB-jqIGdIC9k-HPfXbseZcnqnNMUL3zvUTY607ffKjr6eSuQJIfl9Qlnmq7/s400/11Jun29-sleepapnea01.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5625544296246486578" /></a><br /><br />The CPAP I got came with a humidifier, which is nice for the nasal passages. I got the pillow thing, which goes around my head and at my nose, and it's not really that bad. I can sleep quite comfortably. The machine is very quiet, too. My first night on it at home Kev said I was as quiet as a mouse. So of course, he slept much better, too. I refuse to photograph myself with my head gear on, so here's what it looks like from the product documentation:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRrnzADBAVoCGAe8qGvNvpC8zf00enW2lYo_vxqcUxcahYMhS4N61lepzD_DybNRXvgZgwKvhRxehy43nfmSlHoV6I3619M8f3SzKJtk_SbbARIN69MMqVeZZqMXISC9aFF9td/s1600/11Jun29-sleepapnea02.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRrnzADBAVoCGAe8qGvNvpC8zf00enW2lYo_vxqcUxcahYMhS4N61lepzD_DybNRXvgZgwKvhRxehy43nfmSlHoV6I3619M8f3SzKJtk_SbbARIN69MMqVeZZqMXISC9aFF9td/s400/11Jun29-sleepapnea02.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5625544287234715474" /></a><br /><br />Not a big fan of the pink, clearly a man made that marketing decision.<br /><br />And thank the Good Lord for medical insurance...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9SWKFMzEmeJjc3EWDZ4Pl5-KW-YwPk7Y9_QTPxCivLRE5EkNuK5gpt_qNMqplugWhYZ-kxv501xt548YBXySr2Kuw6DRCCeRRpFNxNo3xdH98i0EqPKDgZoyiwlihi8y1CSjd/s1600/11Jun29-sleepapnea03.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9SWKFMzEmeJjc3EWDZ4Pl5-KW-YwPk7Y9_QTPxCivLRE5EkNuK5gpt_qNMqplugWhYZ-kxv501xt548YBXySr2Kuw6DRCCeRRpFNxNo3xdH98i0EqPKDgZoyiwlihi8y1CSjd/s400/11Jun29-sleepapnea03.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5625544282641247778" /></a><br /><br />I have not had a wonderful morning on my CPAP like I did in the hospital, and I'm still waking with a bit of a headache. I am having trouble adjusting to the CPAP and the new sleep routine... frankly, quite a lot of trouble. But the sleep I'm getting is better for me, I can tell... I can't explain how I can tell. I'm still feeling quite crappy but also I'm <em>not</em>... that's the best explanation I can come up with now. Further 'net research agrees with what I heard about adjusting to the CPAP, which is it could take a month to a year. Everyone adjusts differently. I think I am going to try and get the nose mask instead of the pillow, to see if that helps me better. It was less comfortable, but that is what I was using in the Sleep Lab when I woke so nicely. Worth a shot.<br /><br />If you have a loved one who snores, and if you have medical insurance, talk them into a sleep study. It's worth it. The long-term effects of untreated sleep apnea are unpleasant. A good night's sleep... priceless.jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-67024336402284194762011-07-03T00:50:00.008-04:002011-07-03T01:04:03.634-04:00Wild Red, White and Blue<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAoaO62YqreoWGwHCbKU5wS8Z0G0pnFm-u7lwVXr9oCtteE43LDMkHFAIet_6bQZ8dqLf1NQg7ip7p-G0Jf5z6tprTNvrtOrgrPzZIbI77bHWexqYwtxw2vos1pnBXbXxBBQ-D/s1600/a11Jul02-wintergreen-Gaultheria_procumbens.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAoaO62YqreoWGwHCbKU5wS8Z0G0pnFm-u7lwVXr9oCtteE43LDMkHFAIet_6bQZ8dqLf1NQg7ip7p-G0Jf5z6tprTNvrtOrgrPzZIbI77bHWexqYwtxw2vos1pnBXbXxBBQ-D/s400/a11Jul02-wintergreen-Gaultheria_procumbens.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624986125855497010" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH7h3TINLB0GeVnckH7Cn0hPQp8EGSgrkMtampGFeFtVRQBKEx4F-nXmvFkksXz3lhG-_GvrtoEavjTfF3b_QjaAwjUim-auGTtEAun2Gd6kbfOU5fG3ahOZmi3cwr37hKjyaA/s1600/b11Jul02-shroom.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; 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cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggHN3ip0xxIqRhqzD9U5zEWtwynRq-g94ehfHrJT-XZs0f76uFFvn-BCAkOO4bikAZwXFyzLYSZnKO7ScwQFZwzWi-DFL8i3IZtQSsykpwjCS0kG3OnVUpvn2E_zn3ZgABIeyJ/s400/q10Jul23-red_stem.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624984268613064370" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-DEbsprNmHaABldGpw_6CcgcXSVRr4lr5IkFhHE9v1JXZYH4jOJ34VCsdd8_I8NeUmZh7V5w_rA_G8gTKeHYklifzhezcOQ5ntHTFfiAvcQCpAX74xuMZTaGKAhpg2cAuvsfB/s1600/r10Jul12-soapwort_or_bouncing_bet-Saponaria_officinalis.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-DEbsprNmHaABldGpw_6CcgcXSVRr4lr5IkFhHE9v1JXZYH4jOJ34VCsdd8_I8NeUmZh7V5w_rA_G8gTKeHYklifzhezcOQ5ntHTFfiAvcQCpAX74xuMZTaGKAhpg2cAuvsfB/s400/r10Jul12-soapwort_or_bouncing_bet-Saponaria_officinalis.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624984261054638690" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifETML6GnVfMUi46YI7dcp_CcKG7v3sWiVpI64hn6ZRaiMNpLebjKHhE7qvdHleh7N8ogg3XH8sujimCKSZ8_6zEbPP_X79EMX5jDyOVTaf1f7zWnvKp7ITDQsn-JUDrbO2VZA/s1600/s10Jul03-square_stemmed_monkey_flower-Mimulus_ringens.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifETML6GnVfMUi46YI7dcp_CcKG7v3sWiVpI64hn6ZRaiMNpLebjKHhE7qvdHleh7N8ogg3XH8sujimCKSZ8_6zEbPP_X79EMX5jDyOVTaf1f7zWnvKp7ITDQsn-JUDrbO2VZA/s400/s10Jul03-square_stemmed_monkey_flower-Mimulus_ringens.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624984257234025074" /></a>jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-42266032793597253432011-07-01T10:34:00.010-04:002011-07-01T11:51:11.764-04:00Ollie and MurrayQuite some time ago, a very crappy person dropped off 3 kittens at the end of my folks' long dirt driveway out in the country. The 2 sisters and brother made their way up the driveway and proceeded to live out in a small out-building near my folks' house. My mom fed them and tamed them, but with everything else going on for her lately, she didn't get around to getting them fixed. Both females had kittens at the same time. Joycie and my niece, <a target="new" href="http://livelovelearn-greeneyedgirl.blogspot.com/">Michelle</a>, both helped my mom take care of the kittens. I can't remember how many kittens there were in total, but it was a lot. Both the momma cats treated all kittens the same, sharing the mothering duties. Joyce enjoyed that time with so many kittens; she was right in her element! Homes were found for all the kittens, including 1 to Michelle and 2 to us.<br /><br />We got 2 brothers (or cousins, we truly don't know), the only tiger-striped of the litters and a black and white cutie, Murray and Ollie, respectively. The plan was to only get 1 kitten and have him live with N.C. and Frankie, our 2 outside cats (they live on our porch and keep the chipmunk population somewhat in control). Frankie is getting very old, so I thought we would put a kitten with them to have Frankie and N.C. train him.<br /><br />But then somehow, being unable to decide between the 2 kittens, we took both.<br /><br />This is Sam with the kittens on our trip home from Gramma's house. As you can see, Sam is pretty much overjoyed...<br /><br /><A href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8ZomufNgUGMTYFCPhZdRp8Cv8b6XVGdCy3yWCdn38laJ3Y393SZUaU2jlHJrwRQNTTg0lcSpkvvB4K7Uk_eF44CVE0R4nmfqYrLssEVBycykMxzWbsjq3A6vbSXwY6oQroGqs/s1600/11Jun19_kittens01.JPG"><IMG style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624394047470289650 border=0 alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8ZomufNgUGMTYFCPhZdRp8Cv8b6XVGdCy3yWCdn38laJ3Y393SZUaU2jlHJrwRQNTTg0lcSpkvvB4K7Uk_eF44CVE0R4nmfqYrLssEVBycykMxzWbsjq3A6vbSXwY6oQroGqs/s400/11Jun19_kittens01.JPG"></A><br /><br /><A href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkwsmiHAxKq24JyoMp0_FqInyodpb85rrigUUNNF9R9qsLAf_0yy4IY5dpPcbFLD9803Aw1PQJ91C1yBpztplcC_lWlzf19mVc8g825GM6N96rsaA2TGsxlWr8dDtBYGFP-s3x/s1600/11Jun19_kittens02.JPG"><IMG style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624394046450756002 border=0 alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkwsmiHAxKq24JyoMp0_FqInyodpb85rrigUUNNF9R9qsLAf_0yy4IY5dpPcbFLD9803Aw1PQJ91C1yBpztplcC_lWlzf19mVc8g825GM6N96rsaA2TGsxlWr8dDtBYGFP-s3x/s400/11Jun19_kittens02.JPG"></A><br /><br />Blossom was not so much overjoyed as annoyed, but also curious, as was Wiley... and we were all amused at Kev actually holding Ollie on his chest...