It's getting late

Does this really look like it is my sized cup of Diet Coke?

Monday nights are the worst for me as regarding TV viewing. It never bothered me, if bothered is the right word, when I used to have more meetings on Monday nights each month. Now that I am down to one meeting a month, I suffer. The good news is that there is always Fox News to tide me over until wrestling or whatever is done. Or watch something on the computer, which is what I was doing until I realized how late it was getting! From this vantage point, I can see into the river room where my newest framed piece is propped on the floor. It is so pretty, if I do say so myself. The framing truly makes it, pops the green out of the work, and looks so sharp!

Oh, we had such a laugh today at Longhorn! Most of the ladies are older than me, some by nearly 20 years, and prefer to order from the children's menu for the smaller portions. Last week I did not want leftovers so I ordered only a baked potato for my meal, and this week, the same situation but instead, I ordered a cheeseburger from the kids' menu. All of us ordered from the same menu, being served by a guy we had never seen before. He asked us if we'd ever eaten at Longhorn before and we told him we are there every Monday.

After taking the orders, he rather curtly brought out the drinks for us, served in small plastic cups with the lids! Judy was in the rest room with her grandkids and did not see the sodas come out. I could not wait to see her reaction to this affront. He told us that it is company policy to serve the kids' menu drinks in these cups and I defended him, saying we did not want him to lose his job over it. Our regular waitress stopped by the table and we asked her what was up. Amber said, "Oh, yeah, when I came in today, they told us the new policy..." It is not really new, the Management is simply enforcing it. The waiter kept our sippy cups full, we kept him hopping!, me especially!

For my dinner tonight I did finish off one container of leftovers, somehow burning my poor tongue even though I found cold spots in my food. What gives???? No worries, I can get myself a bowl of raspberry sherbet to treat my cooking injury, or would that be an eating injury? It sounds windy again out there tonight, which I can hear well through my open sliding doors. It is expected to reach 83 tomorrow for the high temperature which will be great for those enjoying spring break in the area. Up north, I hear that snow expected again this week, but saw none in our forecast here in North Florida. Kids have been out enjoying the pool although I am certain the water is not really warm enough for swimming. Not by a long shot!

Yesterday's Listening Sunday went alright, no fireworks, but there were some surprising suggestions from not so surprising sources. What bugs me, causes me near sleepless nights sometimes, is that folks do not really seem to know the difference. Be careful what you ask for, you might get it!

One of the shows I listen to on the radio, the host always says, "Do your own homework" about topics and news stories. Very few people in the group I was with had written down any notes---three of us had---a group of about 10-11. Often they would say "pass" when their turn came around to add something to the lists, and then would say, "Oh, that's a good idea..." or "I never thought of that..." For weeks the questions were listed in the service folder, had been mailed to the homes, and also e-mailed. One week handed out at the door, and yet few had written out anything nor had anything to contribute. This bugs me!

It was not meant for 'give and take' at all, was supposed to not have discussion, but did anyway. Amazingly, it was not me yakking it up, since I had so much to add to the lists! The tone was mainly light and upbeat, but eventually folks would say they had to leave, pack up their stuff, and go. Three of us were left at the end, because we felt it necessary and important. Of course, somehow, our group was the last one done. Terri T. asked me to lunch so I called Judy C. to see if she wanted to come too. She had been to church across the river, sat through a 'concert', so we had plenty to talk about over lunch at Chili's. Judy had given me her list in response to the three questions, plus an extra copy for her Elder, to make sure it gets included in the tally. So anyway, we had a lovely, lively lunch and by the time I got home, it was after 3:00 pm! And another container of leftovers waiting for me to eat! Maybe tomorrow for lunch I will have some sliders but tonight, to soothe my burned tongue, sherbet!

Sky shows

The Super Moon after it rose on the river last night, reflecting gloriously off the water. It was fantastic, as always on the full moon, but it was extra so for the Super Moon!

This was the sunrise greeting me this a.m., the morning after the Super Moon. What a fantastic red color it was, did not translate to the photo but my eyes remember it!

Super Moon tonight

This morning, Linda J. and I were chatting, her first question to me being, "Did you see our moon last night?" It was so funny because I certainly had seen it and thought of her as well as the other of my family/friends who have been here to watch it with me. I described it to her as being 'so pure'. Linda and I opted to switch to the telephone for the rest of our conversation, while we were each watching Fox and Friends. There, we saw Rick Reichmuth explain about the super moon. He described it as being 'crisp' and clear, which really worked well with my word of 'pure', we agreed. Tonight is the peak of its pureness, the super purigee moon, which won't be seen again until 2029. I hope to be looking at the moon from the other side by that time! When I checked my Facebook page, there was a message from Judy R., asking me if I saw the moon last night!!!!

