Up around 7:30 and did a treadmill session and resistance exercises after breakfast. Once I was ready for the day, Mother came over and we began preparations for Easter Sunday dinner.
Mother had already boiled eggs to be deviled tomorrow. The first thing I did was bake an angel food cake from a box mix. It didn't quite work right...we both thought it was done, so I took it out of the oven. Then I decided it hadn't baked enough, so I put it back into the oven, but I'd already run a knife around the edge to loosen it, so it dropped a little. Then when I tried to turn it upside down on a bottle, the whole thing dropped to the table. There was nothing to do then but slide it onto a cake plate. The pitiful thing is edible, but it's certainly not light and fluffy like it should be.
While the cake was baking, I made a large batch of carrot salad...everybody likes this, so I wanted to make enough for more than one meal. After lunch, I put the ham in the oven.
While it baked, we sat down to watch the 2003, PG musical movie, "The Music Man," starring Matthew Broderick and Kristin Chenoweth. This version of the popular musical meets with mixed reviews, but I like this one. The Harold Hill character in the original 1962 version, played by Robert Preston, seems to come on pretty strong...I'd think that conservative Iowans would be turned off by him. Seems like folks might be more easily hoodwinked by the softer, more charming, approach of Broderick's characterization.
Of course, we got so involved in the movie that I let the ham bake a little longer than I planned, so it had a somewhat blackened crust on the outside...trimmed away, though, the meat is fine. I sliced it for the refrigerator.
Potatoes au gratin is about the only dish remaining to mess up tomorrow. Maybe we'll manage to get those right. I'm going to blame it all on the weather.
For supper, we sampled the ham, which we had with baked potatoes, and the leftover black eyed peas. While we were cleaning up afterward, Daughter and Great-grandson arrived. We were expecting them early in the morning, but were glad to see them this evening.
Great-grandson was interested in going to a movie. His preference was "Scream 4," but neither Daughter nor I were up for paying eight bucks a head to see that one. The animated feature, "Rango," was playing in the old theater downtown for $2 per person admission, so Daughter decided that we should see that one.
The three of us went (Mother and Hubbie opted out). The movie is certainly nothing to write home about...worth just about what we paid for it. There were one or two laugh-out-loud places in it, but otherwise nothing. It, of course, has a moral...don't claim to be a hero if you've done nothing to deserve the title. Naturally, though, once his fabrication is revealed, he gets the opportunity to redeem himself.
The movie is rated PG, because it contains some objectionable elements for children like smoking and drinking, potty humor, adult sexual humor, and mild expletives. Children would also not be able to appreciate references to other movies, like the "High Noon," gunfight scene, or an obvious Clint Eastwood character. The animation is great, but the characters are certainly not cuddly or lovable.
Back home, we enjoyed bowls of ice cream, after which we didn't dawdle long before we were ready for bed.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Friday, April 22, 2011
Friday, April 22
Up around 7:30 and did a treadmill session and weights exercises after breakfast. While I was doing that, Hubbie went to the hydroponic farm to pick up tomatoes I'd ordered before I began my exercises. He ran a couple of other errands while he was out.
Didn't accomplish a lot before lunch. After lunch, Hubbie and I ran errands, mainly to pick up last-minute groceries for the weekend. While we were out, Hubbie decided to stop by the farm store to pick up bell pepper plants. On the way, an ambulance went racing past, sirens blaring.
I thought it might have been on the way to the hospital from a nursing home, but as we proceeded down the road, we saw several police cars and a tow truck. As we passed, we saw that a very old car was on the bed of the tow truck. The driver's side door was missing (probably removed with the jaws of life), and the driver's seat was facing the door. That whole side of the car was crunched up. It appeared that a vehicle entering the highway from a side road had rammed the car broadside. We didn't see the other car...it must have been towed earlier.
Too many accidents in ours and nearby communities lately...yesterday, four teen-to-twenty-year-olds were involved in a one-car accident that killed a sixteen-year-old girl and a twenty-year-old man. And then today, the 57-year-old husband of a well-respected school employee was killed when he swerved into oncoming traffic while riding his motorcycle.
Back home, Mother had boiled the ham we'll have for Easter lunch. The ham we bought had about half the amount of sodium as regular ham, but we hoped that boiling it a little would help remove more sodium. Tomorrow, we'll bake and slice it for the refrigerator, and then heat it on Sunday.
Later, in recognition of Good Friday, we had a supper of baked salmon fillets, baked sweet potatoes and a package of black eyed peas from the freezer, cooked with seasonings.
I seem to get stuck on a theme when I plan menus for the week. This week it has been eggs and salmon...French toast Sunday night, beef hash and fried eggs Monday night, and then Ziplock bag omelets Tuesday night, followed by salmon chowder Wednesday and Thursday nights, and salmon fillets tonight. We'll continue the egg theme Sunday, with deviled eggs, and then I figure it'll be ham this and ham that next week.
