Sunday Stealing

Taken from Sunday Stealing

Be honest, who texted you last?
Judy

Do you sleep with the bedroom door open or closed?
Open. If John gets up first, he closes the door so I can sleep later.

Do you drink tea?
On occasion - iced, unsweetened. My hot drink of choice is coffee.

Do you have plans for tomorrow?
Watching or listening to women’s basketball, reading the Sunday paper

What’s worse: dry skin or chapped lips?
Depends on which one is bothering me at the time. Usually chapped lips.

Would you be surprised if Facebook started charging?
Probably not. But if it did, I’d leave. I don’t care enough to pay for it.

Would you rather go to Canada or California on vacation?
Tough question. I enjoy both, and would hate to have to make a choice.

How many social media sites are you registered with?
Facebook, SeniorLearn, Seniors and Friends

Are you wearing jeans, shorts, sweatpants or pajama pants?
Pajama pants.

So, what if you changed lives for one day with the last person you texted?
Not too much different, except I’d be a Roman Catholic for a day, and would have our first great-grandchild.

Last person you told a secret to?
I don’t do secrets - too much trouble. But if someone asked me to keep something secret, I would do so.

What are you listening to at the moment?
BookTV on C-Span2.

Where was the last place you fell asleep other than your bed?
In my La-Z-Boy chair

Is there someone that you believe you will always be attached to?
Of course - John and our girls.

Are you going to any concerts this year?
Yes, we’ll be going to several more String Theory concerts at the museum (chamber music). But the asker probably means a different type of concert - and the answer to that is no.

Do you believe in Karma? Fate? Not particularly. I think, to a large extent, we make our own fate.

International Woman's Day

The International Woman's Day was actually yesterday, but I'm late getting this written tonight.

 Click here for an interesting article from the BBC News by DeeDee Myers written specially for today.

Personally, I want to salute the special women in my life:

From this and previous generations: Pink, Goldie, Nita, Carol, and Betsy; Flo Jean, Beth, and Vicki

Our daughters: Sue, Margaret, Kate, and Jean

Our granddaughters: Alison and Sarah

 The great gals at the Y in my swim group

The Bosom Buddies on Seniors and Friends

And the bloggers I follow:  bev,    l'empress,  indigo,  poolagirl,  sian,  and others

Great women all!
Plus the men who support us (especially John)

Miscellany and a Recommendation

Still no decision in the close race for City Council here. None of the write-in votes were for either of the two candidates - why would it be? There’s some talk of saying the votes couldn’t count if they weren’t for a certified candidate. That’s obviously not going to fly - otherwise there couldn’t be a legitimate write-in campaign. I am afraid that at least some of the write-ins were for something like “Donald Duck”, “Mickey Mouse”, or some such. We used to get those when we were election officials in one of our earlier lives. They may give the writer a sense of satisfaction, but they obviously have no idea of what a pain they cause election officials. Oh, well….

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The Tennessee legislature is posturing again. They seem to have legalized all they can about guns (can carry in state parks, churches, bars, in cars in parking lots, etc.), so now they’re taking up knives. Seems that somebody is trying to make it legal to carry switchblade knives now. And one state senator is planning to introduce a bill barring non-US-citizens from polling places. This, of course, is to protect the good people of Tennessee from having UN observers watching our elections. Sigh………..

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On the good side of the news, the CEO of Costco has announced that they’re going to pay their “minimum wage” workers $10.00/hour (rather than the $9.00/hour that Obama has proposed). This certainly is a nice contrast to the owner of Papa John’s Pizza who wanted to cut his employees’ hours so he didn’t have to provide health insurance for them. (I think he’s backed off that now, though.)

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I want to put in a plug for one of my favorite blogs - a site that I check first thing every day, That's My Answer!  Indigo poses at least one simple question every day, and readers write in their answers - sometimes posting a question. The regulars get some interesting discussions going, and we love getting new “answerers” to show up to shake things up and make us think. Give it a try.

No snow to speak of

No real snow here today. Just a very light dusting on the grass and rooftops. All gone by midmorning, although there were still a few flakes flying around until about noon.

We went to the Y and coffee, post office and library, then home for the day. I had invited my art teacher to come to coffee to show us some of the jewelry she makes. I think she made quite a few sales - including a pair for me, of course. John said I should get a pair so that would count as my birthday present from him. I’ll take them happily.
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Update on the election: Local politics is always so interesting. In one of the Council racer, there were only two candidates. One got six votes more than the other, and there were seven write-in votes. Therefore, neither one of them got the required 50% + 1, so there will have to be a run-off. What a waste of money!

I hate that so many people ignore local elections - only 16% of registered voters actually voted in this election.

Election Day

I had my semiannual teeth cleaning this morning - no problems, just sparkling teeth. Then it was time for the grocery stores. I got a corned beef at Aldi, and cooked it in the oven now. I haven't fixed one of those in ages, and am always looking for something different to fix.

I grew up in the south, so corned beef is not a traditional thing in my family cooking lore. I don't think I've ever had "corned beef and cabbage". But I have cooked the meat before - just not in a long time. I baked a couple of sweet potatoes and had spinach with it. I have to go with what will "sell" around here (and it’s definitely not cabbage).

That storm line roared through here this afternoon. We had lightning and thunder, about 0.75” of rain, and then the sun came out. The forecast for tonight and tomorrow is for cold and snow showers. As they say, if you don't like the weather, wait a while - it'll change.

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Today was Election Day for our mayor and city council. We voted a couple of weeks ago in the early voting, but, as always, watched with interest for the results. The incumbent mayor was unable to run (term limits), so we knew we were getting a new mayor. The winner won with over 70% of the vote - as expected. He was our choice - a very capable young man. The council woman in our district wasn’t running for reelection, so that was an open seat. Amazingly, our choice of the three candidates actually won without a runoff. The rest of the council will be quite different. Two incumbents were defeated, and two other incumbents face run-off elections next month. Nothing is quite as much fun as local politics - especially now that we’re not directly involved, and can watch it more as a spectator sport.

