Saturday Adventure

Saturday we decided to take a ride to Hoodsport situated along Hood's Canal and visit our friends George & Ruth.  Bob & George have been friends since they were teenagers and we always enjoy our visits with them.  They used to live in Westport out on the coast but a couple years ago moved "inland" to the Canal.  The Canal is salt water and the conditions can change rapidly if you're out in a boat.   George had bought a "new" boat and was anxious to take us for a ride once we got there.  So we walked down to the dock and there sat the cutest boat.  It reminded me of a fancy "African Queen." 

Anyway, we set out on a boat ride, Ruth & I were sitting in the back there on a nice cushioned seat.  The water was smooth and beautiful as we headed across to the town of Union.  We were traveling at about 6 knots (slightly less than 7 mph).  The water was smooth and the ride so enjoyable.

It took about 39 minutes to get over to where George was heading and then we turned around and headed back toward their dock.  There was a couple of speed boats out buzzing around and they of course were leaving a wake, which we bounced over...but it wasn't too bad.  But when we got out toward the middle of the canal and the wind came up and there were white caps...and waves! 

 

Now this boat sits very close to the water and the waves were coming in over the edge, even splashing on my face.  I was a little scared, I don't swim and I don't like rough water in a little boat like that....it was a white knuckle ride, for me, the rest of the way back to their dock.

Later, we were down by the water again and it was just as smooth as could be.  George asked me if I wanted to go for another boat ride~I politely declined.

This is the community where they live.  Some very nice homes.  They have a private dock & beach.   George & Ruth's house was the original house in this community and is back behind the others.  Originally there were small cabins, and all but one of those has been torn down and this bigger homes built in their place. 

 

 They have a peek-a-boo view of the canal from their deck. 

 

They are planning to add on~building up...so they can see over the top of the other homes.

We had a wonderful day and it was fun to get away.  My dear son in law came over & feed Gabi her Fancy Feast dinner because I knew we would get home late and we did.

 

Cushman Lake is up off Highway 101, not too far from their house.  The Cushman dam is connected to the hydroelectric plant down along the highway...supplying power to the city of Tacoma.  The pipelines and hydro plant are very visible from this section of Hoods Canal.

If you ever get to western Washington, this area is a great place to visit.  So beautiful and so many fun things to do.  There's a lot of neat little town's along this stretchof Highway 101 and there's some great resorts, etc as well as camp grounds to stay. 

 

Tags: Hoodsport WA, Highway 101, Lake Cushman, Lake Cushman Hydro Plant

Friday Night TV

I saw it in the movie theater but tonight I watched again....the movie "The Queen."  Now I realize in another day it will be 11 years since the night of that horrible event.  The world lost a very special lady~a Princess.  I remember spending the whole weekend, in tears, glued to the television.  For those of you in the U.K. I can't even imagine how sad it was for you.  My thoughts and prayers will be with her boys and the Spencer family this weekend.

After the movie was over I turned back to a Seattle TV station to watch the end of the NFL preseason game between the Seattle Seahawks and the Oakland Raiders~played at the beautiful Qwest Field in Seattle.  My son and his friend had tickets and were there somewhere in that mass of people. Now he has to get out of the parking lot and drive home from Seattle...probably will take him at least an hour and a half. And he has to go to work tomorrow morning.   I wonder if he's happy or sad?  The Seahawks won 23-16 but my son absolutely loves the Raiders.  He's got Raiders decals on the back window of his truck, Raiders shirts, jackets...you name it~he's got it. In the past he's flown to where the Raiders were playing even though he didn't have tickets to the game.  Him & a buddy would fly in, have a cab driver take them to a sports bar where they could watch the game & get a bite to eat, then get a cab back to the airport and fly back to Seattle. Crazy?  Yup, but he's a true fan.   Would he dare root for the Oakland Raiders tonight surrounded by 40 or 50 thousand Seahawks fans (the 12th Man)?  

   

Qwest Field, home of the Seattle Seahawks. 

The temperature hovered right at 70* all day today.  At times there wasn't even the  slightest breeze, then all of a sudden the wind would come up and blow like crazy.  Then as quick as it came up...it would die down. It went like that all day.  Weird !  My carport is already filling up with leaves.  I swept them up today but soon it will be time to get the leaf blower out.  I hate to see fall come...even though it's a beautiful time of the year~Old Man Winter is always right behind it. 

Well, folks it's late...I think it's time to head down the hall with my book and my kitty.  Until next time, Linda

 

Tags: The Queen, Princess Diana, Seattle Seahawks, Oakland Raiders, Qwest Field, the 12th Man

FOOD FRIDAY

It's that time again...time for Food Friday !!  The recipe I've chosen to share today is so easy to throw together, even a kid can do it.  I have to confess until last weekend, I don't think I'd ever made it before.  I've eaten it at potlucks, etc and always loved it.  My grand daughter made it for her recent birthday party but I left before they dug into it.  So I got the recipe from my daughter & whipped some up for the potluck BBQ that we went to last Sunday afternoon.

******************************************************

Watergate Salad

1 cup white miniature marshmallows

1 package (4 serving) Jello-O Pistachio Flavor Instant Pudding & Pie filling

1  20 ounce can crushed pineapple & it's juice

½ cup chopped pecans (I used walnuts)

1½ cups (about ½ of 8 ounce tub) thawed Cool Whip Whipped topping

Mix marshmallows, dry pudding mix, pineapple and nuts in large bowl until well blended.

