Spring clean up

Last year around this time I posted about spring clean up, this is the link in case you need to refresh your memory, but this year I have found a service that will clean up all the dog poop so I will not have to do the job.


G man went to the cottage with me yesterday, we did some cleaning inside and put some of the deck furniture out on the deck. There remains about 4 inches of snow on the deck so we could not use it, we wore sneakers instead of boots. I think next week we get the new furniture delivered, a sofa, love seat and 2, not one, dining tables and chairs.


For some reason G man wanted to have seating for 8-10 people inside for eating. To me that idea is silly. Most people sit outside to eat when the weather is nice. If the weather sucks no one comes around. Usually it is just G man and me. So I am not sure why we need seating for 8-10. He also wanted to have available more sleeping surfaces. The cottage has beds enough for 6 people. Most of our friends have cottages not far away, if my family comes down they do not spend the night, the kids friends don't sleep over. So again I am not sure why he wanted more beds. We compromised and purchased a non sleeper sofa, but 2 dining tables.


Our lawn guy, he's my eye candy, will start the yard clean up in a few weeks. Before he does I need to pick up all the gutter leaf blocker things that blew out of the gutters over the winter, the newspapers that the dogs did not bring in, the trash from bins that blew into our yard from the neighbors, re stack the wood pile that fell over, and pick up all of the dog toys that got frozen into the snow and ice. Maybe I'll find some missing socks. Jack likes to take socks outside with him in the morning. Most of the time I catch him before he's out the door, but not always.

I am not sure if I should remove the couple of bird nests near the front and back doors. If I leave them maybe that will deter the robins from building new nests and making a nuisance of themselves. Does any one know if birds will reuse an old nest?

Suggestions are welcome....

I have been planning our 2 week vacation to Europe since February and so far have only confused myself. Then it occurred to me to enlist the help of a European Travel agent at AAA. Yeah, someone to help.


Believe it or not planning this type of time away from home is daunting, time consuming, and scary. G man makes the task more frustrating because he is so picky over the type of hotel and the cost. If he had his way he would stay at a 5 star for 2 star pricing. Wouldn't we all like that? Of course those deal do not exist, so G man is slowly accepting the idea he may have to rough it in a 3-4 Star at 3-4 star pricing. That is 3-4 star by European standards, not pampered spoiled American standards. My only request is absolutely NON-SMOKING. I am extremely allergic to tobacco smoke. If I have to breathe it for prolonged periods of time I will eventually end up with an asthma attack that could hospitalize me.


But anyway...the good news. The airline tickets are purchased so the arrival and departure place, dates and times are all set. We have settled on London, Paris and Rome as the cities we will visit. With side trips to Bath, Cotswold, Versailles, and possibly a train trip to the French Alps if we have time. Our mode of travel from city to city will be EuroStar and Eurorail. The side trips, I think, will be by semi escorted motor coach. The trips to Bath and Cotswold could be made via G man driving a rental car out of London.


The AAA travel agent has given me some websites to help with hotels and sightseeing. She will go over my list of choices and help make recommendations. I am fairly sure we do not want to be part of a flexible semi escorted tour group. They travel by bus mainly which eats up time and I think is very tiresome. If the group travel was via train I would do it. But the buses are not enticing. We definetly do not want a completely escorted trip.


Suggestions of where to stay, eat, sights to see, travel tips, and little known facts that we should know are welcome from all of you.

Do you think......and ....is this

Do you think it is possible that Sammi's medication is not what it is suppose to be...the poor dog has had four bad seizures in 2 days, that is seizures I have been witness too (to?)..how many he has had when no one is around is unknown...I have a call into the vet


Do you think it is possible that McCain could win the election if Obama is the Democratic choice....last night I was watching Fox and the commentators stated that a whopping 30% of all Democrats traditionally switch parties if their Democratic candidate was not chosen to run...a poll showed that 30% of Hillary's supporters said they would vote for McCain if Obama was chosen and 19% of Obama's supporters said they would vote for McCain if Hillary was running....


Do you think a parent is responsible for an item in a store that gets broken by the child.....I do...the mom didn't... and left without paying for the headband.....


