I seem to be forgetting something

Recently I wrote about meetings upon meetings, and yet missed one. On Wednesday I had a luncheon meeting at Pengree's with my friend and investment counselor, Diane. As I headed out, I met Hugh and Connie downstairs. Hugh scolded me for not having my wool coat on, as I carried a heavy cardigan over my arm, plus sported a turtleneck and substantial sweater. I felt like he was my daddy, making me go upstairs to get my coat. I didn't do it, but appreciated his cautions to me. It was biting that day, but I was running a bit late.

The meeting was at Pengrees, not more than a few blocks from my house, which was my plan since the weather was so crumby. Diane was between other meetings herself so this was convenient for her as well. She ran a bit late but that was fine, there was lots going on in the restaurant to entertain me. At the next table to mine was a group of ladies, one of whom was my neighbor. She asked me to join them, but I explained I had someone coming to meet with me. 

Diane and I had a fine visit together, as we always do, talking about everything under the sun (oh, we wish for some sun!) and eventually got around to business. I brought half my lunch home to share with Justin, who was home from work that day due to the weather. He didn't mind one little bit eating my leftovers! 

I didn't mention much about the event at The Club on Saturday night. I had to ditch the Mexican dinner being held at church to join my friend/dentist, Peggy, at her sponsored table at a fund raiser. Peggy does volunteer work at a free clinic in Green Cove, for which is fundraiser was intended. The place was packed, and everyone wore their finest. I wore my peacock poncho which I wore to another fund raising event a year ago. Never ceases to get compliments, though it seems to be falling apart. Perhaps I can fix it so no more threads some off (I leave a trail sometimes). A man I know, Rob, a state Senator for our area, gave me a big hug. He told me he found out afterward why I was at the Senior Presentation for St. Johns, seated right behind them. Hence, the big hug. He was most complimentary, and entirely sincere in his kind words.

There was silent auction, handled by making bids on our cell phones so no one had to stand by the sheets and keep upping the bids. Very smart! The wait staff was so attentive, the food absolutely divine, especially the sliced roast beef on silver dollar rolls. The company was also great, plus much money was earned to support this privately-funded clinic. It serves my friend, Amber, which is one other reason why I went.

From left: Terri, Judy, Michael, Justin, and Sue

Friday afternoon I was on the phone much of the time, making Prayer Chain calls. Sue, the sweet lady making the arrangements for the meal after the concert, suffered a heart attack on Thursday night. She was taken by ambulance to the hospital and they had to use the paddles on her to get her restarted en route. She has since had three stents put in and is in ICU. Poor Sue has had so many ailments over the years, but keeps bouncing back. I hope this is true again for her after this. Please keep Sue in your thoughts and prayers for recovery from her heart attack and procedures. Thanks!

Can't wait to warm up

This morning I had a lovely breakfast with just the ladies at The Club. I ventured over without benefit of a coat this time, but yet wearing layers. It was above freezing with hopes of getting into the 50's. But not at breakfast time!  I invited a lady who was dining alone to join us but she opted to eat alone and read her paper. She confessed to eavesdropping on our conversation so she should have just sat with us and been done with it.

As the staff cleared away the buffet foods, one of the waitresses brought me a to-go box with the leftover bacon in it. Sondra doubles as a housekeeper, too, but keeps me fixed up with the leftover bacon. As Justin said, "It's tastes better when it's hot..." but I appreciate her kindness. I figure Justin can probably chop the bacon into some recipe or another. I can always get more next week!

The cold around here is beginning to lift, and we hope to see the sun at some point today.  I am glad to be in for the day, and don't have plans to go out again until tomorrow late afternoon. There is a concert at church, a duo from WI who play hymns and songs on a variety of instruments. I know, not my thing, but Sue, one of the ladies in charge of the meal afterward, called to schmooze me into coming even if just for the food. I told her I would call Judy and talk to her, which I did, and she told me that she'd already changed her mind about going in order to make Sue feel better. She was stressing about the event, fearing no one would show up, so we agreed to go. Not 'til 4:00 pm so I have some time to stay at home and get the newsletter out the door (or over the airwaves, as the case might be!) Waiting for the warm on Saturday---hopes of 80 above!

After the birthdays, a funeral

We have had remarkably cold weather here in N. FL this week, with some folks seeing tiny flakes in the air. The rain felt icy when it hit but I cannot confirm or deny it was flakes or even sleet. It didn't affect our driving at all. 

Last night my sister, Lynn, called me to find out if everything was okay in our area, as the local news in WI showed we were having snow or icy conditions. All was well, and I thanked her for letting me know what was going on, because I had no idea about it. Justin keeps up with weather stuff because of having to work out in it and he saw nothing like what Lynn mentioned, though the local weather maps did show what she was talking about. Schools were closing the next day in advance of the icy travel, being extra cautious, I'm sure, after what happened in Atlanta.

