Do I have a story for you!

Friday was a busy busy day around here. The morning began with me getting up early to make things ready for our meeting, and to dust the table in the dining room where the ladies would sit to work on the report. We needed room to spread out our papers in front of us. I had a breakfast bread to serve, cranberry pecan loaf which was so good. It turned out, that was all we ate for the rest of the daylight hours. Should have ordered pizza but we had to keep going on the project. Anyway, for background music, the CD player played discs from the 2005 Worship Conference, a two-disc set. Part of it has sermons on it, so I will have to listen to it again more closely some time.

Since Mike was coming to paint, I had put the A/C on but closed the doors to the dining room so we could have privacy. Eventually we did get a bit chilly as the sun moved around from shining in the doors. Before this, though, I had gone to get something from the cabinet over the washer and discovered that there was wetness on the shelf, making brown rings under all the bottles sitting on it. Of course, it freaked me out at first, assuming the very worst, but none of the other areas were 'wet' so it must have been one of the bottles leaking. I spread a towel out on the washer and moved the bottles onto it, in hopes of figuring out the offending bottle. Tomorrow I will need to climb up on my step stool to wipe the shelf clean and put the stuff away, to leak another day!

The ladies arrived on time and we got right to work with three fourths of the table covered in papers. My laptop was standing by in case we were ready to type something up but we did not get that far. We had lots of ground to cover from two days of sessions at the SoWE with some adventures into digression. At a certain point, the plumber arrived who was to evaluate my water heater replacement, so I excused myself to talk with him. Mike was also on the job, painting in the hallway. When I went the hall to speak with the plumber, somehow I got paint on my pants and on my bosom, which means the hall is just too narrow. Mike had a hard time deciding which color to paint the door frame to the laundry room so ended up doing that one twice so it would match in better. It seems there was more than one color used, not surprisingly, over the years.

The plumber did little to comfort me, and, in fact, threw gasoline on me and lit a match, figuratively speaking. Mike could see he was upsetting me, so in Mike's words, he tried to turn my attention away from the failed attempts at humor from the plumber. When I called the plumber's office to find out if there was a price change at all, she told me he was the boss (WHAT???) because I was ready to ask for another guy instead. She said he was low-key and very quiet, which might be true over my screams of terror. Every time the plumber said something to me, I would look to Mike for interpretation, and I am not a stranger to plumbing and other home related things. This guy totally whacked me out with his less-than-calming flat statements regarding the replacement of this water heater. Glad that is over, with no incidents, and no increase in price. They should pay me for that guy making me so nervous. Water leaks are not funny, sir, not funny!

So, we ladies worked and wrote, wrote and worked, and talked, getting our report to a certain point where I can now type it up for our own review. They were here a full 8 hours with only that coffee cake to eat. I had asked about ordering a pizza but they declined, wishing to press on with the project. At one point I received a text message from Cassidy inviting me to lunch at La Nopalera but I had to explain that I was having a meeting and would not be available today. Maybe tomorrow I will walk over to see MamMa to just say "hi" since I missed her today.

We wrapped up about 5:00 or just after and decided to go have some dinner. Judy suggested we got to La Nop and called Michael to join us. At 6:00 pm, the parking lot was just packed and with two cars to park, not good. After three times of snaking through badly parked cars, some pulled into spots not really spots and such, I drove out of the lot and into the parking lot of a restaurant next door, called "Waters". Judy followed me in and parked next to me, and we walked over to the other restaurant. Mike eventually found a place to park in the lot to the east of the place, where there used to be a dialysis center, known for having cars towed away.

There was a short wait inside for seating, and I saw many people I knew including my painting friend, Chris, and her family. Judy asked me if I ever go anywhere and not know someone and we had a good laugh over that. I told her that if I don't anyone going in, I will meet someone going out. Not always, but it seems that way to others. (An aside: When the group from church plus two of my family members took the Alaska cruise in 2007, sure enough, there was John and Linda, builders from OP, for whom my friends Jimmie and Brenda N. now work!!! No one could believe it that even in Alaska, I knew somebody!) Anyway, my strawberry margarita was just delicious and I ate my entire meal of a beef quesidilla, which means I must have been hungry. As we stood up to leave, the entire lobby waiting area was simply packed with people, being it was now more dinner time than when we arrived at 6:00. Judy said, "I wonder where THEY parked...." as she and I walked toward the place where we parked.