After our lengthy phone visit, I watched the rest of my radio show on-line and then figured that it might be a good idea to get up and dressed before noon! My bro-in-law had posted something on Facebook that made me think of Leonard Cohen so while I put my answers together for tomorrow's Listening Sunday, I listened to some Cohen. It really set my mood, and enjoyed singing along with some of my old favorites. Mom mentioned yesterday how she used to enjoy hearing Lori and I sing "the whale song" when we were at home, and after we left home, too. The song is officially called "The Greenland Whale Fisheries" and we sang it acapella usually. Today I was singing "Bird on a Wire" and "Good-bye Marianne"....

Oh goodie! I just found "Freedom Writers" on TV tonight! The episode of "House" that came on was not one I particularly liked so I switched over to this, for now. The movie is at the part where the kids were laughing at a caricature drawn of one of their classmates, and Erin realizes that the kids do not know about the Holocaust story. A real breaking through point for all of them, with 90% of the students having been shot at in their lives, are involved in gang life, and at 'war' with each other of different races. Her classroom alone had four different races, including one white boy who was the sole person who had ever heard about the Holocaust. She is trying to get them "Anne Frank" but her Dean will not allow her to check them out of the storage shelves. Not to give away the entire story, but Erin takes on a 2nd job in order to buy them books herself. Good lessons in this movie, good lessons!

After work, Martie and I went up to Great Hang Ups to get my newly framed artwork, and to buy a birthday present for one of the members at church who is soon celebrating her 50th. Her hubby is throwing a surprise party so shhhh! My art work looks fantastic, I loved it! Left it in the car because my hands were full coming upstairs when we got home again. Since "The King's Speech" was showing so late today that we decided to just watch a movie at home instead, choosing "Social Network". Wow! What a movie that was! It is based on the origins of Facebook and its very young owner. From what I have read, the movie is not entirely factual but is based upon fact. Make sense? It is an amazing story, though, how this guy has built this empire and is now the youngest billionaire in the world!

When it was over, Martie headed for home, but first we stopped to watch the bride at this evening's wedding come down the aisle. This time to the strains of the bridal march. I saw some of my neighbors were on the sundeck so I went outside to join them for a while. It's nice to be able to go out and mingle again, after our hibernation this long winter! When I came inside, I heated up some leftovers to enjoy while watching "House" episodes and the moon rising on the river. Pure again tonight! And incredibly lovely! Guess I should check my Facebook page now, eh?

Moonshadows in my rooms

Just said good-bye and good night to Martie, who is presently driving home by moonlight. We had dinner here after she was done with work, arriving right around 7:00 pm. Our meal was hot beef sandwiches served on potato rolls, peas (Martie's favorite!), for dessert, the bread pudding bought at Publix yesterday. She truly loved her dinner and I appreciate her loving it! After we ate and chatted, the two of us sat in the comfy chairs in the family room, watching International House Hunters, the first time she'd ever seen it. Martie enjoyed it and is ready for the two of us to move to Cypress tomorrow! Only, she has to work....

After she is done on Saturday, we are thinking of going to see "The King's Speech", if it is still playing. Will check that later, first things first. If Martie had gotten here earlier tonight, we would have had time for a movie with our dinner, but then we needed time to chat, as well. When I was getting settled with the laptop after Martie left, I turned on the TV to see an episode of NCIS I remembered from long ago. The team was at NAS JAX, looking for the secret lair of a man who had a chamber made up to look like the 1950's, complete with brides. It was fun to see them running all over the place at the base, just down the river a bit from me.

This morning I met Judy C. for breakfast at Grumpy's because she had some papers for me to take to church on Sunday. She is actually going to Victory this week, as she is babysitting for her daughter's kids and has promised to go to church with them. These plans were made before we knew about the Listening Sunday. Leslie and her family attend fairly regularly now and Judy wants to encourage this, so will stick her plan. Usually I order rye toast and bacon but today was in the mood for a waffle. The waitress sort of talked me into it, and when I ate only half, she was afraid I did not like it. I assured her I did, but could only eat half of it in one sitting. Judy had the short stack and some bacon, which also looked delicious. After we ate and talked, we parted company, with her heading to Leslie's to do the laundry and clean, and me, home to watch Justin clean!

