Stumbleupon, Digg, Del.icio.us and what I'm doing

For one thing I got rid of my google toolbar, sorry google, and delicious and all the rest, I installed bookmarklets which I admit I didn't know about since I just got back into the computer thing hot and heavy after several years absence. I was actually trying to figure out why firefox was using immense amounts of memory.
For another thing all my blogger friends!! WHEN you have a particularly good post I am submitting it to digg, del.icio.us, and stumbleupon. Not asking anyone to do the same for me but........no seriously we should use those tools more and even tweet about great articles, I don't always do that but I'm starting NOW. I've been stumbleing some etc. and am making a conscious effort to do so now.
Also since I can't put this plug in too many places, CHANGE your bookmarks to my NEW blog addresses and please change on your blog log if I'm so honored to be there?
Florence View is now Tresa's Blog and Animals that Give Pause is the same name just .com @ the end. Yes I own my own .com, LOL.
I need to get outside and get my fat lazy dog who is on my lap outside while it's not raining!!

Beaumont Texas Tornado And My Good Luck

Yesterday there was a tornado in Beaumont Texas. What is so remarkable about this tornado? No warning, no thunderstorm warning or watch. Just all of a sudden a tornado appeared and was on the ground a short period of time thank goodness. It hit Wal Mart and Kohls @ the Parkdale Mall and Barnes and Noble is closed today, I think Petco also, minor injuries but roofs torn off, cars piled up one on top of another in parking lots. Why do I mention this in my blog? I was in Beaumont yesterday 2 hours before the tornado. Why? if you knew me I would say I got a wild hair. My husband insists on wearing Levis 501 jeans and I needed internet. So I went to a coffee shop in Bridge City TX with wi fi and downloaded some software I needed for at&t internet (which I got hooked up all by myself at&t internet people, thank you very much). While I was on the internet I scoped out a J C Penny's that was close by, they have Levis (also Arizona t shirts and bras on sale but we won't talk about that). So I went to J C Penny's, I actually thought I was in Beaumont but was in Port Arthur. I remember the weird rain, off and on and the dark clouds but being from the midwest these storms are usually nothing down here. The clouds were a little droopy. So I decided to go home a different way so I could be a little more oriented. BTW Bridge City is named that for a reason and I'm not fond of high bridges. If you saw a caddy going about 50 yesterday that's because my body was frozen going up over that bridge. I had my laptop in my car, it's old but it's really precious to me, I could imagine how my car and laptop would have survived being tossed around in a parking lot.
So I went home through Beaumont, it was REALLY the long way around, I probably drove 40+ miles when 20 would have gotten me back the other way but I know how to get around a bit and how the highways are situated. In case you don't follow my life with bated breath I've only been down here in TX a couple days, I've never really been in this area before. So we are watching the news last night and there's been a tornado in Beaumont and it tore up jack. The bottom two pictures are of the normal sky today, there are supposed to be storms again later. I'm counting my lucky stars today. I could have easily decided I needed to go to Barnes and Noble or Petco (two of my favorite stores) up there in Parkdale Mall.

As I mentioned before this tornado came with no warning, the weather service would have said a 0% chance of tornadoes @ that time in Beaumont. Evidently there were two storms close together and when one was forming it caught the downdraft of the first one in it's updraft and that made a tornado? It's not funny but you should have seen the TV weather people trying to explain WHY there were no warnings or watches and HOW something like this could have happened in an area that isn't horribly tornado prone. I used to follow hurricane forecasting very closely and have always been interested in weather and tornadoes. I always said about the forecast down here by the coast if they say 30% chance of rain they mean it will rain 30% of the time, 40% ............

Oh and I get down here Saturday, (went to my first rodeo and had a great time otherwise) and then Sunday there are 3 storms in the Atlantic and it's going to rain, I think I draw these things maybe?

Wordless Wednesday (with captions)

Guess how old?

Log Cabin and Day Lillie's part of my ornamental grass too.

Day Lillie's





My boundary beds, divides the main lawn from the lawn
by the road? I just turned around from taking the ornamental
grass picture to take this one.



Hibiscus I (OK I doctored the picture a bit)

Hibiscus II

Cabin and planter. We never lived in the cabin, my dads nanny
did though with her mom and dad and sisters. This is where the
cats go when they want privacy or away from the dogs.

Revenge And Forgiveness

Fake Tracking Dog Sends Man To Prison Link

So long story short this supposed miracle dog tracks scents after a hurricane goes through, scents that were there before the hurricane. I've seen what a hurricane does, there were no snakes and not many insects for a couple years after, much less scent? Gimme a break! This guy is in prison for 26 years for a crime he didn't commit!

What is so horrible about the whole thing is the dog and his handler were found to be fakes twenty years before this guy got out of prison, he spent 20 years in prison because someone forgot to maybe check up on the cases this "star" witness testified against. I think the state of Florida should be held accountable and establish some sort of program so this can't happen again even though they are in financial straits like the rest of us, perhaps they could fire a few of the prosecutors who used the fake tracking dog and use that money?

I don't know whether this man is suing anyone or not, the article doesn't say. I'm not a sue-happy person @ all but I think he has grounds against someone?

So in cases that aren't as extreme as this in your own lives are you forgivers or grudge holders. Do you burst into flaming rage or simmer till it's like a volcano erupting? I must confess my husband is a forgiver with flaming rage, I'm a grudge holder that erupts. I don't get mad often but when I do it's not pretty and people will know about it. Like my step-son said, "Dad has a temper and you don't want to make him mad, but if you make TC mad, WATCH OUT."

So what do you think?

Triple Murder Suspect Arrested

You can read about the triple murder of the members of the Leutjen family here.
The Suspect is apprehended here.

It seems the murder suspect is Donnie and Sharon's nephew and they are speculating the motive was robbery. Does this make us feel any safer in our homes around here. Maybe a bit. I know if my nephew wanted money all he would have to do is ask, I'd probably tell him I'm broke but it would be close to the truth. I still lock the door when I'm in the other end of the house. Don't know if this botched robbery was because of the economy or just plain greed. I can't see how the nephew thought he was going to fence anything (most of Donnie's collections were quite famous, hard to fence stuff like that) or that Donnie would just keep money laying around the house but maybe there's more to it than that. They are still looking for other suspects or actually they said "We have evidence that links at least one more, if not multiple suspects to this homicide."

