Feeling a Bit Nostalgic Today

I grew up in this house, at least the years between 10 and 18. I finished grade school here, made it thru junior high, and then high school. I left this house a month after graduation when I married tOM who was in the Army at the time. I have never looked back. On occasion, I wish I still lived closer to my family, but it just never worked out. TOM was career army and we traveled from base to base. So what do I remember most about living in this house? My dad doing sweat equity on the foundation and all the block work by himself. My mom falling down the stairs and breaking her leg. Sneaking out my bedroom window on warm summer nights. The day I hit a road sign on my way to school and smashed the windshield on my car. My dad never yelled, just asked if I was OK. A fight with my brother on Easter weekend. He threw a shoe at me and missed, but he hit the aquarium. Living within walking distance of the beach. Swimming all day, every day all summer long. A summer tan before skin cancer. Kegs parties. Riding snowmobiles in winter. Snow days.

What do you remember about the house you grew up in?

Remembering Millie

I just got back from a trip to visit my family in Minnesota. While I was there I made a stop by Millie's store, which is a couple of blocks from my parents house. This little store has been in this location for at least 40 years. This area was mostly a weekend summer place because of the nearby beach. (The beach is behind the store.) The sign says Ted's Store, but it was really Millie's. I first 'shopped' at this store when I was about 11 years old.

Millie recently passed on and there was a big memorial service right here at the store. About 400 people, who over the years stopped for 'pop', candy, and a quick gallon of milk came by. Back in the day, she even had a couple of gas pumps. Millie was a nice lady and she never forgot a face.

I moved away from the area years ago and had not stopped by in a long time. She was part of my childhood and a fond memory now. These tokens and notes prove that she was still loved by children and adults alike and that she will be missed.

I Have a Cold

I have not had a cold in three years. Why now? I have been eating right, getting enough rest, and exercising. I feel like crap.

Ditch Digger for Hire

Spent most of the day doing work in the yard. We have a drainage problem in the back yard and with all the rain lately, it was a muddy mess. It was also causing a problem with our septic tank.

We had been discussing putting in french drain for a while, but had not been motivated to do it. We finally decided we needed to give it a shot. When the rain stopped yesterday, TOM got to work. Because the ground was so saturated it made it easier to dig the trench, but some spots were still very hard as we got deeper. (Maybe we should have rented a ditch witch.) We had to dig a 140' trench. That was the hardest part and luckily TOM did not make me help with that.

Needless to say, it was back-breaking work. As far as we can tell right now, it appears to be working. The water is draining off (into our neighbors yard - sorry). We had to take it under the fence to a lower elevation. When TOM is finished they won't even know it's there. He was so funny tho (the neighbor), he kept saying 'your water is in my yard.' Well, officially, it's not our water, it's natures water. And the whole neighborhood is underwater, not just us. (He appears to have a problem in his yard too.) TOM should have talked with him before he started digging under the fence, especially since it will affect him.

I need to go get the tylenol now...later.

In the Yard

I love spring, especially in the South. I can get outside and enjoy all the blooming. I have been waiting about 8 years for this fence to be'properly weathered'.

It's Raining Again Today ...

... but we had a beautiful day yesterday. I cleaned up the kitchen and did a load of laundry. The sun was shining and I was getting ready to go. Where? It did not matter, just out of the house in which we had been locked for so many days.

After I managed to get TOM off the couch, we got dressed and hit the road. We headed to Pasaquan. Located near the Georgia town of Buena Vista, Pasaquan is one man's vision of what life should be like. It really is an amazing place. All created by this eccentric character, Eddie Martin, at his family farm.

I had a great time wandering around the grounds and snapping the 'vision'. The colors are vibrant, though faded. There is not a single space on any of the structures that are free of decoration. There is not admission; however there is a $5donation per person, children are free.

Here are a few of my favorite snaps of the day:

Pasaquanian Headdress A door The back door The garage The unfinished grotto Unpainted pathway and walls Entrance to the Bead Room The Bead House Addition to the main farm house The [Propane] Tank Room

Has My Head Exploded Yet?