Tonight, Hubbie and I watched the 2005, PG-13 movie, "The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio," starring Julianne Moore and Woody Harrelson. Set in the 1950s, the movie is based on the true story of Evelyn Ryan, a married woman with ten children, who has a knack for writing and winning thousands of dollars in cash and merchandise in jingle contests. The problem? Her alcoholic volatile-tempered husband, who becomes threatened by her success. The movie is light-hearted most of the way through, except for the husband's destructive outbursts. A crisis comes at the end, but everything works to the good.
Note: an awful thing happened in the family yesterday...a very young great-nephew got a hold of a sharp pair of scissors and sliced the area between his nose and his upper lip with them. He now has a v-shaped stitched wound there. Most every child (including me when I was about three years old) scissors hunks out of their hair. But this was a first. It raises the hair on my arms and the back of my neck every time I think about it.
Didn't accomplish a lot before lunch. After lunch, Hubbie and I ran errands, mainly to pick up last-minute groceries for the weekend. While we were out, Hubbie decided to stop by the farm store to pick up bell pepper plants. On the way, an ambulance went racing past, sirens blaring.
I thought it might have been on the way to the hospital from a nursing home, but as we proceeded down the road, we saw several police cars and a tow truck. As we passed, we saw that a very old car was on the bed of the tow truck. The driver's side door was missing (probably removed with the jaws of life), and the driver's seat was facing the door. That whole side of the car was crunched up. It appeared that a vehicle entering the highway from a side road had rammed the car broadside. We didn't see the other car...it must have been towed earlier.
Too many accidents in ours and nearby communities lately...yesterday, four teen-to-twenty-year-olds were involved in a one-car accident that killed a sixteen-year-old girl and a twenty-year-old man. And then today, the 57-year-old husband of a well-respected school employee was killed when he swerved into oncoming traffic while riding his motorcycle.
Back home, Mother had boiled the ham we'll have for Easter lunch. The ham we bought had about half the amount of sodium as regular ham, but we hoped that boiling it a little would help remove more sodium. Tomorrow, we'll bake and slice it for the refrigerator, and then heat it on Sunday.
Later, in recognition of Good Friday, we had a supper of baked salmon fillets, baked sweet potatoes and a package of black eyed peas from the freezer, cooked with seasonings.
I seem to get stuck on a theme when I plan menus for the week. This week it has been eggs and salmon...French toast Sunday night, beef hash and fried eggs Monday night, and then Ziplock bag omelets Tuesday night, followed by salmon chowder Wednesday and Thursday nights, and salmon fillets tonight. We'll continue the egg theme Sunday, with deviled eggs, and then I figure it'll be ham this and ham that next week.
Tonight, Hubbie and I watched the 2005, PG-13 movie, "The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio," starring Julianne Moore and Woody Harrelson. Set in the 1950s, the movie is based on the true story of Evelyn Ryan, a married woman with ten children, who has a knack for writing and winning thousands of dollars in cash and merchandise in jingle contests. The problem? Her alcoholic volatile-tempered husband, who becomes threatened by her success. The movie is light-hearted most of the way through, except for the husband's destructive outbursts. A crisis comes at the end, but everything works to the good.
Note: an awful thing happened in the family yesterday...a very young great-nephew got a hold of a sharp pair of scissors and sliced the area between his nose and his upper lip with them. He now has a v-shaped stitched wound there. Most every child (including me when I was about three years old) scissors hunks out of their hair. But this was a first. It raises the hair on my arms and the back of my neck every time I think about it.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
Thursday, April 21
Up around 8:30, and did a treadmill session and weights exercises after breakfast. Once I was ready for the day, I spruced the inside of the van and gathered scrapbook supplies in anticipation of going to a scrapbook meeting at 1 p.m.
The other member called around 11 a.m. and said she had decided to attend the meeting, though she feared it might rain before we were finished at 3 p.m. So she said she'd come by our house and ride with Mother and me to the Extension Office in order to avoid driving on a busy thoroughfare. The road from our house to hers in a nearby community isn't nearly as busy as the one in town, so she feels safe enough driving that route.
At the meeting, she noted that she is personally acquainted with the older couple in our town who recently won one million dollars in a state lottery drawing. More than that, the man is either the brother or brother-in-law of one of the secretaries at the Extension Office. The two men who own the business at which the winning ticket was bought are this lady's sons...nephews to the winner.
I don't know the winner, but Hubbie has a nodding acquaintance with him, because he is the one who built the house in our neighborhood that was struck by lightning and burned to the ground recently. The house belonged to his son, who, upon a divorce, sold it to the family who lived there when it burned. Six degrees of separation (the idea that everyone is only six steps away from any other person on earth..."the friend of a friend of a friend," etc.).