I'm lucky in that I have police officers living next door and we all work different shifts that change, like we have anything worth stealing but....... I know my security system works because the kids have came to the house unexpectedly more than once and been VERY surprised, IE I call the house and ask them what they are doing there or someone comes in in the middle of the night demanding to know WHO'S THERE. Also being known as slightly crazy and having a temper doesn't hurt either? :-)

So I've booked way too much into the next two weeks so my blogging will be on hold mostly. Suddenly realized my drivers license was up for renewal, need birth certificate here in MO now, need to get it because I spent two hours looking for it and nada, nothing. Wienie roast, need to clean house, trip to dentist, and there's that work thing that keeps getting in there.
Got the lawn mowed, yey me!!! but it will need it again soon because we have had like 2 real days totally without rain. Oh yeah, my daughter is coming to visit and I'm squeezing a short trip in there? Mountains of laundry, have to go pick up a vehicle....... better get busy. It's good to be able to walk and do again though! Here's the scoop on my bloodclot on that on Animals That Give Pause, this is the most recent post.

Parking In Your Own Driveway Illegal In Toledo Ohio

Not much time to write but I just had to share this with you. Here's the link from abc. Now I'm sure the mayor has a law to back this all up but I'm also sure this law was put into effect to prevent you from being a shade tree mechanic on your own front lawn. Basically in Toledo Ohio the police are giving tickets to people who park in their own gravel driveways? I know cities are strapped for cash just like the rest of us but making it impossible and a further financial drain on it's citizens to even exist in those cities isn't solving anything, even in OH. This is just plain stupid.

Also this article reminded me of a story that was told to me by an executive in a shipping company in Wisconsin. Said executive had several children, one of the boys got married and the new parents-in-law and his wife went down to Arkansas from Wisconsin to meet the in laws. People from Arkansas are really going to think I'm mean after this one but some of my best friends live in Arkansas. Anyway the daughter-in-law told her parents-in-law to turn left @ the house that had a washer and dryer and a couple couches sitting in front of the house, (that wasn't her parents house, it was just a turning point) then turn right @ the house that had the car on blocks in the front yard and the dog pens and orange stuffed chairs sitting outside (another turning point) and go on one mile or something like that. Rick thought the daughter-in-law was kidding but she was giving precise detailed driving directions. This was several years ago, we have become more homogenized since then as to the appearance of our lawns and homes but I used to notice the sharp differences between states and the appearance of homes and lawns in each. Driving to Wisconsin from Missouri through Illinois or going further east to Ohio was like "where do these people get their time and money to make their homes look like THIS?" (Also with all the new Mc Mansions going up previously it was like, how come there are so many rich people now but we know they weren't really rich, just in above their heads) No I don't have appliances or stuffed furniture outside but I'm sure within 5 miles you can find some. I'm also not above letting the dogs have a pop bottle to play with if they leave it laying on the lawn and I do have a fish stringer and fishing line from the boys laying by the back door plus a pair of my husbands rubber boots, I'm hoping the rain washes the mud off of them eventually?

Just my viewpoint. Have to go get gas for the mower after that little diatribe. I can't mow I don't think though, buckhorns and clover that we call lawn is getting tall but we have had like 4 inches of rain in the past 24 hours. Part of my lawn furniture was 100 ft from the house and the glass table blew over, it's never blown over before, hopefully the storms are over for awhile. Photos are my lawn, not Ohio.

Tragedy And Life In Mid Missouri

Three people were killed earlier this week in Cole Camp, killed were the grandparents and granddaughter who lived with them, 61, 64, and 15 years of age respectively. The authorities have now declared it a triple murder. Motive? Either it was a robbery gone bad or someone had a grudge. My sympathies go out to the family and I in no way am making light of this tragedy by writing about it. Read more here. I didn't know these people but I'm sure I knew them to say hi or recognize them. They were close friends of one of my best friends. There is a news conference in an hour or so and I'm hoping there is some closure and answers.

My memory is sometimes faulty but there have been few murders close by here. A VERY close family friend in the 70s who left 3 young sons was killed in a robbery gone bad, a man was found dead laying in the highway not 300 ft from our house, he'd been laying there either dead or alive when a car ran over him, that happened in 2004 I think. Two people were killed in the 80s by a family member about 7 miles west of here as the crow flies. A boy I knew evidently went nuts and started shooting @ his family members in the 90s, someone shot someone in a trailer we had listed when I was a real estate agent in 1991. A boy whom I grew up with was shot and killed a few years ago when he walked back in a house he'd been in as a guest, I mean he walked out and walked back in? We aren't heavily populated here but crime isn't non existent but traffic tickets make up a great bulk of police work here in the country and smaller towns. This is a shock to our systems. I hope it reminds everyone to pull their loved ones closer, watch out for your neighbor, and we will all be locking our doors more frequently. I don't know if our low crime is due to the heavy German population and Mennonite population or the fact everyone knows everyone and we all have guns?

I hope anyone who has information will come forward to shed some light on this senseless tragedy.

Postscript: It's Saturday and I should be doing my eternal yard work but this crime is still preying on peoples minds around here. Cole Camp had not had a murder in all 170 years of it's existence, the other crimes I cited were in neighboring towns, none of which can boast of such a record, not even our little town of maybe 75 with 500 people in the suburbs (small farms and acreages surrounding the town). The news media and police have descended on the town en masse as you can imagine. People are locking their doors more, even when they are home and awake which is unheard of here and taking the keys out of everything they can think of. My personal feelings? It's rumored to be someone the victims knew well, if so it was perhaps a robbery but perhaps also a crime of passion, this is a horrible scenario but almost better than the alternative. If it was a random act of robbery from a stranger it could happen to anyone anytime anyplace. After visiting and living in larger cities in the 1990s I always said here where we live if you got shot you knew who did it and probably why, not like the larger cities where crime is not only more rampant but is often completely random.

