What a weekend!

Does Friday count as the weekend? I would say it does, or it should, anyway. When I got home last night, I went immediately to bed because I was so tired, which is why I did not post to the blog before going to sleep. We did not come straight home after leaving Palm Coast, we had to stop at church as all of us had something to take care of there. Carol was changing the banners and altar paraments, Judy set up the Fellowship Hall for refreshments, and I had to vacuum. It got a lick and a promise cleaning because I was so tired and did not want anyone to have to wait for me. Carol was the last one done but I waited for her to finish in the chancel area before vacuuming up there. It sure felt good to get home and reclining on my bed, since I had had a short night's sleep on Friday. I woke this a.m. the first time at 6:30 but opted to stay asleep until just after 8:00. Not late for church, either!

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On Friday night I touched on some of the highlights of the School of Worship Enrichment, which was an absolutely fantastic event. WELS presenters introduced some music outside of our normal comfort zone but somehow it seemed to be okay. In the right time, place, and setting, and with proper instruction and excellence, it might be okay. After the opening service of Morning Praise, we were asked to offer our critique or comments regarding how some of the pieces were performed or presented. The "Come, Oh Come" was accompanied on the piano with the addition of soft bongos and a bit of tamborine, I think. Personally, I did not find it offensive, and could 'tolerate' the additional instruments but did mention to the moderator that I have sung this at my own church and at my home church without the added instruments, and found it equally edifying. He acknowledged that, the other instruments add punctuation to an already sound proclamation of faith.

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Friday night we closed with The Compline, I believe my first time experiencing this end-of-the-day vesper service and that was also lovely. The pianists really had no mercy on the keyboard of the baby grand piano, and I made the comment later that I felt sorry for the keys, but glad for me! Man, those guys really made the keys sing, changing up the dynamics, adding interesting preludes to the hymns and sometimes, letting us a sing all or part of a stanza without them playing at all!

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The lectures were valuable, our favorite being a study on the liturgical year and how to best recognize special Sundays and such. The pastor, Christie, offered many suggestions and resources to use, how to select the appropriate choral music and pre/post service music, use of banners and paraments. Always the focus on things being the very best we can offer. Later in the day we had break-out sessions where we could kick things around a bit, with a member of the SoWE team coming to talk with us. It was a bit complicated since it seems that the organizers or whoever were not aware our congregation was coming so allowances for us were not available. At times there were six of us representing GS, but always, at least the three of us. Suzanne had to leave early, much to her chagrin, to take her kids to a party at Rachel's house. Her hubby had had the kids most of the day on Friday and the same on Saturday so she had to take them to this party. John was busy watching the Gator/Bull Dog football game anyway, with Michael, his brother. She really missed alot in the afternoon, not the least of which was the closing Reformation service, complete with procession, where Pastor Huebner carried in the brass cross during the 3rd stanza of "A Mighty Fortress". They explained that traditionally this stanza is read by the congregation instead of singing it, to contemplate the words. The pianist, Pastor Christie, played a dramatic dirge-style variation of the hymn, but with excitement, as Carol tried to explain to someone else today. An exciting dirge, go figure! But that nailed it. The effect was significant, dramatic but completely in keeping with excellence and decency in worship. We can do this!

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Another thing we discussed ad nauseum (I am so good at that!) was the value of education and instruction, particularly when introducing something new or variant to the service. Much of what we studied in "Come Worship Christ" was referenced in the sessions, including this study by name, for those who have not seen it. Years ago, when Pete was still at our church, I did the Bible study from start to finish but so far at GS since then, I have yet to get through the entire thing. The Monday study was interrupted by the move from trailer to building and losing the videos thereof, and now again, using the 'student version' of this same study, in an abbreviated format. Now we are moving on to studying Luther and the Confessions which will be good, solid theology. At least it was today.

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The Greeters were not in place today so I stood in, as is my custom. Saw my old friend, Larry Reiter, dropped off by his wife. He had come to GS a couple years ago for the first time, having sailed his boat to Green Cove from VA, with his nephew as his first mate. It turned out his family and he spent time in Manitowoc County where his dad served as pastor. At MLHS, I went to school with his sisters, Carol, my class, and Connie, a few years younger than me. I had sent Carol a birthday greeting today before going to church so how cool is that?!? Anna NM came to church today after having to say farewell to family who had been visiting from Australia for two weeks. On Facebook she mentioned how sad she was so I gave an extra hug to her because I know how she feels. Anna told me she studied up on her Luther history for today, as a refresher. What a grand idea!

