Star quality Molly

This little Doxie freeze poses for photos at the mention of her name. Molly is my friend's newest addition to her small gathering of pets. On Christmas day she sat stock still waiting for me to get this picture...and another I took minutes later when I thought she was unaware...but as soon as she heard the click...she wiggled off, skittering over the hardwood floor on other hyper pursuits...like the puppy she is. What a poser...

Happy Christmas

Hope you are all warm and well filled with Christmas cheer whether it be Kool-aid or Kahlua, and that you are with the ones you cherish and not stuck in a drift OR an airport.

We're off shortly to brave the weather for dinner with friends.

Angh

Merry Christmas!

Crystal Clear???

As I sit here with the last cup of coffee, hoping the power stays on,at least until the new pot brews up. I'm staring out at the whiteworld, wondering if Himself made it to work in MY poor little ol'Camry. His car died on the road as he tried to leave for workearlier, and a plow helped by pushing him back into the driveway. Ourmobile needed charging, so I can't call until it's juiced up again.
Listening to all the weather reports from Spokane channels...thecommon theme is to "STAY home, everybody...away from roads!" Thehospitals are now operating under low level disaster plans.
Kubota Fats was plowing our driveway when I got up...hopefully hemanaged to not plow Himself's car in...it's sitting between our placeand neighbor Jack's. I'm hoping it's something simple like a loosewire that kept it from service today.
It looks like we got maybe 10" of snow, but they are predicting 10-15" more today. It's a balmy 29F out.
Funny in a way, but not funny at all is that last night...duringcommute hours...there was gridlock in Spokane and they closed theentire downtown area at about 6 pm. This morning they announced thatthe STA in the city is SHUT DOWN too. Last night chains were requiredfor driving anywhere between Spokane and the Montana border! That's afirst since I've living up this way. This whole thing is justsurreal....looking at the webcams is plain spooky. WINTER WONDERLANDme arse...I wonder what the hell I'm doing here!As I sit here with the last cup of coffee, hoping the power stays on, at least until the new pot brews up. I'm staring out at the white world, wondering if Himself made it to work in MY poor little ol' Camry. His car died on the road as he tried to leave for work earlier, and a plow helped by pushing him back into the driveway. Our mobile needed charging, so I can't call until it's juiced up again. (edit to add: I have talked to him now...my car did FINE...bless her greasy lil' heart)

Listening to all the weather reports from Spokane channels...the common theme is to "STAY home, everybody...away from roads!" The hospitals are now operating under low level disaster plans.

Kubota Fats was plowing our driveway when I got up...hopefully he managed to not plow Himself's car in...it's sitting between our place and neighbor Jack's. I'm hoping it's something simple like a loosewire that kept it from service today.

It looks like we got maybe 10" of snow, but they are predicting 10-15" more today. It's a balmy 29F out. (edit/add: it's now 31F, less snow, but I'm hearing that this storm front is basically stalled over WA/ID...thus they expect more of the same until tomorrow!)

Funny in a way, but not funny at all is that last night...during commute hours...there was gridlock in Spokane and they closed the entire downtown area at about 6 pm. This morning they announced that the STA (buses) in the city is SHUT DOWN too. Last night chains were required for driving anywhere between Spokane and the Montana border! That's a first since I've lived up this way. Edit to add: This photo was shot through the storm door--the white you're looking through is ice crytals on the INSIDE of the glass. It's a great porch for storage...except for canned goods...OOPS! You ought to see it today...12/21...

This whole thing is just surreal....looking at the webcams is plain spooky. WINTER WONDERLAND me arse...I wonder what the hell I'm doing here!

My silly day...

started at 9:ish, with coffee and a shower to wake up, dress and MOVE for a change of pace. It was a late night so I wasn't moving fast mind you, but I finally hit the road shortly after noon, with a quick run to pick up mail and post a business reply that needed to get out today...re my medical records from the hospital stay in Spokane. Also on my to-do-list was dropping off a check for a guy who got smokes...and picking up the pool league money and score sheets...taking some stuff to the thrift store for donation, and picking up flea meds for the Gang of 4, and whatever shopping I could fit it. Also had books to return to the library. A full schedule in My case.

The day was fairly fine...40F outside, so no problems starting car or driving, at all. I noticed gas was down to $1.75, and no major weather fronts moving in until the end of the week. I wore a wrap rather than the customery jacket or weather cape, and my beret. A sweater and slacks n' loafers and I hit the road.