Add whipped topping, stir until well blended. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

NOTE: this only makes 8 servings of ½ cup each.  So if you make this for a big bunch of people, you'll need to at least double the recipe.  And I made it the evening before.

Tags: Food Friday, Watergate, pistachio, Cool Whip, crushed pineapple. good

Dog Cartoon

                        

Tags: love, dog, spay, neuter

A Great Journal

I heard about this journal from Buckoclown & luvrte66.  They've added the link to their sidebars.   Stop by and check out ;

Bill's "Wildcat's Lair"   this guy has talent! 

Dutch Department Store Ad~Fantastic !

Just click and enjoy.Don't move your mouse....it all moves for you,

HEMA is a Dutch department store.
Take a look at HEMA's product page. You can't order anything and it's in Dutch but just wait a couple of seconds and watch what happens.
Don't click on any of the products pictured, just wait and see what happens. And be sure you have your sound turned up.

This company has a sense of humor and a great computer programmer, ya?

  http://producten.hema.nl/

Tags: HEMA, Holland, humor

Cats On A Treadmill

Thanks to my friend Susan down in Olympia for this one;

 

http://www.sonnyradio.com/treadmillcats.html

Tags: Olympia WA, cats, treadmill, video

The Alphabet Survey

I found this  meme over at Dust Bunny Protector.

A is for age:  half of 132

B is for beer of choice:  Root beer

C is for career right now:  Tired & retired

D is for your dog's name:  no dog~just a kitty

E is for essential item you use every day: mu computer

F is for favorite TV show at the moment:  The Office

G is for favorite game:  Uno

H is for hometown: Tacoma, WA

I is for instruments you play: I took accordian lessons & still play at times when I'm alone

J is for favorite juice:  orange with lots of pulp

K is for whose butt you'd like to kick:  my neighbors that let their dog bark from 4am on thru the whole day

L is for last restaurant you ate at: The Olive Garden

M is for marriage:  ya, what about it ?

N is for Number of Piercing's:  Two in each ear. 

O is for overnight hospital stay: January 2007..

P is for people you were with today:  just Bob & my kitty (yes she's a people or at least she thinks she is)

Q is for what you do with your quiet time:  Read

R is for biggest regret:  getting chunky

S is for status:  alive & breathing

T is for time you woke up today: 8am

U is for what makes you unique:  I like people (except my neighbors with the barking dog)

V is for vegetable you love:  Gotta love those green beans

W is for worst habit: Dr. Pepper/movie popcorn

X is for x-rays you've had: March 2008~right knee

Y is for yummy food you ate today:  left over Teriyaki

Z is for zodiac sign: Capricorn

Tags: The Office, Tacoma WA, Dr Pepper, Capricorn

Some Weird Weather North of Here

It seems there's a "wall cloud" around the Puget Sound area. They've recorded 34 lightning strikes within a 20 minute period.  Huge amounts of rain has fallen over the Bremerton area....there's 10 inches of water on some streets there. They are predicting intense rain fall, hail and damaging winds. 

I was just outside and the sky overhead here at my place is pure blue but all around me is a huge wall of white thick clouds low on the horizion.  

Puget Sound Weather Outlook

** A thunderstorm with heavy rain is currently moving east from the Kitsap Peninsula into the greater Seattle/Puget Sound area. Expect heavy rain, occasional lightning and possible hail within the hour in Seattle**

Updated Monday 4:00 p.m.

If you were looking out your window around Seattle this morning, you might now qualify to say "Now, I've seen everything."

We had the summer heat, thunderstorms, chilly air, heavy rain -- and then today we capped off the past 10 days with "funnel cloud."

In case you haven't seen our home page, check out the video of the funnel cloud captured over Lake Washington this morning around 8:45. The weather blog has the explanation over what it was.

The weather is trending much calmer for now, but still a few hours of active weather to get through.

A Convergence Zone has formed right over Kitsap and King County and some embedded showers and thunderstorms were drifting east toward the greater Puget Sound area. That means from between Tacoma and Everett, expect rain and possible lightning and hail at times this evening, tapering off after sunset as the zone drifts to the Cascades and fizzles.

I'm blaming this weird weather on Fay!       Linda

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Monday Morning Question

FROM KRISSY AT; http://journals.aol.com/fisherkristina/SometimesIThink/entries/2008/08/25/monday-morning-question-why-did-the-chicken-cross-the-road/1780

And the Question is; "Why Did The Chicken Cross The Road?"

Well, I heard that he crossed the road to get away from Colonel Sanders ! So that has to be my answer.

Tags: Monday Morning Question, chicken, Colonel Sanders

"China Won The Gold For Human Rights Abuses"

There's a very interesting Editorial in our local Sunday paper.  I know of people who actually did NOT watch the Olympics because it was held in China.  I did watch them because I was interested in watching the athletes and rooting them on from the comfort of my living room.  However, I heard a few stories here and there about horrible measures the Chinese government went to, in order to show the world they could pull this off. 

Here's just one of the stories~featured in the paper this morning;

http://www.thenewstribune.com/opinion/story/457602.html

It would be nice if this country and all countries of the free world could do without products "Made in China" until this country treats their dear people with dignity and respect all of deserve.

 

I FOUND IT !!!! I FOUND IT !!!!