Adventures With Bluetooth

I've learned more about cell phones and bluetooth than I ever wanted to know in the past day. My husbands company gave him a bluetooth for his phone because they aren't supposed to be distracted @ all during the day which is a great safety policy! So now he can answer the phone and talk without using his hands. Problem is he has me do all the phone and computer things and he is 700 miles away and he had to connect the bluetooth. I'm pretty good on computers but haven't messed with them much lately, phones I can punch the numbers in and send pictures etc. connect with the web but that's about it. I'm always afraid something is going to cost money after our first bag phone cost like $11 a minute when roaming in Utah once. Does anyone even remember bag phones?
So he gets the bluetooth and tries to connect it to his phone, trouble is I was @ a family gathering till late and he was out to dinner so he didn't try to get this all working till almost 11pm last night, I was in bed TRYING to go to sleep. We had both been up since 5 am. He says he's not firing up his computer so we will see if he reads this, LOL. Anyway after a couple conversations, the last one consisting of I thought we were going to get this going in the MORNING!, we said goodnight, or rather he said love you bye right after that. So I couldn't sleep then and got up and googled how to connect a motorola to a samsung. Turns out I had the wrong samsung and the menu options were different. Neither one of us had the owners manual for his phone since it's my old one that I got from my grandson who got it from my daughter when she got a state of the art phone from my other daughter, got that? I bought husband a new phone but he didn't like it so I have that one and he got my old one which isn't old, it's a slider and actually pretty neat. I have one with a keyboard which is what I was after all along but I need a memory card now and a bigger texting plan, I can see this!
Somehow my husband who is not dumb @ all and in some ways is probably smarter than I am (read he's a genius but I don't like to admit it) is convinced computers and anything related to them such as cell phones and bluetooth are evil beings set upon this earth to torment him. He can figure out what's wrong with an engine by listening to it or looking @ the exhaust quite often. I swear he's not as computer illiterate as he says because somehow when we first got internet back in the 90s he figured out how to go to history to see what web pages I'd been on? This was like the FIRST time he was on the internet so I think he's playing dumb quite often so I will do things for him?
So after 3 phone calls this morning and a few web pages, downloading the proper owners manual we finally figured it out.
The steps are:

1. Enable bluetooth on your phone usually under settings. (OK, for those who are truly phone illiterate you get to settings under menu usually)
   
2. Turn your bluetooth headset on, this might require holding the button for several seconds.
3. Go to Tools or Connectivity (the connectivity one is the one that had us stumped) look for bluetooth and click on add new device or something like that. It should find the headset, you might have to enter a pin code off of the bluetooth device or the phone or both.
   
4. The phone should pick up the headset and you can click on connect and voila! it should all work just fine.
   

So that's a short and dirty guide for all of you who may have been putting off getting a bluetooth headset. If you have problems call BR 549.
Now I think there is a way to get my cell phone pictures off of the sim card and onto my computer but I'm not sure how, going to find out!
Postscript, duhhhh, figured it out, email them. Didn't know I could do that, told you I was phone challenged.

The New Less Is More

This is my spa. Someone yelled @ me as I left work and said it's 89 degrees out there, I said I'm laying in the sun then!! So I decided to do just that, I have a nice lawn it's a shame to always be working in it, I need to enjoy it. An old chaise lounge lawn chair, a glass of wine (I don't drink enough to be considered a drinker, just seemed to be appropriate, it even had a cork!) suntan lotion, my phone, a towel to wipe the suntan lotion off of everything and flip flops, (we don't call them thongs anymore, no no no!). I called everyone I could think of, drank wine, suntanned flipped over. Then I napped a bit, bichon crawled on top of me and the other dogs (I'm watching the bulldog Opal for my daughter while she's on a trip) couldn't be left out, I finally convinced them the shade was better for them, napped some more and watched the things you aren't supposed to have floating around behind your eyelids when you close your eyes. I listened to the birds call and watched the cumulus clouds build and dissipate. Flipped over again, listened to the kittens in the bushes, called another person. Wondered if the Mockingbird that wakes me up @ 3 am (I just know it's him, not that many different birds take turns calling @ 3 am) was within shooting range.

Then I noticed how many bees were flying around, nope they were flies, but they weren't bothering me? I thought maybe I should move the cat food from by the back door. Then I looked over, saw the bird feathers scattered about, kitty has been being kitty again, then I saw a snake wrapped around a folded up lawn chair by the cat food, it was dead. It was more than dead, it looked like it died in the throes of agony. The only thing I could figure is the cats tortured it to death and it was striking @ them (garter snake, harmless) and it had a heat stroke in the sun because they had it cornered. So I got rid of it in the gravel road and the flies left and the dog crawled up on top of me again, the cats got under the chaise lounge and we just had a grand old time. There was another glass of wine in there too I believe?

Part of this was brought about by listening to a broadcast on PBS about a lady who had been watching prairie dogs and thought she would go mad the first three days. The fourth day she couldn't write down what the prairie dogs were doing fast enough, because she had learned how to slow down and really observe them and be in the place. The more we know about a place and observe what is going on the more we are really in tune with the place and learn about it. So I was one with my lawn, and my glass of wine, and my bichon, and my borrowed English Bulldog, and the birds, and my lab, and my phone and sun tan lotion too I suppose. Of course the terrier, lab, schnauzer,and cats figured in too. For those who are interested a guy has spent his life studying prairie dog language and they have "words" for man with red shirt, man with blue shirt, man with gun, man without gun, lady with yellow shirt, and so on; it's totally amazing to me. And when left undisturbed the prairie dogs get up out of their little burrows in the morning and face the rising sun with their little paws folded across their chests for half an hour like a religious meditation. Then in the evening they do the same thing toward the setting sun before heading to their burrows. I found it fascinating and that was before any wine!

It was a simple couple hours but thoroughly different and refreshing. I'm sure most of us have learned to make more out of less even if we don't have to. I think we should celebrate it instead of bemoaning the new way of life. Of course I would like a wooden chaise lounge with cushions but then I would have to be more careful with it, this old $9 one from the discount store does just fine as long as it still supports me. I can't stand expensive wine, there's no way to get a sun tan and be cool except a tanning booth I suppose but I've never been in one. Aren't we all supposed to have a lack of vitamin D? I have my supply for a couple days. The bird song and the clouds moving will be in my head for a long time as will the prairie dog stories and the sounds of dogs snuffling (the bulldog) by my ear. Just a generally satisfying spring afternoon.

Most Wonderful Favorite Award

This award is based on friendship. My friend SquirrelQueen passed it on to me on her blog Through Squirrel Eyes . Thank you very much SquirrelQueen I am honored. I would like to change the rules and pass it back to who gave it to me but that's not the idea!
These are the rules in accepting this award:



Deliver this award to eight bloggers who then must choose and deliver the award to eight more and include the following text into the award.





"These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers."





I would like to honor the following bloggers. As noted in the text above, my aim is to find them as friends. These are blogs that I hope everyone will visit and follow.

Oranmental, by Nina.

aMusings Blog, by aMusing.

Drawing and Painting, by Poet.

Hypnotic Visualization, by Monaliza.

Checkers The Peek A Poo, by Checkers.

A Majority of Two, by Jo.

Eduardo The Snuggle Puggle, by Eduardo.

My Fire Hydrant, by Bev and Bailey.