I hated to hear from the other scrapbook club member that she lost a nephew to cancer last week. He was only in his fifties, and died within weeks of learning of his diagnosis. His older brother also died of cancer in 2006. He was only sixty.
At the scrapbook meeting, we all worked until around 2:30, when Mother and the other member came to a stopping place. I had more to do, but quit working, because Mother was feeling a little blah today, and I knew she would like to get back home. While I packed our stuff away, the other member went across the street to the cemetery to visit her twin brother's grave site.
We were back home by 3 p.m. Mother went straight to her house to rest. I searched online for the date when a pioneer village in another town would be hosting its spring open house, and learned that it will be Saturday, April 30, and Sunday, May 1.
The reason I was interested in the open house is because our scrapbook club members would like to go on an outing. We wanted to go to the 2010 fall open house, but weather and illness among members prevented it. So hopefully the weather will be nice and everyone will be well for this trip.
Later, after a supper of leftover salmon chowder and 11-bean soup, Hubbie and I went to the WDCS to pick up a few grocery items, particularly milk and bread for both us and Mother.
Back home, we spent the evening in front of TV. Well, Hubbie napped in front of it for a while, having worn himself out working most of the day developing a new raised veggie bed.
Tonight, we watched the 2006, PG-13 movie, "All the King's Men," starring Sean Penn, Jude Law, Kate Winslet, and Anthony Hopkins, among others. A humble man rises to power...a power that eventually leads to betrayal and corruption (a character inspired by the real-life controversial 1930s Louisiana governor, Huey P. Long). As with last night's movie, "Public Enemies," this movie was on DVD...I bought both on the cheap when a discount store went out of business last fall.
The other member called around 11 a.m. and said she had decided to attend the meeting, though she feared it might rain before we were finished at 3 p.m. So she said she'd come by our house and ride with Mother and me to the Extension Office in order to avoid driving on a busy thoroughfare. The road from our house to hers in a nearby community isn't nearly as busy as the one in town, so she feels safe enough driving that route.
At the meeting, she noted that she is personally acquainted with the older couple in our town who recently won one million dollars in a state lottery drawing. More than that, the man is either the brother or brother-in-law of one of the secretaries at the Extension Office. The two men who own the business at which the winning ticket was bought are this lady's sons...nephews to the winner.
I don't know the winner, but Hubbie has a nodding acquaintance with him, because he is the one who built the house in our neighborhood that was struck by lightning and burned to the ground recently. The house belonged to his son, who, upon a divorce, sold it to the family who lived there when it burned. Six degrees of separation (the idea that everyone is only six steps away from any other person on earth..."the friend of a friend of a friend," etc.).
I hated to hear from the other scrapbook club member that she lost a nephew to cancer last week. He was only in his fifties, and died within weeks of learning of his diagnosis. His older brother also died of cancer in 2006. He was only sixty.
At the scrapbook meeting, we all worked until around 2:30, when Mother and the other member came to a stopping place. I had more to do, but quit working, because Mother was feeling a little blah today, and I knew she would like to get back home. While I packed our stuff away, the other member went across the street to the cemetery to visit her twin brother's grave site.
We were back home by 3 p.m. Mother went straight to her house to rest. I searched online for the date when a pioneer village in another town would be hosting its spring open house, and learned that it will be Saturday, April 30, and Sunday, May 1.
The reason I was interested in the open house is because our scrapbook club members would like to go on an outing. We wanted to go to the 2010 fall open house, but weather and illness among members prevented it. So hopefully the weather will be nice and everyone will be well for this trip.
Later, after a supper of leftover salmon chowder and 11-bean soup, Hubbie and I went to the WDCS to pick up a few grocery items, particularly milk and bread for both us and Mother.
Back home, we spent the evening in front of TV. Well, Hubbie napped in front of it for a while, having worn himself out working most of the day developing a new raised veggie bed.
Tonight, we watched the 2006, PG-13 movie, "All the King's Men," starring Sean Penn, Jude Law, Kate Winslet, and Anthony Hopkins, among others. A humble man rises to power...a power that eventually leads to betrayal and corruption (a character inspired by the real-life controversial 1930s Louisiana governor, Huey P. Long). As with last night's movie, "Public Enemies," this movie was on DVD...I bought both on the cheap when a discount store went out of business last fall.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Wednesday, April 20
Slept late this morning, until after 8 a.m., but did a treadmill session and resistance exercises after breakfast. Mother came over mid-morning and finished her Easter cards.
I didn't accomplish much before lunch. During lunch, we watched last night's episode of "Dancing with the Stars," which was postponed until 12:30 a.m. this morning, because of weather coverage throughout prime time. I recorded the episode on DVR. As usual, the star eliminated was not the one I felt should have been voted off the show.
