Happy St. Patrick's Day! It's said that everyone is Irish on St. Patrick's Day. As it happens, Sis and I are truly Irish on our dad's side.
We were up around 7:30 this morning, and after breakfast I did a treadmill session and resistance exercises. While I was doing this, Hubbie went to the community garden to help the Master Gardeners sell tulips, hyacinth, and other bulb plants. The sale started at 9 a.m., but Hubbie didn't remember it until 9:30. When he got there, he found that there were enough folks on board that he wasn't needed. So he came back home.
I fully expected him to be gone for a couple of hours. So when he stepped into the spare bedroom, where I was on the treadmill and deeply absorbed in my walk, as well as in the audiobook I was listening to, and announced he was back home, I was so startled that I let out a yelp and clutched my chest.
Once I was ready for the day, I started a load of laundry, and did other household things until lunchtime, when I fixed turkey bacon and tomato sandwiches for Hubbie and me.
After lunch, I accompanied Mother to our house. She helped me prepare a beef roast for supper. I bought a chuck roast this time, which was highly marbled, so she cut all the fat she could from it, then quartered onions. I browned the meat with seasonings...salt free seasoning, pepper, thyme, rosemary, and paprika...and then put it in a slow cooker with more spices, garlic, onions, carrots, and baby potatoes, and added a can of chicken broth and a can of beef broth.
Hubbie shredded a head of cabbage in the food processor, which I later cooked in a little olive oil and chicken broth, and seasonings.
While the roast cooked, Hubbie went out to work in the yard, and Mother and I went on a tour of the town to look at the flowering trees. There are some particularly lovely ones at the college, and I snapped lots of photos of them. It was a beautiful day for an outing...sunny to partly cloudy, with moderate temperature and a nice breeze.
We were gone for a couple of hours, and Mother seemed to enjoy it. Back home, she relaxed, while I downloaded pics to my computer. Hubbie continued in the yard.
Around 4:30, I cooked the cabbage, and by 5 p.m., supper was ready. It was really delicious. The beef this time was very tender, unlike the past two times, when what we bought was as tough as shoe leather.
The roast, potatoes, and cabbage served as our homage to St. Patrick's Day. After supper, I accompanied Mother back to her house.
Hubbie spent the evening watching March Madness basketball games on TV. I only half paid attention while I played on my laptop. During the game, there was an ad from a popular fast food restaurant (the one Sis works at) advertising a St. Patrick's Day mint milkshake. Looked delicious, but when I researched it online, I found that it contains a green dye that includes yellow #5.
So I decided to make shakes at home, using low-fat ice cream, fat-free milk, and a couple of Ghiradelli chocolate mint squares. Satisfied the urge.
I didn't wear green today, because I knew I wouldn't go anywhere that I'd see anyone. But I did wear green each day this week, along with a pin in the shape of a green Irish bowler hat decorated with a shamrock. All told, I think I celebrated the event to the utmost this week.
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Friday, March 16, 2012
Friday, March 16
Woke up near 6:30 to a crackling thunderstorm. So Hubbie turned off the alarm, anticipating I would not be going to water aerobics, then rolled over and went back to sleep. The storm passed around 7 a.m., so I could have gone to the pool. But Hubbie was snoozing so comfortably that I stayed in bed until he woke up, because if I'd gotten up, he would have too.
We finally stirred around 8 a.m., lazed for another hour, and finally had breakfast. Afterward, I went to Mother's house to help her take a shower, throw a load of laundry in the washer, and fix Ramen noodle soup for her lunch.
Back home, I grabbed my camera and went out to snap photos of the tulips with raindrops on them. One of the cats added interest to the photos, when she strolled through the flowers and even smelled one of them.
I uploaded some of the photos to my social network page, and then I got ready for the day. In the meantime, Hubbie gathered all the scatter rugs, including one from Mother's bathroom, and took them to the laundromat. I don't like washing these rugs in our home machine.
By this time, it was noon. I suggested to Hubbie that we go to a popular sandwich restaurant for lunch, and then shop for groceries.
I forgot to take two bags of audio books on cassette to be donated to the college library for it's annual fundraiser. So after we put up the groceries, we grabbed the bags and headed out again.
