It's a scorcher!

Today's temperature is expected to soar to 100 above zero. Whew! I am heading to Palm Coast to enjoy some time with family there. Thankfully they have a pool in which I intended to spend the bulk of my time. My two little nieces, Maya and Rayna, so cute, are reportedly looking forward to "Awntie Kim" coming down for a visit. Years ago, when Maya was learning to talk, she called me "Auntie Em" which I thought was so precious. 

                                   

Every time we got together I had presents with me but this time, only a bag of assorted salty snacks to enjoy with our fry out at lunch time. Justin and I bought it at Wal-Mart for use when the VBS kids are here next week. Snack size bags, perfect for little kids, and big ones, too!

Justin was gone last night but came home to sleep rather than staying at his friend's home. He is yet asleep so I will slip out as quietly as I can and not disturb him. When he does get up, he will be greeted by a nice list of things to accomplish before the VBS kids arrive midweek. Let's hope some of the list is tackled before he leaves again this afternoon.

Overhead I hear the racket of movers and moving, as Misty is in the process of leaving The Palace. When they moved in, her two teen-aged daughters and she, it took a couple weeks to complete the process. This time, by hiring movers, it was a more streamlined process. At least, it appears as such. They should be all wrapped up at the end of the day. 

I sure hope we don't have rain before new tenants move in, to catch the leaks, in case that happens! I have every confidence the repairs being made on the 5th floor will rectify the situation once and for all. Or for a couple years, at least, like last time it was fixed!

Watching the fallout and cleaning it up

Talk about multi-tasking, something women excel at, it is said. Linda J. and I spent part of the day 'watching' our shared radio program together from our homes, and chatting at the same time. Once in a while, I lost my train of thought and we had to back it up. Gotta love the technology! The previous day we were on-line for several hours, watching-listening-chatting until it was time for me to leave for dinner with Judy C. We are good at this!

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Judy and I had coupons for Steak 'n Shake to use on Thursday night, before BIC. We are so close to being done and yet, Amber was absent. Now she has a couple lessons to catch up on, as these last two are rather 'difficult' to grasp, even for long time Lutherans. 

The subject of fellowship can be delicate and not readily understood, especially for someone with no church background. There just has to be a better way of covering this. Next week we have no class because of VBS canvassing, nor do we have it the following week. Some might meet this coming Tuesday to help get caught up, but I have a different BIC that night to attend. 

From last year's pyrotechnic display on the river

Justin is busily, sort of, working on getting his overflow items organized and placed into bins to make room for our four house guests coming next week. He will be bunking with me while the teen boy uses Justin's room. The three girls will be in the guest room so we need every inch of available space for them. 

The first plan was to store his extra items in my friend, Ellen's, home but she wanted to place them in her dining room,  part of her living space. Since she is entertaining at this condo for the 4th of July fireworks, I decided we would keep his stuff here. He has the bins neatly stacked in the foyer and I will learn to be fine with that. I did the bathroom cleaning already---yes, I did it myself! 

Justin is also removing collected cardboard boxes from purchases to the dumpster which frees up some space.The two of us have boxes from my bedroom TV, his new computer monitor, and such to be rid of. He will consolidate the remaining items stored in this room to make ample space.

One set of boxes is from last week when I took delivery of a table top grille for use in the house. Justin tried it out on Tuesday. Though I was stressing from the leaking, I managed to eat half a burger, some of his new recipe for baked beans, and some cole slaw. To keep the food from spitting, one puts water in an aluminum tray beneath the grille portion and no mess. The heat is thermostatically controlled so the food doesn't get away from you. It works! That means we keep the grille, and the boxes it came in can go to the trash!

Justin had long work days the last two, trying to catch up for the rain days. Thursday, they could not get to their truck on 'the farm' where they park it. Machinery was borrowed from his boss's cousin and they worked with that. 

See the cow peeking out around Justin's car?

Then, later, Justin told me his boss and he walked in from the dry road through the knee-deep water, about a half mile, to the truck. It apparently has a snorkel which allows it to be driven through standing water (okay....) so William drove the truck out, with Justin walking in front of him, along what he could see was the edge of the road, to dry land. Man, were his legs tired!!!! 

I thought that was a good idea, and Justin said, "I came up with it!" That's my boy, the problem solver. Although, it is not advised to walk through standing water....oh, just go for it! Justin had to solve a problem last week with some duct tape. It seems one of those cows that wanders around the farm where they park knocked his side view mirror lose, on the passenger side. He used duct tape to put it back on. The cow must have had an itchy shoulder or something. I can't help but laugh about that!

"What The (bleep) Just Happened?"

"Before this morning's Supreme Court decision to uphold the Affordable Care Act and calling the individual mandate a "tax", President Obama strenuously insisted it 'absolutely' was not a tax---now that 'tax' takes effect 2012, and the battle over ObamaCare enters a new chapter." FoxNews.com headline

The title of this posting is also the title of a new book out by a commentator I enjoy on the radio. She also appears regularly on various panels on Fox News, often up against her brother-in-law, Alan Colmes (ewww!). Monica Crowley, PhD. can certainly hold her own when it comes to such topics as that opening paragraph in this posting, and am anxious to hear what she has to say about all this. I am glued to the radio and TV the rest of the day to see/hear what all the pundits and reporters have to say. 

