Enjoying the Breeze

This morning Linda and I drove over to Victory for Bible study, our last time meeting at the tables in their kitchen. Next week their VPK program resumes, so we'll meet in the back of the church instead. Anyway, they had been 'warned' that Linda was joining us this week so there were plenty of seats at the tables. Linda even got a chance to read a portion of the text for which we'd done our homework yesterday afternoon.

Stephanie, Erica, Jean, and me at my home in 2013

The study was good, even better today because it's Stephanie's first time joining the group since retiring in June. Almost immediately after retiring she headed to her mom's house in WI to be with Jean through her knee replacement surgery. What a good daughter she is! A few years ago we played trivia together once a week at Johnny Angel's Diner but that ended so our visits were fewer. Later, we attended Bible Information Class together at Victory. Now, they will be weekly again!

I had pre-arranged with Dawn and Stephanie to join Linda and me for lunch at Bahama Breeze. Oh, I just love dining here alfresco. It's like being on vacation which I know is silly because I already live in FL. What was somewhat odd was that Stephanie and Dawn, both members of the same congregation, had to basically be introduced to each other. This is a problem when church's have more than one service, ending up with two separate congregations. I was unknowingly playing match-maker for these two and now they've gotten to know each other a bit better. Dawn lives in St. Augustine so doesn't come to church more often than worship and this study on Thursdays. I can't imagine the class without her!

The breeze was nice, in keeping with the name of the restaurant. Linda and I enjoyed adult beverages (Stephanie abstained because she wanted to do some things around the house this afternoon, and not sleep!) which helped to get Linda even warmer. It was 87 above zero outside which is just right for us who live here but too hot for my friend. We left the restaurant and stopped at Target in the Town Center to get soda and hamburger ($3.99 a pound!). She greatly appreciated the A/C in the car on the ride home. 

Because we were going to dinner tonight at The Club, we opted to not go out to the pool, which would have helped us to cool off. Instead we watched some TV and worked on our iPads until The Five. There may or may not have been a nap in there, too........We must be fresh for lovely steak dinners later at The Club!

Nancy W. met us two ladies there. We all ordered the steak from the special grille menu. The waitress boxed up my salad for me and was going to keep it in the fridge in the back to send home with Nancy later, but we forgot about it when we left. Shoot! I had about 3/4 of my steak remaining plus half my potato which will be good another time. Linda had leftovers as well to add to our collection in the fridge. We just need a day or two to polish off our leftovers until we start again!

Rain on our parade

This morning Linda and I were greeted by this lovely sunrise. I am thrilled that she is getting to see some this visit, as compared to last September when it was too overcast in the mornings to see such skies. Even caught a fish jumping, or finishing its jump in the near center of the shot. 

This morning we ladies went out for water exercise class, having great fun laughing and talking during our routines. I am mainly at fault here, as you might guess, But we have the ability to multi-task AND get a workout accomplished.  

Here is Linda at the pool. Again I caught her in the middle of something, perhaps sticking her tongue out at someone! 

The weather did not encourage us to remain outside for lunch today so we came upstairs and enjoyed leftovers instead. Our plans were to go to Target for soda and hamburger, plus I wanted to get a pedicure (something I'd planned to do before Linda arrived). As we walked out of the condo, the heavens opened and it began to pour. We turned right around and went back into the house. The sale is still on tomorrow so why go out in a storm?  

Instead of shopping and my foot grooming, we spent our afternoon hunched over homework for tomorrow's Bible study in Isaiah 60. I had an extra folder with the worksheets in it which Linda used. We alternated reading the passages and looking up the references, etc. for answering the questions on the sheets. That was fun to do, as Kim and Linda would. 

Speaking of Bible study---a week or so ago, I had been contacted by the pastor, asking if I would be willing to host a midweek Bible study at my house. This would take place during the time of Linda's visit, and because I'd already made other plans, I told him I'd have to clear it with her first. She said it was fine to do that so let him know we were good to go. The study was being aired from MLC and would be a on-line live, interactive session. Folks could come here or to church for the class, using the small group theory of study. 

