Since arriving in MN for the funeral, we have shared, laughed and remembered much. The previous posting about my grandparents will be under going some revisions, additions and than be back up live...
It is good to remember... lest you have forgotten
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Friday, October 16, 2009
yes, you affect my life..
There is no way to describe how FREAKIN HOT it was today. Now I don't buy into the whole global warming, black hole propaganda, and we have had Indian summers in Oct before as I grew up. I'm just announcing that I was really enjoying the few days of cloudy, cooler, rainy skies where inches of rain were falling around the Southland. AND I WANT it to stay that way for about 3 months. Much needed rain fell in the areas north of LA in numbers of like 9-10 inches where the reservoirs that are so badly depleted of needed resources are located. Mammoth has gotten some early snowfall which is another major source for water in the spring that flows down to the reservoirs. So I'm all for rainfall that comes from a season of it in steady amounts. Todays 90 degrees gives you a headache.
California doesn't really fluctuate in weather for too much of the year.. pretty much mild 60-80's and dont get me started about how cold we complain at the low end, or we are content with it for the most part. So the natural seasons of winter, spring, summer and fall are not to exciting, hence we jungle dwellers need to travel to those untamed natural parks, or countrysides of our state or into the many map sights who have seasons or vibrant colors.
As of many of the most recent years it seems the state has added a definitely wild, scary and at times deadly seasons; FIRE (in the late summer/early fall) and MUD (fall/winter) seasons have been added as two additional seasons that the media prepares for and drones on with as coverage warrants it. People have crowded into forests, hillsides, beaches, mountains, remote locations to build there dream homes, dream communities. I know that this is the ideal and serene place to commute before and after you have had a long work day. I as a tax payer who give and give to a government that leaks like the titanic of money wasted, don't believe it's your right to live there unless you are willing to pay for the protection it requires. It's beautiful scenery until.......
The fires start burning in absolutely any part of any of the above mentioned locations, started by man or a spark... These were once wild and open places and a fire could burn itself out without endangering property or person. But now the saving of property and person is the responsibility of each and every citizen who pays taxes no matter where they reside. Many of us, we watch the coverage on tv as the dollar meter runs on putting out anything from 10,000-65,000 at a time. I totally understand it's awfully frightening to be in this situation, but you chose to live here, now deal with it.
As we are now currently experiencing just after fires rip through several counties, we had an early rainstorm that dropped anything from 1.87-3.24 inches in these fire affected areas and the barren grounds without cover, just run with the dirt that was below it and it's called mud.. The state, counties and cities are than quickly setting up sand bags, the white cement barriers to divert water from the residents. It costs money to do this, overtime actually as storms don't come during daytime hours nor does the problem respect the time it takes to keep neighborhoods from sliding away from all of the water or mud flow. And again the tax payers you and I who don't live anywhere near it, are inundated with news coverage that is really just mind numbing repetitive warnings of the dire conditions forming. The government than gets involved with FEMA, Red Cross, where do you think the money comes from to fund these organizations. hmmmm
Thursday "say what":
I must admit, I watch a newscast about three times a year. I was watching Dr Oz the other morning when just as he was going to give this woman the answer to get rid of the area of fat that accumalates on her back just under her bra... I was mesmerized as to how you did this when....... channel 11 breaks in and with this picture of what appears to be a UFO of silver mylar balloon material from Fort Collins, CO. They are following what would have been told to be a "child in the base of the homemade balloon", this sucker that was thought to only float at 20 feet above the ground gets to the height of 7500 feet.. and they don't know if a 6 yr old is in it or not.. but it is being tracked and followed by the National Guard in the air and on the ground, by NORAD from CO armed forces that tracks everything in the air. Emergency crews are activated to be on alert whenever and however this comes down. It lands somewhere after losing helium in a field.. and no one is in the small base as suspected...
Now I'm not going to go any farther, you can read all the confusing details on any website. This little homemade project that went astray, or as a hoax or an inventors attempt went very bad, due to the scare of the 6 year old cost the federal, state and local a whole lot of money to follow it to it's conclusion, to investigate, to track all angles.. cha-ching wrack it up onto a government whose economy is not in the best of fiscal shape. Now I'm as pleased as the next person that he was found safe in his attic, but the rest of the what I'm hearing about his dad setting this up as a stunt... throw the book at him and make him fully responsible for restitution, not jail, just restitution for as long as it takes him to pay it all back. No more storm chasing till than.