By 3 pm I was done with the do-list and stopped to shop a bit before heading home. I found the coolest set of "long johns"....a light blue stretchy turtle neck top and matching fleece lined pants, great for underwear but functional wear for the house too. Then I found a shirt I thought Himself might be able to wear, a faded blue chambray work shirt but lined with a great red plaid polyflannel. It was new, but had like manufacturers soiling on it that I didn't notice when I grabbed it off the shelf. The clerk and I noted this at the same time...so instead of 2.99 (still a good buy!) she said she would only charge me a quarter for the shirt! And then proceeded to give me her secret tips to clean the fabric up! I'd also found a fake fur beret that I knew would fit...and even if it didn't...would keep my head warm as I pound away at the keyboard. It was 99 cents. Quite a nice haul of goods in exchange for the sackful of shirts and shoes I donated.

Himself was home from work by the time I pulled in. He tried on the work shirt right away, but it was waaayyyy small on him, so I inherited the chambray...and it actually fits like I love my shirts to fit...and the bonus was it laundered up just perfectly, and looks GREAT! The furry beret also fits, and I just LOVE IT...and I'm wearing the new long johns as I type. They are fun and toasty warm.

We had some small sirloin steaks n' small baked potatoes for dinner and spent most of the evening watching some cowboy movie marathon on AMC. I'll be going out again tomorrow to do some real Christmas shopping...since after dinner I was efficient/energetic enough to get the pool stats all typed and ready for proof n' print. Feeling very pleased with myself, as I head for bed...NOW.

Gawd, it sounds stupid but y'have no idea how long I've waited to find a chambray work shirt I could wear and feel comfortable in...my purchases totalled less than $5...I'm so chuffed I hope I can sleep! Nighty-night....

Greetings from Colorado

I got home from my Thanksgiving in New Jersey trip on Tuesday.  I brought a new cat along.  She is Lopher (named for my friends' son, ChristoPHER and his friend CarLO.)  The kids found Lopher and her two sisters in 2006, when they were just about 3 weeks old.  I fell in love with them, naturally.  So this year, with Lopher having some behavior problems, I convinced my friends to let me have her.  Right now, we are going through the isolation phase of the introduction to the other cats.  They've seen each other, played a bit under the door, and done some hissing & growling, but so far nothing awful.  She is a very sweet little cat, and I am hoping that she & Eartha will be friends.  Otherwise, Thanksgiving was wonderful - we outdid ourselves with the food.  Christopher, who has been my special little friend since he was three months old, turned 17 on Saturday!  Monday morning he passed his drivers test.  Monday afternoon, he & I went for a drive - how fun to be his first official passenger!  

We had a bit of snow while I was away, but I am told only enough to stick to the grass a bit.  Driving home Tuesday morning, the thermometer in the car said it was 73 degrees!  Wednesday it was 23.  Yesterday I woke up while it was still dark, wondering what time it might be, but too lazy to check.  Then I heard Nathan, my next door neighbor, shoveling his walk.  This told me that it was probably around 5:30, and we'd had our first snow!  I waited til 6 and went out to shovel my driveway and sidewalk.  There were maybe four inches of very light fluffy snow on the ground, with more falling slowly.  I shoveled another couple of inches later in the afternoon.  Last night it got bitterly cold, around 11 degrees, and today it's up in the 20s.  The weekend it's supposed to be back in the 50s.  Quite the roller coaster ride we're having.

I've decided that, since I obviously will not have to work on Christmas day this year, I will have Christmas dinner at my house.  I can't remember the last time I had Christmas off from work, and probably won't again for a long time.  My aunt & uncle are coming, and I've invited a few friends.  I think it will be fun.  I'm still not getting a tree, though, or putting up lights on the outside of the house.  (BTW, my neighbors all took advantage, two weeks ago, of the temps in the 70s to put their lights up!)

Just for fun, thought I'd post this old video - it still makes me smile!  

Bebe quits smoking...

errr, perhaps not.

Positive thinking??

