Friday Night Update

We had a wonderful week traveling around Washington's Olympic Peninsula. The weather was perfect and we saw alot of places we hadn't been to in awhile. I'll be posting some pictures and commentary on that week in my travel Blog http://packyourbagsletsgo.blogspot.com/ probably Labor Day weekend. Right now I'm finishing up our May/June road trip.

Our weather has continued to be warm and dry but tonight I hear the pitter patter of rain drops out there~very welcome rain I might add.

I was able to get the front lawn mowed but the dandelions in the back yard are still growing. I'm sure this rain won't last long.

I've been trying to get around Bloggerville but when it's nice outside, I have a hard time staying in the house on the computer. I've also started a mailing project in regards to my 50th class reunion which happens next summer, I am spending an hour or so a day on that. So once again, I apologize if I haven't stopped by to read and leave a comment in your Blog.

Until next time............Linda

ROAD TRIP !!

We're leaving Monday morning on a week long road trip around, what those of us from Washington fondly call 'The Loop.' Actually it is sort of a loop if you look at the map. We'll be following highway 101 around the beautiful Olympic Peninsula.
You can find information about that area at; http://www.olympicpeninsula.org/ .

We'll be up in the Hoh Rain Forest, Sol Duc Hot Springs, beautiful Kalaloch Beach (love it there & it was our favorite campground when I was married) and we're taking our Passports in case we decide to hop the ferry in Port Angeles and go over to Victoria, BC for the day. You can actually make this drive in a very long day but we're taking the truck and camper and are going to camp so we'll probably be back next weekend.

I've got another entry scheduled to post in my other Blog, "Pack Your Bags, Let's Go!" so while I'm gone I hope everyone will stop by there and enjoy a time in the very unique Los Rios Historical District.

I hope everyone has a good week...and I'll be back again.

WHAT THE HECK ????????????????

I got the notice from Washington State Department of Licensing today and I am furious! This is for my yearly license tab renewal.

Read on and you'll see why I'm upset.

$3 filing fee (funds go to county in which the fee is paid)
$6 RTA tax (funds go to your (my) Regional Transit Authority)
$30 license fee (funds construction & maintenance projects)
$10 weight base fee (funds highway improvements, transit & other transportation need)
75¢ license service fee (supports the computer system used to provide licensing services)
$20 replacement plate fee (for road, street & highway purposes)
$4 plate reflectorization fee (funds road, stret & highway maintenance & improvements)
$5 state Parks donation (that may be optional, they gave me a phone number to call)
GRAND TOTAL =$78.75.

There's nothing wrong with my present licence plate but they are saying I have to get a new one. Finally in the last year I memorized my license plate number ~however, if I want the same plate number I can an additional $20. At least I don't have to have the emmission test tis year...that will be next year and that's $15 on top of the license tabs, etc.

This state is about 20 years behind in highway construction. And Tacoma and the county I live in, has some award winning potholes that go unfilled. Where is all this money going ?

I might add this is for a 1997 Toyota Rav4 ~ not exactly a new, high end vehicle.

Happy Birthday to My Son!

38 years ago today (August 12th), I gave birth to a bouncing baby boy. Secretly I wanted another girl. But it was love at first sight and I’ve never regretted the gift of a son.

I’ve always loved this picture of my dad feeding Jim. Notice how my folks tied him into a chair. They must have been babysitting him on this day.

He loved to do down the slide with his dog, Frisky. They were great pals.

He was never in trouble at school, well not serious trouble like getting expelled. Grade school was a little tough for him because he was so hyper. But by the time he reached high school, that hyper stuff had subsided.

Out of high school he went directly into the United States Air Force and made Airman of the month at least once.

Once he was discharged he was working for a printing company within 2 weeks….he still works there today. But he is taking college classes and hopes to transfer into the IT Tech world eventually.

He’s had his heart broken and broken hearts but as I write this he’s planning a Spring wedding with a lovely lady that I will be proud to call my daughter in law.

Happy Birthday Jim, your mama loves you!

PS: I also want to wish a Happy Birthday to my son in law and Bob’s Pasadena, CA daughter. Both are celebrating their birthday’s today~August 12th.