At the college library, we spent quite a while talking with folks we know. Then we drove to another part of the college, so I could snap photos of the chapel with a flowering tree in the foreground. From there, we swung by a home with three gorgeous trees in brilliant white bloom. I snapped several shots of those.
We continued our trip by visiting two clothing stores. I was on a mission to find a pair of white slacks. The first store had only white slacks with elastic waist. I hate that style, but I tried on a pair, anyway. No dice.
At the other store, though, the one that no longer has a sale every weekend, I found a very nice pair at a reasonable price that fit nicely. They are too long, of course. I'll need to hem them soon, so I can wear them to a couple of upcoming events.
Our last stop was at a pharmacy store. It was 4:30 before we got back home.
This morning, Mother thought she wanted to stay home for supper tonight, but she changed her mind this afternoon, since the rain stopped, and sun came out. So Hubbie accompanied her to our house, where she helped me make Ziplock bag omelets by dicing onions, bell peppers, and mushrooms.
We had the omelets with toasted bagels, and fresh fruit. Hubbie accompanied Mother to her house afterward, and then we watched the 1987 movie, "Broadcast News," starring William Hurt and Holly Hunter. Two rival TV reporters fall for the same female producer. But who will the producer choose? Comedy/romance.
Whew, what an incredibly hot and humid March day. It's not even spring, yet! We got another half inch of rain this morning, and when the sun came out, it became steamy. So far, we've gotten about six inches inches of rain in three recent rainfalls.
We finally stirred around 8 a.m., lazed for another hour, and finally had breakfast. Afterward, I went to Mother's house to help her take a shower, throw a load of laundry in the washer, and fix Ramen noodle soup for her lunch.
Back home, I grabbed my camera and went out to snap photos of the tulips with raindrops on them. One of the cats added interest to the photos, when she strolled through the flowers and even smelled one of them.
I uploaded some of the photos to my social network page, and then I got ready for the day. In the meantime, Hubbie gathered all the scatter rugs, including one from Mother's bathroom, and took them to the laundromat. I don't like washing these rugs in our home machine.
By this time, it was noon. I suggested to Hubbie that we go to a popular sandwich restaurant for lunch, and then shop for groceries.
I forgot to take two bags of audio books on cassette to be donated to the college library for it's annual fundraiser. So after we put up the groceries, we grabbed the bags and headed out again.
At the college library, we spent quite a while talking with folks we know. Then we drove to another part of the college, so I could snap photos of the chapel with a flowering tree in the foreground. From there, we swung by a home with three gorgeous trees in brilliant white bloom. I snapped several shots of those.
We continued our trip by visiting two clothing stores. I was on a mission to find a pair of white slacks. The first store had only white slacks with elastic waist. I hate that style, but I tried on a pair, anyway. No dice.
At the other store, though, the one that no longer has a sale every weekend, I found a very nice pair at a reasonable price that fit nicely. They are too long, of course. I'll need to hem them soon, so I can wear them to a couple of upcoming events.
Our last stop was at a pharmacy store. It was 4:30 before we got back home.
This morning, Mother thought she wanted to stay home for supper tonight, but she changed her mind this afternoon, since the rain stopped, and sun came out. So Hubbie accompanied her to our house, where she helped me make Ziplock bag omelets by dicing onions, bell peppers, and mushrooms.
We had the omelets with toasted bagels, and fresh fruit. Hubbie accompanied Mother to her house afterward, and then we watched the 1987 movie, "Broadcast News," starring William Hurt and Holly Hunter. Two rival TV reporters fall for the same female producer. But who will the producer choose? Comedy/romance.
Whew, what an incredibly hot and humid March day. It's not even spring, yet! We got another half inch of rain this morning, and when the sun came out, it became steamy. So far, we've gotten about six inches inches of rain in three recent rainfalls.
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Thursday, March 15
Slept better last night, and got up around 7:30 feeling refreshed. Skipped my exercises, though, so I could finish sprucing the house for an afternoon meeting of the scrapbook club.
Once I was satisfied with the house, I prepared a platter of sliced apples, strawberries, and grapes to serve to the ladies.
After a lunch of leftovers for Hubbie and me, I went to Mother's house to accompany her to our house. We began working on scrapbook pages around 12:30. By 1 p.m., the other two ladies had arrived.
