NEW YEARS !!! HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012

I spent New Years eve this year as I said went out to a nice dinner with my friend and then to a movie.  Went to Ruby Tuesday's Restaurant and I had blackened tilapia and my friend had a steak.  Both our meals was just out of this world delicious.  After the meal we went to the movies. So I can recommend the movie We bought a Zoo starring Matt Damon.  That movie is a must see movie for all ages.  It is rated "G" and was very well done.  Made me laugh a lot. I Highly recommend this movie                                     HAPPY NEW YEAR!

WEIGHT WATCHERS,,

Just wanted everyone to know I am going on the weight watchers program after today.  An excellent way to start my new year.  I have a friend who is going on the program with me so we will be supporting each other.  You will probably get current reports on that from time to time and hopefully it will work for me. If nothing else, I will learn to eat right and that is what I'm looking at.  After you go off the program you still know what is right and nutritious to eat.  Not that I don't already know that, just that I don't do that.So I want you all to keep checking on me during this new year of 2012 to see how I am coming along with that program.

NEIGHBORS HAVE ARRIVED!!!

My neighbors next door have arrived and have spent the afternoon setting up their satellite dish.  They told me their 91 year old mother decided not to come down this winter because her back was hurting her a little.  Therefore, they decided to come down and stay in her place.  The oldest person in this park is my friend Harry, actually he just had a birthday the week before Christmas so now he is 98.  He dances a lot and plays the violin/fiddle in a bluegrass band called Buddies Band; buddy used to play with Buck Owens and some of the other oldies.  Harry said he has bought and paid off about three homes during his lifetime plus living in Mobile homes which he does here.  Harry is dating my art teacher who just turned 65.

TURNED LOOSE FROM HOSPITAL CHRISTMAS EVE..

Almost had to spend Christmas in the hospital.  I have the lung disease kicking up its heels again. Everyone in this area has had it,  has it, or probably will be getting it. I had a flu shot guess that wasn't covered.  This time however, I did not have pneumonia, just the inflammation and infection in my lungs and no fluid around my heart either which is a very good thing.  They just kept me in the hospital overnight so they could get my oxygen level up to 95 so they could release me.  I was released late on Christmas Eve.  I am better now and am doing fine and will be doing a follow up with my doctor.  Word is he may be testing me later to get an oxygen tank at home and a little carry on shoulder oxygen tank.  They couldn't believe I had never had one as bad a my lungs are.  The doctor who took my x-rays said I definitely have severe COPD.

OH CHRISTMAS TREE, OH CHRISTMAS TREE..........

Christmas is over and my Christmas tree still stands fully decorated in my Florida room.  I really was not going to have a tree this year but my friend said I needed one since she bought a new one she gave me her old one.  It is seven and a half feet tall.  Too tall for my Florida room ceiling.  Now I will have to attempt to remove the decorations; maybe by laying it on its side and rolling it from side to side to get them off.  Then there is the problem of fitting all those limbs back into the box.  I really think the aluminum trees from the 60's were much easier to deal with.  They only had the color wheel.  This one has all those color coded limbs and has to be tied together to fit back into its box.  Hope to have it done by next year.

video

I made this movie from my camera It is from a few years ago when I spent the winter in Wickenburg, AZ.  Hope you enjoy it.

Christmas in Wickenburg, AZ

Company, yea.

My friends from Pennsylvania are here in Florida and have been attending their nieces wedding. Now they are ready to travel and are now in Tampa, Florida.  Monday they will be at my place of abode.  I am so looking forward to seeing them again.  It has been about six years since I've seen them.  But we have been communicating by phone.  This is the first year we and another friend from New York  were all coming to Florida again in the same year.  I am definitely getting a group picture.  I am so excited about their arrival.

Tis The Season...........

Where did this month go already?  Just a week or more away and we will be celebrating the birth of  Christ.  Sometimes I get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the season and stop thinking about the reason for the season.  I am going to take a moment to reflect and remember why we give gifts and celebrate a special day out of the year.  Seems as though I have been going non-stop. I have been helping a friend prepare for a party.  She is physically challenged and I drive her to the stores and shop with her and I have been having dinners and parties of my own to attend also.  My friends party is tomorrow.  Then I will be taking her to doctor appointments.  So it all keeps me busy.  I haven't had time to bake any Christmas cookies for my friends yet.  And I don't even have a baby that cries all night so there is no excuse for me, just bad or no organization. 

Trip to the mall..

Can't believe I went to the mall.  I really detest going to such places.  I drove my friend there because she cannot drive.  I got to drive her newer car and it is a comfortable car and so easy to drive.  This is the largest mall in the area.  It must be the economy but the place was not very busy at all but I did get in my walking for the day.  I never buy anything unless it costs less than $5.00.  Everything is priced way too high for my income.  After we went to the mall we went to Olive Garden to eat dinner. It was great, I ordered the Chicken Marsala.  One of my favorites.  She bought my dinner for me driving her to the mall.  We had a good day and lots of fun. 

