Thy leaves are so unchanging!

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.

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.

So now our living room is so much bigger!  Isn’t it nuts how the day you take the tree down, your room grows.

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...

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. 

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.

Sam wants to do some more senior photos in the snow... he did a photo shoot 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 engagement photos and wedding 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.

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. 

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!

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 anything 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 right now!

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 there (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. 

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.

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!!!

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!

Make a new plan, Stan!

I left the air conditioner set to 69 degrees last night and woke up freezing.

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 anything to investigate. Also, I deeply regret purchasing those cat toys Sam selected... the ones that have little bells or make noise.

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.

I keep seeing this little Chevy S10 red pickup truck on M-20:


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...


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.

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 none, i.e., "Words for a promiscuous woman are invariably derogatory, but words for a promiscuous man are frequently perceived as compliments."

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.

I am still adjusting to my CPAP machine plus some other medical issues that are too boring to discuss, but my eBay phase 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!

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.

Speaking of crazy, I regret my search on the word "taxidermy"...







And more craziness... people are quite creative in their endeavor to con you out of your cash...



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...



and I found these auctions...



I could not resist, and so I did a search for such craziness in completed auctions. Folks, there are some downright less than intelligent people out there...



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!...



Whew!

Certain restrictions apply

Well hello there 2011. You arrived early, and I'm just not ready for you. Can you please go drive around the block a few hundred times? Thanks.

From my workday:

Purpose:
Confirm understanding of key activities for the next day and address any urgent hurdles to progress.
Provide clarity when path forward changes from previous plan/agreements.
Trying to focus on exceptions...no time to solve all problems

Julie T. would be the person.

Can you please let me know if you will need weekend support on January 8th and 9th? Management is trying to find out which clients will be working that weekend.

As a reminder, an implementation command center has been established to dispatch calls related to the implementation.

Once you have reviewed and submitted, your second level approver will receive an auto-generated email to complete the sign-off.

You recently reported a problem to I/S Service Delivery and we would like to invite you to complete a brief Customer Satisfaction Survey. This survey is your opportunity to tell us how well we met your needs and help us improve our service to you in the future.

My favorite Excel formula:

=IF(ISNA(MATCH(J2,Sheet1!J:J,0)),0,INDEX(Sheet1!L:L,MATCH('Sheet1 (2)'!J2,Sheet1!J:J,0),0))

Now then, don't you wish you were me???...

Overheard just now:

You know what. I'm sick of these people sending these emails to me. It's ridiculous.

From my head, not related to work:

"Madden had that look on his face like he was drinking a Dr. Pepper and somebody switched it out with iced tea but didn't tell him." I think I heard this one on NPR.

Nah nah nah nah. Nah nah nah nah. Hey hey hey. Goodbye. Been singing that in my head. When my kids were in elementary school, every year on the last day of school, staff members and some teachers would stand outside the door, hands raised waiving kleenexes (like a saber arch) and singing that lyric over and over as the kids walked out to the buses to start their summers. It was cool. Every time I think of that, I smile.

My 1999 Caddy DeVille had 4 gallons of gas left in it according to the dash info, and it beeped Empty at me two seconds later. She's a cranky old thing. So I paid about $3.20/gallon this morning, and Kev tells me it is now down to $3.01. Grrr.

Big flakes, little snow. Little flakes, big snow.
We had a mostly warm and rainy start of our weekend, but then it got cold again. It snowed on and off yesterday without much accumulation. This morning Kev was the first to leave the house, so he made fresh tracks all the way down the driveway and the road to M-20. His tracks down the road swerved from one side to the other all the half mile. He did that for me. So I called him and said, "Pretty!" Kev likes to do that with fresh snowfalls. On the rare occasion I'm the first to leave and it's a fresh snowfall, I make crazy tracks all down the road for him.

Mike was working on Joyce's Impala on Saturday, changing the oil and something with the brakes. (He's awesome that way!) It was late Saturday afternoon that the temp dropped so abruptly - within minutes it went from mild to very cold. It had been very windy all day, and with the drop in temp, the wind seemed to pick up. Kev was also outside, working on one thing or another, so he was standing not too far from the car. Mike was under the car, which was parked on the cement approach in front of our pole barn. Both Mike and Kev heard a huge BAM! A tree branch fell out of one of the oak trees and shattered the Impala's back window. Some of the branches that have fallen from those oaks are the size of small and not-so-small trees, this branch was probably about 8 or 10 feet long and about 6 or 8 inch diameter at base. Could have been worse. Mike was startled. As you can imagine.