He was not expected too early because of his plans to go out last night to celebrate St. Patrick's Day, but not long after I got home, I heard the kitchen door open. It seems they did not go out after all last night, reporting that the line was too long at the club, plus a cover charge was required for the special occasion. Plan B was to go home and watch a movie instead. I like that idea better by far! And it's cheaper too!

Justin did the floors today, with me asking him to spend extra time on them because of the dust situation. Also, he touched up some paint in the kitchen from last week, where the yellow got on the white, and vice versa. It looks much better now. For lunch we ordered from Ming Moon, but not because I was hungry. The last time he was here he expressed his desire for some Ming Moon so today, he got his wish! Vegetable lo mein for him, sweet n' sour chicken for me. Tomorrow he can have his beef all day long!

In between chores he had me look up various artists and performers on-line, as he is excited about "American Idol". He thinks that Fox is the music channel now, between "Glee" and "American Idol". What's he going to do when it's over? We also did some research regarding a TV show he saw earlier in the week called "American Pickers" where one of the antiques was from Manitowoc. We found the episode on hulu.com and he was able to capture the 'picture of the picture' to send to his grandma to see if she recognized the ice cream parlor. I am absolutely sure it is Beernsten's only no where near Washington Park as the caption declares. Hmmm.....

When Justin had finished up he went home to meet up with Jesse, who was finished working for the day. They were going to 'hang out', which likely means going to the beach or playing volley ball, or both! When he left, I could hear some lovely music coming from outside so went to check. Sure enough, a wedding was about to take place. The bride came down the 'aisle' to the strains of "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" and before the ceremony, all the guests bowed their heads in prayer. Rarely have I seen that for a wedding over at The Club---it warmed my heart.

My supper took care of cooking itself with little intervention allowing me to relax until Martie got here. It was a super day and tomorrow will be as well. Twila got moved today to Signature Health Care so will swing by to see her at some point, perhaps before going to the movies. I also have a piece of art ready for pick up at Great Hang Ups, one of my paintings. Julia called to tell it was ready and I love an opportunity to go and hang out, this time with a purpose! But, right now, I am ready for sleeping! Good night all!

I can start this now, finish later...

…had to write this down before I forgot. Justin told me yesterday that he wants to go to Epcot with me. He did not just say, "I want to go to Epcot...", he added the "with you". We already have the tickets so it's not only that I would pay, since I did that a long time ago. No, he said he likes going with me 'because of the way we do it'....no rushing, no hustling from Point A to Point B. We can meander, take in a sight or activity, and move along to the next. I remember going once with Justin, plus our friends, Rick and Jen. Only the four of us, as we made our way through the park at a nice, leisurely pace. At one point, when crossing a bridge (why I remember that, I am not sure!) Justin piped up saying, "This is the best time I have had a theme park in my life..." He was probably going on 17 at this time and had been to parks all over the place during his lifetime, but this visit was the best time. It made me happy and sad at the same time, not realizing when it was happening how 'unfun' it used to be....at the Happiest Place on Earth!

Once I went to Epcot all by myself, after dropping Justin and his friend, Ryan, at the Magic Card tournament. As I entered the park, during the International Flower Show, I just stopped and looked around in awe, realizing I had already gotten money's worth barely through the turnstile. Wow! Such a wonderful display of flowers and colors! It was in May, not too hot yet. I meandered through the park at my own pace, going to the bathroom even if I didn't have to, but just because I could!!! Want a soda? Sure!!! Sit down and soak up the sights??? Sure!!! Strike up a conversation with a stranger? Sure!!! Enjoy myself? Absolutely!!!

Back again…just got home from Bible study and shopping, as I needed some things from Publix. Somehow it costs me more when my Justin is with me! He needed ingredients for making some type of lemon and chive rice dish, sticking to his no meat diet fairly faithfully. Jesse and he DO eat fish but on the weekends, have their fill of the other meats. This is supposed to curtail their fast-food dining, to save money. I wonder how that is working for them…. He also got a container of carpet freshener to use in his living quarters. I would love for him to have the carpet replaced or ceramic tile put down but that’s not up to me. For two bucks, I CAN spring for a thing of carpet freshener!

Boy, do I need my windows washed! They look horrendous, with webs forming in the corners, although I will never figure out how the bugs or spiders get all the way up here! There is a company that does the windows for others in my building, are licensed and insured (now of high importance!!!!) and will clean the sliding doors on the outside. That is something I really desire---they have not been washed since the building was painted and I slipped the painters a few bucks plus a bottle of Windex to take care of it for me. Especially after they were the ones who got them all messed up with the pressure washer!