We had a nice visit, and each of us accomplished quite a bit in our projects. Around 2 p.m., I offered refreshments of the fruits, plus their choice of drinks. One of the ladies chose sweetened tea, and one opted for water. Mother had coffee, and I had water.
The meeting ended promptly at 3 p.m., but before the ladies left, we set a date of Tuesday, March 27 to meet again and make Easter cards for Caring Hands Hospice.
Mother decided not to join us for supper, so Hubbie accompanied her home. Hubbie and I relaxed for the rest of the afternoon (he spent his time napping). I read the evening newspaper, played on my laptop, then put a dish of leftover chicken and rice in the oven, along with a dish of butter beans, for our supper.
Turned the TV off for an hour and sorted a drawer that contained, among other things, old handheld electronic games. The Scrabble game, manufactured in China, came with undecipherable instructions. It's been a long time since I've played it, so I didn't quite figure out the functions tonight, though I remember that Mother and I played it years ago, so if I was of a mind, I'd learn how to play it again.
Another of the gadgets is loaded with (it declares) 250 kinds of computer games of the car-chase variety that can be played at fifteen levels and a multitude of speeds. I never did understand this gadget, but when the grandkids were younger, they seemed to figure it out right away.
There's a fishing game that simulates a rod and reel...the player casts it in an attempt to catch the "lunker," the biggest of the fish. There are also solitaire and poker games, as well as a Sudoko game and a Wheel of Fortune game. The batteries are dead in a few of them, so we couldn't test them. We wasted time playing with a few that did work, though.
Later, we wasted time watching an edge-of-your-seat 2010 horror movie, "The Crazies." An experimental toxin poisons the water in a small town, causing people to become insane, violent, and then die. To get control of the situation, the government orders the extermination of affected citizens. The citizenry of the whole town are rounded up, examined one-by-one, and separated into well and sick. The sick are shot, and their bodies burned. The sheriff and his wife seem unaffected, but for how long? Lots of action and blood letting.
Once I was satisfied with the house, I prepared a platter of sliced apples, strawberries, and grapes to serve to the ladies.
After a lunch of leftovers for Hubbie and me, I went to Mother's house to accompany her to our house. We began working on scrapbook pages around 12:30. By 1 p.m., the other two ladies had arrived.
We had a nice visit, and each of us accomplished quite a bit in our projects. Around 2 p.m., I offered refreshments of the fruits, plus their choice of drinks. One of the ladies chose sweetened tea, and one opted for water. Mother had coffee, and I had water.
The meeting ended promptly at 3 p.m., but before the ladies left, we set a date of Tuesday, March 27 to meet again and make Easter cards for Caring Hands Hospice.
Mother decided not to join us for supper, so Hubbie accompanied her home. Hubbie and I relaxed for the rest of the afternoon (he spent his time napping). I read the evening newspaper, played on my laptop, then put a dish of leftover chicken and rice in the oven, along with a dish of butter beans, for our supper.
Turned the TV off for an hour and sorted a drawer that contained, among other things, old handheld electronic games. The Scrabble game, manufactured in China, came with undecipherable instructions. It's been a long time since I've played it, so I didn't quite figure out the functions tonight, though I remember that Mother and I played it years ago, so if I was of a mind, I'd learn how to play it again.
Another of the gadgets is loaded with (it declares) 250 kinds of computer games of the car-chase variety that can be played at fifteen levels and a multitude of speeds. I never did understand this gadget, but when the grandkids were younger, they seemed to figure it out right away.
There's a fishing game that simulates a rod and reel...the player casts it in an attempt to catch the "lunker," the biggest of the fish. There are also solitaire and poker games, as well as a Sudoko game and a Wheel of Fortune game. The batteries are dead in a few of them, so we couldn't test them. We wasted time playing with a few that did work, though.
Later, we wasted time watching an edge-of-your-seat 2010 horror movie, "The Crazies." An experimental toxin poisons the water in a small town, causing people to become insane, violent, and then die. To get control of the situation, the government orders the extermination of affected citizens. The citizenry of the whole town are rounded up, examined one-by-one, and separated into well and sick. The sick are shot, and their bodies burned. The sheriff and his wife seem unaffected, but for how long? Lots of action and blood letting.
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Wednesday, March 14
Up at 6:30 to get ready to go to water aerobics. This was the first day back at the pool after spring break. The weather was mild this morning, though fog accumulated on the windows of the van as I drove up the hill to the college, making it difficult to see traffic from the side windows, as well the road that I needed to turn on to my left.