OH! OH! What to wear.

Wow! I wrote a  paragraph on this blog and part of  it  got erased and that is not all I re typed the whole thing and the whole thing got erased even though I had it saved.  That was really upsetting .   So I skipped it for a while and here I am back again.  Just can't tear myself  away from this writing thing.  Went to a Christmas party yesterday.  Wanted to get a new dress for the occasion but thought better than that and why should I have a new dress when people are starving out there?  So instead I bought a taffeta table runner and some green sparkly Christmas bows which were about the same color of green as the table runner.   I wore one of my old black skirts with a black blouse.  I pinned one of the bows to the bottom of my black skirt just above the ruffle.  It actually covered the blue flower that was already beaded on my skirt.  With the table runner I covered one shoulder and brought it down to my waist in front on the other side and tied it there then pinned the other bow there.  Looked good. Then put some mousse in my short hair and stood it up in all wild directions.  Have to say it looked good.   Then to add to the Christmas theme, I wore my old red earrings n necklace.

Hail! Hail! the gang's all here........

I am so late with my blog I will start from the more recent and proceed back from there.  Today I had to get some laundry done so I started the day early by paying my rent RV and the electric bill which was only $28.44. Amazing, probably the lowest electric bill I've had in my life.  Cable bill exceeds that by about 4 times.  I guess one pays extra for that 24/7 support, which I've used already because the park workers unplugged the cables when at my request they removed the carpet from my cement Florida Room and washed it then painted it brown.  Guess what, the sign on the entrance of my carport says "Getter Done".  My favorite Redneck quote ever.  ROFL.

During laundry I had a cup of free coffee which is daily in the office store area.  Finished with laundry, I showered and
arrived at the Enrichment CTR.  barely in time for lunch.  My friend from North Carolina was there today.  We sat and talked about an hour after lunch just talking and he was bringing me up to date on what was going on with his family and it seems there was a death in the family.  So sad I knew her. Tommorrow my friend from NewYork  will arrive.  She will be living just down the street from me.  The couple from Pennsylvania are in the Southern part of Florida and on the Atlantic side of the state. They are attending her nieces wedding then they come here to visit for a while.

THANKSGIVING DAY

This has been a very busy Day.  Starting with the day at 7:30am.  I thought I had slept in at least that was my intention. lol.   I will definitely be going to exercise in the morning.  I had way too much to eat today.  The owner of our park provided the turkey and all the trimmings.  I made my mac n cheese and someone actually liked it, I didn't have but about 2 servings to bring home with me.  People from the RV park kept knocking on my door to let me know I was invited to the dinner and I didn't have to bring anything. Some of the people were going to save me a seat and provide my plate and silverware but my friend had already done that.  I guess people show up early and choose their seats and save them. I'll learn, lol.

FLORIDA ROOM

After exercise, I went to the Senior Enrichment Center where I have been having lunch daily now.  When I arrived there today they were having a sing-a-long so I joined them with my beautiful non-singing voice.  After lunch, I watched a video of a dance lesson on how to do the Tango.  Tried to do some of the steps. That sure brought my memory back to my college days when I took a dance class in the Physical Education department.  Found out some of my physical attributes were a little different than most of my classmates. Seems I turned out to have some extra feet to work with.  It certainly is not as easy as it looks when the professionals dance. When I arrived home, my floor in the Florida Room was painted and dry.  The ugliest dark brown I could imagine is now on the floor.  I was hoping for some light color like sea blue or flamingo pink or ocean green.  I will just have to do some faux finish  or paint a mural on my floor. Something to look like Florida. After all I am in Florida.

EXERCISE BEFORE THANKSGIVING

I had been invited to do exercise with some of the ladies at the RV park where I used to live.  This was the morning I started, since I had to set my alarm early anyway because my floor in the Florida room was getting painted (cement floor).  So I headed out to the exercise class, the very one I taught when I lived there. they had some more machines  and only one was just doing some dance moves to classical music, so it seemed to be a self motivated class on an individual basis.  I was told they do it a little like curves and go from machine to machine. One of the ladies was telling me that what I had taught them in class was the same thing she did in rehab after her hip surgery.  That made me feel good.  The class is Mon., Wed., and Fri.  Believe it or not, I felt really good after doing all that exercise. So I will be going there even though it means I have to set my alarm so I get up at 8a.m. and be there by 9a.m., no more sleeping in for me.

BINGO..........

I can't believe I played bingo last night.  I am just a block from the clubhouse.  Everything is within easy walking distance from my RV.  There is a store in the office building that keeps the necessities. It is definitely a Company Store-prices are about triple of what they would be if you bought the same article in a store.  The laundry is pretty nice.  I have an umbrella clothes hanger in my yard so I hung them out and there was a nice breeze and they dried very fast and no wrinkles, so I did my green duty for that day.  It cost $1.75 to wash my clothes-one load.  By the way, I did win at Bingo.  I just won enough to replace the money I paid for my cards.  They have several jackpots to go along with the bingo cards.  Today, I am going shopping for food and things I need. 