I've been thinking about giving up smoking again. Although, before I go any further I should amend that, because I read somewhere you're not supposed to look at it as if you're giving something up. That'll make you less likely to suceed. You're supposed to call it quitting, or stopping. It's kind of a play on words designed to make you feel better about it. You're supposed to step up to the line and declare, I'm quitting. It's a positive thing. Giving up implies it's something you're likely to miss and this is no time to be wishy-washy. So... I'm (kind of) reluctantly thinking about (maybe) stopping smoking, again. (Sigh).
It doesn't feel so bad if you say it fast. It only actually starts to feel bad when, as now, I'm almost out of tobacco. I roll my own for economy. Some people won't leave the house without their cell phone. I won't leave without my leather tobacco pouch. I get a bad feeling if I go out without it. It's sad but true. And I get an even worse feeling when I'm forced to root around in its depths for the last few pinches of tobacco. I get like a mild panic attack, as if something terrible is going to befall me if I don't have a cigarette.
Stupid I know, but there it is. I've dedicated a large part of my life to rolling the perfect cigarette. I have it down to a fine art. I love the smell of tobacco in the morning. Or the afternoon. Or any time, actually. The self help books tell you to avoid situations where you usually have a cigarette. Well, they might as well nail the lid down now and have done with it as far as I'm concerned. The only time I don't smoke is in the shower or when I'm asleep. I don't smoke to excess. Not really. I don't think it's excessive. I can go six or eight hours, if I can't smoke somewhere, it doesn't bother me unduly. It's just the thought of never smoking again that fills me with unease.
Even now, when I haven't quite run out of tobacco, I feel this worrying sense of foreboding and dread for the future. I once read about this man who gave up smoking. He lived out in the sticks miles from anywhere. It snowed and he didn't have any smokes and he walked six miles through snowdrifts to reach a store and buy some. Stories like that do not fill me with confidence.
I know it's not good for me, but I like it, dammit! It's the credit crunch. It's only because I'm flat broke today that I'm even thinking, (not very seriously), about giving up. I mean, quitting. (Maybe).

The longest November in memory...

Seems like it's been 231 days since Halloween, and we've still got a week left of this goofy month before we get through it to December...

It seems I've spent an interminable length of time dwelling on whether or not the drugs I'm taking will stabilize my system, if every twinge signifies a dance with the fookin' reaper. I hate the feeling of betrayal by my own body, dammitall, and I don't like not having a clue what's ahead, or feeling like I really should go through all my scribbles and get rid of them now, even though I should never have left the shit pile up over the years like it has...who was that mythic hero who had to shovel out the stable....? I did go through one notebook of junk and really got depressed...it actually was page after page of drivel, meaningless notes, snippets, and things I don't remember at all. Have I actually been packing around a pile of swill ALL these years?

The scary hospital bills have all been taken into account now except for the ambulance...which apparently has some deductible attached to it...so THAT big bastard is still hanging up there over my head like a guillotine blade. For $1700 I could have bought a round trip to somewhere pleasant. Or hired a wino with a wheelbarrow...ah well, we live and learn don't we. What on earth do they bill you for air transport I wonder...Jaysus, that's really scary! The GOOD news is Medicare covered everything but $150.00 of the 2 hospital bills, including all their pricey testing and drugs. The bad news is they won't keep doing that if it happens again and again. The Medicare pocket is not all that deep if I'm recalling right. I really must find that book they sent me.

I don't know what I would have done without silly stuff to do this month to kill time. Moving to Multiply has been half an experience...I'm still not sure about the new place but I've neglected everything else to try and figure it all out. Surfed a bit looking for Irish themed sites but haven't found anything worth joining so far.

There's been no snow on our level so far, but I noticed a dusting on the hill I call Polaris, just south of us, and of course Silver Mountain and both passes have had some snow, but nothing worth noting so far. Maybe this week.

VERY pleased at the lower gas prices...I topped off a half tank the other day at $1.99, just before it dropped to $1.95. I heard though that most stations are adding a surcharge to motorists who use credit cards. Hope they differentiate between credit and debit cards...eek.

Enough bellyaching for one night. My brain is tired now. Hope somebody else will post soon. Maybe we could get a chat organized one of these days? I'm always around....somewhere...

An Experiment

I found another chat site, Lingr, and wanted to see how it works.

