7/25 A BEAUTIFUL video--made me cry

Once upon a time, two friends, John and Ace, adopted a lion cub who was later named Christian. They played with the little guy, exercised him and loved him like family, but eventually, Christian grew up to be too large to care for and his keepers were forced to give the cub up and reintroduce him to the African wild. A year later, when John and Ace went to visit Christian in his natural habitat, they were warned he would no longer remember them, for now he was wild. Check out the moving reunion (and how hot the hairstyles were back in the '70s)!

5/10 Happy wedding day!

I'm sitting at a Bed and Breakfast in Henderson KY with my friends. We're watching Soulja Boy (because I tried dancing it tonight at the reception) and an ultimate belly flop contest that was held at my friend Debbie's house and watched Miss Teen South Carolina's silly silly answer on you tube and Jimmy Kimmel's rebuttal of it. Oh my I've laughed so hard.

Lou and Bill's wedding was perfect and the reception was so much fun. We all love this B & B too. It was great being with friends and I'll miss them, but it will be good to be home again. It'll be another 5 1/2 hour drive, but it'll probably go fast.

Bedtime for bonzo.

5/7 Ugh, yay, and yay

The ugh is that the offer fell through. The guy didn't respond to my counteroffer because of an unexpected expense that he encountered. Shoot.

The first yay is that my sister-in-law Karen sent me tons of books, for grades K through 4. I will definitely put them to good use, Karen. Thanks.

The second yay is that Jill and kids may be coming to visit in October. I guess it's during school break. I am ecstatic. They just need to find some good ticket prices. And I'm confident that will happen.

Oh, and a mini-yay. I was worried about a huge expense that might happen, but it turns out that I worried for nothing. I called my friend Lou in Kentucky and told her I couldn't make the wedding this weekend in Kentucky because I couldn't justify the expense. She said the room at the B&B was already paid for, all the food was free, and all I'd be paying for is gas. She's so smart. She convinced me. And I'm glad, because I'll see several more of my friends there--some I just saw in CA. I'm looking forward to it and it's only a 5 hour drive or so.

The bad thing is that my family is having a yard sale at my house while I'm gone. Wish I could be there to help. And Jan, Jane, Kris, Deb, etc., I'm trying to get my lawn mowed before Saturday. I promise.

4/29 Home at last

It's wonderful sitting here with my two dogs at my feet. Snoring. Yep. They are both so tired from being at Alpha Dog for five days. I'm just glad to be here with them.

But I definitely miss the SoCal lifestyle. It was such a wonderful weekend. And my friends are the best! Plus, what an added treat to get to spend time with Jill, Kayla, and Hunter. I am indeed a lucky bug.

The weekend was a delight from start to finish. And flying home from California I sat next to a woman who currently lives in Bangladore, India with her husband. She asked me where I lived and I said, Illinois. She said, Not Quincy by any chance?

My jaw dropped. She and her family lived here for 8 or 9 years in the 80s. She loved reminiscing about the city, and said she still missed it. What a neat coincidence.

Work was a little slower today so I was able to get some of my paperwork done. Whew, what a relief.

And Pete gets to go home from the hospital on Friday. Another relief.

4/26 Another great day in SoCal

Am in my hotel room with Jill, Kayla, and Hunter. Told Bruce that only my family could trump his performance. :)

Had a great morning with Suzanne and Debbie going to several yard sales throughout Newport Beach and Costa Mesa. Then Nancie and I went for a bonding experience--manicures and pedicures. We then met up with the gang at the Balboa Pier where we ate at Ruby's Diner, a divine greasy spot of heaven. Yum.

Then our boat ride for 90 minutes throughout the harbor. We saw tons of sea lions and tons of famous people's homes or former homes. It was a delightful time. Robbie called me while I was on the boat. We couldn't talk long because it was too loud where I was. And my friends and I all got temporary frog tattoos on the pier. Rob (Hutch's son) got his right on his forehead. How fun!

Following that we went to Torin's beach house. Oh, my what a beautiful spot. And he's such a nice guy. Deb and I went to put the enchiladas in the oven and discovered there was no oven. We called Joanne who called Torin. It just so happened he was upstairs in the family's part of the beach house and he graciously allowed us to use his oven. His daughter Tiana was there and we became fast friends. After my grandkids arrived they all played together. And Bruce's Shannon's kids are adorable....I especially love Kenzie. Kayla said Kenzie was "so cool, Grandma." She played so well with the little ones, watching them and keeping them safe on the beach.

Debbie's enchiladas were excellent. As was Hutch's wine tasting. Yum. I only got to sample two kinds, but they were so tasty. Lisa did a quiz again and will hand out the prizes tomorrow at Ruth's house.

