The Marvelous and Amazing Adventures of Dick, Karin & Bailey

OK, it's time to get serious now. Or is it?

Dick and Karin — 2012-05-23T16:27:46Z

We've really gotta do something about this creep. You know the one I mean...the weight gain that just creeps up on us! Yes, we all know we're happy, but do we *have* to be fat & happy too?? (Please, no haters - I mean no offense to those of you that are fluffy and happy in your fluffiness!!) But, it's time to get serious & do something about it here at the Callander house.

Right after we finish up the banana cake I just put in the oven. See, last week, I tried to make John's Famous Dinner Rolls. That's not what HE calls 'em, but that's what he SHOULD call 'em. They bake up so light & fluffy, they about float off the plate, up to your mouth, roll around on your tongue, just long enough to realize how absolutely DELISH they are, then glide on down to your tummy, where the man calls out, "MORE, MORE, MORE!!"

Notice, I said "tried to make." Mine never rose (yes, I waited the requisite 3 hours or so....yes, they were in a warm spot - actually, I dare you to find a spot (other than the freezer) that is NOT warm here!!, and yes, I used active yeast). Oh. Wait. Maybe that yeast wasn't so active after all. Best if used by Jun11. Do you suppose that means next month June 11, 2012? Nah, I don't think so either. So maybe that's why they never rose. When I served them, I literally called 'em rocks. Here, honey, ya want another rock? God love him, he said "sure." He truly loves me!!

So, I had to redeem myself, right? Actually, no, I don't, but I found this recipe over on www.mybakingaddiction.com , courtesy of Barbara over at Cat Patches and just had to give it a go. As usual, tho, I had to ~~improvise~~ add my own twist. Why, you ask? Well, when exactly was the last time you saw me drink (or serve) bourbon. Yeah. Never. Never ever, actually. Oh, wait - yeah, I managed a bar a hundred years ago, and we served bourbon there - LOTS of it! Yup, it's official, when I left the bar, I have never ever touched bourbon since. When we drink (using that "we" loosely, aren't I?), it's either margaritas, wine or beer. Only reason we have a bottle of rum in the house is because Lora came to visit & we knew she preferred pina coladas over margaritas. Did we open it while she was here? Heck no, we saved it for some cookies that were supposed to have vanilla & I had to ~~improvise~~ add my own twist to them, too. Notice a pattern here? yeah. hush up about it.

OK, so here I am, making the delish-looking Bourbon Banana Bread (that's what happens whe we buy more bananas than we eat in a week!!), and it calls for, what else? Bourbon. Well, Jose had found my vanilla a week or so ago...(and there's really not much left in the bottle - must be time to head south!!) so I figured that would work. Glug, glug, in it goes. And choco chips? Who could go wrong with choco chips in the mix?? Well, last week I made a bundt cake that had choco chips, but remember the topic of this post? IT'S TIME TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT THE CREEP! Sooooo, in the interests of shaving calories (at this point, I'm wondering if there's really any difference between a thousand extra calories and a thousand, one hundred extra calories???), I omitted the choco chips. Hey, it's a START. Hooray for me (and my hips!)!!!

Sooo, I've subbed vanilla for bourbon & omitted the choco chips. Oh, yeah, and what's banana bread without some spice? I added some cinnamon. And some pumpkin pie spice. Why? Because I put pumpkin pie spice in EVERYthing! sweet potatoes, pumpkin pie, apple pie, pretty much EVERYthing sweet! Why? I dunno, maybe I think it adds flavor? And we like it? Nonetheless, that puppy's in the oven now. Smelling wonderful, I might add. And after it's all gone, we'll start getting serious about that creep. Probably. Maybe. Maybe not. We'll see.

Tootles till next time!! ♥

We will never forget. Or will we?

Dick and Karin — 2012-05-22T13:56:00Z

Disclaimer: This post is shamelessly copied, word for word from SpouseBuzz, a blog specifically designed for the spouses of our servicemembers. The author is Jacey Eckhart, and you can read her bio down at the bottom of the page here.

She says what I've felt for quite some time, and she says it with way more elegance and grace than I could. Thank you for reading along with me!

We. We. We. We. We. We. Will Never Forget. Those were the words on the screen at the end of 8:46, a 9/11 film shown this weekend at the GI Film Festival. You could hear audience members sniffing, digging in their purses for tissues, taking long shaggy breaths. Like me, they were probably remembering their own 9/11. Their own experiences of warfighting and deployment. Their own loss of friends, family members, brothers in arms. We will never forget.

“Oh yes, we will,” said a nagging voice inside my head. “We will forget. We are already forgetting.” Although we are good people who intend to remember 9/11 and Fallujah and Pearl Harbor and Bunker Hill every Memorial Day, we do forget. We are a nation of forgetters. Not because we are thoughtless, but because we are designed to forget.

Earlier this month, scientists from the Scripps Research Institute announced that they identified the mechanism that is an essential part of actively forgetting memories. Although we used to think that forgetting was something that passively occurred over time, their findings show that the act of forgetting is an active process that is probably regulated by the brain.

I am picturing this mechanism like a teacher with a giant eraser following behind me on the chalkboard, erasing everything I write that I won’t need for the test.

Which sounds like kind of a good idea. Like our brains are working for us, continually weighing memories, pitting them against each other, culling the most important. The scientists claim that the ability to actively forget is biologically efficient.

Yet the process of forgetting is hurtful in its efficiency when it comes to war. Watching the movie about 9/11, I was surprised how much I had let myself forget about the beginning of the war. I thought those memories were seared upon me. Realizing how our own memories–even our memories of the fallen–do fade is painful. It feels like we are letting them down. Which is probably why we use Memorial Day and Veterans Day and 9/11 to help us overcome the mechanism to forget things that hurt. These holidays become our counter-mechanism to remind.

We remind ourselves of the fallen. We remind ourselves of the battle scarred. We remind ourselves of the living who went forward for all of us. We. We. We. We. We. We. Will Always Remind.

Thank you Veterans and families for your service. Thank you for the lives you continue to lead. And know that we remind ourselves of you on this and every Memorial Day.

War is Hell! Welcome Warriors!

Dick and Karin — 2012-05-21T00:06:28Z

America's been at war for more than 10 years now, and every day, our service members are killed, suffer serious mental and/or physical injuries, and are otherwise put through Hell. A lot of them come back with permanent mental and physical injuries that will certainly put a crimp in their lives and the lives of their loved ones.

Well, there's a group that has tried (for about 9 years, I think) to help overcome some of these injuries and challenges. They have been sponsoring a deep-sea fishing weekend for wounded warriors, along with some other fun-filled family activities. It all starts when the guys (ok, and the girls, but they're mostly guys!!) arrive in Houston. They come from all over, including Walter Reed Army Medical Center (personally, my very favorite place to have neurosurgery!!), Brooke Medical Center (I'm pretty sure that's San Antonio), NC, GA, and a whole lotta other places I can't remember! And they come with all kinds of injuries - missing limbs, PTSD, burns, loss of eyesight, lots and lots of challenges in this group.

From Houston, they all drive or ride to Port O'Conner, on the coast, stopping (or slowing down) at all the little towns along the way. I think they left around 5-6 am, and they arrived here (typically, a 3-hour ride) right at 3:16pm, 1 minute late. ONE MINUTE! Now that's some military precision, isn't it?? Can you imagine, a 9 or 10 hour ride, and only one minute later than anticipated?? Geez, I know some people that can't get to their destination, 1 mile away, without being 10 minutes late! But, I digress.