Better

The cards were somewhat better this week. John was second high last week. With all my bad cards, I wasn’t even low - I’m sorry for whoever had worse cards.

We ordered online from 5 Guys Burgers and Fries and John picked up dinner. Those are the best fries. My kind of meal!

And we even had sunshine today. 

Silent Sunday

 

 

 

Constantine's Arch, Rome

Snow?

All the news around here is about a possible 1-2” of snow overnight. The MidWest and New England have had blizzards, one after another, but we obsess over one inch of snow. All in all, I think I prefer it this way. Usually our snow is lovely, lands only on the grass and trees, and Mother Nature takes it away in a few hours.

I confess I’ve never lived north of the Mason Dixon line, so I have no first-hand experience of living where “winter” really happens. I don’t think that’s likely to happen at this time of my life. And that’s okay with me.

Y’all stay safe and warm.

Thursday miscellany

Exercise at the Y, followed by a massage. It made for a pretty good morning.
=========================================An online newspaper here, nooga.com, posted a link to a fabulous story on the CBS morning show about Chattanooga. To watch it, Click here.
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The Lady Vols cinched the SEC women’s basketball title tonight by beating Texas A&M, 82-72. Only one more game in the regular season, and then on to the SEC tournament.

Making the paper

John and I wound up on the front page of the Sports Section of the Chattanooga Times Free Press this morning.  We're in the upper right-hand corner, wearing gold shirts, with our heads just on either side of the "112" sign.

Sorry, can't seem to get it posted with just us cropped out (and out of focus).

Monday, All day

I didn't sleep well last night, and all my parts hurt/ache. I had the worst cards at bridge that I think I've ever had - and what I did have, I bid very poorly. Guess I'm having a pity-party today - sorry. I'll be better.

The good part was that our Lady Mocs won tonight. With tonight's 68-59 win over Davidson, the UTC Lady Mocs clinched sole possession of the Southern Conference title. One more conference game (that doesn't affect the outcome of the title), then on to the SoCon Tournament.
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Have you seen the new program Monday Mornings on TNT? It’s really quite good.

Mount Etna

This is what Mount Etna looked like last spring when we were in Sicily.

This is what it looks like now (beginning last week).

And this is a color-enhanced picture taken from the Space Station (the red is hot lava, the turquoise is snow).

 

Wow!

Half-time

We went to a basketball game tonight (surprise!) - UTC Lady Mocs 81, Western Carolina 39. We love winning - winning big is great, but it doesn’t make for a thrilling spectator game.

Sometimes the half-time entertainment is good - sometimes not so much. Tonight was one of the good ones. A Chinese acrobat called Red Panda. She did an amazing balancing/juggling act.

Click here to watch a short video of part of her act.

Another good half-time entertainment we get is from one of our local universities, Southern Adventist University. It’s a religious school (Seventh Day Adventist Church) in our county. The school has a gymnastic team called the Gym Masters. This large group performs all over the country, and they are spectacular.  Click here to watch a 5 1/2-minute video of one of their performances.

Tonight we won the game handily, and got some good half-time entertainment, too.

Funny.

Forgot My Glasses

Yesterday my daughter again asked why I didn't do something useful with my time. Talking about my "doing something useful" seemed to be her favorite topic of conversation. She was "only thinking of me" and suggested I go down to the senior center and hang out with the guys. I did this and when I got home last night I decided to teach her a lesson about staying out of my business. I told her that I had joined a parachute club.

She said, "Are you nuts? You're almost 72 years old and you're going to start jumping out of airplanes?" I proudly showed her that I even got a membership card.

She said to me, "Good grief, where are your glasses! This is a membership to a Prostitute Club, not a Parachute Club."

"I'm in trouble again, and I don't know what to do... I signed up for five jumps a week." I told her. She fainted.

Life as a senior citizen is not getting any easier but sometimes it can be fun.

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Heard on TV today:
“I’ve been on welfare and food stamps, but nobody bailed me out.”

Seriously?????

Wednesday night

This really is a crazy winter - weekly blizzards in some places and tornadoes (of all things) in others. Our high today has been only in the 40s, but it’s supposed to be warmer as we get toward the weekend.

I had the last of this session of painting classes today. I’m nearing completion of the last two pieces I started. I’m through with the “big stuff” and working now on the smaller refinements - which for me is usually the hard part. My instructor’s next session starts near the end of March. I’m not going to sign up - I know I’ll be missing two classes. She’s said I can come the other times because I missed so much last fall, so that’s what I’ll probably do.

Exciting? Not really.

How exciting can it be to do 30 minutes with the arm-strength machines at the Y?  Followed by Aldi and WalMart? Wow!

At least we wound up with a beautiful sunny day.

Pre-March Monday

This evening was all about basketball. From 7-9, we listened on the radio to the Lady Mocs game. They beat Georgia Southern 67-50. John watched the University of KY beat Texas A&M with the sound muted. From 9-11, he watched Baylor beat the University of Connecticut.

It must be almost time for March Madness.

Silent Sunday



Just an ordinary Saturday...

I finished assembling lasagnas today - vegetarian with spinach and mushrooms yesterday, and with meat sauce today.

Our Lady Mocs beat the College of Charleston by 13 points - after being tied at the half.

I think the new folks have finally moved in across the street. I made some lemon bars, and we took them over this afternoon. They look like a nice young couple.

A Productive Day

Our swim class mostly didn't happen today. There was a short or something in the fire alarm at the Y, and they couldn't get it stopped. The fire department had been there, and a tech was supposedly working on it. But the shrieking was literally ear-splitting - especially in the pool area. There are 4 alarms in the enclosure, and that noise reverberating off the tile walls and floors was literally to the point of pain. We were in the pool for about 20 minutes when the lifeguard said he had to close the pool - the guards had to get away from the noise. So we got to coffee early.

My task for the rest of the day was to make lasagnas. Margaret had requested a vegetarian lasagna, with spinach and mushrooms and no meat in the sauce. So that required some thought and adjustment in getting the ingredients. I've gotten those made and in the freezer (3 whole ones and one smaller one for Margaret). And then I made meat sauce to make some regular ones. I have to go back to the store in the morning to get some more mozzarella and ricotta, then I'll assemble those tomorrow. That leaves only the meat loaves to get done to replenish the freezer for the year.