Most everyone is at Bruce's performance. I am sorry to be missing it--he is SO GOOD. But as I said, time with Jill and the kids trumps just about everything. We're watching the movie Happy Feet, with happy hearts.

4/25 What a fun day

I got up at 1:30 AM pacific time, so I'm really winding down fast. My friend Debbie picked me up around 10:45 AM. By the time we got to Newport Beach it was lunchtime. We couldn't find any of our friends so we found a fun spot near the beach and had some great salads. Then we went back to the hotel and up to the sun roof while waiting for my room to get ready. The hotel is a boutique hotel. Rather small and old, and entirely delightful. We went to Joanne's son's beach house which is FANTASTIC and right on the beach. Tomorrow night Debbie is making dinner for all of us there. Jill and the kids will join us then and I'll be thrilled.

Friends joined us and we played games on the sun roof. It was really fun. We all went to our "meeting suite" as well, and caught up on each other's lives.

Tonight we went to the crab cooker for dinner. Absolutely nothing for vegetarians, except a few sides--romano potatoes, cole slaw, and sliced tomatoes. It made a surprisingly good dinner. Everyone else supped on various kinds of seafood.

Then back to the suite where we chatted and drank.

Tomorrow morning early, Debbie, Suzanne, and I are going to some upscale yard sales. Then, Nancie and I are going for pedicures. After that we'll all meet for lunch on the pier at Ruby's, followed by a boat tour. Finally to the beach house for dinner and fun. Jill and the kids are staying over with me at the hotel, and I can't wait.

The weather here is perfect, and the view is even better. More tomorrow.

4/24 In St. Louis

I arrived a short while ago. My flight leaves at 6 AM, so I'll need to get to the airport by 4:30. That's why I'm in St. Louis tonight instead of Quincy.

Jill called tonight, and so did my friend Debbie. I can't wait to see Jill and the kids on Saturday. And Debbie will pick me up at the airport tomorrow morning. I'll be with my writer friends in Orange County until Monday morning (early). I'm sure hoping for a relaxing weekend.

Now that I'm out of Quincy I can start complaining again about my bursitis or sciatica or whatever the hell it is. My right leg felt almost paralyzed when I tried to walk after driving for two hours. I want this shit to end. Okay, I'm done.

Pete is in rehab now. I bet he can't wait until he gets home.

3/21 New home, same blog

Have to hurry. I'm signed on to a neighbor's wireless. Don't know who. Can't connect to Joe's across the street, so I'm "borrowing" someone else's. Can't get my own to work at the moment. Will try again tomorrow.

The trip up here took less than 14 hours, and that's with a 90 minute stop at a vet's in Jackson, MS. The dogs were very anxious and uncomfortable so we got them sedated a bit. They were out like lights. And it made the trip easier on all of us.

When Genia and I (and two very groggy dogs) got here there were so many wonderful surprises waiting for us. More about that tomorrow.

For now--all my stuff was delivered and we are safely ensconced in our new home. The dogs are not used to all the traffic. We lived in a very quiet area, plus they had the privacy fence. Here it's very noisy--close to a busy street with a gas station across the back alley. The dogs won't even go to the bathroom. Yikes.

More tomorrow.

3/18 On the truck

Everything is out of my house. Everything, that is, except the tons of dog hair left behind. Oh my. And to my embarrassment, there's plenty of dog hair being transported to Quincy too.

But the wonderful news is that my stuff will be delivered on Friday. Yes, this Friday. My shipment was last on, first off of this truck. I'm beyond pleased. This means I won't have to take a day off from work without pay in order to be there for the delivery. The cable guy is coming Friday too. Other than having a huge mess, I should be good to go. The phone is already turned on, and I'm calling water and electricity tomorrow to get them in my name. Got a text message from my niece Kris today with the necessary phone numbers.

Things are progressing. And I'm anxious to get going. It's going to be hard to leave here, but I can't wait for the next chapter to begin.

2/29 Wow, busy, busy

Didn't blog yesterday because I spent the night at the Beau Rivage Casino and Resort. Was on the planning committee, and also a presenter, for a conference we held today. And they ended up having an extra pre-paid hotel room from someone that didn't show up. So Genia and I took it. What a fancy, schmancy hotel. I loved it. The bathroom had a huge shower surrounded by clear glass. And also a gigantic soaker tub. It was great.

Today the conference went so very well. My presentation seemed to be well-received. Genia was awesome in hers. So we felt pretty darn good. About 300 people were there. Nice group full of committed disaster workers.

Tonight Genia had a party at her place. We played Cranium and I laughed so hard I snorted.