Does Costa Rico get hit with hurricanes very often???

Regrouping...

...and a bit ashamed of myself. How can I be so very upset about drips from my ceilings and down my walls when others have no access to their homes or have lost them altogether?? 

My living room is put back together, pans and pots removed, towels folded and put away for pool use only now. I hope. Sadly, the repair made on Tuesday, a temporary fix, did not work so Misty and I continued with the soaking towels and such. Justin and I dried some of her towels, and took them up at Jessica's request to place them appropriately. We brought the soaked ones down to rinse and dry for the next round, but thankfully, we did not need them. Whew!

I feel very badly for the couple who own the penthouse and are having to deal being the 'source' of the leak. It is certainly not their fault and they were desperately trying to find a solution in the midst of the storm. Of course, I give them a break but others in the building are more adamant about getting this solved. I know how badly I felt, and still feel, about leaking on my downstairs neighbors almost two years ago. Not good!

My neighbors are the greatest, offering wet vacs (not needed), dry sleeping if needed, offers to come help dump the pans or dry the towels, etc. "Day or night, just call..." Love that! What we, Justin and I, are borrowing is a dehumidifier from one neighbor which is pulling huge quantities of water from the air. We have dumped probably the equivalent of four gallons thus far, and have gotten the humidity level to 60% already. That is set up in the living room at the moment, and startles me when it turns off and back on again. I am so jumpy!

Justin and I moved the furniture back, he put up the wall hanging again over the loveseat, and plugged the TV back in. I didn't turn it on yet, just letting it do it's thing of drying out. He still has his bedroom fan blowing behind the TV to help dry that faster, as well as Rose's machine for drying the air. Repairs will need to be made, but not until the leak is arrested above me. 

                          

Justin is also in process of moving some of his plastic bins to the foyer, readying them to be relocated to Ellen's unit for safe keeping for when the VBS kids are here. Tomorrow he is taking a bunch of empty cardboard boxes to the dumpster when he gets home from work. He works a long day on Thursday due to catching up from the rain days. In the morning he has to be at the Farm by 6:40 a.m. Yikes!

I hate Debby!

While I might be good at some things, decorating is one thing in which I find joy and pride. THIS, however, is not an example of my abilities. Unless, of course, collecting leaking water from door frames, ceilings and floors is decorating! The kids' towels add much to the decor...TS Debby can just get the heck out of here!!!

 The center one I had to dump twice during the night on Sunday, with over 6" accumulated in the bucket under the blue pendant light. 

The placemats serve the dual role of absorbing the sound of water dripping and reducing the splashing after the water hits the bottom of the receptacle.

This area is behind and above my loveseat. It has not leaked since 2008 with TS Faye and I was not happy to see it return. Justin was roused from his bed to help me move the loveseat out and roll up the carpet. We laid towels behind it and set two collection devices to catch the drips.

Here is the ceiling above my TV. You might recall last fall when this area flooded and shorted out my power strip, singeing the floor. The crown moulding is bubbled up from the water behind it as is the paint along the wall. Very similar to the photos from TS Beryl!

So much water came through this door frame that I could have washed my hair in the flow! Well, this might be an exaggeration....but it did fill those containers nicely.

As if my upstairs neighbor, Misty, didn't have enough trouble keeping up with the water from above her, she came home to smoke. It seems that somehow the electronic dishwasher turned on or at least part of it did, and burned up. The racks and any thing else plastic melted and filled their home with smoke. Another neighbor passing by heard the commotion and came to the rescue, shutting off the power to the appliances. What caused this to happen? No one knows yet but Misty cannot wait to move out this weekend!! I can't say I blame her!

A funeral and a baptism

This morning at Bible study we continued looking at the book of Job. The study is coming along in starts and stops, with next week Monday's class being another STOP due to Independence Day being celebrated on Wednesday. Okay.....

Anyway, the portion of Job read was from Chapter 38, a very special portion of Scripture for me. For us all, of course, but particularly for me. You see, I had asked Pastor Prange to include this as one of the readings for Timmy's funeral.

A church filled to overflowing, many of those attending being associated directly or indirectly with the housing industry, how much more apropos a reading could there be? I had remembered Pete (Pastor Prange) reading this or using the chapter at some point in the past, and it struck me then. When it came 'our' time to need an answer to those questions weak human beings ask of the Lord, this portion of the Word came to mind. And now, again, to heart. 

                                            

The gist of the chapter is God challenging Job, in the midst of his suffering and loss, "Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Who marked out the dimensions? "On what were its footings set, or who laid its cornerstone— while the morning stars sang together and all the angels shouted for joy?" I am all about those angels shouting for joy!

The representative from WELS Planned Giving sat next to me in class and he seemed to be aware of 'my situation'. No wonder he was so glad to seek me out and shake my hand a couple weeks ago. It turned out we know some people in Manitowoc together (strange how that happens!!!) In fact, his good friend, Greg, had been here a few years ago with the Lutheran Elem. School team. Small world of the WELS!