Linda was surprised she had not heard about this class and later asked her pastor if FG was not going to participate in the Synod-wide study. He said they were but it didn't even start until the 9th. Oh my! So, after announcements had been made, emails sent, and promotions done in the newsletter, etc., it came to light that the class did, in fact, start later in the month. I let Pastor know this and he was glad I did, saying he must have written down the wrong dates at Conference. Oops! Good thing Linda asked her pastor or I could have a houseful of people here tonight (ever the optimist!) and no study to do.  Not that I mind company, of course, but still...

Therefore, our plans for tonight did not need to change and we walked over to Happy Hour at The Club as originally planned. It had rained this afternoon, of course, making it quite steamy outside. The AC was on in the Garden Room so Linda was comfortable. We shared a table with my friend, Kathy H. and her mom, Betty, plus others. For our dinner, we ordered the grilled cheese with bacon from the tapas menu which was extraordinary. I ate the whole sandwich, plus some of the homemade chips. So very delicious!

Tonight we are watching a movie I like very much, "Tea with Mussolini", continuing our Holocaust-theme started with "Woman in Gold". It is an all-star cast and is also based on a true story, as is Woman in Gold. This a great way to end our day!

Activities are underway

Yesterday Linda and I had a fun and full day of events including going to Grumpy's for breakfast and to the movies in the afternoon with Judy C. Today we started out with water exercise class with the ladies, all of whom knew well that she was coming. They did not know (unless they follow on Facebook) that she arrived ahead of schedule! So she was able to join our class a day sooner than expected. It was an absolutely lovely one, too, with no hurricane or tropical storm to affect us. Thankfully, Erika broke up after she hit land so never amounted to anything in the US. 

Ellen, my neighbor and friend, sent me this photo she took from river room window last evening. It is amazingly beautiful!

So, after our exercise class, about six of us stayed to have lunch around the pool. Marlena took our orders and got us our meals from the kitchen in The Club. Oh my gosh, the most delicious beer cheese soup! I ordered a bowl portion as did Linda so I had some to share with Justin. Linda and I shared a beef and Swiss wrap which was out of this world, too. Oh, my, so very good!

For dinner tonight we went to Koko's, another favorite place checked off Linda's list. They were a bit short-staffed but we didn't really notice. At least, not until I realized they forgot to serve us our cheese rangoons. Theirs are the best rangoons in Orange Park in my opinion. The waitress put in the order but somehow they got missed. No worries, Jimmy cooked us a wonderful meal and all was well with the world. The fridge is full of white to-go boxes! 

Linda brought several movies with her for us to watch. Already we watched "Woman in Gold" which I had purchased after seeing it in the theater. I look forward to sharing it with friends after pool season is over. We also have both movies from the "Marigold Hotel" series to watch, plus she brought "The 100 Foot Journey" which I'd also seen in the theater. We watched that one last night, and it's so good. Love movies with happy endings! 

Linda is here!

Linda came to Florida instead of TS/Hurricane Erika which is just fine with me. Better than fine---great!! Originally she was scheduled to arrive on Tuesday at 4:30 pm which was about when the storm was predicted to hit Jacksonville.  Chances are that the flight would never have landed here in FL during the height of the storm which would mean that she could end up spending the night in Atlanta (she'd rather go to jail than go to Atlanta!!). Tommy arranged for her arrival date to be Sunday instead, before the storm was expected. This plan change happened on Friday evening when the predictions for our area were more dire. Fortunately Erika broke up and basically became less of a threat, and now Linda gets an extra couple of days here with us!!!

Her flight was due to land at 10:15 pm last night and I was concerned about driving to the airport in a rainstorm. Justin offered to drive and I gratefully accepted. We had torrential downpours much of the day including one about an hour before we left which freaked me out. Thankfully the Lord heard my prayer and allowed us to drive to the airport and back again without being rained on. It was a relief to see Linda waiting for us at the pick-up point and we got her safely home. She and I sat up talking until after 1:00 am while Justin went to bed. The way the forecast looked in the afternoon, he expected to not work today at all, but once again, the weather pattern shifted which meant he was going to have to go in anyway, so needed to go right to bed.

