Friday

I feel sometimes I am living in an alien environment.  About half the people I see around here are wearing masks ---- residents, visitors, housekeepers and nurses.  My next door neighbor just got home from the hospital in Jackson this afternoon after a bout with the flu and pneumonia, and wearing a mask.  It reminds me of Steven King's book "The Stand".

When I was teaching kindergarten, every year about in February, I would clean out whatever we had in the sand table, and fill it with water.  I added a lot of Dawn detergent and glycerin, and the kids used whatever we could find to make bubbles.  My classroom maybe had the messiest floor in school, but my kids had the cleanest hands in school.  I'm quite sure that helped prevent sickness.  I remember a few fathers who used to come early to pick up their kids so they could play in the bubble table

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Back to cooking school, I guess.  I ate one bowl of the soup I made today, and threw the rest of it out.  Nasty stuff!  I'm thinking along the lines of a peanut butter sandwich.

 

 

 

Yes, I love beer jokes.

 

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I have a love/hate relationship with computers.  I was through with Microsoft when they came out with Windows 8.  Now Yahoo is screwing around with me.  I had Yahoo set up as  my home page, with everything I wanted right there in front of me - the news sources I like, the weather in places I chose, the scores I wanted to see, etc.  Now Yahoo has a "new and improved page" and if I continue to use it, I will have to start from scratch.  It thinks I live in Kalispell,  and you know what?  I don't give a hoot what the weather is in Kalispell!



Thursday

Xiau Ling cleaned my apartment this morning with no cat problems.  I guess the cat stayed behind the couch.  She brought her vacuum in right away, just in case she needed to terrorize Kat.

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It looks like a winter wonderland here this morning.  We got at least six inches last night, maybe more.  Want to see pictures? I didn't think so.  Ken came to get my keys so he could move my truck to plow the parking lot.  When he brought the keys back, I told him where my little magnetic box is with the spare key.  There's no need for him to have to stop work to come get my key and then bring it back. 

I harvested some fresh basil from my windowsill garden this morning.  Not very much, but at least I got some.  It occurred to me I don't have the faintest idea how to use fresh basil, so I googled it.  I am making a pot of tomato soup with macaroni and hot dogs, and will chop this up and put in it.  I use this little board and ulu knife for so many things!

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Lenore ordered some DVDs on watercolor for our art group, and they are excellent.  Conley has watched them, and I brought some home yesterday.  The lessons are from a guy named Bob Davies, from Great Britain. There are a total of eight DVDs.  I have never heard of the artist before, but he is a great instructor.

Wednesday

A couple of the MIA painters showed up for art group today.  Both Linda and Les were there!  Nice to see them.

I started a new watercolor of an old rusty car, one of my favorite things to paint.

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There was a residents meeting this afternoon.  I'm not even sure what all was discussed -  nothing new or earthshaking. They talked about the cocktail party (I've only attended one), the schedule for bingo and ice cream (neither one of which I have done) and whether or not we get a choice of location of our new apartment when we move.  The dividers between living room and kitchen seem to be a point of contention for some residents, even after they were told the dividers could be put in or taken out. The people here only hear about one-third of what is said.  And I seem to be the only one with hearing aids, and I wasn't wearing them!

 

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I found another addictive Internet site.  Jeff Foxworthy has a Facebook page for all his redneck fans.  Here are a couple of photographs from there.

 

 

 

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There was a new UPS delivery guy this afternoon, and the poor guy has obviously never been here and doesn't know anything about the place.  He just opened my door and stepped in.  Then he stopped and said "Is this a residence?"  He thought he was delivering to a business.  He was so embarrassed and apologized for not knocking.





Tuesday

Such disturbing news from across the pond!  The Royal Family is down to its last $1.6 million, and has overspent the budget.  And the queen is in trouble with PETA for racing pigeons!

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A great man has died, at least I thought he was.  Peter Seeger died at 94.  I loved that guy's music. 

 

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I have definitely spent too much time on the Internet today.  I just read an article about an opera singer who lost her job because she farts when she sings high notes.  She is suing someone for botching some surgery.

 

And in Germany,  methane gas from 90 flatulent cows exploded in a  farm shed on Monday, damaging the roof and injuring one of the animals. 

 

 

This is not a good thing.  I spent a lot of time yesterday cleaning up one of my watercolor palettes.  It's not going to be easy to fill it with paint and start messing it up.  I may never paint again!!

Monday

Beautiful bright world this morning.  We got about an inch of fresh snow and everything looks new and clean.  About a dozen men are on the roof of the new apartments sweeping off the snow.