Rachel at the font, with Jackie standing as her witness

We had another adult baptism today, a lady who lives in the neighboring apartments. Rachel attends the BIC on Thursday nights with Judy, Amber, and me. She had been "baptized" in sorts with oil at some point in her life, having dabbled with various denominations and such. Today she received the real deal through water and the Word, a promise from the Lord, assuring Rachel she is His own dear child.

Gretchen was absent today, having had the horrors of a water leak yesterday. Oh, heavenly days! She and I should start a club for those suffering from water leaks! Darwin had gone over there Saturday to check on the A/C unit which leaked, but did not have the electrical knowledge needed for the dampened wiring in the wall leading to her 1st floor bathroom. I sent a message to Suzanne C. to see if her hubby would be available to help Gretchen out. Or she'll have to use the potty in the dark!

Terri T. and I went to lunch by ourselves today as Justin left early to see a movie with Jesse. (If they go in the a.m., the seats are only $5.00.) As Terri remarked, "No one is the boss of us today so we can eat where we want!" That is a joke between us, as I once said that to Gordy when he scolded me for singing at the table. I told him, "You're not the boss of me!", with a smile on my face, of course, and she about flipped! How she sometimes wished she could have said the same thing and gotten away with it....Gordy was so much like my own father in this regard---wanting so badly for us to behave at the table!

Terri and I chose Chili's (surprise, surprise!!!) and enjoyed a lovely lunch together. Yesterday we'd had breakfast at Grumpy's but with her grandson along, it was not as easy for us ladies to just talk. He is darling, and oh so smart for a three-year old! When he was done coloring, he pushed it aside. Terri asked if he didn't want to color some more and Caiden said, "I'm out of ideas...." Talk about funny stuff coming from a little kid!!! 

Today, she and I simply got caught up, a much needed time for such a thing. Next week, we will be back to normal, after Judy gets back from the LWMS Convention. I am supposed to go to Palm Coast but might see if I can go on Saturday instead. We shall see!

A worthwhile morning

Sometimes the sunrises summon me from my bed to grab the camera, and some do not. This one today did!

This evening's sunset presented less dramatically but lovely nonetheless...

I like being Pampered!

What a lovely evening I had tonight at a Pampered Chef party! Normally not a 'kitchen person', these parties never cease to amaze and almost entice me. Our hostess was Kerri H., a friend from GS and then Victory. Part of the 'getting to know you' game we played was telling which product was our favorite from Pampered Chef (PC). When it was my turn, I reported liking the jar of cherry almond topping the best. I think she was actually looking for a piece of equipment or a gadget but that's what I came to buy!
                                            

I knew where Kerri lived but used the GPS on my phone to help me anyway. When I pulled up, the street looked nearly deserted, no extra cars parked anywhere. Hmmm.....The house had a For Sale sign in front of it, a Realtors' lock-box on the knob, and a Private Property sign in the window. My guess is, they don't live here any more! I called Anne who was riding over with Stephanie to find out where to go.

It seems they had moved last year but only a block or two from this home. Stephanie pulled up in front of the old house and then led me to the new house. What a sweetheart! 

Besides Anne, she also brought Susanne, a newer member at Victory. Susanne is the mom of my friend, Judy H., who now lives in Knoxville, TN. Her husband, Wayne, was in Bible study yesterday but not Susanne as she was not feeling well. Nice nice lady. Her hubby and she bring much to the table when they are in class. They are transplants from Green Bay where Susanne had the privilege of caring for some of the Packer players teeth! "Official Dental Assistant of the Green Bay Packers"!

The consultant and Kerri made a bbq chicken pizza which was then cooked on the grille. The sauce used a sweet flavor with beer in it and the pizza was just delicious. Never thought I would like chicken on a pizza! Kerri also made various tart treats including one that tasted like a S'mores. Yummy!

I ended up ordering a jar of the cherry almond topping, a muffin pan designed for making individual brownies (with Justin in mind), and some pinch bowls. I think those teeny bowls will come in very handy, not necessarily for meal prep but for ketchup or other dips when just a dab will do ya'!!                             

Car Craziness

This morning I got a phone call reporting that my car was ready to be picked up from the body shop. Wow! Only yesterday a different guy told me it might be later Thursday or even Friday before it was ready, so I extended the rental on my car.  I think that lady at Budget got quite tired hearing my voice on the other end before this was all over!

Therefore, since my car was ready, I had to make arrangements to somehow return the rental car and get mine picked up, before close of business for each enterprise. Hmmm....If I'd used Enterprise, it would not be such a huge problem with getting the cars swapped out, but alas, I used a one-person shop at Budget. Enterprise offers the pick-up service so they could have driven me to the car repair place.

After Bible study at Victory, another enriching class, I figured I could stop at the repair shop and settle up with them, with plans to go back later to get the car when Justin was done working. I had to pay the deductible for the repair, minus the amount of the tire depreciation the fellow got for me. Nice!

