CLOSED FOR REPAIRS..

My computer is in the shop...

In November, I was given a advent calendar,

but I had to down load Adobe Air in order to

operate it.  Usually when I download something

I check it back and forth for anything extra.

Making sure it isn't signing me up for anything.

But somewhere along the way, I didn't see one.

As my computer has been in dated with pop ups.

I down load a well know pop up blocker and it

is worse.  I have pop ups, ads, and pages open up

faster than the page I am after. Everything has a

line or two with in a sentence that is underlined..

And up pops an ad.. I have more pop ups that a

dog has flea in mid July. 

So into the shop it goes.. Don't know how long

this will take.. So won't be around for a while.

All I can say is be safe out there.. always make

sure you don't hit something or uncheck something

that will get you.  

Meanest Mom....

Unfair, yes.

See if two children are fighting.. and I stop it,

ask who started it.. both children would say the other

so I punished both of them..

I use to send my kids out to the woods to get their

own stick to be spanked with.  I used the time they

were gone to calm down... Marv and I use to laugh

abut the stick that they come back with. As it usually

took them about an hour to find one.. and then come

home with a willow like one..

I would ask them, are you sure this is the one you

want me to use? One day, I took some play doh... and

smacked it with the willow to show them the difference..

and then I take a  slat and do the same.. when they

saw the slice in with the willow and not with the slab,

which stayed on top... their jaws dropped.  And their

sticks got bigger. See they never knew what the

difference was, as they never got hit by a stick.

Not that they never got spanked.. but those spanking

were with them over the chair hanging on to the legs

of the chair, and me swatting their butts with my

hand.. It was more the idea of it.. than the actual

deed.

Mental cruelty? maybe...

We rarely ever went thru this routine.. as like I said

it gave me time to calm down.  And by the time,

they got back... I did what I did every time they

got in trouble.. and I am sure they much rather

have the spanking. 

What was worse than a spanking?  THE TALK.

I would sit them down and talk to him, or take

them outside and walk with them as we talk.

How what they did, had consequences. And

if you want to have friends.. real friends.. then

you want to be nice and not a trouble maker.

How people will perceive them by their actions.

and it went on, and on... and on...  Well, to show

you an example.. one of my son's had done some

thing.. and we had a circle driveway... so the talk

went on as we walked the circle..   A friend of ours

walked by back to the garage.. and said.. Hey, I

don't know what you did...but it must be really

really bad... this is your 12th round... and laughed. 

My own kids have done their correcting in their

own way.. being I wasn't in the area.. I'm not

sure how it went.. mostly time outs in the corner.

Which they got too..

One son had a great advise he gave his son...for

him to ask himself.. "Would I do this if Dad was

here?  If that answer is no.. then DON'T DO IT.

Great advise.. wish I had used that one.

I found this old email.. guess it goes along with these
thoughts... 

Someday when my children are old enough to understand the logic that motivates a parent, I will tell them:

I loved you enough...to ask where you were going, with whom, and what time you would be home.

I loved you enough...to insist that you save your money and buy a bike for yourself even though we could afford to buy one for you.

I loved you enough...to be silent and let you discover that your new best friend was a creep.
I loved you enough...to make you go pay for the bubble gum you had taken and tell the clerk, "I stole this yesterday and want to pay for it."

I loved you enough...to stand over you for two hours while you cleaned your room, a job that should have taken 15 minutes.

I loved you enough...to let you see anger, disappointment, and tears in my eyes. Children must learn that their parents aren't perfect.

I loved you enough...to let you assume the responsibility for your actions even when the penalties were so harsh they almost broke my heart.

But most of all, I loved you enough...to say NO when I knew you would hate me for it. Those were the most difficult battles of all.

I'm glad I won them, because in the end you won, too. And someday when your children are old enough to understand the logic that motivates parents, you will tell them....

Was your Mom mean? I know mine was. We had the meanest mother in the whole world!