ACTIVITIES .............

I am settled into a rented recreational vehicle now for the past week, better known as an RV.  There is a lot going on in this RV park.  They celebrate everything including anniversaries, birthdays, holidays, there is a heated pool year round, they have decorated golf cart parades, bingo, and crafts, pot lucks, dances, New Years dinner, bingo and street dances.  That is just the seasonal activities.  Year round is pool tables, recreational room with tv, I noticed they also have air hockey, swimming pool, playground, basketball, adult hall wih BBQ, and shuffle board courts.  Within a driving distance for a day trip is Weeki Wachee, Rogers Christmas House, Museum, Boyette's Grove, Homosassa Springs (home of the Manatee) Wildlife Park, Tarpon Springs (sponges, deep sea fishing), Busch Gardens, Leggo Land, (new theme Park now open), Adventure Island, Walt Disney World, Sea World, Universal Studios, Silver Springs,  Spring Hill Botanical Gardens. Lots to do here.  There are nice paved narrow streets (without traffic) to walk on or drive a golf cart on or bicycle.

FLORIDA THE SUNSHINE STATE

Here I am in sunny  Florida.  The last four days here have been rainy and cloudy.  This morning is a beautiful sunny day.  Last night however, the temperature came down to a low of about 45 degrees.  I just closed my  windows and added the blankets.  Nice sleeping weather.  My friend from New York will be coming down next week.  I'm sure not soon enough for her since there is snow there; not just snow when it stops falling it may be up to ten inches or more.  You won't believe what just happened here!  I heard this noise and looked at my window of the  "Florida" room and there was a squirrel climbing down my window.  Just wanted to say Hi to a couple of my friends in Arizona, Kay and Donna miss you. 

Cardinals Won Again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Just wanted to say "How about those Cardinals?  One more time:  How about those Cardinals?

Go Cardinals!

Just how about those Cardinals?  Today, I went to a park in town and walked.  There is a lot of shade and cement walks to walk on.  There is a little pond in the middle of the park and it has wildlife.  Today I saw an Ibis in the pond.  They are a white crane like bird with a long neck and shorter legs than a crane.  There are also a lot of squirrels there playing up and down the trees.The park also has a golf driving range and a baseball diamond and a few picnic tables and places for stretching. I don't pay any attention to how far I walk though I do intend to increase my distance a little at a time.  I do try to walk a half hour each time.

Cardinals Have Won Again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sunday, and this is my day off, so I am watching the ballgame between the Cardinals and the Milwaukee Brewers again but I think this is on the Brewers Diamomd.   This is game seven for the Cardinals. This is not the best time to blog because the game is on now.   I finished watching the Cardinals/Brewers baseball game and Cardinals won again.  All I've got to say about that is  "How about those Cardinals?"

Just a little of everything here.

How about those Cardinals?  I just watched a game of baseball all the way from beginning to end.  I am even amazed at myself.  That is probably a first for me but they are having a great season.  Yesterday a friend of mine took me to a Chinese Buffet.  It was in Spring Hill, FL  and supposed to be one of the best around the area.  It was delicious.  I did not eat the sushi even though it really looked fresh.  I have yet to eat raw fish unless I am starving and desparately hungry.  I've heard it is very good but I still will not try it.  I suppose I will be able to put some pictures up on my blog.  I think they are done messing with it to make it "better".  I do not like the new and improved emails.  Too bad they can't leave a good thing as it is.  If I knew who "they" are, I could tell them that I feel the new email is not an improvement. Be nice if one could choose to keep the old style of email.  Just had to voice my opinions.  Thank You for listening.  Don't get me wrong, I like change and can adapt, but some things should just not be changed in my opinion.  I am looking forward to meeting another great grandaughter soon.  I'm excited even though I will not be there for the birth.  The mother looks healthy and happy. 

Trip South

This winter, I decided to go South for the winter.  I came early so I could beat the snow birds in finding housing.  That is something that becomes very scarce when all the snow birds arrive in the south.  I am already enjoying the sunshine.  Tomorrow, I may check out the beach since I have a place to stay.  I stayed last week with some very dear friends of mine who invite me to come down to stay with them every year.  Very nice people.  My trip here was very smooth and  for the most part uneventful, unless you count the near accident while driving through Nashville, TN.  Almost got me an attachment of a little blue car about the same size of my red one.  Trust me that is not a good color combination to go for if you have a choice which I didn't.  But with my excellent driving skills and quick thinking, I avoided that red, white and blue color combination.  The little blue car had its tires smoking and pulled out into my lane.  My brakes were really doing their job as I turned to miss the blue car and went between it and a white one on the other side of me.  I will never understand the reasoning behind the fact that when traffic gets closer and into a big city the speed increases to somewhere in the area of 80mph even though the speed limit is usually 50 or 60mph or less.  I only saw about 6 wrecks in about a five mile stretch of that highway corrider. I'm good.   