Do you think it is ok to break up with one's nail tech of 9 years with a text message....or...should the break up be done face to face or is over the phone acceptable....she canceled another appointment while I was on my way to the appointment......and then couldn't fit me for 3 days.....I went to another salon was satisfied with the service and the tech and made another appointment.....


Do you think it is wrong not to go to a memorial service for the father of Jenny G's friend on Saturday......I would have to close my store....the friend asked if I was going to be at the service....



Is this meddling....Double G and his girlfriend had an argument that extended into 3 days...they eventually resolved the issue...last night G Man relentlessly made comments about the argument to the girlfriend which caused Double G and the girlfriend to argue all over again....G man continued to add his 2 cents and make rude comments.....I call this meddling G man said it was teasing..........


Oh the things I worry about when the hormones are not balanced.........

Pictures of the family

Three of the Five...Jack, Lucy and Belevedere...

4 of the 5 ...Sammi, Lucy, Jack and Terri all snuggled in for the night

Tribble...my brother David's newest puppy

Most of the cousins....missing is my niece Rachel the redhead....my sister's daughter..she was in another car accident the morning of Easter...vehicle was totaled but her friend and she were not injured...thankfully Rachel was not driving and the car was not hers. In her 22 years of life, Rachel has totaled 2 of her own cars and 1 of mine....I can't get an answer as to how she manages this.

my younger brother David....he and his family only live 45 minutes away .....but they are busy with the girls and jobs......he works 2nd shift and Deb his wife works first shift...that way one of them is home with the girls always....I admire their dedication to their children...but miss them...we see each other during the holiday's .....(sigh, sad face and teary eyes) Life gets in the way of Life

This is my nephew Jacob, my youngest brothers youngest son....his future will be interesting to be a part of...actually to watch from the sidelines....I have concerns about his personality and his mother's shaping of his thought process.....

This young man is not my biological son....but I claim him as a son....this is Stephan... he is going to DO GOOD in the world ....he is going to be a Nobel Prize winner.....his father died when Stephan was 5....his mother has raised a child that is incredibly good...whose spirit greats positive energy where ever he goes...and does good where ever he is...I LOVE this 20 year young man as much as my own son....

today the scale is my friend...and more

This morning's weigh in was positive..... 1.5 lbs lighter for the second day in a row.....meaning I do not believe I have lost poundage unless the scale reveals the same weight 2 days in a row....so today was the 2nd day in a row that I am 1.5 pounds lighter. And it's PMS week so I should have gained weight.....we shall see what next week has in store for me.....I need to ask G man if he has been messing with the scale just to be sure....he does that sometimes because he thinks it's funny, mostly he adjusts the scale so it reads a few pounds heavier......hahaha Fing funny...haha

Saturday G man, Jenny G and I went shopping for G man...it's an event.....we did not go to a normal store we went to a discount one....normal being a place where clothes are current style, colors and fit.....discount being a few seasons past, off brands, discontinued or irregulars....G man spent $500.00, with out trying on any of the clothes and buying against Jenny G's and my advice. Today he is returning $400.00 worth of the stuff because he did not listen to our words of wisdom in the first place.....all the trousers he bought for work were poop brown, with pleats and cuffs. Because G man is not slender pleats make him look enormous and the crotch hangs down 3 inches more then it should and cuffs are from the 80's.... the poop brown color is at the discount store because no one in their right mind would buy that color at a normal store. G man claims he is saving money and still looks good.....mmmmmm no......

Easter Sunday was pleasant.....my brothers and families along with my family went to my mom's.....nothing to eventful...it was just nice to be together

Last night we watched Snatch....Jason Statham and Brad Pitt......it's a funny dumb criminal movie

That's about it....

I'm back incontrol....almost

Ahhhh..the B6 is working and for the most part life is peaceful...except every once in awhile....