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After last night's closing service, a hard act to follow, I am soon heading to Victory for our joint service with Gainesville, Keystone Heights, GS, and our host congregation. I am looking forward to seeing Jennifer Lee and her mom, as Jen is newly returned from serving as a nurse in Africa for one of our missions. How I do love seeing my Facebook friends in the flesh now and again!

A few quick lines

I should be sleeping or trying to, but I am so wound up yet from the School of Worship Enrichment event I attended today and will attend tomorrow. So many good things, great subject matter, and a lovely closing service. One of the best parts of the day was seeing some former members of First German who are now living in New Port Ritchey, the Laurin's. They sang for Lisa's wedding 10 years ago, as did I, and today we sang together again, in the congregation. My friend, Jennifer, from Merritt Island was taking part in the SoWE event so I got to see her again, plus Bonnie formerly from Victory, and later her hubby, Tim. I already knew the pastor at the host church ("You know everybody!" Suzanne complained...) but the best of all was seeing and talking with Aunt Mary, part of the team presenting the program. She is the auntie of 'our' friend, Pete Prange, and is leading the choir and offering her expertise regarding music and orchestration, etc. We had a great visit---Carol, Suzanne, Judy C., and me, plus Bonnie---during our supper.

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It was a bit awkward when we arrived this morning, as it seemed no one from the SoWE knew we were coming. Now how did THAT happen? When it was break-out session time, the leaders moved folks around and found a group for us to meld with, but this was after we had to complete congregational surveys and then quickly tabulate the data. My job was to record the comments and sort them, which took longer so I was the last to the group. But, at least we got them done! Since Brian came a bit later, we ended up having six people from our congregation, a decent representation, in my opinion. It really would have been nice to have fully participated in the program, but that's the way it goes....

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During breaks in the presentation, I had a chance to catch up the Laurin's on Lisa's news with the baby (they didn't know about Angelo yet) and showed them pictures. Mike went outside and called his son about this, and Brandon knew all about the baby and such, but just had not told his dad and mom. Funny! That's what happens when you do not have Facebook access....Jody used to be in the choir with Lynn and Linda before moving to Florida and Mike's parents and siblings remain at FG, so they keep up with things back home. Except about Lisa and the baby!

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Inside the church and narthex area it was so terribly cold that many of us (not only me) were shivering. Now I know for tomorrow to dress more warmly and have a heavier wrap along. One of the presenters is from a church in OH and had a mop towel with him to wipe his face and neck. Right off the bat he explained that it is about 30 degrees warmer here than where he came from so we must overlook his sweating. Even as we sat and enjoyed our supper, we were shaking from the cold, but that did not prevent Mary from having a couple 'cold ones' with her pizza. None of us enjoyed a brewsky but if there had been some rum or something, I might have indulged. Carol was the driver so she could not have had anything.

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Now I will make an attempt at going to sleep so I can wake up early enough for our departure time of 7:00 a.m. The Morning Praise service begins at 8:30 so we want to make sure we are on time and not lost, like we were this a.m. My mapquest directions took us to the pastor's house instead of church....guess that is not up to date. Now that we know where we are going, it should be a breeze!

Back on track

Here is a photo of Angelo, taken this late afternoon, with no tubes or wires connected to him, just sporting a lovely knit cap!

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Everyday seems more and more like the days I remember from before The Flood. Today was one of those for me, and what a welcome relief it was to feel this way! My day began with getting up and ready for Bible class at Victory, our new study focusing on trials and tribulations in our lives and what we can learn from them. Right up my alley. We had only a handful of people again for class as one couple remains on vacation in MI and WI, one lady filling in for the preschool, and Justin absent. Not sure where he was but am guessing he is still moving his father into the new house. Four of us ladies went to lunch at Beef O’Brady’s which was quite nice. I ordered the hamburger that was on special without realizing it was a half pound patty. It was huge! Before I could do anything with it, I had to saw the burger in half or I would not have been able to pick it up. Half was only what I could manage to eat and some of the fries. Next thing you know, I will be ordering eggs and toast or a slice of pie only, like my grandma did!