What I wanted to share with you was our little town's Warriors' welcome. We went & were lucky enough to spot our next-door neighbors there. Their granddaughter (who's 29, btw) had brought some of her 4th of July flags to share, so we borrowed a couple of them. I had brought our little (I mean LITTLE) Texas flag, but when I saw all the American flags, I just left it in the car. But, I did bring my camera along, and I'd like to share the hoopla with y'all:

http://youtu.be/EcjBvsuFlLM

There are a lot of sirens at first, but be patient, they don't last long. It was really a heartwarming display of gratitude. Please enjoy!

Why our cookies always turn out different from expected

Dick and Karin — 2012-05-04T02:43:33Z

OK, y'all know I've been trying to teach myself to quilt, right? Well, there are about a zillion blogs out there in i-net-land, and they all have something to offer. Some offer tips & tricks, some offer tutorials, some offer giveaways, some just plain fun. So for some time now, I've been reading this one called "Sew I Quilt" by a lady that signs herself Madame Samm.

Well, a couple of days ago, she offered her recipe (ok, her version) for some yummy-sounding oatmeal cookies. (follow that link to get the recipe, by the way...and it's been edited to reflect a giveaway, so if you want one of those nifty little pans she's got, go ahead and leave her a comment!) I posted my comment (as I'm wont to do...) about how they sound so good, I was just gonna have to go right then & make some! So I did....get up off my butt & start making them - I did, I did!

And so began the saga....

I had the dry all measured out & added the oats. I even used the sifter I had JUST BOUGHT, after many YEARS of not having one…….dumped those oats right in, I did. Hmmmmm….they are moving! Crawling, you might say. OHMYGAWD, there are itty bitty BUGS all IN them, just crawling all around like they’re seeing the light of day (ok, the light of kitchen) after months by themselves! See, we only eat oats when it’s cold outside….which was…..ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmm…back in DECEMBER!!! And I’m pretty sure we had purchased these oats when we were down in the Valley (Rio Grande Valley), over a year ago! ARRRRRRRGHHHHH! I threw that batch of mix out so fast it would have made your head spin (I don’t generally mooooove very fast due to some health issues, but I moved my arse and those bugs right over to that can, tied up the bag & took it out to the garage all in about 5 seconds flat!!)

So, what to do now? No oats for us!! That wasn’t gonna stop me. I mixed up another batch of flour & spices….oh, no, I’m almost out of flour….no sweat, there’s another 5 pound bag, unopened, in the pantry. Let’s just go check it out…..oh CRAP, it’s got the same bugs! Can you see where this is going? YUP, right into the brand spankin’ new trash bag, tied up & right out with the other one! I don’t really get it, since the oats were in an air-tight (so I thought) plastic reused coffee can….??? But, there they were, in the new bag of flour. Ok, but, I still need oats. NOW.

That’s ok, I have pecans in the freezer…and chocolate chips. UNOPENED chocolate chips. Thank GOODNESS they were bug-free!! So I chopped up a couple handfuls of nuts, threw in some chocochips, and a couple handfuls of Craisins (since I also didn’t have raisins). Now to mix the wet!

Butter, check. Left outside for about 10 minutes, softened right up. Eggs, check. Sugar & honey, check. Mix, mix, mix…add in the dry, mix, mix…..ok, looks a little drier than she’d said…what to do….vanilla. OK, down in the Valley, vanilla is cheap, but it’s a short walk to Mexico to get it…for like a couple dollars a bottle…even cheaper if you have pesos. Ok, so we have this great big bottle of Mexican vanilla, that tastes a little different, but we like it & we’ve gotten used to it…that should moisten this puppy up a little……now, where is that thing hiding………

So, I looked, Jose looked, I got miffed & looked again…how I hate when he gets in my pantry…oops, apparently I said that out loud…ok, but it’s the truth..things get moved, knocked over, misplaced, you know the scoop…I’m still looking, and we start thinking out loud together. We had company a couple weeks ago…….John, a baker (yes, a real-life, honest to goodness BAKERman) and his wife, Lora, stayed in their RV out in our driveway. Good, dear friends we met a couple years ago on one of our workamping jobs….coincidentally, down in the Valley. And he made us our VERY FAVORITE carrot cake. Oh, gosh, and we lent him our vanilla because his was unopened & that makes it easier to carry if it stays that way….

OH CRAP, apparently we never got it back!! Or maybe, just maybe, it went the way of the salt shaker one day....knock, thump, right into the can. So, John, if you don't have it, it must have gone in the can, so please accept my apologies for thinking you've driven off with it. No matter which....Crap. So no vanilla to moisten things….what to do….oh, my gosh…there’s a bottle of rum! “But that’s rum!” Driver says. “yeah, so what?” comes back the reply…….”that’s RUM, it’s not vanilla” he insists…..to which I say, “yeah, so what’s the difference??” You guessed it, in goes a shot of rum…..OK, not a SHOT shot, you know, just a glug. OK, a glug more.
(and why do we even HAVE rum? Coconut flavored, no less??? Thanks Lora!!! - we bought in so that you could have some pina coladas while you were here....but apparently you opted for the IBC!!! (don't blame ya!!))

End of story….cookies were delish! And, nooooooooo, I did NOT leave ‘em on the pan 10 minutes, and nooooooooo, they did NOT cool before they were eaten. Warm, straight off the pan. Yes, they were very good. Probably not as intended, and probably not nearly as healthy as Madame Samm had written, but they were very good indeed! J And now there aren’t very many left.

Soooooo, now you know why our cookies never taste the same way twice, and they often don't taste the way the recipe writer intended.

Today was a day of rest for Jose....he's been painting the outside trim & fascia boards (yes, and the gutters too), so he's been standing on a ladder or homemade scaffolding & painting pretty much over his head for a couple of days now....so since the sun was shining...well, heck, must be a good day to hit the beach!

Hit it we did! And we even bought an "on-the-beach" sticker (went from $10 to $15 - why? they didn't get any more beach or anything...???) so we could have access to the shower houses, concession area & the bird nesting area.

So, we went on in to the paid area (we usually just park down by the doggie beach, where it's free (and we usually have the doggie with us, so we pretty much HAVE to stay there) and the doggie is permitted) and found a nice parking spot, not far from one of the wooden bridges that cross the dune to the beach. Ummmm....any reason we're so far from the shower houses, where we could easily change into our swimsuits? No...no particular reason....but we could just change here in the car. OK, there's no one around & our suits are right there. But then why'd we pay to have access to the shower houses? I still don't know...but it really doesn't matter. We had a lovely time wading out a couple hundred feet, in the warm Gulf water, and we were still only knee deep. We finally got to a spot where we could kneel down & be chest deep in warm, slightly wavey water....but then I started seeing all the jellyfish...and freaking out. Jose kept telling me they were safe & non-stinging, but jeepers, SOMEthing was stinging me on my arm & leg. I just couldn't stay in the water any longer...even if they were "harmless."

We sat in the sun for a bit, enough to dry off & headed back to the car for a quick ride over to see Pat & Dick, friends from our summers at Woody Acres RV Park. Visited with them a while & hit the road back to Victoria....nice, uneventful ride back home, and here we are....probably gonna finish up the last few cookies, maybe take a short dip in the hot tub....

If y'all are on the road, please travel safe! If you're where you want to be, stay safe!

"Working" at the Zoo!

Dick and Karin — 2012-04-25T02:35:04Z

I wish we had time to "work" at the zoo every day!! But then, we'd probably never get anything else done!! No sewing, no painting, no cleaning, nope, nuthin. No road trips either, and we all know how much fun THEY are....

But, in the meantime....we got to walk around with the baby Great Horned Owl the other day. Seems he (she?) is supposed to be getting conditioned to people and all the other animals. Noooooo, the guests are not allowed to pet him/her (but WE are, behind the scenes!!! squeeeeee!!!)......