B6

The bottle of B6 should have been on the counter this morning.....I should have taken one of the pills ......I hate, really despise, PMS hormones and all the other hormonal crap that goes along with being 49....all I think about are sad things and I want to cry....I'm exhausted.....I don't want to be social....my clothes are tight and uncomfortable....I am craving peanut butter and have indulged....now I have to work out longer to compensate for the spoon fulls of Fing peanut butter I ate....I'm over whelmed with Fing paperwork, tax shit, fucking god damn vendors that don't answer emails or phone messages....planning our trip to London is a god damn nightmare because G man can't let me make a fucking decision without his approval...because he's a control freak and must have the best of everything but doesn't want to pay the price...and he wore the ugliest pair of brown pants to work today.....Double G had his buddies over last night again...the kitchen was a mess from their partying ....my sister in law can't come to clean the House for a second week in a row...so that means I have too.....which messes up my plans to clean the cottage this weekend....and the only reason I have to clean the cottage is because G man didn't empty the refrigerator when HE "closed" it for the winter and the food spoiled when the electric went out...God Damn IT!!!!!! And he didn't empty the food in the dog bowls.....and he didn't bring home the food that was open in the cupboards....OH!.. he could close the cottage all by himself at his convenience...not when I could help...Oh no can't do that!!! ....can't let me help.....god damn it....

I really need a B6. And for the next few days to pass QUICKLY so I will be back to normal.

Random Cat picture

Serenity Test

From GKL.......and I am not saying what my collection of toys comprises...I knew I was silly and have always had a good sense of direction...and always have been in love with the G man...

Your results:
You are a pilot with a good
if not silly sense of humor.
You take pride in your collection of toys.
You love your significant other.
Click here to take the "Which Serenity character am I?" quiz...

A couple of posts bundled into One

I can't believe I did not post about G man's experience in Henri Bendel's and Bergdorf Goodman's when we were in NYC last month.

If any of you have been in a department store you know what happens when passing by the perfume and make up counters. Personal space is non existent and bodily assault can occur. Especially if one is not accustomed to preserving personal space with a scowl and a growl, that let the harbingers of cosmetics know to leave you alone. Poor G man, he is so innocent in the ways of the womanly world of shopping.


He accompanied me into Henri Bendel's with innocence and came out raped and pillaged. I knew enough not to engage with eye contact or words those whom ( who ?) herald the opulent creations of youth and corrections of one's horrific mistake of neglect to face, eyes and hands. G man hesitated for a second at a counter, made eye contact and they were upon him. Several sales ghouls were attempting to apply face cream and restorative eye creams upon his rugged face when I looked back to discover why he was not safely by my side in the hair accessory department.


"Oh Jesus, Joseph and Mary" I muttered. It was to late I knew what was going to happen so I did the only thing I could, I pretended not to know him. And then it happened more loud then I expected. An exasperated shout ...." Get away from me. Do I look like the kind of guy that would buy this crap?" "Stop it. Leave me alone. I don't want any more of this stuff on my face. Knock it off." Then silence.


The next minute G man was by my side making rude remarks,chuckling and trying to wipe off the goo so expertly applied to his face. Just as I was about to tell him how to avoid that fiasco in the future a foolish cosmetic demon appeared from the other world with more cream in her hand and with the stupid intention of patting it onto G man's face. Oh boy bad idea. He yelled so loud that many shoppers turned around and stared at the spectacle of him batting away the offensive hand, bobbing and weaving like a professional boxer, and bumping onto the displays of hairbands and pony tail holders. I'm not sure what happened next except that I grabbed G man and pulled him out of the store.


We couldn't help but laugh as we continued down 5th Ave and I explained the dos and don'ts of cosmetic counters. He did very well in Bergdorf Goodman and even bought me a fabulous Tom Ford perfume without incident.

2nd Post:

This morning while I was enjoying my cup of coffee at our breakfast counter, G man, all dressed and packed to go on the road, joined me for a cup of coffee. I was still sleepy and waiting for the caffeine to kick in but I was awake enough to notice that something was amiss with G mans face, especially around his eyes and cheeks. At first I thought the fuzziness from a night's sleep was affecting my vision, but when I inquired as to whether he had something wrong with his eyes and put ointment ( he's big on eye ointment), he said no. I shrugged and made a comment that his cheeks and eyes were really shiny.

To my amazement he blushed. I mean really turned noticeably red, and started rubbing his face, while telling me he used the sample of wrinkle cream he had from our trip to NY. Thankfully I did not have a mouthful of coffee because I let go with a loud and incredibly hysterical laugh. I have no control when it comes to G man being embarrassed.