On the ride home I called Mom, as I knew she would be back from church where she worked on the newsletter. We did not talk long, though, as she waiting for a phone call from Lisa, who was going to borrow her car to go to Green Bay to see the baby. We did get some chance to talk before I let her go to free up the phone line. Lisa and Noah are going to spend the night in Green Bay at a house similar to a Ronald McDonald House, while their boys are staying overnight with friends in Sheboygan. Everyone will be so glad to have things settled down, after Angelo gets to come home with them. Lisa is trying to spend special snuggle time with each of them at bedtime, so they won’t feel neglected. She needs it, too!

So, anyway, I no sooner got home than I had to leave again for my grooming appointment. Barb could get me in for a haircut this late afternoon, which was badly needed. When I pulled in the parking lot, I noticed a familiar pick-up truck there, so I went into Whitey’s in search of my long, lost friend, Michael Jackson! There he was, on the outside deck, finishing his lunch. His mouth hung open when he saw me coming toward him and, in a case of mistaken identity, he said, “Well, Jesus Christ, how are you?” Immediately I told him I was Kim but it was an honest mistake. He was so surprised to see me, and I told him that Penny was my friend, whose lawn he now cares for. Small world! But I had to rush in to get my hair cut so could not visit very long. How fun it was to see him again after about three years or so.

After my cut, I went back home to take my rest while watching my radio show. Judy J. called to set up our long awaited dinner date, which was planned for Pompeii Oven right across Hwy. 17. You will not believe what time she was picking me up, though-----5:15!!! Now, back in the Bible study on Tuesday days, we would meet for dinner at that time and then go to class which was at 7:00 pm. But there was no reason why we had to eat so early tonight. Oh well, it was fine. While we sat there chatting and waiting for our food, my neighbor, Pat, and her friend, Nathan, came in to thank me for the Gator bracelet I gave her. This is a HUGE weekend in Jacksonville with the big Florida/Georgia football game going on. Pat was all decked out in her Gator gear, head to toe, and wrist, with her new bracelet. Glad she liked it and nice that she stopped by to thank me in person!

Judy loved her spaghetti and meatballs while I ate this ginormous Stromboli, big enough for three meals. Another giant-sized portion today. Usually we like to go to Aron’s for this dinner but thought we’d try the Pompeii for a switch. Now I have so many leftovers and I will be away much of the weekend. At first I was going to drive to Palm Coast by myself and stay the night with Bonnie for the Union meeting and worship conference. Then I found out some others are going, so I am hitching a ride with them and going forth and back as a passenger. We all agreed on the length of our stay each day so I should not need to have access to my car. I sure don’t want to miss anything, especially the Reformation service on Saturday evening!

Somehow I failed to mention a lovely visit I had with Saban, my “Turkish friend” who was busily moving my downstairs neighbors out of their soon to be repaired home. He came upstairs and took the quick tour, saw his gift to me, the flag, and admired the view. Saban said he wanted to bring his wife over here for breakfast someday and enjoy looking out over the river. Of course, I would make them breakfast but he said, “I suppose you make for us bacon and sausage and ham we cannot eat…” but I told him I would make whatever he wanted me to make. Saban asked me if I had been back to Turkey recently and I told him I had not been since 2007. It was after that trip that he came here to move Justin out and then brought me a flag to go with my Greek stuff. He told me if I ever want to go back over there, I could use his condo in Izmit. I offered him the use of mine here if he wanted it, so we are even! I love it that he offered it to me, even if I never go over there again, it’s the thought that counts!

Maybe no one will notice...

....that I missed a day again! When I got home from dinner with Martie last night, I was just so bushed, going to sleep took precedence. My night's sleep Monday was quite short due to a rather upsetting Board meeting so it took me a while to fall asleep. Plus, add to that, the "Roseanne" episodes were on in which Dan came home from an extended stay in CA with his mother. He was behaving differently but no one can put their finger on it, until his sis-in-law overheard a phone conversation with a someone in CA who was not his mother. Oh oh....When Dan was telling Roseanne about it, he said he has a feeling that something was missing from his life, an emptiness, and that he has met someone. For some reason these couple of episodes bother me. Before he is exposed, they celebrate Christmas, a lovely one, because they had recently come into lottery money. For the first time they did not have to hock anything to buy socks for their son, stuff like that. Roseanne presented Dan with an envelope on a silver tray, their mortgage, paid in full, plus a lighter. He ceremoniously burned the mortgage and then cried like a baby in her arms. Dan remembered buying the house with Roseanne so many years ago, all the struggles they have been through together, etc. Now they have money, the struggles have subsided, and he is out the door for a younger woman he met in CA. He also swore he did not sleep with her. Not to be a spoiler, in the next episodes, he leaves home but never leaves town, and begs to come back home. Their daughter goes into early labor and delivers their grandchild, who nearly died. At one point they join hands and say a rather lame prayer, but a prayer nonetheless, asking 'God' to help the baby. The near death of their grandchild brought them back together.....