Once again thanks SquirrelQueen, and for those who read my other blog Animals that give pause I didn't make a mistake, I won the award twice!!!

Life Changes

Just when you think life will go on like it is it changes. I've been waxing rather philosophical lately and there is a reason. My life or my future has changed drastically in the last month or so. I hesitate to write about it because I don't want to jinx it but as Monaliza has pointed out in her blog Hypnotic Visualization I have to own my life and dreams and visualize positive things. Also it's funny but my friend SquirrelQueen posted about a river today and how it ebbs and flows like our own lives on The Road To Here today. When Monaliza commented on my beautiful garden home it was all the more poignant because I knew I would be leaving it.

What's the big change, it's all good, the answer to our prayers actually. Husband has a new job. The problem, it's 700 miles away right now and possibly further later on. The benefits? Retirement, excellent pay, being able to pay our BILLS (notice capitalization!) and save, we will get to see each other every day, husband won't have to fight for truck loads and drive all night on icy roads as I stress. The drawbacks, it's so far away from friends family and home although I'll get to come home often. We had just decided to bite the bullet and we both work after being in business for ourselves for years then this job comes along and it's just too good to pass up. We have family here (police officers next door!) that will take care of the house and probably one of the kids will move into it. If so we will build a new one that is smaller and more sensible (we will probably build a shop or storage building and move out of this house so the kids can really use it) but we were just getting this one whipped into shape after being gone 2 years cleaning up after hurricanes. I won't have to work but will do something because I've always helped my husband in his business. We have a really nice 5th wheel to live in while we are away from home that we bought while cleaning up after hurricanes.

So life changes. I never thought I'd be thinking about building a new house, that part isn't set in stone yet but it's a possibility (the first time I've even considered it). I'll be @ home most of the summer, we are doing this all gradually, planning the smart way for once. As my daughter told my husband (her stepfather) "it's too good a job, no complaining and no quitting and could you take my husband too?" His daughter told him he could always step in a pile of poop and come up with a rose. Old saying in case you aren't familiar with it. Hopefully all 7 kids will come visit us often. I'll still be blogging, the younger dogs will come with us, the cats and older dog will have to stay here (6 cats in a camper don't work no matter how big it is) but there will be people here they are all used to so it will be fine. Life changes and stays the same. What stays constant is the people who truly matter.

I've Been Awarded Neno's Award!!

The award is:

1) a dedication for those who love blogging and love to encourage friendships through blogging.
2) to seek the reasons why we all love blogging.
And I received the award from....... Monaliza M. Amid she said it was for my beautiful garden home that inspires her to get one one day, my husbands and my combined hobby is our yard so that sentiment is very precious.

The aims of this award:

1. As a dedication for those who love blogging and love to encourage friendships through blogging.
2. To seek the reasons why we all love blogging.
3. Put the award in one post as soon as you receive it.
4. Don't forget to mention the person who gives you the award.
5. Answer the award's question by writing the reason why you love blogging.
6. Tag and distribute the award to as many people as you like.
7. Don't forget to notify the award receivers and put their links in your post.

THE NENO'S AWARD IS NOW PASSED ON TO:

aMusings Blog because she makes me think.

Suze my cousin who doesn't blog but should, hint hint.

My cousin Peggi who is a guest writer sometimes! She designs web sites, me blogging was her idea.

CJ @ ShoppingKharma because she give me courage.

AND the reasons I love blogging?

1. Exposure to new ideas through others comments and blogs and "meeting" so many interesting people. I've even had an author of a book comment on my Missouri Books when I wrote about his book, scary.
   
2. Ability to vent @ times or share what I'm thinking, I think my relatives and friends are rather relieved they don't have so many lengthy emails to wade through, my daughter admits she scans them.
3. I can take pretty pictures and share.
4. I can share experiences.
5. I found I can write which I never thought I could do, sure if it was an ebay ad or I was venting I could write but I can actually write about any given subject, who knew? Mom would be proud, then she would correct my grammar. Maybe not in that order.
6. I can talk about my 3 favorite subjects, animals, books, and my views/stories, what more could you ask for?

TC

I've Been Tagged Or More About ME!

have been MEME tagged by SquirrelQueen.

Rules of the meme. Respond and rework. Answer questions on your own blog. Replace one question. Add one question. Tag 6 people, more or less. And here we go . . .

What are your current obsessions? Blogging, reading on facebook, FML if you're on there, trying to get my house as organized as they seem to think I am @ work.
Which item from your wardrobe do you wear most often? 3 smocky t shirts from 2 summers ago.
Last dream you had? I was driving a semi (I can BTW) up the hill by the barn, my daughter was with me and she was going to drive when we got on highway (like I'm going to let that happen in real life?) I misjudged and hit my father in laws pickup which was sitting in front of the house we used to live in and knocked it forward, then I woke up.
Last thing you bought? Dog Collar and Leash for my Lab.
What are you listening to? Dogs barking @ imaginary intruders, probably cat like intruders.
Favorite holiday spots? Home with family, beach, mountains. I motel quite well with good movies and room service also.
Reading right now? I started the Tending Instinct.
Four words to describe yourself. OK, I'll say what others have said, bubbly, outgoing, pollyanna, obsessive @ times.
Guilty pleasure? Computer in general, fudge brownies too.
Who or what makes you laugh until you’re weak? My husband, sometimes he's trying to be funny.
Best spring thing to do? Getting the lawn looking like humans live here.
Favorite drink? Coffee with cream and Margaritas for fun.
What I'm afraid of? Snakes, bad bad storms, abandonment, clowns.
Favorite ever film? Two For The Road, Albert Finney, Audrey Hepburn
Care to share some wisdom? Don't think your life is boring, things will change and it might not be!
Song you can't get out of your head? Any teenybopper one from the 70s.
Something you are looking forward to? Going to Louisiana soon.
What is the strangest thing you have ever eaten? Fried bananas and cheese, my own creation.

And I am tagging ... Drum roll please!!!

Monaliza @ hypnoticvisualization

K2comfort @ Ksquared Comfort

Carolyn @ dogs in my bed

MizLilly @ becoming an author....my journey

Crystal Jigsaw @ Crystal Jigsaw

rickbischoff @ rickbischoff rustic


I know some folk aren't into this sort of game (probably the ones that don't answer the 20 question emails!) so it's up to you to pass it on or not, I was tagged so now you are if you so choose!

