Love my sunflowers!

Friday evening, rather, late afternoon, Nancy W. came by to pick me up to help celebrate our friend, Bill's, birthday. His wife, Nancy M., not to be confused with the other Nancy, asked me to pick between two different venues for Bill's birthday celebration, and I chose La Nopalera. The other choice was Whitey's and while neither of these two places are easy to find parking on a given Friday night, Whitey's would be the worst! 

AND, she allowed me to set the time to meet at 5:30 pm, rather than later, due again to the difficult parking situation there. (Justin chuckles how I am the social director of this group!) I only have to get towed off once to learn my lesson about parking at La Nop!! 

Nancy called there to make a reservation for the 7 of us (Justin couldn't go because he was still working), and was told that they don't accept reservations. Coming at 5:30, though, should be no problem. Well, that didn't seem to be the case!

We found parking with all of us arriving about the same time. Phyl, Cynthia, Bob, Bill, Nancy, Nancy, and I went into the restaurant and expected to be seated. There were lots of tables available for our number, but it seemed that, yes, they were reserved!!!  This brought to mind a "Seinfeld" episode regarding making/keeping reservations, of course. Nancy told the 'hostess' that she had called Monday and was told no reservations were accepted but the hostess said, "Well, I didn't talk to you..." What difference does that make? 

With some cajoling and our perseverance, we were eventually seated at a table which had been saved for a party at 6:30. Now, if we were served and out of there in less than an hour, well, that's on them. We were squatters! Bob would like to have gone somewhere else but I don't know where we could have gone at this point and just sat down, unless we went to Manny's Italian, next door. Or Pasta Market, but this was Bill's preference so we stuck it out. 

I didn't care as much about the food as I did about having their yummy strawberry margaritas.  I did have my shredded beef quesidilla for dinner. It was so nice to be together, catching up on each other's news, a great meal and laughs besides. I had not seen Phyl and Cindy since before Christmas and we are all excited for the next pool season soon to begin so we can all be together again!

On the ride home again, Nancy asked if I minded stopping at her dad's house so she could pick up something. She ran in and came out in a minute carrying this lovely cobalt blue vase. She made it a gift to me. I guess when Nancy M. said "No Gifts" for Bill's birthday, it didn't mean I couldn't get one! 

I had told Nancy a week or so ago the story of Justin coming in one night to my room, carrying his laptop. He wanted to show me a scene from "Last Man Standing" where in the background was a blue vase with sunflowers in it. He knows I like both! So that's why she gave me this vase, and wished that she had some flowers to put in it. I assured her I had some, and as soon as I got upstairs, I stuck the sunflowers in the vase, snapped the picture, which was texted to her before she got in her driveway!  

God chooses to remain anonymous

My sister, Lynn, sent me this photo via text message, showing Angelo just hanging out 

This morning I enjoyed Breakfast Club, walking over in nearly summer weather. The sun was beaming brightly and reflecting so beautifully off the river. Thursday evening my neighbors and I watched a wedding taking place at The Club as we sat on the now completed sundeck. It was quite a dramatic setting and elegant to boot. They had this arbor/frame set up for the ceremony  and it was still here this a.m.

When I walked home from The Club, I found some ladies sunning themselves at the pool, while little boys splashed about in the kids' pool. The water was still quite cold by human standards, but somehow kids, and folks visiting on vacation, don't mind. On Wednesday I had gone to lunch with my friend, Kathy H., and when we got home, I saw Bob sitting at the pool. I had to take my to-go box upstairs and by the time I turned around, Bob was packing up to go inside. Missed him by 5 minutes!

Back to Wednesday's lunch---Kathy had much to speak with me about, and we managed to have our conversations despite sharing a 6 top table with another pair of diners. While we ate, I saw John come in with a lady and was seated just down from us. I excused myself to go greet him and we exchanged hugs. He is the owner/manager of the cemetery, one of my 'boyfriends' as we used to call them in my family. It was great to see him, and meet the new funeral director who was with him. 

Kathy told me where her father was buried, which sounds like not too far from Timmy's site. She told me how they allowed her to keep a FL Gator on a spike at his marker. I told her how I took all my stuff away in 2008 when asked to do so, aside from the marker for the tree the Douglas's donated. I also shared with her how dear the guys were there, having gotten to know them fairly well since I visited the site almost daily for 7 years!  She didn't remember who she worked with at Jax Memory Gardens funeral home, but I told her I had a good relationship with Damon, though I don't see him very often any longer.