While other kids ate candy for breakfast, we had to have cereal, eggs, and toast. When others had a Pepsi and a Twinkie for lunch, we had to eat sandwiches. And you can guess what our mother fixed us a dinner that was different from what other kids had, too.

Mother insisted on knowing where we were at all times. You'd think we were convicts in a prison.

She had to know who our friends were, and what we were doing with them.
She insisted that if we said we would be gone for an hour, we would be gone for an hour or less.

We were ashamed to admit it, but she had the nerve to break the Child Labor Laws by making us work. We had to wash the dishes, make the beds, learn to cook, vacuum the floor, do laundry, empty the trash and all sorts of cruel jobs. I think she would lie awake at night thinking of more things for us to do.

She always insisted on us telling the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

By the time we were teenagers, she could read our minds. Then, life was really tough!

Mother wouldn't let our friends just honk the horn when they drove up. They had to come up to the door so she could meet them.

While everyone else could date when they were 12 or 13, we had to wait until we were 16.

Because of our mother we missed out on lots of things other kids experienced. None of us have ever been caught shoplifting, vandalizing other's property or ever arrested for any crime. It was all her fault.

Now that we have left home, we are all educated, honest adults. We are doing our best to be mean parents just like Mom was.

I think that is what's wrong with the world today. It just doesn't have enough mean moms.

PASS THIS ON TO ALL THE MEAN MOTHERS YOU KNOW.
(And Their Kids !!!!!)

Boomer generation? Next up....

Everyone is writing about the Boomers, who

came to age in the 1960's.  We have all the

memories of the 60's coming up.. with last

year's memory of the Kennedy shooting. And

soon they should be bring up the shooting of

the second Kennedy.. Robert.. but that is still

4 years away.   But in the mix, is the shooting

of Martin Luther King. We seem to remember

the tragedies more than anything else.

The 60's were starting to become complicated.

Before John Kennedy got shot we were still

a fairly quiet nation. We had gotten over the

Korean war which was not a war but a policing.

As they call it. And Vietnam was looming in

the side lines. But the shot of Kennedy seemed

to open a Pandora box. People started questioning

everything..  Rock and Roll which started with Elvis

from the 50's, starting to pass on to the Beatles.

Young people were becoming loose in their thinking

and actions.. But still had respect for their parents

who they really didn't agree with in the past.

But the memories of the next generation... the 70's.

That is coming up next, which everything gets looser,

is going to be interesting..

See the 70's were the hippies, "the don't trust anyone

over 30" generation. There were protestors, of war,

and anything else.  The communes of young people

living together in groups.. some of them in the woods.

Making their own village.  Children being born of

unknown father's, just some one in the commune, after

all they shared food, clothes and anything each had.

Children who had names like numbers or words, not

the names of the past of Ed, James, George, Mary,

Melissa, Betty and etc.  But Phoenix, Fire, 4, or after

stars, meaning the kind in the sky.

The leaving the country, heading towards Canada,

to get out of the draft. Public burning of draft

cards.  Parents and their children

losing contact with each other for years..

And the rotting of our government, with Watergate,

and great distrust of the government by those who

were not busy raising children.  And rock and roll,

turn into ROCK .. heavy rock.. yet not metal rock

yet.. The shooting of college kids by National

Guard at Kent College.   Sad times indeed.

Yes, it will be interesting to see how the media

remembers the 70's... wish I would be around to

hear that one.. but the likely hood is slim, and even

if I am, will I have the memory to understand.

For me?  the birth of my last child on Earth day,

a beginning for great times to come.. for me personally.  Great times, but some sad ones as well. but over all. Good ones.  

Vacuum mechanic

I feel like a soldier with a gun in boot camp..

You know where they have to take it

all part and know each part? And replace

all the pieces so it is in a working order.

Last week, it was my vacuum cleaner.. it

wasn't picking up stuff.. so got the manual

out and proceeded.

I thought it was just the filters.. Oh, no

can't be that easy.  But when I saw how

dirty the filter were, I really wasn't that

surprised.  So that meant taking other

parts apart.. First starting with the hose.