It was a productive day.

Music

 
String Theory! The chamber music concert tonight was terrific - a string trio. They played works by Mendelssohn and Dvorak - both great. We stopped at Subway on the way home, and brought our sandwiches home to eat.

 

 

Piano, cello,

Violin, Mendelssohn, and

Dvorak. Great evening.

Wednesday, gray and rainy

We did the Y and coffee this morning, and then I went to painting. No masterpieces yet, but I am working on a couple of new pieces - and making some progress.

I did a bad thing when I got home, though. I had come in the house, and John was helping me bring in my stuff and put it in the back room (as usual). I was walking backwards down the hall, pulling one of the boxes, and tripped on a wrinkle in the rug/runner. Down I went! Fortunately, I landed on my butt, so no damage. I did hit my elbow, and I'm sure it'll be bruised and sore tomorrow - plus general soreness all over from the jarring. It took me a while to collect myself, and then go find a way to get up off the floor. I was SOOO mad at myself. I really hate this feeling of not being able to stay upright. Of course, John was worried sick, but he finally got calmed down, too. John was going to banish the lovely oriental runner (it was his mother's). He finally said that if I promised to either let him put up my supplies or pick up the rug first, he’d put it back. Of course, I promised.

Now I KNOW I'm really going to appreciate the massage tomorrow.

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Our grandsons’ cousin, Kevin, has been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. He has been in treatment with several biopsies, and is scheduled for chemo and a possible bone marrow transplant. He’s in his mid20s, and he and his wife had two small girls. All good thoughts and prayers will be greatly appreciated.

Being creative

“…go into the arts. I'm not kidding. The arts are not a way to make a living. They are a very human way of making life more bearable. Practicing an art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow, for heaven's sake. Sing in the shower. Dance to the radio. Tell stories. Write a poem to a friend, even a lousy poem. Do it as well as you possibly can. You will get an enormous reward. You will have created something.”    Kurt Vonnegut
I’ve always said that we are all creative - each in his/her own way. And it doesn’t matter what it is. Creativity is not limited to what we usually think of as the “Arts”. Cooking, gardening, auto maintenance, horseback riding, teaching, sewing, computer design, the possibilities are endless.

Vonnegut had it right - you should definitely make creativity part of your life.

A very long day

Whew, this was one LLLOOONNNGGG day.

We got up at 76 to go to the Y, then to coffee. The cleaning lady was finishing up when we got home. I turned on the coffee pot, and it had died - only after about a year.

We got our usual Monday early lunch, went to WalMart for the coffee pot replacement, and headed on to bridge. That was until 4:30 (some interesting hands, but nothing spectacular).

From there, we headed straight downtown to the Lady Mocs game. It was a tough game, bt we beat UNCG by a score of 74-68.

We stopped at a new local place for dinner after the game. Unfortunately, we won’t be going back there. It was mediocre at best. And then we finally got home and settled about 8:30.

Just as soon not doing one that long anytime soon (unless travel is involved, of course).

Silent Sunday

 

 

Mediterranean Sunset

Sunday Stealing

As usual, I got this meme from Sunday Stealing.

Sunday Stealing: The Basically Obscure Meme-Part 2

1: Would you swear in front of your parents
I probably did, but only after I was an adult.

2: Which continents have you been on?
North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Antarctica

3: Do you get motion sickness? Any horror stories?
Not really. The only time I get motion sickness is in an I-Max theater.

4: Why did you name your blog whatever you named your blog?
I wanted to use the unusual letter of my last name.

5: Would you wear a rainbow jacket? A neon yellow sweater? Checkered pants?
A rainbow jacket, yes. I don’t do yellow. With hips like these, nobody should wear checkered pants.

6: What was your favorite cartoon growing up? Post a picture if you can.
I don’t remember - these would be in the movies - pre-TV. Maybe Tom & Jerry.

7: In a past life I must have been a...
Who knows - just not the way my mind works.

8: If you had to look at one city skyline for the rest of your life, which would it be?
I wouldn’t want to look at any city skyline. I’d choose Bryce Canyon or the Valley of the Gods.

9: Longest plane ride you've ever been on?
Sydney, Australia, to Los Angeles

10: The longest you've ever slept?
I think I slept for 10 hours once - can’t remember why.

11: Would you buy a sweater covered in kitten pictures? Would you wear it if someone gave it you for free?
No and no. I would see that it got a nice home somewhere else.
12: Do you pluck your eyebrows?
Nope - never did do that.

13: Favorite kind of bean? Kidney? Black? Pinto?
I love them all - also October beans, lima beans, butter beans.

14: How far can you throw a baseball?
Maybe 3 feet.

15: If you had to move to another country, where would you move?
Canada or New Zealand

16: Have you ever eaten Ethiopian food? Vietnamese? Korean? Nepalese? How was it?
All of those except Nepalese. Loved them all.

17: How much wood could a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?
As much as she could chuck.

Winter Storm Nemo

Mother Nature must

Love the East Coast. She sends her

Most active helpers.

 

Might be much better

If it wasn’t tough love, and

She sent gentler friends.

Thursday chores

It was a busy morning around here - and it was amazing how quickly things went. I went for my mammogram. My appointment was at 10, and I was back in my car before 10:20. I never even had time to open the book I brought with me. No indication that anything was amiss, and the tech said I should get my report mailed to me in about a week.

I picked up a prescription and did a quick trip to WalMart for a couple of things I forgot on Tuesday. I went to the Y and one of the "sweet young things" (unfortunately not a hot young guy) showed me some of the machines and some other pieces of equipment to use. I didn't do anything more than a short trial on each piece. We may get back there on Saturday. I'm not going to try to do machines and swim on the same day. So all the chores were done before lunch.

And the Lady Vols managed to pull out a one-point squeaker win over LSU tonight.