Never in my life did I imagine G man being vain enough to use wrinkle cream. For years I have asked him to get a manicure and a pedicure for my own comfort. I hate having hang nails and rough callouses assault me in my sleep, or when...........use your imagination here. He refuses the mani and pedi because it's not manly. Ha! But applying wrinkle cream is OK?

Perhaps if I buy him a manicure set and a pumas stone he will secretly use them.

just not feeling it today....

A few things I learned over the weekend...

Drinking alot and then attempting to make chamomile tea is not smart...

Putting hand lotion on then picking up a fuzzy dog is not smart....

Leaving the small counter broiler on with a plastic container on top is not smart...

Stopping for "just 10 minutes" at Best Buy with G man is not smart...

Making guacamole dip and plum tomato salsa for movie night and then forgetting to buy chips is not smart...

so what did you all learn over the weekend??

More pictures

Fat Lou

Matthew, a frequent visitor to my store. His mom changes his poop diapers in the fitting room. Yuck!

The church across the street from my store

The 2nd window to the right using my telephoto lens.

You have lens envy now, don't you?

sleeping well........?

Last night I had a cup of chamomile tea with fresh ginger and a dollop of honey mixed into it. I wouldn't say it was delicious, tea is not my favorite drink, it was OK. Vodka is my preferred drink, but when one is trying for a good nights sleep, options other then vodka need to be explored, hence the chamomile tea.

I woke up only twice last night, Belvedere ( he's the dog with the heart condition and fat disease) needed to get back up on the bed. The bench at the foot of the bed he normally hops upon had my bathrobe and an extra blanket on it. Apparently the robe and blanket prevented him from being able to jump. I did not realize until this morning why he couldn't get on the bed with out my assistance. Had I known last night I would have moved the blanket and bathrobe.

Anyway, the tea did the trick. My whole body and brain were so relaxed I slept well. The best part tho, is no cotton mouth or headache in the morning. Ya know like ya get after a few vodkas the night before.

Tonight I am going to try the tea AFTER I have a couple of vodkas and see what happens. Wish me well and a good nights sleep. Cheers!

Uh oh

I knew it was going to happen sooner or later. Actually I thought later, like after Septmeber, because G man has booked extra time in Vegas for us. He has a national show out there.

But G man started this morning. Pestering, yes pestering me, first thing in the morning too. Before I had a cup of coffee. What was he thinking?

"So chunky, what are you going to do when you close the store? I looked on the Internet for jobs for you. Have you looked?" "you need to do something ya know." How do you answer those questions before a cup of coffee?

I know he really doesn't want me to get a "JOB" he wants me to earn money for our retirement. Every "JOB" I have had, he complained about. To much overtime, the company doesn't pay me enough, so what if you are late. G Man's ideal job for me is one that pays 100K for 15-20 hours, to be worked at G man's convenience. So if anyone knows of a job like that please tell me as soon as possible.

A list of food items.... some new.... some not

I need to go to the grocery store again. We are out of veggies and fruits.

My list:

2 guava

1 bag of goji berries dried

1 bunch of purslane

1 package of prunes

6 slices of thin prosciutto

1 bunch of mint, flat parsley, and coriander

carrots

1 cucumber

snow peas

blueberries

Kashi Vive cereal

2 gallons fat free lactaid milk

fresh ginger

Has any one eaten the purslane, goji berries or guava? These are new items for me and I would like to know how they taste before I buy them.

Book Tag

From SD via Suze

Here are the rules:
1. Pick up the nearest book (of at least 123 pages)
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people.

Book: Lord John Grey and the Hand of the Devils

5th sentence; In fact, von Namtzen hesitated for a moment,clearly wondering whether duty obliged him to accompany Grey upon his errand, but Lance-Korporal Helwig appeared with a new difficulty-he averaged three per day-and Grey was left to carry out the errand on his own.

Next 3:
The house where Koenig had lodged was nothing out of the ordinary, so far as Grey could see.
The owner of the house was rather remarkable, though, being a dwarf.
"Oh the poor man!"

I am not going to tag anyone. Join the book tag if you like or not.

A girl can change her mind.....

