We are going to Melbourne tonight!!

First of all Thanksgiving was nice. The food was good, the Turkey was OK. The stuffing and Gravy were great. And the deserts... well, they were out of this world. The Coconut Cake was the best I have tasted in a long time. The Pumpkin Cake Roll, was delicious, and the pies once again did not dissapoint me. The cookine were good also. We invited Wayne over for desert (My Pet's Friend) and sent him home with one of the Pumpkin Pies. He also told me how delicious it was.

Spoke to my Mom, she said she may come down here next year for Thanksgiving... Shocker of all shockers. I told her she didn't have to wait till next year.

Had a nice visit with Melissa. It is always fun when Melissa comes over.

Tonight we are going to see Judy Collins and the Smothers Brothers in Melbourne. I am really excited, and I think it will be a ball. Before we go to the concert, we are going to Olive Garden for "UNLIMITED" Salad and Bread Sticks.

Tomorrow we are off (YIPEE!!!) and we are going to buy our tree and plant the window boxes with Pointsettia's. Saturday, Michael (George's cousin from NY) and Linda (his wife) are coming in, and will be staying with us for a week.

Sounds like lots of stuff going on, and fun stuff too!

We have our reservations for NY in July, we made our reservations for camping in March and again in May. We might even think about going on a cruise in February... What the heck...

Well better go. Getting off at 3:00 today.

It is almost Thanksgiving....

Is everyone almost ready for Thanksgiving?

We are having dinner at home, having an Un-Turkey, and lots of vegatables, and lots of desert.
I should be baking tonight, but... I am not. I am cleaning the bathroom, and if I have time I will bake. I would also like to vacuum, but not sure I will have time...

We are having our friend Melissa over, and also Tony and John for desert. We invited Doug Head, but I am guessing he is out of town this year.

Todays picture is of Putzen in her house. She likes her house, she likes to go in there when it is cool, and we are in the dining room. At Christmas time I put lights on the house, and it looks really cute.

Michael and Linda come next weekend, we have our concert next weekend (Smothers Brothers and Judy Collins) and .... last but not least. We set up our Christmas Tree on the 1st also.

I will let you know how all this turns out. I will try to post before Thanksgiving also.

Well better go, have to get back to work.

I don't know about anyone else, but this new beta version of Blogger is a pain in the @#%. I have been trying for two days now to switch, and first it tells me it doesn't recognize my password, then it tells me I already have an account and to try signing in, then it tells me that it doesn't recognize my password. I have to be honest... I don't care about the new version... no matter how "simple" it is. If it is as simple as trying to log in, then they can have it....

This weekend we are maybe going to "For your Consideration" We aren't sure if it has been released to theaters yet, but we are going to give it a try. I know they had the premier, just don't know if it has been distributed yet.

I am having a hard time with my diet this time around. Don't know what to eat, and just want to eat all the time. Last night I was about to go mad... I couldn't stop looking for something to eat, so I ate everything I saw. I had Starburst, Laffy Taffy, Chocalate (and it was sooooo good!!!), then I ate the last of the salsa, and the stale Tostidos. Now this was after dinner.

And, I forgot to add that I gained 3.5 pounds last week. I am just hungry all the time, and can't get my mind off eatting. Part of the reason is because I am sooooo bored. I need to find something to do. Work is sooooooooo booooringggggg. I don't know how much I can take of this place anymore. It isn't the work so much (believe me it isn't rocket science, in fact Lego's would be more challenging... ), but the people around me. I have absolutely NOTHING in common with any of them. If I have to listen to anymore gospel music, I am going to scream. I have a thing about that anyway, so it is really making me climb the walls right now.

This weekend, we have to get upstairs and clean it up. Empty boxes, not empty them into another box. I mean EMPTY boxes, file and what ever else will make that place look like we aren't pack rats.... not that we are trying to look like something we aren't :)

Well let me go, have a conference call, so they can tell us that we don't have fixes for any of the problems we have... Oh god, how many more years till I can get a pension...?

Well, I am back... let's see, what has been new...

Well our trip to NY is tentatively scheduled for June 29th through July 7th. Starting in NY and ending in NJ.

I found airfare around $200 each, which isn't bad. I will be booking it next week, with Delta. Then we will worry about the car.

Yesterday was my Dad's birthday. He would have been 76 years old. I miss my Dad, alot, and everyone tells me that will never change. It shouldn't. I just wish I could have done more for him.

Mom is probably going to NY in January with her "other daughter". I offered to have her come with us, but I think she would rather go with the other one. I do have to get up there next month or in February. So far everything seems to be working out with Edward Jones.

We will probably be going on a cruise next year. Not sure when, maybe January, or February. I need to get the tickets out of the way for trip to NY, then I will be able to figure better.

Carol and Richie went camping this past weekend out at Wekiwa State Park. Tony, Larry and Larry's friend Chad went along. It was really very nice, however, I have to admit, it felt good to go home to our house and kids and bed. I am so tired lately. The thought of having to set up a camp and take it down 3 days later is too much for me to think about right now. But... that being said, I can see myself going camping at Wekiwa another time. One thing bothered me... there was too much stuff. Everything was great, but I looked around and saw stuff all over the place and all I could think was, who is going to pack all this up. It wore me out thinking about it.

Well, hopefully, I will have more pictures to post. I got some cute ones of Putzen in her house.

Well better go.. have lots of orders to do...

I haven't been very faithful to my blog lately... Oh well, things are rather quiet lately, that could be why.

Wanted to drop in before I got on my way with the vacuuming today.

We got our Christmas Cards yesterday.. They are pretty neat, I am glad I got the ones from Miles Kimball.

We fired up the Chiminea last night, and it was pretty nice. Actually, probably better than a fireplace. Alot cheaper, not as much to clean, doesn't take up a BIG spot in the living room. Only draw back over a regular fire place is that it is outside. But really, what difference does it make.

Going to do some Shish Ka Bob tonight. Also going to sit down when I am finished vacuuming, and enjoy a glass of Sangria. Lee brought it over when we had everyone here. Figured, what the hell for a change.

Went to Michaels for a afghan crochet hook this afternoon. You would not believe one of the girls behind the counter. She had these earring on that apparently are for stretching the hole in her ear. OH MY GOD... it was disgusting. She had these big deformed looking ear lobes, with big black buttons in the holes. How gross does that look? What is wrong with these kids? Is she going to want those things for the rest of her life? It must be horrible looking when she takes the earrings out. It is pretty horrible with the earrings in. What are these kids thinking...?