Following that show, we watched "Body of Proof," another show that had been postponed until after midnight.
Then Mother watched Monday night's "Dancing with the Stars," which I'd recorded. She had snoozed through the show at her house on Monday night. I had kept the show on our DVR in case she didn't see it for some reason.
While she did that, I searched for a binder of scrapbook pages that we'd worked on at our scrapbook club meeting last month, but I couldn't find it. Eventually, Mother joined in the search. Neither of us could turn it up. Had I left it in the conference room at the Extension Services office? I called to check. No, it wasn't there. Finally, I remembered that I'd brought it out to show family a few weeks ago, and wondered if it had somehow gotten stored in the den closet. Sure enough, it was there.
Mother continued her show, while I went to my office computer to type and print photo captions for the scrapbook pages. Naturally, the first thing that happened was the printer ran out of colored ink. Changed the cartridge. Then the printer refused to work, so I shut the computer down and re-booted. The printer spit out an alignment sheet, but still refused to give me the page I wanted. I shut the computer down again and re-booted. This time it worked.
Back downstairs, I went through lots of card stock in an effort to find matching colors to back the photo captions. All this was in anticipation of a scrapbook club meeting tomorrow, if another member attends. One member has already said she can't be there, and the remaining member will not attend if it rains...and predictions are for a possibility of rain.
It was around 4 p.m. before I finished the task, in time to begin supper preparations. While I was upstairs, Mother had cleaned a can of salmon, chopped onions, and gathered other ingredients for making a pot of chowder for supper. So it was pretty simple putting the recipe together. This is not Hubbie's favorite dish, so I thawed some 11-bean soup with ham for him. He and I had our soups with grilled cheese sandwiches, but Mother opted out.
Mother went home after supper, and Hubbie (who spent most of the day in the yard) and I watched TV, of course, including the 2009, R-rated movie, "Public Enemies," starring Johnny Depp and Christian Bale. Depp plays the 1930s public enemy #1, John Dillinger. Dillinger seals his fate when he falls for a pretty coat-check girl, Billie Frechette (played by marion Cotillard). Because he wants to stay close to her, he dawdles in Chicago, and finally meets his end when he is betrayed to FBI by a couple of women friends in front of a movie theater, while Billie is being held in jail.
I didn't accomplish much before lunch. During lunch, we watched last night's episode of "Dancing with the Stars," which was postponed until 12:30 a.m. this morning, because of weather coverage throughout prime time. I recorded the episode on DVR. As usual, the star eliminated was not the one I felt should have been voted off the show.
Following that show, we watched "Body of Proof," another show that had been postponed until after midnight.
Then Mother watched Monday night's "Dancing with the Stars," which I'd recorded. She had snoozed through the show at her house on Monday night. I had kept the show on our DVR in case she didn't see it for some reason.
While she did that, I searched for a binder of scrapbook pages that we'd worked on at our scrapbook club meeting last month, but I couldn't find it. Eventually, Mother joined in the search. Neither of us could turn it up. Had I left it in the conference room at the Extension Services office? I called to check. No, it wasn't there. Finally, I remembered that I'd brought it out to show family a few weeks ago, and wondered if it had somehow gotten stored in the den closet. Sure enough, it was there.
Mother continued her show, while I went to my office computer to type and print photo captions for the scrapbook pages. Naturally, the first thing that happened was the printer ran out of colored ink. Changed the cartridge. Then the printer refused to work, so I shut the computer down and re-booted. The printer spit out an alignment sheet, but still refused to give me the page I wanted. I shut the computer down again and re-booted. This time it worked.
Back downstairs, I went through lots of card stock in an effort to find matching colors to back the photo captions. All this was in anticipation of a scrapbook club meeting tomorrow, if another member attends. One member has already said she can't be there, and the remaining member will not attend if it rains...and predictions are for a possibility of rain.
It was around 4 p.m. before I finished the task, in time to begin supper preparations. While I was upstairs, Mother had cleaned a can of salmon, chopped onions, and gathered other ingredients for making a pot of chowder for supper. So it was pretty simple putting the recipe together. This is not Hubbie's favorite dish, so I thawed some 11-bean soup with ham for him. He and I had our soups with grilled cheese sandwiches, but Mother opted out.
Mother went home after supper, and Hubbie (who spent most of the day in the yard) and I watched TV, of course, including the 2009, R-rated movie, "Public Enemies," starring Johnny Depp and Christian Bale. Depp plays the 1930s public enemy #1, John Dillinger. Dillinger seals his fate when he falls for a pretty coat-check girl, Billie Frechette (played by marion Cotillard). Because he wants to stay close to her, he dawdles in Chicago, and finally meets his end when he is betrayed to FBI by a couple of women friends in front of a movie theater, while Billie is being held in jail.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Tuesday, April 19
Up around 7:30, and did a treadmill session and weights exercises after breakfast. Mother came over while I was getting ready for the day and worked on her Easter cards.