I am so excited !!!  I found my Family Tree Maker information.  My son called and he walked me thru the "Search" thingy and the first time nothing showed up ~ so he had me re-boot and I searched again and THERE IT WAS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   (Can you tell that this old lady is excited?)

It is now saved on a CD Rolm, properly labeled and in a jewel case. 

Ok, now I'm off to list & re-list on eBay.  I'm trying to get some $$ together for that upcoming vacation. 

Oh and my son is going to tape "The Office" (the season premier is the week we leave) for me while I'm gone~he watches it too and he may even be in school on Thursday evenings so the episodes I miss will be on tape when I get back home.

I enjoyed a few minutes of JLand chatting this afternoon, in between mowing the front lawn and searching for the lost information.  I met some new people and have 2 new journals on alert.     

 

 

 

 

I THINK I'M GOING TO BE SICK!

After my computer meltdown last month, I was concerned about my Family Tree Maker and the thousands of names, pictures and information I had documented in the program.

So I bought a thumb drive and transferred it over for safe keeping.  A couple days ago, I was looking for a death date on one of my family members to went into FTM for the information~ it was totally blank.  So I plugged in the thumb drive and it was blank too.  The other information I have on there shows up but nothing from the Family Tree Maker. 

I know there are some computer savvy people out there.....does anyone have any ideas.   Oh, I did go back in time and try to restore but this program is still blank. 

Any help would be appreciated...........thanks...linda

IKEA

Thanks again to my daughter for this one! Who thinks up this stuff?

 

       

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FOOD FRIDAY

As fall marches in and summer marches out~I decided to give you a recipe to file away for those cold, rainy & windy days when you want to fix something that will fill up the tummy's but not take a long time to prepare.

Baked Bean Quickie

1 pound ground beef, ¼ cup green pepper chopped (opt), ½ cup minced onion, ½ cup diced celery (I just use 1 teaspoon celery salt), 1 (8oz) can tomato sauce, ½ cup water, garlic salt, 1 teaspoon dry mustard, 2 tablespoons wine vinegar, ½ cup brown sugar and 2 cans Pork & Beans.

Brown ground beef until done, drain off grease.  Saute onions, green peppers & celery until tender and transparent. When fully cooked, place ground beef, onions, green peppers & celery into oven proof casserole dish.  Add tomato sauce, water, dry mustard, wine vinegar, brown sugar and pork & beans and stir until well blended. Bake for 1 hour at 375°.  Serves 4 to 5 people.  Anything left over can be reheated for the next day & it tastes even better!

When I make this dish I rarely have green peppers, celery & onions on hand. I use celery salt and dried minced onions and dried green pepper flakes when I can find them.   I love to make this because it only takes 1 pound of burger and frequently the Pork & Beans are on sale for like 3 cans for $1 so if you can get 6 cans, you have the Pork & Beans for 3 batches of this dish. 

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5 Years And Counting !

                    

Happy 5th Anniversary AOL JLand! 

My first entry was May 6, 2005, so I've just been around a little over three years.   I got started because my daughter had a journal and she was always telling me about the great people she was meeting.  Unfortunately, she has since stopped journaling.

But, I'm hooked!   I only wish there were more hours in the day, so I could read more journals than I do now.  Sometimes I find myself on overload when it comes to alerts....but I do my best to eventually catch up.

When I was a teenager I had several Pen Pals from different countries.  I like to consider my JLand friends my "electronic Pen Pals." 

I have met some very dear people since that day a little over 3 years ago.  I've been privileged to be apart of their lives thru the good times and bad...the happy times and sad.  We've celebrated births of grand children, and mourned the deaths of loved ones and friends.   We've banded together when "nasty Nates" have left rotten comments.  And we've welcomed new journalers into our midst.

My hope is that we continue to uphold each other at all times and remember that behind every computer keyboard is a living breathing person.  Mom used to say "think before you speak."  In this day and age we need to remember to "think before we type." 

Happy JLand Anniversary~may there be many, many more !

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Baseball Player

Thanks to my daughter, Julie, for this one.

           

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If I Could Ever Build A New House

Ever since I was a little girl, I dreamed of having a new house built to look like the house my maternal grandparents lived in from 1936 to 1948.   My parents were married in the side yard of this house and after my dad left to join the U.S. Army in July of 1942, my mom moved back there (with 6 month old me) for about a year. Then she moved into Yakima & lived in a basement apartment of a house where a nice family lived.  The lady took care of me during the day while mom worked as an RN in the Newborn Nursery at St Elizabeth's Hospital. 

This house was located outside the city limits of Sunnyside, Washington.  To the side of the two lane concrete Emerald Road...over on the left, just after you crossed the railroad tracks.   Yes, the tracks went right thru my grandfather's hop fields.  During the depression, men would jump off the slow moving train looking for work and a meal.  The word was out that John Stern was a good man, you could always get a few days work, a cot in the barn to sleep on and 3 meals a day.

When I was 6 years old, grandpa retired from farming and they sold the house and farm and moved to a smaller place in Mabton.  Even though I was very young I can remember this place like it was yesterday. I remember going out with grandma to feed the chickens, I remember grandpa giving me his empty Prince Albert tobacco cans to store my little girl treasures in, and I can remember being tucked into bed with one of grandma's hand made quilts covering me.  I remember eating breakfast on summer warm mornings with grandpa out on the screened in porch.  I remember the night that there was a fire down the road.  I believe it was a store that caught on fire.   The whole sky was lit up.  Grandpa got in his old car and drove down to see what was going on....while we looked out the window at the flames shooting up in the air.