Fremont Lake froze over clear, but I suppose this snow has messed that up.  People have been up there skating and watching the fish below.

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I baked a loaf of bread yesterday and made dough for two pizza crusts.  Ambitious!

 

 

The kitchen gadget gremlin has snuck up and bit me on the butt again.  I just ordered this little hand slicer.  I used to  have one of these years ago, and really liked it.  But it was made of cheap plastic and wore out.  The guy who demonstrates this on TV makes it look like the best thing since sliced bread.  But then, he has practiced using it for many hours and probably went through a ton of food to make it look so easy. 

 

 





Here is another "gadget" I used recently to roll out and cut fresh pasta.  Supposedly, old Italian grandmothers have used these a hundred years.  My grandmother (and mother) made fresh pasta, but they used a rolling pin.  This machine is also used by artists to roll out slabs of clay. 

 



Saturday

We had a nine hour power outage this morning.  I guess it went off about 2:00 AM and affected a large area of Wyoming.  Mandy came to tell me this morning about 10:00 that the dining room would be serving sandwiches and coffee to all the residents, free of charge, so I had lunch in the dining room today. 
 
There is an emergency generator here, but the heat in the apartments is not on it.  I sat in the front lobby by the front door for a while this morning, as the heat was on there.  People were busy plugging in their oxygen to the emergency plug ins in the hallways.
 
The power came on about 12:30, and it is warm and toasty here now.

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Mandy said Xiao Ling was laughing about how badly my cat scared her.    And that she knows now to just get the vacuum cleaner after her to scare her under the couch.  I'm glad I won't get evicted because of my cat!

 

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So where would a smart person keep a flashlight in case the power goes off in the middle of the night?  In the bedside stand, right?  So why was mine in the kitchen? (Don't answer that.)  It is now moved to the bedside stand.

 

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And I didn't even know who Justin Bieber was until last week!



Friday

Pretty boring day today.   Bright and sunny outside.  I am in the middle of thoroughly cleaning one of my watercolor palettes to start with fresh paint.  I'm considering using the butcher tray and choosing a limited palette, starting with fresh paint every time I paint.  Sometimes I just get confused with a full palette of colors and end up with mud.

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Here is my attempt at humor today.

 

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With Justin Bieber and Richard Sherman in the news, no one has much time for Obama bashing these days.

 

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I watched the movie "Children of a Lesser God".  I first saw this movie years ago when we had a little deaf boy enrolled in my classroom. School hadn't started yet, but we wanted to be ready for him.  The school sent me to a couple of workshops, and the speech teacher and I spent some time at the School for the Deaf in Casper.  A group of teachers got together one night a week to work on our signing.  We worked so hard to get ready for this kid, then his mother moved and he was sent to school in Jackson. 

 

I was never proficient at signing, and was pretty slow.  But when I watched the movie, I was surprised at how much of the signing I could keep up with.  Good movie!

 









Thursday

Whooha!  Last trip to Rock Springs to the eye doctor yesterday.  Four hours driving to spend about 10 minutes in his office and have him tell me everything is perfect. I told them "Merry Christmas" when I left.

I have a pair of glasses on the table here, and I haven't got up the nerve to get rid of them yet.  For over sixty years, glasses have been part of my face, and it's hard to get over the habit of taking care of them and keeping track of them.

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Barrie got a note from the school principal expressing concern about KC missing so much school this year, so she will have to go see him and explain that it was all Grandma's fault.  Actually, I started the whole process in August, so Kasey shouldn't have missed so much school. 

 

Kristi brought Barrie four big black plastic bags with Camile's outgrown clothes for Kasey.  Kasey is more excited than she would be if she went on a shopping trip to a big store.  I don't even know where the clothes come from originally, but someone hands down their little girl's outgrown clothes to Kristi, who gives them to Barrie when Camile outgrows them.  They are really high quality clothes, and cute.

 

 

 Free to a good home:  Loving house cat who has decided it will be fun to hide under the bed and leap out at the housekeeper and grab her feet while she is trying to make the bed.  Causing said housekeeper to run down the hall to get me to help her.  I had her turn on the vacuum cleaner and run it a ways under the bed.  Cat shot out and went behind the couch. 

 

 



Tuesday

I just noticed the title of yesterday's blog is "low". I have no idea why.  ?????

 

What shall I bake today?  Ken and Kevin just came and got my old stove and put this one in from the empty apartment across the hall. The old one had a black door, and a black back where the knobs are.  I like white so much better.  It doesn't have a clock, but I never used one anyway.