Just got home. Tomorrow morning I pick up my dogs. Sure miss them. Lots to do this weekend.

2/25 Some things are done

Well, I'm having the movers pack me. The price was right. They're packing on the 17th and loading on the 18th. I'll stay at my friend Caroline's house from the 17th until the 20th. Then the puppies and I will take off.

Elliptical guy has to return during the first week of March to install a new motor.

Paint guy didn't work out. Have to find another one.

Realtor was awesome, but I knew that. She's the one I used when I bought this house.

Floor guy will be here at 5:30 and friends will be here at 7 to play cards. Two of them have to work tomorrow night so we switched our card playing to tonight.

Guess that's it for now. Lots to do. Have to file a homestead exemption. Forgot to do that. It will help the next owner on their taxes.

Then there's my actual job. :) Guess I have to keep working.

Something cool happened though. I got interviewed last week by the local TV station--I think I wrote about that. Well, the reason I got interviewed is because I asked a question of the main speaker at another conference last week, and I invited him to a conference this weekMississippi Gulf Coast. Well, the bigwig is actually going to show up. Chutzpah pays sometimes.

2/23 Trying to clean

It's not easy with two "helpers." Now they're outside in the mud, and I'll have to clean them off. But they sure amuse me.

I put a baby gate in the hallway so that when I get the living room cleaned it will stay clean for a few days, but little Cookie jumps over it as easily as if she were walking. I had tried using two kitchen chairs. They worked for Q but Cookie crawled through the legs. So after the baby gate didn't work I put kitchen chairs in front of it. Cookie still jumped it. She's something. I'm afraid I'll have to put a six foot privacy fence around Kris's yard because Cookie will be able to jump over the small fence on the west side. Oh well, that's what you get with big dogs.

They're both worth it. (Since I wrote that I've given Q her first bath of the day. Can't wait until the grass grows back. Here it not only dies in the winter, it disappears. Now it's starting to show again because it's been so warm. But there's still more mud than grass.)

Tonight Genia and I are going to see Definitely, Maybe. I love Ryan Reynolds, and Abigail Breslin too. Caroline is in New Orleans with her Mom for the weekend, so Genia and I will have to eat popcorn alone.

2/22 75 degrees and storming

It's a waste of a perfectly fine day. Seventy-five degrees--that's my perfect temperature. But it's storming. Tomorrow and Sunday will be either sunny or partly sunny, but only 65 degrees. I shouldn't complain since my family is still in the throes of winter.

Because of the rain the last several days Quincy has gotten lots of baths. She loves the baths as much as she loves rolling in the mud. Cookie isn't a bath fan, but will jump in the tub just because I tell her to. She's a good girl, but still kind of skittish about things. Luckily she loves people as much as Quincy does, so I never have to worry about that. Plus she's a great "early warning system" when people are coming to the door.

So much to do to get ready for the move, but that will make the time fly. Of course, I don't want it to fly too much because there's not much time yet. I sure hope I'm able to get everything done. I'd given notice that my last day of work would be 3/21, but found out that's Good Friday, so it's holiday here since we're a faith-based organization. So that will give me an extra day to get home. I can leave early that Friday morning and arrive in Quincy 12-15 hours later. Both dogs are good travelers, but Cookie hasn't traveled more than an hour or so at one time. I've got my fingers crossed. I've asked either Caroline or Genia if they want to drive with me, to help with the pups. That way they can meet "the family" up close.

We're having a case management summit at the Beau Rivage Resort and Casino next Friday. I'm going to do a small part of the presentation, and I'm stoked about it. Should be a good conference.

Quincy's graduation from dog training is next Thursday. Unfortunately she and I can't be there. I'm going to be spending the night at the Hard Rock Casino with Caroline and Genia, because C got a $59 rate. It's the night before the conference. I'm having a private training for an hour for Cookie. She's a well behaved dog except on the leash. She pulls more than any dog I've ever had. It's almost like a compulsion to be somewhere. Poor thing. She pulls so hard that her belly almost touches the ground. It's hard on me too, so I'm hoping Erika (the trainer) can do some magic.

2/18 Home again

Yesterday it rained most of the day. The wind blew and we had tornado watches all day until 8 PM. But we had a short period of time when it was nice, so we walked along the beach and picked up shells for Genia.

The rest of the day we played cards, read, slept, and ate. All in all a perfect day. Yeah. I needed relaxation, and yesterday filled the bill.

We left Florida around 9 AM because I wanted to be at work by noon or so.

It was a near-perfect weekend. I'm so grateful to Caroline and her aunt. What a beautiful home, and Aunt Webbie is a beautiful lady.

But I'm glad to be home, with doggies all over me. It feels good.