Orthopedic update

After the usual Wednesday morning stuff (swimming, coffee, and painting), I went to the orthopedist for a followup. As on previous visits, the surgical site and the prosthesis are doing well. There is new bone formation happening. This are good things.

I obviously still have a very good passive range of motion, and less than perfect range of motion. It’s good up to about horizontal, and then it’s not so good. He repeated some exercises that I should be doing at home. I asked him about going for some additional physical therapy, and he said he didn’t think that was necessary.

The doc said I should start going to the Y and working on the machines for the upper body/arms; that it'll still be a good while before I reach maximum improvement. And I may never be able to have the complete range of motion I did before - like up over my head, etc. I guess I'm lucky to have the prospect of getting most of the motion back in any case - considering the extent of the injury and surgeries. So I’ll keep working at it, and starting going to the fitness center at the Y. Oh, joy! John says I can get some young stud to help me use the machines correctly.

I’ve been having more and more trouble with my foot (the one I had surgery on ten years ago). I asked him for some advice about that. Other than the obvious deformities, he said the pins seemed to be okay. He said that there was no padding at all on the soles of my feet (imagine that - any part of my body with NO padding!), and that I might get some benefit from some inner soles in my shoes and a metatarsal pad. So we’re going to try that for a while to see if that brings some relief, before we consider doing anything else.

So no definitive answers from the doctor, but he listened and we’re continuing to work on the problems.

Tuesday

 

Aldi and WalMart,

Haircuts. Chili in freezer.

So much for Tuesday.

Puns

I love puns! Especially the long, convoluted stories ending in groaners. Rhymes with Plague   wrote his blog this morning on puns, and three of the four stories he told were new to me. I loved it, and had to share.

RwP wrote: When I worked for a living, one of my bosses was a man named Horace Stone. When he neared retirement, I hoped he would convert to Catholicism and enter the priesthood. That way, he would have been a Horace of a different collar.

There was once an Indian chief named Shortcake. When he died, his wife refused to turn his body over to the local mortuary, saying, “No need for mortician. Squaw bury Shortcake.”

In Africa, the chief of a village lived in a hut made entirely of grass. Even the ceilings were made of grass. One day the people of his village presented him with a special chief’s throne they had made. He was very proud of it but afraid that an enemy might come along and steal it, so he asked the people to hoist his throne up in the air with a rope so that it could be kept in his attic. In the middle of the night, however, it fell through the bedroom ceiling and killed him as he slept. The moral of this story is clear: People who live in grass houses shouldn’t stow thrones.

Here’s one for the mathematicians. Another Indian chief (not Shortcake) had three wives. He gave one of them a buffalo hide, one of them a cowhide, and one of them a hippopotamus hide. Soon the first wife bore him twin sons. Later, the second wife also bore him twin sons. A few months after that, the chief’s third wife gave birth to four healthy boys -- quadruplets! It is obvious that the sons of the squaw of the hippopotamus are equal to the sons of the squaws of the other two hides.

XLVII

 

It’s Super Bowl Sunday.

We had pizza for supper.

But no wings or dips.

Small accomplishments

We decided to go to the Y this morning - John in the fitness center, and me in the pool. While we were there, it started snowing like a son-of-a-gun! Oh, well, we said - it probably won't stick.

Guess what.

When we came out, all the streets were covered. Fortunately, the idiots were driving fairly slowly. But when we got to our neighborhood, three cars were blocking the first hill we had to climb to get home. John turned around, and went into one of the back roads to our subdivision. There are lots of ups and downs to get there. But the hills coming in the back way are less steep, and he managed to get up and down, with only one slip. It was coming downhill to our house, but he did that okay, too, and parked in a driveway across from our house. It was a relief to get home.

And then, of course, the sun came out. It was just for a few minutes, but it did warm up enough to clear off the streets. It was a pretty snow, but was gone before we could get out to get some pictures.

Now that it’s cooling back down overnight, the wet places will freeze again, so there will be some treacherous places on the streets in the morning. But we don’t have to go anywhere, so no problem for us.

I took the opportunity to make this year’s supply of split pea soup.
The pot is out on the porch cooling overnight. When it warms up tomorrow, I’ll get out for some freezer bags, so we can get it in the freezer. At least we did get something accomplished today.

But sometimes....

I love living in Tennessee, but sometimes….

This story from the Huffington Post just blew my mind.  I don't know whether to laugh or cry.

A Tennessee dog owner sent his pet to be euthanized because he suspected the dog was "gay." Fortunately, the pup was later adopted.

A Jackson, Tenn., resident surrendered his "gay" dog for euthanization to the Jackson Rabies Control Animal Shelter on Jan. 29 because he saw his male pitbull/American bulldog mix "humping" another male dog, the Examiner reports.

The Huffington Post confirmed with Jackson Rabies Control, a high-kill shelter, that the dog had been surrendered because his owner believed he was "gay."

Although animals can be gay, dogs mount each other to express dominance, for play or because of nervousness/excitement, Psychology Today notes.

A Facebook campaign was set up to try and save the "gay dog", according to the Atlantic. A Facebook post detailing the troubling situation called for immediate action.
Via Facebook:

This guy was signed over to RC, not bc he's mean or bc he tears things up, but because... His owner says he's gay! He hunched another male dog so his owner threw him away bc he refuses to have a "gay" dog! Even if that weren't the most assinine thing I've ever heard, its still discrimination! Don't let this gorgeous dog die bc his owner is ignorant of normal dog behavior! He's in kennel 10L and he WILL be put down tomorrow bc there is no room at the inn!

Luckily, the healthy pup has been saved.

Gawker notes that a woman named Stephanie Fryns, who is affiliated with the animal rescue group Woof Connections,, said that she planned to adopt the dog.

"I am adopting this big boy first thing in the morning," she wrote on the Facebook page for the animal rescue group Save the Animals Together. "He will be neutered/ htwm tested/ and vetted. He will be temperament tested and then places in a rescue verified and approved home."
A Jackson Rabies Control employee confirmed to HuffPost that the dog was adopted on Thursday morning. He had been scheduled to be euthanized at 1:00 p.m., according to the Examiner.