I caught Linda mid-sentence as we waited for our waffles

Linda got up early this a.m. thinking she might see the sunrise but no such luck...She went back to bed and slept until almost 8.  When I came out of my room, she had already had some breakfast but allowed me to twist her arm a bit, pursuading her to go to Grumpy's for breakfast.  Linda treated me, that rascal. We each had the waffle, hers with fruit on top, plus crispy bacon. Loved the time there.  

We decided to go see a movie in the afternoon, "War Room, and arranged to meet Judy  at the theater. Before the movie Linda and I stopped at Target where I got 8 cases of soda which was again on sale four for ten dollars. We are going to return again during the week when we can spend a bit more time browsing instead of dashing in and out.

The movie was quite good, a real tear jerker. Made by the same people who produced the movies "Fireproof" and "Courageous", again covering the healing of interpersonal relationships using faith in the Lord and the Bible. It was powerful but a bit heavy in some of its messages. I won't give it away but it had us leaving moved and emotionally spent. At least this was true for Linda and me, not sure if Judy sobbed like the two of us did.  It was money and time well spent, especially so on a rainy day. 

This evening Justin, Linda, and I picked up Nancy W. to join us for dinner at 4Rivers. It was Linda's first time there and I talked her through the ordering process, telling her she had to order like on "The Soup Nazi" Seinfeld episode, ordering the meat and then moving along the line to get your sides and to pay. She had the brisket like Justin and I had while Nancy had the ribs. I brought home my side dishes and a biscuit, and even some of my brisket. We need more time to eat our leftovers. Good thing she came a couple days sooner to give us more time to eat our leftovers!  Early to bed tonight for these beauties, and Justin, too!

She is on her way!

The day began with Bible study and worship, usual for Sundays. After church our group went to lunch at Chili's, minus Betty, who has not been feeling well. She is going in for some tests soon to see what is happening with her digestive system. For some time now she's been doctoring, eliminating stuff from her diet, not unlike what Linda went through starting a year ago. I hope this is not the case for Betty, hoping for easier answers to help her feel better.

Back to lunch, it was great to have most of us together for our noon meal. Some football starts again and Justin will be missing from the table. At least so for the home games. He occasionally joins us for lunch at Chili's first and then goes to his friend's house to watch the games. Justin was supposed to have a tech appointment today but the lady cancelled so we decided to hit Publix on the way home. I had a list of things to have on hand for Linda's visit. She eats breakfast so we got some bagels and cream cheese for her, some fruit (bananas and grapes), bread for toasting including some cinnamon bread. Oh my, it looks good!

Earlier in the week Justin had wanted me to make my special meat loaf for which he was picking up green beans for me to steam as a side dish. We don't ordinarily have a veggie with our meals but he was hungry for this particular meal. That didn't end up happening so we bought the beans today to have at some future point. Perhaps we'll eat at home one night when Linda's here!  

Right now it's raining cats and dogs out there---worse than that, actually. The rain is coming down in sheets and the thunder is window rattling. I am more than a little stressed about having to drive to the airport in the rain, in the dark, but Justin has offered to be the driver. Whew!  He likely won't have to work tomorrow because the rainy forecast so staying up later than usual won't be so hard on him. Linda is due to land in JAX at 10:15 and I'd like to head that direction when it's still a bit light out. I'll treat my son to dinner at Longhorn, if he'd like to go. We shall see as the day and the storm progresses. Ugh, this weather! Really, enough already!

Erika or no Erika???

All the weather forecasts show that TS Erika, hopefully not Hurricane Erika, is heading this way. It moved from going east of the coastline to now moving northwest and coming at our area from the west. Tentative arrival for this storm is Tuesday, the day Linda was to arrive. Thankfully Tommy arranged for her to come sooner and hopefully beat the nasty weather in so doing. Now I am only concerned that we might lose power which would be a problem for Linda as she can't take the heat. Justin ordered a second battery pack for our phones which we can use to keep them charged in case we do lose power. He is ever ahead of the game. I am going to locate my battery operated hand fan so Linda can use that if needed. 