Pictures later.

2/14 On TV again

I was interviewed today by WLOX-TV during the conference. A small part of the interview was on the news tonight. It should be on their website tomorrow, and I'll post the url.

The conference is good, and I'm learning. But it's really hard for me not to feel incredibly sad. The need is still there--all over the place--but the money isn't. What are these people going to do when many not-for-profits close? It's rough and it's going to be rougher.

Tonight at dinner I was asked to give the blessing, so I sat at the head table next to my young friend, Jay. After the meal I thanked him for being my Valentine's date.

Tomorrow the conference ends in the early afternoon, then Caroline, Genia, and I are off for Florida. Hooray!

2/14 Valentine's Day

I received a valentine card today. Surprised me. Very sweet. Also got an email from a former beau.

Anyway, today and tomorrow I'm going to a conference--MSVOAD (Mississippi Voluntary Agencies Active in Disaster). It'll be informative and also enjoyable since all my friends are going. Yay for that. After the conference ends tomorrow Caroline, Genia,and I are going to Florida for the weekend. It will be a cheap trip too, as we're staying at Caroline's aunt's condo--right on the beach. The bad news is that rain is forecast for the whole weekend. That's okay because the weekend is all about relaxing, and that's what the three of us need. I'm really looking forward to it.

Then back home to work on program closure and the all-important job hunting. I'm still hopeful about Numero Uno, but received a no-thank you letter from the hospital back home. It makes sense though, because it was for hospice and I don't have any experience in that area.

One thing about Numero Uno that really excites me is that besides outpatient counseling, I would be on call for crisis work at the emergency department of the hospital for individuals with mental health needs. This is right up my alley because of my experience with behavioral health in St. Louis, and of course my crisis and disaster work. I've decided I can live on the salary negotiated, even though it's about 58% of what I make now. It will be hard, but I can do it. Plus they pay a productivity bonus,and I'd work hard to earn that.

Guess you can tell I'm kind of psyched about moving home. I absolutely hate leaving here, I love the place and have such great friends. But I miss my family terribly. More later on old-lady angst.

2/10 A near-perfect day, continued

Mass was wonderful today. A new member of the choir--a man in his 80s--sang Amazing Grace as a solo. It was moving and beautiful. Then I found out I was going to have a solo. I was excited and nervous. But it went really well (thank you, God), and several people stopped me after church to tell me how much they liked it. It was really humbling though, because there are so many beautiful voices in the choir.

Okay, back to yesterday. Genia joined us at Hard Rock. Originally we just wanted to sit on their patio and enjoy the perfect day. But we noticed the pool was just down a set of stairs. So we ended up at a table by the pool, surrounded by palm trees and very close to the Gulf. What a location!

We sat and chatted for quite a while, and enjoyed our Starbucks.

Rosemary and Lorena then left (Lorena is young and has a--gasp--boyfriend, so she had to go meet him).

Genia, Caroline, and I stayed at the Hard Rock. Genia and Caroline won and I, of course, lost.

Then the three of us went to Genia's and played cards, ate pizza, and watched the original War of the Worlds.

I got home around 11:30 and slept like a baby.

See why it was a near-perfect day?

Adding some pictures:


Above is Lorena.

Below is Caroline.

And this one is of me and Rosemary.

2/10 A near-perfect day

Yesterday was wonderful. It started with a relaxed morning playing with my dogs. Then I took them to the kennel to stay overnight. I wanted to spend the day doing things with my friends and I knew I wouldn't be home until late. It was cool, and my guilt was relieved, when we got there. Two of Q and C's playmates were there and were spending the night too. Maya is a beautiful Weimereiner, and I forgot the other one's name but she's a combination of a yellow lab and a pit bull. She's quite lovely and very friendly. So the four "girls" were going to have a slumber party.

So that freed me up to have a day out with friends. Caroline and I went to the driving range and it was great. It had been a while since I had my golf clubs out. It felt good to be doing it, and I look forward to playing golf with her.

Then she and I met up with Lorena and Rosemary at the Vietnamese Seven Martyrs Catholic Church for a Vietnamese festival, celebrating their new year. Oh my, we ate so much food. I had a vegetarian soup with noodles and vegetables. These huge piles of vegetables came on the side and I added them bit by bit and savored every morsel. The others were able to share their dishes and seemed to enjoy everything. Rosemary then ordered three desserts that we all sampled. Interesting and very different. Fried bananas (yum), a sesame seed encrusted bean paste (very good), and a pudding-like substance with four different kind of potatoes in it (I didn't like this one).