Hubbie ran a couple of errands...to the pharmacy, and to a farm store for bird seed, but I didn't accomplish anything before it was time to go to the beauty shop for a haircut at 11 a.m.
When I got back home around 11:30, I searched the refrigerator for lunch makings. Heated leftover macaroni and cheese, and the remaining two muffins, and made a salad for Hubbie and myself. Mother opted for Ramen noodle soup, because she's feeling blah today...not sick, just no energy.
Maybe it's the weather. I always feel draggy on days when severe storms are predicted. I figure it has to do with the atmospheric pressure or something. It's very warm and humid today...too warm for April. And this warm front is due to clash with a cold front later tonight, which makes for a perfect tornado recipe.
After lunch, I called a local restaurant to order their heavenly yeast rolls for Easter. And then I called the arts council director. No sooner had I told her who I was than she said, "I'll bet you're looking for your jacket." She was right. I had searched everywhere for it over the weekend, and finally decided I must have left it somewhere. It's a lightweight denim that is very handy on cool days, or to take to restaurants or doctor's offices, where air conditioning runs full blast.
Then Hubbie and I ran errands...to the art gallery to pick up my jacket, to the newspaper office to drop off a word search contest puzzle, to the bank, to a grocery store, to the store that has a sale every weekend to pick up the slacks I'd ordered for Mother last week, to the WDCS (to shop mainly for Mother), and to the gas station.
On the way to town, I noticed that a young man in black slacks and white shirt, and wearing a black apron and cap, was pacing at the end of the driveway leading to the college. He was obviously an employee taking a cigarette break. It's quite a hike from the college buildings to the road at the end of the driveway. But it's a smoke-free campus, so he has to find a place considered off-campus. I think I'd want to quit smoking.
Misadventures: on our errands, Hubbie decided that he should drop me off at the store that has a sale every weekend to pick up the slacks, while he went to the nearby grocery store to see if low-fat white cheddar cheese was available. It was not.
But in the meantime, I'd completed my errand in record time (even though the catalog section of the store is completely at the back of the building), and was standing on the sidewalk waiting for him. When he didn't arrive in a few minutes, I decided to walk over to the grocery store and intercept him. But he was nowhere to be seen in the store, so I rushed outside and made it to the curb just before he drove by. Whew!
While shopping for Mother at the WDCS, we went up and down the aisles searching for Parmesan cheese. No sooner had we found it than I re-read her list and realized that what she actually wanted was Premium crackers. Even if I'd been wearing my glasses, it would have been hard to decipher that item. Nevertheless, Hubbie chided me for not wearing them.
Also, we no sooner returned to our van than Hubbie realized he'd forgotten to buy a gift card for getting gasoline (it's several cents cheaper buying it by gift card at their station). I opted to wait in the van while he ran to the store for the card.
While I idled, I decided to check our list to make sure we'd gotten everything. Bananas? Yes. Chips? Yes. Coffee creamer? Yes. But wait. What's that item up there next to the pepper that had been crossed off (an item Hubbie picked up yesterday)...bread! We needed bread.
So I trudged back to the store (naturally, we were parked WAY down the parking lot). I intercepted Hubbie and then went for the bread...the bread aisle is, of course, at the other end of the store. At the checkout counter, the associate (she was the same one who'd checked our groceries earlier) chuckled and said, "See you tomorrow." She probably will.
Later, we had egg-substitute Ziplock bag omelets for supper, with baked red potatoes, and toast. Mother went home afterward, and Hubbie and I watched TV, especially weather news. By 10 p.m., it appeared our county was out of the woods. We got a bit of thunder and lightning, and some rain, but basically dodged the bullet again. Counties south and east of us suffered wind and hail. Early reports were of trees down and widespread power outages, but we won't know the real extent of the damage until tomorrow.
Hubbie ran a couple of errands...to the pharmacy, and to a farm store for bird seed, but I didn't accomplish anything before it was time to go to the beauty shop for a haircut at 11 a.m.
When I got back home around 11:30, I searched the refrigerator for lunch makings. Heated leftover macaroni and cheese, and the remaining two muffins, and made a salad for Hubbie and myself. Mother opted for Ramen noodle soup, because she's feeling blah today...not sick, just no energy.
Maybe it's the weather. I always feel draggy on days when severe storms are predicted. I figure it has to do with the atmospheric pressure or something. It's very warm and humid today...too warm for April. And this warm front is due to clash with a cold front later tonight, which makes for a perfect tornado recipe.