And yes, the little bottle of eyedrops, a miniature toy dog, and a dog biscuit were under it.

 

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The main thing I want to accomplish today is finish the movie "The Thorn Birds", which I started a couple of days ago.  I watched it years ago.  It's a good movie, but it goes on, and on, and on.

 

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Low

Happy dance for the Broncos!  Tom Brady looked deflated when he left the field.  Made me feel a little sorry for him.  On the other hand,  Seattle doesn't earn any points in my book, after watching the post game interview with Sherman.  I wouldn't feel bad if somebody broke his leg in the Super Bowl.  Low class.
 

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Lenore stopped by this morning, and she fished around under my stove.  She got the lid to the bottle, but we never found the eye drops.  So I went to the drug store this morning and got a new one.  The prescription I got last month was $70.  Today it was $117.  That can't be right!  I've got a lot to learn about prescription medicine, but hopefully, I won't have to have more after this.

 

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Searching for lost things is a little difficult, because I'm not supposed to stoop over or lift heavy things.  But today I moved the trunk in the living room and found a cat toy, some Chapstick, and an eraser. 

 

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I had to look up Miley Cyrus on the Internet, because I didn't know who she was.  After watching a You Tube video, I can see why.  She's almost spooky.

 

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The Standard poodle who moved in an apartment at the other end of the hall isn't happy about being here.  When I got home today, it was lunchtime, and he evidently had been left alone in the apartment.  He was barking and howling.  I can't hear him in my place, but I wouldn't want to be in the apartment next to him.  Maybe he'll calm down.





Sunday

 

I've got my game hat on, beer in the fridge, and chips.  I'm ready!

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Damned cat!  I'm supposed to be putting two different drops in my eye four times a day.  One bottle is missing.  I'm guessing it's under the stove or refrigerator.  At least it's not the one that costs $140.  The one that is missing is only $70 a bottle. Yeah, only!

 

 

What a great sign!

 

 

 

 



 



Friday

I have an order in for a new stove.  There are vacant apartments here, so I'm sure they can bring me a different one with an oven that works better.

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Tracy and Paul sent me two new watercolor books.  I need something to light a fire under me and get me painting again.  The books are full of instructions and exercises, which is just what I need.  I don't really want to make a complete painting.  Practice sounds better.

 

 
I saw this elk on the Internet the other day.  I think it's a Zentangle with watercolors.  Looks like a lot of work to me!

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I have printed some 5" x 7" photos to decorate my door.  I'm tired of the grizzly bears.  

I've always thought legalizing drugs might accomplish the same thing.  



Thursday

Well, we put another four hours on the road to Rock Springs and back.  Saw doctor for about five minutes, who told me my left eye was a little bit inflamed, but that the drops would take care of it.  And I have to go back in a week, hopefully for the last time.

Yes, we stopped and ate at Farson! 

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Kat is irritated for me leaving her alone for two days straight and doing everything she can think of to get even.  She pulled papers out of the printer and scattered them on the bedroom floor, and knocked things off the kitchen counter and the table. 

 

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Someone mentioned I should have taken a picture of the moose at the door.  It was dark, and she was so close to the door it would have hit her if I had opened it. 

 

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Mary, my neighbor from across the hall, has been moved to the nursing wing.  She wasn't feeling well the last time I talked to her over a week ago, and I know they have been delivering her meals to her in her apartment.

 

A gardening tip!

 

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Kasey was wearing such a cute dress yesterday.  When I asked her where she got it, she said "From my closet."  Yep!



 



Wednesday

According to the doctor, the cataract surgery went "perfectly".  Barrie and I couldn't stay for the afternoon follow up exam in his office, so will be driving back to Rock Springs this afternoon.  We had to get back to meet Kasey's school bus, and she had dance class and a hair appointment.

On the bright side, we didn't have time and it wasn't the right time of day to grab something to eat at Farson.  We should be able to do that today!

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My neighbor knocked on my door Tues. night to tell me to not use the outside door if I was going out.  Her grandson had been here, and the moose was at the door.  So he had to use a different entrance. 

 

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 Kasey has been using some watercolors I left at the house.  Here is her painting of a sunset.



And she told me she copied my painting of a buffalo.  Now I'm wondering just what I did leave there!  Oh well, if I haven't missed it before now, I don't need it.

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The eye was really bugging me this morning when I took the patch off.  It was kind of itching and burning, and the vision real blurry.  It's now noon, and it feels much better.  Vision still a little cloudy.  I think the right eye healed faster, but I'm not sure.