5-legged frog

Ern, my youngest son, has a dog that loves hunting frogs in the stream running through his front yard.  As he was trying to get the frog from Lily, the dog, he noticed that the frog had 5 legs.  If you are interested, he has posted a picture of it on Facebook. It is one of those freaks of nature that we sometimes see.  It is a really good picture.  Check it out when you get a chance.   Maybe he should put it on you-tube; it'd be the perfect thing, especially if it was still alive and moving.  He said it could jump pretty good.

Weight Loss.

Remember some time back when I was going to lose some weight?  Well, I am so excited to inform you that I have lost some weight; I have lost 21 pounds altogether.  Since I have been back in Hannibal, however, I have gained 6 pounds of that back. Not to worry, I am working on that, I have lost 2 of the 6 already. Of course I will not stop with that, I will keep going.  I have yet to lose a clothing size.  So that will be my goal after the six pounds are gone.  I want to thank you all for your support in this life-saving endeavor.

Sick Auto!

On the hottest day so far since I've returned to Hannibal from Arizona, my little red car failed me for the first time since I bought it.  Since I had no choice in the matter as to where this would take place, I think half the town is angry with me and my car.  It stalled in the lunch rush traffic in the out drive of McDonald's.  The manager helped; he and my grandson physically pushed the car out onto the highway - solved his problem, as I was no longer stalled in the restaurant drive.  Now I'm stalled in what probably is the busiest spot in Hannibal at lunch time, on highway 61 in front of McDonald's.  Thanks to a good Samaritan(thank you Louise,) who stopped to help, I was able to purchase a new battery to replace the two month old battery that was now dead.   The auto parts store checked out my car and told me the alternator was not working therefore it could not charge the battery.  So, I purchased a new alternator, paid to have it installed and the battery light was still on so it was replaced by another alternator and a new belt which should be replaced while everything was unattached. You know it was one of those belts that, one size fits all.  That is it is the one belt attached to a lot of different working parts and probably the old belt was fine; but logically it makes sense to replace it while all those parts are loose and a belt has to be put back in place.   I end up with a spare battery and my battery light is still on; however, the alternator is working, everything is charging as it should so until I find a rational explanation for that little red light, I will ignore it.  That was an expensive trip to McDonald's. 

Continued................(April, 2011)

The RV is parked about one hundred feet from the old Octave Cemetery.  There are only rocks on some graves, no markers, no names.  Some people in the area gathered and put in some metal crosses and more stones to mark the graves, probably within the last five years.  I've taken some night pictures in which I can can see some ghostly looking figures; but no one else can see them.  Most of the people buried here were probably gold miners from the 1849's.  This was a thriving tent city back then, all about gold mining.  By the way, they only kept the really  huge nuggets or chunks of gold because it wasn't worth very much back then.  They discarded the dust and small flakes and nuggets.  Therefore, theere's still gold in them that hills.  Lot of history in this area,  Lot of lore still being told. 

Continued................(April, 2011)

 A day or two ago, I kept hearing a small rock land on top of the RV.  Then little pecks on kitchen window.  At first, I considered a small meteor shower(LOL) then realized someone was throwing tiny pebbles at the window.  Well, it got my attention.  I looked out the window just in time to see a man on a horse riding away.  He had turned to look back but I couldn't see his face.  Too bad, it could have been that cowboy of my dreams.  You know, the one whom I mount the horse behind him, and we both ride off into the sunset together.  The one who looks like Roy Rogers or Gene Autry (LOL).  I was home alone!!  My son and I talked about it later with his friend who said Dam!!.(LOL)   We think we probably know who it was.  With the Mesquite and Palo verde trees and all the different types of cactii, it is hard to see a person coming or going.       

Continued................(April, 2011)

A day or two ago, I kept hearing a small rock land on top of the RV;  hen little pebbles on the windows in the kitchen.  I considered a meteor shower(LOL), then realized someone was throwing tiny pebbles one at a time at my kitchen window.  Well, it got my attention so I looked out the windo9w just in time to see a man on a horse riding away.  He half turned to look back but I couldn't see his face.  Too bad, could have been that cowboy of my dreams.

Continued................(April, 2011)

Here in the Weaver Mountains, there is always a breeze blowing in either dust or clean dry air.  Lately there have been some strong breezes, around fifty miles and hour.  Don't expect your hair to stay combed here.  One has to be very careful about building a camp fire.  It is so dry here a fire can start easily and will spread out of control very fast.  No fire is built here unless the wind is very still. to none; only in a fire ring and no vegetation nearby.  Always keep a shovel and sand close to the fire if needed. use it.  There is no water available in this desert to douse a fire.  The best way to put the fire out is totally cover it with sand and dirt.  Saw a horned toad lizard crawling on the fire pit rocks.  A big one that squirts the paralyzing blood from its eyes at the enemy.