Oh, oh.....where are our cars????? Towed away!!!! Both of them removed by Water's Restaurant's request. We were just sick and incredulous that this actually happened to us. Only after the cars were towed did we notice the sign in the driveway indicating Tow Away Zone. Evidently we are not the only ones who have helped ourselves to their empty spaces and I am sure this restaurant is bitter that all the diners choose the Mexican place vs. theirs. Often, one of their wait staff is standing outside with a "Now Open" sign, trying to lure customers to their dining establishment. They have certainly not endeared themselves to Judy or me.

Mike does not carry a cell phone so Judy had to keep calling him at home, waiting for him to answer. He came back to get us and then had to drive us to an ATM so we could get the necessary cash to get our cars back. Cash only, and it was not cheap. Judy rode on a little jump seat in the club cab of Mike's pick-up truck, knowing I likely would not fit back there and off we went in search of the cars. Sure enough---there they were. The guy parked his tow truck across the entrance so no one can come with their extra set of keys to get their cars back. The couple who ran the place were so nice, felt badly for us old ladies getting towed off, and then had a hard time trying to come up with the change for our fines. You would think that taking cash only they would have the resources for making change, since ATMs give cash in round numbers only. Guess they will have to raise their fees in order to avoid giving change.

As we walked to our vehicles, I kept apologizing to Judy for leading her astray but she assured me that she did not notice the sign either. She gave me a big hug and we chuckled about it. Somehow I will have to make it up to her but she won't like that either. On the way home, I called Justin to let him know I got my car back, having spoken with him earlier about it. He told me he was watching TV with 'the family' at his friend, Ron's, house. Tomorrow he is laying ceramic tile in his 'new' place at Jesse's house, the beach cottage he will be renting. This has been a good experience for him, working for his father, because he has learned these skills, such as tile installation. We will see what he has to say about it after he is done!

From now on, Judy and I will have to have 'bail money' on hand when we go out to eat! That will be our standing joke from this point forward. I let my neighbors know, the ones with whom I dine on Fridays at La Nop and Tracy said via Facebook that she told Jeff that would happen if they tried parking up there at Water's. Now he is a believer! My other friend, Jen, from church, reported they got towed last CHRISTmas from the same restaurant. Believe me, I am telling as many people as I can about this happening at Water's Restaurant, and Jeff, Tracy's husband, says Water's will be out of business in six months!!! Not wishing evil on their business, but, they need to be towed!!

Moon over my keyboard

Most days I have sun pouring over the keyboard and later, on my arm and shoulder. But tonight, it is the nearly full moon illuminating my desk. Sadly, having the light on ruins the affect but the idea is wonderful. Saturday night the moon will be full and certainly breathtaking, as it nearly is tonight. The air temp is cool, I can feel it through the window, only about 70 above zero during the day time. After sunset, it always gets much colder, Yes, I said ‘colder’. Justin and I had lunch with his friend’s girlfriend, who was celebrating her birthday. She was asking me about living in WI and such, saying she would not like being so cold all the time and not seeing the sun for several days at a time. It’s bad enough here in FL when we go a couple days with little sunshine, but to have your indoor plants die from lack of light, that is a terrible thing!

This early a.m. I picked up Justin at the car place where he was getting a long overdue oil change and he rode with me to Bible study. When he got into the car, he had Publix bags from his car, one of which bore a thoughtful gift for me—chocolate marshmallow Santas made by Stover. My favorite! Justin said he looked for the dark chocolate covered cherries which normally come out at this time of year but they had none. These will do!!! And I love that he thought of me when at the store!!