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So, my point was, I had troubles falling asleep and then was awake about 6:15 to the dulcet tones of a washing machine running. I am so paranoid about hearing water these days. It must have been from upstairs, and now I was wide awake. Which is why I was so tired last night. For lunch Joanne wanted to meet at Ichiro on Wells Road because they have such great fried rice. They do!!! We had a great lunch together, talking real estate and catching up on the family news. She always has so much on her plate, so to speak, making my existence seem like a Sunday school picnic. (Having been involved in these picnics actually makes me want to find a better analogy!!!) One of her most recent horrific events happened at work, in the bathroom. She had used the handicap-fitted bathroom stall in the office building, placed her lipstick tube on the sink, and then the sink fell to the floor and shattered. Yikes! A piece of the porcelain flew up and hit her in the eye. It sounded like a horrible explosion, of course, and she came out with blood on her face. Her broker took her to the hospital and the eye was saved. She still has troubles with it on occasion, as though a piece of the glass remains in it. Such is the life of poor Joanne!

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On my way home from the restaurant, to-go box in hand, I stopped at Winn-Dixie to pick up light bulbs. Mike and Andy were at my house working on the laundry room floor, and I asked Mike to look at the light fixture in the Timmy closet. He told me he had noticed it was not working properly, sort of making a sizzling sound when turned on, and thought it might be the bulb. I picked up a pack of bulbs besides soda and a half loaf of bread. Mike had also gotten a bulb but neither of them made the fixture not buzz. It was determined I must buy a new fixture and I am quite comfortable doing so. All we need now is an electrical fire, right?

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The first order of business for Mike was to take my washer and dryer from the laundry room which really had me in a sweat. I showed them how to shut off the water in the two bathrooms, gingerly closing the ball valves, leaving the faucets totally alone on the wall. Instead, they disconnected the hoses from the washer itself, and then did the faucets. No incidents as far as we know.....The floor looks great in there, with Andy even running the new floor into the little cabinet built-in the room. No more exposed wood, either, as he rigged a scrape piece of the flooring to cover it. Nice! It tell you what, he is a fiend with the saw!

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The BOD meeting that I attended on Monday night covered much discussion and decision making by the officers regarding the forensic plumbing inspection that needs to be done to determine what controls what and which valves need to be replaced yet, etc. While I agree we need to know this in order to avoid an accident like mine occurring again, it scares me have to pieces thinking that folks are going to be monkeying with these possible hair-trigger valves, have one break with no one way to make it stop. Short of cutting off the water supply to the entire compound, which includes hundreds of homes, several businesses such as hotel rooms and the Club dining room....there would be no way to control the flow. A distinct diagram would need to be drawn showing the stack cut-off valves found in the first floor units and have ready access to them in case of emergency. It was just by deductive reasoning that Butch located a second cut-off valve in Gus's 1st floor unit, by climbing under the corner kitchen sink and using a wrench to turn it. That scared him, too, because what if it went kaphooey??? So, it will be like playing Russian roulette when that project is tackled. The committee, of which I am not part, must get three bids, and find three plumbers who are willing to work in this building. That is why most folks use Butch, who is not a licensed plumber, to do their work, he knows the idiosyncrasies of the building, and usually does not have a problem.

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BUT, the water discussion and its resolution is not what overly stressed me. No, instead it was topic not on the agenda but brought up several times during the meeting. A lady who now owns two units in the building is making a fuss about her former friend's white painted doors which face north, visible from the neighboring River House. There are also white windows on the 5 1/2 floor lofts, which I never really noticed until it was pointed out to me. This Owner is demanding compliance with the By-Laws that doors and windows be bronze, or she will put in white ones, basically, just to be a snot. Screaming and hollering ensued, filthy language exchanged, resulting in the former friend being shown the door. I sat there like a deer in the headlights, horrified by this display. Ellen did her best to calm the situation, did a marvelous job for a while, but it seems there must be some underlying problem between these two that manifested itself in window color. The only good thing about this upset is that it takes everyone's mind off of the water leaks for a while!