Schizophrenic Story With Forked Stick

I know a schizophrenic (which I always thought had a t in it till now) being off his medication and smoking crack isn't terribly exciting almost 4 years after it happened. What happened in my encounter with the schizophrenic was. Now it's humorous, but then it wasn't. BTW I know several people who are bipolar and depressed and have NO bias against them. This isn't so much a story about the schizophrenic but my reaction to what he did. What brought this on? My sons girlfriend remarked she had been told she was pretty by a schizophrenic (she's a nursing student) so here's the story unless you are bored witless by now.

Background, we (husband, son, and I) were cleaning up after Hurricane Wilma in Ft. Lauderdale FL, November 2005 (we had trucks but wanted to try something different due to me being ill, stress, etc). Actually Son had gone back to Missouri for Thanksgiving and I was doing his job which was groundman, fancy word for hurricane debris picker upper. Debris is trash but it's mostly boards and shingles, some furniture and carpet and tree limbs, LOTS of tree limbs. The groundman would get it in a pile so the picker truck (see above, that's son in Hiller Park, Biloxi MS, I think)could pick it up and put it in the bed of the truck, then the truck would take it to these huge dumps and if it was mostly vegetation it was ground up for mulch or disposed of someway. We were picking up debris in a decent neighborhood of 20 year old ranch homes which probably cost way more than they were worth. There was a nice looking young black man (is that politically correct, btw I have a 1/4 black grandson so no racial remarks!) walking down the street, my husband was operating the picker truck, I was raking up branches and the FEMA monitor was there in her jeep. Her name was Patty. As the black man got closer I noticed that he had on Dickies work clothes and they were extremely well pressed and new and he was tall, he had nice cornrows in his hair, he was also crying like the world would end, bawling his eyes out, sobbing, it was horrible. I being Pollyanna asked him what was wrong when he got close enough and he gave me a look like there was nothing I could do and it was possibly my fault he was crying. I watched him out the corner of my eye but kept on raking and piling, he got out of my sight and a minute later all of a sudden Patty the monitor SHOT by the truck in her jeep looking like she'd been scared to death. She NEVER drove by the picker truck while it was operating because it was dangerous because of falling debris possibly coming out of the bucket. So I saw her up the street in her jeep making a phone call on her cell, I kept on raking. Here comes the black man back and this time he glared @ me, THEN when he got parallel to the passenger door on the picker truck he suddenly veered off course and opened the door and got in!!!

At this point being not to smart sometimes all I could think about was that the truck was running and my purse behind the seat and neither scenario was good. I could picture him getting the truck in gear and driving it off with my husband on the seat up high. (this is where I was not to smart, the stabilizing legs were down, I doubt the truck would move with them down). So what did I do? I grabbed a forked stick, I have no idea why forked but it seemed like a better weapon, more poking power? So I ran around to the drivers door of the truck and get in (now is the time to question MY sanity)! So I'm in this truck with this man who is still bawling to beat the band, he hasn't actually moved, he's just sitting in the passenger seat. So do I tell him to get out? NO, I ask him just exactly WHAT he thought he was doing, like I'm scolding a child, remember this guy is in his 20s, I have kids this old. He looks @ me and shakes his head and bawls some more, I ask him again, and get the same response, THEN I do shake the stick @ him (I'm sure he's terrified @ this point considering I'm like 5'4" armed with le forked stick and he's well over 6') and tell him he needs to get out of my truck NOW. He does reach for the door handle and SUDDENLY the door flies open, husband has seen what is going on but it took him awhile to get down the ladder from his perch on top and he has JERKED the door open. My husband wasn't terribly concerned with the reason for the mans abnormal behavior he just told him to get out now. I don't remember any other words but I'm sure there were more and they were colorful. My husband isn't but 6' but he's one of those guys with no neck and no matter if he gains weight he's still solid. I'm sure my husband was MUCH more imposing than a little woman with a forked stick trying to psychoanalyze the intruder. So the intruder got out of the truck very fast considering he was still bawling.

So here come Patty, seems the intruder had tried to get in her jeep passenger door and then pounded on the back door of it and scared her to death. She had called a FEMA boss and he got there like 5 seconds after the guy got out of the truck. We all exchanged stories and then went back to work and waited for the police because obviously this guy wasn't right in the head, the intruder had proceeded to walk down the block and sit on the curb and sob and sob, he glanced @ us once in awhile but he was 1/2 block away and the FEMA boss was there and the sobbing man was not looking like he wanted to talk to my husband anymore. It took an hour for the cops to get there and in the meantime we had discovered the sobbing intruders parents, they were very neat, mannerly, well dressed, late middle aged people who lived in a brown brick home down the street. Then they apologized for all the boy/man had done and said he was schizophrenic, had just been released from the hospital 4 days ago, quit taking his medication and had probably been smoking crack I believe for the entire 4 days! Those words coming calmly out of these peoples mouths were almost more of a shock than the boy getting in the truck.

I don't know what happened to the sobbing intruder, I know the police took him and he probably went back into the hospital eventually and hopefully back on his medication. I also know that sometimes I need to think before I act but adrenaline kicked in and I was MAD. I don't remember being afraid @ all except that the intruder would take off with my husband on top of the truck in the seat, since I had to pull the truck up sometimes with my husband sitting up there I was well aware of the highlines, trees, etc, that could drag him off (I have my CDL). After I thought about it all I was NOT smart @ all, actually I was an idiot and if I'd known that the guy had attacked Patty's jeep I probably wouldn't have asked him what his problem was.

So tell me what an idiot I was if you must. Has anyone had any weird experiences like this where something happened and adrenaline kicked in and they threw caution to the wind? So this is my forked stick sobbing man story.

Hair And I Don't Mean The Show

This morning a friend of mine burnt herself with her straightening iron. I saw the burn and asked her what happened, she does have lovely long straight hair. My daughter and granddaughter use a straightening iron every morning.
This is going somewhere trust me. I've decided I'm totally weird. I spend more time on my dogs hair than I do mine. Granted I don't brush his hair every day but when I do it takes longer than my hair. And that's what I do to my hair, people don't shriek and run when they see me either. I know I'm not pretty but I'm interesting looking and have been told I have beautiful hair. Yeah if you like a horses tail. But I just wash it, condition it, put a little mouse on it and brush it. Takes maybe a minute in the morning to brush and spray a bit and if it's messed up a few seconds when I get to work, pin it up if it's hot. End of story. Same way with makeup, if I don't get results I don't do it.
The dog is a bichon, they take more grooming time than some dogs but the results are well worth it. He's a little fluffball. He hates being brushed and likes to go outside with me so he's shorter in the summer but a bichon frise is one of those dogs that look like a q tip with black eyes.
I don't think I'm special because of this, I think I'm lazy and get results with little action so I don't bother. But I'm just wondering what it says about me that I work with the public and spend more time on my dogs appearance than I do mine?
OK, the dog is spoiled and I am nuts about him but he's cute?