That taken care of, I went home with hopes of getting some pool time. Not to be, as the sun was hiding behind the clouds most of the day. Rats! Perhaps by the weekend the water will finally be warmed enough to enjoy even if the sun is not around, though I usually don't enjoy one without the other.

The church newsletter is written as far as it can be as I wait, almost patiently, for the requested input to come in. I know the preschool info will be submitted, as Miss Lisa is so good about that, but the rest will be like pulling teeth. A reminder can be sent to the fellows to please get me information. It's all about the communication and information sharing!

                                                  

I got an e-mail from church, the entire congregation did, requesting our presence for painting the fellowship hall on Saturday. Sort of short a notice and I do hope that some folks show up for this. The hall must be fairly close to ready when it comes time for Vacation Bible School though the flooring might not be put down yet. Things always take so long, it seems.

This Sunday I was planning to go to Palm Coast to see my niece, as she asked me to come down for a visit. Tina asked me to come instead the following week which will work. We have a special guest coming to church again (he was there a couple weeks ago) to present a session about planned giving. I won't sit through that again as I have done so in the past. Judy and Michael got a sneak preview on Tuesday night as he presented to them at their house. She was impressed with what he had to say and might take some of his advice.

When poolside on Wednesday (too cold for me to go in!) we had a birthday party for Randy, who is now 77 years old. We are called his harem, as he is the sole man in the water aerobics class. About ten of us ordered our meals and dined al fresco, at times dodging rain drops, and then basking in the sun. Strange day! Marlena picked up a cute little book which we all signed for him, called "Looking for Mr. Right" as his last name is Wright. Cute!

                                                 

After the lunch, I went over to Winn Dixie to get some soda and other things. I shopped like a rock star, taking advantage of their deal where if I bought two Tombstone pizzas, I would get free jalepeno poppers, garlic bread, Italian Ice, and a bottle of soda. Sweet! Justin will eat the poppers while the garlic bread will be good with our dinners next week. The flavor of Italian ice I chose was blue raspberry and I am sure they will be wonderfully refreshing. All of this for $14.98!

At lunch, Mary Lew was back from her travels, and asked me about my summer plans. She knows I usually have some company and I told her that there are four kids coming from Rocky Mountain Lutheran High School to stay for 10 days. I went on to report to the table how Justin and I are going to have to struggle getting room for three girls in my spare room because his stuff has taken over. One lady suggested I get a small storage unit, and another one asked if we don't have storage space here at The Palace. Hmmm....

Maggie O. piped up with a brilliant idea---since our mutual friend, Ellen, is rarely at home here, staying at the beach condo instead, she suggested I ask Ellen if we could store some of Justin's stuff in her front bedroom for a couple weeks. YES! Brilliant! I asked Ellen and, of course, she said that would be fine with her. As Maggie said, Ellen LOVES to help people. Justin is not all that wild about having to relocate his stuff but three girls in one room are going to need every available inch of space!

We have three girls coming, plus one boy, so the boy will stay in Justin's room and Justin will bunk in my room. The young people will be gone most of the time so Justin will still have access to his room until it becomes bedtime. 

Okay, back to my car craziness---I had to gas up the rental to take it back full, so did that. Then, when Justin got home from work, shortly before 5:00 pm, he showered quickly and off we went to get my car. I had to return the rental car before 6:00 so we drove up Blanding Blvd. north of I-295 to grab my car. He drove my freshly repaired car back up (or down, as the case might be) Blanding toward the plaza, formerly known as Michael's Plaza, to return the rental car. Whew! Traffic at this time of the day is horrendous and being in a time crunch was, well, horrendous!

                                                

I got the car back with 15 minutes to spare and got settled up there. The lady who was taking care of things, single-handedly, was glad to see me bring the keys back, especially after I explained I had two keys. "Yes," she said, "we always give you two keys." It was odd because one was for my rental car, and the other for a Jeep Patriot!! Oops! She was relieved to see the 'lost' key, expressing how glad she was that they had at least one key to use. Yikes! That cannot be good!!!

Justin and I went back home again, so he could unwind after his busy and tiring day of yard work. For dinner, he ate my leftovers from Carrabba's where he and I joined Judy C. for dinner Wednesday night. She still had a gift card to use from last year's party! I did not have to be back at church again until 7:30 pm for BIC and was glad to sit back and relax, having this car craziness behind me. My car has the smell of fresh paint now and I love that! I am so appreciate having my own car back in my possession again, crazy as it is!

I know it's a long ride...

....but it is so incredibly the best investment of time, gas, and effort to be at Victory for Bible Information Class. I sure did miss this class when I was in WI, and it is so wonderful to be back in the thick of things. Last week we had no class because there was VBS during the day, occupying every available inch of classroom space. 

Allowing extra time for traffic, I got there about 20 before class, parking in an empty lot. There was some homework to be done from the previous class so I filled in as many blanks as I could without having a Bible to reference. My Bible and my phone charger were left in the car which is in the shop, or I would have used the phone to look up the passages.

At last, Erica pulled in next to me, without her beau, Justin, along. He had something else going on so would miss the class. A bit later, another car pulled in with a young man at the wheel. Not sure of his age, but he is the manager of three local chicken restaurants.