Across the concrete two lane road you could look up and see the rolling hills of eastern Washington.  From grandpa and grandma's front yard it looked like there were caves up there.  I can remember asking grandpa over and over if he'd take me up there to those caves, I wanted to see what was in them.  Finally, he came up with an answer that stopped a little grand daughter's nagging "Lindy, there are big giants living in those caves and we can't go bothering them."        I don't think I ever asked again 

If it ever happens that I can build a new house, I want it to look exactly like grandpa and grandma Stern's house on Emerald Road.         

                            

Out in front, grandma & grandpa Stern and their little black & white dog Midge.

 

 

Tags: Sunnyside WA, Yakima WA, Mabton WA, hop farm, railroad tracks, grandparents

Does Anyone Remember How To Drive In The Rain?

Earlier today, in between showers, I headed over to the Post Office, bank and grocery store.  I left home during a lovely sun break.  Of course when I came out of the store with a gallon of milk, my purse and several bags of stuff ...... it was during a rain break.  That's always the way it happens.

And as usual when it's raining I turn on my headlights.  I was taught that in Drivers Training back in 1958.  The rule was if your windshield wipers are on then you turn your head lights on too.

As I pulled out of the grocery store  parking lot, the rain was coming down so hard I had to turn the wipers on almost as fast as they would go.  This kid came past me on the main drag, going so fast, faster than the speed limit I'm sure & it was pouring! A car pulled out in front of him and when he finally braked he skidded all over the road.  He's darn lucky he didn't hit anyone.

Then I heard on the radio that there were so many wrecks on south bound I-5, that there was a 13 mile back up between Fort Lewis (south of Tacoma) and Olympia.  Why is it that people get crazy when the weather changes? 

Remember~when it's raining turn your lights on and slow down a little.

Tags: rain, sun, driving too fast, windshield wipers

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Get The Word Out!

My son told me about this public service web site.  FREE headsets for your cell phone.  With laws going into effect regarding cell phone use while driving these people are trying to help us out.  I have a Blue Tooth but I hate it.  So I hopped right on this offer. In most cases all you pay is shipping.  Check it out, find your phone model (usually listed under the battery if you don't know what it is) and in a few weeks you'll be driving legally with both hands on the wheel.

http://www.freeheadset.org/home.php

I'm so happy that Hurricane Fay has bypassed our friends in Florida.  That's really an answer to lots of prayers. (Robin you did good!)

We have been experiencing cool temperatures and lots of rain.  That's ok...after all that hot weather, we need both.  

Barbara and I went to the show today~we saw "Dark Knight." Neither one of us liked it at all.  We both thought it was stupid.  A waste of time and money.  I wanted to see Kevin Costner in "Swing Vote" but it's already left town.  Maybe next week, there will be something better. Or if not, we'll do something different.

Well, that's all for now..until next time, Linda

Storm

They are predicting that we're going to get it again this evening thru tomorrow. 

 

From those that know about this stuff;

The flash of a lightning strike and resulting thunder occur at roughly the same time. But light travels at 186,000 miles in a second, almost a million times the speed of sound. Sound travels at the slower speed of one-fifth of a mile in the same time. So the flash of lightning is seen before thunder is heard. By counting the seconds between the flash and the thunder and dividing by 5, you can estimate your distance from the strike (in miles).   ASTRAPHOBIA~the fear of thunder & lightning

 

To all my JLand friends in Florida~we're thinking about you as "Fay" approaches.  Be safe~don't take any chances!   

 

Tags: thunder, lightning, hurricane, Florida

What Happened?

                                    

 

After that beautiful moon last night, those of us here in the Pacific Northwest were rudely awakened about 2:15am by the loudest thunder and heavy rain.  I thought we'd been bombed or the world had come to an end~my whole house shook.  And it was raining so hard (but only for a few minutes) that it was like a fire hose was aimed at the house.  

The storm continued for about an hour and a half....and we all woke up to slightly cooler temperatures this morning. Even at noon, it's still alternating between overcast and sunshine and I'm glad to report that the temperature is below 80* for the first time in many days.  

When Gabi decided it was time for her breakfast, I got up and opened up the windows and front door and turned on the fans..trying to cool the house down.  It was still over 85* in my bedroom and in the living room, even after the little storm. 

I haven't heard the local news yet today so I don't know if there was any damage or not from the lightning.  I was counting 3 seconds from the flash to the thunder....and I believe each second is the equivalent to 10 miles. Is that right ??

Anyway, the world didn't come to an end..so I guess I should get busy doing something.    Until next time,   Linda

Tags: thunder, rain, lightning

The Moon

Saturday evening at 10:15pm in western Washington

We took a little drive south to Olympia about 7:00pm.  When we came out of the Wal Mart at 8:15pm the moon was bright pink. I'm thinking it may have been the sunset reflecting on it. I had my camera and tried to get a picture of it then but there was just no place I could get an unobstructed view of it.

Linda down in California took some awesome pictures.  My camera is only a 3.2MP so mine aren't as good as hers.   She called it a sturgeon moon and I Googled "sturgeon moon" and sure enough that's what it's called~goes back to the Native Americans who called it that because August was the month that they caught more sturgeons.  September's full moon will be a "harvest moon."  (Reminds me of a song)

Thanks Linda for the idea of "shooting the moon."

