A mostly fun day!

In my dream this early a.m., I was late for work, or late for something, the way dreams work. When I woke, I had this feeling like, "Oh, no! I'm late!!!" but it was just before 7:00 a.m. Whew! What a relief to not find myself already behind the 8-ball today. There was a number of things I wanted to take care of before heading to church as immediately after the meeting the gang was coming here for lunch and a social. My friend, Susie, in Manty, wanted to know where I was this morning, as she had to manage her day without my a.m. greeting. Oops! I told her I had to not log on to Facebook and run the risk of getting caught up and being late to church!

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Before leaving this a.m. I made up a list of things Justin should take care of when he was here and I believe he did them all. He was gone before I got home from the church meeting. Janet and Jim brought a birthday cake for Kathy, whose birthday was yesterday plus a card we all signed for her. I served my sloppy joes which, in my opinion, fell short of desired deliciousness, possibly because of the amount. Ketchup was added to the sloppy joe I just ate for supper which fixed it right up. In my prep, I did not use much salt because one of our members cannot have it, so this might have affected the overall taste. The pasta salad went well, a huge batch of that with some leftover. I packed up a container which Suzanne took along when she headed home. She also took the balance of the birthday cake which she really DID have to balance with her cooler plus the cake!

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After Jim and Janet left, the entire remaining group went down to the pool to recreate. Some did not bring swim attire along but enjoyed the fellowship around the pool. We had a really good chuckle when Bruce went back upstairs to get Kristi's purse and we spotted him up on the 5th floor! We could just see him opening a door and going in to get a purse at someone else's house! Oops, come down a couple floors there, Bruce. Oh, such good laughs we had, it was a great afternoon....A Special Meeting had been held after worship where a heavy topic was discussed and a matter settled, so it was good to all relax afterward and simply enjoy our time!

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As often happens on days when I have a function here, my back is a bit weary, guessing from moving chairs around, plus vacuuming like a fiend yesterday. It feels good to just sit and unwind, although the little workout in the pool was easing as well. My neighbor, Gus, came and swam with us, chatting and making the acquaintance of the church family. Normally he takes a walk in the morning, but Sundays he has to go in the afternoon when he gets home from church. And then, a welcome dip in the pool! I had gooseflesh in the pool because it was a bit "cooler" than I like air temperature-wise, high 80's.....I better just shut-up now or I will get scolded for griping about this!

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Tomorrow begins a normal routine of Monday Bible study at 10:00, most certainly followed by lunch with the usual gang. I heard through the grapevine that one of the group is growing weary of Longhorn (what??!!??) so I wonder what will happen now...Maybe she just will not come anymore. One of the charms of eating there is the ladies order from the kid's menu, less cost and smaller portions, plus we get a managers' discount off each ticket. The icing is having Patty be our server each week, knowing our likes and dislikes and such. Hmmm, we shall see, we shall see....This same lady who grows weary of Longhorn is also the same one who insisted we all go this seafood restaurant near the base because she had a coupon, but then when it was suggested to try Red Lobster after that, she refused because she "doesn't like seafood...". Funny, so funny!

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Joanne came over to get some more of her things, as well as dress for a formal event she is attending this evening. She at least got to see a few of the guests still here when she arrived. The event will introduce her to a contingent of folks from Canada, and since she is French speaking, hopes to make contact with a few potential buyers of property. Ever widening the circle, my friend Joanne! I also had the heart wrenching experience of saying "farewell" at Ashley Rose and Ellen, as they are going to San Francisco, where Ashley resides. Ellen is going out just for awhile but was suffering terribly in heart for leaving. She simply clung to me for comfort and I cried with her, without really knowing why. It does not really matter why, when someone is sobbing, you wrap them in the arms and hold on tightly, adding your own tears to theirs....

Renewed friendships

I heard from Mom and Jill today, but the rest of the day has been rather quiet family-wise, except for the call from Justin, telling me that he was not coming. Today is Kathy B.'s birthday but she had to work at the school where she is going to teach, a brand-new school not quite ready for her. She told me her tables for the classroom were just delivered and were being assembled but will not be in place for classes Monday. She will have to improvise, coming up with something else to do in order to instruct her classes since she is the computer instructor. Oh, brother! The joys of teaching in a brand-new school with brand-new equipment and furnishings.

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At our church, the classrooms are being set up for the first day of preschool as well as the first day of kindergarten. Laurie Langley is teaching the pilot kindergarten, instructing three of her own kids plus three others, including our own Mario, Twila's great-grandson. He is such a delightful child and will certainly flourish in the kindergarten with the other kids!