And that is not just a rhetorical question. I have to say that I have had the worst day in my recent history. It actually started yesterday as I was leaving my place of employment. I am a writer. Sounds glamorous, right? Not really. I don't get to write the fun stuff. I save that for this blog. Anyhoo, I began working a project at the end of 2007. Yes, that's right, about 15 months ago. After research, meetings, programming changes, etc. I had the pleasure of writing a technical document that could be used by our clients to learn how to use the product. That took about 6 months and several false starts. Also, not the only thing I was working on. Finally, in October I hand this document over to 'the platform manager' for an edit. Now having to suffer the suggestions and corrections to a document is part of the job. It's not personal and it doesn't bother me. But this document was different. I put so much effort into this book it was like a child and I was quite proud of it. He took 6 months, almost to the day, to complete his edit. Unacceptable. Then he has the nerve to tell as I am walking out the door yesterday, that it needs some structural changes...what the f---!!! that means a lot more time invested and I thought I was almost finished!!! See somewhere in the middle of his edit we moved from one document format to another which is a pretty big deal. (His edit was supposed to be completed before the big change.) So now I have to make the changes. So, what really pisses me off is this: 1. Why didn't I just incorporate the new format (for the most part I am good to go) but I am missing one essential piece. My bad. 2. How come our managers can get away with crap like this? If I sat on an edit for 6 months I would be in the dog house, no pay raise, no promotion, yada, yada, yada. 3. I feel that his inaction showed a total disrespect for my work. I know he is a manager. He supervises several people and has to edit their work as well, but all he had to do was READ ONE F---N CHAPTER DAY DAY AND HE WOULD HAVE BEEN FINISHED IN A MONTH. And I wouldn't be sitting here feeling like crap right now. And on a Friday too! And then to top things off I live in a small community and for the LAST YEAR they have been working on a street scape project. Traffic has become progressively worse throughout the project and today was the worst. They are finally paving the intersection most affected by all the work. This is a major throughfare from my little city to the city where I (and thousands of others) work and as I come over the bridge today, after having a the most crappy day, I see everyone taking a sharp turn to the right. That is three lanes of traffic trying to turn right. No cop, nothing. Well, I'm smart. I decide to go up an extra block before I try to cross over, but I guess I am not the only smart one in the bunch. Lot of smart folks out here. Anyway, traffic is BACKED UP EVERYWHERE. ALMOST AT A STANDSTILL. You would think the cops would be out directing traffic during RUSH HOUR!. But no, I guess they are all at the local coffee shop eating donuts and getting fat. I have to admit (and I am ashamed of myself) that I laid on the horn when some idiot was trying to go straight across which held us up even longer. What an idiot. Take a right to get traffic moving and then take the next left to get where you need to go. I actually left work half an hour early but got home at the same time. Anyhoo, I have used it all up and I have to stop now.

Pizza Anyone?

I love pizza. I ate so much pizza when I was pregnant with my youngest son he won't eat pizza. I really don't know if that has anything to do with it, but it seems to make sense. Anyhoo, pizza has a lot of calories and I have come up with a very viable option (with a little help from WW). You will need whole wheat tortillas (I tried multi-grain tortillas, but they did not make a crispy crust), fresh oregano, fat free mozzarella, canned spaghetti sauce (I like Ragu), and your favorite pizza toppings. Place your tortilla on a cookie sheet coated with olive oil cooking spray. Spread about 2 tablespoons of spaghetti on the tortilla. Sprinkle with fresh chopped oregano. Cover with your favorite toppings. In my example, I have onions, canadian bacon, and portabella mushrooms. Cover with fat free mozarella cheese. The more the better I say. Drizzel with about 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Bake for about 10 minutes at 425. Eat. Enjoy.

Smiles . . . Priceless

My son has had a few difficult years, mostly involving his career in the restaurant business. It is a tough career choice. Those of us that just eat at restaurants really don't know what goes on behind the scenes. Long hours, low pay, little appreciation of the skill it takes to run a successful eatery. After losing a couple of jobs (I am sure he suffered a nervous breakdown) and a serious injury that kept him out of work for three months last year he has had a rough time. In any event, the bills were mounting and it would seem he and his girlfriend were never finding the way out of the tunnel into the fresh air. Over the last few months, they have been borrowing my vacuum cleaner on a regular basis. Not that I mind, but when I go to use it, it's gone. And they use it hard. Well, today we solved both our problems...we bought them a vacuum cleaner of their own. I should have had the camera. Smiling from ear to ear after receiving a household appliance. TOM and I are just glad that we can afford to help them with unexpected surprises occasionally. Smiles are the juice that keep the heart happy. According to my son, the best part is that the color is the same has his favorite college football team, UAB...the Crimson Tide...Go Bama!

Home Away from Home

You know we spend 1/3 of our lives away from our homes and families and it is important that the space you occupy for eight hours a day reflects your personality and the things you love. Fortunately, I work for a company that lets up express ourselves (to a point) we're not hanging bikes from the ceiling yet. So this is where I live when I am not at home. This is my cube window and many family photos. When sitting up properly, I have a view of the river and the train trestle. Turn to the left and I have my dual monitors, my overhead cabinets. One side with travel photos, the other with food and seasonal decorations. I also have the requisite toys that 'help me think better'. Having grown up in Minnesota I have a fondness for snowmen (forgt the political correctness) as you can see in the following shot. The cute little knit one is my current favorite and was a gift from my Secret Santa in 2008.

The Taxman Commeth...Not :-)

We dodged the tax bullet. I am not really sure how, but I may have to redo my taxes just to make sure. WE DON'T OWE ANY FEDERAL INCOME TAXES this year. On the advice of our tax person, last year we increased the tax deduction from my husband's military retirement and put gobs of money into our 401(k). Although we probably lost most of that in the recent financial debacle. But WE DON'T OWE ANY FEDERAL INCOME TAXES this year. Maybe if I keep saying it, I will begin to believe it. Thank you, Shirley's Accounting. This is the first year in 10 years that WE DON'T OWE ANY FEDERAL INCOME TAXES.