Follow the link to see Linda's pictures;

http://journals.aol.com/fasttrack58/FootprintsintheSand/entries/2008/08/16/sturgeon-moon/3644

Tags: sturgeon moon

FOOD FRIDAY, ETC.

Rhubard Custard Pie

4-5 cups chopped rhubard, 1½ cups sugar (I use Splenda), ½ cup flour, ¼ teaspoon nutmeg, 3 eggs, ¼ cup milk or half & half

Mix sugar, flour and nutmeg.  Add eggs and milk.  Blend well.  Mix with cut rhubarb. Pour into bottom crust and place top crust, crimping edges. Cut vent holes and sprinkle with sugar.   Bake at 350° for 1 hour.   Enjoy.....

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It's still unreasonably hot here in the Pacific Northwest. It was 86° in my living room this morning at 9am. I've got the doors & windows open on the west side of the house and in a couple hours I'll close them and open up the east side.  All the fans are running at full blast. I went out and watered all the pots & hanging baskets this morning and I've got the sprinkler running in the front yard.  I think I'm going to let it run most of the day, it seems to cool down the air coming in the front windows.   Our predicted high is 92° today.  Yesterday it was very close to that if not higher.  The main concern is the poor air quality.  They are still asking people to cut down on their driving if possible, not to mow their lawns with gas powered lawnmowers, etc. And advising those with asthma & other respiratory issues to stay indoors.  I have no plans of going anywhere again today.  I'm in my mu-mu again  & later after it gets really warm in here, I'm going to make some popcorn and watch a movie~pretending I'm really at the air conditioned theater up the street.  I have already baked some pork chops for tonight's dinner and will add a salad and veggie, later.  We can heat the meat up in the microwave if necessary.  Personally I don't mind them cold.

This weather reminds me of the summer of 1971 when Jimmy was born.  It had been like this for weeks before he was born and for weeks after we brought him home.  The day we left the hospital, we put him in his cute little "going home" outfit and by the time we got home, his hair was all wet from the heat.  We brought him in the house and stripped him down to a diaper and put him in his cradle.  I would lay a receiving blanket over the top of the cradle about half way down, just to keep a draft off him.  But he started out his days on this earth with only a diaper. I can't help thinking about him today in the hot building running his big printing press.  I hope they've got the fans going & the big doors open. 

Well folks that's all for now.  I'm going to go and try to get a few things done before this oven I call my home gets any warmer. Now at noon, it's 88° here in the living room and 84° on the front porch~which will get warmer because it's on the west.      Until next time....Linda

Tags: rhubarb, high temperatures, pollution, 1971

HOT !!!

Tags: high temperatures, snow

Fall Vacation Plans Made, Then Changed.

It all started in March, when Bob & I were on that little 4 night cruise out of Los Angeles. Our waiters were telling us that the ship (Monarch of the Seas) was going to be moved to Florida at the end of this season. He explained "it's called a repositioning cruise."  We talked about it then, but after we got home, I started checking into it and found that the ship would be leaving LA on October 17th ending up in Miami on Nov 2nd. With many interesting port stops along the way and of course going thru the Panama Canal.  When I presented the information to Bob we were both really excited and decided "we want to do this, it's a chance of a lifetime!"  So we called the travel agent (this was back in March) and signed up...paying a deposit of $480 a piece with the balance due on August 8th.

I also told him, that as long as we were ending up in Florida and since neither of us had ever been there (well, he was in Orlando for 2 days once), I would love to spend some time there, especially in the Orlando area.  So I made reservations for 6 nights at a lovely place in Kissimmee, reserved a rental car at the Miami airport for our use and made one way plane reservations from Orlando back to LA on November 8th.  As the August 8th date crept closer I was really stressing out about the cost of the "Great Adventure."  So last week we sat down and went over all the figures...cruise cost, rental car, hotel, gas for rental car, food during the week in Orlando, admissions into the Disney venues & incidentals.  Whoa !!! Shocking !  We figured all together it would be up around $6,000 for both of us.  No way !!!  So I got on the phone and called the travel agent and asked her what would happen if we canceled the cruise. She did tell me that if we applied our deposit to another cruise there would be no penalty.  Then I called Orbitz and asked about canceling the plane tickets and hotel.  The plane tickets were the worst~the two tickets were $174 each and the airline (Delta) keeps $100 (on seats they will sell to someone else) and Orbitz keeps $30.  The hotel keeps only $25 upon cancellation this far in advance.

We knew we still wanted to go to Pasadena so Bob could spend his birthday (Oct 11th) with his daughter and family that live there.  So after looking online (oh, I am so thankful for my computer~you can find out almost anything) and presenting my plan to Bob, I called back to the travel agent.  (Mind you this was going on last week while I was also trying to get ready for the carport sale.) She did some figuring and told us we could go on either of two cruises out of Los Angeles for much less than a third of what we still owed on the Panama Canal cruise.  Plus there were still good outside cabins left on both ships.  Finally she said, let me know which one you decide to go on, so I can make your reservations. Bob and I talked it over and the next morning I called her back.  "Well, what did you decide?" she asked....I said "we're going on both of them!"   "Wow, you two are serious about taking another cruise aren't you?"  So this is what we're doing;  Sept 29th we'll board the Monarch of the Seas for the same 4 night cruise we took in March & I'm NOT going to hurt my knee again !  I will be able to walk off the ship in Ensenada, Mexico.