Well better get up and start vacuuming.... I am falling asleep sitting her typing.

Hello!!!

Well, here we are at almost the same place we were last post. Only this time I have the whole day) almost, ahead of me. Let's see if I can make more of this day, than last Sunday...

Ok, weekend started off with sign waving for the Natural Lands Referendum. Then we went to Donato's for dinner. It was ok, not a gourmet meal by any stretch, but cheap and fast and we could get home.

Yesterday we made a badly needed trip to Costco, then Pet Supermarket and then Whole Foods. The we came home, had a sandwich, and went to Tony's for a Halloween Party. Let's see, who was there... Tony, John, Carol, Richie, Mike, Melissa, Diane, Laurie, Steve and Dawn. It was really very nice.

This is a picture of Carol and Richie.. Carol is a Yellow Dog Democrat and together they are a "Devil Dog". Cute huh? George and I didn't dress up. I don't dress up for Halloween Parties. I know I should, but... oh well.

Tony was a Friar, or Monk. Mike was a Florida Republican. He had on a flannel shirt, jeans, a mullett wig, and bad teeth. And the funniest thing was that John came home from work in his scrubs, so any body that didn't know, thought he was dressed up, but actually, he was dressed from work... He is an MRI tech.

We had a nice time, and I had 4 beers....! Can you believe that... I haven't had that much to drink in a long time. Well, maybe I have had 2 or 3 glasses of wine... but actually, this was much better.

George is back involved with the Seminole Soil and Water Conservation Committee. I am not particularly thrilled about it, but he is happy, so what can I do... I don't mind him being involved, just don't trust Michelle. She is manipulative. Works for her, but not for me. Oh well...I have to let this go.

Cold/Cool day today. What a great night for the Chiminea. Actually, Carol invited us over to her house tonight, but I think it would be good if everyone came over here instead and we could fire up the Chiminea. But I have to get the house clean first.

Well, bettter go, and get productive. That may start with cooking breakfast.

Another Weekend bites the dust...

Well, another weekend bites the dust.... But had to add a picture to keep this interesting....

Went out for Mexican, Friday night..., had a Margerita, and it hit the spot after a long miserable week.

After weigh in (and my weight stayed the same... but still have to lose 7 pounds) we helped Richie walk his (and our) precinct Saturday morning. Then spent the day at Carol and Richies house, had dinner and watched the first game of the World Series between the Cardinals and the Tigers.

This morning, was going to get lots of stuff done... but.. got nothing... see that nothing, zero, zilch, nada, null. Well that isn't entirely true. I changed the linen on the bed, did a load of dishes, paid bills, changed the filter in the Brita pitcher, and watered the plants in the courtyard. I also cut the thread for my shoulder bag I just made, now I have to braid it and sew it to the bag itself. Tomorrow I am going to JoAnn's and pick up some worsted weight wool, to make a wrap for myself. Not entirely wasted. But no where near where what I need to get done.

So I decided to not beat myself up, and just live with it. So, I took the hem out of a pair of pants, took the upholstery off a foot stool I use at work, will put the new fabric on this week or weekend, after I get some sort of foam, and staples for my staple gun.

Now I am going to do some laundry, and get me something to drink and watch some TV.

And then it is back to the grind stone... bright and early, 7:00 am, sharp... tot'in that bale...

Last Weekend

Last weekend we went my girlfriends wedding. Audrey Depaolo, well now she is Audrey Schnurr. She got married on the Carnival Cruise Ship Glory, and then they went on a cruise/honeymoon for 7 days.

It was very nice, and we had a nice time. In fact George has almost agreed to try out a cruise. A short one to start. I would be willing to give it a try, as long as the accomodations are nice.

This week has been pretty uneventful. It was getting comfertably cool here for a few days. In fact last Sunday I turned the air off and had all the windows and doors open. That should help next months electric bill alittle.

Other than that, nothing new. I have been in a pissy mood lately, for various reasons... I think it was justified.

Well.... anyway... that is a picture of George and I at the wedding. Kevin's father in law (Whitey) took it.

Better go.,.

My little girl.....

You remember the pictures of GI Joe Frog....? Well he was in the window boxes on my front porch. I had gone out the front door to take a picture of him, and when I turned around to walk back inside, this is what I saw... So of course I had to snap it, to save this minute and image forever...

My little girl.... she watches my every move, and anticpates my next one. I had to share this picture, because she is just sooooo precious.

Haven't posted anything in a while. Not that nothing is going on, just maybe that alot is going on, and I have not time to post. But I am going to try and change that. I also want to add some video if I can.... George will have to help me with that...

Until then, or next time, which ever comes first.... you will have to enjoy my little girl.

Sorry about not having the recipes yesterday... (yea, like anybody really was waiting for them...ha,ha)

I found this game on the internet, and I don't usually fall for these things, but, this one is pretty neat. It is called Virtual Villagers. Pretty neat. So, I was consumed yesterday. Even got up last night and checked on them. I get obsessed with these things, I have to admit.

I used to go to a website called Neopets. It was kind of neat, but it got old. I also have Roller Coaster Tycoon 2, and was obsessed with that too for a while, but had some trouble building some of the roller coasters, so lost interest.

I did have time to run the vacuum, clean the master bath, which needed it desparately, and change the linen on the bed. God can you imagine if I had kids, I would never get anything done. But... then again, I wouldn't be working for 30 years straight, with out a break, sometimes 2 or 3 jobs at a time. I am not whining, except that I am tired, as I have discussed in a previous post.

The weather is starting to break, and we are having cooler mornings and cooler evenings. So much so that we are leaving the door open to the screen porch in the AM and the PM, if it cools off soon enough. It sure is nice. I have to keep asking myself why I picked such a hot climate to move to, and the only thing is because it was cheaper. It isn't that way anymore though. It has gotten pretty costly for housing down here. But we made it into our place just in time, and have a fair amount of equity in it already because of the spike in the housing market 12 to 18 months ago.

Well better go, need to make an MRI appointment for myself.