After lunch, I called a local restaurant to order their heavenly yeast rolls for Easter. And then I called the arts council director. No sooner had I told her who I was than she said, "I'll bet you're looking for your jacket." She was right. I had searched everywhere for it over the weekend, and finally decided I must have left it somewhere. It's a lightweight denim that is very handy on cool days, or to take to restaurants or doctor's offices, where air conditioning runs full blast.
Then Hubbie and I ran errands...to the art gallery to pick up my jacket, to the newspaper office to drop off a word search contest puzzle, to the bank, to a grocery store, to the store that has a sale every weekend to pick up the slacks I'd ordered for Mother last week, to the WDCS (to shop mainly for Mother), and to the gas station.
On the way to town, I noticed that a young man in black slacks and white shirt, and wearing a black apron and cap, was pacing at the end of the driveway leading to the college. He was obviously an employee taking a cigarette break. It's quite a hike from the college buildings to the road at the end of the driveway. But it's a smoke-free campus, so he has to find a place considered off-campus. I think I'd want to quit smoking.
Misadventures: on our errands, Hubbie decided that he should drop me off at the store that has a sale every weekend to pick up the slacks, while he went to the nearby grocery store to see if low-fat white cheddar cheese was available. It was not.
But in the meantime, I'd completed my errand in record time (even though the catalog section of the store is completely at the back of the building), and was standing on the sidewalk waiting for him. When he didn't arrive in a few minutes, I decided to walk over to the grocery store and intercept him. But he was nowhere to be seen in the store, so I rushed outside and made it to the curb just before he drove by. Whew!
While shopping for Mother at the WDCS, we went up and down the aisles searching for Parmesan cheese. No sooner had we found it than I re-read her list and realized that what she actually wanted was Premium crackers. Even if I'd been wearing my glasses, it would have been hard to decipher that item. Nevertheless, Hubbie chided me for not wearing them.
Also, we no sooner returned to our van than Hubbie realized he'd forgotten to buy a gift card for getting gasoline (it's several cents cheaper buying it by gift card at their station). I opted to wait in the van while he ran to the store for the card.
While I idled, I decided to check our list to make sure we'd gotten everything. Bananas? Yes. Chips? Yes. Coffee creamer? Yes. But wait. What's that item up there next to the pepper that had been crossed off (an item Hubbie picked up yesterday)...bread! We needed bread.
So I trudged back to the store (naturally, we were parked WAY down the parking lot). I intercepted Hubbie and then went for the bread...the bread aisle is, of course, at the other end of the store. At the checkout counter, the associate (she was the same one who'd checked our groceries earlier) chuckled and said, "See you tomorrow." She probably will.
Later, we had egg-substitute Ziplock bag omelets for supper, with baked red potatoes, and toast. Mother went home afterward, and Hubbie and I watched TV, especially weather news. By 10 p.m., it appeared our county was out of the woods. We got a bit of thunder and lightning, and some rain, but basically dodged the bullet again. Counties south and east of us suffered wind and hail. Early reports were of trees down and widespread power outages, but we won't know the real extent of the damage until tomorrow.
Monday, April 18, 2011
Monday, April 18
Hope everyone has by now filed their income tax returns, or asked for extensions. We took care of that dreaded business a few weeks ago.
Had trouble going to sleep last night, for no apparent reason, but got up around 8 a.m., anyway, and did a treadmill session and resistance exercises after breakfast.
Mother came over mid-morning and gathered materials for making Easter cards. Once I was ready for the day, I did a few household chores, including a couple of loads of laundry. Hubbie worked in the yard preparing a couple of raised beds for planting. Predictions are for stormy weather much of this week, which might delay getting the garden started.
I certainly hope we don't have the tornado weather we had last week that claimed the lives of dozens of people across the Midwest, South (our state included), and at its deadliest, the Southeast. But it is spring, and we in the path of these terrible storms know that we'll spend a good deal of our time dreading them, while staying anxiously glued to our TVs for updates.
The bad thing is that as with last week, the first predicted storm is due to happen in the middle of the night tomorrow, when folks are abed. I am unable to sleep as long as there are weather warnings, which I track on TV. I'm glad that I've signed up for a weather-call service through one of the TV stations. If a dangerous storm is in our area, we get a call advising us to seek shelter. So in the unlikely event I should fall asleep, I'd be awakened by the call.
After lunch, Mother continued creating Easter cards. As a base, she used cards with a lace border, done with a punch belonging to a member of our scrapbook club. I punched several cards at our last meeting, anticipating that we would be making Easter cards for Caring Hands Hospice. But we were not called upon to do so, so Mother used them. Recently I bought a similar punch on behalf of Caring Hands Hospice that will be available when we need it for that organization, or for our scrapbook club members to use.