The pool was wonderfully warm, though, and thirteen of us were in attendance. I was surprised more didn't come, since it was such a beautiful day. Maybe some were confused about what day we were to resume aerobics.
Back home afterward, I enjoyed a cup of coffee before going to Mother's house to help her take a shower, and then throw a load of clothes in the washer.
Hubbie spent the morning helping the Master Gardeners did plants at one of the member's homes, which they then potted to sell at their upcoming annual plant sale.
They worked from 9 a.m. until noon.
Once I was ready for the day, I called Hubbie to let him know I planned to attend a program at the women's center of the hospital. The program was about healthy eating, and included lunch, a speaker, and a cooking demonstration by the hospital's chef.
I looked for someone I knew to sit with, but there was only one lady...a member of our scrapbook club (who rarely attends our meetings), but she said she was sorry, but her table was already full.
No problem...I joined three staff members who work in the hospital records department. Nice ladies, and I enjoyed meeting and talking with them. Soon, a woman I know from water aerobics came in. Looking around, she apparently didn't know anyone, either, until she spotted me, and joined us at our table.
There were only a handful of men at the gathering, one of whom was in line with me leading to the buffet table. He offered to let me go in front of him, but I said I figured his wife (who was already seated) might like him to hurry up and join her.
"Naw," he said, "she doesn't care what I do." I laughed and said I didn't think that was true.
He's a very large man...not only tall, but overweight, so I figured his wife forced him to attend the session to learn how to eat healthier.
He also said he was very warm after having worked in his ten raised veggie gardens all morning. This launched a conversation about Master Gardeners and Hubbie's projects.
It was a long line...plenty of time to talk.
The lunch was good, featuring herbed and sauteed chicken fillets, a mixed salad of greens, carrots, cucumbers, onions, green beans, orange slices, nuts, and Craisins, with a yogurt/orange juice/sugar/vinegar dressing, and a roll. The really tasty dessert was berry bread pudding: blueberries, a little sugar, vanilla extract, whole wheat bread, and vanilla yogurt.
Back home, Hubbie accompanied Mother to our house, and we gathered materials needed for a scrapbook club meeting tomorrow afternoon. I did a few things to spruce the house, but not enough, so I'll have to do the rest tomorrow morning.
Around 4:30, I went to an arts council committee meeting. Only three of us showed up. We looked like Easter eggs in bright green and yellow shirts. We spent a little over an hour discussing upcoming events.
Back home around 6:30, Hubbie had heated the leftover lasagna, as well as a can of green beans, which we had with sliced tomatoes that I'd bought from a roadside vendor on the way home from the lunch event.
I accompanied Mother to her house afterward, and then I grabbed my camera and went out to snap photos of the tulips in the yard, which I uploaded to my social network page.
By then, it was nearly 8 p.m. We settled in to watch the 2000 comedy/crime movie, "Gun Shy," starring Liam Neeson and Sandra Bullock. An undercover DEA agent with serious stomach problems, who has lost his courage after his partner is killed, cleans up a drug ring.
The pool was wonderfully warm, though, and thirteen of us were in attendance. I was surprised more didn't come, since it was such a beautiful day. Maybe some were confused about what day we were to resume aerobics.
Back home afterward, I enjoyed a cup of coffee before going to Mother's house to help her take a shower, and then throw a load of clothes in the washer.
Hubbie spent the morning helping the Master Gardeners did plants at one of the member's homes, which they then potted to sell at their upcoming annual plant sale.
They worked from 9 a.m. until noon.
Once I was ready for the day, I called Hubbie to let him know I planned to attend a program at the women's center of the hospital. The program was about healthy eating, and included lunch, a speaker, and a cooking demonstration by the hospital's chef.
I looked for someone I knew to sit with, but there was only one lady...a member of our scrapbook club (who rarely attends our meetings), but she said she was sorry, but her table was already full.
No problem...I joined three staff members who work in the hospital records department. Nice ladies, and I enjoyed meeting and talking with them. Soon, a woman I know from water aerobics came in. Looking around, she apparently didn't know anyone, either, until she spotted me, and joined us at our table.