Continued................(April, 2011)

This whole area is about Gold Hunting.  I am doing some prospecting by working with my son and his friend sometimes on BLM land.  That is Bureau of Land Management.  It is located on a mining district  of the BLM named after a person with the last name of Weaver.  He works with a wet sluice.(There are dry ones also.)  The sluice has a mat on the bottom then metal dividers and a screen at the top part.  The sluice shakes the dirt down or in this case, the water washes down the sluice, pushing rocks and dirt alike, washing it along and out  The gold is very heavy and drops to the bottom of the sluice and gets caught in the fiber of the mat and stays there.  At the end of the day, the sluice is washed out, the you pan what is left in the sluice.  The gold appears in black sand and you pick out the gold with tweezers (if you are lucky to find a small nugget)or pick up smaller pieces out with an eye dropper with water in it.   The gold really stands out against the black sand background. 

Continued...................(April, 2011

This whole area is about gold hunting. I am doing some prospecting by working with my son and his friend sometimes.  They are on BLM land which is leased from them as a mining district by the Weaver Company.  We work with a wet sluice.

Continued................(April, 2011)

About three days later, I made a trip into the nearest town which is Congress, Arizona, about 10 miles away. I got gas and stopped at the Family Dollar store which is the only store that one can shop, literally-only store, other than the grocey.  On my way back, up  the first hill with a sharp curve at the top (mountain should I say).  here come my son who was not coming into town that day.(last week of March.).  He was going at a dangerously high raate of speed and his dog patches was with him. I suspected what had happened.  I turned my car around and headed back to town.  I went past the fire station which is on the main road.  As I suspected, there was his jeep parked there with patches(his dog)in it.  I went in and sure enough, there he was laying on a gurney with one of his jeans legs cut off.  He had gotten bit by a rattler.  The firemen EMS (EMT) are trained for this type of situation.  They had already taken blood, and drawn circles around each fang puncture and on uppper and lower of that they had drawn circles around his lower calf.  They measure around these to check for swelling because one way to know if there is venom in the bite.  They were checking his vitals, blood pressure, etc. and asking questions on how he was feeling.  He was walking down a mountain and heard a rattle, seen nothing, but he stopped.  Then he heard another rattle and he jumped aside.  He did not feel the bite at all. The rattlers have teeth like small or smaller than needles where the venom comes from.  They had called the EMS which is like an ambulance to drive him to the hospital.  They also had an air-vac hellicopteron stand-by.  They had to draw more vials of blood to send to the hospital with him.  I parked his jeep where I was instructed to do so and loaded up patches in my car and followed the EMS to the Wickenburg hospital.emergency where they took the vials of blood immediately to the lab to check for venom.  Everry hour then to three hours they took more blood to be checked for venom content.  They also kept measuring his lower calf for swelling.  Records was kept of the measurements from the first measurement.  He never did get any swelling.  They kept him in the emergency room all night checking every three hours for venom in his blood.  He got lucky this time, none showed up.  The older snakes sometimes bite and do not release all its venom because they reallize by the taste and smell that you are not on their regular diet as a mouse or rat would be; whereas the younger snakes will bite and release all their venom in one bite of their prey.  He also got an antibiotic shot.  The doctor said it is better to have the bite farther away from the heart.  He also said venom doesn't always show up until days later.  The Poison Control Center kept calling him to check on him for days later and weeks later, to make sure he was still doing alright.  It was called a dry bite because there was no venom. 

Continued...............(April, 2011.

Speaking of animals, I have took a wonderful picture of a Gila Monster, that is what I was told it was.  I have yet to look that up.  Later I will look it up and report back.  The only gila monsters I have seen are pinkish with big dark spots and their body is about the same size as their tail.  This one was green and a green tail that looked like a turtle tail and the body was round like a turtle without a shell.  Reptiles love the climate here.,  They crawl from under the rocks and lay on top of the rocks to sun themselves.  One afternoon I was outside painting and put my canvass away to dry.  I decided to sit at the same table to read a book.  I was relaxed with my legs stretched out read a little, felt the need to move my legs since they get stiff if I sit in one position for a while.  Something (my guardian angel) made me look down before I moved. what I saw was a rattlesnake crawling or should I say slithering under my legs. It was a pinkish color with grey markings. The locals said it was a mojave. which are a little more venomous than the others and the Green Mojaves have no anti-venom serum. So you live or die if they bite you.  I didn't move, I figured if it hadn't already bitten me, I wasn't going to give it reason by moving.  Plus I probably didn't smell like a mouse or rat or other food they eat.  I jusst waited and waited ............ finally I saw the rattle go past. It was sticking up and had black bands around it. About 4 or 5 of them each about a half inch wide. It was not rattling as yet.  Then I immediately grabbed my walking stick(which I now call my snake stick)and pulled myself up and away.  The snake immediately started rattling and hissing in strike position.  It just wanted to get away from me.  I poked at it with my stick and picked it up on my stick then let it go.  It crawled under a nearby bush.  I noticed it wound around one of the bush stems and hung down so it could catch a rat that might be crawling underneath.  More snake story following...........