Visitor

I went out to my window boxes last weekend and found a visitor.. so of course named him.. GI Joe Frog. I named him that because he is (or was because he isn't in the planter anymore, he moved on to new digs) camouflaged colored. And it changed, because he spent 2 days with us here on Oxen Hill Loop before he moved on, and his coloring changed subtly.

Of course I ran upstairs and looked what kind of frog or toad he was, at this web site. I believe he is a frog and I think he is a bull frog. He was pretty big. Although not as big as the bull frogs (or I believe they were bull frogs, the poor things) we dissected in high school. Either way he is hiding here under one of my Pentas, which by the way are not doing that well.... He didn't dig down into the dirt like a toad would have. He did pull himself in under the leaves though.

I would check on him throughout the day if I were home, and first thing in the morning and when I got home from work. I found him on a Sunday night, and he was gone when I got home Tuesday night from work. You could see where he got up on the railing the planters are hanging on, and took that first step, which was a doozy. Didn't see him anywhere around, so who knows where he went, or if he will be back. I hope so. He seemed like a pretty nice fellow.

That is about it, have alot of stuff to catch up on here, and will be in the process of doing that over the next couple of days.

Last weekend was our little get together with 10 of our friends. Only 7 actually made it here, but we had 2 extras come, so it all worked out. Food seemed pretty good, and I will post some recipes that I promised tomorrow.

Today, we at taking Mathie and Wesley for a ride in the car. Wish we could take them out to run around some place. Oh well who know's what we will find...

Ate breakfast at IHOP this morning. I had two eggs over easy, double order of hash browns and a side (and it was some side!) of French toast with banana's, caramel sauce and topped with whipped cream.... I don't think I will have to eat for the rest of the day!!

Ok, I am behind on my posts, about the things that I have been doing... Oh boy, we had company from Germany, we went camping... So here goes... the dinner...

I made Chilli, hot dogs, cole slaw, potato salad, cumcumber salad, Chocalate Roulade (chocalate cream roll), Bavarian Apple Cheese Cake, and Tropical Fruit Cream Pie (Mangos, Kiwi, Strawberries)

Well, we had a great time... the food turned out great, and I promise I will post the recipes for the deserts later. The Chilli was good, but could have been better, it was alittle dry. The salads were great... It was Julia Childs's American Potato Salad Recipe. My Aunt Betty's Cole Slaw Recipe. The Cumber's were my recipe I found somewhere along the way...

So, our guests were Evlin, Elin, Peter and Heinrich. Evlin and Peter, were the adults, and Elin and Heinrich were teenagers. They love the animals and the animals except Mathie, were all very happy with their company. Mathie is a worry wart, and she can't relax when there are people around that she doesn't know... Especially 4 at one time!!!

George loved the kids. They really were an absolute pleasure to be around. The polite. Joined in the conversation. It was an amazing contrast to the majority of the kids over here.

And they brought all these gifts with them, they brought 4 tee shirts from the German Soccer team from the World Cup, and Hat, then tons of chocalate, and Gummi Candy, glasses, and beer mugs...

And the most terrific thing out of the whole day was, George said that he would go to Germany maybe next year... Evlin and Peter asked him if he would come to Germany, and he said yes!!!

So, maybe next year, instead of a blog entry collection from Philly, there will be a blog entry from Germany!!!!

Wish I had a job where I could do something rewarding...

I have to admit, my paycheck is about the most rewarding thing about this job... and believe me, it is ok, but not obsene by any stretch of the imagination.

I find myself sitting at my desk, looking out the window... (yes I have a window), thinking about all the things I could be doing that are productive. Sewing, gardening, cooking, cleaning, taking care of the animals. Riding my bicycle to the store to pick things up (groceries and sundries). But instead I sit here typing orders, answering questions, getting yelled at by various individuals for things I have no control over.... etc., etc.

I have been working since I was 18 years old. That is 30 years... you do the math... I am not an old lady, by any stretch of the imagination, but I feel like if I keep doing this for very long I will be old.

I think I come into the office every morning, and sit behind this desk and obsess for about 15-20 minutes, about how much I wish I didn't have to come here....

Now mind you, there are those that would say... "Consider yourself lucky to have a job...", the first one being my employer, not to imply that I am not a good employee. And, to them I have to say, "I do consider myself lucky..." but I would like to be happy and lucky at the same time.

Like for instance the person who was in a bad car accident, that survived, albeit banged up pretty bad... they are lucky, right? But, let's face it, they could be happier, especially if they are holed up in a hospital room with people they have absolutely nothing in common with, except that they are all in the hospital....

So.. that brings me to another thing... we have this committee, called the EAS committee... EAS stands for Employee Attitude Survey.... It evolved from a survey that was taken a few years back where the company found that there was a serious attitude problem in our office. So they formed this committee, (which I was a part of the inaugural committee), and did some research and found that there were policies that needed some tweaking, etc. Well, when the committee and management, came to some comprimises, there was nothing left to do, it was decided we should do things to lift moral. Well, that is when my philosophy and the philosophy of my peers in the office part ways.... I don't need to do activities in the office. I need to do my job, which is making my customers happy, meet my quoatas, and get the heck out of Dodge everyday at 5:00. But instead the EAS committee the following years started doing things like raising funds for a yearly Holiday Party, contests, cookouts. Well, I don't go to the Holiday Party... LIke I said, I have nothing in common with these people, why would I want to spend a Saturday night, eatting some sort or plastic Pasta Primavera (I am vegetarian), listen to some lame DJ or sorry excuse of a band. But, I am expected to get involved in the fund raising for something I don't have any desire to be a part of. So when they have a garage sale/silent auction, I am EXPECTED to bring something in to put on the table to sell, or if I have nothing at home, I am expected to bake something and put it on the table to sell.

Now tell me if that wouldn't piss you off. When I leave here at 5:00, it is bad enough I have to think about going to bed at a reasonable time, to get up to be here. I leave here on Friday night and I don't want to think about this place till I get back on Monday. I don't want to go home and bake something to bring here. I want to go home and do the things I wish I could be doing when I am sitting at my desk.

Is there something wrong with that...?

And.... the last day in Philly

Ok, Friday in Philly... I went to the Eastern State Penitentiary. This is an old prison, one of the oldest in the United States. Actually THE oldest Penitentiary in the United States.... Here's a link to the site for it....CLICK .

It was very interesting... Was actually created in the early 1800's. By the Quakers, the fundamental behind it was Quaker actually... that is where the word penitentiary comes from, serving "penance".