Also there--a sight to behold. A Vietnamese priest sang. He got up with a microphone and really got into. Found out afterward that he was selling his CDs there as well. Wonder if he was a performer prior to entering the priesthood, or if he still did this. The pictures on the CDs didn't show him in his Roman collar.

It was such a beautiful day that we didn't want to go home yet, so we went to the Hard Rock Cafe to sit outside and have coffee. Oh my, it was absolutely lovely.

Okay, have to get ready for church, so I'll finish this post when I return.

1/27 Oops, skipped yesterday

Had some friends over last night to play dominoes and cards. We played from 7 until around 11, and I had a great time. Cleaned the house for company and then had to give Cookie one bath and Quincy three because of the mud outside. It's rained for days.

Then today Quincy walks into the house and looked the same color as Cookie. So of course that required a mega-bath. And that's about the most energy I expended all day. Decided to take the day off from thinking and/or working. It's been great. I slept for more than two hours this afternoon. A slice of heaven.

Back to the grind tomorrow, but in the meantime this feels good.

12/24 Achoo

My eyes are watering and my nose is running. Nope I'm not sick. It's just that a certain cat slept on my face for a while. It happened this way...

At 6 AM I got up to goo to the bathroom and Dr. Tran kept putting her paws under the bathroom door and crying. I let her come back to my room with me. She climbed on my bed and sat on my face. Just as happy as she could be. I moved her, but she ended up sleeping on my cheek. And she purred so loudly that I couldn't go back to sleep. So here it is Christmas Eve and I couldn't even sleep in. Fine with me though, because I love that little kitten.

Yesterday was another good day. We left at 12:30 to go to Linda's house for Sunday dinner. Tom, Catherine, and Judy were there--everyone from when I lived here. And Linda's son and daughter-in-law, Jason and Christy, were visiting. The food was tasty and the company was fun. I really enjoyed meeting Jason and Christy. They have two dogs--a yellow lab and a Newfoundland. They foster dogs for two rescue organizations, and the Newfie was a rescue that no one wanted. They said he's just a perfect dog though.

Their lab Rocky does what's called "dock jumping." It's a contest where the dog jumps off a dock after a toy, and the distance covered is measured. I'd never heard of it but Rob said I can catch it on ESPN 2. I know that Quincy would love it, the way she feels about water. Cookie is so dainty when it comes to getting wet or dirty, that she wouldn't go for it at all.

After the get-together, Rob, Beata and I went to the Airborne and Special Operations Museum in Fayetteville. It was quite interesting and covered the beginning of Special Ops (the OSS during World War II) up trhough current times. We also saw a few movies, one was made like a ride where the chairs go up in the air, vibrate, and it's like you are actually experiencing what's on the screen. It was a good afternoon.

We got home around 7:30 or so--after Rob and I went grocery shopping. We have all the food we need for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, so Rob and I don't have to leave the house today. Yay.

Poor Beata has to work. I'll be napping, trying to make up for the early rising caused by the nefarious Dr. Tran.


Catherine and I at Linda's house


Me, Beata, Tom, Judy, and Linda


Rob and Judy


Beata and I at the Airborne and Special Operations Museum

12/23 Another wonderful day

We had fun yesterday and hardly left the house. Rob and I played games most of the day, including online poker. And we played lots of cards, especially Spite and Malice.

Beata had to work from 11-7, so we went to Maurice's so I could buy a pair of jeans. Beatka is a great salesperson. I left with five items--jeans, shirt, camisole, necklace, and earrings. And no buyer's remorse.

I made dinner. At Rob's request I made sloppy joes. Yeah, a real gourmet meal. Made some vegetarian sloppy joes too. We stayed up until after midnight playing poker.

And I didn't wake up until 9:30 this morning. Can't believe I slept 9 hours.

12/15 No more anonymous

No more anonymous comments for me! I turned on the new Blogger feature where anyone with an "Open ID" blog ID (from Blogger, AOL, Wordpress, etc.) can leave a comment. And anyone with a Google or Yahoo ID can leave one too. So if you have a blog identity anywhere, or you have a gmail address you can leave a comment.

Please don't let this stop you from leaving a comment. It's quite easy to register. This is one way I can stop spam comments without having folks go through the confirmation process of trying to figure out what the heck those letters and numbers are.

I've been wrapping presents to take to NC and to Quincy. And also a few to take to a gift exchange at Caroline's tomorrow night.

Soon I need to get the dogs out for their walks, but right now they're both sleeping, so maybe it would be a good idea for me to lie down too!

12/14 Meetings

Spent all day, yes all day, in meetings. Luckily the ones from 10-4 were in a building one block from the water with an unobstructed view, so I was able to do some dynamite daydreaming. One week from today I'll be in NC with Rob, Beata, and the zoo. Can't wait.