Mario is shown here in the white shirt, clapping his hands during Vacation Bible School

The Jaguar game is not going to be aired tonight due to a blackout so I am incredibly sad about that. I really like to watch football, pro football, that is, on TV. My neighbors were just leaving for the game when I came home from my soda run, so that means at least four people in the seats from this building. I am not sure if anyone else from The Palace was going, although several Owners have season tickets.

Last week I was truly delighted to make contact with an "old" school friend, Missy, who had gone through grade school and high school with me. When she wrote back to me, she said she had JUST been thinking about me. What? How can this be? We have not seen or heard from each other since many years ago when we ran into her at Marian's church in Pomano Beach, I think Justin was yet a baby! She told me she thought about how I always made her smile. Missy remembered me accidently having a piece of gum or candy fall down my top! That might have been only last week! Oh my, was I doing that more than 35 years ago, too??? Missy lives in Atlanta now and is the real estate business. I look forward to long renewed friendship with her, now that we have found one another again.

Guess I will put the vacuum cleaner away for now, as I doubt I will do more. I want to get a few things ready for tomorrow like tableware and cloths, so I won't have to do it all in the morning. Hopefully the weather is nice tomorrow in case anyone wants to use the pool, although my guess is that most will stay up here where the party is! And the food!

I think I am ordering some pizza!

Not because I am in "need" of pizza, but because I am out of soda! Or nearly so....My boy, who was expected to be here this a.m. to do my vacuuming and deliver soda "had time get away from him" and he stood me up! "Frosted" barely covers the feelings I have about this, especially since his time got away from him while he was helping his father wax the boat instead of fulfilling his obligation to me! And then he HAD to get to the movies in less than 40 minutes....not deliver a baby, not help an old lady cross the street, not come and clean for his mother---nope, HAD to go to the movies with his little friends. I am having a church gathering here after church tomorrow, rather, after church and a congregational meeting, so his plan was to come right here after church to do the cleaning. Right... Do you get the feeling that I am royally ticked off right now??? Oh, yeah!

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Of course, it is pouring rain once more this afternoon. I heard the rumblings beginning about an hour ago but only now did the rains begin. True to my word, I am drinking water, which will help stretch my remaining cans of soda until the pizza man comes. The Computer Guy is coming too in a few moments, as he called from 15 minutes away. It seems the repair was easy enough, something to do with running the Vista program repair or whatever to fix the corrupted file.

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Wow, I guess I did not expect it run THAT much $$$ but with the house call, pick up and delivery, plus a repaired computer, I should not complain. I must be in a complaining mood today or something. My food is prepared, ready for tomorrow, including sloppy joes and pasta salad with peas and ham in it. Really, I cannot wait to dip into that salad later on when it is fully chilled! My kitchen is none the worse for the wear, in fact, the floor has been vacuumed and washed (not on hands 'n knees though!), ready for tomorrow. My wastebasket even smells so good because I put the onion container in there after making the joes. Guess the cabana is going to close early again today due to the rain plus my not being down there for my hot dog! Shoot! I could buy cans of soda down there....Nah, I can get in the car and go buy some, skip the pizza, and just do it!

What? Is it raining again?

Tell me this is rainy season or tell me that no hurricanes are going to come this way so I will not complain about the continual storms! Barely did I get home before the lightning began to flash around me and the heavens opened. Seems that every time I go to Publix, I return to a storm, or find myself in the midst of one.

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Today I had the thrill of meeting a brand new American, a couple with an infant baby adopted from China. They just got back Sunday from their ordeal, bringing their child home from China. Mara is adorable, has the cutest little pug nose, and gorgeous dark eyes. For eleven months old she is incredibly tiny but since they took her in their arms, about three weeks ago, she has already gained a pound and a half. While she does have some catching up to do developmentally, she is way ahead in the charm department. Right now she cannot sit up on her own, but already mastered the art of keeping herself covered with her blankie!

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Today as I was leaving the property, my phone rang with Joanne on the other end. Once more she wanted to have lunch, this time meeting Twila at Red Lobster. Cool! My only other plans were to go to Hang Ups (where I met Mara!) and go to Publix, so yes, lunch it is! As I walked from my car to Red Lobster, I saw this family of three walking along Blanding, including a young child. Today was obviously my day for young kids! The man had this enormous back pack on and was walking what I consider too far ahead of the mom and little girl. Mom was pushing this huge stroller laden with what might have been their entire household. I called to her and asked what was going on. She said they had been evicted from their house and were walking to her friends' house to stay. The area they were heading was just beyond the cemetery so they were nearly there, but my heart broke for the little girl having to walk so far. This stretch of Blanding had no sidewalks but they would be on sidewalks once they crossed Wells. Call me a bleeding heart, especially when it comes to little kids....Oh, the mom did say they were waiting to hear about getting into an apartment complex, which is good news. My, it was sad to see this, but it happens for a number of reasons.