This morning I checked the local radio station's website and it said all the bridges and roadways were free of ice, so Justin and I could safely make our way to Bible study. Pastor had lined up the chairs around the tables more tightly than we usually sit in order to not have to add more table space. He didn't want to have us sitting too far apart (adding another table) and not be able to communicate as well. I like that about him! We all had elbow room so it was no problem. It was again an excellent class.

The ladies invited us to join them for lunch but we declined, deciding to just head home since we were attending a funeral in the afternoon. My nice boy heated up a bowl of turkey soup for me (I'd made it on Monday from our ThanksLiving bird) and served me a summer sausage sandwich with it. Who's spoiled in this house???

Justin, Kathy, our neighbor, and I headed over to the Methodist church just a couple blocks away for Orien's funeral. We left with plenty of time so he could drop us off and then find a place to park. He managed nicely to find a close place. We had to stand in line to sign the guest book and then easily found a seat with some more from our building. 

As we sat there, the church was filling up. It reminded me of Timmy's service with standing room only. Just before the service was to begin, a line of firemen came in in their dress blue uniforms and looked so good. It moved me to see them standing along the wall...this was a big deal for them to get all dressed out for Orien. 

The service began with a hymn, where we stood to sing, one I am now familiar with since it's in our CW hymnal. Oh, I just remembered---"How Great Thou Art". Then the pastor read a couple of psalms after which he invited some family members to come forward to speak about their loved one. First was his daughter, who did a fabulous job without getting all broken up, followed by his granddaughter, who was Justin's classmate, also doing a fine job. 

Then, an usher walked around with a microphone for people in attendence to share their Orien stories. I told Justin he didn't need to do that at my funeral service, save it for the party afterward. It wasn't too bad, and I don't want to say much more about it here, other than to report we sang "Amazing Grace", again standing to sing, at the close of the service.

From there we went home, and walked to The Club where the reception was held. It was an amazing spread of appetizers, some exactly the same as those served the night before for the Member's meeting. The place was absolutely packed! Justin asked me if it was appropriate to have an open bar for a funeral and I had to confess to not knowing the answer to that one, except that Orien would have had it no other way! We had the most amazingly delicious chicken salad which I enjoyed on bagel chips---oh my!

When we went home, I was so full that I couldn't believe Justin was getting busy with starting our dinner. I asked him to please plan on at least an hour before we ate because I was so full. He had shrimp cocktails there plus lobster bisque shooters, some other sort of seafood goodies, but he was ready to make our dinner. I was still about to bust from the chicken salad (no thank you to the seafood and fish stuff!). When we did eat, it was delicious, and I appreciate his patience with getting started.

Something funny happened, though---while he was prepping his ingredients, Judy C. called to see if we wanted to go to dinner. I couldn't believe my own words when I respectfully declined because I was so full from the reception and he was excited about his recipe. Rarely do I decline, and she was as surprised as I was! Our dinner was quite good, breaded thin chicken breasts and tortellini with vodka sauce. Again, I am so spoiled!

Meetings meetings and more meetings

Tonight was the annual meeting of The Club, an opportunity for the members to be introduced to the Board of Directors and the management of The Club, and for us to get a "State of the Club" report. This is one chance I get to see many others I don't usually see because they are not pool people. There is a big Members Mixer party before Christmas but it's on a Wednesday night which is Advent service time. I've never been to one of these gatherings so this is it for me!

Carpaccio like we had tonight

Appetizers were served, some butlered ones and others we had to stand in line to get at serving centers. Very attractive displays and tasty treats, particularly the special meats the Chef does. Tonight he presented carpaccio and salami, fresh out of the curing room. Not being a fan of the fish/seafood stuff, I had to pass on most of the other offerings, but I sure didn't starve! 

On Monday night I was there as well, this time with no appetizers and bringing my own soda. It was for our annual Owners meeting of The Palace and this place is large enough to squeeze us all in. We have some new or different faces serving on the Board this year, and I am so glad to say I am not one of them. That job would be terrible to have and I am so thankful to those who do volunteer to serve for us. The best part of the meeting was hearing no increase in our monthly dues this year, and no foreseeable assessments. Whew!

One good thing about each of these meetings was getting to talk with folks I don't often get to see, especially since several of our Owners don't live on the property. One couple has been renting out their unit for 5 years and plan to be moving back in again in March. I hate to say to good-bye to the next door neighbors, tenants Ed and Karen, but they are welcoming retirement and moving back to Charleston. 

At The Club member's meeting, I thought I would have a chance to address the group as regards the pool and the summer activities but that opportunity was not presented. The owner gave her State of the Club update, asked for questions, and only one man raised his hand to speak. I thought the meeting was just getting started but it was then adjourned! Let's eat!  No worries, I can talk to those folks on the Board any time as I see them more often than probably they would like (ha, ha!) and I never hesitate to let them know how much I enjoy everything. Not a fan of the fish appetizers but that's no big deal, as I said, I'm not starving!