It is in the middle of a city, was open until the mid to late 1900's. And, when it was closed it was considered to be a wretched place. Actually it makes me kind of sad. It was put out there as a positive fix for a penal system that was non-existent. And it seemed to me that instead of trying to improve on the concept, the concept was exploited. Can't explain it right now (pressed for time), but it just seems that things were always the same, just in a lesser degree, somewhat.

It seems we have always been a throw away society. We either are throwing away things, or people. Or... maybe I am a hopeless optimist, idealist, romantic.

Anyway... I took some pictures, and you can probably see more on the website linked about, but here are mine.

Just some info... Al Capones cell. It is believed that at times it wasn't even locked. Also, there is a picture of what the cells looked like when the prison was first built, a cross section of the prison cell lay out with the individual excercise yard. And, last but not least, the statues of the cats (white), that are a memorial to the cats that inhabited the Prison after they closed it down. That is a neat story also...

I would recommend this attraction to anyone who goes to Philadelphia. It is in walking distancee of the downtown area, it is not expensive, and it is very interesting....

Ok, can't upload pictures again!!!

I will try when I get home... sorry! OK, as a side note... I could only upload 2 pictures... to this post. Sorry.. go to the website and you will see more...

Quick Post about Thursday in Philadelphia

Ok, real quick post....

Just some fill in info right now... Rod Smith lost the primary...what a shame... but we will probably lose the election in November, no matter who was elected in the primary.

Dinner on Saturday was a success.... Chili was alittle dry, but it was ok, and the desserts were a big hit... I will post the recipes for the desserts later this week.

Thursday in Philadelphia... Well that was really a disappointment. Decided to go to the Germantown Historical Society. First German settlement/community in the United States... Well, the unfortunate part is that I had to walk about 5 block, through not the best area... now mind you it wasn't a slum, but it wasn't great, and I was by myself, going someplace I was not familiar with. I took the train there, grafiti on the walls at the train station, had to walk through a pretty deserted commercial area. As I was walking, I was getting more and more uneasy, so I decided to turn around. Got back to the train station, and tried to go to the ticket office, and a girl looked at me through the window on the door, and said, we are closed, and disappeared. Needless to say I was still uneasy. I think the main reason was because, no one knew where I was, so if anything happened, there was no way to know where it happened to me, where I was, ... Just not a good situation.

So, disappointed I went back to the hotel and waited for George to get out of the convention.

You know you hear about people getting racially profiled all the time. But how often do you hear about a person who is afraid of being racially profiled. You know what I mean? Let's think about this, here I am, dependent on public transportation, by myself... all I want to do is go to a historic area, actually an historic settlement that could be part of my heritage, and I am reluctant to do so, for fear that someone will take offense. That they will have a problem with me walking throught their neighborhood. Like I said, had I been with someone, I wouldn't have felt so vulnerable.

You know I never felt this way before... There is something wrong, things are not what they should be, and I believe they are getting worse. I believe there is a problem out there, that I can't fix, because what is causing that problem is bigger than me, but I and others are the victims of this problem.

It is a very scary time in the United States... Things are not good, and people are being made to feel vulnerable. I think this is part of the huge divide that is happening in society. The huge divide of haves and have nots. What is happening is that the people in the latter category, right now anyway, are totally divided. I believe that before we hit the "revolt" stage of the have nots, there will be a kind of civil war at the bottom. I know who is going to win that war... it won't be people like me, I know that. I am not be part of the have's, in fact alot of people are not going to be part of the haves.... alot of people who think they are already there.

I bet that sounds like a bunch of nonsense... Maybe it is... but I don't think so. I just notice things happening around me in the last few years. What I notice has been slow and gradual, and it is effecting my gut feelings. Like I said a few posts back, I have never been so angry about this kind of stuff. I have been sad about it, but not angry.

Now, what do I do about it.... I am not going to change the world. Too late for that... so what do I do about it....?

A little Seminole DEC nonsense....

Well yesterday Carol Cox (Chairwoman of the Seminole DEC) pulled more crap, as would be expected from her...

We have a primary tomorrow in the state of Florida. I am supporting Rod Smith, and Carol Cox, (and I would say Ed, except....he can't vote...) is supporting Jim Davis. They are both Democrats.

However Carol, as unethical as she is, in my opininon (I had to add that because it apparently clears me of any wrong doing... according to Carol Cox anyway...) sent a letter out to people all over the state, with her endorsement of Jim Davis..and added her position as Chairman of the Seminole County DEC. That is really not ethical. A DEC, or any of the people on the board are not supposed to use their position to endorse one Democrat over another in a primary. Now mind you, it isn't written anywhere, but most points of ethics are not laws or rules. That is what makes it ethical or non ethical, versus legal or illegal.

First of all, she used e-mail addresses she obtained commercially from her business, Dems Link, to personally endorse a candidate, using her position of Chair of a State of Florida Democratic Organization, to qualify that endorsement.

And.... She also included pictures and video taken at an event, organized by one of the Precinct Commiteewomen, that was not meant as a "campaign" event for either of the two candidates, but instead to organize this paticular precinct.

What were the pictures of you ask...? Well they were of Carol Cox of course... she is always sending around pictures of herself. See, she really loves herself (good thing, because most people don't like her at all, and the list is growing....).

Oh, yes and the other subject of those pictures was Jim Davis... NOW you ask yourself, how would Jim Davis get to a precinct organization meeting. We know how Carol Cox got there... she was invited. She was invited because the Precinct Committeewoman wanted to get the Democrats in her precinct to become active in the Seminole County Democratic Executive Committee, and Carol Cox is the Chairwoman of the Seminole County Executive Committee. It make sense that she would be there. But how in the world did Jim Davis find the meeting....? He wasn't invited!!!

I believe there are over 5,000 precincts in the State of Florida. How would he happen to find a meeting in this paticular one, that Carol Cox happened to be at with Ed, and Ed just so happened have his camera AND video camera, and... Carol happened to have on a cute little pink suit. WHAT KIND OF A COINCEDENCE IS THAT....!!!!!???!!!!

Are you begining to smell a rat!?! Now, who is the head Rat...? Carol Cox, or Jim Davis!!!!???!!! Well my guess is it is Carol Cox, since how else would Jim Davis known that there was a meeting there?