<br /><br /><A href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVHTENNN0OroVxg8p-ZcYTKdbWYNOdJCkx2Ik4OX6H1R69UfXbr8C2wxCGjIwvSRJxbSk2ZPfTMcXt9GDMpncQLkw23krKsG5jetwBROG71vrEaxhR1AnzQ4b4B2vwtiCtHe49/s1600/11Jun19_kittens03.JPG"><IMG style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624394038240524034 border=0 alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVHTENNN0OroVxg8p-ZcYTKdbWYNOdJCkx2Ik4OX6H1R69UfXbr8C2wxCGjIwvSRJxbSk2ZPfTMcXt9GDMpncQLkw23krKsG5jetwBROG71vrEaxhR1AnzQ4b4B2vwtiCtHe49/s400/11Jun19_kittens03.JPG"></A><br /><br />Joyce worked with taming the kittens, and so Ollie and Murray are both used to being held, in pretty much any position. Ollie does seem to like perching on shoulders...<br /><br /><A href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiwrGQ2IJQ-nJggyf_hvmgPpj8I9r7Vms98Kuw4nezK_4C-qrtbJ9Tucsvm-5lQbrXRhVSWS5nr9BP-9Scfmmn2qnQmurYxluaBLvXWokgjjS95pd8YjWZZShx1s_YT6Qnff_C/s1600/11Jun19_kittens04.JPG"><IMG style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624394041400051938 border=0 alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiwrGQ2IJQ-nJggyf_hvmgPpj8I9r7Vms98Kuw4nezK_4C-qrtbJ9Tucsvm-5lQbrXRhVSWS5nr9BP-9Scfmmn2qnQmurYxluaBLvXWokgjjS95pd8YjWZZShx1s_YT6Qnff_C/s400/11Jun19_kittens04.JPG"></A><br /><br />While Murray loves pretty much any position, including on his back...<br /><br /><A href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNCpYXUrM62jqXZ5oKSWzC6XUZwruOspje-NWroSGN9vELYC2utA9-Ad8RIgX_ZsjNkANQ-sI89_xj9uSBz1_zdpu6FB12-ppGHkQUbuZK42YwUW7ZSwrTXg-ipixiMf4Ft5Ja/s1600/11Jun19_kittens05.JPG"><IMG style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624393574803344242 border=0 alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNCpYXUrM62jqXZ5oKSWzC6XUZwruOspje-NWroSGN9vELYC2utA9-Ad8RIgX_ZsjNkANQ-sI89_xj9uSBz1_zdpu6FB12-ppGHkQUbuZK42YwUW7ZSwrTXg-ipixiMf4Ft5Ja/s400/11Jun19_kittens05.JPG"></A><br /><br />Murray's stripes give way to spots on his belly, so cute...<br /><br /><A href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifbXp3ccPTjPiDnCvmzeKADxCUEKbhGwJePOtLTC5gfpM0mOPtC5hvpKsrbdfk3CIhyhU3J2DPJGFzAhOorJ05HGJ5OB2OcgkEPaDLsCZhrytDoYxswtfYqmpNQWLorBqpxUTD/s1600/11Jun19_kittens05a.JPG"><IMG style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624393573437861970 border=0 alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifbXp3ccPTjPiDnCvmzeKADxCUEKbhGwJePOtLTC5gfpM0mOPtC5hvpKsrbdfk3CIhyhU3J2DPJGFzAhOorJ05HGJ5OB2OcgkEPaDLsCZhrytDoYxswtfYqmpNQWLorBqpxUTD/s400/11Jun19_kittens05a.JPG"></A><br /><br />This was Sunday evening a couple of weeks ago, and we had a vet appointment scheduled for them for the following Monday morning. We decided to keep them in the house overnight so they were easily accessible in the morning, and so we put them comfortably inside of the large crate that was Reilly's and is now infrequently used by Wiley. (Reilly loved it, Wiley not so much.)<br /><br />Sunday dinner discussion at the table was a lot about Kevin adamantly insisting the 2 cats were NOT going to be kept inside. He got pretty loud and insistent about it. I just patted his arm and said "yes, dear." Sammy started to argue with him, but I stopped that.<br /><br />Home from the vet and the kittens are, of course, still inside. They both slept with Sam last night. After a week or so, Kev just looked at me one evening, after Ollie had climbed up the back of the sofa and surfaced right above Kevin's head, and said, "They aren't going outside, are they?"<br /><br />"No, dear, they aren't."<br /><br />So our house has been overloaded with cuteness ever since. Reilly's old, somewhat ratty pillow bed was for some reason set on top of the dog crate, and now Ollie and Murray have claimed it for their own.<br /><br /><br /><A href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivd2_EsalHgOZ06929wOyBl3wro-P5l03PPGyIm26AoEyCx5kfmWeS-k0rYqSqf_ZesvF5IpwU7yWu7FjvwkFLwzx6FCgpeDUigjdBEUoL6G1RR9YcT6SNflGtf2JuFRzpT7EA/s1600/11Jun19_kittens06.JPG"><IMG style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624393562046813906 border=0 alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivd2_EsalHgOZ06929wOyBl3wro-P5l03PPGyIm26AoEyCx5kfmWeS-k0rYqSqf_ZesvF5IpwU7yWu7FjvwkFLwzx6FCgpeDUigjdBEUoL6G1RR9YcT6SNflGtf2JuFRzpT7EA/s400/11Jun19_kittens06.JPG"></A><br /><br /><A href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfTG0530eamv25VG_CvxYlb70_XhdnVmFJB-1ddkVe9deKr6h-cn0ZLMH4LAP59AEpwArJPLM8pRPxlduYrhUgVbrdA7Xn3Cdk7ZgcouAoP9wxdnFtsr69beEZEFXQGJhZhrC_/s1600/11Jun19_kittens07.JPG"><IMG style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624393548840514402 border=0 alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfTG0530eamv25VG_CvxYlb70_XhdnVmFJB-1ddkVe9deKr6h-cn0ZLMH4LAP59AEpwArJPLM8pRPxlduYrhUgVbrdA7Xn3Cdk7ZgcouAoP9wxdnFtsr69beEZEFXQGJhZhrC_/s400/11Jun19_kittens07.JPG"></A><br /><br />Being brothers (we're going with brothers), they stick together pretty much all the time. They do a lot of pretend fighting, too, but it's adorable. They do a LOT of sleeping, and that's really adorable. They've been with us only about 2 weeks, and they noticeably grow bigger daily. And since they seem to love Reilly's ratty pillow, it seems we're stuck with that in our living room now... but honestly, who's looking at the ratty pillow with these 2 on it?...<br /><br /><A href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT-k72t1qpaj27w1IAHaIWCw7dqPu7NGM_cCbO_5fnqxonJKAvhyphenhyphenZ35rsFQJCXm5ll9bSgPjma3nbVAb-jWCjohU5Zzpd_fRC23SNPhUC_sPXxpeL2hEEvcEnOFhMvMkqJyUwj/s1600/11Jun19_kittens08.JPG"><IMG style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624393547918821010 border=0 alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT-k72t1qpaj27w1IAHaIWCw7dqPu7NGM_cCbO_5fnqxonJKAvhyphenhyphenZ35rsFQJCXm5ll9bSgPjma3nbVAb-jWCjohU5Zzpd_fRC23SNPhUC_sPXxpeL2hEEvcEnOFhMvMkqJyUwj/s400/11Jun19_kittens08.JPG"></A><br /><br /><A href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjalGIwpPe0N2WUXkzAB4tUur8Ttf1SzuTTlqSCIeDFlgMG__hAvs22A-Ad_aQY-cQ6PXvOxiEzqy19ok1qNSaxdh2rKxgGxaae7gdlxfI4u-mBkl_s0eE5rBqhWy1KwjIlcSm3/s1600/11Jun19_kittens09.JPG"><IMG style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624392946520644818 border=0 alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjalGIwpPe0N2WUXkzAB4tUur8Ttf1SzuTTlqSCIeDFlgMG__hAvs22A-Ad_aQY-cQ6PXvOxiEzqy19ok1qNSaxdh2rKxgGxaae7gdlxfI4u-mBkl_s0eE5rBqhWy1KwjIlcSm3/s400/11Jun19_kittens09.JPG"></A><br /><br /><A href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAe12HXN_Y2AGd9sAHhCoMnTB6yhYNjVRQzdMZz6_z4_C-QXG3HCKqr7rfexKHcHCoE5Lf3d9DK1QWtS_CnseU8huKwiC3xACZokkTldU_5XW7GnMfNbt0LIZoNEaCLraWEzTf/s1600/11Jun19_kittens10.JPG"><IMG style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624392941313643058 border=0 alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAe12HXN_Y2AGd9sAHhCoMnTB6yhYNjVRQzdMZz6_z4_C-QXG3HCKqr7rfexKHcHCoE5Lf3d9DK1QWtS_CnseU8huKwiC3xACZokkTldU_5XW7GnMfNbt0LIZoNEaCLraWEzTf/s400/11Jun19_kittens10.JPG"></A><br /><br /><A href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWcSLod1ChD9cLaF3BdFWUpJ3stZTuw448GSUcHSlr3-o4ZnsFaPoCh4I2cjrEw3mK5J_c6BqC446qPu6XxJaZZnl3f5rxKUydZmS4DcRkKj1S_PLe34RIwll3gnkpzpTiaZT2/s1600/11Jun19_kittens11.JPG"><IMG style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624392935931070258 border=0 alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWcSLod1ChD9cLaF3BdFWUpJ3stZTuw448GSUcHSlr3-o4ZnsFaPoCh4I2cjrEw3mK5J_c6BqC446qPu6XxJaZZnl3f5rxKUydZmS4DcRkKj1S_PLe34RIwll3gnkpzpTiaZT2/s400/11Jun19_kittens11.JPG"></A><br /><br /><A href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYIiS_Hy2t6o3wr_8ZY8WUUlQZXlWh9W4kMeyTN-MM987PejFk8MkoZp1FktAjY_ADlhDovLT9yoq-aEvj40bbqHRQYhmT2r5Wd8SXXIfuSl0ZoeZQBRPLDUIyEo36d15tF05R/s1600/11Jun19_kittens12.JPG"><IMG style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624392935613481026 border=0 alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYIiS_Hy2t6o3wr_8ZY8WUUlQZXlWh9W4kMeyTN-MM987PejFk8MkoZp1FktAjY_ADlhDovLT9yoq-aEvj40bbqHRQYhmT2r5Wd8SXXIfuSl0ZoeZQBRPLDUIyEo36d15tF05R/s400/11Jun19_kittens12.JPG"></A><br /><br /><A href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3OAV-uOJ5a4eCHaJSdgT2p8nPMXsGG6kcBvs7mHwyoPLoWYP9LY8wOAWhNpjQsnhFCxy7mtGGFdyOdoofNePB490LTnxf_SZ786RcI-kIRha3gh6tRKiJ9crLw9oHgeUl6H7_/s1600/11Jun19_kittens13.JPG"><IMG style="WIDTH: 400px; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5624392931377311346 border=0 alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3OAV-uOJ5a4eCHaJSdgT2p8nPMXsGG6kcBvs7mHwyoPLoWYP9LY8wOAWhNpjQsnhFCxy7mtGGFdyOdoofNePB490LTnxf_SZ786RcI-kIRha3gh6tRKiJ9crLw9oHgeUl6H7_/s400/11Jun19_kittens13.JPG"></A><br /><br />Sam and I went to PetSmart and loaded up on necessities for them, as well as some toys. As a result, Blossom is warming up to the kittens now since they all love the toys. Wiley still chases Blossom, but not as much because his chasing time is divided by 3 now. The kittens initially hissed whenever they got near him, but now they seem not only ok with Wiley, but curious about him. Also, I think they have discovered that Wiley is a source of warmth, so hopefully some majorly cute photos featuring Wiley, Ollie and Murray sometime in the not too distant future.