I made Peetle our spokespup!
Oh, and the password is craicers

Necessary Evils

Well, I got a new job!  BIG relief.  I don't start until January 5, since it's a new hotel and  doesn't open until March.  Plenty of time to get myself mentally prepared.  The thing is, though, that I am used to a relatively more casual style than this place will require.  At my previous place of employment, I wore corduroys or khakis, depending on the season, with sweaters or blouses.  Now, I will have to wear suits.  (Gasp, shudder.)  I'd bought a new black "interview suit" in August, but never expected to have to wear it for much else, beside the occasional funeral.  So yesterday, my cousin & I went on a shopping trip.  I needed the moral support.  Luckily, I can wear pants, not just skirts.  I would die a thousand deaths before wearing pantyhose every day til I can retire in thirty years.  We went to the Limited up in Fort Collins, where they, like just about everyone else, are having big sales.  I imagine I made my little sales person's day.  She was wonderful, by the way, as was my cousin.  We had a grand time on a slow Friday afternoon.  I ended up with two jackets, four pairs of pants, a fancy blouse & a nice top.  Everything is black, black & white, or gray!  It was funny to see everything heaped together on the counter in all of its monochromatic glory.  I would say I'm covered til summer now.  It was kind of fun, I must admit.

In other news, Seamus, my 12 1/2 year old orange tabby cat, had to go to the vet this week.  I was afraid he was in kidney failure.  The news is somewhat better - he is diabetic.  I began with his insulin injections today.  I was somewhat apprehensive about it, but the needles are so tiny, he didn't even notice.  In fact, there was so little reaction that I feared I'd not actually injected the stuff.  That was a relief.  I had visions of having to chase him around every morning and wrestle him to the ground.  Not a happy start to anybody's day.   Seamus is seen below, with Trevor, enjoying a sunny morning.

Doling it out

"I only know five of them," a woman said to me, standing head and shoulders above a shoal of solemn-faced ghouls and demons. "Those two, I don't know."

I smiled and dropped packages of horses hooves dipped in food dye into the proffered bags. The woman immediately went into Sergeant Major mode:

"Get your stuff and walk away! Get your stuff and walk away! Move it! Move it! Move it!"

The shoal turned and moved away with some mumbled "Thanks." "Those two" mingled with the crowd and tagged along. I went back to my supper.

Ding-dong!

Two rigid kids in plastic ghost masks standing between a young Mammy were mumbling the "Help the Halloween Party" mantra as soon as they saw me through the glass door.

"What?" I asked, as the door slid back. They snapped to attention, plastic shopping bags stretched taut in fright.

"Trick or treat, then?" the slightly taller one asked, quavering.

"I suppose I'd better give you something, so," I said, reaching out with two fat packages. You couldn't fit an empty envelope in the opening of the bags they were stretched so tight.

"Open the bag for the man!" Mammy said. The message was completely lost on them. I risked toppling out the door head first and leaning out precipitously used my free hand to open the bag a little, then dropped in the sweets. The kids stood waiting for permission to do whatever came next.

"Say thank you to the man!"

Two mumbled thank yous accompanied the duo being hauled back from the door. I wasn't sure if my promotion to being The Man was a welcome development.

A little later, two girls about 13 years old arrived, both of them dressed in black and white, one with ghoulish face paint, the other in a mask. They were just at the age where everything is mortifying.

"Hello!" I said, cheerfully.

They smiled and clutched their bags in mute embarrassment. The one without a mask didn't know where to look: The Man was saying hello!

I threw two packets of sweets at them. The packet for the one with the mask seemed slightly smaller: the luck of the draw. They both looked silently at it for a moment. I grinned and shrugged encouragingly. Wordlessly, they turned away and almost falling over each other in their haste, they scuttled out the gate and up the road.

No Halloween collection for them next year, I guess. They'll be too old and grown up.

The bonfire on the green opposite the house was a modest one. Herself and I watched the random fireworks bursting overhead for a while through the bedroom window, then we played with sparklers in the back yard until it got cold.

All done for another year, bar eating the leftover sweeties.

Couple things in my head today...

One was Longfellow's poem Excelsior, which I loved and memorized for some odd reason when I was a kid in school. You can look it up if you've a mind to...but don't bother if you aren't into poetry.

The other was this song originally done so well by the late Sam Cooke. I loved it! Then I heard Tina Turner do it in concert in France a long time ago...anyway I found it again tonight by both of them and a few others. It's a grand song, but I remember saying when I saw Tina do it I was just floored at her powerful delivery. "I think she's the only woman who SHOULD sing it". Apologies to Aretha, but sister, I think Tina knows that river....just a little better.

