Stinks to be me!

One of my pet things to say is "It stinks to be me!" I pull that out when I get a dinner invitation after I've already accepted another one, or something wonderful happens for me. Sometimes I simply cannot believe the blessings in my life. Yesterday I experienced such a  situation when Nancy W. and I were at breakfast. The usual breakfast lady wasn't there so Sandra took care of us. Jokingly she put a soda pictcher on the table in front of me, with a long straw sticking out of it. Sure hope her boss didn't see that!!

A week or so ago I was talking with the chef and told him how I so much preferred natural casing  hot dogs to the icky tasting ones (I didn't tell him that!!) being served at the cabana. I am known already as "The Hot Dog Lady" so they know I am serious about them. Chef told me about ordering natural casing hot dogs from a Club vendor for his family. He told me that he would get some for me to have in the cabana, but for me only. Today, I had my first one, and he was NOT messing around.  

Obviously the hot dog extended past the ends of the bun but it was not a problem. I just nibbled the ends off and then ate the rest of the hot dog the usual way. It tasted so good with the fried onions and the cole slaw. Marlena asked me what I thought of the slaw and I mentioned that I'd like it with a bit more liquid on it. I believe that is just a personal preference but she told Bob V. to make the slaw juicier the next time he makes it. Hopefully everyone who has the slaw likes it juicier because that's what's going to happen from now on. Bob is new at food prep so I am glad to be able to offer my slaw expertise, while enjoying my special hot dog. Life is good at the pool!!

Finally made it!!

Last night after getting home from dinner, we again had another fantastic electrical storm with our rain. Some areas on the property and adjacent ones were without power, but thankfully, we kept ours. Apparently some branches came down on the wires just off our property and the power company was swift to make the repairs. I sure don't mind if we lose our power for a period of time as Justin and I generally have enough power to run our devices (I need my devices to sleep, having Seinfeld loaded on my computer for just such situations!). My son, on the other hand, desperately needs to have the air conditioning and/or fans for him to have a decent night's sleep. He works long hard days and so very much needs his rest. 

Nancy is not spending a whole lot of time at the pool this summer, she has access to a pool only steps from her door which she uses. Because of not coming over, she is not meeting her monthly minimum from The Club or cabana. No one wants to have to pay because of NOT eating so she and I met to have breakfast in The Club this a.m. We absolutely LOVE their bacon and other hot breakfast items found on the buffet which is set up for the Rotary group who meets at Sunrise. Yes, that's the name of their group, and I am thankful they leave us a few strips of bacon!

She and I talked some more about our school supply donations, needing to make arrangements with Maureen to get her stuff transferred from my dining table to her car. Maureen has a new grandbaby and she is keeping herself busy with babysitting and just enjoying the baby. Somehow with Nancy and me, we never run out of topics! We parted company for a while, planning to meet up again at the pool later. 

Nancy M. came out to the pool, as did Mark S. plus others to enjoy the hot afternoon with us. Nancy W. did not stay all the while as she had some workers to be kept track of. She looks forward to the days when her dad's home is sold, as well as her own over in Fruit Cove. Then, she will be free as a bird. 

After a few hours at the pool, I came inside. I got myself cleaned up and ready to watch The Five with Linda, and as I watched, I also got an invitation to join the Chappells for dinner at our newest restaurant, Metro Diner!!!  I have tried to go there a couple of times with Nancy but the lines have been too long (I could have waited but....) so tonight was the night. 

Judy and Michael got there before I did and Judy was perusing the menu when I came in. We had about a 20 minute wait so plenty of time to make our selections in advance. I knew what I was going to order, my mouth was all set for it---the Monte Cristo!  As she looked it over, Judy read the description of it and asked, aghast, "Who would ever order such a thing??" and I laughingly told her, "That's what I'm having!" It was fantastic, just the way I remember from Bennigan's days oh so many years ago. Judy had the pot roast meal and Michael had a reuben sandwich. We all enjoyed our meals, having to drink Pepsi products instead of Coke, but that's okay. This place was bustling, people lined up and waiting to get into our booth so we couldn't really sit and visit very long. I loved it, absolutely loved it. 

Not my plate, as you might guess with the fruit cup on it, but the rest is right!

The manager met me at the door as I was going out the back way due to the pouring rain, yes, again! He asked me about my meal and after I sang its praises, he gave me suggestions of how to reheat the half of my sandwich in the microwave oven, wrapping it in paper towels first. He let me go the back way so I didn't have so far to go in the rain, as I was parked in the only available space at the time---next to the dumpster! Hey, I'll take it. 

This is my new favorite place to eat, and they will certainly see more of me, in more ways than one!  Justin will be so envious of me getting there without him but he was gone with Jesse and his boss to Whitey's. Nice, in the rain!

Lunch and shopping

Once again I was able to join the gang for water exercise on a Thursday. As much as I enjoy this time and the workout, I look forward to our resuming Bible study next month. In the meanwhile, I puddle away!  The temperatures are near perfect and thankfully the rains held off until later in the day. Enough of these rains!