<br /><br />I posted the video below on facebook, but for my non-facebook friends and family, here is it is again - my friend, Megan, being adored by Murray...<br /><br /><OBJECT id=BLOG_video-a3c98ced45e72341 class=BLOG_video_class width=320 height=266 contentId="a3c98ced45e72341"></OBJECT>jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-1246649919133727322011-06-25T11:06:00.005-04:002011-06-25T11:32:16.926-04:00Eat For TwoThe other day when I was working from home at my computer desk I was, as usual, totally enchanted with the birds at and around the feeder right outside my window. Birds are actually pretty much pigs on the black sunflower seeds... one of the bloggers I like to read who has a bird feeder for the first time noticed how much seed they can go through and had some commentary on it that made me bust out a belly laugh. Go <a target="new" href="http://mimismartypants.com/2011/05/26/get-the-next-dozen/">here</a> and read it for yourself - enjoy!<br /><br />I've noticed before when a male cardinal would feed a female cardnial, and it was really cool to watch. There was a pair that day, and at first I thought it was a pair as in Mr. & Mrs., but... the female looks very young....<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-pPE8I1sw9D6HJPwlHpPGFKkh2sDZ8pSvF3NIOtlmvcrbJbWD7LRl29tt93vvgVkQ7tLevOte-o-eqStsVr5gkQOtL1ggCnJhTFLNnuaCP0eDVwI9xatmXdUI6isH3qK54vN3/s1600/11Jun22+054.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-pPE8I1sw9D6HJPwlHpPGFKkh2sDZ8pSvF3NIOtlmvcrbJbWD7LRl29tt93vvgVkQ7tLevOte-o-eqStsVr5gkQOtL1ggCnJhTFLNnuaCP0eDVwI9xatmXdUI6isH3qK54vN3/s400/11Jun22+054.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5622175551758320978" /></a><br /><br />There was just something about the pair that made me think they are father and daughter...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJPaH3SWjs_nNaENXK2YOUhkFurUpU9t10rLxcfc23nj8OyGIobjoX_gwHPuY2Ywjl-NLHbjQ1M2fC8L1ef7liMPZt799toQNPuPvRpgKzPpfyAzmAM17fTOLyCveJAu3FbHsy/s1600/11Jun22+057.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJPaH3SWjs_nNaENXK2YOUhkFurUpU9t10rLxcfc23nj8OyGIobjoX_gwHPuY2Ywjl-NLHbjQ1M2fC8L1ef7liMPZt799toQNPuPvRpgKzPpfyAzmAM17fTOLyCveJAu3FbHsy/s400/11Jun22+057.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5622175554974137842" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRbs4cR8amdIqLC-jVXnqRJkEfzikTyHcmPUtRMLsMLBynSQK00NIomDsiPQpp-zNIRLOGaxZlZFgP61R-I1zjoYnCfzemPHLUcREY_LMdlcaSd-rwksL6axP6R50PUpdmY72l/s1600/11Jun22+060.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRbs4cR8amdIqLC-jVXnqRJkEfzikTyHcmPUtRMLsMLBynSQK00NIomDsiPQpp-zNIRLOGaxZlZFgP61R-I1zjoYnCfzemPHLUcREY_LMdlcaSd-rwksL6axP6R50PUpdmY72l/s400/11Jun22+060.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5622175566251062146" /></a><br /><br />And this time, I not only got photos, I took video! and set it to appropriate music...<br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyjCBA4OIOJjanRcZV9xM97yyB3NE86vvYGr9tF2QgUdROwzQTuetLN5ytaeeL6caEiYLdpr2Yhw-E' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe>jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-34156279314203600162011-06-24T20:47:00.006-04:002011-06-24T21:24:58.854-04:00Birds for JoyceEven though I have been trying to practice throwing on the wheel at the pottery studio, I still love hand-building. I made a set of small, shallow dishes for Joycie recently by using slabbed clay (the studio has a slab roller) and plaster forms.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfQYWBnhClXCbRhyphenhyphenL2rzjNjOvjmMl2lK-n5swZ1euUqx4pbSPKmu2D3BkzZP8rZJOmYH6gT-IRNisEmV5KpFCqsOYEZggOuXSnxaPmmjnK3co1FbmQUmfoPKf8HQKoIWhXxaas/s1600/11Jun24_dishes1.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 354px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfQYWBnhClXCbRhyphenhyphenL2rzjNjOvjmMl2lK-n5swZ1euUqx4pbSPKmu2D3BkzZP8rZJOmYH6gT-IRNisEmV5KpFCqsOYEZggOuXSnxaPmmjnK3co1FbmQUmfoPKf8HQKoIWhXxaas/s400/11Jun24_dishes1.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5621959539823993586" /></a><br /><br />They are squarish bowls, about 5" diameter and only about 1" depth.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCQ3wlLAMPcAY6cwLVboBmeCeJ8PeJba0ssWNfai_LPfP-QdwC3qNQmOnYP7ihX8qTPLE5fHnlB1XV6og-3xlE_higSuMTthF750xmEiYAaM4-jBB3zbLRHg9UJS-szmqmmjDa/s1600/11Jun24_dishes2.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 250px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCQ3wlLAMPcAY6cwLVboBmeCeJ8PeJba0ssWNfai_LPfP-QdwC3qNQmOnYP7ihX8qTPLE5fHnlB1XV6og-3xlE_higSuMTthF750xmEiYAaM4-jBB3zbLRHg9UJS-szmqmmjDa/s400/11Jun24_dishes2.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5621959535297178626" /></a><br /><br />My thinking when making them was to use them for olive oil dipping for breads, because we love that... a good olive oil, a nice spice and some balsamic vinegar. Yum.<br /><br />I ended up making her a set of 9 because they all stayed intact! A couple of them had cracked when I was making them because I dried them too quickly, but they all made it through the bisque and then the glaze firing just fine. So now she has extra.<br /><br />I decided to paint on the dishes doing something from one of my favorite illustrators, <a target="new" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charley_Harper">Charles Harper</a>. I love his work. I've mentioned him <a target="new" href="http://paltry-sage.blogspot.com/2007/06/so-many-frogs.html">before on my blog</a>, from the "Twenty Froggies" poem in Childcraft. I searched for images of his work on the 'net, and there were just so many of his birds I liked, that I finally settled on doing all birds... but then there were so many birds to choose from, it was difficult to narrow it down to 9! Have I mentioned I love his work?!<br /><br />The studio uses a medium-fire stoneware clay, white. I made the bowls and let them dry, then I traced the birds onto the bowls with carbon paper (remember carbon paper?!). I then used underglazes to paint the birds and the outsides of each bowl. Underglazes are basically like colored clay, and you can mix the colors to achieve different colors... and pretty much the color you paint onto your greenware piece (prior to bisque firing, or on bisque if you prefer) will be the color on the final piece after glaze firing. This is much different than typical glazes for bisque which are made up of glass and chemicals, and where your green glaze will be a shade of gray until it goes through the final glaze firing in the kiln. After the bowls were bisque fired, the underglazed colors were very dull. I dipped each dish in clear glaze, and then after the final kiln firing, they were all nice and shiny. I like working with underglazes for detailed painting. Unfortunately, I can't draw, so I usually trace and then paint.<br /><br />I surprised Joycie with them the other day, and she was pretty happy. Another something for her "<a target="new" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hope_chest">hope chest</a>"...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkg3nWgEp9hY0SJ2sbSl9cQCfLuKUTnRS4Q3ZX53n0n9FGSF23EiwxdpMTGNd91nX3z3YbwH22Y3MBA-jamovHQJDpsj8bptHMVIP4FmTmINi0zCMU6VZuQqBX3BDCaT2KPNbH/s1600/11Jun24_baltimore_oriole.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 345px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkg3nWgEp9hY0SJ2sbSl9cQCfLuKUTnRS4Q3ZX53n0n9FGSF23EiwxdpMTGNd91nX3z3YbwH22Y3MBA-jamovHQJDpsj8bptHMVIP4FmTmINi0zCMU6VZuQqBX3BDCaT2KPNbH/s400/11Jun24_baltimore_oriole.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5621953847405635874" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8WcJlQ-xbezCua0nX4ED8fVNHLFBBWVKOVoJk1DpeDWd1NTsK0WUE5llPuHwaaTTGmvQbwqsidaoMWhZc53_sXfGqxfdCeFUwrfgCO6UN6sE_OqbgNW-wVCy8AwNgV0Ag-BFZ/s1600/11Jun24_bluebird.