We arrived a bit early at the church and pitched in to help with the service folders for Sunday. They will be singing “Jerusalem, the Golden” this week but ‘the old version’, in Justin’s words. If we sing it at Good Shepherd we will likely use the ‘new’ tune from the Supplement. Regardless of the tune, the pictures painted in that rich text---well, are stirring. Love the End Times of the church year, and I am guessing this only came to be since Timmy died. I cannot remember feeling this way before, and that makes me sad, too.

From Bible study we headed to the Mall to meet Sarah at Applebee’s. I tried the new beef sandwich but found it quite spicy, not sure if it was sauce on the meat or the onion straws. I should have stuck with my first choice of French dip sliders, like Justin had. They were going shopping afterward, with Sarah taking him to get the car afterward. I headed to Publix to get a few things needed at home and ended up buying some of my food for ThanksLiving Day. At this writing it will be only Justin and me for dinner, as he already has plans to eat with his friend, Jesse and family, for brunch. No church for him because of that brunch, however.

When we were eating our lunch today, Justin got a phone call from the car place, saying they found out why a light on his dashboard had come on. Evidently his cam shaft and a pulley are in need of repair, which is going to cost him some money. Surprisingly, I did not offer to pay it, nor did he ask, likely because his friend was with us. I had already told him that I was buying myself a new water heater for CHRISTmas so it was probably wise he not ask me right now. I had gotten a price yesterday from the nice lady at the plumber’s shop but she called me back today to report that she did not realize at first where I lived so asked if the boss can come by tomorrow to make sure she gave me the right price. Rats! Mike thought the price I was given was more than fair, and I hope the price does not jump too much once the guy sizes up the job. Many plumbing companies are hesitant about working here because of the many and varied problems---ahem, ahem---with the water but supposedly this man’s dad was the plumber here when the building was put up. Stay tuned for updates on this next phase of renovations….

Yesterday I had worked almost 10 hours on organizing my thoughts for a meeting the ladies and I have tomorrow morning, in order to produce a brief, concise report. Brief? I think not! I am going through the worksheets and handouts received those two days and have the last session’s paperwork in front me right now. As a result of being hunched most of the day over my desk, my neck and shoulders were aching today, so I devoted some time to the heating pad on the bed this afternoon. Shake it out and move on, Kim!

Last night I did return to choir in order to rehearse for the joint Advent services we are having with Victory. I was the only one with the actual music as the rest are using photocopies. I shared the CD Rachel gave me with Carol so she can rehearse in the car as best she can. We go through the hymns quite quickly and being my first time singing them, I could have really used more rehearsal. The CD, saved to my iTunes, will certainly help with familiarity and timing questions. One unfortunate accident happened afterward, though. The Family Harvest Event was letting out at the same time as choir, with a young couple taking their three kids to the car. Their newborn now has to occupy a center row seat so their oldest, Samuel, not yet 5, gets strapped in in the last row of their mini-van. Kristin had buckled Sadie in next to the baby, and was walking around the back of the car, just at the same time that Brian pressed the button to lower the tailgate. She walked smack into it and knocked her off her feet. Her bell was definitely rung and Carol and I ran over to help. Carol told her to stay sitting there a while as Brian felt her head for blood and bumps. No blood but certainly a bump, and likely a terrible headache. She told us that a few weeks ago, Brian got it on the way into church, so it must be the parking lot doing this to them. I sent her message later last night to make sure she was okay, but have not heard back yet….Yikes!

A Tuesday Recap

Do you not just love that photo of Angelo I posted yesterday? He is so precious, awake or asleep, in my most humble opinion. Can you believe how much in love I am with him and have not even smelled him yet? Smitten, I am totally smitten.

Mike and Andy were expected to be back to my house yesterday by noon to apply another coat of ‘mud’, the lovely white kind of mud, to the new drywall. My phone rang early in the a.m. with my friend on the other end, to finish our conversation of two hours from the day before.