 

When we get back in LA on October 3rd it will be in time for the 15th birthday of Bob's Pasadena grand daughter.  We've never been there for her birthday.  Then we'll spend the week there in Pasadena and on Sunday Oct 12th (the day after Bob's birthday) his daughter will drive us back to the Los Angeles cruise center in San Pedro and we'll board the Vision of the Seas (the ship that used to be in Seattle for the Seattle to Alaska run) and take the 7 night Mexican Rivera cruise.

We'll get back on October 19th...stay in Pasadena for a few more days and then head out.  Bob has mentioned Bryce Canyon in Utah but also has talked about going back to Arizona, namely the Yuma area.

So the plane tickets & hotel have been canceled. I'm still angry that Delta keeps $100~that's ridiculous!   And I called and "un-reserved the rental car"  they hadn't asked for any money up front.

Originally, he said he was not taking the big truck and camper because of the cost of the adventure once we reached California.  He did not want to drive the Chevy dually down there and back at 12 miles to the gallon only adding to the total cost.  But now, since we've drastically down graded...we're taking the camper.  In fact the last few days he's been out there working on it, getting it ready. Among other things he pulled out the old carpeting and put in some pretty new stuff.  It looks so nice.

Miss Gabi has made her reservations with my grand daughter & they've been confirmed, so she'll be moving in over at their house about September 19th.  That will give me the weekend to get ready to get out of town while she gets settled in.  I'm planning another potluck for the gals from my graduating class on Monday September 22nd and after that we can head down Highway 101 to southern California.

Even though it's a little over a month away, I'm getting excited.  And I know Bob is also.  I don't think he's ever spent his birthday with his California daughter & family since she moved to California when she was 18 years old.  It will also be fun to be there for Nina's 15th birthday.  

Well, it's already hot here...the ice has melted off my windshield (LOL) and they are saying the air quality in the Seattle~Tacoma area is very poor, warning that people with asthma and other respiratory conditions should stay indoors at least Saturday evening.

I'm going to get off here now and go do something constructive~very slowly. Oh I am so glad I got the lawn mowed yesterday afternoon.

 

Tags: Panama Canal, Mexico, cruising on Royal Caribbean, Pasadena, CA

Up late ~ so I thought I'd catch up

Well, we started into a heat wave here in western Washington today.  They say we'll hit record breaking temperatures over the weekend.  That means my house will be about 10-15 degrees hotter inside than outside.

I did manage to get the back yard mowed Wednesday afternoon.  It was terribly warm but it really needed it and I know it's not going to get any cooler.

Wednesday evening I took my son out for his birthday dinner.  I had called my brother & sister in law and told them of my plans & invited then to join us if they could.  Jim & I walked into the restaurant and there they were.  Jim got a big smile on his face when he saw them and we had a nice visit over dinner.

After dinner, I decided to go to the local Fred Meyer store to get some gas & a few things needed for the cupboard. If you spend $100 during a month you get 10¢ per gallon discount on your gas the following month.  I always get to at least $100 and usually go over it, so I was able to top off my gas tank for $3.75 a gallon.  Yes, gas has dropped to under $4 a gallon here in my town.  I understand that in Seattle, it's still over $4 a gallon.

I discovered over the weekend (thanks to my darling grand daughter) that the nice new digital camera that I got for 25 years of service at the hospital takes a XD memory card instead of the usual SD card.   Since I really like my old camera, I hadn't even taken the time  (in a year & a half) to check out the "gift" camera.  Until Meghanne mentioned it to me, I had never heard of the XD memory cards~has anyone out there had any experience with them, either in the past or at this time?  Let me know what you think, please.

This month is going to afford me two opportunities to meet two AOL JLand friends.   I got a call the other day from Trees who lives in Canada~she has a journal called the Garden of Friendship.  She's visiting her friend in Oregon and Saturday they are coming up Interstate 5 to visit some cities nearby.  They think they will be coming thru here Saturday morning  around 9 or 10am and we're going to meet for breakfast. 

Then on August 30th, I'm going to have lunch with Lori and her husband Chuck who are driving from Alberta to Seattle in order to take an Alaskan cruise.  Lori has a journal, Lori's Letter Box.   

I'm looking forward to meeting both of these dear ladies. 

Well, my head is starting to droop..I guess I'd better go and see if I can get some sleep...until next time,  Linda

New Airline Rules~Effective Immediately !

Attendant; Welcome aboard Ala Carte Air, sir.  May I see your ticket?

Passenger:  Sure

Attendant: You're in seat 12-B.  That will be $5, Please!

Passenger: What for?

Attendant: For telling you where to 'sit.'

Passenger: But I already knew where to sit.

Attendant: Never the less, we are now charging a 'seat locator fee' of $5.  It's the Airline's new policy.

Passenger: That's the craziest thing I ever heard.  I won't pay it.

Attendant: Sir, do you want a seat on this flight or not?

Passenger:  Yes, yes. All right, I'll pay. But the airline is going to hear about this.

Attendant: Thank you.  My goodness, your carry-on bag looks heavy.  Would you like me to stow it in the overhead for you?

Passenger: That would be swell, thanks.