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 393px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8WcJlQ-xbezCua0nX4ED8fVNHLFBBWVKOVoJk1DpeDWd1NTsK0WUE5llPuHwaaTTGmvQbwqsidaoMWhZc53_sXfGqxfdCeFUwrfgCO6UN6sE_OqbgNW-wVCy8AwNgV0Ag-BFZ/s400/11Jun24_bluebird.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5621953837213292514" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie3v7DB1IsPIFwbvwm_0-JZmVCf_fQsj4Zy7rk7QkQxVj5dxfSNrf3K1tN9cG0s_FSiN5v8EKGHAavjxrmobJkubkshVrAkC_7zQS9biXdJs1wVHrmgVQv_MyBOt2ejiSsJ1BD/s1600/11Jun24_bluejay.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 383px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie3v7DB1IsPIFwbvwm_0-JZmVCf_fQsj4Zy7rk7QkQxVj5dxfSNrf3K1tN9cG0s_FSiN5v8EKGHAavjxrmobJkubkshVrAkC_7zQS9biXdJs1wVHrmgVQv_MyBOt2ejiSsJ1BD/s400/11Jun24_bluejay.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5621953832927225474" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioG3QdAdH3XIBIl-6xBQ-uP3SLJZRwUg7sdL9LVh-bZ-BSJnWh1aLyBHHJMm95W_tIIMp7m5eEsGrKB-STAJQUvQFsny6sb4GWxyYnodJr9_KbPMi3ZVKAVW8Rn_gdPAVJU8hy/s1600/11Jun24_cardinal.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 326px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioG3QdAdH3XIBIl-6xBQ-uP3SLJZRwUg7sdL9LVh-bZ-BSJnWh1aLyBHHJMm95W_tIIMp7m5eEsGrKB-STAJQUvQFsny6sb4GWxyYnodJr9_KbPMi3ZVKAVW8Rn_gdPAVJU8hy/s400/11Jun24_cardinal.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5621953827906759682" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiP09G3ymz2IvWWo5PnQx8XG6MOe4CJNSHZ4qhGNqczRSgiM_CR_qj5leYifrPfo4nWsN-gwZe0oyXWdQi9fVwwuB_Vobuh8yuoJ-zNZzh5m0Q9hShu9qjzvmPToKb2FjGvewD/s1600/11Jun24_chickadee.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 375px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiP09G3ymz2IvWWo5PnQx8XG6MOe4CJNSHZ4qhGNqczRSgiM_CR_qj5leYifrPfo4nWsN-gwZe0oyXWdQi9fVwwuB_Vobuh8yuoJ-zNZzh5m0Q9hShu9qjzvmPToKb2FjGvewD/s400/11Jun24_chickadee.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5621953201945140418" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRupfPGVRtwsxNGAn0wTu3XjEHrnZuSQdJW8IucEEzWPzG1uDD4kKpQPbaer8yowTX5f0S-rFSH6R6jNXj7tG2Snun-uZoAmQDfjh1J4FWio3C-CNzqB9WJFwkidc7zuSq8EWn/s1600/11Jun24_mallard.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 366px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRupfPGVRtwsxNGAn0wTu3XjEHrnZuSQdJW8IucEEzWPzG1uDD4kKpQPbaer8yowTX5f0S-rFSH6R6jNXj7tG2Snun-uZoAmQDfjh1J4FWio3C-CNzqB9WJFwkidc7zuSq8EWn/s400/11Jun24_mallard.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5621953197157833666" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ7bncO7R0gb3ptS3LZkFpHY95lJ3WGgcYpUfN7tfWF58dYNCZ0icNe06VtUGZsgB_64uLs1ODqE17Qj2BSMfoMaxwmV4XUyAmkmQuJ67NG9jZ7B7TId_mGAaIAUft_n_SinxD/s1600/11Jun24_mourning_dove.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 312px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ7bncO7R0gb3ptS3LZkFpHY95lJ3WGgcYpUfN7tfWF58dYNCZ0icNe06VtUGZsgB_64uLs1ODqE17Qj2BSMfoMaxwmV4XUyAmkmQuJ67NG9jZ7B7TId_mGAaIAUft_n_SinxD/s400/11Jun24_mourning_dove.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5621953192432319426" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBgPsfIqEgNT7PN2eEgp5LldzmKgJTKqNoOs5wlk-GEOtGfChXLYzD5DYabcs4iItJ3yf4Hx2kZKZoLI_OlzALmziYNOZBx_GRtYpy2d7beCQHyVpx1qITmkvNrnMUDW6LSjwm/s1600/11Jun24_nuthatch.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 364px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBgPsfIqEgNT7PN2eEgp5LldzmKgJTKqNoOs5wlk-GEOtGfChXLYzD5DYabcs4iItJ3yf4Hx2kZKZoLI_OlzALmziYNOZBx_GRtYpy2d7beCQHyVpx1qITmkvNrnMUDW6LSjwm/s400/11Jun24_nuthatch.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5621953188972116226" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh07poCDBmbAdexfwLbuGkUNDsJ6CiXW9sAKEbZOuVy-sDwwPF7jzXDLgeoHS8XspbvNkT3VRn3TOI_-Ku7j4dEjf4jUzkZWezeYn6TcTC3hWhveeRgNStQYYgZqaNwqdzu8PY8/s1600/11Jun24_owl.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 380px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh07poCDBmbAdexfwLbuGkUNDsJ6CiXW9sAKEbZOuVy-sDwwPF7jzXDLgeoHS8XspbvNkT3VRn3TOI_-Ku7j4dEjf4jUzkZWezeYn6TcTC3hWhveeRgNStQYYgZqaNwqdzu8PY8/s400/11Jun24_owl.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5621953184840488706" /></a><br /><br />Mike liked them, too. I can't believe they are getting married in less than a year. Time flies! Like the birds...jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-89477589710009628732011-06-14T18:40:00.030-04:002011-06-14T20:10:39.007-04:00All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up.I've always liked bugs. As a kid, I'd look for them everywhere outside. All the little parts of the bugs kinda fascinated me. I'd make the ants go one way, then block them off to make them go another, and another. Major summertime fun.<br /><br />That's not to say I am 100% a fan of bugs 100% of the time. If there's one in my house, I'll send it to that great big bug heaven in the sky no problemo. And spiders can really creep me out. Through becoming <a target="new" href="http://paltry-sage.blogspot.com/2010/07/if-you-like-pina-coladas.html">somewhat obsessed</a> last spring & summer with taking photos along our ditch of all the floral and fauna, including bugs and yes, many spiders, I've come to not only appreciate spiders more, but all the weird and the familiar bugs I came across. It's their shapes - geometrical, flowing, long, short, skinny, fat... and all the colors. The colors! Truly amazing. And the combination of colors. So pretty. Pretty, pretty bugs! And the legs and wings. Weird eyes. Hairy parts... Interesting, very interesting.<br /><br />I have accumulated a lot of close-up photos of bugs. I've been sorting through them all, and I've been able to trash a kazillion and one jpg files off my computer's overloaded hard drive the past couple of weeks. Following are some that I have decided I like... enjoy - I hope you don't get creeped out (Kathy!)...<br /><br /><em>(Click on the photos to enlarge 'em and really see some detail... on most of them, some of them I saved a cropped smaller photo and deleted my nice large original jpg file... *sigh*)</em><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOpM8R-_QU4FTdVseZsx26oFgON5N3YCHzrjdYQezC1r7TqHVeU3g80aTJWsn0tSO-yin8avC3xOr6LrGxG7aggCfILbIRU55LROEZ2Dxn2v_MqF78vZuDwOE2I1V8utDflX2G/s1600/11Jun14-bug01.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 385px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOpM8R-_QU4FTdVseZsx26oFgON5N3YCHzrjdYQezC1r7TqHVeU3g80aTJWsn0tSO-yin8avC3xOr6LrGxG7aggCfILbIRU55LROEZ2Dxn2v_MqF78vZuDwOE2I1V8utDflX2G/s400/11Jun14-bug01.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5618211267591657266" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqn4_5Sm2CTkq4Aw6J8LlHcTR6b5rOAAFcBnBmUIBSvUEIqRDCMtUUxVU7qDmXnV6MOf1BOV_iVnRU8eeyUsSFiBgz8CIiqrFQVzDdlilqe_bOSCUdn7JleHgEzOiuxUn7pfQq/s1600/11Jun14-bug02.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 265px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqn4_5Sm2CTkq4Aw6J8LlHcTR6b5rOAAFcBnBmUIBSvUEIqRDCMtUUxVU7qDmXnV6MOf1BOV_iVnRU8eeyUsSFiBgz8CIiqrFQVzDdlilqe_bOSCUdn7JleHgEzOiuxUn7pfQq/s400/11Jun14-bug02.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5618211269277795714" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi45Cv6AuEt5VUvhQZPpeBdJpBBuVWsv7i8is1u9_-tP1vz1ZmxVW37WfYep3FfQX6Yx0g6jdkcfQcJN2ZoNT_F45OsolmaodQkwRjKbH-qzxn1hFph6DY3QBCcayu1oKiaoY4O/s1600/11Jun14-bug03.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 378px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi45Cv6AuEt5VUvhQZPpeBdJpBBuVWsv7i8is1u9_-tP1vz1ZmxVW37WfYep3FfQX6Yx0g6jdkcfQcJN2ZoNT_F45OsolmaodQkwRjKbH-qzxn1hFph6DY3QBCcayu1oKiaoY4O/s400/11Jun14-bug03.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5618211278097629618" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqQZPN37D7ZXKaFP7_2GjXnRyz5Vknu3K69aNXqjl08fzAQd8ibTSNqM6GQKHG_wVa3WUol79zQnsf87K9v-1jUyNeXH6UqtU-js7L8SdOwPskVkJtt6u9kLpMYHA1Ogs06jOc/s1600/11Jun14-bug04.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 340px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqQZPN37D7ZXKaFP7_2GjXnRyz5Vknu3K69aNXqjl08fzAQd8ibTSNqM6GQKHG_wVa3WUol79zQnsf87K9v-1jUyNeXH6UqtU-js7L8SdOwPskVkJtt6u9kLpMYHA1Ogs06jOc/s400/11Jun14-bug04.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5618211664874672626" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDblcIrjmemLXL5si7W4DNbbt7C2UOTmnrlBXa6AjVTVf5VtinSwuB1V0HprKeRcB3_xGS-oIkw_v35r6xpLIs40cYgI-JDoIJuX5OtT5mF7fUsEbCBeQaftRwJV4wn5unpP2h/s1600/11Jun14-bug05.