UPDATE: The rescued dog's name is Elton, ABC News confirms, and he was saved from euthanization by Fryns, who already owns four dogs. Although Elton has some redness around his ears, Fryns does not believe he was used in dog fights.

"[Elton] was pretty friendly so far," she told ABC News. "He’s pretty scared of everything, which is understandable. But he loved the car ride.” 

The followup gets even more weird.  Click here for a followup when a Roman Catholic leader puts his two cents worth in. 

Seriously!

 

Hither and thither!

Different stuff going on around here today. I went to the grocery stores; John bundled up and went to walk on the Riverwalk and get some sunshine.

I went to Zaxby's to lunch with Vicki; John took a nap.

John and Margaret went to a Lady Vols' game tonight (they had an easy time winning over Mississippi State); I went to a candidates’ forum tonight to learn more about those running in our city election in March. I think I got enough information to make a decision.

It's not often we do so much, going in different directions.

Wednesday storms, etc.

The worst of the weather is finished here. It didn't get as warm here as in other locations, so our weather wasn't as severe. We have had over 2" of rain today. I've heard that I-75 in Georgia, north of Atlanta, over 100 cars were overturned, and the road was closed for 10 miles. Wild stuff, but we were lucky here!

We had been given a gift card for Sticky Fingers (a terrific BBQ place), and planned to go there after my painting class today. It's near where my class is, and John came to meet me. We had a great lunch, and I was waiting for him to get out the card to pay for lunch. He was waiting for me. Turned out neither of us had brought the card. Oh, well - that just means we'll have to go back.

And we (me, John, the instructor, the class) have decided that my painting is finished. I’ll get the last bit of stuff done (final finish coat and signature). I don’t know that I’ll get it framed, but I’ll recommend that it be done with the four sections side-by-side. I’m pleased with it.

Happy Birthday, Kate!

Today’s Kate’s birthday.

January twenty-nine.

I won’t say what year.

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Today’s possible record high temperature of near 70 never materialized. Records were broken all around us, but the fog never lifted from Chattanooga in the Tennessee River valley. So the temps never got much above 60. We’re still due to get that powerful line of weather coming in from the west, but not until about rush hour in the morning. Oh, goody!

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My massage was postponed because of weather last week, but she made up for it today. Wonderful!

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I never listen to sales calls, but I love surveys. I figure most of the time, I’m so out of step with the world that I totally screw up the expected numbers. We got a call a couple of weeks ago asking if we’d keep one of the Nielsen Rating diaries. Well, of course! Actually, this is the second time we’ve done it - once a couple of years ago.

The diaries and instructions arrived Saturday, with the ratings week to begin on Thursday. They really want to know anything that happens with every TV in the house during the week - even if it’s turned off the whole time. It’ll be interesting. And remember folks, we’ll be having a say in deciding what you’ll be watching. Be afraid. Be VERY afraid!

Monday haiku

 

Mondays mean swimming,

Coffee time and laughs with friends.

Some good cards at bridge.

 

There’s basketball, too.

Lady Vols and Notre Dame.

Too bad, our gals lost.



Sunday Stealing

Stolen from Sunday Stealing.

1. What were you doing 10 years ago?
     Probably the same thing I'm doing this year.

2. By this time next year, I ...
     I hope I'll have a more normal range of motion in my arm.

3. Do you think the United States will elect a female President in your lifetime? Do you think this would be a good thing?
     I certainly hope so.  With a few exceptions, I think it'll be a great improvement.

4. Which fictional, TV show character you would shag anytime?
     I'm not interested in relationships with strangers.

5. Who is your greatest enemy?
     Myself, of course!
6. Tell me about your most recent trip of more than 100 miles?
      The most recent trip of over 100 miles was to see our UTC Lady Mocs play basketball at Auburn (they lost).

7. Which do you use more often, the dictionary or the thesaurus?
      The dictionary - I don't think I've ever used a thesaurus.

8. Do you have a nickname? What is it?
      My name doesn't lend itself to a nickname.  In recent years, it's been Mom or Grandma.

9. What are you dreading at the moment?
       I don't look for trouble.  I'm always concerned about falling now.

10. Do you worry that others will judge you from reading some of your answers?
      If I did, I wouldn't be doing this in the first place.

11. If you find an outfit you love, but the size on the label is larger than you want, do you buy the outfit? Why or why not?
       I buy clothes that fit and are comfortable.  I don't care what size is on the label.

12. Even the biggest slackers are anal-retentive about something? What are you anal-retentive about?
      I'm sort of particular about the way a bed is made up, but I wouldn't say I was anal about it.

13. Out of all the books you read as a child, which one had the biggest influence on how you are today?
      I don't remember one in particular.

14. Which Golden Girl would you want to spend a night on the town with?
      I never watched the Golden Girls, so I don't have an answer for this one.

15. What is the one product you would never buy in its generic form even if the generic is half the price?
     For me it would be toilet paper; for John it would be saltine crackers.

16. How old were you when you stopped believing in Santa?
     I don't remember believing in Santa - it was never a tradition in our family.

17. What is the one smell that turns your stomach without fail?
      It doesn't nauseate me, but I can't stand the smell of coconut, and can detect it in minute amounts.

18. If someone holds out a carton of milk to you and asks you to sniff it to see if its spoiled, do you?
    Of course - better to smell it than to pour it on your cereal and then find out it was sour.

19. You have a completely free day and $2000.00, What are you doing?
      I'd be looking at trips to take and add that to the amount we had to spend on it.


20. What is the most used item in your home?
      First would have to be the toilet.  Next the computer, and then the TV.

My friend, Dalton

I'm so glad Dalton Roberts is my friend.  What a lovely mind and heart this man has!

RAINBOWS ARE REAL
By Dalton Roberts

You can’t touch a rainbow
but rainbows are real.

A rainbow can lift your heart
on a dull, dreary day.
How many things have such power?
Yes, rainbows are real.

Become more sensitive
to the subtler aspects of reality
and you will not be such a sucker
for the dense, physical things
that have us hypnotized.