                                           

Brett was glad to see other people parked there, since last week he came but no one else showed up. Oops!  When Pastor came rolling in, with two minutes to spare before class, we all went into the church. He had everything already set up  and while he got the computer booted up, he explained that there were two accidents on his street and the entrance ramp (or was it exit?) which held him up. I know how that it, and he is excused for being nearly late.

We first reviewed the homework from last time which brought about some interesting discussion in regard to heaven. I had one False/True answer of which I was unsure, and had circled the word in the statement which gave me pause. Pastor said to look up a passage in II Peter or somewhere and Brett asked him, as we looked it up, if Pastor knows that stuff off the top of his head. It really is uncanny how he can do that. Pastor said he has the advantage of working on Bible studies and sermons enough to commit those 'chapter and verse' references to memory. 

Brett asked a few other questions taking us to into discussion not off topic but outside the booklet. I just love that! Erica shared a few things about what it's like to try to do customer service when people call in and just go off on her. 

                                               

This brought back my remembrances of Sprint and the rough calls I had to handle gracefully. Brett, in the people managing and serving business, will often find himself challenged to keep his emotions in check despite what is being thrown at him, so to speak. Pastor reminded us that we might be the only Christ-like exposure a person might encounter that day. Wow, no pressure, right?

I just so very much enjoy this class, this comprehensive study of the Word as an introduction to Christianity. Oh, another thing we were talking about was the origin of the names of God, and listing His characteristics. We discussed how the Old Testament was written in Hebrew while the New Testament was written in the 'language of the people', koine Greek. 

Pastor mentioned how English is the most commonly used language and Erica said that more people speak Mandarin Chinese, because they have so many people! The discussion evolved to Brett telling us how his mom is learning to speak Mandarin, because he has four siblings who are Chinese. His family, in NC, had adopted these little ones, now nearing or in their teens, when his mom felt it was her mission in life to be a parent to these abandoned girls. So sad!

Pastor had several questions about this for Brett, and he shared about the sad beginnings these babies had, one left on steps of City Hall in China somewhere, Brett got a bit choked up. He loves his family and his mom for doing this for these girls. 

There is a family at Victory who adopted four kids from different Korean families, and all of them have some sort of physical malady. Brett was giving Pastor the contact information for his mom, who will share this with the Victory family so they can benefit from their medical experiences and contacts. Isn't that great? This came to pass simply through the passing remark about the language of the people, and that language is love!

Tuesday already?

This weekend went by so quickly without really a whole lot going on. Saturday, Justin and I had gone to Grumpy's for breakfast before he went Father's Day shopping. I did spend some time poolside, about 5 hours, according to Justin's calculations. Lee and I kept each other company as Fran and Rick joined for a bit. The water was not conducive to swimming but the breezes were so wonderful.

When Lee left, some more friends had come out to enjoy the pool so my stay was extended to chat with them. Eventually I had to come back in and have some leftovers with Justin, whose plans for the evening failed to solidify. 

Sunday was Bible study, worship with Michael as the leader and "Jerusalem the Golden" bringing me tears. Justin and I joined our lunch bunch at Sam's St. Johns Seafood for a delightful start to the afternoon. 

He had to prepare a portion of his strawberry torte before going to his father's house. Every time I opened the fridge, the delicious aroma of the crust struck me, long after it had left my home. Mmmm.....The remains of the torte came back with him, but sort of melted from being in his car for a while when he went to Jesse's house. Oops! The crust got a bit soggy but the cream cheese portion was still delicious.

I had spent time at the pool with Mary, Randy and Carol as they ate their lunches, and had the drink of the day, Tequila Sunrise. Oh my, so refreshing! I suggested to Marlena that they make up a batch of  those drinks and walk around the pool with them. Just seeing one makes a person want one. And it's healthy---orange juice and cherry juice (grenadine) with tequila. Tequila is made from the agave plant, so there you go!

Instead of putting my nightie on for the night, I had to get fully clothed to attend a meeting of the Board for the condo. Representatives from the engineering firm were coming to tell us about the plans and specs, etc. needed for a job like ours. Gulp! They can tell us everything except firm numbers until they start the demo work, to see how far they have to tear down the sundeck. AND, a contractor who does leak detection will be hired to seek out our leaking situation. Yay!!!

Monday morning I was awake before 5 a.m. because I was so concerned about oversleeping. Since I was taking my car in for the body work, arrangements had been made for the rental car to use in the meanwhile. The website indicated that the rental place offered free pick up but the guy told me he was alone in the office and could not pick me up. Plan B was to ask Michael for a ride, and he was willing to do so.

I was still in my room that morning and realized as the minutes clicked by, I heard nothing from Justin's end of the house. It was getting to be time for him to leave so I went to his room and knocked on the door. He was still in bed, fast asleep. Oh my! I told him he'd better text his boss and let him know he overslept. Apparently he had not reset the alarm over the weekend so his mom was the alarm clock!