Blogging Help Site, SEO, Image Search

OK, here's the link.
I'm still reading it but have lots of work to do evidently. SEO, and blogging ethics are about as far as I've gotten. This is a great how to site, how to use Digg, StumbleUpon, Technorati, what to really do to get your site noticed, besides writing good content of course. I could go on but I'm reading.
Now I need to go to enhanced image search on webmaster tools. Go to the link and you will find out all about it.
Happy SUNDAY!! Grandkids are here, I'll have a post on my animals blog later.

Thanks to My Husband or My Lawn and Obsession

This is my husbands idea of a lawnmower, it's a finishing mower from PA. I argued against him buying it but now I'm glad he did since we mow acres and acres. It's his fault too no matter what he says. But it's our hobby together. We need to plant grass seed and it's been very cool so far this year.
He also has an Allis Chalmers 200, I can see it out the window, that's how I know what it is.
This is the view from the front door, this was 2004.
This is the front sidewalk in 2004.
I get obsessive about planting, mowing and watering, can you tell from the elephant ears? We didn't use the front door much.
This is my 2nd yard pond before I got it all finished, I need to work on it again. This was 2004. The labrador ate the pump and most of the tubing. He also did away with the ornamental frog.
This was May of last year.

And this gives you some sense of the size of the lawn. This was taken last May 3rd. The biggest compliment I ever got on my lawn was when my 4 year old grandson woke up @ a beautifully landscaped park in Kansas City once and asked if they were @ Grandma's house? He is a good boy. Yes I'm crazy when I get to planting things outside. The splotches up by the house in the last picture is a 50 ft wide circular garden with a fountain in the middle, has peonies and mimosa trees @ each corner, four o clocks @ the entrances, iris and wildflowers, some roses, coleus in the shady parts,wildflowers in the sunny parts, tried to start boxwood @ edges. Used to have spotlights on the fountain @ night, my daughter said it was a bit much, she helped me pick out the design, I think I need a pagoda somewhere don't you? I told my cousin (who swears she has a brown thumb) what I was doing making a huge circular garden and she said she guessed it was OK as long as I didn't like sacrifice anyone in the middle? I didn't say it was a Druid garden did I??? Some days I'm tempted to dig it all up and plant it by the house like a normal person but then I go out and see all the neat things coming up and all the work I have put into it and ...........

Back outside to finish, I'm riding the regular lawnmower, he's doing the tractor thing.

Blogging Tips

Ok, here's the link to 25 tips to better blogging.

Pretty informative, I'm on twitter, thinking about facebook, no problemo getting web space, I free lance for a web design company. The rest of the tips are worth thinking about. Go with what you feel comfortable with, there is no sure formula for blogging success other than good content, great pictures but other things can make it happen faster.

If you look @ my other blog Animals That Give Pause it has quite a bit more traffic than this one. Why? I wrote more regularly, I commented more on blogs with animals on them, I was on an animal forum, I included more pictures, but the one thing I think that actually brought so much traffic? A lucky break and keywords! That's it. So keep up whatever you are blogging on, fine tune it, and like the movie says, "they will come".

So what is everyone elses opinion?

Oh WOW A Really Good Blog, I Mean It

Ok, it's The One Minute Writer, it was a blog of note.
For all of you who think you don't have time to blog or lack inspiration, read it. Pretty Cool huh, I'm dating myself again re the Pretty Cool huh.
In other news, dog still hasn't gotten a bath, need to take trash out, husband home tomorrow and hopefully we will get to meet our almost 2 week old granddaughter, Zowie Jean. I have loaded up on a mobile and various sleepers, t shirts and a package of almost newborn diapers. Almost newborn you say? She was almost 7 lb, not big that way but 21 inches long and I'm sure she weighs 8 lb by now. Pictures to follow of course.

I Joined Twitter Thus I Tweet

CNN said this may be the beginning of the end or the beginning of something big for Twitter? Link to CNN story on Twitter here.

I joined yesterday, the day Aston Kutcher got 1 million tweets and Oprah tweeted for the first time so it's a momentous day all around. I just think it's sort of weird but probably more people joined yesterday than any time before. I'm still a baby tweeter, trying to figure it all out.

Right now I'm following mostly animal tweets and self improvement, a few blogging or twitter gurus, my id is TCblogger. I always thought my grandkids would be impressed with things like this but they never are. (they weren't with the sports car grandma used to drive, they really worried when I traded in one of grandpas trucks for a more sedate cts, it was just grandmas car, they hardly believe I can drive a semi, I do prove useful for computer problems though, they just wish I would bake more?)

I Think I Forgot How to Clean House?

Ok, I'm on Twitter first of all, my name is TCblogger. So far I've found my cousin and my niece and am following some lady from Canada who is a life coach? We will see how that goes?

I have a job, a 40 hour a week job, I might not HAVE to work now that my husbands business is doing better but every little bit helps and he has the impression that I like my job. OK, I have stories to tell him when I come home but I find myself counting the hours and minutes till I can leave, the days till my next day off and so forth. Since I've had this job housework has been kept to a minimum. Since there are only two of us and two dogs here in the house it doesn't get very dirty. BUT I know what a CLEAN house looks like. I just don't remember how to get there.

I ran my husbands business for like 3 years, had a lady come in and clean house one day a week and then I did yard work, laundry, extra cleaning, and cooking, kept me busy. Then we lived in a 35 ft camper and then a 38 ft camper for a couple years while in MS and FL cleaning up after hurricanes which I could just about clean with q tips in a day. Then I did ebay and stayed @ home and cleaned when it needed it. Then ebay dried up and I got a real job, I've worked outside the home many times before and @ jobs that required longer hours but now I just come home and plop down and read, blog, take a bath, put a few clothes in the washer, make sure the animals are fed and go to bed if husband isn't home. So I guess I will have to slow down on the reading and the blogging if I want a clean house?