As we went to the car to come back over here, I saw a blue truck pull in behind my car. I knew that truck! Here came Mike around the truck, plus Damon and Sue from the office at the Memory Gardens. Oh for goodness sake! Oh, my! More hugs and greetings were shared, with Mike telling me that the guys had been asking about me, wondering where "Miss Day" has been. Either Mike or Damon said they see me driving down the road, recognizing my tags (my license plates). When I got back in the car, I told Kathy who these people were and she was as surprised as I was. Timing was everything that day!!  And for the week, since only the day before I'd been working on the project for the event at St. Johns, well, it all sort of tied together. No such thing as coinicidence, only God choosing to remain anonymous!

A little excitement

Today on the ride to Bible study, Mom and I had a problem communicating with each other. About halfway through, we faded away from each other. This was my usual time to call her, my same route and all that, and can only think there was a setting to be adjusted on Mom's cordless receiver. I tried to ask her to go to the other phone but it seems she could not hear me either. I just told her I would call later, assuming she could hear me, which I did from home in the afternoon. She had gotten out the directions for the phone and found the buttons for volume, etc. We could hear each other just fine later. Solar flares or buttons?? We don't know for sure...

While at Bible study, we had some excitement and a bit of a scare. We had barely gotten underway when the pre-k teacher came through carrying a little Japanese boy. She said to Pastor, "He just doesn't seem right..." as she took him in the office to call his mother. Pastor went in to see what was going on. A man in our class, Bob, a doctor, wondered if he should go in to check on the child but his wife didn't think he should butt in. Two seconds later the door opened and Pastor summoned him to come.

The little boy didn't seem to have a fever or anything but when Bob was summoned, Kanato was having a seizure. I am so glad Bob was there!  The decision was made to call for rescue to take him to the hospital. Pastor had come back to the table and remarked that this young man was the most active one in the classroom and it was strange to see him like this. 

The mom came in record time, arriving before the rescue squad pulled in, sirens blaring. Her English is not very good, and Bob said he had trouble getting the boy's history from her because of the language and her stress. Her husband is a researcher at Mayo and that is where they decided to transport the little guy. The mom rode in the ambulance, leaving her car parked in the parent pick up line. That would not be such a terrible problem, just something else the staff would have to deal with later on. 

After things had settled down and Liz gone back to her classroom, visibly upset about her young charge and witnessing a seizure, someone asked Pastor whose car it was in the parking lot with no wheel on it. He sort of laughed and said, "I've had quite a day here already!" It seems that someone drove down the street on the hub, no tire in sight, and parked in the church's lot. It must have happened overnight, after church was dismissed last night and morning. At some point between the class began and the ambulance arriving, the tow truck had come for the disabled car. Calgon, take me away!

A special project underway

My family and friends in WI and elsewhere are putting up with the continuing winter while I am sitting here with my doors open. I complain about the dust all the time, and the pollen, but then I just invite it in!  We have temps in the mid-80's and mostly clear skies. In the near distance (can that be???) I can hear someone having piles being driven for a dock or something. Between the geese honking and the pounding of the machinery, it's a noisy day on the river!

Yesterday was an awesome one, beginning with my teeth cleaning. When the hygenist, Rob, took me back, she told she hoped nothing would be found this time. At my previous cleaning, after Rob declared an 'all clear', Peggy found the problem in the area where I had the oral surgery done. I want the 'all clear' to stick this time! When I told Justin I was going in for a cleaning this a.m. he said, "Why? They're still new!" 

Rob told me how Peggy instructed her to make sure she used the porcelain polish on my teeth. It's what she always used for me but Peggy stressed it this time, to keep my new teeth shining like pearls. I told Justin it made me think of TidyBowl which is used on toilets, because they are porcelain, too!

After the dentist, I went over to Great Hang Ups to begin the process of having work done on Timmy's painting, for the special event at St. Johns. I am so thankful to have those two ladies as friends, especially for such a project. Julia had some ideas for the painting aside from the framing, the end result. Dee is going to photograph it and make available prints of it, one of which can be printed to canvas, framed, and donated to the school, in remembrance to the school. We have 6 weeks or less to do all this...Gulp!

While I was sitting at the counter and talking with the ladies, a customer came in the door. Here came my friend, Nancy W., with art work in hand. She has recently rented space in the neighboring resale store and needed some advice/repairs on some pieces for her shop space. Dee was able to help her decipher the name on one piece of artwork (this helps with Nancy's pricing) and did a repair on another framed piece, adding a hanger to the back. To celebrate our chance meeting, or better yet, our opportune meeting, Nancy and I went to lunch at Koko's. We are keeping the shops in this plaza in business!  

The break from the emotional project was welcome but I also appreciate the fact that it was a joyful task at the same time. At last having something done with this piece, with plans to share with Timmy's classmates who are still there, well, is very comforting and even a bit exciting. Like Dee said, the students might not appreciate it as much as their parents might, now, but later, when the kids become parents themselves, they will!

Not an April Fool's Joke

We were visited in the basin by about a dozen manatees of varying shapes and sizes today. Connie was quite excited about seeing them back so soon. It is kind of early to have them show up.