Monday

What a great game yesterday!  The Chargers finally started to show their stuff, but it was too late.  But it made the game more exciting.  I'm afraid I'm not as optimistic about the game next Sunday when the Broncos play the Patriots. 

I love snow, and I love sunshine.  I DON'T like cloudy days when the wind blows and the snow is turning into slush. I had to go to Ridley's and the bank today, and didn't enjoy the excursion.

I am trying to remember what I need to do before I have eye surgery tomorrow, like leave the windowsill planter in the windowsill, and turn off the humidifier, because I'm not supposed to bend over, or lift heavy things.

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Maybe Mom forgot what it is, or what she put in it!

A conversation overheard in the hallway here. (just kidding)

It's amazing what you find on Netflix if you just look!  How about "Xena, the Princes Warrior"?  Anyone remember that?

Sunday

I woke up this morning to Boo and Maggie barking outside my bedroom window.  They were having a standoff with a young moose.
 

"Run for your life!  Here he comes."

 

I would have to say the moose came out the winner.  He was fearless.  I think the dogs were secretly relieved when Ken called them off and took them with him. 

 

 

Ken called the moose "she", but I think he's a young bull. 

 

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I guess we had quite a snow storm last night - a couple inches new snow and wind.  I missed it all.  I closed my drapes and went to bed.  I can't hear the wind blow.

 

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Happy Day in the kitchen with Duene yesterday!  I made something good!  Pizza from scratch, thick crust, lots of toppings, and delicious.

 

I'm wondering if I can request a new stove.  There are plenty available in the empty apartments.  This oven doesn't heat evenly, and must be poorly insulated.  The outside of the stove can get too hot to touch at times.  



 



Saturday

Countdown to cataract surgery for my left eye.  I started the four eye drops a day routine.  My surgery is scheduled for 9:30 AM on Tuesday.  That's a little early when it's a two hour drive from home, but whatever!  We have to make sure we schedule things so we can get our "fix" at the café in Farson.  Which should I have, regular fries, curly fries, or onion rings?  Tough decision.

 

My windowsill herb garden is not doing so great,  I guess the basil hates it here, and hates me. The little spindly plants are dying off, one by one.  The parsley is not doing too badly, but the cat is eating the chives.

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The memory card has been missing more than a month from my Canon Rebel camera.  Evidently Xiao Ling found it when she cleaned, because it was on the table.  Wonder where Kat had it hidden?

 

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Friday

 

Free to a good home: Nice house cat who likes to jump on the foot of the bed at 3:00 AM, whirl in circles, snarling and growling, chasing her tail.  Likes to sleep all day.

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I love the snow this morning.  The sun is shining, and it is not snowing hard.  The flakes are sticking to the tips of the branches.

 

 



I actually stepped outside on the sidewalk to take a couple of photos.

 

They look like snow crystals.

Thursday

Xiao Ling had a little extra mess when she came to clean my apartment this morning.  When I turned on the kitchen faucet, water came out of the sprayer all over the stove, the counter, the floor, and me.  The darned thing was stuck, and wouldn't turn off.  Kevin came and worked it with a little bit, and it is unstuck, but I am getting out my trusty can of WD40 anyway.

This makes me laugh .When I told him it was stuck open, and he could see that I was wet, and the floor and count top was wet, he still reached out and turned the water on.  And of course it sprayed the front of his shirt.  I'm sure he believed me, but it's just human nature to see for yourself.  Kind of like a "fresh paint" sign makes you touch it to see if it really is wet.

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I'm getting more and more e-mail every day urging me to enlarge my penis. That kind of garbage slowed down for a while, but it's coming again.  I don't use a spam blocker for e-mail.  I found I was missing mail I wanted to get.  So I am my own spam blocker. Doesn't take much time to just delete them.

 

 

Another old picture from the files.  These two plastic garden rabbits lived in my back yard at the house. 

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I've heard the saying "Real men don't eat quiche", and would like to say I'm on their side.  The quiche I made had everything I love in it - Swiss cheese, eggs, bacon, onions, zucchini, and it looked delicious.  So why did I eat one piece and throw the rest of it away?  Because it was downright nasty tasting, that's why.

 

 



Love this sentiment.  Let's see, where shall I go today?

Wednesday

The more I browsed through different food processors on the Internet yesterday, they less I liked them.  I really like my old one, so I searched until I found what I think is the correct bowl cover.  I sheared off the end of a little plastic connector when I was shredding cheese.  I'm lucky I saw it in the cheese.  Otherwise, I would never have known what was wrong with it.