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 349px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDblcIrjmemLXL5si7W4DNbbt7C2UOTmnrlBXa6AjVTVf5VtinSwuB1V0HprKeRcB3_xGS-oIkw_v35r6xpLIs40cYgI-JDoIJuX5OtT5mF7fUsEbCBeQaftRwJV4wn5unpP2h/s400/11Jun14-bug05.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5618211658776300962" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsUDgegeDu0njPk_CWTLm-9ar7TOyHUnmpPdNwgvQ6udOwf3i1sd-bmD-In6yGeVl8GL-8UICoVylExgfvKUV1yV65FYM1P47XV2Xrop8Gx9-rjOHTwUrZoNIfZEDAzFKt-M2g/s1600/11Jun14-bug06.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 289px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsUDgegeDu0njPk_CWTLm-9ar7TOyHUnmpPdNwgvQ6udOwf3i1sd-bmD-In6yGeVl8GL-8UICoVylExgfvKUV1yV65FYM1P47XV2Xrop8Gx9-rjOHTwUrZoNIfZEDAzFKt-M2g/s400/11Jun14-bug06.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5618211653359939010" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijF2YlJ8Rg0VcserYrH0_558LPKmBday1H3AKX1BkurrqSZs2cfNpto-T0MqRCVQ8OgbKDHkS2Wzk8yANy8i4fA9ZXBPIhtA_xYnddaHB45wnI1gyGj1gUsD8IS7rDT-gbD0OP/s1600/11Jun14-bug07.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 270px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijF2YlJ8Rg0VcserYrH0_558LPKmBday1H3AKX1BkurrqSZs2cfNpto-T0MqRCVQ8OgbKDHkS2Wzk8yANy8i4fA9ZXBPIhtA_xYnddaHB45wnI1gyGj1gUsD8IS7rDT-gbD0OP/s400/11Jun14-bug07.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5618212133766995042" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNq6d7c4jZhJsb1BbzLZJaaYtP5jU-TCs3rNmGq_B2RIQz9nVOoslDZHU0r-uHsafsw74Gko9Hl1vGiGOihK-5VfCEFNSPd5MQKzwCnNPEJ7uXODU73n7UaixGpQdQqWLvm9qc/s1600/11Jun14-bug08.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; 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cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 365px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc2MLGvTzAvgNHQVc-QuzzcSLNxsqSe0wfNBUlI1D2XPePw0UMSvatHsvTDO8P3Rnt0TljNcjQjpQh02qEIaf1KTV6fi-OObaMGbslGwNOWKjvvr4Vyh6wm6qifZUGXSaKbmq0/s400/11Jun14-bug56.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5618217787407575058" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQGJJDRXxkvuEEktIc5xkiJBWWWklQQ1ltn2xIDoatJQBOFmBa0U8zB_fBy_IYwIfKlOtROvB2oS3yxCFAwWz-4CKw_De7fV4_TQo7oU_ClO40ysB0Rzh7Rs81EeifSMOTglJJ/s1600/11Jun14-bug57.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 246px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQGJJDRXxkvuEEktIc5xkiJBWWWklQQ1ltn2xIDoatJQBOFmBa0U8zB_fBy_IYwIfKlOtROvB2oS3yxCFAwWz-4CKw_De7fV4_TQo7oU_ClO40ysB0Rzh7Rs81EeifSMOTglJJ/s400/11Jun14-bug57.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5618217100803933826" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8ondI30oEDmpaifV2FzSYPI7H2SzDcI0Bdx5rVwv2tRbpU_-7juJBBE3MIWjaT3Z7aRb6M1Uz7GFWzdJf8WKKbj7MAPH500dkjmjaUyj94b-r9v1ZxC-4D-8fcHb7rKMZR87w/s1600/11Jun14-bug58.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 293px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8ondI30oEDmpaifV2FzSYPI7H2SzDcI0Bdx5rVwv2tRbpU_-7juJBBE3MIWjaT3Z7aRb6M1Uz7GFWzdJf8WKKbj7MAPH500dkjmjaUyj94b-r9v1ZxC-4D-8fcHb7rKMZR87w/s400/11Jun14-bug58.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5618217099988271282" /></a><br /><br />The end. (Do you feel itchy all over?)jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-12767276459171370932011-06-03T19:50:00.015-04:002011-06-03T22:05:21.120-04:00Our Sunday DriveKev and I took an afternoon drive this past Sunday. Not something we do much lately (damn those gas prices), so it was really nice. The day wasn't super sunny, but very pleasant. We started out over in Mt. P., and stopped by Ryan and Megan's for another good-bye. Then we headed kinda sorta north, where we soon left the pavement behind...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_900eZmmpWU3K2KP8xwxZXS_4Q9Z-kGVN7UcAD8D1FkOYBgxtl6N8OEGIDvTZKtLnUojPvKqmKlp8Ej2MR1IZyHfM5p-fg0Tiz6sbHKo6aXC6Z5nTk01wAH959pk_8gSdkZU7/s1600/110529.00.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_900eZmmpWU3K2KP8xwxZXS_4Q9Z-kGVN7UcAD8D1FkOYBgxtl6N8OEGIDvTZKtLnUojPvKqmKlp8Ej2MR1IZyHfM5p-fg0Tiz6sbHKo6aXC6Z5nTk01wAH959pk_8gSdkZU7/s400/110529.00.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614167218774527698" /></a><br /><br />We saw some beautiful country, including this large bit of marshland...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKvEBGvZ0OuzJrMNbMq_rpe5dCaJ6rUsl6QNaXhN46_Xi8CCl5DXBbZGlufDla_4peHMU8OY6o2H2JkpPIY3-W2XMgVNhfB7DZhDgt7vGy1BW-K_K5XPL9Pb1qBp6NfESRfEvU/s1600/110529.01.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKvEBGvZ0OuzJrMNbMq_rpe5dCaJ6rUsl6QNaXhN46_Xi8CCl5DXBbZGlufDla_4peHMU8OY6o2H2JkpPIY3-W2XMgVNhfB7DZhDgt7vGy1BW-K_K5XPL9Pb1qBp6NfESRfEvU/s400/110529.01.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614167215444471266" /></a><br /><br />Home to at least one family of Canada geese...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEhUBX5WPjvBTV4WlIREUnmSDlUQ4l_b7MayYeqyaYN_uhzKUCupSPMLKgu-ozs_XBuyWfZBDwWp65el31w8PlLto2VHSk17GMvy9P-7ZymVAnv5Iudvj6FqRLWlVhq-VUmviu/s1600/110529.02.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEhUBX5WPjvBTV4WlIREUnmSDlUQ4l_b7MayYeqyaYN_uhzKUCupSPMLKgu-ozs_XBuyWfZBDwWp65el31w8PlLto2VHSk17GMvy9P-7ZymVAnv5Iudvj6FqRLWlVhq-VUmviu/s400/110529.02.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614167210378859714" /></a><br /><br />And several Red-winged Blackbirds, like this beautiful guy...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbMuKgd-E33GwMUmKClHKzeYnx67QEh8PH5RQM6u4v9MKZg6pSngJhajLUm4FWZXHP4gWB0JX4snIWmlWI4bDNXuek6JWpMsylD_4jnPKlCFgUl_4Zv8m4_zD2EJWR7mtjagXG/s1600/110529.03.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbMuKgd-E33GwMUmKClHKzeYnx67QEh8PH5RQM6u4v9MKZg6pSngJhajLUm4FWZXHP4gWB0JX4snIWmlWI4bDNXuek6JWpMsylD_4jnPKlCFgUl_4Zv8m4_zD2EJWR7mtjagXG/s400/110529.03.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614167208590712386" /></a><br /><br />The geese family made their way through last year's dead cattails. The babies were adorable...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNvDX2N1q0k3vqazzMhPlUrE8ATLcekTVq36TpzziUnzTxjwauiIHU6d-mrCyHI7SV29-N4TPJYppM5PReBX5YVlt1Gl6cyKCCDD41qrR20h33rtwb_0vQ8jVIygdvXxS0odrA/s1600/110529.04.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNvDX2N1q0k3vqazzMhPlUrE8ATLcekTVq36TpzziUnzTxjwauiIHU6d-mrCyHI7SV29-N4TPJYppM5PReBX5YVlt1Gl6cyKCCDD41qrR20h33rtwb_0vQ8jVIygdvXxS0odrA/s400/110529.04.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614166413480008594" /></a><br /><br />Then Kev and I watched the blackbird go postal on the lead goose...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho6FG-mLL6qe6jyXaU92NDAznplbX87Q5g_VVw4UdXduOR6miyoPGGAH7GVEvl7OKGNWGKVkEt8j9FKVCyZ8FcFPonDxtmgU9H0qXSoYklyWseEAmxij4UlTbnZ8V8FnXP68N5/s1600/110529.05.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho6FG-mLL6qe6jyXaU92NDAznplbX87Q5g_VVw4UdXduOR6miyoPGGAH7GVEvl7OKGNWGKVkEt8j9FKVCyZ8FcFPonDxtmgU9H0qXSoYklyWseEAmxij4UlTbnZ8V8FnXP68N5/s400/110529.05.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614166408653632898" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ89PZp3GXI_DAToKZ0Tk2iON7aaxlsOTzZQ-p_IullfLOYa8uWBFNZhVMr58fkffcw2RWXLiSZTMnmg8iYSpT5PIJojV98mZCGhv0e79mHo1ctK8IcZ_-GoaQ_A-xQtJ_azVT/s1600/110529.06.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ89PZp3GXI_DAToKZ0Tk2iON7aaxlsOTzZQ-p_IullfLOYa8uWBFNZhVMr58fkffcw2RWXLiSZTMnmg8iYSpT5PIJojV98mZCGhv0e79mHo1ctK8IcZ_-GoaQ_A-xQtJ_azVT/s400/110529.06.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614166402041801698" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOmTKV1M5tTPuuPRnlQbUxf-sIp666y2xaq2jyton5Y9FrysYZipWI8MDkSTBnvqrblnY0AfRsxKklr1FembEXF-2V-pPNQqHUHsXc1hV60SfRtgUJIVvixyzF7OiRfXxkxQxS/s1600/110529.07.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOmTKV1M5tTPuuPRnlQbUxf-sIp666y2xaq2jyton5Y9FrysYZipWI8MDkSTBnvqrblnY0AfRsxKklr1FembEXF-2V-pPNQqHUHsXc1hV60SfRtgUJIVvixyzF7OiRfXxkxQxS/s400/110529.07.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614156165846541906" /></a><br /><br />It got very loud between the blackbird and the geese - very loud! We think the geese must have gotten too close to the blackbird's nest. Whatever it was, they finally called a truce. The mom and dad ushered the goslings on through the marsh. The cattails and other growth in the marsh didn't seem to impede their progress; they moved pretty quickly along and away from the blackbird. We enjoyed the bird drama!