So you see? It is people like Carol Cox that gives politics a bad name. The fact that she is supporting Jim Davis is enough of a reason for me not to support him. I have other reasons. I decided on Rod Smith long before I knew who Carol was supporting... Probably long before Carol knew who she was supporting.

Isn't it sad that politics is constantly being brought down to such unethical levels, when it could be used to help. That is why I am Democrat. And it is because of people like Carol Cox, and the people she surronds herself with, that I just can't be involved locally in Seminole County anymore. She does not represent me.

Never got to Tuesday night or Wedneday

Sorry about the editorial the other day... Just in one of those moods.

But, in my "moment", I left out Tuesday night and Wednesday...

We went to a Phillies/Mets game... Phillies won. George says there there is nothing as pretty as a baseball field... and think he is right. It was awful pretty... The Mascot was pretty good too. I forget his name, but he came up in the stands by us...

We took the subway to the stadium, and it was pretty neat. The subway comes out about 2 blocks from the subway entrance. Let me tell you, I am not a BIG fan of subways, but it was OK to travel on one with George.... I am a girl from the burbs, and never have been, probably never will be a city girl.

Wednesday I went to Rittenhouse Square/Shopping District. (the picture on top is a residential street in the Rittenhouse District of Philadelphia) I started down that way to find Antique Row. I found it, but didn't really find anything I was dying to have, so moved on to the regular shopping district. Found Barnes and Noble, and a Kitchen store. I bought a book for Audrey and Al, and a vegetarian cook book, and 4 Rooster mugs. That has sort of become my theme in my house because of the "Oviedo Chickens". Then last week while shopping, and walking through JC Penney's, we found that they have a whole set of dishs. Actually it is a service for 4, dinner plate, dessert plate, mug, and soup bowl. So we got them.

Also almost got some pictures of the Mets coming out of their hotel in Philadelphia, on their way to the stadium for the game that night. The were staying at the Westin... Man, they sure don't slum it do they?

Ok, lets see I think we are up to Tuesday and Wednesday. Tuesday I got up and after having breakfast with George we went to the caucus (Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina). Then I went for a walk up past Logan Circle, over to the Free Library, back to the Book Store for the free library, then to Whole Foods, and on back to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. You know the one that Rocky ran up the stairs too. Walked around the library, and realized that this was the beginning of Fairmount Park. Now there are things to see in Fairmount Park, but it is an enormous park, and would have taken days, and probably a car and or a bicycle to really explore, but I did my share. Found a statue of General Von Steuben, and then some Canadian Geese and Boat House Row, and a little damn, and the black stuff you see sitting on the damn are Canadian Geese sitting on the edge of the damn. They also had a museum there to teach kids what a precious resource our water is, and that tap water, although may seem like an endless commodity, it isn't.

But you know what....? I have to throw in some editorial here. Honestly, unless the children are raised with the correct values, and that is a conservative (not politically I might add, but lifestyle), you can bring kids, and I am talking about all children, inner city, upper and middle class, and extremely well off to these attractions and it means nothing.

First of all, the bad is all around them, it is common place and "normal", so it isn't bad to them. Smelly water, mean people, mean animals, apathy, concrete, homelessness, fast food all the things I find very, very sad, and dis-heartening is just part of their very existance. A day with the Boys and Girls Club, or even a summer vacation with a few college kids earning some college credit in an intern program, is never going to make a difference to change things. What will make a difference is a longing and yearning to make a change in the world. By a whole lot of people, parents, Aunts and Uncles, neighbors, etc. So that it becomes a way of life, instead of the other I listed earlier. An example has to be set by alot of people. Not some activists, or some self serving teen agers trying to get something for a resume', so that they can get out of their graduate program and get a starting salary of at least $50,000.00 a year.

And you know what... that just aint happening out there. Oh there are some people like that out there, but they are like a grain of sand in the sahara. And the other powers, are getting louder and stronger. I have said it before.... It is all over. I wish it were different. I wish I could make a differece with activism. But I can't, and I won't. I have tried. George and I have worn ourselves out for years. Together and alone, and honestly I don't think there is one person out there that I have influenced enough to care. I may have enlightened them for a day or a month at best, so they they became outraged, but then they went back to Walmart of bought that Escalade, and it was obvious to me that they totally missed the point.

And what got me started on this... well bunches of things, but one thing that just brought my heart down low was this very day. Tuesday, after seeing the statue of General Von Steuben, I walked across the park to where there was a flock of Canadian Geese sitting in the sun, pecking at the grass, just relaxing. Not bothering anyone, and, as would be expected it made me smile. It made me smile because inside I felt warm and happy looking at these wild animals at peace in an urban setting, albeit a city park, but they were happy and content, and that makes me happy deep down inside, and that makes a smile come to my face. But... it was short lived and replaced with a just as deep an anger, that it made me first sad, then angry to the point of wanting to hurt someone, and then sad because I was helpless. Apparently a group similar to a Boys and Girls club had spent the day a this park, and they were gathering up the little urchins to bring them back to their "cribs". When one of them saw the geese, and had to run or waddle his fat little self (can you tell I am still angry?) over to them yelling and flaling his arms in the air. Behind him were some girls, his age, obviously in his group, telling him to stop, but as they were telling him to stop, they were joing him and doing the same thing.

I just didn't get it. Why would they want to do that, why would they want to disturb the peace and well being of the geese? What was the purpose...? I mean let's break this down, they are being taken out of their element... They are being taken to a "world" that is supposed to be a contrast to what they are used to. Why are they being taken there, well I would gather a guess to show them something different, and teach them an appreciation of it, and hope that they could then bring some of that back with them to start to change their own world. But instead, they are bringing their own world into this one. I didn't see any adult supervision, so I started to go toward them to stop them, and tell them to stop. But I realized that they wouldn't listen to me, so I thought, maybe if they see me taking a picture, they would stop and have some respect... Oh yea right.. respect is about as foreign to them as the geese, or the swiss alps. That is when I found myself getting angry, and I have to tell you, it was not something I felt comfertable with. Then I heard the "adult" in the group, and it was a girl, a teen age girl, obviously of a different cultural class and "status" then these kids, who was calling them back. If she had put the effort into going after them, I could say that she was hearding them back to where they were before they made the affront on the geese. There was no explanation of what he was doing. No discussion. She totally ignored me. She wasn't calling him back because she didn't approve of what he and the girls were doing. She was calling him back because he wasn't where she wanted him to be, and or perhaps, this deviation of him with the geese was prolonging her time on the "job" and she just wanted it to be over.