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Brenda N. came over this late afternoon since she was working nearby. She told me the most incredible thing---ever since she was in a car wreck, late June, she has been going to physical therapy and such to help heal her "sprung" body. The frame on her car was sprung and rendered nearly undriveable and I compared her to the car frame. Her recent MRI, as reported by the doctor, indicated that her discs are dehydrated because she does not drink enough water. Get out!!! I just cannot believe this. She is now forcing herself to drink more water daily and I promised her that I will, too, because I certainly have dehydrated discs. Maybe all this rain will help with that, too!

I thought Brenda looked like a million bucks this afternoon when she came, letting her hair grow out naturally, only scrunching it in the morning to make it look so darn cute. I think it is fun that I have both Joanne AND Brenda in the same photo, although it was taken several months ago....

"I'm just sittin' here waitin' for my sugar to show...."

....well, I do not know if he is my sugar or not, but I am awaiting the arrival of the computer man to take a look at the ailing laptop computer. For some reason it shows I have a corrupt file. I take offense at that, because I am not a corrupter!

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Wally has come and gone in a moment's time. He thinks the problem may have developed during the shut down process which is often difficult, as I must sometimes manually turn it off instead of waiting for it to do it itself. Aha! He is going to try some "repairs" that can be run at their office and if that fails, they will do a system restore. I hope it is not too expense a fix, because if so, it might not pay to repair it. Wally, my sugar, will call me later today to give me the word. Think I will go to lunch in the meanwhile.

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Guess I am not the only one with "electronic" problems today. I tried to listen to the radio on-line but the streaming was not working. I did connect once with WSB in Atlanta but the second time I tried it, no streaming from there either. Might be a system problem with Streaming, and not specific to the stations. Instead I am listening to melancholy music from iTunes on my computer. (I just tried again and now the Streaming is working, from WSB!)

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Yesterday was my last official aerobics class. From this time on, I can pay per class if I wish to attend, and I might do that with Maggie, until her punch card is full. She expressed a desire to scrapbook and you know I am all over that!!! Goodness knows I have a ton of paper to share with her, if it suits her projects, plus I am making a list of supplies which are "must haves" for scrapping.

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After class, my piano-playing friend, Randy, wanted to have lunch so we ordered from the dining room and sat poolside. Joanne had been trying to reach me to have lunch so when she finally did, Randy and I had already ordered our meals. Perfect! I will just order another burger for her and we are good to go! The three of us enjoyed our lunch el fresco and poolside, and I rejoiced that her previous lunch date cancelled.

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When I came upstairs later, I changed into my nightie before getting dressed in regular clothes. Our evening plans were to have an "Insteada Dinner" social on the sundeck and in checking the weather report, it did not appear as our plans would be rained on. Well, that didn't work out as planned....We no sooner got situated and it started to rain. The food table was carried under roof and chairs moved along the walls as the gentle rain fell. It was not terribly long before it ended and we moved once more, out into open air. We certainly would have welcomed a breeze, even me, because it was quite muggy after the rain. The turnout was modest but still quite nice, with my favorite being the Rice Krispie Treats with mini-M&M's in them! It took Ashley Rose upwards of 7 kitchen implements to put together, much harder than it should have been. She found out the hard way NOT to microwave marshmallows.....

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One of the ladies, a friend of Ellen's and now mine, brought these baby grapes which she sells from her store on Kingsley Avenue. I was coaxed into trying some and they were quite good, like tiny beads of sugar!

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While sitting outdoors, I shared some of the laughs from the previous nights' TV viewing, and then did a few of my "lines" from Roseanne's stand-up humor. They all said I sounded just like her, and wanted me to go on, but I did not. Always keep 'em wanting more...I did use the one where, in her nasally voice, she declares: "While my husband was watching TV, wanted me to get him something to eat.....like he couldn't pick up the sofa cushion himself..."

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The river is dotted with small boats today, I can see about six from here, all seemingly in a straight line from this vantage point. Only one has an umbrella sticking up, so that means the rest of the fishers out there will be fried to a delicate crunch before the day is over. The water is calm and the temps are expected to reach 90 for the high, and I wonder why I am still in the house at this machine....Bye!

I think I dodged a big one yesterday....

....although I did notice the finish on my cell phone is looking a bit tired. I went off with Joanne and Twila looking at real estate in the afternoon and a couple of the homes did not have their A/C on. Joanne did turn it on, but in the meantime, we got hot, especially when climbing up and down stairs in the units. One place, about 2600 square feet, had more nooks and crannies, amazing closets and tuck-aways, than you could believe. Even a potting closet off the atrium for taking care of the greenery. Such great fun that house would be to decorate!!!! Twila and I got into a wrestling match over it, that is how charming it was! The community where we were looking is near the hospital in Orange Park and has a man-made lake around which all the town homes were built. The icing on the cake was the black swans swimming about in the water, plus a million ducks. It was like paradise! While the three of us agreed that no, it was not the ocean, the river or Doctors Lake, it was a great substitute!