The rainbow is as real as anything can be,
There’s something there.
You can see it.
If just one of your senses verifies something
It is real.
Sometimes your sixth sense is right on the money.

You can’t touch a lot of things
that as real as a concrete wall.
Like love.
If you don’t think love is real
try to take a frightened baby away from its mother
or a child’s hand out of his father’s hand
or try to keep a son from kissing his mother as she dies.

Rainbows and love
have more in common
than concrete and steel.

Chattanooga winter

We had freezing rain predicted for this morning, so schools all over the area announced closings last night. Classes at the Y are usually cancelled when schools are closed. When we got up early this morning, the roads were still just wet, so we went on to the Y. Had it almost all to ourselves, and got in good workouts. We decided to just come on home (about 8:30) and pack it in for the day. Good thing we did, because the rain started freezing started about 9:30. We got a thin coating of ice on all our trees and other stuff. But then the temperature “warmed” up to about 34-35, and the precipitation turned to just rain. Made for a pretty yucky day, but produced a couple of spectacular naps.

This was definitely a soup-type day, so I made some potato soup. What wonderful nasty-cold-weather comfort food that is!

And we're predicted to have temperatures in the 60s next week.  Of course, then back into the 40s.

Shopping

This morning, we went to Costco for our monthly shopping trip and gourmet lunch. I must not have been trying very hard, because our tab was less than $100.00. That certainly won’t help the economy. I guess I’ll just have to try harder.

BP and Painting

I've talked to the nurse again today. The doc said the new medicine should take a week or more to take effect. I just started taking it Saturday, so I'm just to keep on monitoring the BP, and let them know if it doesn't start going back down. I've only taken it once today, but it was lower than any time yesterday. So maybe it's starting to kick in.
=======================================
I feel like I'm getting back into painting. I started something (a group of four paintings worked at the same time, each @ 11x15") in the one class I took after I originally fell. I've been fiddling with them ever since, and I think I'm finally getting somewhere. Sandy (the instructor) says I'm almost finished with them. With the kind of work I do, that's usually the hardest part - deciding when a piece is finished. I’ll share the not-quite-finished pieces - one with all four, then two and two.

Tuesday haiku

 

 

New BP Rx.

Now blood pressure very high.

Hope doc calls back soon.

 

============================

The volcanic island of Stromboli.

 



Monday Miscellany

This morning Poolagirl posted this on her blog, Life Aboard the HMS Pie Rat.  
It was so well said, I just wanted to quote her.

I wish President Obama the best as he saddles up for another term. I hope the people who are so opposed to him and his ideas will bend enough to work together. Granted, not everything he says is absolutely true and right, but if we learn to COMPROMISE for the GOOD OF ALL and set aside the POLITICAL INTENT of the LOBBYISTS who pour so many FAVORS and so much CASH into the pockets of our politicians……..if we could learn a few simple ways….if we could put integrity over pride……can you imagine?

=======================================
John received this e-mail from a childhood friend who lives in Duluth, MN.  This is one of the main reasons we're glad we live in the South.

It (winter) arrived and with a blast of below zero and windy weather. The wind chill was 60 below in Hibbing last night!!! Thank goodness today is a holiday for the schools and I would not be surprised if they were closed Tuesday. I have ice at the bottom of all my windows but keep a humidifier going. It has not been cold like this for several years so I forgot how miserable it can be - you just stay inside, drink a hot beverage now and then and get those forgotten projects done. When I got up this morning it was 19 below and right now at 1 p.m. it is 13 below.
====================================

I’ve had a copy of a disc with the reports from my initial ER visit after my fall on 31 July 2012. We’re just now getting around to looking at it. I knew it was a bad break, but had no idea how bad it was until I looked at the x-ray and read the report. “severely displaced and comminuted fracture” just below the head of the humerus. The good part was that there was no damage below that or to the shoulder joint.  The other bad news was the comment about the “severe degenerative disc disease” in the cervical spine. Well, at least the shoulder has been fixed. Don’t know what could be done about the other. Getting old ain’t for sissies.
 

Sunny Sunday

Both of our basketball teams won big today. I hope your choices for teams to play in the Super Bowl also won.

Jean and some of her friends came over from Nashville to go to the Aquarium today. They invited me to go to lunch with them, and that was a nice treat.

Enjoy your holiday tomorrow (if it’s one you get) and enjoy watching the Inauguration festivities.
=============================
One last look at Mount Etna as we leave Taormina, Sicily.

Too much excitement

More sunshine today, but not much excitement otherwise.

We did a scheduled defrosting of the freezer this morning. Over the last six months, things have come and gone from the freezer without my knowing what’s what. I do know that I need to some of my stockpile cooking things (chili, meat loaf, lasagna, split pea soup). And I had no idea if there was any left, or what ingredients I had. So now I know. And it’s time to make some lists and get some cooking done. Thanks to John for doing most of the work.

He also did the only other work of the day - making a trip to the recycle center.
=============================
This is the symbol of the town of Taormina. I don’t remember the significance of the design - sorry.

Quiet Sunny Friday

Follow-up: Carol is doing well, a week after her surgery. We picked up some carry-out Chinese to take over for their dinner. We stayed, of course, and it was nice to see her up and about. It’s going to take a while for her to regain her strength, but she’s well on her way.

It was so nice to have a sunny day today. And it’s supposed to be sunny for the next few days.

===================================
A sunny day in Taormina.

News items

• We didn’t get any snow today.
• Over the last 4-5 days, we got almost 6.5” of rain.
• We went to the String Theory chamber music concert at the Hunter Museum tonight. It was a good one, as usual.
• After being behind most of the game, the Lady Vols pulled one out over the Auburn Lady Tigers, 75-66.
• We may actually see a bright light in the sky tomorrow.

Painting!

I’m really able to use the arm well in swimming - even doing some backstroke. I’m still need a lot of work doing doing the same stuff on dry land.