Betty C. suggested I look at the Food Basket for a lid.  Should have thought of that!

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I just read an article about how there is a lot of discussion among professional rodeo cowboys about leaving the PRCA and forming a new organization.  That would be an interesting development. 

 

 

 

I love this winter photo.  It is from the Web cam at old Faithful in the park. 

 

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I didn't go to art group this morning.  Both Judi and Vicky have migrated to warmer climates for the remainder of the winter.  Lenore was not going, nor Susan. 



Tuesday

I watched the movie "Conrack" on YouTube last night.  It was broken down into four parts, was super easy to navigate through it, and it was very good quality.  The movie was just as good as I remember.

I wonder how many other good things I'm missing on You Tube.  I know the movie "The Terror of Tiny Town" is on there, because I've watched it.  Always good for a laugh, although not politically correct, maybe.  It is an old black and white western and the entire cast is made up of midgets and Shetland ponies.

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Making a quiche is hard work, and may turn into a two day job.  The fact that I broke my food processor partway though the dicing, chopping and shredding may have something to do with it.  So of course I had to leave the kitchen, grab a cup of coffee and search for a new food processor on Amazon.  And that is time consuming.  I tried to find the replacement bowl cover for mine, but haven't yet.  And I don't have the manual that came with it.  It's getting pretty old.

 

 

This is my fun purchase of the week - a back scratcher.  I used to use a knitting needle, so this is pretty special!





Monday

Today is going to be a "Conrack" day.  Years ago, I saw a movie about a young white man who gets a teaching assignment to a school on an island off the coast of South Carolina, populated entirely by blacks.  He teaches the children about geography and math, how to brush their teeth, to appreciate classical music, how to swim, and even takes them off the island to go trick-or-treating on Halloween.

Of course I can't find the movie, but I bought the Kindle edition of the book "The Water is Wide". Then I discovered the movie has been uploaded to You Tube. 

The author of the book is Pat Conway and is based on his memoirs. I've never read any of his writing, but have heard of him.

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Another picture from January, 2010.  Barrie is demonstrating how NOT to drive a pickup and horse trailer down a slick hill. 

 

 





Sundy

Blowing snow today.  I really didn't want to go outside, but Ken knocked on my door to tell me one of my pickup windows was down part way.  I really didn't want the back seat to fill up with snow, so I went out and took care of it.  Not a pleasant day to be wandering around outside.

 I'm looking for recipes again.  I've never made a quiche, and want to try one.  They sound simple, and I want to practice making a pie crust again.  I won't give up!

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I can't make myself paint or draw lately.  I'm just not interested in it at the moment.  Even if I don't get out the paints, it should be simple to pick up a pencil and a sketchbook.  There was a time I made myself draw every day, even if it was something like a roll of paper towels, but at least I was drawing.  Maybe a belated New Years Resolution?

 

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 No new pictures, so I looked back through the photos I took in January in 2010.  This is a small watercolor I did of snow on a branch outside the window at the house.  I've always had a hard time painting snow, but I like this one.

 



And this is a picture of Kat, dancing on a table top with a lampshade on her head.  It must have been New Year's Eve, and she was celebrating!

Saturday

One of the Everly Brothers has died.  The article I read described their songs as "dark".  and about mourning and loss. Funny, but it never sounded that way to me.  "Wake Up Little Suzy" was dark?   I must be missing  something. 

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Someone posted some pictures on Facebook of kids hiding.  I love this one of the kids hiding behind the curtains.

 

 

 And now I know what my cat was doing the other day!

 

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I have filed a case with EBay about an item I paid for but never received.  I bought Microsoft Office 2010, and the seller sent me a link to download the software, as well as the Product No.  I got it installed okay, but can't activate it.  I get the message that the code has already been used on the maximum number of installations.  The seller didn't exactly ignore me, said they were working on the solution, but I am over it.  I just want my money back.  Now that eBay is involved, I'm sure it will be resolved. 





Thursday

 

Yes, I know.  I should have posted this yesterday. Better late than not at all.

Happy anniversary to my friends Rollie and Judi.  You guys are the best,

 

  I saw this photo on the Internet and couldn't resist posting it.  I wonder if my cat feels this way?

 

For some reason, she doesn't look cute and cuddly like the kitten in the first picture. She was just plain mad when Barrie found her on the front lawn, too young to be weaned.  You would think she would appreciate the bottle feeding and loving care.  But she is still mad, and pretty much untouchable.