Nancy W. and I had plans today to go shopping for our school supplies. The research done showed that Wal-Mart had the very best prices for school supplies. It is still so hot and it's not even August and yet, it's back to school season!!  Before shopping, though, Nancy and I stopped at Taps in the plaza next to Wal-Mart. Our friend, Kim II, from the pool, talked about this restaurant, her go-to place, so we wanted to check it out. I was thrilled to discover that beer cheese soup is a regular item on their menu. I had sliders and a bowl of soup, taking three of the sliders home with me, but polished off the soup!

After dining, we went over to Wal-Mart to do our shopping. Starting just inside the door were displays and lines of boxes with supply items in them. We grabbed pencils, pens, markers, tablets, loose leaf paper, folders, crayons, erasers, anything we could find from the shopping list we had with us. I got an inexpensive backpack, less than $5, for me to fill up for my Realtor friend, Kat. The rest of the items will be divided between our friend, Maureen for her classroom,  plus I am donating items to our church preschool and for the young student that my neighbor, Kay, mentors. This is so darn exciting. My dining table is piled with items. Nancy was smart enough to grab the empty boxes from the shelves for us to use to store the items, and is then donating them to Maureen for use in her classroom. Brilliant!

This evening Justin and I went to dinner at 4Rivers where he patiently listened to me go on and on about how great my day was. He is a very good sport. Who wouldn't be, though, when enjoying their delicious brisket and sides? He is just mad about their biscuits, so I always save mine for him. All my sides come home for making a meal or two for me another time. Such a good price and I get at least three meals out of it. No leftover brisket, usually, as I gobble that all up!

A bit more about yesterday

Okay, let's see---where was I? Ah, yes, on my way to the Island, and finding out the BOA branch no longer has a drive-through. My next stop was the groomers for my after the full moon haircut. My schedule for grooming is off ever since I went to WI. Barb was able to get me in on this first day back from vacation and I was glad she could get me in, regardless of my 'usual' schedule. I arrived before time and she was able to take me sooner than planned. Fine with me. Barb filled me in on the fun she had in Napa on her trip, the hair-raising ride up the mountains and down again. Glad they had a car and nothing larger to navigate on those dangerous roads. 

I stopped at Great Hang Ups on the way back, my first time in a long while. Fortunately, Dee was there so I got to enjoy her company as well as Julia's, and get all caught up on their news, etc. Julia was looking so good, having lost a bunch of weight this year. I am happy for her. I apologized to the ladies for being so negligent in my coming in but they understand that summer is a bit different for me, with the pool and all that. They are just the best!

Staked my claim for the side of the pool

In all the running yesterday, I never really got to have lunch but somehow, I survived. That is the blessing of having leftovers in the fridge, including my sandwich half from Monday's lunch with Nancy. Certainly I won't starve any time soon, especially with the good example that Julia has set for me!

Today my little nephew, Angelo, was able to attend an open house type of situation at St. Paul Lutheran where his brothers attend school. His other grandma posted a photo of him seated on the grass and holding the sign indicating his class/age group. When I commented on the photo, a young lady I met last summer at a Mary Kay event in Manitowoc, she having been at the worship conference when I was, responded to me. It turns out that Angelo was in her group and she said he was so cute and well-behaved. This I like to hear!!

Tidbits of the day

I had a few interesting things occur today which need mentioning. The morning began with water exercise class for which I went out about 30 minutes early. Before I could descend into the water our newer member of the class arrived. She asked me to please spray her back with sun screen as she couldn't reach and I accommodated her. Only now is she beginning to warm up to us and I cherished the opportunity to help her out and engage her in some chit chat. She had told me once before that she is basically wound far too tightly to enjoy relaxation. Coming to water exercise class during her 'lunch hour' is not one bit a social (yet!) event for her. 

Last week Dr. M came over to me before the others arrived and said something, in essence, how she enjoyed class with me, found me entertaining and positive. I know this took much for her to approach me so I welcome her attempts to break the ice, as it were. This morning I told her it was my job to break the ice on the pool and shared the story of Marlena calling me once at the end of the season to break the ice off the top of the pool for them. I do have rules---No swimming when the water is too cold or when the sun isn't out. I've been flexible on the cloudy skies of late, but not so much for the cold water. Dr. M found it amusing and we spent some time chatting. She shared with me how she has no friends and only three contacts in her phone, including 9-1-1. I see a project there and can certainly fix her up with some more friends and contacts for her phone!

Sadly, after class was underway, M was way out in the deep water where she usually does her exercises when she let loose with a cry. She'd been stung on her thumb by a bee and was in considerable pain. Marlena applied some medication she has on hand for bug bites. The lifeguard gave her a frozen bottle of water to hold against the sore area after the two ladies used tweezers to pull out the stinger. (I got goosebumps up my arms thinking about this just now!)  M put her cover-up on and left. I sent her an e-mail this evening asking how she was doing but haven't heard back from her. We all hated for this to happen to Dr. M.