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Well, it is time for me to get up, showered, and dressed for the day. At this writing I have no specific plans to go out and about, but you never know...Today I will put the finishing touches on the church newsletter and get it ready to send off. Pastor sent me a few things to add, which helps with content. This weekend is the Worship Conference at Christ the King, Palm Coast, and I look forward to that as well as the overnight stay with my friend, Bonnie, now of Palm Coast. She is in the Church Secretary Union with Linda and me, and Linda is sending her me her proxy vote in case we need it for anything!

“God helps them who help themselves”

Rush just said this on his program, a result of an e-mailer asking him why he does not encourage the listeners to pray to God about the upcoming elections. Rush said at first he was going to dismiss the note, but then gave it some thought, remembering a little story he had read some time ago about just this thing. The quote was something like this: “If all you are doing is praying about it, it might not happen. God helps those who help themselves.” In the case of the upcoming elections, Rush stated, yes, we must do more than pray, we must act! Vote!

What a contrast today is from yesterday….the roar of the jets and air craft, the busyness of the waterways with boat traffic, football games to be played (some lost, some won)…..It is hot and a bit sunny today, only the occasional jet or helicopter, and no boats in view. The mullet are active, jumping into the air to grab a tasty bug or two, as a turtle is resting on the end of the bulkhead. It’s like nothing ever happened! Oops, I just looked again and the turtle has dived into the water, must have gotten too warm. It was quite the parade of vessels after the air show was over, and it lasted a long time. Sailboats make little if any noise but the cigarette boats roar even louder than the F-18s did. Justin thought he could still hear the jets from his place in Mandarin but I told him the show was over, it must be the boats on the river he was hearing!

Last night I stayed up late, even after the game was over, to watch the Packers beat the Vikings at Lambeau Field. Whoooo hoooo! What a game! It was bittersweet to watch the Viking’s #4 QB hobble off the field, stopping first to hug on a couple of his former teammates on the Packer’s team. During one of the plays he reinjured his ankle but kept himself in the game until they lost, due to over thrown passes into the end zone. The national announcer said the names “Manitowoc” and “Sheboygan” which tickled me greatly. Earlier in the day I watched the sadly tragic display as the Jaguars were whipped by the Chiefs, 42-20. Some speculation has the coach being fired in the next week or so, due to next week being a BYE week. We shall see, we shall see….

After the Jag game came on, probably in the first quarter yet, the screen became pixilated and then the little announcement square popped onto the screen telling me to call Comcast about the service interruption. Rats! Why now? Since I had the laptop going, I quickly clicked over to the radio station to hear the game, but then, the TV came back. Good! All the news I wanted to see and hear about NASCAR and its drivers. What is this? Using the remote control, I typed the ‘football station’ numbers into the control, in hopes that perhaps the TV forgot which channel I wanted. Nope, it made no difference, it was still racing. The other option would have been to go to the family room to see if it was working in there, but then the football game came back. I am guessing someone at headquarters hit the wrong button or switch and said, “Whoopsy!”. That was a close one!

This a.m. I went to Bible study where we continue our look at the worldviews of things. Today our subject was pantheism, where we touched on the focus the world has on ‘being green’. The lesson backed up some of this premise, as folks who are Western pantheists consider themselves to be god and everything around them to be god. Hopefully I am explaining this correctly but if you Google ‘Pantheism’, you can read about it. While the Lord has given us this earth and everything in it, He has also instructed us to be faithful stewards of His creation. We are to make use of everything He provides us. But He never told us to worship the Earth nor to consider it our Mother. We, as believers, have one foot in this realm, with our other foot in heaven, which He has prepared for us.

I shared my story about getting the new to-go box from Longhorn, now plastic instead of foam, due to their ‘going green’. Yeah, right….There are now TV commercials, more accurately, PSAs, featuring the actors from “Glee”, a series based around a school chorus. One of the characters discovers, in the ad, that the batteries have died in one of his mikes or something, and changes them out. Then he is called on the carpet by a young lady for not disposing of them properly, basically a bad citizen. Most of the folks around the table did not know there is a right or wrong way to throw away batteries. It seems there is! Twila brought up the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, how puzzled folks were that the ocean ‘absorbed’ much of the leaked, untreated petroleum. There was also some talk a couple years back where the PETA group was supposedly asking the ice cream makers, Ben & Jerry, to quit using cow’s milk, abusing the cows, and switch to using human milk for their products. What???? An article on-line says that was even too far over the top even for liberal Ben and Jerry! So, yes, it was a very interesting class today and I am so glad that Twila was able to be there as usually she is working on her rentals on Mondays.