Attendant: No problem.  Up we go and done!  That will be $10, please.

Passenger:  What?

Attendant: The airline now charges a $10 'carry-on assistance fee.'

Passenger: This is extortion.  I won't stand for it.

Attendant: Actually, you're right, you can't stand.  You need to sit and fasten your seat belt.  We're about to push away from the gate.  But first I need that $10.

Passenger: 'NO WAY!'

Attendant Sir, if you don't comply, I will be forced to call the Air Marshall.  And you don't want me to do that.

Passenger: Why not?  Is he going to shoot me?

Attendant: No, but there's a $50 'Air Marshall hailing fee.'

Passenger: Oh, all right, here take the $10.  I can't believe this.

Attendant: Thank you for your cooperation, sir.  Is there anything else I can do for you?

Passenger: Yes, it's really stuffy in here and my overhead fan doesn't work.  Can you fix it?

Attendant: Your overhead fan is not broken, sir.  Just insert two quarters into the overhead coin slot for the first 5 minutes.

Passenger:  The airline is charging me for cabin air?

Attendant: Of course not, sir.  Stagnant cabin air is provided free of charge.  It's the circulating air that costs 50 cents.

Passenger: I don't have any quarters.  Can you make change for a dollar?

Attendant: Certainly, sir.  Here you go!

Passenger: But you've given me only 3 quarters for my dollar.

Attendant: Yes, there's a 'change making fee' of 25 cents.

Passenger:  For crying out loud.  All I have left is a lousy quarter.  What the heck can I do with this?

Attendant: Hang on to it.  You'll need it later for the lavatory.

 

August 12, 1971

37 years ago on August 12th a 9-1/2 pound baby boy came into this world.  These were the days before ultrasounds, etc so when babies were born it was always a surprise.  At the time..I really wanted another girl.  I didn't really have anything against little boys, after all I'd had a little brother.  But I knew if I had a boy, I wanted him to be a "full of life, on the go, energetic, non stop except when sleeping" little boy.  And quite frankly, I didn't feel I was up to that.  However, my husband jokingly said all along that if it was a girl, I'd have to come home from the hospital in a cab...he wanted a boy! 

 I remember when I was in the delivery room , my doctor asked me what we were hoping for.  I told him,  I wanted a girl but that my husband said if it was a girl, I'd have to take a cab home.  As the baby was delivered, he said to one of the nurses.."you'd better go tell that dad to keep the car running because he has a son."   Not for one second after that moment, have I ever been sorry that on that day, at 9:10am I gave birth to a bouncing baby boy. He turned out to be the non stop, energetic little boy I was afraid to have, he kept us hopping...but he grew up, calmed down and has been the light of my life for 37 years.

 Actually, both my daughter, Julie and my son, Jim have been the best kids a mom could ever have.  They both did well in school, were never in any trouble and they have both been good to me.  Jim was the only grandson my folks ever had and they both adored him, too.  My dad even signed over his old pickup truck to Jimmy on his 16th birthday...his first set of wheels. He had a job washing dishes at Denney's and needed the truck to get back & forth to school and work. He later got a dishwashing job at a University just a few blocks from my house. 

 Everyday when I came home from work, there'd be bread crumbs along with peanut butter & jam smudges on my kitchen counter...he'd fixed an after school, before work snack.  Jim's always been a hard worker, even as a kid, before age 16...he was mowing lawns and doing whatever he could to make money.  He went into the Air Force in October of 1989, 8 weeks after his 18th birthday. 

 It was the first time he'd ever been away from home like that.  I remember when he went to San Antonio for basic training, when they finally let him call me, he called very late one night and he was so home sick.  He cried & I cried that night on the phone....I felt so sorry for him.  But he made it.   And he did good. I remember the first letter I got telling me of him being chosen Airman of the Month,  I was so proud. 

 When he got out of the Air Force, he got a job within  3 weeks at a large printing company here in town.  He's worked as a press operator all these years, except for about a year after he hurt his hand in the machinery.  After a couple surgeries to repair his hand he held a job in the radiology file room at the hospital where he was born (also where I was born & worked for over 25 years). He has been back to work, printing now for almost 4 years. He's now also going to school at our local community college in the evenings. So he has a full schedule.

His one big dream is to fly, he took some flying lessons for awhile but they are very expensive.  I hope someday he can complete the lessons and get his pilot's license.

 I look at this son of mine and I think of all the years that have gone by, all the circumstances we survived, how he's changed from a precious chunky baby, into a 6'2" man.....a man who has a gentle heart, a man who loves the Lord, a man who would love to find a sweet woman, and settle down  and have a family.  And I thank God, that I've had the privilege of being his mother all these years.  Happy birthday my son, I love you !

And I don't want to forget my son-in-law and Bob's daughter, Hope down in Pasadena.....both of them are also having a birthday today, August 12th.  Two more very special people in my life.  Happy Birthday !

 

Tags: birthday, son, 1971

So far a slow Sunday

I decided after all the work of setting my carport sale up...I would keep it open today and start packing up around 2pm this afternoon.  Meghanne is coming over after church to help me...so that will be fun.  So, I've been open 1½ hours and had one non-buying customer.  I even have big 50% off signs out today.   