To Multiply or not...

Is it a question worthy of contemplation...? So far I'm not impressed much by Multiply. It's difficult to FIND any decent, interesting Groups. Webby...(NKA) Rebkin is doing great with her site, but she knows all the codes and has a mind suitable for grasping the concepts, while MY mind is like a steel trap (full of senile rats!)

I found some of the editing features at the personal site in Multiply...apparently when the migration occurs, and one has to join whatever group it is, they are also given a personal page?? ...I've run across a few of them as a result of one of my groups' migration...most of the people don't know what the hell to do with it...

I have a MSN test group site...used for photos and practice posts/html/etc. I thought I might try to migrate that to Multiply...it's very small, with only a few pictures n junk...no harm no foul I think. Wouldn't hurt anything to just dump it anyway.

Then again...MSN is supposed to roll over somehow to Windows Live Space, and maybe that would be a wonderful deal...but that won't happen for a couple weeks and gawd knows what it will do to the existing Sylvan Glade...

Am I just being dense and obtuse...or is everyone confused by all this crap?

Anyway this blog is here to stay goddamit...and SO is the Yahoo site...until such time as they fold their tents and steal away.

This is just plain cute...nice little bit of nostagia too.

See more Ron Howard videos at Funny or Die

Speaking of the Breeders Cup

I came across this at the Onion...


First Openly Gay Racehorse To Compete Sunday

MSN Groups closure

I guess we've all read, heard, seen that bit of news...? John D from Real Ireland opened a Yahoo Group...which some of you already know. I joined this afternoon, even though there's plenty of time between now and Feb. So long as we can still seek our familiar friends out and find out what's going on, I'm relatively happy, even though I'm disgusted with the lazy gits at MSN for scuttling the groups ship. What a gutless bunch of layabouts they have been, when some simple attention to the patrons might have made their Groups the most important destination on the cyber highway.

oh well then...moving on...I'm GLAD John didn't move RI to Facebook...something slimy about that place IMO.

I wish I had the wherewith all to make a perfect place that could read all the codes or whatever, accommodate our whims for photo albums, etc....and then peddle it to the highest bidder. Hate to dwell on the past...but where is WBS when we so desperately NEED it again. pffft

Breeder's Cup Racing this weekend....starts tomorrow...I'm looking forward to that.

Baseball bores me, but I'm hollering for Tampa Bay...whoever those upstarts are...LOL, my daughters live in nearby towns...so I'm just assuming that's who they are interested in. As a desirable city to live... Philly kicks ass over Tampa. *S*

Halloween in a 10 x 4 space

Herself has gone Halloween mad. But only in a small way, or at least, in a small space.

I came home the other evening to find our front porch festooned with Halloween streamers of pumpkin heads and flying witches. Glow-in-the-dark skeletons were taped like windscreen roadkill insects on the windows. Goblins and green-faced monsters were stuck on the wall. I slid the porch door aside and limboed in under the display.

"It isn't too much, is it?" she grinned.

"No. It's fine," I said, trudging in wearily. "It's just the right level for the kids calling to the door."

The postman called last week with a pair of mail-order jeans I'd bought on the Internet. As the package was slightly bigger than the letterbox he stuffed it through the side window (which was open). It knocked over an empty plant pot on a side table on its fall to the floor, making a space.

A yellow skull and a black one, both filled with colour-changing fibre optics magically appeared there the next day.

"Can you put batteries in the pumpkin lantern?" Herself called up to me from the foot of the stairs. I put the batteries in, switched it on, found the bulb had been smashed somehow. We bought two more. The trio hang like a deathly chandelier in the one remaining corner of the porch, a polysterene skull (named Yorrick) topping the display.

Maybe not the last remaning corner: a witch's broomstick with flashing diode lights and cloth of gold handle appeared there later.

As I slid sideways out the front door today, being careful not to strangle on an orange pumpkin banner, I noticed a life-sized deer fawn made from cardboard and straw sitting under the hall table. I asked what it was.

"For our Christmas display," Herself said.

Trick or treat indeed.

Any trouble Craicers ?