The big news today was getting back to painting. My class started back up, and I’m so glad to be making a mess with the paint again. I got out the pieces I started right before I fell, and started working on them again. I hope I can get in some consistent painting time and really make some progress in my work. I’ll try to remember to take photos of things as they happen.

This is one of my pieces from a year or so ago. (Acrylic on paper, 22 x 11”)

Rain, rain, rain

We've had rain every day for the last seven days, for a total of at least 6". And it's still raining tonight.

I'll just look at more pictures from sunny Sicily.

These are looking off the back of the top of the amphitheater, and the inside of the amphitheater.

Heart-stopping

We’ve had over 4” of rain over the last couple of days, and it’s not supposed to stop until Wednesday. I surely am glad this isn’t snow!
---------------------------------
Our Lady Mocs beat the College of Charleston tonight 64-53. They’re doing well this year - at least better than predicted.
---------------------------------
I had not heard any of the last names of the children murdered in Newtown. Tonight, we turned the TV on in the middle of a Rachel Maddow interview with the parents of one of the first-graders. As I looked at the screen, I saw that their child’s name was Ben Wheeler. It just made my heart stop. My uncle was named Ben Wheeler (1905-1965). And there’s a town in Texas named Ben Wheeler. I’m sure there’s no family connection, but I can guarantee those parents that wherever they believe their son is now, there is a loving, kind man watching over his namesake. RIP Ben Wheeler.

Addendum, etc.

Addendum to yesterday’s meme:
The question was if I got along with my in-laws. For some reason, I only thought of my parents-in-law. We are very close to my sister-in-law and her husband. We love being with them and traveling with them. And we’re very close to our sons-in-law and grandson-in-law. I just didn’t want to leave them out.
===========================================
Today was a usual Sunday, except for it being much to warm for January (high around 70), and lots of grey skies and evening rain - pouring down. The activities were also as usual - breakfast, laundry, exercises, basketball, football.
===========================================
Our friend, Carol, had her surgery on Friday, and she says she is doing well. She’s still sore from the surgery and it will take her a while to get back her muscle tone and stamina from those weeks in bed. But she’ll get there, I know.
===========================================
The spectacular view from Taormina.

Sunday Stealing

Random Questions Meme, Part 2

21) What’s something you’ve always wanted?
To fly somewhere first class; to live on the ocean.

22) Do you have hairy legs?
No (one of the benefits of getting old)

23) What does “Semper Fidelis”stand for?
Always faithful (and I didn’t have to look it up)

24) Would you rather swim in the ocean or a lake?
Ocean (but lakes and swimming pools are okay)

25) Do you wear a lot of black?
I guess so, but I like a lot of color, too.

26) Describe your hair:
Grey to white, and very short.

27) Do you have Entomophobia?
No. I knew what it meant because my uncle was an entomologist and his granddaughter is one now.

28) Are you an adult?
An OLD adult !

29) Do you own or rent?
Own, but we’re getting to where we like the idea of renting an apartment.

30) Do you have a tan?
No - haven’t had one in years.

31) Are you addicted to TV?
There are programs I follow faithfully, but I wouldn’t say addicted. It’s rarely turned on in the daytime, and I don’t mind when we’re traveling and don’t see it. Also, I hate being in places where it is on all the time, like doctor’s office waiting rooms and the YMCA dressing room.

32) Do you enjoy spending time with your In-laws?
They’ve been dead for years, but we enjoyed visiting with them. We never wanted to live in the same town with either set of in-laws.

33) Are you a sugar freak?
Nope.

34) What happened to Larry King?
I have no idea. Is he still alive?

35) What sign are you?
Zodiac? I’m a Pisces.

36) What do you wish on your birthday?
Nothing - maybe to be around on the next birthday.

37) Who did you copy this from?
Sunday Stealing

38) Do you eat breakfast?
Every day. It really IS the most important meal of the day.

39) What would you name the royal baby?
Some combination of Katherine, Ann, and Elizabeth. (It never occurred to me to come up with a boy’s name. )

40) Do you buy a newspaper?
We subscribe to our local paper, and always get USA Today when we’re staying in a motel. We’ll usually buy a local paper, too, when we’re traveling. I hope getting delivery of a printed paper doesn’t disappear in my lifetime. I’d really miss it.

Never forget!

As a result of a fall several weeks ago, our friend, Carol, had surgery to stabilize a vertebral fracture this morning. Amazingly, she was back home by midafternoon. She’s still feeling the effects of the pain meds and the anesthesia, but we all hope she’ll be improving quickly.

They had gotten a new puppy (Annie, a brindle boxer cutie) just before the accident. Dealing with that (training and starting on obedience issues) was just an added problem. (This is not Annie, but a baby like her.)

We offered to “puppy-sit” Annie while they were at the hospital (actually I volunteered John). Mostly, he took the baby outside on a schedule and read his book.

But John said he forgot one important point of baby-sitting (no matter what the species)… when the baby is out of sight and it gets quiet, trouble is happening!

When he noticed it was quiet and he hadn’t seen Annie in a while, he went to check. Annie had decided that the wicker basket that held her toys was a lot more interesting than the toys inside. So she was chewing it up. And John realized he hadn’t been parenting for a long time.

Oh, well, he’ll survive, and I know Miss Annie will. And the patient is recuperating nicely.

I can't believe I .....

I can’t believe I ……

actually went “shopping” this morning. I had a couple of things to get and I went to three stores. That’s THREE!

I didn’t find what I wanted at the first store (tights to wear under my swim suit in the exercise class).

Looking for something different, I went to the second store, looking for a keyboard for my iPad. It was hard to look at the three that were possible, since they were all wrapped up in security apparatus. I finally just took one (the Logitech Bluetooth), knowing that I could bring it back if it didn’t work.

I headed to the third store, still looking for that elusive first item. There was one pair at Target that fit my criteria (and actually fit me when I got them home).

So it was an amazing day - shopping at three stores. And buying two items. And keeping both of them.

Review: I definitely like the keyboard. One-finger-typing was the only difficult thing for me with the iPad. I was a typist for too many years to make that transition easily. So it’s quite a pleasure to have a real keyboard to use with my new toy.