So, my ears and elbows had fallen asleep while talking on the phone so long yesterday, and today I should be busily gathering my thoughts from my papers and putting together my version of what took place. Everyone has a different version of a crime they just witnessed, Which is why we need to compare notes and put together an agreeable yet comprehensive report.

It turned out that Mike did not come to skim the walls until around 3:00 pm, having been delayed by helping his neighbor replace a water heater, his least favorite job. In the meanwhile, I had exhausted my soda supply, save for a partial bottle of Diet Pepsi, which I kept for emergency. As long as Mike was not here yet, I decided to go on a soda run, leaving the door unlocked so he could get in. But, when I went outside, it was pouring rain! It was coming from the west or southwest, which might be why I did not realize it was raining from my east facing desk. It was extremely gloomy and windy, I should have known. I stood under the canopy talking with Connie who said it had only recently begun raining. As we talked, Gus came outside and chatted with us. Then, the rain just came showering heavier and I said, “Man, if I wasn’t going on a soda run, I would just go back upstairs…” Gus said, “What? Do you need soda? Diet? Come with me…” and off we went to his condo. He pulled six Diet Cokes out of his pantry, claiming he never drinks them, and bagged them up for me. He asked what I was doing and I told him working on stuff for church, for the Ladies’ Advent Service. Then I said I had sent a request to my neighbors for borrowing a white robe for the program, and he said, “Follow me…” So, now I had six sodas and a white robe and no need to venture into the rain! Several others replied to the e-mail request (Gus does not have e-mail) with offers of robes. I had to laugh, though, that no one in the congregation was able to offer a white robe…hmmmm….

Later I was at my desk, finishing off the already cold Diet Pepsi from the 2-liter bottle when Linda J. called. Earlier in the afternoon I had sent her my travel arrangements for Manitowoc, letting her know, warning her, that I was coming for a visit. Whoo hoo!! As we talked, I went to the kitchen to retrieve one of the hopefully now chilled sodas from Gus. I popped it open and took a sip, and went “AAACCCHHHH!” Upon further inspection, the cans and plastic bottles were dated from 2007 and 2008. I love you, Gus, but man, that was bad! As I told Linda, in the coming days when the world is crashing down around us, that horrible soda might be absolutely delicious, but for right now, it cleaned out my drains nicely. Ewwww! They definitely should have had a born on date as well as a death date stamped on them.

Judy J. called me at some point during the day to help her find out the groundbreaking date for a church they had attended back in the 1970’s in Cincinnati. Ok, no problem! I went to the WELS website, looked up the church in the Locator, found its web page and gave Judy the phone number. After she hung up, I went deeper into the website, clicked on their most recent newsletter and ta da! They had just celebrated their 40^th anniversary so a history of the congregation was included in the newsletter. Names and dates galore! I called her right back with the information but left it on her machine and sent it via e-mail. She is putting together a pictorial history for her kids for CHRISTmas and is trying to put dates and events together. Lots of research, memory stirring, crying, and smiling about the good times. And playing detective!

Judy picked me up for dinner and Bible study, this time going to Panera Bread. We did not eat outside as the weather has turned to fall. There, sitting at one of the little tables, was Andy, Carol’s son, working on his laptop. I planted a smooch on his high forehead and expressed how nice it was to see him again. My mac ‘n cheese was absolutely delicious and Judy had the same thing in a smaller portion with a half-sandwich. She loved it too! Bible study was better attended this time with the other Judy and Debbie showing up. We all stood by the door waiting to be let in as pastor was running late, doing a pick-up of his son from soccer, then handing him off to his mom, who was parked in the lot. Good thing I had a key for the Fellowship Hall so I could let us in there to go potty. None of us have keys for the classroom building, as only a few folks have that privilege. Judy took me to Hess Mart for a soda run and came inside to help me carry them out. When we got back to my house, she came upstairs to get her little container of bean soup which I had ready for her. Hope she enjoys it for days to come. She said it is good that she lives alone!