It turned out he was 'only' 15 minutes late and I think he met his boss at one of the jobs here in OP. It was a 12 hour day for him regardless so he was exhausted when he got home. They had not eaten lunch until 4:00 pm so even though I had dinner made for us, 7:30 was too soon for him to eat. I made meatballs in mushroom sauce, baked potatoes, and a batch of what I will call Linda's cole slaw. A bag of slaw and a jar of Marzetti's dressing. Oh my!

                                             

Since I had eaten half my potato, he took the other half and covered it with cole slaw. He was so glad to try that, claiming he now has a new favorite baked potato topping. When Justin and I lived on the lake and entertained nearly every weekend, I made that same slaw. After moving here, I had not made it again, it seems. Now that I had some at Linda's, I am back at it!

                                                

This a.m. was started early with Connie doing water testing on the floors above mine, to see if she could recreate the leak. The first test showed nothing and she was going to have to wait until the afternoon to do the second one. That was the one where it showed up, a sliding glass door in a unit on the 5th floor. The water leaked into Misty's river room but never made it to mine. Now to fix it!

After water aerobics class I went to get my hair cut. It was so bushy and of course, many folks complimented me on how nice it looked. Murphy's Law! Barb said, "Oh, you must be in the pool..." because the highlights are back. It is the funniest thing, how the colors I usually remove are so attractive sometimes!

Thinking back...

  Judy C., gave me this photo of us taken on Amber's baptism day. 

In looking at this photo, it brought to mind a couple of things, not the least of which is how old that top is I am wearing. Not that it's a problem wearing clothes with some miles on them...

I can remember when I bought this top, how about that? Mom and Lynn were visiting here, which means it could have been when I lived at the lake house. We were at Dillard's at the Orange Park Mall and discovered one of my former co-workers as the sales clerk in the women's department. Susan used to give me a ride to work when we were at Sprint early in our careers there, already in training she was my driver.

There are photos of me wearing this top on the cruise in 2007 when I met my friend, Judy R. One actually appears on the front page of my blog! A top such as this does not get worn every day so has stood up nicely over the years and I love the memories it stirred for me.

"...forever and forever are clad in robes of white..."

Today at church, before leaving for lunch, I wished the fellows whom I knew had children a happy Father's Day. I gave Paul a nice hug and wished him this as well, but the others mostly got my verbal greeting. It was notable to me how much more low-key Father's Day is celebrated compared to Mother's Day. 

                                       

When I worked at Sprint Long Distance, our busiest day of the year would be Mother's Day, with kids of all ages trying to call their moms collect or needing help with calling card processing. My memory does not recall how many such calls were processed on Father's Day. Now that most people use cell phones, operator-assisted calls have gone the way of buggy whips. Glad to have had that job, though, which I began 21 years ago. What?

                                             

Jim B. lead our Bible study this a.m., looking at the life of Job. It moved along fairly quickly and when it ended, some of us sat around to visit for a while. Suddenly, it occurred to me that worship begins at 10:00 now so we had to hustle up to the church before all the good seats were taken. Whew, plenty of room left when we got there. Mike C. lead the worship and did a fine job of it, with Robbie providing the music for our service.

As the service was beginning, I was in the back marking the attendance. Michael announced a hymn change from what was listed in the service folder. Robbie "The Maestro" was seated alongside of me at the organ and struck up the hymn. The substitution was "Jerusalem the Golden" from the Supplement. Oh my! I softly gasped, and Robbie sort of smiled, knowing how this hymn affects me. 

I grabbed a Supplement from one of the pews and started to sing. With so few people singing, it is important to be strong. Somehow I managed to get through the first stanza nicely but on the second one, I had drop out. "...Jesus in mercy bring us to that dear land of rest..." On the 3rd stanza, I managed to come back in but was not strong. What a beautiful picture of our heavenly home!

                                            

When we sang the choral version of this hymn a couple years ago, Emily was still in the choir, and had to carry much of the soprano because I cried every single rehearsal. When it came the day to sing it for worship, I held together nicely, having probably cried it out the weeks before, I suppose. The reason I could get through the first stanza today, I believe, is because I did not have a chance to think about it beforehand. Love starting a worship service in tears!

Terri T. had invited me to lunch the night before, having not seen each other since before I left for WI. Justin knew someone had asked me to lunch but not who...he was wondering if he could come along. Of course! I assumed he'd be tied up with his father but that was not until later in the day. Judy and Gretchen had decided to go to Sam's St. John Seafood so Terri and I adjusted our plans to match theirs and off we went. 

Because of getting out of church earlier, we did not have to wait for a table. We did have to wait for Michael who had a quick Council meeting after church. Judy ordered for him and his plate was waiting as he came in the door. I had the pollack sandwich which was a very nice portion. The bun, lettuce, and tomato were left behind but I ate all the fish plus a couple fries. 

Gretchen and I had the same lunch except she chose butter beans as her side dish. Justin ordered the buffalo shrimp with cheesy grits. When he began eating, he said, "You want one, Mom?" which made everyone bust out laughing. He liked the shrimp but wished the heads were off of them. Terri T. loves the fried shrimp from this place so everyone was happy.