After class was over, I dripped for a bit before changing my clothes to run errands. My first errand was to get Justin's license plates renewed for him, for his birthday. Going to the DMV is a thrill, such interesting people sitting in the seats waiting for their number to come up. The receptionist gave me my number and I asked her how long the wait would be, explaining I had an appointment elsewhere at 2:30. She thought it would be 10-15 minutes which was fine with me. I got situated in the seats, two seats over from a lady with a purse which was actually a metal lunch box with Betty Boop on it. She mentioned that she heard me say I had an appointment and offered to trade numbers with me. That was so kind of her and I accepted her offer, she having no place else to be this afternoon. As it turned out, we both got done at the same time, but still, the offer was great and quite unexpected. 

I got Justin's new tags and off I went to Fleming Island. I had to stop at the bank to pay my credit card bill, only to discover the Bank of America no longer operates its drive-through. I had to drive-through the drive-through to go around the building and come back to the front of the bank. AND get out of the car and actually go in to take care of my business.  The teller greeted me by name, which surprised me since I only go there once a month to pay the bill, and he served me through the window. Anyway, he told me that there will be ATMs installed at some point which will be able to take payments. So, his job was basically morphing, if not going away completely, with this change coming into place. I told him I like speaking to people and having the personal touch, even if it's at the drive-through. He said that will soon be a thing of the past. Sad to know this...

The rest of my day will be detailed tomorrow, because I am getting drowsy at the keyboard. Sleep well, my friends, and see you in the morning!

A Monday wrap

Rather, it was a delicious sandwich, but I will get to that. My day began with an appointment at the imaging center. As I drove along Kingsley, I discovered Nancy W. was right behind me. We texted each other once arriving at our separate appointments, planning to meet up at the newly opened Metro Diner for a late breakfast. My appointment took longer than hers did, however, so our plans for late breakfast were changed to lunch at a different restaurant. The lines are simply too long yet at Metro since it is still new. We hope eventually to time our visit right to avoid the 30 minute wait. She is dying to have the waffles and fried chicken for which Metro is known.

She chose Pompeii for our meeting place and I was glad she did. Nancy recommended the pork sandwich which we both ordered. We noticed at another table three Navy folks sitting with a couple in civilian attire. They all had beers so we presumed they were not going back to the base after lunch. One of them was black so we also determined they were likely not all related. Hmmmm....I then remembered that two ships had returned to Mayport this morning and speculated this was a welcome home for these three folks. As they passed our table on their regular trips to the patio to smoke, I asked the young lady if they were celebrating something. She said they had just gotten back from deployment and we two ladies thanked them for their service and welcomed them home. 

Her appointment was to discuss headaches with her doctor, he thinking the bulging discs at the top of her spine might be the cause. She's had them for a while, suffers from scoliosis for which swimming is a blessing. I am sure talking with a surgeon wouldn't hurt so I think she might go ahead and keep the appointment. I wish her the best with this and hope the headaches don't get too bad in the meantime. We discussed all this over our meals, each of us ladies eating half of our sandwiches. Nancy ate some of my fries for me. The waitress boxed up the remaining halves for us and Nancy paid the bill. She treated me because she said she owed me a lunch. Nice! 

It was a rainy and gloomy day so no swimming for us today. Besides, Mondays are usually my TV watching day, JAG being shown on the preview channel of Comcast. Mom watches also up in WI, which is fun to know. Today, however, there is no JAG and won't be for several weeks. What's that all about? My neighbor's brother offered me the DVD set so with them I will get by, and hope that Mom will, too. 

Justin had asked me to start cleaning out the freezer because he wanted to restock it. Jesse has membership at Sam's Club and Justin wants to buy giant packs of chicken and cylinders of hamburger, etc. I don't know why that stuff is any better than the chicken and hamburger we already have in the freezer, but I am nothing if not a good sport. I took out a pack of hamburger with which I made meatloaf for our dinner. It turned out that Linda was having the exact same meal for dinner at their house. How fun is that?! 

Justin came home from work early due to being soaking wet, getting caught in a soaker out in Oakleaf. This might end up being a long week for him if this continues. The forecast shows rain percentages high the rest of the week, and high temperatures with them. Poor guy!

Noisy clouds!

Our afternoon pool fun went uninterrupted until late afternoon. This was so nice for a change. It seems at least once each weekend we have to make a run for it, or end up sitting on the side of the pool because it thundered. Many don't care for that rule, but I realize the lifeguards have to err on the side of safety. But, today, we had several hours together with no thunder and no splash 'n dash storms breaking up our fun.

These clouds formed over the river just before dusk and what a racket they are making now! Almost endless rumbling and grumbling, but thus far, no rain. 

I was later getting to the pool today due to having Bible study and church first. And then, of course, Chili's with my church group. I just love going with them. Some of us have various social engagements in the course of the week, but others do not, so that's what makes this time special, at least it is for me, for them!