What caused this sudden interest in cleaning house? My daughter has a "friend" she is bringing home, daughter is 33 (I really was a child bride) and they are coming for mothers day. He has a mother but lives much closer to her than my daughter lives to hers. I just can't see the 2 TVs sitting in the family room, my husbands desk full of paperwork, the small refrigerator that is supposed to go somewhere that has had it's home on the bench by the door, or any of the outside junk by the back door (shovel, battered imitation wrought iron table with dead plants on it, garbage can, storage box for gardening stuff, cat shelf, ancient bar b que grill) impressing my daughters "friend"? Much less the dog needs brushed, his nails clipped and I have to lay out clothes for tomorrow and get to bed! We won't even talk about the second guest room which is full of stuff from the camper we moved out of or the extra room off the kitchen which is supposed to be a sewing room, right now it's called the library, that doesn't mean the books are on shelves, it does mean the jeans that need thrown away or patched are in there and all my extra baskets, movies without a home, and the dog and cat food sits right inside the door. Glorified messy closet. Anyway here's pictures of my living room,

I'm proud of it, there are muddy cat paws prints on the windows though in the dining room, egads!!! Does anyone have any suggestions? Just get up and do it? I think it's the energy thing that has me stalled out?

BTW my panic may be caused by unrealistic expectations, I just don't seem to be able to find the dividing line between clean and dirty, a happy medium. I used to clean my Venetian Blinds weekly when I was very newly married, like WASH them. I used to bleach my white painted kitchen cabinets and kitchen linoleum weekly not too long ago, I realize I went too far then, I just want to get some of that ability back? Now sometimes I don't run the dishwasher all the way through weekly? Just rinse till I get a full load. The guest room closet has things in it from about 4 people who don't live here but store their stuff here and part of it is on the floor, pardon me my grandkids extra clothes are in there too..... Help!!

Health Insurance

Ok, I have this job. I'm doing OK, well more than OK, sometimes I don't feel I fit in quite right but as long as I can get like 5 people to laugh uproariously I really don't care if I fit in. Or if I actually do some good.

BUT I have health insurance through an employer for the FIRST time in my 52 year life!!! WHOOOO HOOOOO, I still have to pay for it (a small amount which is a big amount of my paycheck?) and stay full time but hey, I really don't care and it's for my husband too who is shall we say closer to 60 than I am (and I have dental too) We never get sick (well there were a couple bad years in there) but have NOT had health insurance more than we have had it.

Just a day to celebrate. BTW the picture came from The Pet Care Company link here, thought I'd say that, I know it has nothing to do with health insurance except for pets but I liked it.

My Guilty Life

The above picture is of my parents the winter before they got married I believe, they were in their mid twenties. I actually do look like both of them but more like my father. Of course I never knew them like this or even remotely, when I came into the world they were 18 years older and MUCH heavier. They had one child, my brother and thought they were through because my mother couldn't eat while pregnant and almost died. I was a mistake, an afterthought, a whoops if you will.

I couldn't go to sleep easily last night, no particular reason but this thought came to me then. My mother watched my kids when I was working and going to college for about 2 years off and on, not every day because sometimes my husband did and I only had night classes the last 3 months of college. She would watch them sometimes after that but I stayed @ home mostly until they went to school and then I started working outside the home again. I always felt guilty about that and nothing really against my mother (I've come to terms with all of it I think) but she encouraged the guilt. Reminded me of all she had done etc. etc. Not only watching my daughters but other things she thought I should feel badly about.

I had a rather unique 20s and 30s, I thought I sort of paid my parents back even though I had a house partly rent free and the loan of a vehicle when I needed one, as long as the trip was OK with them. LOL. I cleaned their house every Friday, washed and set my mothers hair every Friday afternoon, they were getting older and I took them to doctors appointments (I didn't work for awhile because of too many doctors appointments), went over paperwork, helped them grow the gardens they were so intent on growing, cleaned the basement when it flooded which was sometimes weekly (it still gets damp and we live on top of a hill?)and chauffeured my mother around a great deal of the time, and mowed the lawn and cooked quite a few BIG family dinners @ their house, I'm not complaining, we had a good life. We also cut 21 cords of wood per winter for two houses and a shop. My dad, my ex husband, the kids when they were older and I did the wood, mom went to the woods once and lost the pin to the tractor hitch and never went back, probably because we reminded her of it and she didn't like the outdoors. My dad became crippled because of a botched knee operation, he figured out the cartilage in his knee was gone when he JUMPED down off of a big tractor @ the age of 72. All that is neither here nor there. I think I paid my ex husband back for all the work too when I let him stay on my parents farm after the divorce and I left!! So he moves his girlfriend in and she throws away 1000's of $ worth of antiques (old spice, medicine and oil containers are worth something?) but.........

So I'm thinking about the guilt I felt in specific for my mother watching the kids, they weren't bad kids but they would get into mischief. Shall we say adventuresome? That's a good word. Then I realized my husband is only a few years younger now than my mother was when she watched the kids. He could watch a handful of them with one hand tied behind his back and watch football and take a nap to boot, he'd probably have them cooking and getting his tea too but that's not the point. He wouldn't make anyone feel guilty about it. We practically raised my second oldest step grandson for the first two years of his life, he started calling about 5 people mama. But he had a single mama (divorced) and needed us and Tate was soooo cut and he was ours no questions asked. BTW one of the last memories of my mother I have is her holding Tate, she was in a wheelchair in the nursing home and he was so quiet and good on her lap. I watched my grandkids when they came along, I never really thought about it till last night but since there are 4 of them and the oldest is 14 I'm sure I've put in much much more time than my mother did. I didn't work or I worked out of a home office or took them with me when I worked for my husband, no problems, and I wasn't going to be the continual babysitter grandma. I don't want my daughter to feel any guilt and she shouldn't, I did what I could and should have done more probably but she had a sister to help too. Now I feel guilt if I can't do things for them because I'm working. I must say when the grandkids are here you can hardly call it watching, other than feeding them and diapers when they needed them and a lap to cuddle in they didn't require much entertainment, they were GOOD kids, and that isn't just grandma talking.

So why all my guilt? I'm 51 years old and have to look @ everything from a new perspective now, a little guilt is good, I put clothes in the washer this morning and stripped the sheets from the bed because I felt I must do something even though I have a glorious 2 days off. I have to go now, need to make time because I just realized my grandchildren don't have most of their mothers children's books or mine, I have to go hunt them down in the old house if I can so I can take them over when I go to Easter dinner over there. I'm not contributing to the dinner, guilt again. So the problem wasn't my mother wanting me to feel sorry for her, it's my conditioned guilt. I know this isn't a great psychological light bulb but most cognitive theories don't seem to apply to your life until it just hits you one day, there is no need for these bad feelings, they are not good for you or the people around you.

I hope everyone has a HAPPY EASTER and maybe a little time for self examination. What are you carrying around that is a needless burden? Comments anyone?

Burrito Diet?