Sheperds n Sheep herds

This letter was written the last day of April, 2011. I am still at my son's abode out in the mountains or higher altitude higher altitude desert.  The deserts with plants.  This time of year every plant has blooms and all vegetation is greener.  There is actually some grass growing on the desert floor as well.  We are still having some very cold mornings. This weekend had a couple of very cold nights and early mornings.  Sheperds have driven their sheep down from the ranches in the higher altitudes.  Yes, there are still sheperds, can you believe it. I was amazed.  The sheperd has a dog to help with the herding of the sheep.   I did not get a picture of that but wish I had.  We have open range here,  so one has to be careful driving so you don't hit any animals.  Some of them tend to blend into the background and are very diffult to spot.  We also have a lot of deer and Jack rabbits.  Yes, they are real, with long ears and long legs and the ears stand straight up whetherthey are running or sitting.  I got pictures of some different flowers and blooms.  I will probably paint them on a canvas later. 

I'm in cyberspace again!!

Hello, I'm in Hannibal, Mo again. Sorry about not keeping up with my writing.  I lived in one of those dead spots in the middle of some low range mountains. Somewhere you really may not want to be if you like to use your pc or cell phone.  I did however, enjoy the quiet, sereness of the desert and seeing the cactii, flowers, bushes, trees, animals and birds of the area and the people and gold miners I met in that area. I had written a letter to a friend who lives in Pennsylvania catching her up on the events of my life since I had talked with her last.  I will forward a copy of that letter to you also because it is part of my adventures you missed while I was still in that dead zone. Now I'm in another of those zones.  When I use my cell phone, it goes on roaming every time.  The only way I can make or send calls.I'm sure my bill will be higheer this month. I only make necessary calls.  Best to email me.  I have wifi so I can use my pc here since they have computers. 

Weather!

OK, I have finally thawed from the cold winter, however, I did not miss the snow and ice in the midwest.  The latest report on that last snow they had that was so deep is - 28 inches deep - which was on their local weather channel.  That is deeper than the grandkids told me.  My son works at the hospital and part of his job is to keep the walks n parking lots clear of ice and snow.  When the snow started, they kept him and one or two other maintenance personnel over night so they could wake them and they could keep the snow cleaned off during the blizzard while it  was happening.  There were two of them who definitely did not get much sleep in about three days.  They put up cots for them to spend the night and catch some winks.  Well, my son and one of the other workers are about six foot five inches tall.  Have you seen a cot?  The end of the cot hit them about mid-calf or a little higher.  They didn't get much rest at all.  It is still cold here in the early mornings until that sun peeks over the mountain.  Now it is much warmer during the day. and not quite as cold at night.  I think today was near the 80s.  Very Nice.............. We will soon be getting some rain and then the desert will take on a greener look. Somewhere in March the cacti will be blooming.

Sisters-

Hello again! I have been so busy doing nothing that I haven't had time to write lately. Sorry about that for all of you who are avid, LOL, readers.  I went to the Wise Owl today- hadn't been there in a day or two either.  Found out one  my friends is in the hospital today with inflamation of the muscle of her heart.  I understand there is not much doctors can do for it except give pain medicine until it disappears.  Hopefully it will soon. I am told that it is very painful.  I had met her sister two years ago and she kept telling me that I so reminded her of her sister.  This year I actually got meet her.  So now we tell everyone I am the third sister. We look somewhat alike and have a lot of similarities.  We both had blonde hair growing  up and before it turns gray it turns black then gets gray then turns blonde or white again. Mine is basically blonde again (yeah, right) but hers is still dark with some gray.  We lived in the same state.  Near the same age, and probably a lot more.   Does anyone remember that song called "Sisters" in the early 40's?  I think it was a Rosemary Clooney song.  Let me know if you've ever heard of it or seen it in one of the old black and white movies.  Probably had June Allyson and Bing Crosby in it too.  That is where I heard it.  It is a rather catching little tune. Is Rosemary Clooney any relative to George Clooney? Let me know.  Please comment. I have no other way of knowing you are out there.

Molly Mule....