California doesn't really fluctuate in weather for too much of the year.. pretty much mild 60-80's and dont get me started about how cold we complain at the low end, or we are content with it for the most part. So the natural seasons of winter, spring, summer and fall are not to exciting, hence we jungle dwellers need to travel to those untamed natural parks, or countrysides of our state or into the many map sights who have seasons or vibrant colors.
As of many of the most recent years it seems the state has added a definitely wild, scary and at times deadly seasons; FIRE (in the late summer/early fall) and MUD (fall/winter) seasons have been added as two additional seasons that the media prepares for and drones on with as coverage warrants it. People have crowded into forests, hillsides, beaches, mountains, remote locations to build there dream homes, dream communities. I know that this is the ideal and serene place to commute before and after you have had a long work day. I as a tax payer who give and give to a government that leaks like the titanic of money wasted, don't believe it's your right to live there unless you are willing to pay for the protection it requires. It's beautiful scenery until.......
The fires start burning in absolutely any part of any of the above mentioned locations, started by man or a spark... These were once wild and open places and a fire could burn itself out without endangering property or person. But now the saving of property and person is the responsibility of each and every citizen who pays taxes no matter where they reside. Many of us, we watch the coverage on tv as the dollar meter runs on putting out anything from 10,000-65,000 at a time. I totally understand it's awfully frightening to be in this situation, but you chose to live here, now deal with it.
As we are now currently experiencing just after fires rip through several counties, we had an early rainstorm that dropped anything from 1.87-3.24 inches in these fire affected areas and the barren grounds without cover, just run with the dirt that was below it and it's called mud.. The state, counties and cities are than quickly setting up sand bags, the white cement barriers to divert water from the residents. It costs money to do this, overtime actually as storms don't come during daytime hours nor does the problem respect the time it takes to keep neighborhoods from sliding away from all of the water or mud flow. And again the tax payers you and I who don't live anywhere near it, are inundated with news coverage that is really just mind numbing repetitive warnings of the dire conditions forming. The government than gets involved with FEMA, Red Cross, where do you think the money comes from to fund these organizations. hmmmm
Thursday "say what":
I must admit, I watch a newscast about three times a year. I was watching Dr Oz the other morning when just as he was going to give this woman the answer to get rid of the area of fat that accumalates on her back just under her bra... I was mesmerized as to how you did this when....... channel 11 breaks in and with this picture of what appears to be a UFO of silver mylar balloon material from Fort Collins, CO. They are following what would have been told to be a "child in the base of the homemade balloon", this sucker that was thought to only float at 20 feet above the ground gets to the height of 7500 feet.. and they don't know if a 6 yr old is in it or not.. but it is being tracked and followed by the National Guard in the air and on the ground, by NORAD from CO armed forces that tracks everything in the air. Emergency crews are activated to be on alert whenever and however this comes down. It lands somewhere after losing helium in a field.. and no one is in the small base as suspected...
Now I'm not going to go any farther, you can read all the confusing details on any website. This little homemade project that went astray, or as a hoax or an inventors attempt went very bad, due to the scare of the 6 year old cost the federal, state and local a whole lot of money to follow it to it's conclusion, to investigate, to track all angles.. cha-ching wrack it up onto a government whose economy is not in the best of fiscal shape. Now I'm as pleased as the next person that he was found safe in his attic, but the rest of the what I'm hearing about his dad setting this up as a stunt... throw the book at him and make him fully responsible for restitution, not jail, just restitution for as long as it takes him to pay it all back. No more storm chasing till than.
If you don't agree, I don't really care.... you can blog your thoughts and I will read them.
late night post #3
I was in bed, and as usual forgot to take the pain med for the foot. It takes awhile for it to take affect and so the tossing and turning and yet trying to keep the sheets from touching my foot while it's propped up on a pillow to hang over the edge of it.. So once again I get up, and am sitting here doing this and watching tv.. Roseanne is an old show that has a corny laugh factor to it and so it's what I have been watching on those nights just like this.
Now tomorrow I won't be able to sleep late and so can't sit here to long, but it is currently 1:15am. Yes, I laid in bed for about 45 minutes and the pain was beating out the pain med, but I refuse to take a second tab when I need to get up in the morning. Two tabs of morphine is a good sleep agent.
Tonight after dinner (that we all contributed to in some way) Greg and I went for a walk... yep that's what I said, A WALK.. and I'm telling you that I worked up a sweat and it was cool outside after a warm day... are you curious as to how far I walked for the first "official" walk, well second.. I only made it to the school the first time last week. But tonight, I/we walked all the way to the corner of... Rose and Woodruff.. that is the end of our street and is .2 of a mile each way.. so woo hoo..