Later, we whiled part of the afternoon away watching the year 2000 movie musical, "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat." This is a delightful and hilarious movie, with music and lyrics by Andrew Lloyd Weber/Tim Rice, and starring Donny Osmond, and Marie Friedman. I especially like the laugh-out-loud character of the Pharaoh, played as the "king," Elvis Presley. Lots of colorful costumes and peppy tunes in this production.
For supper, we had leftover beef hash, topped with fried eggs, with sliced tomatoes and muffins on the side. Fried eggs are a rare treat at our house.
Just before supper, the Literacy Council director called to let me know that she'd gotten a call from my new student...seems the student had gotten stuck in the Capital City and wouldn't be back in town in time to meet me for our first tutoring session. But she promised to be attendance next week. We'll see. Already, we're off on the wrong foot.
Mother went home after supper, and Hubbie and I settled in to watch TV, including an episode of "Dancing with the Stars."
Just as we finished watching that program, we heard a loud noise, like an explosion, outdoors, and the security light went out, as did the TV. Both came back on within minutes, but the TV went out a couple of more times.
While Hubbie was walking Shih Tzu, he noticed our neighbor in his yard with a flashlight, so he went over there to see if the neighbor knew what the problem was. Seems the power company's electrical safety cutoff switch (or whatever it's called) on a light pole blew, shattering the housing, and killing the electricity to everyone on that line.
Our neighbors behind us, and all up and down the road, except for us, were affected, because we are on another line. Several years ago, the unit on the pole in our yard blew when a woodpecker flew into it.
Had trouble going to sleep last night, for no apparent reason, but got up around 8 a.m., anyway, and did a treadmill session and resistance exercises after breakfast.
Mother came over mid-morning and gathered materials for making Easter cards. Once I was ready for the day, I did a few household chores, including a couple of loads of laundry. Hubbie worked in the yard preparing a couple of raised beds for planting. Predictions are for stormy weather much of this week, which might delay getting the garden started.
I certainly hope we don't have the tornado weather we had last week that claimed the lives of dozens of people across the Midwest, South (our state included), and at its deadliest, the Southeast. But it is spring, and we in the path of these terrible storms know that we'll spend a good deal of our time dreading them, while staying anxiously glued to our TVs for updates.
The bad thing is that as with last week, the first predicted storm is due to happen in the middle of the night tomorrow, when folks are abed. I am unable to sleep as long as there are weather warnings, which I track on TV. I'm glad that I've signed up for a weather-call service through one of the TV stations. If a dangerous storm is in our area, we get a call advising us to seek shelter. So in the unlikely event I should fall asleep, I'd be awakened by the call.
After lunch, Mother continued creating Easter cards. As a base, she used cards with a lace border, done with a punch belonging to a member of our scrapbook club. I punched several cards at our last meeting, anticipating that we would be making Easter cards for Caring Hands Hospice. But we were not called upon to do so, so Mother used them. Recently I bought a similar punch on behalf of Caring Hands Hospice that will be available when we need it for that organization, or for our scrapbook club members to use.
Later, we whiled part of the afternoon away watching the year 2000 movie musical, "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat." This is a delightful and hilarious movie, with music and lyrics by Andrew Lloyd Weber/Tim Rice, and starring Donny Osmond, and Marie Friedman. I especially like the laugh-out-loud character of the Pharaoh, played as the "king," Elvis Presley. Lots of colorful costumes and peppy tunes in this production.
For supper, we had leftover beef hash, topped with fried eggs, with sliced tomatoes and muffins on the side. Fried eggs are a rare treat at our house.
Just before supper, the Literacy Council director called to let me know that she'd gotten a call from my new student...seems the student had gotten stuck in the Capital City and wouldn't be back in town in time to meet me for our first tutoring session. But she promised to be attendance next week. We'll see. Already, we're off on the wrong foot.
Mother went home after supper, and Hubbie and I settled in to watch TV, including an episode of "Dancing with the Stars."
Just as we finished watching that program, we heard a loud noise, like an explosion, outdoors, and the security light went out, as did the TV. Both came back on within minutes, but the TV went out a couple of more times.
While Hubbie was walking Shih Tzu, he noticed our neighbor in his yard with a flashlight, so he went over there to see if the neighbor knew what the problem was. Seems the power company's electrical safety cutoff switch (or whatever it's called) on a light pole blew, shattering the housing, and killing the electricity to everyone on that line.
Our neighbors behind us, and all up and down the road, except for us, were affected, because we are on another line. Several years ago, the unit on the pole in our yard blew when a woodpecker flew into it.
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Sunday, April 17
Up around 7:30 on this rather chilly morning that warmed beautifully by afternoon. Did a treadmill session and weights exercises after breakfast. Then Hubbie put color in my hair in anticipation of a haircut appointment Tuesday.