Have you ever heard of  Farm-Garden Mules?  I hadn't either until one of my friends bought one. It is the size of a riding horse and to me looks more like a horse that a mule. I guess they can carry loads of stuff on their backs.  He is looking for another one but they are really scarce out here.  I am checking on the internet trying to find him another one.  He is planning on  riding one and the other one carrying supplies on a trip up into the mountains that don't have roads to them.  Maybe nobody has been there before. Sounds like an adventure to me.  He has named the mule Molly.   I thought that was a good name.  She runs around loose during the day grazing on what?  Cacti, sure not much grass in the desert mountains. However plants tend to turn more green when the weather warms a bit and some rains come.  I have seen the Missouri Mules in Missouri.  These mules are huge!  A mule is a good choice in this area; I think they don't require all that hay and all that we feed the horses.  I think when the oil supply is cut off from our country, a lot of people will wish they had a horse or mule to ride to the grocery store or to get the necessities.  There are still hitching posts in the town of Congress and the town of Wickenburg.

Sunshine -not snow...

I was one of the lucky people who woke up to sunshine this morning and without snow.  I've heard several different reports from family in Missouri whose top number was 20 inches of snow which fell yesterday.  The most interesting report was snow clear up to my butt and she has some long some legs.   I would probably have snow up to my chin if I was there.  Here we had freezing temperatures in low 30's with about 45 mph winds and up.  Tonight we are to have temperatures as low as 28 degrees and if it gets that low at the airport in Phoenix it will be the coldest temperatures in 20 years.  Wheres that global warming when we need it?  I'm going to check out facebook to see some of those pictures of the snow.  I had the most text messages ever on my phone this morning and they were still coming.  All about the blizzard. I told them all I was going to walk under the highway to McDonalds for a cup of coffee. Just so you all know, I carried a bag of trash out to trash cans probably no more than 500ft.  and the wind was cold so I was out of breath when I got to my mobile home.  I changed my mind about walking to McDonalds.  I can't breathe too well when I breathe the cold air. So, I stayed in and made a cup of hot green tea.  Pipes may freeze tonight.  I will leave my water dribble.

Almost had him in my arms.....

I just received the most beautiful picture of my granddaughter, Charlotte.  She is so artistic, she takes her own photographs.  My son just left my house.   He and his dog came to visit me and he took me to buy me a coffee at Starbucks.  Starbucks has a coffee booth at our local Safeway grocery.  There are tables and chairs out in front of the store, so one can sit outside and enjoy the coffee, snack or lunch, or just to visit.  Outside tables and chairs are very commonplace here; even in the winter people sit outside and enjoy the sunshine.  We have been having some great weather.  Daytime 72-74 degrees and 45 at night.  Once the sun rises over the mountain, things are immediately warm and one can start shedding the coats and sweaters.  I almost caught a man today!  Most of you are saying good for you. Key word is almost. ROFL.  There was a man ahead of me going out of the grocery store; he reached up and pushed on the glass door and as he was leaning and pushing forward  the doors slid apart.  Yes, they were sliding doors which open automatically and he had to stumble to get his balance, I noticed he had a problem walking anyway and, considering that, I thought he regained his balance with grace.

NO PICS-

My blog people won't let my pictures go on my blog. As we speak, they are working on it, whoever they are. Other bloggers seem to be having the same problem with lots of support but no real solutions. I think they are trying to improve my blogspot, but I really don't see how all this amazing information that comes out of my mouth could be improved upon. LOL. Its just me, so deal with it because it don't get no better. Well, it could very well get more exciting - so hang in there. Too bad, however, cause I had a very good video display of Christmas lights that danced to the local radio station. My first ever video and it was a good one. Maybe I can put it on a share spot somewhere out there in cyberspace so you all can see it and my astounding pictures of the mountains where I stayed for a while with my son. When I learn to do that. The owner of Stewerts Hardware still hasn't taken my picture for the newspaper yet. When that happens, there will be a website for the newspaper and you will be able to see it that way.

Cooler but still warm.

What beautiful weather we have been having. This week following will be cooler, but still nice and sunny every day. Only 68 in day and 45 at night for the next seven days. Yea! I walked across the new pedestrian bridge across the Hassayampa River yesterday. Very nice. I also discovered I can get to McDonald's across the street without actually crossing the busy dangerous highway. Yes, there is a walkway which goes under the ped. bridge and under the highway bridge with steps up to the sidewalk which comes out at McDonalds. While I was on the ped. bridge yesterday I actually saw a cowboy riding his horse on the river, I waved at him and he waved back. He stopped long enough to ask me if I had seen any cows. LOL. Or should that be ROFL? I had to tell him no that I hadn't been on the bridge very long. ( Just long enough to love Arizona all the more.) I sure wish I had seen some cows. There is a ranch that borders this property where I live. They also raise horses and Buffalo. Remember there is no water on top of the river, the water runs under the rocks,dirt,and sand. Cars and trucks can drive on top of the river, That is why it is called the "upside down river". I have walked across it before because on the other side is town. (note: not city).

SUN IS BACK!!!!