Last night I went to our local camera shop and bought a completely different camera from the Sony I posted about yesterday. The camera guy convinced me I did not need the Sony. So I bought a Nikon and so far I am happy with it. Hope you enjoy the pictures I have posted .

This is the outside of my store.

This is the inside.

Our hot tub, beyond the trees is the golf course (sp?)

My lunch for today, lox, almonds, 75% fat free cheese,low fat wheat thins, raw broccoli, and a gala apple

The street I live on.

I think you can click on the pictures to get a larger view if you are so inclined.

Is my mind made up?

The camera I thought I wanted is not going to work for me. The lenses that are part of the "package"deal just do not fit my style of shooting. One is to much of a wide angle the other not enough. So I have decided on a different camera with one lens that does it all and should have it in hand by the end of next week. A big benefit of this other camera is it allows me to be under budget, substantially.

Introducing the Sony a100h 18200.

I know this is an older dSLR but it is the best option for me. The camera not the lens has image stabilization, a dust removal system, and C size CCd imager. This camera did not get good ratings for shooting ISO 800 or higher, which is ok because I usually shoot 400. So no big deal for me.

My 35mm is a fabulous system, but because the world has gone to the Internet for sharing photos a digital camera is a must have for some one like me. Welcome to the digital world ME!

Perusing other bloggers

Yesterday in my spare time at the store, which has been incredibly quite for the last 4 months and allows me time to read and get really bored, I perused other blogger sites via Skyler's Dad page and found

Dave

and that girl.

I liked what I read and added them to my list of bloggers. check out their sites you might like them too.

Just in case you have not noticed......

The village finally got the free wi fi up and running. I have been posting like a fiend today.

Granola head customer service

G Man and I have been slowly switching from white foods to whole wheat, from wings to veggies and fruit and eliminating sugar. We have been successful and found that we do not miss the "unhealthy" food and really do enjoy the "good" food.

So we decided that we would give grocery shopping at the natural food store a try. Our purchase was minimal, mostly because we do not know what to do with alot of the food offerings, and just could not pay $7.90 per pound for organic produce. But we did manage to find bulk wild rice, bulger wheat, some frozen foods, and snacks.

At the check out counter I asked the guy if they accepted credit cards and he said yes. To which I replied "well they do make the world go round unfortunately" and he said " no, love does" The check out guy and I exchanged a few more tense sentences, much to G man displeasure. But when the guy asked me if I found a credit card and cash on the ground which would I keep and use, and when I said neither I would turn both into customer service with a request that if no one claimed the cards or cash that the cash be given to charity and the cards either destroyed or given to the police, he looked at me and said "you really believe that would happen" I could feel my blood pressure rising. "Yes, and if you don't, then I guess your kind of love that makes the world go round does not include honesty. " G man and I then left.

G man asked me why I get into with people, especially granola heads. Because he irritated me is why. The stupid piss ant silently professes to be doing good in the world by working in a natural food store, wearing organic cotton clothes, packing my groceries in a brown paper bag ( doesn't he know that brown paper bags are as bad for the environment as plastic, he should find out how the paper bags are made before opening his ignorant mouth and stating how much better paper bags are) telling me "love makes the world go round", while being dishonest by keeping cash that does not belong to him.

Besides I believe in Karma. Just because I met with dishonesty from this customer service check out guy doesn't mean my belief in doing the right thing should come to an end. Perhaps his meeting me will have changed his attitude and he will make the choice to do the right thing.

I am putting the positive back out there. Are you feeling it granola head check out guy?

The King of Kong

The King of Kong was recommended by Some Guy's Blog via GKL. This movie documentary is going to be one of those diddys that I watched, disliked sort of, but can't stop talking about.

After a few minutes into the movie I knew most of the people watching it were going to revolt, call me names, and leave the room for something else to do. I was correct. Only Danny the 13 year old watched the movie to the end with me. Double GG came home from delivering pizzas about a 1/3 of the way through the movie, informed me he saw it a few weeks ago and couldn't decided if it was any good. Most of the viewers that revolted are not the type to enjoy people that are geeks. This movie is full of them, is all about geeks, and a world far removed from our social stratosphere that tolerance of this type of geek is limited.