Help a Complete Stranger

The reception area of my doctor's office was in chaos. People waiting for assistance, receptionists overworked...not, nothing happening like it should. Contractor's, who have been making major upgrades for the last six months, were pulling ceiling tiles and scraping something ugly from the I beams overhead. Anyway, two elderly ladies (not together) were trying to get to an office for a physician that had moved to another building in the office park. They were both late for their appointments and wanted the receptionist to call to let the doctor know that they were on their way. Remember, this is a generation that knows the value of being punctual, unlike so many people today and they really were frantic. Anyway, the receptionists were not 'receptive' and these little ladies were looking for someone to help them. So my good deed for the day was to give them directins to the new location and the phone number so they could call from their cell phones. Not much, but I think it made them feel better about the whole mess. Speaking of which, this is the mess in the reception area . . .

Here Comes the Sun . . .

Do-do-do-do . . . During the recent heavy rains and snowfall I had to have in 'indoor' project to work on. The plan was to use the stamps I had been saving and gluing them on a less than attractive picture frame. I wanted to frame trip maps. This is the result. I had all the supplies with the exception of the frame. Luckily, a few weeks back when we were at the dump, we found three frames just sitting there waiting for us. This is the result of my rainy day fun. the supplies more supplies the first layer almost finished on the wall with my map of lower Manhattan

Rain, Rain, Go Away . . .

. . . come again another day. Noah, where are you when we need you? We are drowning down here.

Vertigo and I'm Not Talking About the Movie

I am not superstitious but I might change my mind today. I went out for lunch (as opposed to staying in the office) and had an attack. I was eating lunch and all of a sudden the room was spinning. I just knew that I needed to get out to my car and close my eyes and sit still. It was so loud and noisy and crowded in that restaurant I wasn't sure I would make it out alive. I could hardly walk a straight line. I finally made it to my car and then spent 20 minutes trying to get hold of TOM. By the time he got there to rescue me the sensation had passed and I was able to drive home. He followed me in case I needed him. Earlier in the day I thought about taking the afternoon off. Well, I got the afternoon off, but not for the reason I thought. TGIF even if it is Friday the 13th.

Say a Little Prayer for Me

First, I have no idea how they came up with this name for a towing company. Second, this guy needs as many prayers as he can get, just after I snapped this shot he started to merge left and almost took out the car in front of me. Third, I hope he is not the only tow available if I ever need one.

Hiking in Pine Mountain

We went up to FDR State Park today. We got a late start tho and it was 11:45 by the time we got there. The sun was high and the temperature was climbing. We hiked about an hour out and back. We got back to the visitor center about 1:30 and ate lunch overlooking the valley. There was a fire burning off in the distance so it was a bit hazy. Vine wrapped around a tree Blue sky Woodpecker Condos Beautiful green moss White flowers on the trail Trumpet vine Bloomin' tree Light at the Visitor Center Lunch

Really Tired Today

Had a vertigo attack last night right after dinner. I was just getting my jammies on so I would be ready for Lost and whoosh, the room was spinning. Luckily, I had some phenergan in the house but I 'lost' about three hours of my evening. This is the second attack I've had in the last six months. I guess I need to get an adjustment (or get TOM to do it for me). Needless to say, I stayed home from work but I didn't stay in the house all day. I finally got some clothes on around 1:00, grabbed my camera, and hit the road. I went over to Ft. Mitchell and the military cemetary. Then I headed over to Seale (where we lived when we first moved here 20 years ago. After that I headed back to town and took a stroll on the River Walk. I got a good shot of a Grey Heron stalking his prey. I didn't get the money shot tho...just missed it. The river was running high from all the rain last week. Quite a few guys were down fishing, but I don't know if they were catching anything. Just enjoying the day, like everyone else. It was a beautiful day in the valley (mid 60's) and it was good to take a walk and clear my head. We are supposed to have more of the same tomorrow. But back to the Heron. I've got my eye on you Shad Sushi

Quesdilla for Dinner

Needed a quick dinner for tonight, but it had to have some nutritional value and that means black beans. I love black bean and cheese quesadillas and thought that I would share them with you today. First pull out the quesdilla maker and warm it up. Spray with Olive oil. Open a can of black beans, rinse and drain. You wlll need two whole wheat tortillas (these are multi-grain and they don't hold up so well). Place one tortilla on the maker, use 1/3 cup of beans. Today I also added portobello mushrooms. Top with about 1/2 cup of low fat mozarella cheese. Put on the top tortilla and press until cheese is melted. Cut quesadilla into triangles. Serves two. Mix some fat free yogurt with fresh cilantro as a dip. Add a tablespoon or two of salsa . Bon Apetit