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdi1ZpgZIsQsTNznRjrOISSn9Ov5cf606N05esqEW-2mOXRhPouiOAaUW-Hhducmzi7f0ToS-GH4tg-Pqnx2AipZNhrhGh-ur05jjc6vgcfg6Hqf8xPDpc61JtxLMDWuimDnyR/s1600/110529.08.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdi1ZpgZIsQsTNznRjrOISSn9Ov5cf606N05esqEW-2mOXRhPouiOAaUW-Hhducmzi7f0ToS-GH4tg-Pqnx2AipZNhrhGh-ur05jjc6vgcfg6Hqf8xPDpc61JtxLMDWuimDnyR/s400/110529.08.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614156162263069282" /></a><br /><br />We saw a lot of beautiful barns. This one was near the marsh.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsznd2sIZzwaNW_1rffhLo32_prs9FznHqKWiszvh6R2yFXuqEH-z_YZct5AsaV2qqKzX3H6Unngfgcinoe1UAQ1-cxc8DzUvyAD-QnK0i7hEGs80CRohz-_eeESZ5NbFtCsyx/s1600/110529.09.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsznd2sIZzwaNW_1rffhLo32_prs9FznHqKWiszvh6R2yFXuqEH-z_YZct5AsaV2qqKzX3H6Unngfgcinoe1UAQ1-cxc8DzUvyAD-QnK0i7hEGs80CRohz-_eeESZ5NbFtCsyx/s400/110529.09.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614156154611514578" /></a><br /><br />Love the stonework. New pole barn on old, old footings...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMgUilf-lgJd4JvFX8HTeTJZpHAraUTuPXQUfTTKKpg-c6_0xnyK_S8YlznrWILSmF1_8WVRX1xAEI3ia4kUgqBoAFxYABC_Gaf0pf-Nt8yz5mXE_kK6gL5Pm7Ojea1wqx0I59/s1600/110529.10.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMgUilf-lgJd4JvFX8HTeTJZpHAraUTuPXQUfTTKKpg-c6_0xnyK_S8YlznrWILSmF1_8WVRX1xAEI3ia4kUgqBoAFxYABC_Gaf0pf-Nt8yz5mXE_kK6gL5Pm7Ojea1wqx0I59/s400/110529.10.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614155531232354338" /></a><br /><br />I was hoping for a cow or two in this beautiful field... wouldn't that have made a great photo?...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWkwCMmjn2Rq_TPYwwCMut5w_B06SG4rwL7N_y5uHj8Is1p3jY6XgDuE5FZJkwwyTkbt5PXh-NylbYYd2fO7Bw1A_zVmrCoch_-MC2cfmPqVAlr-qY1hTMMfgHW3M9RZO3ywLN/s1600/110529.11.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWkwCMmjn2Rq_TPYwwCMut5w_B06SG4rwL7N_y5uHj8Is1p3jY6XgDuE5FZJkwwyTkbt5PXh-NylbYYd2fO7Bw1A_zVmrCoch_-MC2cfmPqVAlr-qY1hTMMfgHW3M9RZO3ywLN/s400/110529.11.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614155523045006866" /></a><br /><br />More gorgeous stone footings. I love the gray...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQID9v5kboE5BFuD7lgBqB5jqfZWCgYmrnvq_YI7_vwtIWQ-JgpAKfmXEkRWvXD7M77Qx5TlxhN9469BQS7O9N38VFSYsHwgj66O5ekSvsWLJ09bhjg2jaGqUHK9TBudfTOaw0/s1600/110529.12.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQID9v5kboE5BFuD7lgBqB5jqfZWCgYmrnvq_YI7_vwtIWQ-JgpAKfmXEkRWvXD7M77Qx5TlxhN9469BQS7O9N38VFSYsHwgj66O5ekSvsWLJ09bhjg2jaGqUHK9TBudfTOaw0/s400/110529.12.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614155006195731378" /></a><br /><br />Poor old barn...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwR4NHz1hIWYBMrbPVDwOBznZdRGiHaKNLwA3vqzdjazJk8PR1eJPhjXur9MmuiXZL4Nuh74TRgYdyW6DBBXbN9d7q0FgBpQL4PdAnRDo66nD024gQdFGh8r8SirQW1nrXVUCD/s1600/110529.13.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwR4NHz1hIWYBMrbPVDwOBznZdRGiHaKNLwA3vqzdjazJk8PR1eJPhjXur9MmuiXZL4Nuh74TRgYdyW6DBBXbN9d7q0FgBpQL4PdAnRDo66nD024gQdFGh8r8SirQW1nrXVUCD/s400/110529.13.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614146700721522610" /></a><br /><br />And not surprising, around the poor old barn, many discarded things, trucks, tractors, parts of tractors, cars...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTE16qHojS6pnulwAWrrdSlHtgxiWY8HEO-zWIdeb8Q6o87uft1JgpmZtsbwiS1dbom6WJQP3vzQMzBDSL6pPzMJk3My83TcR_BnWKRPmsTT2KjSQUEVreeP27SR04J81j7VfG/s1600/110529.14.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTE16qHojS6pnulwAWrrdSlHtgxiWY8HEO-zWIdeb8Q6o87uft1JgpmZtsbwiS1dbom6WJQP3vzQMzBDSL6pPzMJk3My83TcR_BnWKRPmsTT2KjSQUEVreeP27SR04J81j7VfG/s400/110529.14.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614146695264311970" /></a><br /><br />Yes, that is moss...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx1I8KRF1S2V-IbJx4qgaTPqwUA8h2VA1F7p8o72-PjO_la6PuntKQAhnwWRE0OBpukPAP_JzFHxAhrWxgGw4IL67hGqIKxhsfYvpfxgtS6Zr6RvAT_SPZyNs6_UBbbM5qCBDe/s1600/110529.15.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 291px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx1I8KRF1S2V-IbJx4qgaTPqwUA8h2VA1F7p8o72-PjO_la6PuntKQAhnwWRE0OBpukPAP_JzFHxAhrWxgGw4IL67hGqIKxhsfYvpfxgtS6Zr6RvAT_SPZyNs6_UBbbM5qCBDe/s400/110529.15.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614146693069059906" /></a><br /><br />There were lilacs growing all along the roadsides, tons of them! And depending upon which side of the road and how much shade, they were in a variety of blossom stages. It smelled wonderful.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiXE52TlqyFaTebd_U-V2L7hhGjShyZ6fO8jzoT7WiFtqC3LNhyphenhyphenH7biqz5DP-y4oB4NbPRRkgJ6JzGlpg0W2V1BMB9Ls-cFZGbADu45BnbO-z2M0Y2RN190gRfuII220UMnMR6/s1600/110529.16.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiXE52TlqyFaTebd_U-V2L7hhGjShyZ6fO8jzoT7WiFtqC3LNhyphenhyphenH7biqz5DP-y4oB4NbPRRkgJ6JzGlpg0W2V1BMB9Ls-cFZGbADu45BnbO-z2M0Y2RN190gRfuII220UMnMR6/s400/110529.16.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614146689393805346" /></a><br /><br />I love the old fashioned lilacs...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJRO8pp290Xj5tv9Pf9JQsmCccwWRMZA1pN6La5yqFpr1tUuAvBib4a5yYoLoQcibOYymYFvSANebQV3c5356aUuLMmkESh2DmB4pzpYRT9QzWQlr56C4AvaCJFWHqpe9Xy_8u/s1600/110529.17.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJRO8pp290Xj5tv9Pf9JQsmCccwWRMZA1pN6La5yqFpr1tUuAvBib4a5yYoLoQcibOYymYFvSANebQV3c5356aUuLMmkESh2DmB4pzpYRT9QzWQlr56C4AvaCJFWHqpe9Xy_8u/s400/110529.17.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614146687160367906" /></a><br /><br />Our car smelled heavenly...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQUq3ggcX0jCP1Aze2INaEO_ibrOJOocCnjrRIrRJf0om_rWQYjMAOHYPLo3pnxyO-8ZY7r0b2IYoMkbiG3kHe_TMfPwQTDsBOjxdPXCU-s9Ombif8XRtDEbeN3H4fyOJ_rkfc/s1600/110529.18.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQUq3ggcX0jCP1Aze2INaEO_ibrOJOocCnjrRIrRJf0om_rWQYjMAOHYPLo3pnxyO-8ZY7r0b2IYoMkbiG3kHe_TMfPwQTDsBOjxdPXCU-s9Ombif8XRtDEbeN3H4fyOJ_rkfc/s400/110529.18.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614145872140300482" /></a><br /><br />I don't care what anyone says, wild mustard is a wildflower, not a weed...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6FOUA2y9D7SDuRl0VVRxCpXKMllDWxd61hyphenhyphenudBFYRXevW3W9wj3DjUAYJZlOf3A_0DTniKesyE20vb862LXz0ZbLkwTYDR4T2oxblYVS2vAlZsS7x5AGGYRB66opr5bMtZo8W/s1600/110529.19.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6FOUA2y9D7SDuRl0VVRxCpXKMllDWxd61hyphenhyphenudBFYRXevW3W9wj3DjUAYJZlOf3A_0DTniKesyE20vb862LXz0ZbLkwTYDR4T2oxblYVS2vAlZsS7x5AGGYRB66opr5bMtZo8W/s400/110529.19.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614145862473091618" /></a><br /><br />Just ask the butterflies...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHJk-YuzgQWzlMtAs0tB6To7JGUlZuh6Qe_jfnPudm9BW9i8b1H-OiE8PheNkLiQTxNRt5Yb_sc8I_pp3bQISnr4f5mYW55rTyWKKPuqudZ_bpvjwnMTssFq3aApjlo4C7cTA8/s1600/110529.20.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHJk-YuzgQWzlMtAs0tB6To7JGUlZuh6Qe_jfnPudm9BW9i8b1H-OiE8PheNkLiQTxNRt5Yb_sc8I_pp3bQISnr4f5mYW55rTyWKKPuqudZ_bpvjwnMTssFq3aApjlo4C7cTA8/s400/110529.20.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614145856372789378" /></a><br /><br />We stopped at a few garage sales, and I got a rock tumbler (polisher) for a buck. Score! We also stopped at very cool barn sale. A guy had his pole barn tricked out into a total awesome man cave. It had a front porch on which there were tables with stuff for sale (paperbacks - I got 7, he had some good ones, Robert B. Parker, James Lee Burke... score!). The one side of the barn had an open garage door, and from the road we could see all kinds of beer signs & mirrors and neon lighted signs. When we walked in, we could see a long, oak bar - fully stocked (seriously, all kinds of bottles setting in front of a long mirror wall, plus draft beer pulls), and quite a few nice bar stools. Pool table, awesome stained glass light above it, big round wood table, comfy looking wood and padded dark red vinyl chairs, a couple of lighted glass display cabinets with beer steins, shot glasses, trophies, etc. on the shelves. This place was so awesome. It made me wish we were good friends with the old guy and could stay and drink beer and shoot some pool with him. We're going to make our way back there again this summer.