But I already feel guilty about leaving my pups for so long. As I sit here in my office they are both asleep at my feet. Just like kids they are so cute when they are asleep.

Tomorrow night I have a Christmas party at Genia's and Sunday night there's a gift exchange with my card playing buddies at Caroline's. Monday night will be the only night I'll have free after tonight. Guess that'll be a gonzo laundry and packing night.

12/10 Summertime

That's what it felt like. It was nearly 80 and after the early morning fog lifted it was so clear you could see forever. Driving along Beach Boulevard all the way to Bay St. Louis was an even bigger treat than usual.

And when I got to the funders' table at the Long Term Recovery Committee it was rewarding when my company was the only one that could pay for a certain item. It was only $300, but no one else was authorized to purchase it. It was the high point of my day.

Tomorrow is a Christmas party at Camp Biloxi. Everyone's bringing a gift and we're playing Dirty Santa. (Sounds naughty, huh?) But it just means that you can take a gift that someone else has already chosen.

Then tomorrow night it's cards at Caroline's. That's always fun.

12/8 It's those days....

Yesterday was my brother John's birthday. Today is my brother Joe's birthday. Tomorrow is my brother Jay's birthday, and my son-in-law Todd's birthday, and my ex-husband's birthday.

Here's a general HAPPY BIRTHDAY to all!!!

Genia came over tonight and helped me wrap presents. Sorry, guys, they weren't birthday presents.

Time's passing so quickly....

(Oh, it was 80 today, and will be in the 60s overnight. Not too shabby.)

11/24 It's really Sunday

What fun we've had. Today we drove around and enjoyed each other's company. I showed Rob all the devastation from Ocean Springs to Waveland, and he is angry that our country doesn't realize all the work yet to be done. But we managed to have fun despite the storm's ravages.

After the drive we went to High Cotton to eat. I had my usual friend green tomatoes and Rob enjoyed a seafood platter. We went to Lowe's afterward and got stuff to work on the house. Then we re-cleaned the place and my friends came over at 7 to play games and cards. They just left. And it's actually Sunday instead of Saturday. They loved Rob and he loved them, so it was a successful evening. And both Quincy and Cookie were so well behaved.

Tomorrow we're putting up my Christmas tree and cleaning out my office. He's also going to put down some boards in my attic so I can store things there. Lots to do tomorrow and we'll celebrate our good work by going to the Beau Rivage for the seafood buffet tomorrow night. Should be another wonderful day.

Rob is super, and it's such a pleasure having him here.

11/22 Happy Thanksgiving!

So far it's a quiet day. Just talked to Jill for a few minutes. They're expecting lots of folks from her Dad's side of the family. There will be nine people and two dogs. Quite a crowd.

I'm going to Genia's today for dinner at 3. Should be fun. I'm taking Grandma's Holiday Salad and a sweet potato casserole.

Still lots of work to do here at home to prepare for Rob's arrival tomorrow. But unfortunately the barometer is dropping and I have a splitting headache. Hope it goes away soon.

In the meantime my dogs and I are napping. That's what holidays are for--that and overindulgence in the food department.

11/20 My big news!

(Rob, the day I picked out Quincy--when she was 10 days old.)

Rob is going to visit me from Friday until Monday. I'm so excited. Not only will I get to see my wonderful son, but he's going to do some chores around my house--saving me some money.

A huge thank you to Beata for loaning him to me. Unfortunately she has to work (drat that retail job!), so she can't come too. I'm going to miss her but it will be super to have my son here.

Saturday night I've invited over my card playing friends to play games becasue I wanted them to meet Rob.

Can't wait.

11/17 Word games

(The dogs earlier today. They seldom walk on the floor--they just go from furniture piece to furniture piece.)


Just got home from Genia's. We played two games I brought back from my Words weekend in New York. Everyone had fun--Genia, Caroline, Lorena, Cindy, and me. And everyone did well; we took turns winning which is always nice. :)

I left my puppies for 4 1/2 hours, and they did super. Eli walked them tonight so they were tired, which I appreciated. Of course they are wide awake now, so I'll have to stay up for a while. Maybe I'll play some online poker....

Tomorrow I have to clean the house plus have a few hours of work-work to do. So I can sleep in a little if I need to. (And by the looks of the dogs' energy levels right now, I may have to catch up on sleep tomorrow, because it doesn't look good for tonight.)

11/12 Home with some tired puppies

Quincy and Cookie have been asleep for hours already. Apparently they played really hard while I was gone--there were four other labs there over the weekend. So they had lots of big dogs to play with.

I got home around 5:30 with the dogs, and it felt good to come home.