With no Bible studies at church, I wasn't going to see Judy C. again before she left on Thursday morning for the LWMS Convention. We hugged good-bye and I told her I was envious of the adventure she was going to have. She is sharing a room with Kim T., who is Terri's sister. 

Another lady from down state is riding up with Judy, coming this far and then jumping into Judy's car for the nearly 8 hour drive to NC. Carolyn will ride back with Judy, too, as well as Jennifer R., who used to be a member of GS. Her husband is a pastor at Merritt Island so I see her maybe once or twice a year at LWMS events. So, when Judy gets there, she will have Kim with her as well as spending time with Jennifer. 

When Terri and Kim's dad died a couple years ago, Jennifer came up for the funeral service, having visited Gordy only a few weeks prior to his passing away. She and I sat together, helping each other sing. We used to sing together in the choir and it was great singing with her again, especially at such a significant event as Gordy's funeral. 

It's funny how our lives intersect, how those two families knew each other well before coming to GS. I envy Judy that group of ladies but not that long drive!!

Enjoying the wind

This morning, early, I opened the doors front and back to let the breezes blow through. I know Justin would likely prefer the refrigerated air but I was so enjoying the sound of the wind in the palms and the waves crashing against the breakwater. Yes, waves! It was not a wicked wind, though, but what I think was a drying wind, taking up the rain from the previous weeks. 

Justin made the comment that it sounded just like being at the beach when he heard the wind and wave action outside our doors. It was really neat today and I liked it. Not a destructive wind at all, just sort of refreshing...It was cool enough in the house so the A/C did not kick in. 


At one point, Justin came into my room to sit in my desk chair. He said, "The voices in my head said one word to me, "Grumpy's"." My blankets flew off and my feet hit the floor running as we got ready to go have breakfast. What a great start to the weekend!

Before Justin came in, Linda and I had been chatting via Facebook as we watched TV together, 1200 miles apart. A man on F & F was making various food items with Father's Day themes. One dish we were oohing and aahing over was an egg fritatta. This made me think of Grumpy's. Justin and I are hearing the same voices!!!

We had to wait a few minutes for a table but it's worth it. As I looked over the menu, varying from my usual choices, I told Justin I was having the Grumpy's House omelet. That is exactly what Justin was planning to order. This was getting spooky! Our orders were the same with the breakfast potatoes both ordered crisp, but he chose white bread and mine was rye. 

                                              

The omelet had eggs, of course, with cheese, bacon, green pepper, onion, and mushrooms. I ate about half of it and nearly all  the potatoes. The waitress asked if I wanted a box but I said I didn't think it would heat up well. She asked if I didn't like it and she was assured I did, even though half was left. Justin told her that was pretty good for me which satisfied her. I think she is new there.

Justin had asked me last night if he could use my car to go shopping so when we got home, I came upstairs and off he went. I finished listening to the radio show I had begun before we left and then went out to the pool. Lee was sitting at a table and finishing her lunch. Fran and Rick, my poolside friends, were already sunning themselves with all reporting the water being chilly. There was little water activity on the adult end but several of the regulars were out to enjoy the day. The heavy rain on Thursday night plus the wind likely kept the water cooler than it was during the day Thursday.

                                  

  Fran and I in the pool last year, I think the 4th of July weekend

Lee and I sat talking for a couple hours, with some others drifting in and out of the conversation. I had a couple Diet Cokes, which made me laugh because we drive all over creation finding the best priced soda for at home, but pay $2.00 a can at the pool! We cannot bring our own drinks out there when the cabana is open so we are at their mercy.

After Lee went home, Betty and Kathy came out from The Palace. Mom and daughter were joined by Betty's son, Gary. This trio spends nearly every evening together which is so cool. And it was cool, but they got in the water anyway. 

I pulled my chair to the edge to rest my feet 'on the shore' where Miss Chardonay joined me. She was so upset about something that her hand was trembling. I tried to take the plastic cup of wine from her until she could get settled down but  instead she put it on the table. What was so upsetting? She had spent a week at a time-share down the coast and left all her hanging clothes behind in the closet! 

After a phone call to the time-share folks, she arranged for them to ship her garments overnight on Monday. Whew! Add to that a hastily scheduled Board meeting for Sunday night and I could have used a glass of wine! Instead, I had a tequila sunrise, the special of the day. Very good!

Since my late breakfast had stayed with me, I did not eat at the cabana today at all. Justin was going to be home for the evening so we planned to have the sloppy joes I had made on Friday plus he could finish off the pasta casserole. 


He had gone shopping to the Mall for his father's day presents. I saw him coming back and figured he was done. As I was talking to Rick, Fran, and Lee at the table and no sooner said his name, Justin came walking up to the table! Name dropper!

He had my wallet in his hand, telling me he was going to Wal*Mart after all and would also pick up my scrips for me. He needed my debit card so, in his wisdom, brought me the entire wallet so I could get the card out for him. He was introduced all around before he left for the store. I am glad he doesn't have to struggle this way when shopping for me...And I was thankful that he saved me a trip to Wal*Mart!