Nope seems cleared to me. 

So on to the brush assembly. Much more

involved.  Got that cleaned out, and put

back together.. still not picking up..

Knowing the brush area is completely

clean, I went back to the hoses, even

though I could see that it was clear..

Blew in there.. NOPE.. not clear.

Found a brush that bent so snaked it in.

Ah, ha.. leaves.. memory clicks in.. yep

I was cleaning up dead leaves below one

of my hanging plants, that I am baby

sitting.  After much pulling, prodding,

and pushing with a broom handle from

the other end.. WA LA... CLEAR!!

PAPER WORK, PAPER WORK...

The beginning of the year means........TAXES...

It is going thru the folder with all the receipts and etc.

As you can see the paper are all over the place... stack

here, a stack there...

What to throw away and what to shred?  Took me 4 hours

of going thru it all.. I had one folder that had what I need for

taxes.. but had to go thru all the other receipts incase I threw

it in the wrong folder.. Which I had .. There were 3 doctor ones and one pharmacy.

While going thru all of it.. and then shredding it.. as if I didn't

have enough to do.. I decided to total what I spent at the 4

different stores we go to the most..  All I can say is WOW..

Also it gave me a view of some of our bigger purchases. Some I thought we got in 2012 instead of 2013.

So I put all the important non tax papers in the folder and put it away.. And have all the taxes related ones to the side for tomorrow...  One day at a time..

Drink allowance for men and women....

I have a burr under by saddle.. a spur in my side...

I was watching the news and they had a report about

how much Americans are drinking.. That they consider

we all drink too much.

The CDC recommends no more  than two drinks a day

for men and no more than one drink a day for women.  

Even those who drink less than 8 drinks a week,

might be in the health danger zone if

they consume too much alcohol in a day: five or more

drinks for men, four or more for women.

Now granted, there is a lot of alcoholism out there.

Drunk drivers, crime and domestic violence to name a few. 

But they weren't after the real drinkers.. They were

worried by you and I who have a few drinks.

Now for me a wine bottle would last me about 6 months.

Unless the King is using it for his fish smoking brine.

And mixed drinks.. well, I like a margaritas with Mexican

food.  And I am here to tell you.. the liquor stores would

go broke if they depended on me.. And I don't do bars.

But even so.. for them to say.. a man's limit should be 2

drinks a day and women's 1... well, I AM INSULTED.

First of all, why do they allow the man to be more?

Surely doesn't mean they can handle it better. We

have seen it on both sides.. To me it is a matter of

weight, on who can handle it better.. even that isn't

a guarantee.

I surely hope the government is not going to start regulating

that as well...  Because if I have a glass of wine with my

Italian dinner.... and then decide to have one after.. and someone wants to turn me in for that.. there will be hell to pay.

If my husband is outside in the summer, mowing lawns for

us and our neighbor.. and works on his truck.. and drinks

3 beers during the day..

no one better say anything.. because there will

be hell to pay... 

Why can't people just mind their own business...

.

Pictures from around the neighborhood...

The past month has been such great picture taking, breath taking sunsets.. Only trouble with that is.. when you have night after night of them..  each one, still I stand in awe as I look at it.. and I still take picture from time to time.. but figure people are getting tired of seeing my sun set pictures..

Also I tried the balloon, food coloring, balls again this year.. Did some beautiful ones last year.. but had them in my front yard..... and my neighbor couldn't see them from her house..

So this year, I started them out in my back yard and then transferred them over to her yard on Sunday night.

I try to keep things interesting and entertaining in her back yard. Which faces our side yard.  I have put spin wheels, solar lights and etc. See she has been fighting cancer for 7 years. Thru many treatments.. and a lot of times, for long stretches, she doesn't leave her house. 

She looked out in her yard, Sunday night as my husband was leaving her house... She smiled and then told him.. I never know what to expect 

it starts out with pinks and blues..

Then turns orange... and deeper as it goes down behind the buildings... 