Since I put out my request to the neighbors in my building, men and women both have offered me their robes to borrow, so besides accepting Gus’s terry cloth robe, I will be using a luxurious robe from Jessica. He must never know about the bad soda nor the satin robe I am borrowing from Jessica, because he is just the sweetest guy. Judy said she saw some lovely robes at Dillard’s but they only came in colors or she would have bought one for me to use. Isn’t that nice? I think so too!

Good Morning!!!

This photo arrived at 9:00 a.m. CST. Good morning, Angelo!!!

My bed is a mess!

Even though I washed and dried my sheets on Saturday, remade my bed for sleeping, which meant cleaning it off, somehow it get all messed up again. Hmmm.....how did that happen? Part of the reason is that I made the mistake of getting the mail which includes catalogs galore for my browsing pleasure, envelopes of import that need to be opened at the desk and filed away, or shredded, something to post on the bulletin board in the condo lobby, my purse, a Forward in Christ magazine, and couple pairs of slacks waiting to be hung in the closet. Oh, and me! 

Most of the 'stuff' is on the passenger side of the bed so does not bother me in the least. But it is obvious I was looking for something specific tonight and I wonder if I found it or not! Over two hours on the phone and my battery is tired, ready to be put back on the charger for the night. I was going over some information for a report requested rather at the last moment after church on Sunday. We have four ladies sharing notes for the report and coordinating the effort will take some doing. Not sure it will happen this week though, as time is too short for clear thoughts.

Outside I can hear a low roar which likely indicates a tug boat or some type of vessel is moving down the river, I just cannot see it yet. When they pass by at night, they are lit like CHRISTmas trees for added visibility. Oh, wait, make a liar out of me, it is actually a helicopter moving very slowly along the river. Hopefully there is nothing in the water 'they' are looking for. It is such a rumbling that my lanterns in the window are rattling a bit.

Mike and Andy were here today working on taking the wallpaper down, removing the drywall in areas, and then replacing it. We took many photos of the process in case the insurance company needs to see them, and he did find mold in one area. Guess the adjuster was correct and I would never have been aware of it being there. Assuming the mold resulted from this leak and not something that had been there a while....

My ceiling is being repaired as well, from a leak which had occurred before I moved in here. Leaks are not new around these parts....The fellas will be back tomorrow around noon as the mud on the seams needs to dry some more before they come back to apply another layer, and then sand it. That will be the messy part! I am already leaving foot prints on the tile floor in the hallway and that is after Andy vacuumed some of the area.

Mike has the added burden of being my Elder, I often tease him that he drew the short straw and got stuck with me. He is my captive audience when he is working here. (By the way, at this second, a bright blue barge is moving past my windows...I was right the first time!) 

Justin called me in the afternoon and talked at some length about various things that crossed his mind. I asked him how exciting it was to be at the game when that fabulous catch was made, wondering if he'd lost his voice from screaming. He was okay today and said it was quite the atmosphere in the stadium, much like it was in my home!!! 

Justin and I will have a full day together on December 2, beginning first with Bible study and then we are invited to have lunch courtesy of my friend, Diane, a financial counselor. I received the invitation in that stack of mail and it said I can bring a guest. How much more perfect can that be, since we usually have lunch out on Thursdays??? Then that night we are going to the theater for a simulcast presentation of a show based on the book "Broke". Glad I won't be that night after dinner on Diane!

Speaking of eating, it just occurred to me that I have not eaten since lunch, which was at Longhorn, and it is after 10:00 pm! Yes, I am hungry but was busy on the phone and digging through paperwork most of the evening. Perhaps I can find something to hold me over until morning, or I will wake up in the night and be a hungry bear. Suzanne asked me to help her find a suitable Bible for her daughter, who is seven, a Bible not too childish but geared toward her age and a bit older. I am on it! Love it that she asked for my help with this, and the only thing is, another time restriction as she wants it for Advent season! Yikes!