Sam is doing well with his knee. He is at physical therapy right this moment. He's also able to walk around home now without the big brace on his leg, and that is a relief to him. He still must wear it anywhere outside and at school.



Kev and I drove around Mt. Pleasant on New Year's Eve trying to find a place to have dinner that wasn't a two-hour wait. We finally settled on Ruby Tuesdays, got our names on the list then went into the bar area to get a beer while we waited. We were standing at the bar when 2 guys left, so we quickly grabbed their seats. Then another guy asked one of the bartenders to turn the TV station to the Wings game that was just starting. While on our 2nd round of beer, Kev and I decided that we had the best seats in the house, so we ordered our dinner and ate it at the bar while watching the game. It was awesome. We had an excellent time. Even if NY won.

Sam: Licensed

My baby boy Sammy turned 16 years old on November 4th. It does not seem possible... the years have flown by. This is a birthday both Sam and I have been waiting for – the big date, getting his Driver’s License! Sam loves to drive, and I love not having to drive him everywhere he wants to go.

On his birthday, Sam and I went into town to the Secretary of State’s office where we did all the paperwork for his driver’s license. His license only took about a week to arrive in the mail because we went ahead and got him the “Enhanced Driver’s License." (And his license photo... awesome!) We also picked up his temporary Handicap Parking Permit. His knee is doing well, but he is still on crutches and still wearing the brace, so parking up front at school every day is necessary. (I’m going to do most of my Christmas shopping with Sam!)

We celebrated his birthday by taking him out to dinner, his choice – Olive Garden.



And a very good choice, too. Good food and very nice beverages. Since Mike had to work, it was just the 4 of us...
Kev, Joyce and the Birthday Boy...



And here’s me with my Sammy...



We also delivered a dinner to Mike at his workplace, which was fun. Mike was happy.

It was a very pleasant birthday dinner. Then when we got home, Sam opened his presents from us and Joyce & Mike. Waiting on the front porch for him was a “candy cake” from his friend, Julia...



I love the “Princess” balloon! Julia knew Sam was out for the evening, and she somehow talked one of her parents into driving her all the way out to our house to leave Sam this surprise. She’s a sweetie.

We had a family birthday party a couple of days later, and it was also a very pleasant evening. With cake!



Since his birthday, Sam has been experiencing the wonderful freedom of driving himself. He has my old LeSabre, and the boy has been putting a lot of miles on her. Seems like everyday after school there is something needed to be done in town, and he and Julia have been out and about quite a bit. It still seems weird to me to not have to drop him off at school in the mornings. Weird... but oh so nice. I’m enjoying my freedom, too.

So this is where you will usually find Sam now...

Sammy's zombie knee

Sammy had surgery yesterday to reconstruct his PCL on his left knee. We thought it was a partial tear, but the surgeon, Dr. Kenneth Jurist, told us after Sam's surgery that it was a complete tear. Dr. Jurist used a "donor" ligament to patch Sam's PCL (from a cadaver, so Sam now has his own "zombie knee"!).

We had to be at the hospital (Beaumont Royal Oak) by 8:45am yesterday, so we drove down Thursday and stayed at a Super 8 that gave us a great discount because we're here for a procedure at Beaumont. Sam's surgery was supposed to start at 10:45am, but as usually happens at all medical-related establishments, there was a delay & didn't start until after 12:30pm. The surgeon had planned on 2 hours for Sam's surgery, and it took 2.5 hours. Recovery was expected to take an hour, but that also took longer. It was a lot of time for Kev and I to just sit and wait... and worry, worry, worry.

Because we live so far from Beaumont, Sam was put into an inpatient room, and he stayed overnight. We finally got to see him about 4:30pm or so. Sam was still really tired and sleepy. When Sam began to wake up more, as expected, he did not feel great. But since he hadn't ate anything since the night before, he was very hungry. Feeling sick from meds/anesthesia and from being hungry made for a rough evening for our boy. Just trying to take a pee was An Event. Poor Sammy. He's got a big brace on his leg to immobilize it, and he cannot put any weight on that leg for several weeks (he will be on crutches). Sam was able to eat, but it was a few hours before anything actually remained inside his stomach.

Sam's left foot was also feeling very strange, tingly and numb. Soon after getting into his room, when he was getting more and more awake, he began to not feel it... he couldn't feel his foot but it was strangely kind of vibratingly tingly. Sam hated it. I could touch his toes, and he could kind of feel it, but I think it was more from him watching me touch his toes. The bottom of his foot was feeling dead. I think it really freaked him out... it did me! It was eventually explained to us that they had put a tourniquet on Sam's upper thigh during the surgery to reduce blow flow and, thus, bruising, so the odd and somewhat painful feelings in his foot were just something like his poor foot getting used to receiving blood again... ugh.