That is when I became sad. I too just wanted to get away from there. It was just another sign of what I believe to be the beginning of the end for any kind of chance of any kind of civilized reformation. There isn't a chance to turn things around anymore. I truly believe that it is now each man for himself, to a certain extent. I hate that as much as I hate is bring us to that point.

LABOR DAY WEEKEND!!!

It is Labor Day Weekend... 3 days off from work... how good is that!!!!!?????!!!!!

We are also having company this weekend... I love entertaining... Like I said before, I always get scared that what I am preparing will not turn out.

So here is Sunday's menu!

Hotdogs, (vegetarian and non-vegetarian)

Now let's talk about the hot dogs... When I ate meat, I would buy Hillshire Farms hot dogs. They were great, very under rated compared to Sabrett's and Hebrew National. They were in natural casings, 100% beef, and not too garlicy. Well, Sara Lee bought out Hillshire farm, (who I believe was owned by Kahn Meats), and you can't find them anymore. So I bought some others at Whole Foods. They are 100% beef, no antibiotics or hormones used in the cattle, no nitrates in the processing of the dogs. Natural casing. They sound good, and I may even try one to see.

Chilli (vegetarian)

Hoagie Rolls (to make Chilli dogs if anyone wants to)

Potato Salad

Cole Slaw

Cucmuber Salad.

Fresh Fruit

Bavarian Apple Cheese Cake (not sure what is so "Bavarian" about it, but the recipe sounded good)

Tropical Fruit Cream Pie

Chocalate Roulade.

I know I am heavy on the desert, but that is because I love desert....

I have to plan the execution of this meal...

As would be expected, there will be pictures, when I get to add them to this blog... as soon as I can.

I still have to add Tuesday and the rest of the week in Philadelphia. I might add a few days at a time, for the sake of time.

Tomorrrow is weigh in, and I think I am still losing, although not working very hard a dieting...

Can't get too thin, or I will be in the same place I was before I lost weight... Nothing to wear....

Well better go have to get back to work, lunch is up!!!

I am at work, and don't have my pictures here from my vacation to download, but... wanted to post something anyway... :)

We have tropical storm Ernesto coming through right now... Well, not exactly right now as I speak but today.

It is really not as bad they had predicted. Well first they were predicting a hurricane, then a tropical storm, and now it has been downgraded to an inland tropical storm, which baskically means rain and wind. I guess you could call it a bad rain storm.

That is the good thing. Well, I guess. Actually they are predicting 35 mile an hour winds... On some streets in Winter Springs, that wind could get a ticket!

Of course I am like a little kid, and would have liked a hurricane day off from work, like we got snow days off from school. Oh I loved those days... the whole family home, staying in our pajamas, not going anywhere. Guess I have to move back up north for that... huh... Or retire!!!!

Just made reservations for the Hoop-de-Doo Revue at Disney's Fort Wilderness, for next Thursday night. Hope that works out for Carol and Richie. Richie has to work on Friday, so he will get up Friday morning, and get dressed in a suit and tie and go to work from the campground. God, I hope they enjoy themselves.... Camping, even at Fort Wilderness can be miserable experience, if something happens to make it that way. Anyway, the dinner is pretty nice, Loin of pork, veggies, salad and desert, and a show. I hope Richie likes it. Of course he can always have a veggie option. I guess I need to check with Carol on that too.

Well, better go. Have a ton of orders, and will probably be working through my lunch.... Anyway, my break is almost over....

Monday in Philadelphia

Well, Monday we got up and got ready early, 6:00, and went out for breakfast. We found a cafe on Saturday, that was very good. The Midtown III Restaurant. It was open 24 hours, and it was reminiscent of a diner in NY. I thought the waitresses were great, although George had a bit of a problem with the little dark haired one. She was gruff lets say, be she was soft around the edges when you gave her the chance. I think George was half playing when he complained about her. Anyway, their Mediterranean omelet was great, with tomatoes, feta cheese and I think spinach. It was pretty rich, but a great omelet. And I am not an omelet fan.

George walked me to the train station, and I got on a train to Ambler to see my friend Audrey and her significant other (soon to be fiance'), Al. It was about a 30 minute train ride and Al and Audrey were there waiting for me when I got there. That is Audrey and Al in the picture. I met Audrey about 28 years ago. We worked together, and in fact when I moved to Florida, I moved here and lived with Audrey. She also helped me get my job at the phone company.

Audrey lived in Plainview, and I met her at the shoe store I worked in at the time. Import Shoe Fair. It was on 15 W. Marie St. In Hicksville. Audrey was married to Artie. She has two boys with Artie. He passed away last year in November.

She was in touch with friends from school, on the internet, and that is how she ran into Al. One thing lead to another, and they met, and now they are getting married.

First we went to the Post Office, so that Audrey and Al could get their passports. Then we went for a little ride to view the sights of Ambler and vicinity, then we went out to lunch to a neat little place, with the best french fries. Al went to the dentist and Audrey introduced me to her neighbors. Then we just sat and chatted. It was neat. I miss doing that with her.

Anyway, Audrey lives in Levittown NY during the week, and Ambler Pennsylvania on the weekends. Pretty neat.

Kind of like I want to do. Only I want to spend June to September up north, with property, and October to May in Florida. One day......

When I got back to Philly, George met me at the train station, and we went to a Chinese restaurant, vegetarian restaurant had Dim Sun platter, all you could eat. I had the tea... I love the tea... Then we went back to the hotel and called it a night.

Combining Saturday and Sunday in Philly

Ok, so we went to bed Friday night, and woke up Saturday morning to go to the Clerk Craft Conference. Then we went this little vegetarian place in South Philly, known for it's Vegetarian Philly Cheese Steaks. It was called Gourmet to Go/Govinda... It was pretty good. Not in the "best" neighborhood, but they were young and hard workers, and very polite. George loved it, and I have to admit they had a good selection, and if I went back, I wouldn't order the Philly Cheese Steak (I make a pretty mean Philly Cheese Steak with Morning Star Farms steak strips), but they had some other stuff on the menu that looked very good also. The Cheese Steak was good though.