There were only a handful of men at the gathering, one of whom was in line with me leading to the buffet table. He offered to let me go in front of him, but I said I figured his wife (who was already seated) might like him to hurry up and join her.
"Naw," he said, "she doesn't care what I do." I laughed and said I didn't think that was true.
He's a very large man...not only tall, but overweight, so I figured his wife forced him to attend the session to learn how to eat healthier.
He also said he was very warm after having worked in his ten raised veggie gardens all morning. This launched a conversation about Master Gardeners and Hubbie's projects.
It was a long line...plenty of time to talk.
The lunch was good, featuring herbed and sauteed chicken fillets, a mixed salad of greens, carrots, cucumbers, onions, green beans, orange slices, nuts, and Craisins, with a yogurt/orange juice/sugar/vinegar dressing, and a roll. The really tasty dessert was berry bread pudding: blueberries, a little sugar, vanilla extract, whole wheat bread, and vanilla yogurt.
Back home, Hubbie accompanied Mother to our house, and we gathered materials needed for a scrapbook club meeting tomorrow afternoon. I did a few things to spruce the house, but not enough, so I'll have to do the rest tomorrow morning.
Around 4:30, I went to an arts council committee meeting. Only three of us showed up. We looked like Easter eggs in bright green and yellow shirts. We spent a little over an hour discussing upcoming events.
Back home around 6:30, Hubbie had heated the leftover lasagna, as well as a can of green beans, which we had with sliced tomatoes that I'd bought from a roadside vendor on the way home from the lunch event.
I accompanied Mother to her house afterward, and then I grabbed my camera and went out to snap photos of the tulips in the yard, which I uploaded to my social network page.
By then, it was nearly 8 p.m. We settled in to watch the 2000 comedy/crime movie, "Gun Shy," starring Liam Neeson and Sandra Bullock. An undercover DEA agent with serious stomach problems, who has lost his courage after his partner is killed, cleans up a drug ring.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Tuesday, March 13
Today is Great-Granddaughter's birthday. Happy Birthday, Great-Granddaughter!
Trouble going to sleep again last night, but had to get up at 6:30, anyway, so we could get ready to go to a town about an hour and a half east of us to do some shopping, and to meet Hubbie's sisters for lunch.
We headed out around 8:30. What a gorgeous day for an outing, with the temp rising to near 80 degrees later in the day. We ran into heavy fog in the flat lands, though, due to the marshy-wet fields on either side of the highway. Fog is a type of ground-level cloud, of course, and today it was very apparent, with color gradations from from white to dark gray. I guess the dark gray was heavier with moisture, because it dipped lowest to the ground.
We arrived in the other town in time to spend a leisurely 45 minutes or so at a hobby store. Mother and I were interested in buying stickers to use in making greeting cards for Caring Hands Hospice. Fortunately today, the stickers, except for two cards of them, were priced at 50% off. For those two cards, we used 40% off coupons I'd printed from the store's website. We also bought a variety pack of plain card stock, also 50% off.
From there, we went to an Italian restaurant, where all of us, except one of Hubbie's sisters, had the all-you-can eat soup, salad, and bread sticks. The five of us managed to polish off two big bowls of salad, a couple of baskets of bread sticks, and two bowls each of the delicious soup.
After lunch, we went to a store that has a sale every weekend. I was looking for a red blouse to wear to the Red Hot luncheon later this month. I found one that is sort of burgundy (not really my color) that fits beautifully and was on sale. So I'll make it work by adding flattering jewelry and makeup.
Mother found nothing she wanted at this store, nor at the mall that we visited next. We meandered through a couple of clothing stores, we decided to stroll the mall, since she had never seen it. In the past, even though we always had the wheelchair with us, she preferred to stay in the car whenever we visited the mall. But today, she felt well and therefore happy to ride in the wheelchair and shop with us.
Our last stop for the afternoon was the warehouse club store. Mother stayed in the van this time, while Hubbie and I shopped for grocery items.
We were back home around 5:30 p.m. I accompanied Mother to her house. At our house again, I gathered grapes, and an assortment of cookies (fig newtons, graham crackers, and Thin Mints) to take back to her for snacks.
We spent the rest of the evening watching TV. I didn't get an exercise session in today, but since I was on my feet most of the day, and walked a lot, I felt tired enough to have done a workout of sorts.