Yup, we get to "work" at the zoo, anytime we want!! Not a bad gig, is it!

I Love a Good Road Trip, Don't You? (or, what, another sandcastle festival?)

Dick and Karin — 2012-04-22T04:08:40Z

Oh, my, oh my, did we have a blast today! First we went to Devereaux Gardens, http://www.devereux.org , for Art in the Park, and of course, Miss Bailey was the Princess of the Ball! Everyone just loved all over her – it’s that way everytime we bring her there!! I teared up everytime I told someone, “she’s a rescue, but I’m not sure whether she rescued me or I rescued her” when they asked what breed she is. I mean, really, you know how I was just 2 short years ago - can you believe it's been that long since we've had her???!!

Anyway, about 6 dozen jelly & dip tastings and an hour later, we hit the road to Port Aransas. (That’s the beach where Kelly's son and Tim (of Swim, Tim, Swim fame!) went swimming)

How was I to know that they were paving Route 35? For 6 miles. Normally, it's a 2 lane road, one lane each way. Well, for 6 miles, it was a one way road, depending on which way the pilot car was going. And paving, hot, hot, sticky tar and lots & lots of gravel. I'd say the back up was about a mile each way, and it took us a looong time to navigate the 6 miles. But, we were on a mission, and we were gonna go see the Sandcastles! Built by the Masters!!

Ok, well, let me remind you...there are 2 ways onto this particular island. A ferry or thru Corpus and up from South Padre (oh yes, THRU Corpus) We opted for the ferry, since it was RIGHT THERE, just past Rockport and we didn't have to go thru Corpus. Well, it took us one hour to move one and a half miles to get onto the ferry. Yup…..one HOUR. Not really such a surprise to us, as, by then, we’d expected that delay. Finally got on the island, and hit the Whataburger. Puppy got out & walked with me (ohhhh, I was so ready to walk!!) while Jose was inside getting our food. She did her business, then he arrived with our yummy burgers & fries. Smart me, I had packed some food for her, too, and she ate hers while we ate ours, under the shade of a tall palm. (ok, tall for the island, not real tall, but enough)

Then, we went over to the beach, about a half mile. And got in line. To get onto the beach road. We finally got onto the beach & bought us a parking pass for $10. See, you can park on the beach, with a pass, for an entire year. BUT, if you park, without a pass, at ANY TIME, ANYwhere on the beach…and get caught, they slap you with a $250 ticket. No warning, no next time, just here, pay this. We know this because we worked there for a year in May, 2 yrs ago. (ok, so the 5 weeks just seemed like a year!)

So, we got our pass, and got back into the parade of cars…and drove for a mile. Took almost another hour, but there were the vendors, and on the other side, the sand castles. So close, you could almost see them! Then more cars…and more cars and more cars. I took pics, because I knew no one would ever believe it. We have NEVER seen that many people on this beach!!

We finally got a place to park, and yup, they checked our pass, to make sure it was current before they even let us into the scraped area. And we walked. And walked. Back up to the vendors area, then over to the sandcastles area. Ummm….$2 a head to enter! Oh….talk about torked! Jose had been to their website, and they NEVER MENTIONED an admission fee.

Ok, now, I’m not judging, ‘cuz you know how much I love him….but I had to ask…..you drove all this way, and waited all that time, and then paid to park, and now we’re here…but you don’t want to pay the $4 to get in? “Nope, I can see them just fine from here.” (ok, well, first, we were on the BACK side, and personally, I cannot see that far…but, hey, I’ve seen sandcastles up close & personal, for free, down at South Padre, so, heck, it was a nice walk on the beach!) Poor fella. I really felt bad that he was so disappointed. But that’s not the first time our visit to a sandcastle festival was messed up (our blog entry for that fiasco: http://blog.thecallanders.name/2008/11/10/whatever-you-do-dont-ask-dick-about-the-sandcastles.aspx ) (you really should read it, you’ll laugh!!)

BUT, I digress. Or should I say, REgress, since that effort was ummmm…about 5 years ago? Ok, so, we’re here today, and we’re walking, walking, walking, back to the car. All the vendors are closed up by now….so it’s a good thing we saw them on the way in! Just (expensive $5 a cup) beer & loud (bad) music now….easy to pass up. So you've waited all this time, and read this far, I guess you're entitled to pictures of what we did see!

We get into the car & finally off the beach & go visit our former campground….they’re still there, had a nice (short, that’s what made it nice) visit & went back up for a pit stop back at Whataburger b4 heading off to the Island Candy Shoppe, (Tim & Staples - it's not yet uploaded, but I took a video of our trip to the Candy Shoppe - you'll see that it was, in fact, open, and open for business. No sleeping lady this time! And what a trip around it was. Not that either of us needed anything, but, gosh, it's mighty hard to pass up such goodness. Besides, we needed to get *something* for the neighbors - why not FUDGE??) then leave the island. Good thing we had that potty stop, too, ‘cuz there was another wait, not so long as it took to get ON the island, but long enough, to get back on a ferry to get OFF the island.

We got home at 9 o’clock, and now it's 11. The car's been unloaded and everyone’s had a snack and we are ready to take showers & get ready for Earth Day/Bay Day/Jungle Love Day tomorrow at the zoo. We are working from 8 – 12 (or 1), but we don’t yet know at what. We just know that we have to wear close-toed shoes (that originally read "clothes-toed shoes" - what the heck is THAT!? lol) & our nametags. Yes, we have REAL, magnetized, fancy-schmancy name tags. With all of our names spelled properly. We are certainly official! Unlike our other volunteer efforts...which we'll save for another post.

Jack & Di, John & Lora - y'all please travel safe - I know there are lots of crazies on the roads (even tho we're not any of 'em!). Y'all have a long ways to travel, so please take your time & arrive alive! I'd say safe and sound, but I know you all too well to say "sound." Much love to all!!

Whirlwinds, tornadoes, road trips & other challenges

Dick and Karin — 2012-04-16T13:04:14Z

OK, first off, let me just say, have you noticed the new (relatively) comment requirements? Yeah, we have joined the bloggers that require approval (read: word verification) for comments to be published. Have you noticed that our word verifications are just about impossible to distinguish? I'm sorry about that. Blame the creepy internet bots for all that - they are the reason we had to add that. I just got tired of all the pharmaceutical and suggestive crap the bots put out there and didn't think y'all really wanted to be exposed to all that - I mean if y'all were into pornography (did I even spell that right??) you'd know where to go for it without me having to point the way, right? And do ya really need me to tell you where to get your Viagra? I didn't think so! So, adding the word verification was our way to prove that our commentators are real people. And if you can read & reproduce that verification, well, by gosh, you're more real than even I can imagine, so kudos to you! Having said all that - I do love to hear your comments, so feel free to email me directly and if you don't have my email, please use the Contact Us page of our website.

Enough disclaimer! Now on to the real post! Tornadoes everywhere! My heart goes out to the people and towns that have seen twisters & tornadoes recently. Oh my gosh - we've all seen the videos and devastation, it just blows my mind how homes & businesses are just so completely and utterly destroyed. And yet, right next door, there stands a home relatively untouched. How that is is just beyond me. We're so thankful that we are fortunate enough to be able to choose where we live and that we have chosen to live outside that frightful weather zone. That is just way too much stress for me to manage right now (my current (and total!) intolerance of stress makes me wonder just how I managed to function at work for all those years, and for so well, no less!!) - I mean, I just cannot imagine having to grab the pup & all that I hold dear and go into a little hidey-hole every time a siren blows. When we were in Branson, it was a concern, but we were there mostly in the summer, when the risk was minimal. In fact, we never even had a threat, but we were aware it was possible. Where we've settled (notice the ambiguity there? yeah, thank the creepy internet lady/stalker for that. she knows who she is and if you're my friend, you know where we are, so I don't need to write it) is prone to hurricanes, but not often, and not severe, so we thank our lucky stars just about every week.