Did the usual Sunday things for the rest of the morning after I got ready for the day. Mother came over mid-morning, and around 11 a.m., she boiled macaroni for mac and cheese, while Hubbie and I went to the WDCS to pick up a rotisserie chicken and white American cheese, along with a few other items.
The chicken, mac and cheese, leftover Lima beans, and sliced tomatoes, was very tasty. Afterward, we changed clothes to go to a local college to attend a community orchestra concert at 2 p.m.
It's a good thing Mother happened to read a notice of the event in today's newspaper, or we would have been late. When notice of the concert was first published several months ago in the college brochure, it was listed for 2:30 p.m. But today's paper showed it for 2 p.m.
We weren't sure which time was correct, but we went ahead to the college before 2 p.m. We weren't the only ones confused by conflicting times, because folks arrived well after 2 p.m., missing much of the program.
The first part of the concert featured the community musicians...a mix of folks from teen to senior citizens...followed by a group of junior and senior high school students performing on stringed instruments.
The community group did very well. We especially enjoyed a solo performance by a very talented flutist. A young man playing kettle drums was good, too. But even though we made allowances for their inexperience, it was painfully obvious that the string group just wasn't ready for prime time. Nothing assaults the ears like eight or ten stringed instruments screeching out of tune and completely out of sync with each other.
Back home, we enjoyed dessert, provided by Mother. This morning, she brought over a diet-friendly cake and a bowl of sweetened strawberries, which we had with dollops of fat-free whipped topping.
Mother went home afterward, and Hubbie went outdoors to work in the yard, while I went shopping. I was interested in looking for a pair of khaki pants, and I found a pair at the store that has a sale every weekend. I purchased them with part of a gift card Hubbie gave me for Christmas, and applied a 20% off coupon that was given to me as I entered the store.
I also looked for summer shirts for Mother in the petite department, with no luck. So I went to the other store that has a sale every weekend, where I found two suitable shirts. One is a blue floral pattern, and the other is a dark blue chambray. I also found a shirt on the clearance rack for myself.
As soon as I returned home, I took the shirts to Mother, but she was sound asleep on the couch. She didn't hear me enter, though her front door creaks. I spoke, but she didn't wake. As I started to leave, she roused. I stayed only long enough to show her what I'd purchased.
At home, after a French toast supper, Hubbie and watched the 2009, PG-13 movie, "Coco Before Chanel," a subtitled French film about the early life of the famous clothing designer.
Did the usual Sunday things for the rest of the morning after I got ready for the day. Mother came over mid-morning, and around 11 a.m., she boiled macaroni for mac and cheese, while Hubbie and I went to the WDCS to pick up a rotisserie chicken and white American cheese, along with a few other items.
The chicken, mac and cheese, leftover Lima beans, and sliced tomatoes, was very tasty. Afterward, we changed clothes to go to a local college to attend a community orchestra concert at 2 p.m.
It's a good thing Mother happened to read a notice of the event in today's newspaper, or we would have been late. When notice of the concert was first published several months ago in the college brochure, it was listed for 2:30 p.m. But today's paper showed it for 2 p.m.
We weren't sure which time was correct, but we went ahead to the college before 2 p.m. We weren't the only ones confused by conflicting times, because folks arrived well after 2 p.m., missing much of the program.
The first part of the concert featured the community musicians...a mix of folks from teen to senior citizens...followed by a group of junior and senior high school students performing on stringed instruments.
The community group did very well. We especially enjoyed a solo performance by a very talented flutist. A young man playing kettle drums was good, too. But even though we made allowances for their inexperience, it was painfully obvious that the string group just wasn't ready for prime time. Nothing assaults the ears like eight or ten stringed instruments screeching out of tune and completely out of sync with each other.
Back home, we enjoyed dessert, provided by Mother. This morning, she brought over a diet-friendly cake and a bowl of sweetened strawberries, which we had with dollops of fat-free whipped topping.
Mother went home afterward, and Hubbie went outdoors to work in the yard, while I went shopping. I was interested in looking for a pair of khaki pants, and I found a pair at the store that has a sale every weekend. I purchased them with part of a gift card Hubbie gave me for Christmas, and applied a 20% off coupon that was given to me as I entered the store.
I also looked for summer shirts for Mother in the petite department, with no luck. So I went to the other store that has a sale every weekend, where I found two suitable shirts. One is a blue floral pattern, and the other is a dark blue chambray. I also found a shirt on the clearance rack for myself.
As soon as I returned home, I took the shirts to Mother, but she was sound asleep on the couch. She didn't hear me enter, though her front door creaks. I spoke, but she didn't wake. As I started to leave, she roused. I stayed only long enough to show her what I'd purchased.
At home, after a French toast supper, Hubbie and watched the 2009, PG-13 movie, "Coco Before Chanel," a subtitled French film about the early life of the famous clothing designer.
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