Tonight we watched the 2011 movie, "Win Win." A teenage boy walks into the life of a volunteer wrestling coach, who is also a failing lawyer. The coach/lawyer, out of financial desperation, takes on the position of paid guardian to one of his elderly clients, who has dementia, and who is the teenager's grandfather. The coach discovers that the teen is a champion wrestler, who can help his losing team win in competition. But the teen's drug and alcohol abusing mother comes back into his life. What will happen now?
Trouble going to sleep again last night, but had to get up at 6:30, anyway, so we could get ready to go to a town about an hour and a half east of us to do some shopping, and to meet Hubbie's sisters for lunch.
We headed out around 8:30. What a gorgeous day for an outing, with the temp rising to near 80 degrees later in the day. We ran into heavy fog in the flat lands, though, due to the marshy-wet fields on either side of the highway. Fog is a type of ground-level cloud, of course, and today it was very apparent, with color gradations from from white to dark gray. I guess the dark gray was heavier with moisture, because it dipped lowest to the ground.
We arrived in the other town in time to spend a leisurely 45 minutes or so at a hobby store. Mother and I were interested in buying stickers to use in making greeting cards for Caring Hands Hospice. Fortunately today, the stickers, except for two cards of them, were priced at 50% off. For those two cards, we used 40% off coupons I'd printed from the store's website. We also bought a variety pack of plain card stock, also 50% off.
From there, we went to an Italian restaurant, where all of us, except one of Hubbie's sisters, had the all-you-can eat soup, salad, and bread sticks. The five of us managed to polish off two big bowls of salad, a couple of baskets of bread sticks, and two bowls each of the delicious soup.
After lunch, we went to a store that has a sale every weekend. I was looking for a red blouse to wear to the Red Hot luncheon later this month. I found one that is sort of burgundy (not really my color) that fits beautifully and was on sale. So I'll make it work by adding flattering jewelry and makeup.
Mother found nothing she wanted at this store, nor at the mall that we visited next. We meandered through a couple of clothing stores, we decided to stroll the mall, since she had never seen it. In the past, even though we always had the wheelchair with us, she preferred to stay in the car whenever we visited the mall. But today, she felt well and therefore happy to ride in the wheelchair and shop with us.
Our last stop for the afternoon was the warehouse club store. Mother stayed in the van this time, while Hubbie and I shopped for grocery items.
We were back home around 5:30 p.m. I accompanied Mother to her house. At our house again, I gathered grapes, and an assortment of cookies (fig newtons, graham crackers, and Thin Mints) to take back to her for snacks.
We spent the rest of the evening watching TV. I didn't get an exercise session in today, but since I was on my feet most of the day, and walked a lot, I felt tired enough to have done a workout of sorts.
Tonight we watched the 2011 movie, "Win Win." A teenage boy walks into the life of a volunteer wrestling coach, who is also a failing lawyer. The coach/lawyer, out of financial desperation, takes on the position of paid guardian to one of his elderly clients, who has dementia, and who is the teenager's grandfather. The coach discovers that the teen is a champion wrestler, who can help his losing team win in competition. But the teen's drug and alcohol abusing mother comes back into his life. What will happen now?
Monday, March 12, 2012
Monday, March 12
Having a hard time adjusting to the time change. Slow going to sleep last night, and late getting up this morning, around 8 a.m. After breakfast, I went to Mother's house to help her take a shower.
I was surprised to find that she had moved the clothes hampers, the adult potty chair, a stool, and a bath rug into the hall, and had cleaned the floor and a couple of wall shelves. I wasn't happy. If there was something more she wanted done after Daughter had cleaned the bathroom last Sunday, she should have let me or Hubbie do it. I'm afraid she'll fall, or twist her back, or something.
I threw a load of laundry into the washer, and fixed Ramen noodle soup for Mother's lunch, before I came back home.
I changed clothes and did a treadmill session and weights exercises. While I was doing this, Hubbie ran errands and got a haircut. By the time I was ready for the day, it nearly lunchtime.
After lunch, Hubbie accompanied Mother to our house, where she put together a dish of lasagna. Afterward, she continued working on her jigsaw puzzle.
I spent some time calling the members of our scrapbook club. One of the ladies was very talkative. So after she hung up, I didn't have as much time as usual to review the lesson for my ESL student. But it didn't matter, because we spent a lot of time in conversation before we began the lesson, and so covered only a part of the lesson.