Kev was able to stay overnight with Sam in his room, sleeping on a bed that's a chair that pulls out like a sofa bed... only way smaller. So Kev took me back to our hotel room and then returned to Beaumont. That was difficult for me. As the momma, I wanted to stay with my boy. But Sam is a lot more comfortable with his dad helping him on certain matters, and I totally understand. Plus I've been informed that I snore, so Sam probably wouldn't have been able to sleep well if I stayed!

Beaumont is a super nice facility and the folks were all, for the most part, really great. I took a lot of photos and will share more later.

The Super 8 is in Clawson, only about 3 miles from the hospital. There is a nice Benihanna's just down the road from the hotel, and the 3 of us had a great time having dinner there Thursday evening.

So more info & photos later on all that.

While we were in Sam's room during the time right after he arrived, and Sam was still in and out of sleeping, mostly in, we heard a one-sided conversation from the hallway. A nurse was talking to someone about how a mom wanted to move everything up a half-hour for her child, and then the nurse explained how that would move the chemo up, and the 2nd chemo dose... and on and on. I felt a chill, looked at Kev and said "We are so lucky." Kev nodded his head.

It's not a contest except it's totally a contest

Kev usually goes to the "Whitetails Unlimited" dinners with family members and friends. This time around he took Sammy with him.

They all don't go for the dinner. The event is held at a hall and the food is ok, but there is also a silent auction, a live auction and then the best part, the raffles.

My brother-in-law, Bob, the one who usually organizes everyone attending one of these events, or a similar "Ducks Unlimited" dinner, is really freakin' lucky at winning stuff at these dinners. He usually goes home with some kind of rifle, plus a bunch of other stuff.

I know Kev has spent a hundred bucks on raffle tickets at one dinner... and got squat.

But the stuff offered on the auctions is pretty nice. We have several beautiful wildlife-related framed prints on our walls by Kev attending these dinners (and drinking a little too much while he's there, thus the bidding). I do like all the prints very much, but I don't want any more of them... our walls are filled up enough with them right now.

Joyce and I were home together fixing dinner while the boys were out last night, and I told Joycie that if her dad came home with another print, I'd have to skin him alive. Joyce texted Sammy later and relayed my message, which thankfully was in time to stop Kev's bidding on a beautiful Charles Denault print. Not that I wouldn't totally enjoy another Denault print, but we have one (maybe two?) already.

Sammy had a plan for his dad's cash anyway. On the silent auction there was a over-sized folding lawn chair, and the minimum bid was $60. Kev made Sam squirm until the last minute, and then let Sam bid on it. Sam got it. It is the largest lawn chair I've ever seen. Sam set it up in the living room, and we had a lot of laughs over it. Sam kept saying, "I'm so happy." Kev sat in it and was swinging his feet, and Wiley didn't know what to make of that. It came with a canvas case with straps so you can carry it like a backpack, like the usual folding lawn chairs, and Sam had to duck down to get the thing inside through the front door... it sticks up past his head about 3 feet. Crazy big thing!







Then Sam took it up into his bedroom. He told me this morning that the chair feels bigger up there, because his bedroom has a normal ceiling height. Sam said, "It's my redneck throne."

Sam's Sophomore Homecoming Dance

Sam took his friend, Jacy, to the Homecoming this year. We took photos at Jacy's house, then back at our house, then we joined a large group of Sam's friends at one of the girl's grandparents' home.

At Jacy's house:





At our house:









The grandparents' home was a lovely place to take photos... beautiful, large home and grounds. The skies were a bit gray, and it was a bit cool out, but we still got some great photos.













This is my favorite photo of Sam and Jacy - I took it while sitting in the front seat of the car by just holding my camera upside-down and taking a bunch of pics... this one is cute.



After all the photo ops, Sam and Jacy met some more friends at B-Dubs and had dinner, then they all headed to the dance at the high school. The dance was held in the school cafeteria, and since Sam's on Student Council again this year, he got to get up early and help decorate for the dance. After the dance was over at 11pm, Sam went to an after-party at his friend Zack's house, then overnight at Nate's. Sam got home around noon on Sunday, and took a nice, long nap in the afternoon! He and Jacy both had fun.

I'll give you one hint, honey, you sure did put on a show

This morning on the way into work I saw 2 Budweiser semi-trucks. Great big red ones. I called my husband. Since Kev left for work a little bit earlier than I did, he saw only 1 of them. I told him the universe had sent us a sign. It wanted us to stay home from work today and drink Bud. We should obey. But... sadly, he didn't buy it.