Now, that's not to say we don't have our own little whirlwinds every now & then....and the last week in March brought us one. Or 2. My good friend (see, the internet is not always a bad thing!) Kelly, runs a little internet store (hahahaha, who am I kidding - she has at least 4 THOUSAND followers - can you even imagine????) for sewing notions. She & I have exchanged goodies and we've each made a couple of purchases from each other, so it's a good & beneficial relationship. OK, so with 4K followers, being featured on her blog once is way more beneficial than six dozen mentions here, but, hey, everyone starts somewhere, right?

So why's she our own private whirlwind? Well, she has a couple of little boys. And Spring Break was upon them, so what better place to spend it than here? I know, I know, what was I thinking? Well, I was thinking it would be nice to see her again and we'd have some fun taking her & one of her sons on a little tour of the area. And then reality set in. First thing to mess up the plan was that I got an injection scheduled for Wednesday. Since she was arriving on a Friday evening and leaving on the following Saturday morning (o'dark hundred, might I add), that meant that Wed. fell right smack-dab in the middle of the visit, so that left very few days that I had to be away with them. OK, so maybe she wanted some alone-time with her son anyway? Hope so, 'cuz that's what she was gonna get, whether she wanted it or not! So, she got here, safe & sound, and her 7 year old son came along for the ride!! Yup, at 7 years old, he's his own little tornado of activity and brought his own special challenges for us. He's a boy, for goodness sake, so all the little sticky hands and curiosity that comes along with being 7 came along too. It's been a LONG time since we were so, ummm..... exposed...yeah, that's it...exposed to the ummmm....activity level of a 7 year old. From SON UP to SON DOWN, that boy was a whirlwind of activity. Good thing we have a puppy to keep him occupied!!

You can click here for some photos of their arrival, where we all went, and even their departure. It was a good opportunity to see the sights & experience the area through younger eyes. We hit all the usual touristy places and some of our own favorites too. They got to have breakfast with the Easter Bunny at the zoo, plus an intro to geocaching that wasn't pictured, and they did get to see some cowboys up in Bandera. Heck, Kelly even paid for an overnight at a dude ranch! It was even warm enough for him to swim in the Gulf (and us to wade), unlike when Tim & Staples were here. Oh my - I haven't even told you about that, have I! OK, don't let me forget to come back to that!!

So, anyway, Kelly & her son left here on the 7 am flight out. You read that right...7...in the AM. Now, I don't get up that early for very many things, that's for sure (see, yet another benefit of retirement!!), but there's only the one flight outta here, and we really had to make sure they were on it. Not that I minded them being here (and Kelly brought me some really REALLY cool stuff from her store!!), but he had school on Monday, and she did have a thriving business to return to (not to mention another son & a husband at home), ya know. So, they really did have to get themselves on that plane. To that end, she had me print her boarding passes the night before...all six of 'em. Can you believe that? SIX boarding passes for 2 people to take one flight home. Then, right before she boarded, they tell her that her son is missing one...the very one he needed to get on the plane that is right outside, waiting for her & 5 other people to board. Hence the sign "press the doorbell for service." Turns out, the ticket agent is also the traffic controller for the plane, and he was already out on the tarmac with his little light stick, priming the pilot for takeoff, when the (very astute) TSA agent notice that the child's name was printed last name, first name, but his ID was first name, last name. Definitely worth the hassle and hold-up of telling the lady they cannot board the (ONLY) plane until and unless it's corrected. Did I mention the flight was due to TAKE OFF in just 4 more minutes? Yeah. More than one feather was ruffled, lemme just say. But, all's well that ends well, and it ended well, with mom & child, and all their souvenirs loaded on the plane. It took off just as the sun peeped over the horizon, and they really did get treated to a nice calm flight after that. Of course, they went from 85* and sunny to snow flurries, but, hey, we can't be responsible for that, now, can we?

So they flew out at 7 & we returned home to eat breakfast, walk the dog & check email, then it was time to hit my quilty class. That has to be one of my biggest disappointments of the year so far. The local quilt shop here has what they call a Saturday Sampler. Supposedly (ok, so you can see where I'm going with this, right?) you go, you pay your money for the first block (advertised at $6) and every month, you bring 'em back a finished (sewn together) block and you get a new one, no charge, to put together. I should have known, when it was really $6.50, that things were not, and would not be, exactly as they seemed. For starters, even though I am a novice quilter (yes, Staples, I am novice!!), I know there are certain methods and processes to make putting these blocks together easy and logical. Templates are NOT the easies of methods. Yes, even I know that. Soooooooo, when they announced that templates are to be used with each one of these blocks, well, ok..........but you know there's an easier (and more accurate) way to piece these things, right? Being the dutiful little good-girl that I am, the first 2 blocks were sewn according to their directions. Then I quit using the templates and started using my common sense (and shortcuts), and would you believe it? The blocks came together better & much more accurately. Then they hit me with the rest of the story. Would you believe this "finished quilt" I was promised was really only gonna be 12 finished blocks....NOT the setting triangles, NOT the inner blocks, NOT the borders, NOT the backing and NOT the binding. Oh, gosh no. All THAT was gonna cost an extra $90 bucks. Oh, wait....$90 plus whatever I want to spend for the backing and binding. Good grief!! I knew it was too good to be true - no way a whole quilt for $6!!!! What was I even thinking! But, now I was 4 months into it, so it didn't really make sense to back out now. If you miss a month of attendance, you have to pay for your next block, plus each one you miss regardless of how many you miss, to get back into the "club." So now I am committed to the first Sat of every month, with these (not-very-friendly) ladies, getting instructions (that I'm NOT going to follow), looking at their show and tell quilts (that aren't all that spectacular, to be honest), listening to the upcoming classes (that I'm NOT going to attend), just to get some fabric that I'm going to sew together my own way and end up with a few blocks that may or may not get made into something. Am I nuts or what? Don't answer that!! Besides, maybe, if I keep an open mind, just maybe, I'll learn something. Not counting what I've already learned - if it sounds too good to be true, then dammit, it IS too good to be true. And, not everything is what it seems. And, be careful what you wish for, 'cuz you just might get it. And, just 'cuz some lady's made a fortune selling her way, that doesn't mean it's the only or even the best way. All life lessons I already knew, so thank you, quilt shop, for reinforcing & reminding me of them.

But, I digress. After the quilty thing, our good friends from the Valley arrived!! John & Lora worked with us at Magic Valley our first year there, then the next year, they were non-working campers. OK, that's kinda like saying a mom is non-working. They worked their butts off, but they were not workampers like us. John's dad required round-the-clock care, and John & Lora were the primary caregivers. See what I mean now? And when they weren't caring for John's dad, John was baking for all the rest of us. John makes THE best cinammon rolls & carrot cakes. Bar none. Anywhere. Plus, there were a few times when I had injections and appointments scheduled that took waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay longer than expected, so they often had to walk Bailey on our behalf. So they had lots to do, even tho they weren't "working." Anyway, again, I digress. John's dad passed away this February, sadly, the day before his 90th birthday. Now John & Lora get to enjoy the freedom of their RV and travel pretty much wherever their hearts desire. Luckily for us, they desired to come up & see us on their way back to Iowa. Call us happy campers! We really enjoyed their (too short) visit, and again, we got to see some of our favorite places, and even some new places. We visited Shiner & the brewery, the local museum, the wire works, a Catholic church that had simply beautiful stained glass windows, a couple of quilt shoppes, and a gift shop along the way. We never did fit in a geocache, but, hey, that means more to do next time, right? We took a few pictures while they were here too!! Have fun viewing our little excursions!!