Today's weather was a test of our patience as it started out overcast, then cleared enough for some pool time to be enjoyed. But not for very long---we got thundered out of the pool so all went home to our own places. Nuts!  At least I got to have lunch with some of my friends first. Ollavan even got to have one of my 'special' hot dogs which I gave Marlena permission to serve to her. Shhh! 

Justin and I decided to have dinner at Metro Diner again, we are becoming regulars there! We are both trying to not be locked in to a certain entree, as is my custom, so we try to have something different. He had a Vortex burger which is ginormous, made with beef sandwiched between grilled cheese sandwiches. It's hard to explain---must be experienced to appreciate it! I had a three cheese grilled sandwich with bacon and tomato. We didn't have to wait for seating as we took 'first available' and ate on the porch. Every time I've been here, I think, it's been raining! I brought half of my sandwich home, as did Justin, which will be enjoyed another time. Love that Metro Diner!!

A storm is brewing!

This afternoon Nancy W. and I were escorted by Kay, my next door neighbor, to tour the Pace Center for Clay County. This program is the one I heard about for the first time at the Republican Women's meeting a few months ago. I was enthusiastic about it and was talking to some folks at the pool about it. Kay happened to be out there, too, and she said, in her charming drawl, "Kim, I'm on the Board for Pace..." How about that? She arranged for our tour of their temporary headquarters which is in donated space. 

We were taken to their community room where a director from the Center filled us in on the services provided through Pace for girls in 'at risk' situations at home or in school. It is quite a fine program in place for girls aged 8 to 17. A young lady came to talk to us about her experience there, having come into Pace that spring. She has already caught up enough academically that she plans to graduate next year at age 15! 90% of the girls from this program go on to graduate from high school which is a remarkable achievement. They go to school year 'round at Pace, so that helps the girls to get back on track as well. They have regular classes plus some virtual classroom work for them. All quite impressive. 

                                         

We were to treated refreshments on our visit to Pace, including these wonderful cupcakes, made and donated by Yum! Bakery in Orange Park. I ate mine when I got home and it was delicious! 

When I got home from the tour, I was awaiting the arrival of the housekeeper who would do my vacuuming. It turned out to be a man, the owner, who came. Fine with me!  He told me usually used the broom first to get the big stuff up, which was funny to me since I don't really have 'big stuff' to clean up. He had a round brush on a long handle which he used along the baseboards besides his broom and vacuum cleaner. Then he had a Swiffer style mop with which he used a spray-on cleaner, doing all the hard-surfaced floors. In two hours' time he had his job complete, including doing my bedroom and bath. I would certainly recommend his services to anyone, and perhaps use him again. 

Tonight our group was going to have a happy hour buffet at the pool, but the weather turned ugly. We are expecting a hurricane to come this way, Erika, and already the weather is affected. We decided instead to go to Dick's Wings on Fleming Island with Nancy and Bill picking up Nancy W. and me. We met Patty and Mark there, and later, Patty's daughter, Katie, joined us. The place was busy but the service was good. Many were there to watch the Jaguar pre-season game. Justin was at the game, sitting in the rain. 

We were discussing the coming storm and I mentioned Linda's arrival on the same day that Erika was expected to hit us. No one really knew what to think about it---what will happen or not happen. As we talked, Linda happened to called me. She said Tommy wanted her to ask me if she should come a day sooner to avoid the storm so I conferred with my friends. They all said Sunday would be the better choice to avoid getting caught in it flying down here. She said okay, and Tommy changed her flight so she arrives at 10:15 pm on Sunday night. What a relief for me, because I was concerned she'd be stuck in Atlanta waiting out the storm, or not able to come at all. Now I'm even more excited---to have Linda come sooner, not to see Erika come at all!