I haven't had beer in a while, but I had a few this past Saturday evening. An ice cold beer on a hot muggy evening was very nice. Several were even nicer. Ryan and Megan, two awesome CMU students who were working at the pottery studio, were putting on a wood fire. Ryan had built the wood fire kiln, etc. outside behind the studio building, so we took our lawn chairs and watched them work. And oh my heck, what a great amount of work those 2 did. I took some really cool pictures and will do a post on that.

After we got home, even though it was quite late (for me) and waaaaay past my usual bedtime, I was wide awake. Sammy, Kev and I, and Wiley, ended up watching some TV. We watched a recorded episode of "Royal Pains", the "Comfort's Overrated" episode. This one had a guy who did a "Mac Truck" business, and he sold mac & cheese with lobster out of his truck. It was a good episode, and we like that show.

Kev and Wiley fell asleep together on the sofa. Sammy and I were still wide awake... so we did the best we could with what we had... no mac & cheese with lobster (man! that looked really good on the show, and I'm sure this recipe from Barefoot Contessa would be close or even better!), but we did make Tuna Helper Creamy Broccoli... at about midnight! The box said it would serve 4, but Sam and I split it while watching the latest episode of "Persons Unknown". And though I've heard that show has had some bad reviews, Sammy and I really are enjoying it. It's weird. We're big fans of weird.

I've been trying to listen to the radio station that Sam likes, 102.5. I usually can't stand most of the songs, but there are couple that are ok. Which is a good thing because every single time I turned to 102.5 I hear one of the 2 songs... one about "you think you're cooler than me" and one about "Alonso Fernando". Seriously, I think 102.5 has those 2 songs on a constant repeat, kinda like the French language distress message on "Lost"... over and over. And over.

I listened to 102.5, heard the "you think you're cooler than me", switched over to an "oldies rock 'n roll" station to hear the Stones "Under My Thumb", which would have to be the antithesis song to the 102.5... followed by the most awesome Billy Joel and his song, "Big Shot"... ah, the irony.

If you like pina coladas

Many are the events going on...

Joyce finished her Junior year at CMU and her summer classes she took, and she got a co-op job at Dow Corning, so she is doing super good. She also bought a motorcycle. More on that later...

Mike's taking summer classes, too, which keep him busy first thing every morning, and he was fortunate to get a job working 2nd shift, so it accommodates his class schedule, though it is kind of a crappy job. But it is a job. A JOB. Times are pretty tough; we're a lucky family in that both Joyce and Mike found jobs. Whew.

Sammy got done with his Freshman year in high school and immediately started a 2-week basketball camp. Third day in, he was tripped up at a scrimmage and hurt his knee. Partial tear of his PCL. Yes, I said PCL, not ACL. It is AWFUL. Sam's in physical therapy 3 times per week now, and we go back to see the orthopedic surgeon in 3 weeks. The doc said that for Sam to have done that injury, it was like several things had to be just in the right (er, wrong) place and timing... kinda like a Perfect Storm. It isn't a common sports injury, particularly in high school, more commonly seen in things like car accidents. Sam is pretty darn strong and determined, so we will see what the future brings. All we can do. And pray. A LOT.

I took Monday off from work and had a dental appt at 7:30 am to get my permanent bridge put in. I now have a bridge in my mouth! Tolls, please. So anyway, Sam and I spent the day together and I let him drive most all day long. Made him drive to Goodwill and Salvation Army stores in Bay City, and I found a Coach purse for six bucks! Score!

At one point, around lunchtime, Sam asked if I had seen that truck. What truck?, says I. He had seen a big pickup that had the company name "External Landscaping" on it, which cracked us both up. What a dumb name for a landscaping company, ha ha! And then about a half hour later, we saw the same truck again... I said, "Sam, that reads Eternal Landscaping." Oh. What's eternal? Sam asked. Really, his vocabulary kinda sucks. I think mine was better at age 9 than his is now. Oy. (And Sam gets pretty much straight A's! Well, except for that B+ in Wood Shop his last semester. Wood Shop. The teacher gave him a so-so grade for the most beautiful and creative wooden bowl I've ever seen. Photos sometime soon. Boo hiss wood shop.)

What was Sammy driving on Monday you ask? Well... this, my new old car:



She's a 1999... here's a hint...



Yep!



a...



and she's a pretty thing. Loaded with way too many options. The owner's manual is leather bound and it came with a VHS instructional tape! Only about 80,000 miles on her, too. Darn good for a '99. Beautiful condition and runs great. Especially now since I had to put a new radiator in her... she is pretty...