Very Sad News

My heart is aching for our friend John Garnett....his dear Debbie passed away Sunday afternoon. Please stop by his Blog and leave a kind word for him.

http://garnett109.blogspot.com/

Collections

I’ve been thinking a lot about people and their collections lately.  And wondering why do people collect things.  Well, my answer for that question is  that they come across something they really like & they start gathering those things and pretty soon they have a collection.

When my daughter was a pre-teen she collected everything ‘Unicorn.’  She even entered her Unicorn collection in the Hobby Hall at the Puyallup Fair one September.  And it was quite a hit.  She also had quite a collection of Breyer horses of all sizes.

 

When I was a kid I had a collection of the real toys that came in Cracker Jacks. The ones below aren’t mine but this is a good example of what you got in the late 1940’s & 1950’s.  Today they give you junk.

Another one of my childhood collections was Story Book Dolls.  They came in little white boxes with colored polka dots on the box & lid.  I probably had 20 or so of them….but I have no clue what happened to them. They were dolls from different childhood rhymes ~such as ‘Little Red Riding Hood’ and ‘Little Miss Muffet.’   I found this picture of  ‘Little Miss Muffet’ on-line.  They were all so cute!

As a teenager I had a collection of felt pennants.  They were readily available everywhere~at parks, zoos, you name it~they were there for the choosing.  We really only took one big trip when I was a teenager because we lived on a farm and it was just too hard to get away.  But family and friends would bring them back from trips and my whole bedroom wall was covered with them during my junior high and high school years.  They too have disappeared~the ones pictured below are from a picture I found on-line.

After high school I was working, married, starting a family and the collecting came to an end.  But after my children got older and left home….it started again.  The first thing was Teddy Bears.  I had the Teddy Bear’s that belonged to my dad, my daughter and my own…so it was a natural thing to start gathering cute Teddy Bears.  And of course the word got out and I started getting them as gifts.  I soon had over 100 bears from a little tiny one about  1 inch tall, to a huge white polar bear that took up one corner of my living room.  About 4 years ago, I actually gave someone $1 at my yard sale to let their grand daughter have it.  All the Teddy Bears are gone now with the exception of the original three (my dad’s, etc) and three bears that were special gifts.  There’s one my friend Judy gave me when I was in the hospital one time, one from my cousin Betty for a special occasion and the one below~my son brought this home from San Antonio after he completed his US Air Force Basic Training. 

I have to confess that when I saw these little Franklin Pierce High School bears at a local store lately, it was hard to pass them up. But I did…….

Does anyone remember the Cabbage Patch rage?  Well, that was the next thing I got caught up in….I had boys, girls, twins, Asians, Hispanics, blacks, whites, special theme CP’s…..I had them all.  But they too are all gone, sold on eBay, except for my three special ones(Jennifer, Josh & Percy).

 

However on a recent trip to the Goodwill Outlet, I found another one….a sweet faced blond, stark naked but in like new condition.  Pay day I’ll get her an outfit and either keep her or save her to give away this Christmas.  I just knew I couldn’t leave her behind.  Look at that face!  I think her name is Sarah Elizabeth.

In 1994 I went to work in a family practice medical clinic.  I worked with gals that were young enough to be my daughter’s.   But those stinkers exposed me to collecting something I never would have dreamed of.  I don’t know which came first~ the Barbie's or the Beanie Babies.  All I know is, I ended up with 150 Barbie’s and boxes of Beanies.  I didn’t buy all the Barbie’s, some came as gifts.  The Beanies ~guilty as charged. Mine are boxed so I’m using this picture from the Internet.

 

In the late 1990’s I started selling off the Barbie’s and at this date I just have three left. Two were  special gifts and the I’ve attempted to sell the third one on eBay but so far no takers.  I’ll list her again in a month or so..….just prior to the holiday season.  She’s very pretty but she needs to go.