So, I guess that brings us to Tim & Staples - which is really funny, because they were our FIRST visitors!! Waaaaay back in January, our dear friends from NC came to see us. Talk about a whirlwind! Tim was only here for two days - TWO DAYS - but during that time, we squeezed in a lot of miles. And, even in January, our very coldest month, Tim went swimming when we got to Port A. SWIMMING. In the ocean! Brrrrrrrr!!!! It was frrrrreeeeezing (at least to us!!), but he seemed to enjoy it!! Then we took Tim back to Houston so he could fly home & return to work. Tim's a cancer researcher at Wake Forest, so he has a lot of important stuff going on & he couldn't stay. But, we muddled along without him, best we could.

It was gloriously warm and Staples enjoyed the piece & quiet of our patio. At least for a day or two. Then we went to work! Staples had this great idea about making an anniversary quilt for her son & his new wife, combining all their interests & hobbies, along with their travels & pets. There were to be blocks for each of them, as well as "together" blocks and it was my bright idea to set them into an "Attic Window" setting so they'd be more interesting. Of course, we spent a lot of time (and her money) getting all the embroidery designs ahead of time, so when she arrived, we would be ready to cut & sew. Hahaha. First, we had to get background fabric that I liked. She'd brought several yards with her, but they just weren't quite right, at least to my untrained eye. On the way back from taking Tim to the airport, we go to stop at one of my very favorite shops, and there she found the BEST fabric for the background, the borders, and even the "window" sashing. Of course, she dropped a couple hundred in the process, but, hey, quality doesn't come cheap!!

And what we turned out was certainly worth the time, the trouble, and the expense. It's truly a work of art and will become a treasured heirloom, I'm sure.

So that pretty much brings us up to date, with the exception of our weekend fun. They had a Jam Fest downtown (ok, in what passes for our downtown) this past Saturday, and the zoo set up a traveling exhibit with some of the friendlier animals. Even the red-tailed boa constrictor is friendly. Not my favorite, but I did get to pet him. I pretty much kept to holding the camera, the possum & the rabbit. When pressed, I held the bearded dragon & the turtle, but they weren't my faves, for sure.

So now you know everything....or at least what I can remember of the last couple of months. And now it's finally daylight and I need to go get ready for my next treatment appointment. Today I am scheduled to get an RFA...that's Radio Frequency Ablation. In English, that means I'm getting a nerve in my back burned. The trial treatment I got the week Kelly was here appeared to be successful, but now it's worn off, and luckily, we made this appointment just in case it was successful, so I don't have to wait a long time to be seen.

Thanks for hanging out with us!! If you're still here, know that I appreciate your friendship!! Obviously, if you're NOT still here, heck with ya!! Y'all take care & stay healthy!!

Best Seat in the House?

Dick and Karin — 2012-03-11T03:00:01Z

Today was our third go-round of volunteering at the Victoria Zoo. The first time, we ~~got stuck~~ had the privilege of working in the Arts & Crafts/Scavenger Hunt room during Jungle Love Day at the Zool. Needless to say (but I'll say it anyway), our primary audience that day was aged 5 years and under. Not really my favorite age group, but, hey, that allowed the keeper to work with the animals, which is what she also preferred. It was fine, but it was a loooong day, and I, for one, was super glad when it was over.

The next go, we got a brief tour (our second one) of the animal cages, then we ~~sat~~ stood (!) in the petting zoo for then next 3 hours. The best part of that is that we got to interact with the goats, pigs & sheep. Some were friendlier than others, but they all pooped. The yard had been raked earlier, but, boy, was it messy again. So, partly 'cuz it needed it, partly to stave off boredom, we scrounged a rake & wheelbarrow and cleaned it all up, nice & purty. Seems like the old adage holds true - nature abhors a vacuum.....as soon as we cleaned it all up, the goats spread their cheer. And by cheer, I mean they pooped all over the place!!! We also got to brush the goats and one of the 3 lambs, but the brushes are soooo scruffy, we didn't really do much good for the animals. They were still dirty, but they did seem to enjoy the rubs and attention.

So, today was our 3rd go. The head keeper was back from the San Antonio Livestock Show, so we finally got to talk to him. First thing he had us do was clean the cages of the educational animals. That's pretty easy - we did that on the Jungle Love Day, too. Basically, it's as you'd imagine, just move (or remove, as the case may be) the animal, scoop out used shavings, paper & poop, change the water, and replace the animal. Once that task was complete, he assigned us to shadow one of the keepers while he took care of his run. The animals are all divided into "runs" and each run has a keeper assigned. Our keeper, Colton, is in charge of B Run. That includes the otter, the tapir, all the birds, including parrots, ibis, ducks, spoonbills and some owls and hawks, and all the turtles & tortoises (tortii?). Being "in charge" of them means checking them out for injuries or illness, feeding, and of course, cleaning. Lucky for us, he'd already done the cleaning chores for the day, and he was ready to make up the breakfasts and dinners. Since Jose & I both cook, this was right up our alley! There are feeding charts (just like menus, if ya ask me, but then no one did, so I guess we'll keep calling them charts) for each run and for each animal in the run. It really wasn't so difficult to follow along...but I wasn't too keen on the slimy sardines. Good thing Jose didn't mind. Oh, and then we got to the birds of prey, and they had a whole chicken to cut up. Usually, they get chicken legs and they just have to remove the skin; occasionally, they get boneless, skinless breasts, but that's not often. And since most of the food has been donated, they really can't get too choosy or particular. But I digress....which isn't so unusual, now, is it?

OK, so we were chopping up the chicken.....ok, so JOSE was chopping up the chicken, and I wandered over to the other room, where Tony, the Sun Conure sat on his perch, trying to stay awake. I started talking to him, then I fed him a little pellet, then I pet his little leg. Then they told me how aggressive he was and to watch out, 'cuz he'd probably bite me...well, maybe he bites THEM, but he let me pet him, about 3 times. Plus, I got to feed him peanuts, and he was ever so gentle. So now I'm one of only 3 people that like him, and vice versa. whoohoo.

Once we finished making up the meals, we took some heavy branches over to the macaws' cage to make some perches for them. Apparently, that's a weekly task for Colton, because the birds get bored & chew up their logs. Just like Magic Valley, the maintenance staff is minimal, and um...minimal in so many ways. They were sitting around, drinking coffee (all 3 of 'em) in what could only be described as chaos. Of course, they took a long time to find the tools Jose asked for (and he only wanted a hammer, a couple of nails, a couple of screws & a screw gun), and they pretty much complained the whole time they were looking. See, things are the same, all over.

So, finally got our stuff together, and we walked over to the parrots' cage. It's one of those really really big ones - in fact, even with all the perches inside, 3 people fit in easily. Of course the wood Colton had been able to gather was green as could be, and harder than hard, so there were some issues, but, eventually, Jose prevailed and the perches were mounted in the cage. All the chewed off ends were sawed off, and I didn't even lose any fingers (*I* knew I was safe; the maintenance man (who never spoke, other than to mention his bad back) and Colton were worried that Jose might have a slipsie).