I got the following note from Willie today:

Hi Angh,
Something is amiss at Craicers cos each time I visit, it opens multiple
blank Browser windows when I try to close its window. Perhaps
one of the plug ins is acting up or is miscoded. Unfortunately, I cannot
contribute because of the problem as I have to steer clear if I want my
computer to keep working! Hope you can figure out the problem soon as it
looks like a good project, especially in light of Microsoft’s recent
continuance of its good customer care re MSN Groups policy
Regards

Has anyone else encountered this problem?? I looked in the help section but didn't find anything that corresponded to what he described. Quite a few people have been invited to the site...I hate to think they are trying to get in and are unable for some reason.

From RTE home page...

Up early this morning to watch The Tudors, and ran across this from Comedy Central.
IMO any little excuse to smile at our situation these days is worth sharing.

An experiment: uploading several videos at once

I caught Eartha in the act of being somewhere she shouldn't be, doing something she shouldn't do!  Truly a rare and gratifying event to have the camera at hand when the kids are misbehaving.  While I was at YouTube uploading that video and another I'd made on Sunday, I came across one called "An Engineer's Guide to Cats".   Thought you all might enjoy it!

old jokes time!

Old Jokes Home:
A vicar books into a hotel and says to the hotel clerk"I hope the porn channel in my room is disabled?"

She says "No sir, it's just regular porn. You sick bastard."

Found link over at Emigrant Ireland...

I've never watched MSNBC...but it's high time I start I guess...

Iffen you know me at all...you knew you'd hear this...

Edited to add:

Thanks all for the good birthday wishes. The birthday was GREAT, the trip turned out to be a waste of money and time, I'm sorry to say. Quinn's has lost it's rural charm, and it is off our list of places to return. We did have an excellent BIG breakfast at the OK Cafe in St. Regis on the way home.

The drive was nice but the weather wasn't conducive to stopping for pictures. I haven't had a chance to upload them yet...there might be a couple worth posting...I'll check later today.

Upon arriving home we learned that the driveline for the Behemer had arrived, so Himself drove another 100 miles to collect it. He got it installed and did a test run, so at least we are minus a lawn ornament again. He still has to enclose the exhaust etc...but he had a satifying afternoon's labor. I'm sure the landlord will be pleased to see the car off the grass.

I did laundry and cleaned litter boxes...

For dinner we had the remains of our nearly raw Prime Rib...I was able to salvage it with homemade Au Jus, and enough blanching of the meat to cook it to a point where it would CUT. I've never had such a meal as they palmed off on us at that damn Quinn's. The waitress asked if we'd rather have something else...to her credit...but one shot is all ya get when you're cooking for ME... the fookin' chef tried to pull a fast one on us, with underdone meat. It was actually not half bad when it was cooked just a little; with a good salad and a baked potato it was adequate! For $60, I shouldn't have had to cook it though. Hell, Take and Bake pizza is only $10!!

Anyway, last night we watched The Other Boleyn Girl. It was visual candy, interesting, but no Ann of a Thousand Days. Next on the Netflix queue is the first disk of The Tudors series.

So he's back.. older, not wise still probably youngest in the crowed and blame you all in regards to the wiser part which still has not happened ;-)

So I am barely back after 9 day long trade show in Germany, I thought I will share some of the vibe with a panorama of our booth and Garry Strech. He has two Guinness (yes please) world records.

1. Stretchiest skin
2. Most cloths pegs in the face

http://www.panoramas.dk/photokina/index.html

Two hard weeks of catching up and then it is of to the big apple again, I moved away but can't get away!!

Slainté

your favorite October things

Some of mine are Disney's Headless Horseman cartoon (Bing Crosby was a terrible dad, but a great narrator), Harry Houdini stories, almost any old John Carpenter movie and a ton of scary old short stories on RelicRadio. I had M>R. James on the iPod this morning. I went for a jog and the smell of woodsmoke in the fall air was lovely.
What about you guys? Any scary books you like or scary memories you care to share?

A snippet of Halloween history from Nat. Geo.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-VRAemIvbI

and a fun little pumpkin story:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQd0ELH7SNI

October Chat

Overnight getaway

Tomorrow is my natal day, so we'll be rolling around the neighborhood, panhandling free drinks for awhile, and Sunday we'll drive to Montana for dinner and a splash about in the hot pool until we're pruney and exhausted. Will spend the night there and not have to worry about driving home half conscious from the effects of mineral water.