And it is a beautiful, sunny day here in Arizona; the weather reporters got this one right, it is getting a little warmer each day. I got my Snuggie! That's the blanket thing with sleeves. And I love it; since I'm a reader, it is the perfect thing to sit and read and stay warm at the same time. It is a full length blanket, and kinda like wearing an oversized robe backwards. The only item I don't have from my "Winning" is the Mixmaster standing mixer. I did walk some the last two days, since it has warmed up a little. They built a new pedestrian bridge across the Hassayampa River in Wickenburg, AZ. Now, I have to figure out how to get on it from the East side of the River to cross over to the West side without getting killed by the fast traffic which is "supposed" to be going 20 mph through the circle. That circle thing is another story in itself; one which I will tell on another blog at a later date. Keep reading so you don't miss it. And it is OK if you tell all your friends about my blog so they can read it too. There will be new pictures up for you to enjoy as I did when I was taking them. And I took one video when I figure how to get that one up; may be Christmas in July. ROFL.

New Stuff, Used Stuff...

I have been using my new appliances I got from the hardware giveaway. They have all been used now except one. That would be my Stir-Crazy Pop Corn Popper. It is pretty neat, it has stirring rods that keep the corn and oil mixed well while it is popping. I may have to try that tonight. I also am wearing my jacket also. Yesterday, I stopped by the Homes For Habitat thrift store. They have a lot of furniture, TV's, appliances, kitchenwares, etc. Well, I gotta tell you I have been without a TV since before Christmas, 2010, and I had to have one so I bought one of the several TV's they had on display; like an appliance store they were plugged in and playing so you would know they were good TV's. The price was affordable - $20.00. Of course, it is not a flat screen, but it is a 20 inch screen and has a very good clear picture quality, an RCA. Did I tell you all that when I completed my second year of college, I dropped out and went to work at RCA. That is Radio Corporation of America. It was a factory which assembled in mass production the new Color Televisions. This would be the early 1960's. And don't even try to guess my age from that last statement. LOL.

Yes, Weather is warming-Finally..

I will be getting out in the nice Arizona Sunshine the rest of this week and will be appreciating the warm weather through part of next week. Hopefully it will last a lot longer than that, but I'm not complaining. Went to laundrymat yesterday. ( Joy.) If I put clothes on hot they shrink, and if I put them on permanent press, it takes two full cycles to dry them. That was $2.40. plus and hour and ten minutes. Oh well, I did get some of my book read. I just keep my laundry soap permanently in my car so I don't have to carry it in and out of the house. There was a couple of young girls in the laundry, one of which had a young daughter with her. When they were getting their clothes out of the dryer and folding them the little girl was helping. She was holding all the pieces up for everyone to see what she was folding. Just happened to be mamas skimpy undergarments. The senior man sitting next to me seemed very appreciative of that but I don't think his wife was. Com'on he could have kept his comments to himself. In some states that could be grounds for divorce. LOL.

"Stuff" has Arrived!!!

Stewert's Hardware called me this morning. Remember the one where I dropped my name and phone number in the slot of a cardboard box and in so doing my name was drawn as winner of the $1,000. merchandise giveaway. Well, the "Stuff" I ordered had arrived and I went to pick it all up at the store this afternoon. So now I really did get a lot of appliances and other articles a woman can use around the home. I also got two card tables with chairs and I am using one now for my computer desk and the other one I will use for a table until I get another table to take its place. Ed Greenmeyer, the owner of the store will call me later to get my picture taken with him handing me the (big_) check. Our picture will be in the local newspaper. whoohoo! LOL. I tried the lottery but didn't win that one.

Have Suitcase will Travel One More Time,,,LOL

I have moved from the wonderful mountain with its wonderful view and its wonderful freezing and snowy weather. I am now back in the small Western/Ranching/Mining town of Wickenburg, Arizona. The weather is not so much warmer here at night, but it did not snow here a few days ago, but I could see the white caps on the mountains where I had been staying. I am now living in a mobile home which seems to fit my needs perfectly. Low rent, conveniently within walking distance to town, not permanent but for now it is. I think I will spend the rest of the winter here and most of the spring. I'm still waiting for my hardware to call me that my winnings have arrived, I now know the shipments come in on Fridays, so I will check on that this Friday. The policeman ask me if I got my stuff yet, I told him no, but I know that I will. Hopefully the owner has turned in my order list.

LOST IN THE SHUFFLE...

I had two blogs in my edit/view page and they have done disappeared. Can't find em anywhere. Looked for them; just can't find em. Oh well, we'll pick back up here. Wow, Christmas is over and here we are in the New Year of 2011. I made a long list, again this year, of New Year's Resolutions. No, no, and no, I will not reveal my list. Ha bet you thought I was gonna tell you, huh. Maybe if you keep reading I will reveal some of them in my blogs as I talk away to you all. I really missed blogging, but up on that mountainside, there was no communication with the outside world. Even the cell phones had trouble out there. If you were lucky to get a call out or in, that is all you could do because just one call would drain the battery to the cell phone. The phone system was working so hard to get the call through that it just used all the battery charge for the call. But now I'm back to civilization now with communication with the world.