Here's the link to the diet.

And here's a link to a news article about it?

This guy has come up with something, although burritos are NOT the most low calorie food it all makes sense. Maybe it's because I've ate soft shelled taco's for several days but it seems to be an excellent idea. 3 burritos a day plus light snacks and protein shakes? Works for me. BTW he didn't pay me for this, I just ran across it on google.

I do have a history of dieting but you wouldn't know it since I just ate a large sugar cookie, I scraped the icing off though. Both of my parents were overweight, Mom close to 280 @ times, my dad was over 300 but quite a bit of that was muscle. I weighed like 105 or 110 for most of my life, got back down there a couple times, hit 170 and now I'm closer to 140, maybe 130, haven't checked lately. My husband also lost like 20 lb in 2 months while eating 4-5 times a day, the secret? Soup, salad, sandwiches, fresh veggies, we don't avoid the sugar and white flour like we should anymore but I rarely eat anything fried and a doughnut is a treat. And I'm on my feet 8 hours a day working retail. BUT this burrito diet sounds like it's worth looking into. Also him not liking all the hidden sugar in food wins him my vote. I never drink pop or soda or whatever part of the country your from cola unless it has alcohol in it. Think about it, pop is chemicals? I've had two severe infections in my life, partially brought on by stress. Other than that I'm healthy as a horse. I don't drink pop. Every other member of my immediate family has had some health concerns before they were 45 but not me. OK my nephew isn't 45 but we won't talk about him, he eats pizza, hamburgers, and froot loops. I'm off my soap box now. OK? Oh and I drink coffee by the gallon with half and half in it, yum yum good but NO SODA!!!

So if you are looking for a new diet check out this burrito diet.

My Day in Snowy MO

This is what I emailed my cousin this morning.

My goals for today are paying the bills that HAVE to be paid, dusting if it ever gets light, giving the dog a bath, and cleaning the leftover Christmas mess off of the dining room table and dusting and sweeping in there.

Getting dressed is high on my list of priorities right now. We here in MO are supposed to get a bunch of snow this week and for added fun and enjoyment a wintry mix, this is what it looked like from my front door a few minutes ago, road looks better than it did. That's a state highway in the distance, snow and sleet seemed to be blowing off of it because it's so cold.
Ok I did the getting dressed thing. Also have to do a load or two of laundry, fold what I did Friday on my non day off and put anti freeze in the old pickup because from the weather forecast I'll be driving it to work probably. Car does fine but if pickup goes in the ditch or hits something else it might improve it's looks?

Had an evacuation @ the Wal Mart where I work, can't say too much but it was a bomb threat evidently, that much was on the local news so I guess I can say that. I wasn't there, all went fairly smoothly, they determined it was just a threat and no bomb was present and employees were back in the store in an hour or so. I knew about it when it was going on, had to be @ work early the next morning, I called to make sure they were there. I wasn't about to go in if the store wasn't open!

My daughter surprised me last Thursday, she lives in KS, I called her about noon and casually asked what she was doing later in the day, she said she was going to go somewhere, mama intuition kicked in and I asked if she was coming home. Point blank question, she can't lie, she was going to try to surprise me @ work. It didn't work, I got off work early that day anyway but she had to tell me what was going on, other daughter was supposed to evidently find out what was going on but was busy. We sat outside Thursday evening because it was WARM, like no coat could sit outside warm. Here's a picture of her and Dispatch the Bichon and Crusoe the orphaned cat, you can read about them in my other blog, animals that give pause, also a fine picture of the kids toys or grandpas toys kids left outside and the dead plants in the planter. January in MO 60 degrees isn't unheard of but felt we HAD to sit outside and enjoy it for a bit.
So she came for a SHORT visit, we went to KC on Friday on business and then my other daughter and kids came over for a bit. We visited an office I hadn't been to for like 3-4 years in KC, I told the guy there my daughter was in for a short visit and he asked if she was home from school. She is 33 years old, she will bless that baby face soon. Everyone else went to wrestling meet for two of the grandkids but I had to work (they lost, that doesn't happen very often, Zach has gone to state two years in a row, Jacob the little one was on his mamas lap and told her he had a temperature, he meant temper cuz he lost)! Then life returned to normal after younger daughter left and it started snowing, bah humbug.

Can you tell I'm not looking forward to whatever this week is bringing as far as the weather is concerned? My cousins are in law enforcement and live next door so we all keep each other informed as to local road conditions etc. and all work different shifts so it works out well but I almost totalled a lincoln continental in the ice one year, NOT a fun thing to do!

Husband has to drive through OK @ some point this week, last time I looked @ the forecast for Oklahoma City it was freezing rain straight through till Wednesday. Lets hope it doesn't materialize! Don't know if you can see the snow flurries in the picture here but it's definitely gotten thicker, @ least it's snow now. That's the house I was raised in and my dad was raised in and some of the other buildings are ones my great grandpa built or helped build. My brother owns it now and my cousin and her husband live in it.

Hope everyone pays attention to the weather and stays safe and warm, don't forget the pets, I give mine hot water several times a day, the ones that are banned from the house per my husband, also we have 6 cats, that would be a bit much in the house. Don't feel too sorry for them, there's a log cabin full of straw in the first picture across the driveway behind the cedar tree, they don't go there unless it gets really cold but when it is cold the dogs and cats have been known to forget animosity and huddle!!
Oh and I promised myself I would forget my pride and put a picture of my dining room table on here so I would be forced to show a clean picture later which means I'd be forced to actually clean it off today and admit the holidays are OVER. I keep telling myself laziness is a sign of depression and not real laziness, I read that someplace, sometime, too lazy to remember? I remembered where my cookie sheets are now, on the dining room table, kids used them to sort puzzle pieces, there's a completed puzzle too, daughter didn't take it with her this time either did she? Basket is a fruit basket, I love baskets, thanks Deanna, paper cups and plates do have a home and it's not there.
If this guilt cleaning by posting it on the internet works maybe I could put a picture of my supposed to be spare spare room that is like a glorified closet supposed to be a place for the books with a single bed in it? The books are there and the bed is there but you can't really see the bed, the dog and cat food is inside the door, that's about what it's used for daily a closet to store the dog and cat food.

Update, 7:30 pm, life is what happens when you aren't looking. Things were going well, then I decided to take a nap. Long story short, look @ my other blog http://animalsthatgivepause.blogspot.com/ for details of my day, I did get some bills paid and laundry done, not folded and the dog still has to be bathed but here's a picture of my oldest daughter holding him after brushing, isn't he cute?