<br /><br />Then somehow we found ourselves in Farwell...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLtlSYrWLloH8so2sW5kgDeQa2JB44udVV1d0SO4VrhWBKW43KKbJkZ0kbX7PGah3OZ-sitmdhgOInkL5Fhw6dZULsRJQ6sd59eaoQ0XGUeY6tNAk8NnkdSp6EG51iKFZssOtq/s1600/110529.21.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLtlSYrWLloH8so2sW5kgDeQa2JB44udVV1d0SO4VrhWBKW43KKbJkZ0kbX7PGah3OZ-sitmdhgOInkL5Fhw6dZULsRJQ6sd59eaoQ0XGUeY6tNAk8NnkdSp6EG51iKFZssOtq/s400/110529.21.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614145858164636530" /></a><br /><br />Where it started to rain really hard. So we headed back to Mt. P., called Ryan and Megan and met them for dinner at Bennigan's...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLYnK0aZDfuvUg4niIanOUYi7fZvpLzYGE2UBTkcxZhR7eIKfA4q5wKdAgnHJm8cM_YDAMoy1iViwRdbEuFtMz8Q4vXKCVoBAbnV1kFFDvC3EcnUPCP9YLcBUBXgK9V9n2NUlq/s1600/110529.22.JPG"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLYnK0aZDfuvUg4niIanOUYi7fZvpLzYGE2UBTkcxZhR7eIKfA4q5wKdAgnHJm8cM_YDAMoy1iViwRdbEuFtMz8Q4vXKCVoBAbnV1kFFDvC3EcnUPCP9YLcBUBXgK9V9n2NUlq/s400/110529.22.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5614145853981240194" /></a><br /><br />It was so nice to spend some time with them. Megan left early the next morning to head back home to her family in Kansas, and Ryan is by now somewhere around Goshen, Indiana, where he is doing a residency this summer with <a target="new" ref="http://www.rothshank.com/">Justin Rothshank</a>. I'm looking forward to seeing more of both Ryan's and Megan's work, now that they're both graduates with their BFA in ceramics from CMU. Both Ryan and Megan were super generous to me, and I got to purchase several pieces from the 2 of them before they moved away... at what was obviously a "family discount" pricing! I will post photos soon.jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-91395464658767053242011-05-29T10:57:00.008-04:002011-05-29T12:31:59.888-04:00Bob Talbert's White Chili Recipe from The Detroit Free PressBack in January of 1992, Kev gave me a portion of a page torn from the Detroit Free Press that had Bob Talbert's column on it. It was before the Super Bowl game (01/26/1992, the Washington Redskins defeated the Buffalo Bills, 37-24), and it had a recipe for White Chili that the Talbert family would make for Super Bowl Sunday. Back then, putting chicken in chili was something Very New. Now you can find white chili on menus of all sorts of chain restaurants. Whenever I make this chili, it's always a hit. I'll give you Bob's recipe as it appeared in his column, and then I'll tell you how I tweak it. (Thanks to <a target="new" href="http://archives.record-eagle.com/2005/jun/13recipe.htm">Traverse City Record-Eagle</a> for the text of Bob's recipe.)<br /><br />Bob Talbert's White Chili<br />1 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts<br />2 14-oz. cans chicken broth<br />3 16-oz. cans white beans, with liquid<br />2 c. finely chopped white onions<br />2 T. fresh minced garlic<br />1 T. olive oil<br />4-oz. can chopped green chilis with liquid<br />2 heaping t. cumin<br />2 level t. oregano<br />1/4 t. cayenne pepper<br />Dash red hot or Tabasco sauce<br />Poach or bake the breasts at 350ø for 30 minutes. Chop into bite-size cubes.<br />In a large soup or chili pot. pour the chicken broth and add the 3 cans of white beans with liquid. Keep the heat low. <br />In separate pan, saute onions and garlic in olive oil until the onions are translucent. Stir in the green chilis with liquid. Add that mixture to the pot with the beans and broth; add chicken. Stir in cumin, oregano, cayenne pepper and hot sauce. Heat until it starts to bubble, about 10 minutes. Serve with cornbread.<br /><br />Here's what I do, pretty much using all the ingredients above:<br /><br />Put about 2, 3 or 4 nice, fat skinless boneless chicken breasts (you decide how much chicken you want) in baking dish (light spray oil first), generously sprinkle <a target="new" href="http://www.mrsdash.com/">Mrs. Dash</a> original blend (yellow cap) and extra spicy blend (bright red cap) on chicken, cover and bake at about 350 deg. for an hour or so. Remove from oven, take lid off and let cool a bit. Stab yourself one of the pieces of chicken out of the lovely juices in the pan, put it on a cutting board and chop away. You'll want the bite-sized pieces. Put the pieces back into the pan and swirl them around in the juices. Set aside.<br /><br />In a large Dutch oven (<a target="new" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_oven">this</a>, not <a target="new" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_oven_(practical_joke)">this</a>) or soup pan, saute the onions and garlic in the olive oil until the onions are translucent and the smell is absolutely heavenly. Add the chopped chicken and its juice. Pour in a large box of chicken broth, 48 oz. or equivalent to about 6 cups. I like to include <a target="new" href="http://paltry-sage.blogspot.com/2007/04/beef-noodles.html">The Good Stuff</a> if I have some, you can use whatever you want. How much broth you add also depends on how much you got from baking the chicken, and how thick or thin you want your chili. Remember, you can always add more broth, so maybe start with just some of it...<br /><br />Add the beans, I like to use Great Northern and other white beans, whatever you have on hand, and include the juice. I like a variety of beans not only coz it tastes good, but also it's aesthetically pleasing to me. I may use 4 cans of beans if I'm in the mood; I'm a fan of beans. Add the can of green chilis - and make sure you get the <em>peeled</em> and chopped kind. And again, I may add 2 cans, not just 1. Toss in the oregano, ground cumin and cayenne to your taste. (I never measure spices when I cook... do you?) I usually pass on the Tabasco sauce. Not by choice, but coz I usually just forget it for some reason.<br /><br />Stir and let cook on medium-low heat until well heated through, longer for more flavor blend. I don't make this chili in a crock pot, but I will often put it into a crock pot to keep it warm while serving, especially at potlucks.<br /><br />We then have available a variety of temperatures of salsas for garnish (Kev likes the really hot stuff), as well as sour cream and shredded cheese. Your choice on the cheese, a Mexican blend is nice. Eh, whatever's on sale will work.<br /><br />Corn bread is nice with it, too. I usually just whip up a box or 2 of <a target="new" href="http://www.jiffymix.com/">Jiffy</a> corn muffin mix into which I add sugar and maybe a little extra milk, so it's more like Johnnycake. (Where I come from, Johnnycake is sweetened corn bread - Johnnycake is usually more moist, where corn bread can be kinda dry.) We usually have tortilla chips with our white chili.<br /><br />Like all chilis, the more you heat it up, the better it gets. On this chili, make sure your significant other also eats this chili with you, otherwise he or she probably won't be able to stand your breath in bed. Seriously.<br /><br />As I write this blog post, the sun is shining and there are 5 male Rose-breasted Grosbeaks at our bird feeder and in the dwarf magnolia next to it, along with a couple of the pretty brown and white females.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu_-pwCSANMR_LaWJ1NHad2ppmj06DyZBk2G2pC42wQHkZRUtpiXUl3VO3xQOacZk1t0CSLvttuCTL_FOT3jkyviX8RsASHC7hkrZJ_I3Ak7rTJTG0mmaW66AyBe2dLTW2TWsZ/s1600/11May29-grosbeak.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu_-pwCSANMR_LaWJ1NHad2ppmj06DyZBk2G2pC42wQHkZRUtpiXUl3VO3xQOacZk1t0CSLvttuCTL_FOT3jkyviX8RsASHC7hkrZJ_I3Ak7rTJTG0mmaW66AyBe2dLTW2TWsZ/s400/11May29-grosbeak.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612171329742671858" /></a><br /><br />We've had lot of birds this year, including a Baltimore (Northern) Oriole, and he's really pretty... <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizhLb_T3PeFl2qqDoO_rEavMdZEn9_xO1gwKThwj0dtT4P1eurFkAWUxC5kLBTBg7joshIHH_xrhGWkr5fCiq_0AQzqMg4HNd5j75shRrOIepFOrVsbu4wALMa-ZRD-nJFSoQ3/s1600/11May29-oriole.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 307px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizhLb_T3PeFl2qqDoO_rEavMdZEn9_xO1gwKThwj0dtT4P1eurFkAWUxC5kLBTBg7joshIHH_xrhGWkr5fCiq_0AQzqMg4HNd5j75shRrOIepFOrVsbu4wALMa-ZRD-nJFSoQ3/s400/11May29-oriole.