I thought of a few things from my trip to WI, things I've pondered in my heart. Since I returned from Manty, it's been announced that Pastor Schaefer has returned the Call and will be staying at First German. Whew! He is a blessing to the congregation and a good partner to the other pastor who serves there. Waiting now to hear if the two teachers they Called will accept and come to FG. 

On my last Sunday at FG, instead of Bible study, we were able to hear the grace-filled story of a member's double lung transplant. Ginger and her husband, Chuck, were classmates of my sister, Lori at FG and MLHS. Ginger spoke about the Lord being evident and involved in her diagnosis, preparations, and the eventual transplant/recovery. 

Chuck took his turn to speak about the value of having faith in the Lord as he stood by his wife, how they stayed away from home for long periods of time awaiting the donation, and how they were served by an area church and its pastor, near the Mayo Clinic. It was a riveting presentation, to say the least, and quite beneficial to hear their testimonies of faith in the Lord through this rather testing time. 

That same afternoon my mom and sister attended a meeting at church which began before noon and ended around 2:00 pm. There were important church 'family' issues to discuss, some of them quite painful ones. While they were gone, I went to lunch with my sister, Lori, and husband, David, before they headed back to Holmen. At first we tried 8th and York Restaurant but they were not open for lunch, so we went to Harborside instead. It was fun to have all five of Mom's girls around for the weekend and I was sad when it ended. It might happen again in July when I come back!!

Looks like spring!

As the sun was coming up, this was the sky I saw

It grew into this dramatic sky

 Here are Jacquie and I at the table at the Republican Women's fashion show. We look so springy!

Jacquie and I almost blend together in our outfits! We were glad to have our coats along that day, as we sat out by the pool for an hour after the luncheon, in the sun, but still cool out side

Quiet days

My boy has gone to Orlando for the weekend with a group of friends, celebrating the birthday of "Kim", at Disney. Her husband, a classmate of the guys from St. Johns, and she were married a couple years ago at Disney so she is a huge fan of the parks. Their park of choice was Epcot for Saturday, and Animal Kingdom on Sunday. I don't know how affected their group was by the torrential rains much of the state had earlier in the day Saturday, including us here in N. FL.

We had Bible study this a.m. followed by worship, a special day today because of it being the 5th Sunday in the month. Even though I wasn't here to request any, it was Favorite Hymn day. Kathy R. was at the organ, playing the first 5 hymns of the day, all in a row, including one of 'our' favorites, "Be Still My Soul". She told me that every time she hears or plays it, she thinks of me. I told her that when I hear or sing it, I think of her! Love how that works!

We also sang the first two stanzas of "In Christ Alone", among some other favorites. During the actual service another favorite was sung, "Blest Be The Ties That Bind" which has the line in it about shedding the sympathizing tear. Good! I needed that as our closing hymn was "Go, My Children". Judy had walked out with Amber (Amber's blood sugar dropped, so they went out to get her something sweet to eat). As they came back in, Judy touched my shoulder during the closing hymn. Mike S. had looked over at me as the intro was playing, and I glanced at Kathy, who was back in the pew, and she nodded at me. Yes, they know and perhaps remember...

We had a "cookies by the pound" bake sale after church, a fund raiser in support of our Mother/Daughter event in May. Many wonderful donations of baked treats were brought in. Prior to worship, however, a newer member, Carolynn, was going around with handouts reporting that ladies have made baked goods and we should be sure to sample their treats. This was for the coming weeks' baked goods, not the bake sale, so to avoid more confusion, Pastor made an announcement saying that today's bakery was for sale, not free. Yikes!

Years ago we had every Sunday refreshments but that eventually died off. Now a group of ladies wishes to do it again and have sign-up sheets where folks can take their turn bringing stuff. Normally Judy C. takes care of cleaning up after worship, puts the coffee stuff away and washes the pots, etc. Now, she might not be the designated person to do so since we don't generally stick around after church, choosing to go to lunch instead. We'll see how this pans out. 

These same ladies are starting a food pantry for our members and 'friends of members'. This congregation used to have that, as well, and it faded away, probably about the time the preschool started. It's not a good idea to have people, non-members, roaming around the property when the kids are there. When the pantry was discontinued, our members were encouraged to donate to the Clothes Closet in OP, where clothing and food are distributed to Clay County needy folks. A good solution. The congregation has a fund to help those of our members in need, and, as one member declared, we want to know about someone needing something so we can pitch in directly. That's what family does!

Before church began, Kristi summoned me over to announce that she is putting together a 'little choir' for Easter. Kathy has agreed to play for us, just like old times! There might be only a handful of us, as usual, and the anthem is simple enough, requiring only a couple rehearsals. I can make this committment! And to edify our worship on Easter, I am in!