A highly emotional day today

Whoo, where to begin? Guess I will start with early in the morning, getting myself ready for church which was at 9:00 a.m. No Bible study, although supposedly it was offered, watching part of a Luther movie, with only one taker, as again we had an experimental service. The Sunday school children sang at the beginning and then stayed, this time, long enough for the 'children's sermon' portion of the service before being excused for their classes. Last time only two kids were left behind in the congregation to hear the children's sermon. The choir sang a couple anthems and a song, different from an anthem or hymn, accompanied at times by a bassoon, accoustic guitar, and piano. Because 'they' had so many things plugged in to the sound system, the MIDI did not work so we had to fake a few things where the MIDI would have played. Whatever.

The saving grace was closing the service by the congregation singing "In Christ Alone". We stood for the last stanza and I was nearly through that stanza before losing my grip: 'no power of hell, no scheme of man, can ever pluck me from His hand...' Suzanne patted my arm and offered me a tissue. Between that hymn and the readings from Revelation----ugh! End Times always puts me away and I am glad that next week, we will have a regular service and likely sing "Jerusalem, the Golden". My sister reported singing it today at First German. I left Good Shepherd immediately after that service to head to Victory, so I missed the regular service at GS where they were singing "For All The Saints"---rats!

I got to Victory almost in time for the service, coming in at the end of the first hymn. To avoid making a racket, I came in through the kitchen door and then had to walk up the side aisle to find a seat near Linda O., since I did not see Stephanie at first. We sang the hymn "Alleluia, Let Praises Ring" and closed with a new hymn called "Day by Day", not from Godspell, but perhaps the Supplement? Not sure about that, but I do hope so. Too lazy to go and pull it out to look.

The most fantastic thing that took place, as part of the service, was when Pastor invited the military folks, some wearing their uniforms, to the front of the church to be recognized for their service. They introduced themselves, their branch of service and where they served. And thanked their spouses for the support while they were away, many of them married 40+ years. One man evoked alot of emotion as he related his various branches of service, highly decorated, and with much to say. He is not much older than I am but looks far older, due to his medical problems from his service. When the congregation was asked to applaud them for their service, Mr. Block, slowly and deliberately raised his arm in salute, but it was too late, I was already a wreck! Stephanie, who was among those being recognized, tried not to look at me because she did not want to cry while standing up there. So she looked the other direction and saw another person crying. She had to stare straight ahead or blubber herself....sorry, Stephanie!

Immediately after worship, we recessed for Ed and Judy's anniversary celebration. The cooks quickly went outside to grille the meat as others got the pot luck dishes set out. What a feast to be enjoyed! Linda O. asked me to save a seat for her as did Stephanie so Rita and I did just that. Bonnie and Tim, formerly of Victory but now in Palm Coast, sat near us, too, so we all got caught up. Linda wants to get together again before ThanksLiving but I am not sure that will happen, the month is flying away from us. She is now teaching at Virginia College so her time is limited these days as well. This was just such a great great celebration, and I was privileged to be a part of it!

On the way home I listened to the Jaguar game, having been alerted by Justin that the score was tied up at 3 each nearing the end of the quarter. I got home just as halftime was starting so by the time I was situated, the game was back on, with the Jaguars ahead 17-3. That did not last, as the Texans started to score, back to back touchdowns, and such. In the very last seconds, yes, seconds, of the game, the Jaguars managed to score a touchdown even though the pass was deflected into the arms of an unsuspecting receiver. SCORE! The Jaguars once again pull one of out of the toilet, so to speak, and sent me to mine! (sorry for being indelicate....) I called Gretchen and we screamed together, but then I had to hang up because of watching the ChoralFest via wels.net streaming. I saw people I knew and even sang along from home. Did not spot Mom and Lynn in the congregation but the camera did not scan the entire gymnasium. Once more I was weeping, listening to the acknowledgements and such before their final number, "Praise to the Lord, the Almighty". Wow, it was grande! What a blessing our Lutheran schools and heritage are.

Mom holding Angelo

Lisa and family stopped by to see Mom and Jill yesterday, so great grandma got another chance to hold baby Angelo. Her sweatshirt reads something about great grandmothers, and that she is!!