The one practical thing I’ve been collecting for years is Pyrex bake ware and other types of bowls, condiment dishes and bake wear.  Most of this stuff I’ve bought at the Goodwill, thrift shops or yard sales.  I have a nice collection of Carnival glass that was left to me by my two grandmother’s and I love that stuff too but don’t use it very often.  I have one 2 quart bright red Pyrex casserole that I love to use for scalloped potatoes or even potato salad. Both look  nice in that red bowl.  Here’s a few pieces of my cookware collection.

  

And finally…..I can’t remember where I got these little guys and I haven’t ever used them for anything but I just remember they caught my eye and I couldn’t leave them behind.  Someday they will grace my table.

I have come to the point where I can buy no more of these remarkable pieces….there’s just no more cupboard space.  But what I’ve been collecting the last year or so takes very little room….and each piece costs 51¢.  That’s right~it’s my squished pennies.

The pennies in the middle folder have been gifted to me or are ones that I traded for.  I also have a squished quarter that Betty in California sent me and a squished nickel that I received as a bonus for joining a Penny Collector Club.  The one below is from Tacoma’s Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium.

The final collection I want to talk about is the best of all……and that’s friends ~ old ones, new ones and ones yet to come.  You can never have too many. And I’m thankful for each and everyone of mine.

Some people collect match book covers, stamps, war memorabilia, rare coins, Christmas ornaments,  antiques …….so what do you collect?  Or are you one of those people who doesn’t  collect anything?   Either way it’s ok…..it all depends on the person.   If you do collect something, please leave a comment or a link to your Blog and tell the rest of us about it.   Until next time ~ Linda

Happy Birthday.......

..........to my favorite male Blogger in the Outer Hebrides!

Yes today is Guido's birthday. He's part of the glue that held our AOL JLand together and now he's here with us in Bloggerville as well as Facebook. (See; Atlantic Lines)

He kindly adds to the "Call of Support" Blog along with Jeannette and Sugar. He graciously shares life in his village with the rest of us...most of us will never have the good fortune to visit his town. I knew nothing about this corner of our big world until I started reading his journal. Thank you Guido for teaching me about the place you call home. And thank you for always being there with a kind word, when we find our world crashing down around us.

Stop by and wish this great guy a Happy Birthday....and if you don't read his Blog.....sign on as a follower. You'll never regret the time you spend there.

A Trip To Cabela’s

Just 19 miles south of here, you can walk into another world. That world is the world of Cabela’s the “World’s Foremost Outfitter” they carry, among other things; hunting, fishing and outdoor gear.

This store opened in November 2007 and this is just the second time I’ve been there. The first time I didn’t have my camera~today I did. It is a spectacular place to visit even if you’re not into hunting, fishing & outdoor activities. The store in Lacey is one of the largest at 185,000 square feet. There’s a place to test your shooting skills and also to test your bow & arrow skills. They have a good selection of fishing boats and all the gear you need to catch the “BIG” one.

There’s a huge 2 story mountain covered with animals, in their natural settings. All of this is accented by a waterfall that tumbles down thru the setting.

This polar bear and the Stellar seal below were both huge! There was no way to capture there immense size.

Underneath the mountain is a walk thru aquarium, featuring fish native to our area such as Coho Salmon and the biggest, ugliest cat fish I’ve ever seen.

Looking down on the mountain of animals from the second floor.

On the second floor is a diorama featuring African animals. The lion and elephant are so life like~I watched to see if they were breathing.

This scene of a leopard and a large baboon squaring off is really dramatic.

This next one really raises the hair on the back of your neck~you can almost hear the snarl of the lion…..

The cafe on the second floor features wild game burgers, steaks and of course regular burger, sandwiches, etc.

As you enter the store you can’t miss this full size yellow airplane hanging from the ceiling of the store.

They also have a great line of women’s sport wear. Really nice blouses, tee’s and summer tank tops along with Capri's, shorts & long slacks. They also have outdoor type shoes and long johns & tops in their women’s department.

There’s a “General Store” where you can purchase jerky, trail mixes, fudge and other goodies.

The little guy below is my kind of bear….a bear foot stool. He’s cute but $149.00 is a little much for a foot stool in my book.

All of the animals are of course full size and I’d say the taxidermists have done a wonderful job of making them look alive.

Oh……..did I mention they have a penny squishing machine?