The weather has changed dramatically in the last two days, so we may get rained on, but that's okay so long as there's no lightning. We may take the scenic route on the return trip, over Thompson Pass into Murray, Idaho. The Pass closes in winter, so it should be a pretty drive now as the days dwindle to that inevitability.

The picture you see was taken in front of one of the old original cabins at Quinn's. I think it was my 62nd birthday in 2002, when we spent the night there last. Those tiny rooms were a hoot...with room for a double bed and nightstand with a clock radio. The en suite was just about big enough to turn around in. The little structures once functioned as the on site brothel "cribs".

If the weather is bright enough I'll get some good pictures of the scenery this time.

Hope you all have a great weekend...

Wee Chatty Eartha

So, you can go back later and post a different video, too, if you want to.  Maybe add comments.  This is really cool!  

But, if you go and add comments to the older posts, there is nothing to let anyone know, so they will just go unread, unless someone happens to go back and check.

Places To Visit Before I Die

OK, sounds a bit corny, perhaps even morbid, but could be fun and very interesting.

Achieved already : Niagara Falls. Simply stunning ! Get there if you can. Close your eyes when going through the city of Niagara Falls as it's a bit tacky with all the tourist attractions and casinos. Then open them up again when you arrive at the Falls. Do the Maid of the Mist experience, and the viewing platform, as it really brings home the magnitude of the place. I have never taken the helicopter ride, but perhaps one day.
















On the wish list :

• Canadian Rockies
• Yosemite National Park
• Grand Canyon
• Alaska
• Norway

Seems like my list is getting colder as I go.

So what's on your list?

first try, funny little maltese video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2A2Jt4WOxN8

Just thought I'd try this...

fave vidoes

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2A2Jt4WOxN8

Nostalgia while there's still time...

This has been a favorite song of mine since I was very young...and while it's still relevant...

Greetings

Hi, I've managed to get this far. Looking forward to joining you all.

As I love photography, here's a recent one to get us started.

Paul

It was a strange Summer

Nothing but rain and even the lack of backyard wildlife was strange. Usually, in July, the raccoon mother shows up with her little ones. Not so this time. We had only one raccoon coming here. No blue jays, no squirrel, no groundhog... Sad situation. 

Now, all of a sudden, about a week ago she showed up with five or six little furballs! It's difficult to count them because they're so full of life...bungling brothers! The size of them however, is what they usually look like in July! 

The weather was lousy but we made a few road-trips. We were in Maine three times...in May we went down to Old Orchard Bch. and that area. Later on...in June we visited Rockland, Rockport and Camden, ME. So different compared to all the beaches in the southern parts. An absolutely gorgeous area with such cute, little towns. 

In July we went to the northern parts of Maine...re-visited the old Swedish settlement there and then off to Presque Isle were we stayed a couple of days. Gerry had done some geneaology and met up with some of his relatives from Mars Hill, ME. We had a wonderful and funfilled time there.

In August we took off to Saint John, New Brunswick. That's the town where Gerry was born. I fell in love with the place during my very first visit. The ocean...the fog...also the people. They all seem so friendly and the lifestyle a little more...'laid-back'. Each time I've been there...in the back of my mind I've been thinking how nice it would be to live in a place like that! Where the ocean is never more than a few minutes away... but I never even dared to dream that it would happen.

Well...what do you know...?! It WILL happen! We're moving in November! All the time I had believed that Gerry was emotionally attached to the house here but it turned out that was not at all the case. A house like this takes a lot of maintenance and neither of us are getting any younger. Last Winter which was a record winter with regards to snow levels... I think that was the straw that broke the camel's back...all the endless shovelling. 

Now..the house is sold and tomorrow morning we'll be travelling to Saint John to look for an apartment. I'm very excited about this...it will be so much fun to look for real instead of only online.

Lookee Here

Hey Angh - it looks like I am able to start my own thread now, and even post a picture!!!

Hmm ...

Trying to make something that all members can use...must find someone online to test the thing...

Chat

ahhh, here's a chat room...sometimes I'm here...like right now; it's 7:50 am, Wed. 1 Oct. I will minimize the chat room, and I THINK a noise will alert me if anyone comes in while I'm browsing elsewhere...

I DON'T know if everyone who comes in the blog can use the chat...there's no reason they shouldn't be able to...if they've found the blog....the possibility exists that you'll meet total strangers at any given time. Chat is not archived...so you can't just leave a message.