Justin called me a couple times this afternoon about a few things, including a portion of the radio program we listen to/watch, where two of the guys have Moron Trivia on Fridays. Justin has asked me not to be a spoiler so I quit telling him what I found to be hysterical on the program, as he listens a day behind my viewing. He was laughing about the Trivia game, a mock football game, where the guys call convenience stores in the competing cities and ask questions of the store clerks, and use their ‘scores’ to determine who is going to win the weekend match ups. This past Friday they called Green Bay and Minneapolis stores and asked their questions. The price of a first-class postage stamp, what is socialism, what is lupus, snacks you can get at the movie theater, name two coins in the cash drawer….I must say the folks they called in Green Bay did fairly well, as did those in MN, though not many knew what lupus really was. Other weeks, when they choose a game, they will have a dilly of a time finding English speaking store clerks, much less those who know the answers to these fairly basic questions. Now that is so funny, and frustrating! Miami is a nightmare, as is New York City or New Jersey. Again, hysterical!!! Anyway, he is coming over after work today to remove the art work from the hallway walls in preparation for the drywall replacement. Hopefully at tonight’s Board meeting I will get the go-ahead to have Mike do the drywall work so that my restoration project can continue!

A Saturday posting on Sunday morning

Was I so busy yesterday that I did not have time to post? Or, did I misuse my time and then became too tired to post? Let me think....The earliest part of the morning was spent in bed, catching up on my radio show over the Internet while watching Fox and Friends. Because I had plans in the afternoon, I figured I had better get moving to do my errands and such before I ran out of time. When I stepped outdoors, I could hear the familiar sound of cardboard boxes being taped and such. My "Turkish Friends" and downstairs neighbors were busily assembling boxes and proceeding to pack up the contents of their home as they are vacating while the repairs are being made. None of the workers looked familiar to me but I said a nice 'hello' to them anyway. As I later said to Penny, I think I should get my next move for free, since this is the 2nd time in a month people are using B & B at my referral!

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I went over to church to prepare the altar and sacristy for worship, stopping first at Sonic to get a Diet Coke. It made me ponder something, though, because only the day before at Wal*Mart, I saw 2 liter Diet Cokes on sale in the aisle, for a dollar each, and yet I paid twice that for 44 ounces at Sonic. The biggest difference is that the 2 liter bottle does not fit into my cup holders!!!! Ugh, the luck! Well, when I arrived at church, there were two cars in the lot plus one followed me in. What was going on? There were more cars for this than for Bible study on Tuesday night. It was Darwin, Ethel and Terri, all arriving separately, to do the cleaning of the church and the classroom building. I never do the classroom building or fellowship hall because cleaning the church is enough for me. Since I clean alone, I get a break. Some of the others, like Terri, have a team of helpers. Anyway, it was a delight to see them all working together and getting the Lord's house ready for worship. I tried to not make a mess getting the altar ready with really little to do as far as prep went.

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When I left them, I went to Fleming Island Wal*Mart to get my prescriptions, as well as getting the paint mixed up that I need for the hallway. No one was working in the paint dept. but I felt as if I stood there long enough, a nice man or lady would come along to help me. I was right----Danny Roy came through, hugged me, and then called on his walkie-talkie gizmo for help in the paint dept. Later I saw Kathy R. going through the end of the aisle and yelled to her, saying 'hi!' but held my position at the paint desk. Still no one came but when Danny walked past again, he yelled to a guy loading shelves down the line who came over to help me. Robert was a nice young man and helped me with matching my wall paint using a section of the wallpaper Mike had cut off for me---perfectly matched! I got my scrip and a couple gallons of paint and headed for home.

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As I was driving down Town Center Drive, I met Dee coming out of the Chik-Filet parking lot and we waved like nuts at each other. Now I was going to have to stop at the shop for a few minutes, since she had been gone for two weeks to the mountains. That was fine because I was also going to the dry cleaners to get my pillows, in the same plaza. We visited a while but then I had to get going since Penny and I were going to see the art show at the library. The poor little man at the cleaners, in a strong accent, explained to me that one of the pillows lost a lot of its feathers and gummed up the machinery, which was why it took so long getting them back. Oops! The young lady had checked them over for holes before she accepted them but somehow one of the pillows leaked anyway. Sorry....