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612171333453638018" /></a><br /><br />and so is the more-yellow-than-orange female.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOPIQXXPAYkUi42_PlFp9pt_N67Dl-W68Zpttfuft9IjhhRAfYkNDW55ONPvKHJERnG9e71AgdfiVm-TQ76Qz0lZJaeJ00D1wg9rkaMq5OtEtiasEi37kTp_f8vwkgzrcr788M/s1600/11May29-fe_oriole.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOPIQXXPAYkUi42_PlFp9pt_N67Dl-W68Zpttfuft9IjhhRAfYkNDW55ONPvKHJERnG9e71AgdfiVm-TQ76Qz0lZJaeJ00D1wg9rkaMq5OtEtiasEi37kTp_f8vwkgzrcr788M/s400/11May29-fe_oriole.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612171332267255378" /></a>jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-33583551092491785242011-03-30T21:13:00.005-04:002011-03-30T21:30:37.668-04:00Happy Birthday to my DadMy Dad is 81 years old today. I got to wish him a happy birthday early this morning. Dad is always up super early, so sometimes I get to talk with him on the phone while I drive into work. I love that.<br /><br />Dad and Mom went down to my brother and sis-in-law's, Jim & Sue's, today for lunch. It was a beautiful day today, so I'm sure they had a wonderful, sunny drive and a great time at lunch. Nice way to spend your 81st, Daddy. And I heard Jimmy was making Swedish meatballs, so lucky you!<br /><br />Joycie took this photo of Dad and Mom at the table after we had Thanksgiving dinner last November. (Wiley is in there, too - he loves Gramma!) I sure hope I look as good as they do when I'm their age, and I hope I have half their strength. I think my parents are the strongest, most wise, most dependable and most loving people I will ever know in my life. I want to be just like them... when I grow up... <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhclb3hEoRkN00arzftrvAMZHdN2d7d0hYLhVM7J4sz5qvhuYE0yg47uu_fDADb83-FupYFWW9fpWju1JEN-NmaolqCldwHPUXDtcDToe8QhchsCEgdyJr-8ZHuinOb-qsIx-Ot/s1600/10Nov25-dad-mom.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhclb3hEoRkN00arzftrvAMZHdN2d7d0hYLhVM7J4sz5qvhuYE0yg47uu_fDADb83-FupYFWW9fpWju1JEN-NmaolqCldwHPUXDtcDToe8QhchsCEgdyJr-8ZHuinOb-qsIx-Ot/s400/10Nov25-dad-mom.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590047712709054690" /></a><br /><br />Joycie also took this photo of Mom and Dad holding hands at the table. I love this photo.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzmBqvHVnV6XfROa4sfvafzBITZIMVawUT_KEOsvhvBluj2TTmntU66CxIkkvUptRIyf1oN9p79oH8Dxfc6RDeGO-y3QMkFo3l4ID1CI5CAPkGe4zLY_1f1U-Mp-Qdxp2VSdq8/s1600/10Nov25-hands.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzmBqvHVnV6XfROa4sfvafzBITZIMVawUT_KEOsvhvBluj2TTmntU66CxIkkvUptRIyf1oN9p79oH8Dxfc6RDeGO-y3QMkFo3l4ID1CI5CAPkGe4zLY_1f1U-Mp-Qdxp2VSdq8/s400/10Nov25-hands.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590047721151955026" /></a>jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-26779915388624987592011-03-30T21:07:00.000-04:002011-03-30T21:13:18.446-04:00Harbinger<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsTn5fP70SLOgVBmZROuZoTIHe0GzolPwGOSfEhnUeHqRzvMkgyrlKYQY5TK6OJv74ViUD9eZOzfASP8MWCoZds1w6IIkK4mhjnTUBcd1n3FAE9ggqWV6aO38Fbsv5l-kzhiTw/s1600/11Mar18-robin.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsTn5fP70SLOgVBmZROuZoTIHe0GzolPwGOSfEhnUeHqRzvMkgyrlKYQY5TK6OJv74ViUD9eZOzfASP8MWCoZds1w6IIkK4mhjnTUBcd1n3FAE9ggqWV6aO38Fbsv5l-kzhiTw/s400/11Mar18-robin.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590045597517226530" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPVePjq-mO9XgWD3pWNnKuauTSuBdEDelRcxSSgeUuSopZ7j8qRd8JQWmT6fEBUZMYfZsiw228SgswYgDgdPSTigu3E-TQKwgJzDRmR2IR60to3IR2rZdflIRLYZixImOkzEep/s1600/11Mar18-chipmunk.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPVePjq-mO9XgWD3pWNnKuauTSuBdEDelRcxSSgeUuSopZ7j8qRd8JQWmT6fEBUZMYfZsiw228SgswYgDgdPSTigu3E-TQKwgJzDRmR2IR60to3IR2rZdflIRLYZixImOkzEep/s400/11Mar18-chipmunk.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590045593790289042" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRZYVqx7aaHjyg3Ykrdl2Aznqv6KvOunNWPwtmO5GW-8V7HWiAwJrN23mYCTfhkXf0b8iNAv1KCVVTURZdgkIjc0JBb9B80pmj-H9-yPWMedq7ZTJ_TEDLzS8SVyHB7uZxkBVI/s1600/11Mar18-mossy.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRZYVqx7aaHjyg3Ykrdl2Aznqv6KvOunNWPwtmO5GW-8V7HWiAwJrN23mYCTfhkXf0b8iNAv1KCVVTURZdgkIjc0JBb9B80pmj-H9-yPWMedq7ZTJ_TEDLzS8SVyHB7uZxkBVI/s400/11Mar18-mossy.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590045593004803554" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS6u1DSjpCknhylWoo5iLfWHIVAlBMm8UE7EQh1t2Xm_ftkI2cc2yuBqPC6TR_G2VJ7KiNIe0cejRoe4D8K6EzYpUHBwLeTJi2bloziwkJv8mSKuUN6DiGexrkpXeUnWA-ekX1/s1600/11Mar18-treelimb.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS6u1DSjpCknhylWoo5iLfWHIVAlBMm8UE7EQh1t2Xm_ftkI2cc2yuBqPC6TR_G2VJ7KiNIe0cejRoe4D8K6EzYpUHBwLeTJi2bloziwkJv8mSKuUN6DiGexrkpXeUnWA-ekX1/s400/11Mar18-treelimb.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590045589440906546" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdrjZ8_eT5F1cJRQ1nophSnL0N6MErkYFYzuHv55sSHeN29YNbR5ie9-cr9CfKbx_4ozXMR9uAlfybQLq2clyUQA8Fd0lji_5g3Ub9KfUg2XJlQOZEu5HrLXZmwqUSFBoliWh4/s1600/11Mar18-birch.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdrjZ8_eT5F1cJRQ1nophSnL0N6MErkYFYzuHv55sSHeN29YNbR5ie9-cr9CfKbx_4ozXMR9uAlfybQLq2clyUQA8Fd0lji_5g3Ub9KfUg2XJlQOZEu5HrLXZmwqUSFBoliWh4/s400/11Mar18-birch.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590045581641836610" /></a>jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7770963.post-59778909129330187302011-03-30T20:47:00.003-04:002011-03-30T21:07:14.893-04:00Thawed and golden brownThe ditch along our dirt road is back at it... I'm almost unwillingly enthralled by it. Some days it takes me more time to travel that half mile along our ditch towards home than the previous 15+ miles. Like this sunny afternoon a couple of weeks ago...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8gb8NxORXLc-0gRSD6UFDokxc1QBrhgjJRmlHUJNuAL_1Kxe5r_uAckzycwCT5TZkgev0-8eC4FecwJ3rZ0T0TPDxir2Y8g7ztvQzBfaqQz19ciKKVyvn09ck63ZVxN7IO-tK/s1600/11Mar18-ditch1.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8gb8NxORXLc-0gRSD6UFDokxc1QBrhgjJRmlHUJNuAL_1Kxe5r_uAckzycwCT5TZkgev0-8eC4FecwJ3rZ0T0TPDxir2Y8g7ztvQzBfaqQz19ciKKVyvn09ck63ZVxN7IO-tK/s400/11Mar18-ditch1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590041945109446114" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZMD9hkyD9WPryh8No5F5NSfQVsNQn7YADHQc0XBJQamAmLutFmFVJDSP3cWTUVesvcCL6yGEqb7KQwKsVHBqpnO8_Ja_dWuaHhgyMol0v_1jN8MhBGiB_gK2oGmzNdOvNKK-F/s1600/11Mar18-ditch2.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZMD9hkyD9WPryh8No5F5NSfQVsNQn7YADHQc0XBJQamAmLutFmFVJDSP3cWTUVesvcCL6yGEqb7KQwKsVHBqpnO8_Ja_dWuaHhgyMol0v_1jN8MhBGiB_gK2oGmzNdOvNKK-F/s400/11Mar18-ditch2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590041944514326930" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8DBh40PFkno0brRSl224bvxFKY10KvIl1UE0tFBjUqqFdYG3hF9GKFTqRRy9yY6aouRXsOO_VwiL9Dsbe3RWnCzXxe40edKIpVKdm4EB2FpY6r46Fup3l5vr8O0jeymG4D7nl/s1600/11Mar18-ditch3.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8DBh40PFkno0brRSl224bvxFKY10KvIl1UE0tFBjUqqFdYG3hF9GKFTqRRy9yY6aouRXsOO_VwiL9Dsbe3RWnCzXxe40edKIpVKdm4EB2FpY6r46Fup3l5vr8O0jeymG4D7nl/s400/11Mar18-ditch3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590041939379809906" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-tguPUW6-7WF2pOMnpNiVhyZc7fARzt30bVksgEQvtw0NImrRPg19-YSRYHf17BpU6la0l1U5VivMUVVAsFxkrKCIH5Z9fZZyNdrj8Eg68DEkucTIDwO8dRvU6fshog4p-zQ-/s1600/11Mar18-ditch4.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-tguPUW6-7WF2pOMnpNiVhyZc7fARzt30bVksgEQvtw0NImrRPg19-YSRYHf17BpU6la0l1U5VivMUVVAsFxkrKCIH5Z9fZZyNdrj8Eg68DEkucTIDwO8dRvU6fshog4p-zQ-/s400/11Mar18-ditch4.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590041932868624050" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPdxJwh3_DiP-fv41GHrn6g9Oql7UeEAjDLRf-aw1jU-Jn7-gxx_XtpBFX5H-BJxnGGGbxzZbRQ6FhZwcsdnD6t6OCE3oOkl6Z-NBC0N3KrNl8EArP1jnKcAAMCY37Tt6Xxxn4/s1600/11Mar18-ditch5.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPdxJwh3_DiP-fv41GHrn6g9Oql7UeEAjDLRf-aw1jU-Jn7-gxx_XtpBFX5H-BJxnGGGbxzZbRQ6FhZwcsdnD6t6OCE3oOkl6Z-NBC0N3KrNl8EArP1jnKcAAMCY37Tt6Xxxn4/s400/11Mar18-ditch5.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590041935593903026" /></a>jthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00736523565075003281noreply@blogger.com0