...and yet, one more birthday!!!

Monday, the 27th, is my mom's birthday. On Facebook, three of her girls posted a status update mentioning her birthday and many greetings from our FB friends were garnered. I gave Mom a call and sang to her as is my custom. My sister, Kerry, had done the same thing earlier in the day, telling Mom she'd been rehearsing all night. So funny! Later in the day I had to call her back once more to tell her Alayna was having phone problems and couldn't get through so was sending an e-mail greeting instead. At that time Mom had heard from all her girls except Lori, who generally calls at night. Mom is now 89 years old...

In 2003, when she still wintered with me, Mom insisted on NO surprise parties and NO going out to expensive restaurants for her birthday. So, okay, I invited a few ladies from church to come to dinner at my house where I prepared Mom's favorite meal for her. The first and only time I've made liver and onions!! June and she liked the liver, and the rest of us enjoyed meatballs instead. I asked the ladies to wear their most sparkly clothes (no fancy restaurant but yes to fancy clothes!) and most complied. It was a very nice little party and the ladies all loved it. 

On the sofa are Jean N., Mom, and Twila N. In the back row are me, June H., and Jackie V. 

(Mom is now much, much thinner than in this photo, and I am not!)

Another birthday!

Sunday was Bible study and worship, like any other week. The exception was watching a movie, or a portion of it, projected on the wall during the sermon. The movie is part of a series released by a branch of our church body, titled "Come Follow Me". It was "Come Follow Me" Sunday which was the reason why this was done. Only once a year, right?

After church our group went to lunch at Chili's. We got there before Mike and Michael did, so Judy got a chance to tell the waitress it was Michael's birthday. She promised us that he would be given the royal birthday treatment, complete with singing. Just the way he would do for our birthdays!! I had a change in my order this time, ordering double chicken tenders and a single order of potato skins. Just to mix it up a bit! The tenders were simply giant, so four home with me, plus two potato skins. After the birthday singing, they presented him with a dessert complete with spoons so we could all get a taste. 

From the restaurant I run up to Great Hang Ups for the SoMMA opening Julia told me about. I walked in the door just as the awards were being handed out---perfect timing!  This medium is not my preference but the work was quite good, given that it was mixed media. Very striking collage and 3-D pieces!

I didn't hang around Hang Ups (ha ha) for very long but did get to say "hi!" to a bunch of folks I hadn't seen in some time. That's the fun of attending the openings---renewing acquaintences, plus getting to spend some time with Dee. Not the best time, but I promised her I'd come back next week when we can spend some time and they are not so busy. I really miss hanging out at the store all the time like I used to.

For our dinner tonight, needing to warm the house a bit, I made us a home-made chicken pot pie. Oddly enough, I had all the ingredients needed to throw a pie together.  Justin and I enjoyed our dinner while watching reruns of "Last Man Standing", my new favorite TV show. Still in production, which is extremely unusual for me, since I live my life in the past. He has the previous seasons on NetFlix and oh, how we laugh! Such a good show and good fun for us!

Celebrating a birthday

Friday morning at the Breakfast Club, my friend, whom I'll call "O", was giving me a little bit of business about all the outings I'd been on the previous week. She follows me on Facebook and marveled at my adventures and outings, asking if I ever ate at home. I assured her that of course I did eat at home, but often it was leftovers from the meals out. That morning we four ladies were joined by Bob, the same fellow who'd taken me to lunch the previous week. It was his birthday so he came over to have breakfast with us. He hadn't seen "O" since pool season ended and was glad to see her again.

Nancy W. was not going walking with the other two, Pat and O, after breakfast as she has been some yoga-style exercises to ease her aching back. I do my walking by going over to The Club and back again, several times a week. It was nice to have Bob join us and he seemed to like his breakfast from the buffet.

We would be seeing each other again that night for dinner as Bob, Nancy M., Bill, Justin, Nancy W., and I were going to have dinner at Koko's (I got to choose the restaurant!). It was Bill 'n Nancy's idea to do this, it being Bob's 70th, and I am so glad we did it. They all loved the place, the personal touches we got there, and already at the soup course, Bob was blown away by the place! Whew!, I was sweatin' it! 

This is something like what Justin ordered for his meal at Koko's on Friday night

While we were there, Nancy W. was telling about her sore leg, which she'd mentioned already at breakfast. At first she thought it was eczema acting up but Saturday morning she called to let me know that she'd been admitted to the hospital with cellulitis. Oh, for goodness sake! 

As it turned out, she didn't have to stay overnight, after she made cross-my-heart promises to take the medication and do everything they told her to do, at home. She'd had an IV of antibiotics to get her started and she was keeping the sore leg elevated as ordered. I am glad she decided to see the "Doc in a Box" as she referred to the walk-in clinic and got the attention needed right away. Cellulitis is nothing to mess around with.