Tuesday already?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

                                             

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

                                                

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

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

Thinking back...

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

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

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

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

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

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

                                       

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

                                             

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

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

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

                                            

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Enjoying the wind

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

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


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

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

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

                                              

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

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

                                  

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

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

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

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

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

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


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

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

It's been a long time

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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


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

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

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

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

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

                                                   

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

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


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


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


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

Kim to the rescue!

Monday night Justin and I ate at home, collaborating on a batch of spaghetti. He got everything out and ready for me to create a masterpiece of a meal. Among the ingredients were two extra cans of things I would not have normally added to the recipe---a good-sized can of mushroom stems and pieces, plus a can of diced garlic tomatoes. The jar of sauce was a giant one, did not really need to add the additional tomatoes. He reported that the lady of the house where he lived previously, at the Beach, would always add a can of tomatoes, so, okay, throw it in. For our vegetable, I opened a can of peas, a name-brand from the BO/GO bin at Publix. 

                          

For the pasta, he had chosen linguine when I would have picked the thin spaghetti but it didn't really matter. Once it was ready, we ate at the table in the living room while watching Jeopardy! At first, I thought it was the peas that didn't taste right so I left them on my plate. Justin had mixed the peas into his sauce and did not notice any sort of strong flavor. He even had second helpings so it had to just be me. 

There was a good deal leftover, as you might imagine, so we packed it away for leftovers. On Tuesday night I went over to The Club for a Ladies' Night dessert function, since we did not have Bible Information Class this week. Justin ate the leftovers and reported to me that his food tasted like metal or something. The bowl he used had a rust stain in it to begin with, caused by leaving a spoon in it for a long time in a corner in his room. He blamed the stain for making the food taste goofy but I hardly think that would happen.

Not to let the food go to waste, I took the pasta and lined the bottom of a baking dish, and then poured the sauce and meat mixture over the pasta. Then, I sprinkled a half bag of shredded cheese on top of the whole works, and baked it. Justin told me he had bathed his leftovers with garlic salt to eat it, but I did not do that to the entire batch. 

As we ate the 'casserole', the taste was still evident but not terribly strong. We figure it must have been the tomatoes with garlic which affected the flavor. Or, it could have been the larger portion of mushrooms which I would not have used if it was only me eating it. Anyway, I saved the day and the leftovers by making it my way!