After all that, it was about 30 minutes past the time we had agreed to leave (we set noon - 4 hours for me at any one thing is plenty long enough), so we went back to Mike's office to schedule our next visit (ok, I never introduced him - Mike is the head keeper). He had Sam, the little screech owl out, and I could NOT resist. She's adorable and just as loving as could possibly be. She just looooooves to get her little head & shoulders rubbed, and just sits there chirping and clucking the whole time. Every time I tried to pull away, she'd stick her little head into my cupped hand to get some more rubbin. Mike had to leave the office to go get us a sign-in sheet, and when he opened the door, it scared Sam & she flew from my chair to the other side of the room. I was able to coax her back to me, but she had to stop and rest, midway across the room. You'll never guess where she chose to land & rest a moment:

Is that cool or what??? Luckily, she didn't poop all over him! She flew back & forth a couple of times, and finally, she lit long enough for me to pet her again. I don't know who had more fun - her or me!! She just coooooed & chirped...kinda like those Tribbles (??the little fuzzy critters) from Star Trek. It was all I could do to leave her there!!

OK, well, I see that I have a special sewing request come in, and you're probably ready to move on yourself...so, 'till next time...take care! Stay warm and dry (oh, yes, we are getting some rain - it's only drizzle, but it's adding up to almost an inch already!!) and stay out of trouble!

235 Days!

Dick and Karin — 2012-02-29T00:57:02Z

Hey, y'all, remember us? Last you heard was 235 days ago - didja miss me?? Yeah, I thought not!

OK, so where were we when we last visited? I *think* we were down in the Valley, Bailey was a pup, we were still working as camp hosts, and I'm pretty sure we had just recently purchased a house. So, here we are, almost 1 year later, we're still in the house, we haven't worked in a campground in a while (almost a year, as a matter of fact), Bailey is grown up, we are grown wider (ok, I probably wasn't supposed to say that, but it's true), and not much else is changed!

In the event you've been wondering, I'm still experiencing back & hip issues and I've undergone more steroid injections than I can even recall or count. The pain is still not my friend, but it's always there, just sometimes not as much. We "swim" in the hot tub almost every night and that provides a bit of relief, at least for a while. Jose even finds it relaxing on HIS old bones (oops, I probably wasn't supposed to say that he's getting some aches & pains now either) and sore muscles.

So, what's been going on elsewise? Well, in January, Tim & Staples came for a few days, then Tim left and left Staples behind to stay with us for a whole month! While they were both here, we had a couple of fun-filled and jam-packed days - we geocached, we traveled, we visited the USS Lexington (in Corpus Christi), we geocached some more, Tim swam in the Gulf, down in Port Aransas, we went to Rockport, we SAW WHOOPING CRANES!!! (oh, yeah, baby, we saw 'em and we saw 'em FLY!!), we ATE & ATE, we geocached some more, we ate some more, and then, all too quickly, it was time for Tim to go home. Staples stayed behind for some private R & R, and warm weather, and best of all - EATING! Nah, that really wasn't her primary intention - she was here to sew. Together, we made a (California) King-sized quilt top, 42 squares of 12 inches each. Each square was embroidered with a design of personal meaning and interest to her son & his new wife. We had triathlons, running, biking, marathons, horses, hippotherapy, occupational therapy, Costa Rica, honeymoon destinations, more horses, more running, and a sampler with their names and wedding date. After each square was embroidered & trimmed, we put them all together with sashing in two shades of green, so that each one appeared to be framed like a window. After that, we added a couple of borders, and then it was done! All in all, it was truly spectacular!!! (if I do say so myself - I'm pretty sure Staples agrees)

Then, just like Tim, all too soon, it was time to take her back to the airport for her flight home.

So, what really prompted this post? Gotta be the blueberries below. Notice anything odd about them? They're a little big, aren't they? That's 'cuz they're OLIVES. Yup, nothing like dumping olives in your cereal, thinking they were blueberries. Teehee, that really did happen, and lemme just tell you, SOMEone (who doesn't like olives in any way, shape or form) was big-time disappointed.

Personally, I thought it was simply hysterical and thought it worthy of its own post. OK, here's a promise I hope to keep....I'm going to make a conscious effort to be a little more regular with posting. I know that SOME of you enjoy my ~~ramblings~~ musings... and some of you just want to see what we're up to. and some of you couldn't care less, I'm sure....

OK, so the sun is beginning to set, Bailey is bugging Jose to play, I need a shower, then it'll be time to go soak...and now she's bringing ME her squeak.....I've gotta scoot. Till next time, which I hope will be sooner than later!!

Hugs,
K

Your lucky day - 2 posts in one night!

Dick and Karin — 2011-07-09T03:47:11Z

This about sums it up:

Well, ain't this a-crocka...

Dick and Karin — 2011-07-09T02:26:32Z

OK, so it's 9:05 pm, Friday night, and I have been trying to upload our 4th of July pictures (SOME of 'em, not even all of 'em, and NO movies!!) since about 7 pm. Do you see 'em? NOOOO. I know ya don't!! Argh. Stupid computers! Actually, it's probably stupid Verizon - we've been having worse & worse transmission times and dropped phone calls more & more often lately. What a frustration. Technology is great, when it works, and even worse when it doesn't!

So here's the scoop, and you've just gotta believe me, 'cuz I sure can't get you the pictures to prove it!! We had invited the neighbors (hey Roger!) to come with us to the mall for the fireworks display. We were planning to do our usual, lawn chairs up in the bed of the truck, cooler at feet, loaded with beverage of choice (WATER in this case), fans or blankets, as needed. The show was due to start at 9:30, so we prepared to boogie on over at 9. We arrived about 9:20 (ok, so we got a late start) only to find the roads blocked and the mall parking lot full to the hilt. Half PAST full, if you will....cars parked all over the grass, the berms, in the streets, everywhere. We drove around to the back, where we'd heard they would fire off the crackers, and there was an empty spot! Keep in mind, we were in the big honkin truck, so we had to find a spot big enough...

We pulled up next to a car with a more-sedate-looking couple (read: not teeny-boppers or liable to blare the radio on hip-hop) in it with their windows down. No cigarette smoke that we could tell. All signs looked good. We set up & settled in in the back of the truck (bed), and then looked all around. What a sight! Cars & trucks as far as the eye could see. Farther, probably! I took a couple of pictures & a video 'cuz I just couldn't believe there were that many people in Victoria!!!!

Was just a moment after I settled back in when the lady from the car next door popped over to tell us she'd take our picture (thanks, Sue!!) 'cuz we looked "so cute" sitting up there. Here's what she took:

Annnnnd, we have no picture here, either. Hooray for GoDaddy. I'll try again later! MUCH later, sorry folks!

Anyway, on with the story. After all, Jose & pup are waiting for me to finish typing so we can walk..

So, you know Jose - he never met a stranger. Apparently this lady is of the same persuasion. She & he started a conversation, and we got to know her & she got to know us. We invited her & her husband to share the tailgate and watch the show with us. Eventually, she talked her hubby into it (he's more like me - shy & demure, haha!) and they came on over. I'd show you some pics from the fireworks, but, argh...they just aren't gonna load tonight. After a couple hours effort, I'm tired of trying!

When the show was over, we chatted some more - they're really nice people - exchanged emails, and then they went on their way. We did too, leaving out the back way. Then we proceeded to take the scenic way home (no, not by choice, it's just the way it happened) as we missed the intersection. According to the driver (not the navigator), we'd never been through the intersection at night before. That's actually probably very true, keeping in mind we haven't lived here very long, even tho we'd purchased our home ALMOST A YEAR AGO THIS MONTH! Can you believe that??? We have owned a home for a YEAR now (well, almost), but we've only lived here 3 months!!!!! Gosh, how time flies!!!

OK, the puppy really needs to walk, and after a few hours on the sofa, watching TV, so do I. I'll try to get some pics out another time - they really did come out well.

Y'all stay safe, wish us a little rain, if ya would!!