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Well, after I left the ladies and headed to McDonald's to stock up on cheap hamburgers, always 59 cents on Wednesdays!, I could hear a little chirping sound. It was not a "normal" sound like when the cell phone battery is dying, it was more pathetic a cheep and quite irregular. I did determine it was coming from the phone, which was, ahem, soaking wet. As I drove, I held it to the A/C vent in the car to give it some air, dry out, but it continued making the pathetic chirping.

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When I got home and upstairs again, I examined the phone more closely, realizing that the TALK button and the left side row of keys were inoperable as well. I sent Justin a message, more cryptic than a normal text message due to inoperative keys. He happened to be in the office and sent me back an IM, asking me what was the matter with my phone. He was more than ready to go shopping with me today to buy a new one, but fortunately for me, my phone came back to life! I plugged it in and it dried out, I guess, and seems to be doing fine. My choir friends took great delight in hearing my sad story and offered alternative suggestions for the toting thereof in the future. Brian suggested a ZipLock baggie and I told him I had that same idea! So did Lisa! Twila's granddaughter, also Twila, wears her phone around her neck on a lanyard and that might be the way to go for me, too. Lori can probably make a lovely lanyard for me, one to match every outfit, a whole new 'line' for her!

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Speaking of Lori, I was thinking about her when I went to bed last night. Late night TV is often too dry for me these days since I am not getting my 24/7 doses of "Law and Order" like I was accustomed to having. New shows replacing my old stand-by. I found "Rosanne" on one of the "old" TV stations and it happened to be an episode special to Lori, my sis, and me. The Conners, whose quips had me sitting up and laughing instead of falling to sleep, had a vacuum cleaner salesman die at their kitchen table. "People don't usually die until after they have left my kitchen...." Priceless!!! When Rosanne was cajoling Dan into the checking the dead man's pockets for his ID, he said, as he began the search, "I hate you and everything you stand for!" , at which point I sat right up in bed and roared with laughter. You had to be there! After the coroner finally showed up and declared the man as being dead ("I called that one three hours ago, mister!"), Rosanne put her hand on the gurney and pulled the sheet back to say, "I'm not sure where you're going, but say "hi" to Janis Joplin from me, okay?". That made my phone ring all those many years ago when my sisters called to find out if I heard that or not. I was tempted but resisted calling Lori, due to the hour, but man, I was wishing she was here to watch it with me! Laughing myself to sleep.....what a way to go!

Here are Lori and David at an outdoor market where she hawks her handmade jewelry while David, the troubadour, entertains the passersby. Most of my jewels come from Lori, who stays up half the night designing and creating in her hovel.

Everyone out of the pool!

The nicest experience just happened for me as I came up from the pool a minute ago----the nice painter with whom I have chatted greeted me as I came off the elevator. I told him how I thought I had better come in since the sky was dark and thunder rolling, and he agreed with me about that. As I walked toward my door, after me he said, "You have the best attitude, you have a good spirit. I only talk to certain people who have the same spirit, and you have it. Keep it up..." Wow, talk about blow me away. What an incredibly nice thing to say, and greatly appreciated, at that! I wished him the same and came in out of the rain...

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While I was out in the pool I was also chatting with my mom, who was bundled up with a sweatshirt on and her legs wrapped in a cotton throw. Outside temps were hovering around 70 but inside her house was much chillier, and she says it has been like that all summer. In checking the WI weather, it shows a high of 72 predicted for Manitowoc but being so close to the lake, the air temp actually is alot chillier. Not quite sleeveless weather! She was considering calling my auntie to see if she wanted to go have coffee and a piece of pie, and I gave her two thumbs up for that idea!

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The sky seems to have cleared, after that quick thunder and lightning storm but it is too late for me to go back out. My friend is calling me shortly to go look at real estate with her and another friend, and so no one freaks out, I am only going along because I am nosy! Yesterday I mentioned the Coast Guard helicopter flying up and down the river, and today the news brought the story of a boater who had fallen off his boat Sunday near the Outback Crabshack bridge. Sadly, though help came quickly, the searchers were unable to locate his body until it washed up yesterday on Fleming Island, not far from Hwy 220 where it meets Pine Avenue. Tragic ending to the search, and so sad for his family.

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We had one more thunder storm today before all was said and done so it was obvious I would not be going back out to the pool. Might as well get dressed....