Here is a Twila update---on Monday she was moved to a rehab center in OP, the same one where she went after her hip replacement surgery. Well, that did not go well, as it seemed the facility was not geared to caring for a cardio patient. Tuesday she ended up going by ambulance back to Shands and spent almost all day in the ER, as they had no rooms available until evening. They kept her all day, then, on Wednesday, while her granddaughter, Twila, was trying to find another rehab center in OP. She did find a place located not far from the first one and supposedly was moving in there today. I have not gotten confirmation on that yet, but hope she did get moved and will be happier there.

My friend, Judy J., lost her brother on Tuesday early, after his long battle finally ended. She was right---it seemed Ed was waiting for his son to get there before he breathed his last. Judy had planned to start her drive back to Florida on the weekend, but the plans for the service were determined by the availability of the national cemetery. In checking the obits in Detroit, I see the funeral service will be on Monday, so I won’t see her until next week. She has been gone nearly a month now, I miss her! To help me not miss her, Justin will throw out a “you know what they should do….” which is one of her trademark sentence starters! I love to ask her who ‘they’ is! We usually go to eat somewhere once a week, and I am getting hungry….I am sad for her because now she has no siblings left, she is the last one. Lots of loss in her family.

Today after Bible study, Justin and I had lunch at Mimi’s Café at the Town Center Mall. He had recommended the grilled cheese sandwich there, made with a variety of cheeses, dripping out of it…oh yummy! I could eat only half of it, however, as it also came with a cup of corn chowder which is absolutely the best I ever had! Even better than at Sister’s Tea Room, if I remember it correctly. We had talked about getting an order of bread pudding for dessert but Justin suggested I get a container of it, cheaper, at Publix, since I would have been taking it to-go anyway. We did find it there, but instead of being just an order of bread pudding, I had to buy a round pie pan, like several days’ worth of deliciousness.

He told me more about his fun weekend at the wedding and Orlando, said he even ironed his own clothes. “I guess I can do it myself…” he said. A couple years ago his grandma and Auntie Lynn had bought him an iron and ironing board (surf board) for his birthday but the legs gave way on the board. They guys would prop it up between chairs to iron their clothes. Oh, and he did locate the missing dress shirt, the pink one he was looking for, finding it caught inside another shirt in the ironing basket. He was still glad to have the two new shirts I bought him last week. At one point, at the ice cream social following the rehearsal, he feared being put to work because his outfit looked like the resort-wear sported by the staff at the event! Justin also informed me that he ‘danced his pants off!’ at the reception. Oh my, I hope that was only an expression….

At lunch, I told him about there being a musician doing the service at Victory on Sunday, sure he would get the e-mail sent out by Pastor that comes before the weekend each week. Usually he helps with the assembling of the service folders when arriving at Bible study, but he was on the phone with his Grandma K and came in just as class was beginning. He did not get a sneak peek, like we usually do.

At first, I wasn’t going to mention it because I feared he would not attend church, having missed the two previous Sundays when he was in Orlando. As he sat there, pondering that the musician would be there, he said, “I don’t like that.” This I already knew, he has told me this in the past when discussing 'praise bands' (What’s the point of that?”). According to what I saw in the bulletin, it looked like it would not be only a concert but perhaps following the liturgy. He could not/should not come to GS either this week as we have an abbreviated service to allow for the Listening Sunday event. That would not be good, either. Not sure what he will do, since the 10:30 service is the only one that day.

Justin will be here in the morning, but not terribly early due to celebrating St. Patrick’s Day tonight with his friends. He was sure they would not be out too late since Jesse has to work in the morning. Justin is coming to clean my floors, for one thing, thinks he will try the dry Swiffer to see if that cleans up some of that nasty dust and the bunnies that I complain about all the time! He wonders if I should get one of those gizmos that eats dust particles but I fear it would make a noise that I would find annoying. His answer? Run it when you are gone!

Lisa sent this photo today with the title "Good morning!!!" It works for me!!!

It appears to be a glorious day

As I finished my bowl of raspberry sherbet (yes, I finally got my sherbet), I was savoring the lasting flavor of the fruitiness, Justin had called me. He had to tell about a marvelous treat he was enjoying, Diet Coke with raspberry flavoring. He assured me it was still diet but I cannot imagine how this can be. Justin got his lunch at Moe’s, a Southwestern-style eatery not far from our ‘old’ office where he is busily preparing for the upcoming yard sale. Moe’s has this fascinating Coke machine that supplies over a hundred flavors for the drinks. He chose the raspberry and said he swore he felt the little seeds in his mouth, though there were none. He wants me to go there to get one, just to try it.