For most of the movie I was embarrassed for Billy Mitchel, Steve Weibe, the referee (I can't remember his name) and the other gaming geeks giving commentaries. My main concern and question for these geeks is how can they live in the past for 15, 20 years and hang onto such passion for something that most of the world has moved on from? Did these people grow personally from teenage hood, or did these games stunt their growth? They appear to be functioning adults, but LIVE for the contests and games. I wanted to yell ....Let it go! Move On! give us something new, use all that passion and energy for something different. Of course yelling like that would have been foolish as no one but Danny the 13 year old would have heard me.

This movie is going to be one which causes me to waffle with like or dislike. There are two things that I am sure about though. Billy Mitchell is an ass. And Steve Weibe needs to see a psychiatrist.

Official website for the movie....http://www.billyvssteve.com/

My kids amaze me

My 20 year son just texted me in the middle of his class to let me know he recieved a 95 on his linguistics exam, the highest grade for non anthropology students. Needless to say I am impressed.

Double G has always had an ear and mind for languages. He picked up French easily in second grade, Hebrew in 4th, Spanish in 8th. I wonder if understanding languages, excelling in math, and being a 3 sport athlete all comes from the same area of the brain?

My 21 year old daughter texted me, minutes after her brother sent his message, from her Psych class that she wants a monkey for a pet. A movie of some sort was being viewed in that class. Being the child and animal lover she is, a monkey as a pet makes sense. Not going to happen, but I can understand her desire.

Jenny G excels in understanding the sociology and psychology of humans. She listens and can view conflicts from an angle that most people miss, and then offer solid solutions, advice, and or mediation for those conflicts. Does all of her talents come from the same area of the brain? Nurturing, emotional analysis, conflict resolution, are these skills natural, learned or both?

I have great kids! And I am very happy that at their ages they still let me know about their accomplishments and desires.

Fatty Mc Fatty

Some things do change

Change #1...G man agreed to go over seas. We are going to England
and Scotland.

Change #2...I have dropped 4lbs with the new workout program

Change #3...Whole wheat pasta and pizza crust are tasty

Change #4...I can go a week without Starbucks

Change #5...I can go 2 weeks without Barnes & Noble

Change #6...I have been able to keep my new years resolutions for more
then 3 weeks

Change #7...Shorter hair is curlier, more manageable, and not scary

Change #8...sleeping naked is as comfortable now as it was when I was a teenager

change #9...650 thread count sheets are softer then 300, and are comfortable
for naked sleeping

Change #10..I will be switching from 35mm to digital as soon as the digital camera I want is available.

Billy Benge

I had a dream one night last week about Billy Benge. He was a guy that worked in the warehouse for a paper distributor when I was a sales rep for that same company. While we were not friends we were acquaintances and would go out with the other employees for a drink or a group dinner once a month.

Billy was married with 2 children. A boy the oldest and a girl whom Billy said was born only because his wife wanted a girl. He played on 3 baseball teams, bowled, smoked 2 packs a day, hated women, and hated his job more. He was slightly built, maybe 5' 5" weighing 135 pounds at best. He walked with a noticeable limp, and was grumpy most of the time. He made no bones about how much he disliked his wife and considered his daughter a pain in the ass, while he adored his son.He was about 10 years younger then me, but had the face of some one older.

He died shortly after my father did 5 years ago, I think Billy was only 35. I saw the 4 line obituary in the newspaper which simply stated his name, date of death and when and where he would be buried. Much to my astonishment he is buried across from my father's grave. I believe Billy is buried next to his father. The father has a headstone giving his name and dates of birth and death. Billy to this day does not have a headstone.

When I visit my dad I know he has gone to the other side. His spirit is not here anymore. But not with Billy, a sadness surrounds his grave. The same with Billy's dad. Although I feel he, Billy's dad, is waiting. For what I do not know.

The dream was short but I am to remember it because I do remember it. Billy's face was just there, in my dream. Nothing else except my presence. With out words I knew what Billy wanted and told him. "Yes you are" He looked at me and I said "yes your are dead. You're dead Billy" He turned his head and was gone. Almost like he knew but needed some one to tell him.

Once the cemetery opens and the weather is nice I will visit my dad and Billy. I know my dad will not be there, and hopefully neither will Billy.