Look what the rain brought us!

Dick and Karin — 2011-06-24T03:10:00Z

FROG EGGS AGAIN!!

With any luck, these little guys will live more than a week this time. Remember last time? We had a billion little tadpoles, but either birds or the next door kitty polished 'em off in just a couple of days.

All this came outta the camper??

Dick and Karin — 2011-06-24T02:56:53Z

We emptied out the pantry yesterday so Jose could paint it....all this originally came out of the camper. Didn't know we had sooooo much storage in that puppy! This food covers 2 countertops, most of the table top and fills a large laundry basket. The pantry is now painted & tomorrow we'll reload the shelves. With all this food, there's just no good reason to eat out for a year, is there??

It looks good all cleaned up & painted fresh, doesn't it? Now we've gotta put it all back!

Say whaaaaa???

Dick and Karin — 2011-06-23T01:00:02Z

It's been a while since I've posted, and you know what THAT means - no news here!! Which is generally a GOOD thing....so, why post now & break the silence???

Because last night, we HAD RAIN! Now, I realize, for most of you, that's pretty much a non-event. In fact, most of you probably don't even want to see any more rain till next year! Not so here!!! We haven't had rain since last April, and I don't mean April a couple of months ago, I mean LAST April. So, last night, when we heard that distinctive pitter-patter on the roof, we got really excited!!! Enough so that I immediately thought this worthy of a blog entry! And we actually got up, out of the bed, and stood on the back porch to watch it come down. For about 3 minutes. Then it was over. Just as quickly as it started. Boy, talk about a disappointment!!!! Where were the thunderstorms we had been promised?????

All in all, it did that (pour for about 3 minutes) about 2 more times, and then that was it. Till morning, when we had a couple of brief showers & lots of thunder & lightning. That was it for us! Apparently, we got the lighter end of the clouds, because we found out that downtown was flooded with about 3 inches of rain - we got gypped! Most of that goes straight into the Guadalupe River and right out to the Gulf of Mexico, so it's not really going to do anything for our drought conditions & we're still under voluntary water restrictions (as we *should* be).

So what else is going on? A couple of weekends ago, Jose drove me all over the Coastal Bend, as we visited 3 quilt shoppes & 2 beaches in 2 days. What a lot of fun that was! (don't believe me? see picture below!) Ok, that's a bust - I can't get a pic to load up here anymore. argh. I so love computers, don't you?

OK, try this link instead --> Port Lavaca Beach

So, we went shop-hopping, where you visit a shop, see their specials (or sometimes just get a small discount on any purchase) and taste their refreshments. Often, they are homemade goodies, and at one shop, they did not fail us. One of the ladies made fudge that was simply to die for. And she was kind enough to give me the recipe....I have made it twice since, and both times it was simply fabulous. Share? Oh, yes, we shared one batch with the neighbors, and the other batch is currently on the counter. Maybe, maybe not gonna get shared. Might get gone, first.

After the shop-hop weekend, I got to see the foot doctor. FINALLY. Oh, my....I thought I knew pain. Apparently, he felt the need to remind me that what I was experiencing was apparently NOT the top-of-the-chart I thought it was!!!!! He listened a bit, took a couple X-rays, showed them to me, told me to hold on to Jose, told me it was gonna hurt, grabbed my foot & proceeded to make it hurt. Oh yes, I hollered! But you know what? After 4 days, it almost didn't hurt anymore!!! Then, 3 days after that, it was time to go back & get another shot. I really didn't want to, but Jose talked me into it. And, nooooo, it did not hurt any less this time around! Even worse, this time it took FIVE days to feel better!!!! But, just like before, now it hardly hurts at all. WHEW! What a relief!

And here's the quilt I made out of my shop-hop purchase:

and, NO, thank you for asking, I did *not* win one of the 3 top prizes. I *did* however, win a bag of soak as a door prize. I *thought* it was a soak for my achin' back & was really excited about it, 'till Jose started reading the fine print. It's a soak for stained & vintage FABRIC. Oh well, maybe I can sell it in my shop, 'cuz I sure don't have any stained or vintage fabric that needs such treatment!

I better give you that fudge recipe so y'all can get in on the good stuff:

1 2/3 C sugar
2/3 C condensed milk
16 or 17 marshmallows (NOT 15!)
1/2 stick of butter (1/4 C)
dash salt

Slowly bring to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes, stirring continuously. Add in 2 C choco chips, 1 C chopped nuts, 1 tsp vanilla. Stir till chips are all melted. Pour into buttered & foiled pan or bowl. Wait as long as you can, then ENJOY!

That's it for now! Y'all take care! Oh, btw, I almost forgot! Dick's mom has made it to Alabama, where she's gonna live with his sister. Best of luck to you all!!

What a relief!

Dick and Karin — 2011-06-02T00:26:36Z

Today was finally the day I've been waiting so long for - the appointment with a new podiatrist!! The referral has been authorized a full two months now, it's just that this doc has an office in Houston (hahaha - like I could sit 3 hours to get there!) and only comes to Victoria 2 days a week....I'd been on the call-if-cancellation list the whole time, but like so many others, there was no way I'd cancel this appointment, and apparently, no one else did either. Soooo....we walk into his little waiting room - it is really tiny, with only about 6 chairs and one little table - and they have me fill out 3 pages of paper. I brought all the paperwork from an earlier MRI and CT scan results from last winter with me for them to copy, too. Finally, my name is called. First doc in AGES that hasn't had me step on a scale, first thing - I like him already, sight unseen!

But then the lady tech puts me in a small room with one of those uncomfortable table/chairs, and boy, is it COLD. Even Jose admits to being cold. When she returns to the room, she finds a paper sheet & covers my legs up...that's helpful. Poor Jose - he's on his own.

Then I've gotta pee. .........shoes back on, out the door & down the hall. Yup, back outside the office. Gotta do what ya gotta do, so off I went. Came back in, got back up on the chair & under the paper sheet. Waited some more. There's a sign there thanking you for waiting & assuring you he'll take the time you need too, so how upset could I get? At least it wasn't like the doc in the valley who kept us waiting 2.5 hrs out in a long hallway filled with indigents & non-ambulatory patients, then saw me for 5 mins & gave me some inserts & said, basically, these will help or not, but go away now.

THIS doc introduced himself, shook my hand and actually READ the paperwork I had brought. AND he LISTENED to me. A whoooooole new experience for us! Then he read the X-Rays (oops, forgot to tell you, the lady tech had me pad down to the next cubby & took 4 X-Rays - 2 of each foot) and explained them to me.....lo & behold....lookee there. HEEL SPURS. Then he explained what that meant & why they hurt so badly. And THEN, get this - he told me to hold Jose's hand & he was gonna hold my foot and it was gonna hurt. He sprayed some really really cold stuff on my heel, then, before I could yank it away, had a needle in it. OMG. It hurt, but not as much as the ones in my back....and then...oh, my..and THEN, it hurt, but not nearly as much as it had before he started!! Oh, what a relief it is!!! All of a sudden, what a difference!!!

So, finally, a doc that didn't insist on a bunch of treatments that weren't going to work, just to follow protocol and say he did all the non-invasive stuff first (even if he had proof that a half dozen others had already gone down that road) - he just cut to the chase and started to fix what was obviously (to him anyway) the problem.

Same doc also explained that my back issues might not show up on an MRI until all the cartilage is gone & the damage is done. Oh well, guess I have that much more to look forward to. Whooohoooooo!!