Our conversation: I mentioned to her the incident of Granddaughter being robbed at gunpoint, which prompted her to say how dangerous Venezuela is. The homes in the wealthier parts of cities are secured with high walls topped with barbed wire, electronic gates, and watchmen.
Her aunt is a lawyer, who keeps valuables and cash in a safe in her home. At one point, my student went to visit her. The watchman was in the back part of the house, showering, and while he was there, a group of four men broke the electronic gate lock, and entered the home, while a fifth man waited in a get-away car.
All of the men had guns and threatened my student, her aunt, and her mother, if they did not give up their valuables. One of the men even held a gun to my student's head. They took all the cash...which was about $700 from my student, who had that much, because it was part of a payroll where she worked...plus everyone's jewelry, including my student's heirloom wedding ring.
Fortunately, they left after that without harming anyone.
In another incident, a gunman robbed my student in her car in own garage. The robber hoped to get the cash my student withdraw from her bank to be used on a trip she won to the Dominican Republic for being the highest producer as an insurance agent. But she had hidden the cash, her passport, her cell phone, and other valuables under the seat of her car, so that all the robber got was her purse.
No wonder my student is so happy to be away from that country, and to be living in our relatively quiet little town.
As for today's lesson, we covered sentences using when clauses: "When Carla calls, I will talk to her." Then she learned verb plus infinitive sentences: "I'll learn to speak English in this class." We also covered past participles of irregular verbs: "I sing a song. I sang a song. I have sung many songs."
We ended with her reading a story and then answering questions related to the story.
Back home, after our lasagna supper, Hubbie accompanied Mother back to her house. I turned the TV off then and gathered necessary materials for doing a couple of etched ornaments for the arts council director. Naturally, we couldn't find paper masks for protecting ourselves from etching cream fumes.
So Hubbie went to the WDCS to buy some. Since he was out, he ran several other errands, to the point I thought he wouldn't get back home while it was still daylight. We needed daylight so he could see to rinse the ornaments outdoors.
While he was gone, I used templates to cut letters from contact paper applied to the ornaments. When Hubbie finally returned, we finished the ornaments.
It was nearly 8 p.m. by this time. We finished the evening watching an old 1943 Alfred Hitchcock film, "Shadow of a Doubt." A young woman, who highly admires her uncle, discovers, when he comes for a visit, that he might be hiding a shadowy past.
I was surprised to find that she had moved the clothes hampers, the adult potty chair, a stool, and a bath rug into the hall, and had cleaned the floor and a couple of wall shelves. I wasn't happy. If there was something more she wanted done after Daughter had cleaned the bathroom last Sunday, she should have let me or Hubbie do it. I'm afraid she'll fall, or twist her back, or something.
I threw a load of laundry into the washer, and fixed Ramen noodle soup for Mother's lunch, before I came back home.
I changed clothes and did a treadmill session and weights exercises. While I was doing this, Hubbie ran errands and got a haircut. By the time I was ready for the day, it nearly lunchtime.
After lunch, Hubbie accompanied Mother to our house, where she put together a dish of lasagna. Afterward, she continued working on her jigsaw puzzle.
I spent some time calling the members of our scrapbook club. One of the ladies was very talkative. So after she hung up, I didn't have as much time as usual to review the lesson for my ESL student. But it didn't matter, because we spent a lot of time in conversation before we began the lesson, and so covered only a part of the lesson.
Our conversation: I mentioned to her the incident of Granddaughter being robbed at gunpoint, which prompted her to say how dangerous Venezuela is. The homes in the wealthier parts of cities are secured with high walls topped with barbed wire, electronic gates, and watchmen.
Her aunt is a lawyer, who keeps valuables and cash in a safe in her home. At one point, my student went to visit her. The watchman was in the back part of the house, showering, and while he was there, a group of four men broke the electronic gate lock, and entered the home, while a fifth man waited in a get-away car.
All of the men had guns and threatened my student, her aunt, and her mother, if they did not give up their valuables. One of the men even held a gun to my student's head. They took all the cash...which was about $700 from my student, who had that much, because it was part of a payroll where she worked...plus everyone's jewelry, including my student's heirloom wedding ring.
Fortunately, they left after that without harming anyone.