I'm happy. But for some reason, whenever I'm in her, I feel a strange urge to drive straight to the casino. Hmmm...

Sammy will get his driver's license early in November, and we all are looking forward to that happy event. He will be driving my old Le Sabre, and he didn't seem to be as appreciative as he should be, at first, but he is now. Much preferable to walking. Especially since we live about a 25-minute drive to the high school.

I got this email from my BFF, Sandy, the other morning:

My tire yesterday at 7 a.m.



Kinda makes your day seem a little better, huh?! Poor Sandy.

It has been so hot and humid here in mid-Michigan lately that I have wanted to move way northward. Ugh. Everything is growing like CRAZY. My sisters are harvesting garden treasures already... this, the year we decided not to plant a vegetable garden coz we're all too busy.

I've been totally fasinated with the ditch along our road, though. The plants and the bugs. The weeds and wild flowers are all like a month ahead of schedule. I'm lovin' the bugs. Like this one...



which is a Phantom Crane Fly in flight. (Discovered what it is called due to the Googling diligence of my friend, Megan, from the pottery studio.) And oh, baby, I have plenty more photos from where that came from! Bug close-ups, lots and lots of bug close-ups.

Thankfully the last couple of evenings have been very nice and cool. I love me a cool summer evening. I drove home yesterday with the air off in the car, all the windows down, my hair up in a crazy pony-tail like I was Pebbles Flintstone or something, radio screaming loud and weaving my hand out the window up and down in the wind. Bliss. Singing along with the radio at the top of my lungs to the Beatles' Twist and Shout, "You know you twist so fine!"... But, unfortunately, what's stuck in my head is...
If you like pina coladas and getting caught in the rain,
If you're not into yoga, if you have half a brain...

And... Reilly

After I decided that I wanted to be more consistent in creating posts on my blog, I've not hardly blogged at all. A lot of things have happened in the past 3 months... awful things and wonderful things.

A good friend's father died quite unexpectedly. His name was Ron and he was grampa to one of Sammy's good friends, Zack. Through the years, Sam became close to Ron because Ron was always around, at all the sporting events, picking Sam up with Zack before or after practice, taking them somewhere fun, like Taco Bell. Ron was a good, sweet man, and I wish deeply that he was still here with all of us.

My brother-in-law, Bob's, father died also. His name was Roy, and Roy was another good, sweet man. Roy had been ill for quite some time, and since he was suffering so much at the end, his passing was a blessing. Or so the common opinion would go, and it makes sense. But I still wish Roy were here, too.

An aunt, Aunt Marguerite, who has been through so much lately, the past couple of years, had to have a double mastectomy. So far, she's doing pretty ok.

My Momma, who has been not feeling quite right for a couple of years, finally had heart surgery, a triple bypass. She needed it, and we could have lost her at any time. It makes me feel ill and dizzy just thinking about how close it was. And, in my Mom's usual style, she is doing so well. My Mom is the strongest and most wonderful woman I know & have ever known.

Joyce made the Dean’s List this past semester at CMU, the start of her Junior year. And she’s figured out that she may be able to graduate early, after the first semester of her Senior year. Joyce has worked so hard at her classes, taking extra during summertime. We are so proud of her. Unfortunately, the full-time job horizon looks bleak, and I worry she may have to settle for a job that sucks, until she can get one in her chosen field.

Sammy is a Freshman in high school this year, the first year our high school switched to trimesters. Sam’s getting all A’s, and working hard to do so. He’s enjoying the trimester schedule. But, like so many Michigan school districts… heck, school districts everywhere, the money isn’t there, so budget cuts are deep. Back to semesters next year, with less class options, and less teachers, less staff, less everything.

And, my best friend, Sandy, came up from Texas and surprised the heck outta me! She had a short visit, and I got to spend Saturday with her. It was awesome. Joycie & Mike made a super excellent Mexican dinner for us all. It was so good to see Sandy.

And also, back in December, our dog, Reilly, started acting oddly. No energy, and eventually no tail-wagging hardly at all. He was ill, and we thought it had to do with the surgery he had in October, and with the pain pills we kept trying to get right for him. Then on January 9th, Reilly became very ill. The symptoms he was having, with the problems he had following surgery, were disguised... Reilly died on April 13th from Addison's Disease. I don't have the words to express how much I miss him daily. I know that sounds crazy, given all the events I've described above... he was just a dog. Right?. Not to me, not to us. Reilly was part of our family. I loved him so much. And he loved us. I will miss Reilly forever.

Reilly
April 10, 2003 - January 13, 2010