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On the way home, Penny called and we made plans to meet in a half hour at the library. She arrived before I did but covered her face, she said, to not get a sneak peek at the art work. We did enjoy the hanging and managed to get the price sheet from the front desk inside the library proper, in case she is interested. One piece in particular that she liked was a boat on the water, similar to some I have painted, so we came over here to look at mine. Penny had never been up in my place for some reason, and just fell in love with my dining room. Me, too! I love my dining room and river room and family room and kitchen and bedroom.....It is fun to see these rooms through someone else's eyes. She is not the first person to tell me I have the best view in The Palace. I wonder why that is, I agree, but wonder why my view is the best.

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Unfortunately she could not stay very long, enjoyed the art work, but then had to run as she wanted to stop at her old house to pick up a few things yet. She has another week before needing to be out totally so has to step up the pace of getting the last of her items moved out. At 6:00 pm I went downstairs to order my dinner from Danny, and Pat came down to join me. She was trying to watch football and visit at the same time, which works for me. There was a table poolside decorated with a tablecloth and centerpiece, with some parents sitting off to the side. They told me it was homecoming for OP High and a group of kids were coming over to the cabana to have their dinner before the dance. Nice! Danny was hustling, making all our meals, some which were packed up to-go. Pat ended up taking hers to-go also as while we were waiting on hers, Maureen called to have us come to her place to watch the fireworks.

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Fireworks, you say? Yes! We had a notice posted in our lobby to let us know of a fireworks display planned by the wedding party which would take place at 9:00 pm. No holds barred by this father of the bride! Danny had to get wrapped up early from the cabana to get inside to help serve the wedding which was table-served for 150 people. Wow! Karrie, the owner of The Club was with us for the fireworks show and said it cost upwards of $15,000 for that. Complete with a fire truck standing by in case of a problem, which had backed into our parking lot. Not an easy task. At first we watched from inside Hugh and Maureen's river room but then went outside to watch from the sundeck. Part of the display was an illuminated heart shaped piece besides the air launched pyrotechnic show. It lasted about 5 minutes and the air was all smoky and smelled of sulphur, and I liked it! Karrie did not, she felt it was lame but I really did enjoy the show. Hugh kept insisting he put that show on for Maureen, which is so sweet. 55 years of marriage and they are still friends! Yes, they ran off as teenagers and got married, imagine that!

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After the fireworks were over, more folks had come outside, of course, to watch them, so we recessed to the sundeck rather than going inside again. It was a pleasant evening and even Butch, who was helping the downstairs neighbors with their packing, and later had dinner with Michelle and her friends up on 5, joined the fun. Some of us were afraid we'd never see him again after the water disaster but we have, and rejoice about that. They had had some champagne upstairs with their shrimp dinner and Butch was rather bubbly himself, fun to see. He shared some stories of his life in the Navy, serving many years in JAX and in Cuba. When Rose and Joe joined us on the sundeck, she got a bug to get us a piece of wedding cake. Hugh often jokes about it and last night, it happened! Pat and Rose walked over to The Club, much to the chagrin of Karrie, and secured from the bride's maids three plates of cake for us to share. It was absolutely delicious! Hugh took the plates into his house so he could wash them before returning them. Unbelievable that the ladies did this, and then Rose even starting dancing with one of the young ladies. I think she had had some fun before coming to the sundeck, if you know what I mean. The weather was so delightful that I did not need my jacket on at all, even though I carried it with me. At 10:00 pm I excused myself and went inside but could hear the fun continuing after I went to bed. Good for them!

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Oh, I am hungry this a.m. This might be because I ate so early last night, but I did have a taste of cake later on.....When we left Danny to go up to Hugh's, I gave him a hug and thanked him for a wonderful season as last night was my final time at the cabana. Next weekend I will be in Palm Coast for the worship conference and staying overnight at Bonnie's house (formerly the sec'y. at Victory, now working at Christ the King). Danny likes to send the balance of the pasta salad home with me, but I suggested he send it with the mom of one of the kids dining poolside, because she also raved about how delicious it was. I am going to miss the cabana and it's food, and I will miss Danny cooking for me out there. Guess I will have to eat inside until next summer!