In another incident, a gunman robbed my student in her car in own garage. The robber hoped to get the cash my student withdraw from her bank to be used on a trip she won to the Dominican Republic for being the highest producer as an insurance agent. But she had hidden the cash, her passport, her cell phone, and other valuables under the seat of her car, so that all the robber got was her purse.
No wonder my student is so happy to be away from that country, and to be living in our relatively quiet little town.
As for today's lesson, we covered sentences using when clauses: "When Carla calls, I will talk to her." Then she learned verb plus infinitive sentences: "I'll learn to speak English in this class." We also covered past participles of irregular verbs: "I sing a song. I sang a song. I have sung many songs."
We ended with her reading a story and then answering questions related to the story.
Back home, after our lasagna supper, Hubbie accompanied Mother back to her house. I turned the TV off then and gathered necessary materials for doing a couple of etched ornaments for the arts council director. Naturally, we couldn't find paper masks for protecting ourselves from etching cream fumes.
So Hubbie went to the WDCS to buy some. Since he was out, he ran several other errands, to the point I thought he wouldn't get back home while it was still daylight. We needed daylight so he could see to rinse the ornaments outdoors.
While he was gone, I used templates to cut letters from contact paper applied to the ornaments. When Hubbie finally returned, we finished the ornaments.
It was nearly 8 p.m. by this time. We finished the evening watching an old 1943 Alfred Hitchcock film, "Shadow of a Doubt." A young woman, who highly admires her uncle, discovers, when he comes for a visit, that he might be hiding a shadowy past.
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Sunday, March 11
First day of Daylight Savings Time. So it was 8:30 before we woke up this morning. It'll take a while to adjust to the time change. Since we were late having breakfast, we settled for just toast and coffee. I skipped my exercises, as I usually do on Sundays.
Despite the dismal day, Mother wanted to come over this morning, so Hubbie accompanied her. She sliced onions and bell peppers, and cut beef into strips, which I sauteed and then simmered in beef broth, garlic, and spices, for our lunch. Hubbie washed potatoes for baking, and I prepared a dish of green beans for the oven.
While the meal cooked, I set the DVR for the week's movies and shows, and threw clothes into the washer.
After lunch, Mother resumed working on her jigsaw puzzle, while Hubbie and I watched Kentucky and Vanderbilt play for the championship in the final SEC game. In an upset, Vandy won 71-64. We weren't rooting for either team, but we figured that undefeated Kentucky would take the championship, after winning 24 straight games. Vandy, however, was hungier, since their school hadn't won the title since 1951.
Later, we watched the 2010 movie, "Conviction," starring Hillary Swank and Sam Rockwell. This film is based on the true story of a woman who puts herself through law school in order to represent her brother, wrongfully accused of murder. Kenny Waters spent 18 years in prison, before it was proven through DNA that he didn't commit the murder.
Spent the evening watching one-hour shows. Yawned the whole time. Maybe it was the weather. Maybe it was the time change, though I shouldn't have been sleepy at 8:30, when it would have been 7:30 by standard time. Maybe it was plain old laziness.
Despite the dismal day, Mother wanted to come over this morning, so Hubbie accompanied her. She sliced onions and bell peppers, and cut beef into strips, which I sauteed and then simmered in beef broth, garlic, and spices, for our lunch. Hubbie washed potatoes for baking, and I prepared a dish of green beans for the oven.
While the meal cooked, I set the DVR for the week's movies and shows, and threw clothes into the washer.
After lunch, Mother resumed working on her jigsaw puzzle, while Hubbie and I watched Kentucky and Vanderbilt play for the championship in the final SEC game. In an upset, Vandy won 71-64. We weren't rooting for either team, but we figured that undefeated Kentucky would take the championship, after winning 24 straight games. Vandy, however, was hungier, since their school hadn't won the title since 1951.
Later, we watched the 2010 movie, "Conviction," starring Hillary Swank and Sam Rockwell. This film is based on the true story of a woman who puts herself through law school in order to represent her brother, wrongfully accused of murder. Kenny Waters spent 18 years in prison, before it was proven through DNA that he didn't commit the murder.
Spent the evening watching one-hour shows. Yawned the whole time. Maybe it was the weather. Maybe it was the time change, though I shouldn't have been sleepy at 8:30, when it would have been 7:30 by standard time. Maybe it was plain old laziness.
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