The weekend was great though. It was so worth the money it costs. The presenters were so wonderful, witty, and downright funny. I especially enjoyed Bob Mankoff, the cartoon editor for The New Yorker, and Ira Glass, from This American Life on PBS and Showtime. They were both funny in person as well, and so nice. I got to talk to both of them, but spent more time with Bob, because his wife Corey and I hit it off, and we spent time chatting.

And it was great spending time with my friends Gloria, Larry, and David. Gloria was part of the program so I didn't get to see her as much as I would have liked. DF and I had fun together. It's always good to spend time with good friends.

I especially enjoyed that a few other participants thought we were married. It sure made us laugh!

Now, it's back to my regular life--must go to work tomorrow.

11/11 It's quiet now

All my friends and acquaintances are gone. But that's okay. I can use the quiet. It's been quite a weekend.

Yesterday our speakers were superb--Bob Mankoff, the cartoon editor for the New Yorker had us guffawing with his presentation on humor, especially cartoon humor. He and his wife Cory are really nice. I spent some time with Cory, just chatting. She was interested in the work I'm involved in.

A woman named Sue (I forgot her last name) spoke about gestures, and everyone had fun with that.

In the afternoon we played board games. I won at our table and got to take the game home. It's called Word Sweep and is so much fun. My fear is that no one will want to play it with me, except Rob. It's a great game though, and won't be re-gifted since I want to keep it. :)

The meals were all great and we got to choose from the buffet or order off the menu. I sure ate too much, and there were always several desserts to sample, including the chocolate fountain.

After dinner Greg Pliska had us running all over this huge, old hotel for a treasure hunt. You had to solve some very challenging puzzles to find the answers. My team came in 14th out of 24 (only 19 were able to completely finish). I attribute our late showing to the fact that we were the old codgers. David (my friend who often comments here), Joe (a friend of friends), and Jane and John Williams (he's the executive director of the National Scrabble Association and she is a vice president and someone I'm happy to call my friend). Jane ended up not feeling well, so it was the three guys and I. We had a lot of stressful fun competing. Wish we'd done better, but I was just so damn proud we finished. It was really difficult, and went from about 9:15 PM until after midnight.

During the day I was interviewed by a couple (Jennifer and Matthew) who are doing a documentary called Jokes My Grandma Told Me. They were basically interested in family humor. So I had a lot to tell them. :) They are interviewing a lot of people, and it was fun. Made me miss my siblings though.

Then about 20 of us stayed up late playing word games. I made it until after 2 AM and am proud of myself for keeping up. David and Dave (a great guy from Madison, WI) played until 4 AM or so, along with some others.

Will post about today later.

11/10 Fun fun fun

I backdated a few hours so this will show up on Saturday, but it's actually close to 2:30 AM on Sunday.

My flight was more than four hours late on Friday, because of navigation problems with the first plane. We tried to take off, had to abort, and then sat on the runway for an hour. I slept through it all. Hell, I was tired! It's rough getting up at 4 AM.

At Newburgh airport I checked in to get my subcompact car and all they had was a Lincoln Town Car which I got for $30 per day. Not too shabby. And I'm glad I had a big car as it started snowing or freezing rain or something as I drove up the mountain.

The weekend started on Friday night with dinner and some games. My team won Scrabble Scramble--how could I lose with DF on the team? We all won a prize. I ended up with a Scrabble mug which someone will surely get for Christmas. After the organized activities we stayed up late playing games. I managed to stay awake until 1:30 or so, and then hit the hay. Dave and some others stayed up until 4. I would have never made it.

This morning I got up at 7 and met friends for breakfast. Will post tomorrow about the rest of the day. It was a lot of fun, but I'm yawning. Love to all.

11/2 Waiting for Jan and Tim

They'll be here later tonight. In the meantime I'm having friends over to play cards at 7 and they'll leave after meeting Jan and Tim. (That doesn't sound nice, does it? Didn't mean it that way.)

Today I went over the bridge. I got choked up but still couldn't wipe the smile off my face. It was slow, only 35, and crowded--because lots of people are going across just because they can, but it was still wonderful.

Went to a house blessing today and it was so moving. It was a house our construction crew rebuilt. Lovely, and the owners were very grateful.

Met a dog there that I fell in love with. Her name is Honey. She's a seven month old golden retriever and is so calm and sweet. She's trained already as a therapy dog. Her owner is one of our staff and she had to get trained too. Amazing. Just amazing. This puppy was not distractable at all. She'll make a great therapy dog, and will work in nursing homes and at disaster sites. A welcome addition.

Gotta go--have to finish cleaning the kitchen and then I'm (finally) done.