Justin uses a hands-free device for talking on the phone so he can work as he talks. (This reminds of my friend, Carol, expressing her dismay at me being able to do this. She cannot---it’s one, or the other for her, never both!) He related his weekend in Orlando at his friend’s wedding, for which Jesse was best man, and his other former housemate, Ron, a groomsman. The bride, named Kim, declared Justin to be her “Jacksonville secretary” because he kept things in order and running smoothly on this end, as the bridal couple live down state. The parents of the bride also thanked Justin for his assistance, and Kim said she could not have done this without him. He is the grown-up of the group, especially when it comes to keeping things organized and on schedule. He told me last night how, after the all the groomsmen had gotten dressed in their hotel room, he went behind them and picked things up. Said the place was trashed with the hangers, plastic bags, pins, and ‘tuxedo stuff’, plus the guys street clothes. He made it all nice and tidy while they were gone for photos.

Jesse, as best man, was struggling a bit preparing for his speech, thinking of a funny story or something to share with the room. He did not want to stand up there with note cards, wanted it to seem ‘off the cuff’, so did memorize his speech. Jesse told me that he did pretty good, only lost his place a couple times, and yes, got choked up a bit. Justin and he both told me how Jesse had to be up right after the father of his bride read a multi-page poem he wrote to his daughter. Not a dry eye in the house, I guess. I told Jesse it’s hard to go on ‘stage’ after a pet or a child…..add to that now, a tearful poem by the father of the bride! Jesse could have used his note cards and not lost his place, as Justin described to me, in radio lingo, of having "dead-air". But he recovered nicely and gave a very well-received best man speech. Justin nearly got to fill in for one of the groomsmen who had failed to show up for the fitting, if only Justin could have squeezed into the guy’s tuxedo! The brother of the groom just needed a reminder call….

We played Trivia last night, Justin and Jesse joining Stephanie, Erica, and Trisha, their family friend, and me. The first half of the game we were on fire, I think only one wrong answer if at all. I did great coming up with the correct answers that I did, proud of me! The second half, not so good. Some really sticklers for questions, including having to determine which brand came first: Teflon or Tupperware? Roller blades or jet skis? Sprite or 7-Up? There is one more but I cannot think right now what it is…We got every guess wrong!

The UPS man just came to the door, bringing me a new book and my lapdesk. I had a 15% discount card to use from Barnes and Noble, and no shipping, so I ordered the lapdesk for using with the little computer when I am on the bed. Hopefully it works as well as my pillow does now! The book I ordered is called “Why Johnnie Can’t Sing Hymns” and I cannot wait to crack it open, but will. First things first! As I type, I am snacking on my dehydrated veggies which I managed to find at Publix. This way Ellen won’t have to pick them up for me at Whole Foods or Natural Market anymore. Books and dehydrated veggies---what’s next???

Some pictures for your listening and dancing pleasure!

My church hosted a Christian group, Branches Band, which comes from Milwaukee. Beforehand, our two chefs, Mike 'n Mike, prepared a soup and salad supper with about 20 in attendance. I even have leftovers of the chicken wild rice soup for the rest of the week!

Two of the entertainers with their CD sales, and in the foreground, our newest member, Sterling. He is the man who had the bicycle accident last Wednesday on his way to church. It is his right side which is banged up, can't see it in the photo.

The young lady on the left is the soprano from the group with a pure voice. Very nice, especially when singing "Amazing Grace", accompanied only on the keyboard. My favorite number of the night!

This is the chancel area of the Open Bible Lutheran Church where our mission rally was held last Saturday. All the furnishings were hand-built. I really like the wall treatment, it reminds me of the walls from my house in The Preserve, over burgundy.

Two of my friends, Ruth and Barb (in red). Barb and her husband, Doug, used to be members at Good Shepherd years ago. Ruth is the grandma of Tarren and is the mom of Mark. She had invited me to a sleepover at her house for the Rally but then uninvited me! Her sisters were coming down from up north and it just wasn't going to work out this time. Victory hosts next fall and I invited these two ladies to stay with me if they come up!

Here are Gretchen and Judy C. in their seats before the opening devotion. Someone at church asked how we got to the Rally and Judy said, "The Chappell van..." I chimed in with, "Instead of a church bus, we have Chappell van!" I just tear myself up!!!