Sunday after the second day of the clerk conference, we met up with George's local and had pizza at Olde City Pizza, down in the historic district. Pizza was OK, and the service was not so hot. Well, let's put it this way, the way George like Pizza, and we ate it again that vacation, we didn't go back there.....

Then we walked around the historic district, and went to the Liberty Bell.

We walked around the Historic District with plans to go back later in the week. We went to Carpeters Hall, the 2nd Bank, a few other places. All with plans of going back later in the week to do a real honest to goodness touristy thing, but it didn't actually work out that way... You may be seeing another entry in my blog about Heidi & George's REAL VACATION Trip to Philadelphia.

Anyway, then we went down Elfreth Alley. This is the oldest residential street in the United States. These houses date between 1728 and 1836, and people still live in them, I mean all but one are private residences! Now keep in mind that the first black and white picture was probably taken in the early 1900's. The color one of course was taken by us... (bet you never would have guessed) you can tell because that is me standing there with my hand on my hip. I am standing "kinda" between the second and third houses in the old picture. You can tell by the different arches over the doorways. The first house must have been knocked down.

Then we ate at a cafe, had desert and coffee, and that is when one of those BIG city pidgeons shit on my head. Everyone was pretty grossed out by it, and I have to admit, it was pretty gross, but George got a we paper towel from the rest room, and wiped it off, and then I just tried to forget about it. It was before we were served, and Hans has pooped on my plenty of times, so no biggie. When we got back to the hotel, I took a shower and washed my hair. None the worse for the ware...

Well that is pretty much all we did that day.

We have pictures!!!

This is the view from our hotel room, on the 26th floor of the Sheraton on Race and 17th Street, in Philadelphia. That building off to the right or the circle (which is called Logans Square... ) is the Philadelphia Museum of Art. That is the building that Rocky ran up the stair to in the first Rocky movie. So when you go there most of the people are just running or walking up the stairs and when they get to the top, stand there, with their arms up in the air (like Rocky did) and then someone takes their picture... It really is a great place to people watch.

Straight ahead in front of Logans Square is the Franklin Institute. off to the right of Logans Square is the Free Library.

The top picture is the same shot at night (bet you couldn't figure that out could you...). Pretty nice shot huh? This is a great camera....

This was a great room. Big room, and on the corner of the building, so it was bigger than the others. The only problem is that there was some sort of HVAC piece of equiptment on the roof, and it made the walls tremble alittle, and there was also a sway that I felt mainly because my sense of balance is off since I had the mild stroke last year. I shouldn't say my sense of balance is off, it is just very sensitive.

One night we come home later than normal, and walked into the room, and there was a crib in the room. I was startled to say the least. My first reaction was to close the door. I am not sure why, my key opened it, but that was my first reaction. What I didn't see was that there was a twin size roll away bed brought in the room also.

We called the front desk and they came and took it out, and brought it to the correct room, which was right next store. How I know is that the baby that ended up in that crib cryed allllllll night long. I mean wailed. You know the kind of crying a baby does when it crys do hard it can't catch it's breath. Well it was like that. I was about to call the front desk and tell them that I thought the baby was left alone in there, because how anybody could have let a baby cry like that, in the same room and not attend to it, had to be either dead, unconciuous or an animal. The little on finally stopped, or passed out was more the case, which is what I did also.

Well, better go.. I am in the middle of ironing and Tony and Carol are coming over so I can help them cut some fabric for drapes for Tony's house.

Honestly, I don't know anything about cutting fabric for drapes. I think she just wants to bring Tony over here. I mean she brought him over when the house was under construction and took him on a tour....

Today I cut back the Grapefruit trees and the Gardenia bush, and also planted some Cone Flower/Daiseys. They are perenials, and I planted the seeds during a rain shower. I think it should be alright, even if it is August, but it is almost September, and this is Florida. I'll let you know.

Yes, Yes, I know... no pictures yet... Well, that is because they are still on the laptop.

Today is Thursday, tomorrow is payday. And September will be a busy month. We have Hans' (remember my friend from Germany) sister coming with her little girl, and 2 others on Sunday, September 3rd. I am going to make Chilli, hot dogs, (veggie and meat), cole slaw, cucumber salad, and I am not sure what else. For desert I am making a fruit and custard pie, a chocolate rouladen, and fresh fruit.

Then on the 8th of September, we are going camping with Carol and Richie. I think we will make spaghetti one night and not sure what we will make the rest of the time. Carol and I had started to do a menu for the weekend but it was getting alittle bit confusing. I think I still have the list, I guess I should look it over.

On the 23rd of September, George and I are having about 10 or 11 people over for the afternoon, and I was planning on doing Shish Kabob, and alot of other stuff. I made a list for planning purposes, I really need to figure out what I will need to get.

So, September will be a pretty busy month. I have the first weekend of company pretty well set. Once I get through that I think I will be pretty much ready for the next weekend, and so on from there. I love to entertain like that, but then I get nervous that something isn't going to turn out ok. I don't know why, so far I have been pretty lucky...

Haven't gotten my pictures from Philly off the laptop yet. I promise I will have them soon.

In the mean time it has been brutally hot here in Florida. The weather is just starting to break now, with cooler temperatures at night.

Luckily Wayne (My Pets Friend) was able to water for me while we were gone. This week they have been predicting rain all week. 60% chance, and that is usually a sure thing, but it is a 60% chance if you happen to be in the "spot" that it is supposed to rain, and if anyone knows Florida rain, that could mean across the street, but not where you are standing.

Well today, they raised it to 70%, with more wide spread coverage. Keep your fingers crossed. I love the rain. It just cleans everything. Hard to explain.

I am glad to be home... not glad to be at work.. but glad to be home. Work is a real chore for me lately. Not sure what it is. Just a chore, bordering on burden, but don't think I will get there because that paycheck usually brings me back to reality real quick.

I just think about the things I would rather be doing, like, working on my bench that I am refinishing, the slip covers I keep thinking about, I have all the supplies to get them done, but not the energy when I get home, the dusting, the bathrooms, the vacuuming, the bird cage or the fish tank. All things that are tremendously more productive than what I do here. Except for the paycheck, which is the end result of all those seeminly unproductive hours I spend at work.

Here I am 48 years old, and I look forward to retirement. How sad is that!!!???!!!

Well better go, have to get back to the unproductive stuff that pays the bills. Break is 1 minute away from being up....