Typing by moonlight

Well, nearly by moonlight, as it is beaming across my bedroom floor and onto the foot of my bed as I sit here, writing. The computer screen lights up the room some, too, but it is not the same as the moonlight! It is just shimmering on the water and looks amazing. Those of us outside at the cabana were able to watch the moon rise over the top of the building. We had a nice gathering at the cabana where some of us ate our dinner, including Penny. She has already moved to her new home but still came over to have dinner and drinks. It turns out she is living in the same neighborhood where my former lawn guy, Michael Jackson, lives and he is now her yard guy! She gets a charge out of him, just as we did when he took care of my yard and the repairs after the hurricanes removed my lawn and half my trees!

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Penny ordered the chicken quesidilla, and I had the sirloin slider. Jeanie had the bratwurst so we each had something different from Danny's menu. Tomorrow night I will have the brat, which Danny makes himself, supposedly. He made that wonderful beef brisket that I enjoyed on Wednesday night at The Club and I let him know tonight how delicious it was. Maureen was telling about the art show she saw today at the public library so Penny and I are going over tomorrow afternoon to see it. I also suggested that Penny come up here and look at my pieces in case they would work in her house. That would make me so very happy if she bought one of mine. She is a horse person and my type of work might not be what she has in mind. Maureen had been over there to help her hang her art work so knows what she has and what she needs. Maureen has an eye!

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Today I had planned to meet Tracy, Cassidy, and MamMa for our La Nop lunch, but I had a doctor appointment at 11:30 which would have made me late. They at first were going to change our plans to 12:30 on Fleming Island's La Nop but Cass called this a.m. to say that MamMa was not up to going today. It turned out, though, that the doctor's office called to see if I could come in sooner because they had a no-show so I grabbed my shoes and took off. It took a while for them to 'process' me and the office person came to tell me that when they called the insurance company, they said I was expired. What? I just got this policy in the middle of June after my other policy failed to cover my kaleidoscope in May. I paid cash for the office visit which I likely would have had to pay anyway because of the deductible. It turned out that I did in fact have coverage and yes, Dr. House is on the list of providers. It took about four or five phone conversations to get it all figured out with one more on Monday to discuss the payment made today with the office manager. Whatever!

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Once inside, the nurse checked my bp and all that, which was fine and got my scrips refilled for me without any hassle regarding blood work and such. Yay! Then Dr. House came in to see me, he is so nice! We had a lovely chat as he looked at my goofy itchy toes and determined it is indeed athlete's foot. I told him I had ointment at home and he asked me what kind. Um, store brand from Wal*Mart but he wanted more information. Well, I guess I should have taken the tube with me but I left in such a rush. He told me which brand to get over the counter plus prescribed an oral medication to take for one week to kill the germs from the inside out. The pharmacist at Wal*Mart was concerned about an interaction with the cholesterol medication so she did not fill it without talking with him first. So, I spent too much money waiting for the scrips to be ready and then had to leave without them. I can go back tomorrow as the pharmacist called me to say she spoke with Dr. House and worked it out with him. Glad they have my best interests at heart, so to speak!

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One thing I ended up buying was a vintage movie which I have never seen before, "Casablanca". Justin has seen it and really enjoyed it so for $5, why not? It will make a nice addition to my growing collection. That reminds me---Brenda N. has not been by lately to borrow DVDs. Between the library and me, we keep Carey and her entertained. One thing that I did not buy was a loaf of bread because I could not find any. The bakery had all sorts of artisan breads but none of them were sliced and no plain old bread for weirdos like me. I still had a half loaf from Winn Dixie for my ham sandwiches.

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Before I went to the doctor and after I took my shower, silly me, I got the vacuum cleaner out and cleaned up the hard floors. Vacuuming using the canister vac is a whole lot easier on my back than sweeping is, for some odd reason, and it really did a good job cleaning up the dusty foot prints from the floors. Andy showed me his hands on Friday, they were dry and sort of peeling, which he attributed to the dry flooring they were installing, and its dust. The floors look nice and clean now after the vacuum cleaning, and I no longer leave footprints behind me. I also wiped the counters and stove in the kitchen which had a bit of saw dust coating them. Wonder if any of that fine dust got into the butter which was on the counter and I was eating from.....hmmmm?

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Not only does Penny use my former lawn guy, she also used my Turkish friends for her moving day, and today, she went to see Barbara, the lady who cuts my hair. She told me this is the best haircut she has gotten since she moved here!!! Next it is my turn to go, as it is full moon and time for a cut!