===================================================
Mount Etna from the amphitheater in Taormina.

Wednesday haiku

 

 

Grey, rain for the week.

May get iPad keyboard for

Valentine’s, birthday.



============================================
And a way to add a photo has been found (I hope). This is what I take photos of while John is walking up steps at the amphitheater in Taormina.

Things still aren't working too well.

I still haven't figured out how to put photos on the blog since something changed last week.  I found a google forum and have posted a question there.  Now to see if I get an answer.

=====================================

The water in the lap pool at the Y is still only 78 degrees.  For our classes, it's usually about 82-83.  I guess we'll be having our class in the shallow, "warm" pool (89 degrees) again Wednesday.  Oh, well.  It's better than no water exercise class at all.

This Monday is for John

This was a busy Monday - but generally a good one - especially for John.

We had a good swim class. The instructor had a different piece of equipment (stretch tubing with handles), so we worked some different muscles. And it was especially good for working my shoulder. It’s a little bit achy this evening, so that was a good workout.

After two Mondays off during the holidays, we finally got back to bridge. John and I both had some good cards - some lousy ones, too, but mostly good. John had one fabulous round (almost 4000 points in about 6 hands), and it was against the most obnoxious player in the group. Of course that made it extra sweet. In the last round, playing against me, he set my contract with a perfect defense. About half-way through the hand, he knew he was doing it, and I knew it too. He really enjoyed that, and I could only congratulate him on playing it so well.

The only sour note of the day was that the Lady Mocs lost to Elon in an overtime game.

John's loving the BCS game. He doesn’t really like Alabama, but he’ll always cheer for an SEC team. And he really dislikes Notre Dame.

At least we get to sleep later in the morning.

I was going to post a photo, but.....

 

 

 

I’m really pissed off

At Blogger, and changes they’ve

Made in posting pics.



Sunday Stealing (on Saturday night)

This meme was stolen from Sunday Stealing , and was obviously written by somebody a lot younger than I.

 
40 of The Most Random Questions Meme, Part One

1) What side of the heart do you draw first?
The right side - I’m right-handed.

2) Can you dive without plugging your nose?
Yes
3) What color is your razor?
I haven’t shaved in years. It’s wonderful when body hair stops growing.

4) What is your blood-type?
A+

5) Who would you want to be tied to for 24 hours?
John and I have always said we didn’t want to be “joined at the hip”, but we could stand it for 24 hours.

6) What is a rumor someone has spread about you?
If somebody has, I never heard it.

7) How do you feel about carrots?
I love carrots - raw or cooked.

8) How many chairs at the dining room table?
Usually 6, but we can squeeze in four more.

9) Which is the best Spice Girl?
Fortunately, I don’t know anything about the Spice Girls.

10) Do you know what time it is?
 It must be nighttime - it’s dark outside. There are clocks all over the house, and on the computer. All I have to do is look.

11) Do you know all the words to the Fresh Prince Theme Song?
Nope - one of those many shows we never watched.

12) What would you do if you were stuck in an elevator?
Use the Emergency phone, and press the alarm button.

13) What’s your favorite kind of gum?
Yuck - I think chewing gum is nasty.

14) All’s fair in love and war?
People fight dirty in both situations - that doesn't make it fair.

15) Do you have a crush on anyone?
Nope. But Mark Harmon and Sean Connery are still pretty sexy.

16) Do you know how to use some words correctly, but not know the meaning?
I have a pretty good vocabulary, and try not to use any word that I don’t understand.

17) Do you like to sleep?
I love to sleep!

18) Do you know which US states don’t use Daylight Savings time?
I know there are a few - Arizona is one. But I don’t know the others.  I could look it up is you need to know.

19) Do you know the words to the song Total Eclipse of the Heart?
Never heard of that one.

20) Do you want a bright yellow ‘06 mustang?
No. I’m not a car person. Cars are just for transportation.

Friday Foto (or not)

Well, Phooey!

 

I was going to post two photographs from Taormina, Sicily, tonight.  But I guess Blogger has again changed the method for uploading photographs to the page.  I figured it out the last time they changed it (or screwed it  up), but I obviously haven't found the clues yet.  I'll keep trying.

 



Sunshine

Sunshine is special.

Cleaning my closet, a chore.

Happy Birthday, Ken.

 



Hoppin' John - my version

It seems there are traditions in different sections of the country (and probably the world) that certain foods, if eaten on New Year’s Day, are supposed to bring good luck throughout the coming year. When I was growing up in Houston, and throughout the Southern US, it’s black-eyed peas - in some form or another. One of these is a combination of black-eyed peas and rice called Hoppin' John.

Last week there was a recipe in our paper for a baked version of Hoppin' John. We had plain black-eyed peas and rice last night, but I made the casserole tonight, and it was really good. Here’s my version:

I used dried peas, so they were cooked. And the left-over rice was cooked. Mix together equal parts of cooked, drained black-eyed peas and cooked rice. (I had about three cups of each.)

Crisp cook several pieces of bacon, drain, crumble and set aside. (You vegetarians - and you know who you are - could easily leave the bacon out.) Saute a chopped onion and some garlic in the drippings, drain. I added a chopped pickled jalapeno pepper, too.

Mix all this stuff together with about a cup of grated Monterey Jack or mixed white and yellow cheese. Put into a casserole and top with more grated cheese. Heat at 350* until hot through, and cheese is melted.

This made one casserole that made two meals for the two of us, plus two containers for the freezer of one-meal sizes for the two of us.

This is pretty much an approximation of what was in the paper, but since I rarely follow a recipe specifically, this is my version. I was prepared to throw it out if it was awful, but we really liked it. Give it a try - maybe even with some other kinds of dried beans.

And 2013 begins...

As usual, the first problem in any new year is making the transition to the new number any time you write the date.  I hope that's the worst problem we have in this upcoming 365 days.

In any case, I hope your year is a good one - with only enough glitches to make things interesting, and nothing to cause you pain. 

It’s the end of an

Old Year, the start of the new.

Hi, twenty-thirteen.