It's been a long time

Boy, I was so glad to wake up this morning!!! Before having dripping water sounds, real or imagined, ruining my restful sleeping, it was mice. Now, I have only encountered two or three in my life but for well over 30 years, one of my greatest fears was encountering a mouse. Well, in my dream this early a.m., I kicked it up a notch!

In the dream, my now former spouse was house hunting for us. He found a place to buy and put things into action for us to purchase it. I showed up at the door one day and asked the sellers if I could see the place, since I had not yet seen where I was moving. This was NOT the house I would have chosen but I did not hate it either. It had potential!

The sellers let me look around, as they continued packing to move. My spouse was there and got busy painting a wall in one of the rooms. (I hope the sellers don't mind!) As I was looking around, I noticed the double front doors didn't exactly meet in the middle, but I loved the thick worm wood-looking doors. I asked if him if there was a way to mount the thick doors onto new doors, to preserve the look. He said he would have to get with Doug about it.  (Doug was actually our very first lumber salesman when we moved here in 1988. Where did THAT come from???)

The lady of the house was showing me the built-in shelves in a hallway, with curtains rather than doors over the shelves, and the walls made of concrete blocks, which means addition. A cut and paste house. Somehow my family was there,  too, looking things over. Some of my sisters were going to look in the basement. All of a sudden, Jill got a very strange look on her face and I said, "What???"

She was white like the sheet covering the open shelves, and carefully said, "You know what used to scare you so bad in other houses??" I said, "Oh, no, you saw a mouse??" and she said, "Well, it wasn't a mouse..." Rat!! Deal over---I was out of there, freshly painted wall or not.

The seller reluctantly admitted that yes, they had rats once in a while...I said I was out---surely we could get out of the deal since I had not seen the house before the contract was written, etc. I would never sleep again knowing that even if we eradicated the place of rats, my ears would be awake all night, listening for the scurrying or rooting around varmints do when others are sleeping. Oh, yes I would! 

I never did get to the second floor to see the bedrooms or bathrooms which likely would have been deal breakers as well. I wonder what my spouse was thinking when buying this place, one in such need of renovation and tweaking. Decorating touches are one thing, rat eradication is quite another!! So very glad I woke up and didn't have to see this adventure as it played out!

"....and so forth...."

The other night when I attended the Ladies' Night Out event at The Club, I not only got to judge various and assorted desserts, but also observed from the safety of my seat, dancers. Yes, a pair of gentlemen from a local dance studio came to spin the ladies around the dance floor. 


There were only a small number of us there but about a half dozen or so took their turn learning dance steps and even did a line dance. That was so not for Lee or me, but we were content to just chat and watch. Fortunately, we did not have to judge the dancing, too.

I told Lee about the first time I took the ballroom dancing lessons. The guy who was my instructor would end every attempt at dancing with the words "...it's all good". No matter how poorly I did, he would say this. Scott was fortunate he got out of those lessons alive because my patience for such things is quite limited.  He could have gotten upset with my lack of cooperative dancing skills, so we were even. Whenever I think back to those lessons, all I remember is "it's all good". Ugh!

Lee can't stand the expression "have a good one!". This puts her teeth on edge. She reported how one time she heard a very proper foreign man use the expression in English and she about smacked him. "Don't say that!!!" I had to laugh because it is so not polite to smack a foreign person for speaking poor American English!

Connie, the maintenance lady, punctuates every declarative sentence she makes with the phrase, "...and all". Sometime I would like to inquire "and all what?", just to see what she would answer. Likely she is not even aware she says this and also likely she would not stop doing it simply because it annoys me! 

Another common sentence "punctuation" some folks use is "...'nthat..." (means 'and that). Like Connie's phrase, it does not go on to explain '...'n that what???' At the pool activities, one participant regularly uses the expression, "...and so forth" at the end of sentences. I am dying to say, "Yada, yada, yada..." (Seinfeld) sometime but the humor, I fear, would be missed.

                                                   

On the radio show I watch/listen to, one of the hosts is constantly on alert, pointing out the misspeaks and grammatical faux pas of others. Well, yesterday it was his turn to mess up and oh, what great fun the others had with him. I felt somewhat badly for Pat, knowing how I would feel, and do feel, when I mess up or get caught doing something for which I am critical of others. He was going on and on about moving something and needing to use a 'wheel barrel'. Oh, he was so busted! 

The control room played the tape over and over again, rubbing his nose in his using the wrong word.  I had to chuckle because I DID notice it the first time and it clicked in my brain, "Oh, did Pat just say 'barrel' instead of barrow?". Then the show took a nasty turn!! 


All the guys on this same program like to end their declarative sentences with the words "...and everything else..." which is, of course, a grand overstatement. An example would be "Publix sells groceries and everything else..." which is so not true! This might be true for Wal*Mart, but not for Publix. "..and everything else.." annoys me, too!


We must get the plank from our own eye before pointing out the speck in someone else's eye. Or conversation...and so forth!


(p.s. In listening today (Thursday) I heard Pat make a mistake again which the guys did not jump on---he said, "That's the flaw in the oinment..." It's actually 'fly in the ointment', not flaw!) Pick, pick, pick!