These are the balloon, food coloring, balls of this year.
they are darker than last years... behind you see the solar lights and spin wheels..   Took down most of the stuff
because of winter...

in my yard.. and then she laughed..    And that is what life is about...

laughter..  

Memories...the good and the poor...

Over the weekend, my daughter had been going thru a lot of her old pictures.. many I gave her.. and many she took as well...

She had been posting them on Facebook... A lot of them of

her dad and his family.. He passed away when she was 16

in 1986.

So posting these pictures has not only given her pleasure but also has given her aunts and cousins (that she hasn't seen in over 20 years).. pictures of their love ones.. The grandparents .. of my daughter.. (so mom and dad, for her aunts)  Great pictures of  my daughter's Uncle Jim, who passed away.. way too long ago..So this has been a great day for them to see some pictures they never saw before...

Also among them, are pictures of my mother, my grandmother (so her great grandmother) which is where I got not only my nickname, but also my legal name.  Some pictures of my children and grandchildren when they were kids themselves.  as 90% of them are adults with children of their own.  All of this is wonderful..  and kind of sad. Sad as it is when you are in your 70's and see yourself at 17.. and even 30's... and wonder where that gal went to.. because it sure isn't the one that shows up in the mirror each morning.

Then there was the discussion.. over a prom picture.. and to my amazement.. I have had this memory in my mind for over 50 years, of a very good friend.. my longest time friend... double dating to the prom. BUT I was WRONG... it was her sister who I went with..  Where did  the memory get twisted?  Her sister and I went to school a long time as well. but I was never as close to her as I was and am.. to my long time gal pal, Alice..   Kind of shakes up your memory bank..

wondering how many other things are twisted over the years.

The good news is.. ALICE still is my friend.. who I feel honored that she has stuck it out with me over all these years.  Even after we strayed for a few years... (I was always moving every 4 years) we still picked up right where we left off.    Thanks, Alice for straighten my memory out.. I can always count on you.. lol 

 prom... not bad for a dress made of of 2 grain sacks.. white and red checkered.

 My name sake.. or maybe I should say I am HER name sake..

 in my 30's.... in Ellensburg..

 dunking for charity at the fair grounds in 1987 Bonner County fair..

the horse woman in my life...she taught me well. 

Routines disarray

Since I retired,  I have found for the most part, I get more

done if I have a routine... Monday and Thursdays it is wash

day.. Tuesday and Fridays, mopping the floors. With rest

somewhere in between. Weekends open and subject to

change. 

But this past couple weeks, it has been a toss up. As the King had last Wed. Thurs, Friday off.  And of course the weekend.

I felt off kilter, as he gets up before I do.. so he is watching the off channels.  I forgo my ABC am shows.. no Good Morning America to hear the news... or the local news..  So it is coffee and paper and start of doing things, but then he wanted to do other things that involved

me.  Not a bad thing.. but my routine is falling apart.

This week, it was a weird one as it was normal until Wed. And he is home.. and so thinking that today is Saturday (because he was home yesterday).. nope, it is Thursday.

So back on track today.. except he made a 8am appointment for my car to get it aligned.  But I am in winter hours routine, so I am getting up at 8am.. some times 7:30am.. So this morning it was 6:30am.

I sure will be glad to get to Monday, and then my routine will be more normal... what ever that is.. And this is January.. so that means going thru all the paper work, pull out all the tax related stuff.   I have a folder I have been using for the year, and put 99% of it in that folder, but never

know if I slipped up..  So going thru the monthly folders.

Also, have to make up a goal set for this winter months. Of different projects that I need to get done..  I have put off cleaning out the file cabinet for a couple years.. Also got to downsize again.. way too much stuff.  And also made my

self a promise I would start reading the books that I started collecting over 15 years ago.. to read when I retired..  and I retired 10 years ago.. so should have been doing it.  So that is on the list.

Yep, routines ... some times good.. some times not so good. 

                      WELCOME 
                          2014