Being that my strength and stamina are on the low end of what I would consider desireable, something has to work towards it. While I wait for the spinal doc to give his blessing for P/T and lift the restrictions of no bending, twisting, lifting, pushing, pulling. I have been thinking lately that the Wii Fit might work out, for as much fun as we have with the games with extended family at Christmas last year might be an answer. The other day I text my friend Bonnie before a dr appt if she had time for lunch, she said she was home waiting for repair guys but come over.. so we quickly went out for drive thru El Pollo Loco and than to her house. I mentioned about the Wii Fit idea and Bonnie showed me what it was like since she had one.. so I think the basic levels are alot of what I could do now on many of the options in it. Later when I was leaving she said I could borrow it. So that night I sent Shane to pick it up after Chase had unhooked it for us, and if he hadn't been there Shane could have figured it out.
So today Shane hooks it up while I'm sleeping on the couch.. thinking he'd hook it up on downstairs TV in the den on the BIG screen and where theres more space. I wake to find he is upstairs in my room playing the game on our tv as Mr Miaggi and laughing his head off, so happy to be beating my friends score. He figured that since I'm only test driving it, he was keeping his xbox on the den tv for now.. But trust me should I decide to get Wii Fit of the next thing that is coming out, the big screen is mine.. he will be moved to the little tv in the other room... haha hahahahahahahaha ahhahahahaha the evil mother has spoken!
well, it's now 2am and so I will now text Ashley as she is on her way to her morning roll call, and I will head back to bed..
Now tomorrow I won't be able to sleep late and so can't sit here to long, but it is currently 1:15am. Yes, I laid in bed for about 45 minutes and the pain was beating out the pain med, but I refuse to take a second tab when I need to get up in the morning. Two tabs of morphine is a good sleep agent.
Tonight after dinner (that we all contributed to in some way) Greg and I went for a walk... yep that's what I said, A WALK.. and I'm telling you that I worked up a sweat and it was cool outside after a warm day... are you curious as to how far I walked for the first "official" walk, well second.. I only made it to the school the first time last week. But tonight, I/we walked all the way to the corner of... Rose and Woodruff.. that is the end of our street and is .2 of a mile each way.. so woo hoo..
Being that my strength and stamina are on the low end of what I would consider desireable, something has to work towards it. While I wait for the spinal doc to give his blessing for P/T and lift the restrictions of no bending, twisting, lifting, pushing, pulling. I have been thinking lately that the Wii Fit might work out, for as much fun as we have with the games with extended family at Christmas last year might be an answer. The other day I text my friend Bonnie before a dr appt if she had time for lunch, she said she was home waiting for repair guys but come over.. so we quickly went out for drive thru El Pollo Loco and than to her house. I mentioned about the Wii Fit idea and Bonnie showed me what it was like since she had one.. so I think the basic levels are alot of what I could do now on many of the options in it. Later when I was leaving she said I could borrow it. So that night I sent Shane to pick it up after Chase had unhooked it for us, and if he hadn't been there Shane could have figured it out.
So today Shane hooks it up while I'm sleeping on the couch.. thinking he'd hook it up on downstairs TV in the den on the BIG screen and where theres more space. I wake to find he is upstairs in my room playing the game on our tv as Mr Miaggi and laughing his head off, so happy to be beating my friends score. He figured that since I'm only test driving it, he was keeping his xbox on the den tv for now.. But trust me should I decide to get Wii Fit of the next thing that is coming out, the big screen is mine.. he will be moved to the little tv in the other room... haha hahahahahahahaha ahhahahahaha the evil mother has spoken!
well, it's now 2am and so I will now text Ashley as she is on her way to her morning roll call, and I will head back to bed..
Thursday, October 15, 2009
I Love Flowers
These are the roses that I got from Greg for my birthday (I didn't take a picture right away), I had also received a bouquet of flowers from Brian and April.
This beautiful bouquet was delivered on Oct 4th just before we left for church, the flowers are "peace lilys" and there are intermixed with the plant.. It was from my sister Stacy's family to Ashley and I. This was the day of her farewell and also my birthday.
Today as I opened the front door after the bell was rung, I expected my friend Mary who had called she was coming over. But arriving at the same time was my turkish neighbor Sevgi, holding this beautiful bouquet of flowers. I asked her if they were from her garden and she said no that she had been trying to deliver them for a couple of days but hadn't had any luck with someone being home. She is a sweet woman and works hard.