Back from Philadelphia!!!

We had a nice time, I walked my butt off. I mean I walked everywhere. My feet were killing me. I did weigh myself this afternoon, and I gained 3 or 4 pounds, but I think it was in muscle... (yea right!)

Well, we ate pretty fattening breakfasts, and pretty fattening dinners, compared to what we did before, but we didn't over eat. We ate breakfast, then we at dinner. But..., we had dessert every night. It was good though, and it made it a real vacation. Afterall, this is it, until next year for me. Except of course for the weekend we go camping, or the weekend that Mathie and Wesley have their teeth cleaned.

I visited my girl friend, went shopping, sight seeing, etc. I will be posting pictures of my different outings.

It was good to get home though. I missed my kids, and spent most of today, just hanging around with them. George is suffering from a tired stomach. One night we went out for pizza, and he went hog wild. I think he ate 7 pieces of pizza, plus salad. The salad was out of this world. We went with Dave and his wife. It was fun, and I will tell you about it later in the week.

Anyway, that is it for now. Going to play around on the computer, and will be back tomorrow.

Today we leave for Philadelphia... As always when we go away, I am excited up until the day before we leave... then I look at my kids and my house, and I start to feel bad. Especially about the kids... I just love those guys. And they love us... I almost feel like I am letting them down, but, they have Wayne (My Pet's Friend), and he loves them too. And they love him too... and now that everybody loves everybody... I just hate to leave them.

And to add to my angst, is the fact that there is heightened security at the airports, which means heigtened attitudes... In other words, everyone is going to be wound alittle bit toooooo tight today. So part of me just wants to get to Philly and get to the hotel, while the other part of me wants to curl up in my bed with Mathie... I am a real head case.....

So... hopefully Philly is safe, and I will not be intimidated by the local color. I plan on going to see Audrey in Ambler, and then the usual sights and attractions... so I should have lots of pictures when I get back.

Ok everyone, I have added a picture of me... and..... John Kerry... Yup, I met him, shook his hand and everything. Introduced myself to him, the works... I have it on video also.. Let me tell you, if I had Grandchildren they would hear this story many times.

See, we had free tickets to somewhere on Delta. So George said to me do you want to go somewhere like New England or Iowa to see John Kerry while he is campaigning. So you know I jumped at that. See I was a John Kerry supporter since March of 2002, when I saw him at the Florida Democratic State Convention. Then he sent a letter to the Orlando Sentinel in April, ripping (very eloquently I might add) Kathleen Parker a new one (if you know what I mean.....), and I thought, this guy knows what is going on. He knows what is happening all over. So that was the beginning.

Well then George said, you can't just sit back and listen to him speak, or watch him, you have to go up to him and speak to him.... OH MY GOD!!!!!

But I did. Then his assistant took this picture... George was in it also, or is in it, but he cropped this one for me for another reason, and it has come in very handy since then.

Anyway, when he lost the election (and what a damn shame that was....) I was devastated for about 3 days. But, I still have his bumper sticker on my car, because I am counting on him running again. A far better reason then why all those yahoo's have "W" stickers on their car. We know he ain't running again... thank god!

Well, just wanted to post something with the addition of the picture...

Ok. gotta go, have tons to do...

YEA!!!!!!!

Josh Blue won Last Comic Standing..... Who cool is that!!!!!????!!! Honestly, I would have been shocked if he didn't win... and I think the audience would have stormed the stage. I think I will have to look for him and see if he gets any better well know than the others that have won...

Anyway... just thought I would bring that up... Now, that is done, I won't bother anyone now, but I will be back in a few months to talk about the Presidential election coming up in 2008. We have to start thining about that now...

Leaving for Philly tomorrow, and will be back with some pretty neat pictures, I hope... I will probaby check in periodically during the week.

See ya later...

Pest Problem....

This is my Gardenia. I had some pretty flowers on here this year.... but then I got aphids. I have plants with other problems also...

Above the Gardenia you will see my Grapefruit tree. It has leaf miners.... I love Gardenias, and I love my grapefruit tree, because the Gardenia has beautiful flowers and the grapefruit tree is the off spring of the tree I grew from a seed in NY, and Daddy brought down to me when I bought the house in Winter Springs.... That was my baby, and I recently discovered that the girl who bought my house, cut down my tree. This tree is almost my legacy... I will not have any children, and now it is gone, so all I have left are these 3 babies that I again grew from a seed from the fruit of the tree that I grew from a seed. I have to save these... period end of subject.

I tried cutting the affected leaves out, but they grew more leaves and the leaf miners went after them. I got my Rodale's Organic Gardening book out, and it said that they come from the dirt. They also said that a Nicotine tea will kill them, and the aphids, so with the assistance of my girl friend who smokes, by her donation of a pack of cigarettes, I made 1/2 gallon of Nicotine tea this weekend. The way I did this was to soak 1/2 cup of tobacco in 1/2 gallon of water, with 1/4 tsp of pure soap. I soaked the tobacco in the water, in the hot Florida sun for a few hours, then I strained it through cheese cloth, and sprayed it on the leaves, and then even put some of the tea on the dirt the plants are growing in.

So, this is what they look like now, in a few days I will cut them back, and hope for the best.... I will follow up with some pictures of the demise or the celebration.

Keep your fingers crossed for me.... These Grapefruit trees are very dear to my heart. I kid you not, the parent tree was once a seed on a plate 35 years ago, in Farmingdale NY. My mother was on a grapefruit diet, and I was cleaning the breakfast table off, and saw that one of the seeds starting to germinate, so I carefully assisted it along. Before you knew it, my Dad and I were planting the tree outside in May, and bringing it in, in November. We did that for about 10 years, and when I moved to Florida in 1985, and bought my first house in 1987, the first trip my Mom and Dad made down by automobile, was with my Dads van, and in the back was my grapefruit tree. Boy I had a great Dad....

Then when we had a freeze in 1988 or 1989, when my Dad was here, and he wrapped the tree in a heavy drop cloth, and put a 75 watt flood at the base to keep it warm. Then he woke up all that night in regular intervals to check on the tree. The following January, I had my first buds, and the following December, I had my first fruit. And it was good fruit....

Well anyway.... do what ever it is you do... keep your fingers crossed, say a prayer, wish real hard... what ever works... and then check back.... :)