I thought as long as I was out there and it's nice and cool so far today, I would do a little work in the front yard.  I got the roses and other flowers deadheaded...then decided to feed the roses and my hanging baskets and I hit a brick wall.  My jug of rose food & the Miracle Gro is in the front shed and Bob has the key for it in his pocket and is long gone from here.  One of these days~I'm going to beat knobs on his head!   He always forgets to leave that key here!!!

Here's some before and after pictures of the carport;

Thursday afternoon~tables all set up & ready to be loaded with "priceless junk"

Boyd's Bear stuff

some of Meghanne's pictures

I can't believe no one went for the black & white cow stuff

I have 3 boxes of Beanie Babies~why did I get caught up in that ...oh so many years ago?

I wish she'd stay on her pink blanket! 

FOOD FRIDAY (on Saturday)

Ok, ok....I know it's Saturday evening but I've been busy with this carport sale thing.  It's going well, even though today the weather was less than perfect.  We had temps in the low 60's with wind, rain & sun.  The people came between showers and about half of them were eager to spend some money.  Ok...enough of that.  Here's my recipe for this week.

************************************************************

Alaskan Salmon Loaf

1 (1 pound) can salmon, drained and flaked

2 cups soft bread or cracker crumbs

1 tablespoon chopped onion

1 tablespoon butter, melted

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup milk

1 slightly beaten egg

Picante Sauce (optional)

In a bowl; combine salmon, crumbs, chopped onion, butter & salt.  Combine milk and egg adding to salmon mixture and mix thoroughly. Shape into a greased loaf pan.  Bake at 350* for 35 to 40 minutes.  This recipe only makes 3 or 4 servings so if you need more you could double the ingredients and perhaps adjust cooking time.  If you wish you can serve with Picante Sauce.

Picante Sauce (if you don't have store bought)

Cook 2 tablespoons chopped green onion in 3 tablespoons butter until tender, but not brown.  Blend in 2 tablespoons all purpose flour, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon dry mustard and a dash of pepper.  Add 1¼ cups of milk and 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce.  Cook stirring constantly until sauce thickens and bubbles.

 

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Do You Need A Toilet?

The City of Seattle has their 5 public toilets for sale on eBay. They tried listing them once at a rather high price and got no bidders.  I understand they started out this last time at much lower starting prices and offered Worldwide Shipping....and the bidding is heating up. The idea of these "on the street"  toilets was a great one but unfortnately a few (namely drug users & prostitutes) has ruined it for all.   Here's the link to the page on eBay where they are listed.

 http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?from=R40&_trksid=m37&satitle=public+toilet      

 It looks like the same person is bidding on all 5 of them.

What a deal!?!

                 

Yuck !!!!!!!!!!!

It's so hot and humid here today.  Mom was gone from 11am until after 3pm this afternoon...so that means the house was totally closed up during the hottest part of the day.  Oh sure, she left the fans going but all they were doing was blowing the 86* heat around inside this hot house.  So I'm paying her back by lounging on her end of the sofa.    LOL !!!

             

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How Will I Get Anything Done Today?

When I opened the front door to get the morning paper, my eyes lit up at the sight of the Ikea 2009 catalog. (Yes, here in my area it comes with the local newspaper)  Maybe, it will be my reading material for tonight. 

 Meanwhile I'm off to the store to pick up some Bumble Bee Albacore (on sale for $1 a can) and some Hunt's Spaghetti Sauce (on sale for 79¢ a can) and then it's back home to really dig in and get stuff together for the big sale coming this weekend. And the temperature is supposed to skyrocket to 87* today, so this afternoon it will be hot in here.   Tomorrow is Book Club so I need to be ready to "set up" on Thursday.  Meanwhile you may enjoy the cover of my new Ikea catalog.....

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JLand Photo Shoot #138

 

           

The subject for this photo shoot is ~

 

 

Photographer's Choice

 

You can choose anything you want to photograph.  It could be a barn, a flower, a cow, or your paperweight collection!  It doesn't matter, just go and shoot!  This photo shoot is going to be for an extended period of time, as I know you are busy during the summer.  So you will have a lot of time to get your shot(s). 

 

Entries will be due by August 23 at 11 PM Eastern Time.  

 

After you've posted your photo entry in your journal/blog, please go to Krissy's Journal and leave the link for your entry.

 

 

                       

When I'm sitting at my computer I have pictures on the wall to my immediate right and then just past the pictures is a quilt wall rack with a shelf for "nick knacks" & "doo dads."  The quilt was made by my great grandmother as a gift to my father in 1939.  It's like new because all the years my folks were married my mother had it packed carefully away.  Along the shelf I've place a bunch of little things that have a special meaning to me.   Way down on the left you can see my grandmother's doll~she's on a stand next to the shelf.  On the shelf is a little wooden container Bob got for me in Mexico, the Eskimo doll I got in Alaska, a little wooden rocking horse, there's a little bottle of sand from Virginia Beach a friend brought back to me, a couple porcelain containers, a little pot that I bought from a Navajo lady outside the Grand Canyon, my little (and I mean little) Russian Dolls, also purchased in Alaska and my little Panda that I bought at the San Diego Zoo in March.     The blue booklet is a "Verse of the Day" collection.  And lastly my precious little Boyd's Bear angel and silver snowflake given to me by former co-workers...both hung from my overhead in my cubicle when I was working.  The bottle of water, etc. are next to my monitor on my computer desk. It may all look like junk to some but each item brings a special memory to my mind.

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