Oct. 9th Family Night Before Departure
geez, I needed some makeup, but oh well
Brian and April
Ashley packed and ready to go
This is a picture that I had been thinking of taking and since it was the last possible night, no time like the present and waiting til the last minute. While I was stirring dinner Greg came to me and asked if I wanted him to take the picture.. what a sweety that he thought of that while it was still light. And you ask WHY is this picture below significant? And it is only to us (me) as for years... since the kids have added one car after another to our "family", our 150 ft of cement has not been enough to house them all. And I have actually being blessed to have always had the parking spot in the garage (see my car in there?) Now heres been the rub for me is that I like green grass and at one time enjoyed it green (our yard is actually weeds all grown together tightly to appear as grass) and mowed just so. I used to take care of this no matter what shift I was working at UPS, it was done regularly and fertilizer, nutrients were added to it. And than as part of our advancement into teenage drivers, this sadly came to an end as U-Turns were made to work themselves out of a pinched in position OR they would simply park on the lawn. I HAD TO let go of it and truly it's such a big yard, it stunted it's growth and lessened my work. Shane being the only one without an allergy to grass (Greg/Brian) defer to him to take care of it. So this was as Ashley goes off to her job and life, the last night of all 5 cars in the backyard.. and that the four are all on the driveway is not how it actually would have worked because Brian truck is plugging the escape route as the edge of the house is just to the left of his back bumper.. ha ha ha
We all had dinner together, having invited my parents who had just arrived down in so cal in there motorhome, and Brians girlfriend April. I made taverns and my mom brought her pea salad which was my choice, and Grandma Cooks Pink Lady salad which was Ashleys favorite to add to the table fare.. When we were full and the table cleared, we sat around the table playing a dice game called Farkle. Now beings that our kids (three of them mind you) were all in sports, at the same time, different places, different counties at times and both days of the weekend some years with soccer. We didn't take the time or play table games. So hence this night, it took a little bit, one for them to grasp what we were doing and why? ha, and two how you played the game in spite of having help from my dad who is sharp at this game. But once we had gone around a dozen or so times, and points started to tally up, they picked up on it and were into it. We had a good time playing several games to 10,000 points, laughing plenty, and just sharing the time together.
What you see on the table in the blue topped container and plastic glass is the protein drink of all three of my kids, special shaker, and apparantly NOW was the time. The boys both needed to have her "shake" them the concoction as the night grew later.. what they won't do.
So this was that time for our family that when the all call is made that we are hanging out together, the kids have rarely hesitated to come together for family whether ours, or extended. Oh yea, there friends at times got in line ahead of us, but that we were good with and never resented this as we go with whoever shows up or just the two of us. For the day has come as we begin to change our home dynamics forever, in that we may scatter to the far ends of the earth, our hearts are forever intertwined. Our prayers will always be spoken for each other from wherever we are, and that we will do whatever we can to be in contact. In person, by phone, on facebook, texting, skype, so as you see we would have to be under a rock to claim our family as separated.
What you see on the table in the blue topped container and plastic glass is the protein drink of all three of my kids, special shaker, and apparantly NOW was the time. The boys both needed to have her "shake" them the concoction as the night grew later.. what they won't do.
So this was that time for our family that when the all call is made that we are hanging out together, the kids have rarely hesitated to come together for family whether ours, or extended. Oh yea, there friends at times got in line ahead of us, but that we were good with and never resented this as we go with whoever shows up or just the two of us. For the day has come as we begin to change our home dynamics forever, in that we may scatter to the far ends of the earth, our hearts are forever intertwined. Our prayers will always be spoken for each other from wherever we are, and that we will do whatever we can to be in contact. In person, by phone, on facebook, texting, skype, so as you see we would have to be under a rock to claim our family as separated. Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Oct 4th, a farewell gathering
Sunday Oct. 4th we gathered with family and friends at our house which was a special request of Ashleys before she headed to Army 3 yr committment. Her first assignment is Officers Basic Leadership Course (OBLC) in San Antonio, TX. Reporting Oct. 14 and graduating on Dec 7th in ceremony and than continuing on in a two week nurses track. In this they train on setting up field hospitals until Dec 18. She will be home at Christmas until she has to leave for Germany. Her orders came through somewhat last minute and on Jan. 4th she reports to Landstuhl, Germany, her first choice and first choice she received. We are a proud family.
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