10/31 Trick or Treat

My outside light is broken--or maybe just needs a new bulb. I'll check it tomorrow. But what it meant tonight is that only one group of kids was brave enough to ring my doorbell. Guess I'll be forced to eat a lot of candy. Oh, well.

Last night Genia and Caroline came over and we played Canasta. I'd gotten the rules from the internet. Haven't played Canasta in years, but it was so much fun.

Tonight I went to choir practice and it had been canceled. No one bothered to call me though. It upset me a bit, but it felt good to come home and relax with the puppies.

Jan and Tim will arrive late Friday night. The plan is for us to go to New Orleans on Saturday, the Mississippi Gulf Coast on Sunday, and Mobile, AL on Monday. I have to work Monday afternoon, so this will work out well. They'll leave on Tuesday morning after an all too short visit. But it will be great to have them.

Today it was 80 degrees and sunny. An absolutely perfect day. For the weekend it's supposed to be in the mid to high 70s and partly sunny. No rain is forecast. I sure hope it stays that way; it will be wonderful sightseeing weather.

10/27 Late night run

Played cards tonight at Genia's with Caroline, Cyndi, and Genia. It was fun--played 500 rummy. On the way home I made a late night run to WalMart to get dog food. We were completely out. Now I'm wrestling with the dogs and will start snoring soon, I'm sure.

Cards and WalMart--those were the highlights of an otherwise boring day.

10/16 More fun

Just got home from playing spades at Cyndi's house. Five of us played for a few hours and it was great. Now it's time to play with my dogs awhile before hitting the sack.

10/12 Fun

Went to Genia's after work and taught some other women to play Texas Hold'em. Unfortunately, only one of them is gifted with card sense. I just dealt so I could teach. It was a lot of fun though. I always have a good time with this group.

We decided that we're going to start playing cards every Tuesday. The woman who hosts will decide which game of cards we play. Cindy is hosting Tuesday and I think she'll have us play canasta. Angie can't commit because Paisley has homework and school commitments. But there will be four of us. Don't know how long it will last, but it sounds like a good idea and should be fun.

The pups were thrilled to see me when I got home, and of course they weren't ready to sleep so we played a while and now I'm beat and want to sleep.

9/12 Busy

Today I got so much work done that I feel great. Well, also I worked until 9 PM last night to catch up on email.

I think I'm going to put the dogs in the kennel overnight on Friday since I'm invited to a party at Genia's. I always have to leave early to get home for the puppies. But this time I want to stay later. I'll make it up to the pups by taking them to the beach the next day. Genia said she'd go with me as I've never taken both dogs before and don't know if I could handle them. It's hard enough just having them both on leashes normally, but near the water would probably be impossible. It should be fun.

Both dogs are absolutely dog-tired. (Clever, huh?) They fell asleep around 8 so that means they'll be up before 6. Guess I should get to bed soon.

9/8 What a damn day

You know I was having company today. Well earlier, I was feeling some residual effects of the pain meds, so took a long nap. When I finally started cleaning the house, I didn't have much time to play around.

First Cookie destroyed my glasses. This was the only thing she's ever destroyed besides her own toys. I cried out loud. Both dogs came to comfort me. It wasn't fair, because I couldn't stay mad at her.

Then Quincy came inside totally muddied up from head to toe. It rained hard and she managed to find all the mud holes. So I threw her in my tub and bathed her. For the next few times I took her out on a leash so she wouldn't get in the mud.

When it was about 15 minutes before my friends were to arrive, I let Q out without thinking and damn, she did it again. Only this time the mud was even in her eyes. God, I was mad! She jumped in the empty tub without me telling her to. Usually she waits until the water starts running, but not this time. She knew.

Despite these problems I had fun playing cards with Genia and Caroline. I'm teaching them to play Texas Hold-em. It'll be awhile before they are ready for a tournament, but it was fun. I plan to play in a tournament at the Hard Rock Casino next Sunday at 3 PM. My first one at a casino. Should be fun.

9/7 Fun

Today was good. I left the dogs alone from 9-1, from 1:30-4:30, and from 6:30-9:30. And they both did so well. They made a mess of my bedroom--a total mess. But they just tore up their own toys, and nothing of mine. So I can't complain. Except I'll have to buy more toys. :)

Tonight I went to dinner with a friend and then to the Hard Rock Casino for a while, where I promptly lost all the money I'd set aside for gambling. Gone. Ah, well. There'll be another time.

Tomorrow night I'm having people over to teach them how to play Texas Hold'em. Then Sunday I have a BBQ to go to. But next Sunday I'm going to enter a poker tournament in the afternoon at Hard Rock. I'm excited about that.