In other news, Jose is back from his trip to Virginia to clear up his mom's affairs - it was quite a looooooooooong week without him, and he felt like he'd spent a month away, but all her stuff is wrapped up & ready to move to Alabama, after she gets discharged from the rehab hospital. His dad is doing well after his fall (resulting in a broken vertabra or 2). Seems they just shot him up with some super glue & sent him on his way - none the worse for wear.

We now have only one flower bed left to re-do, and most of the old mulch is already up (done while Jose was away) and gone. We really do need to get in there & spread the new mulch before the weeds take over tho. We got a new refrigerator - Jose got tired of working on the old ice-maker, especially at 2 am. Pretty sure we got the same one as Tim & Staples - 3 doors, 2 ice makers and a leak in the water dispenser. And here's the solution to that - run about 3 gallons of water out the dispenser & the air bubble in the water line will come out & voila! No more leak!!! Simple as pie! And, we'll be replacing the dishwasher next - with one that will fit my monstrously large dishes...so, after all this time, I'll have a dishwasher that is 1) quiet, 2) cleans dishes and 3) my dishes will fit inside! Call me a lucky ducky!

Sewing is going well - I've not had many orders out of the shop, but one of my customers from last year placed an order for several tote bags - first she ordered 3, which turned into 5, which I made & sent her. Now she wants 5 more, and after that, she needs about 100. I'm on bag #6, so good thing she's let me have plenty of lead time! Good thing I bought lots of fabric from Yvonne, too! This should put a dent in the stockpile, for sure!

Jack & Di are still in Texas, up in Schertz, just outside of San Antonio...Jack's bro has been undergoing radiation for a malignant tumor in his leg. He finishes up next week then has an appointment with a surgeon to see how it's progressing. With a bit of luck, they'll get over this way to see us before they hit the road to go back to Georgia. We had planned on visiting them, in Georgia, this summer when we went back east, but since we aren't going (well, we LIKELY won't go this summer), it'd be nice to see them here. Sharon & Carl are back up in Michigan, where they say it's been raining since April....we can only hope to get a spare drop or 2. We've invited them to hop in the car & come on down here for a spell, anytime they want som sunshine & warmth! Donna's niece is beginning recovery from the Joplin, MO tornado - her daughter has a few broken bones and their home is destroyed, but they are staying with family and seem to be in good spirits, for the tragedy that has befallen them. I made a baby crib quilt & tote bag & sent them to AL, now I've got a couple of pillowcases ready to send to Joplin. Not much, true, but every little bit will help, and as I get more stuff done, it'll go off too.

So that's about it for here - what's going on in your neck of the woods?? Leave a comment & keep in touch! Till next time - stay safe, warm & dry! Oh, wait, I almost forgot! The other day, we went to the library to pick up a reserved book, and there, in the middle of the street downtown, was an Art Car show. Wondering what the heck was an Art Car show, we hoofed on over - oh, my gosh! The MOST bizarre cars were there. Of course, we didn't have my camera with us, but Dick got some good shots from his camera phone. If he ever gets the photos over to me, I'll post 'em here!! They were specTACular!!

Sooooo, what's new with YOU?

Dick and Karin — 2011-05-03T02:31:00Z

Hello again, dear friends! We are hoping this finds you all well, happy & healthy!!   And SAFE! Here's what's going on with us:

Bobo (Dick's mom) fell, broke her hip & has been in a rehab hospital about a month now. She went back to the surgeon today, and with any luck, she'll be instructed to start gentle walking any day now. Long term plans are that she'll give up her apartment and move to Betty's (Dick's sister) house in Alabama. We'll see if she follows through and really does that.

Papa (Dick's dad) fell down the steps at his old folks' home in Alabama and broke his back. Yup, you read that right - he's broken his back. Today was supposed to be outpatient surgery to glue it back together, but check out the next post for more info on that!

Tornadoes blew through Alabama, and Betty's area was particularly hard hit. Several people were killed and last we heard, there was still a couple from her church that are unaccounted for, so they really don't know where they are or even if they are safe. They've been without electricity for several days now, but they still have each other and their house is standing, so all is well. They are taking showers over at their son's house, because he has a gas hot water heater. They're cooking outside on the gas grill, and I believe they are using the car charger to keep their cell phone charged up. WiFi is "borrowed" from hotels about 25 miles away, so they aren't exactly keeping up with their email. Needless to say, Papa's surgery was most likely not performed....poor fella. He's in a lot of pain.

Carl & Denise (friends from Branson) sent us pictures of the city campground we worked at with them back in 2007 - our very first workamping assignment. It's TOTALLY under water! Last week, the first 4 rows of sites were underwater, but more water was released from Table Rock Lake and now the campground is fully engulfed. And, according to the weather channel tonight, they're in for a beating tonight. Hope they are up at the RecPlex, high & dry...and hope they've got their roof leak fixed!

We, on the other hand, are sitting here, still no rain. It's been hot & dry, but a cold front moved in last night & it got downright CHILLY! Woke up this morning & had to shut windows!!! And just yesterday, we had to turn on the A/C!    I've been to a new primary care doc - yup, you guessed it - new meds. Oh.My.GAWD. They turned me into a mush-head with nausea & dizziness!! After the 2nd dose, I couldn't get up off the couch, and after the 4th dose, I gave up on taking them. Just no point. So, now I'm back on the pain meds that work, but I have to ration them carefully, since I don't have enough to last me thru till the next dr appt.

In addition to all that, we've done some work around here....re-did a couple of flower beds, hung the Mexican sun, Dick clear-coated all my turtles and now they're out in the new flower beds, painted the fountain and got library cards! The library here is actually very nice, and HUUUUUGE. Well, it's huge compared to all the po-dunk libararies we've been visiting! Oh, and guess what ELSE! Today, we bought a hot tub!!! With any luck, they'll deliver it on Thursday - yes, THIS Thursday! Soon, we'll be soaking in our own, private & CLEAN hot tub. Whoooohooo!!! So, overall, we are definitely the luckiest of the bunch!

Oh, I almost forgot! We bought a new convection microwave.....it all started back before we bought our current camper. When we first saw it, it didn't have an oven. Yeah, crazy, right? Who puts in a stove, but not an oven? Well, there was a convection/microwave/oven. But, doggone if I was gonna do math in MY retirement...heck, we were lucky I was willing to COOK, but I sure wasn't gonna have to do math! (yeah, who knew I'd start quilting!!) Sooooo, we spent an extra $500 and lost 2 BIG drawers, and they put in a gas oven. It didn't take too long for me to figure out to just knock the temp down a bit & shorten the cook time for fast bake, but if I really didn't want to calculate new time & temp, just hit the BAKE button, and lo & behold, it was a CONVENTIONAL oven too!!! Soooo, the only time we used the gas oven I insisted on was when we wanted to make (broiled) garlic toast. Oh, and to store baking dishes. What a waste!!! But, I did learn to love my convection oven...so, when we got here, I decided that the stove's oven was just tooooooo big & heated the house up too much to use.....but, if on the other hand, I had a convection oven with the microwave, wouldn't that just be the coolest?  Sooo, yup, that's what we did. And here are the installation pictures, along with what we've done with/to the front flower beds. And Dick finally got a moment to hang up the Mexican sun we bought! Enjoy the slideshows!!

https://picasaweb.google.com/kcallander989/UpdatesUpgrades?feat=directlink

https://picasaweb.google.com/kcallander989/InstallingTheMicrowave?feat=directlink

'Till next time, stay warm & dry, stay healthy, and stay SAFE!

In honor of our friends at the IRS

Dick and Karin — 2011-04-15T03:58:00Z

Check out this episode of Third Rock From the Sun

I'm sure you all remember Third Rock From the Sun....and if you DON'T - then pity on you! Click the link above, turn up your sound, and prepare to laugh till root beer comes out your nose!

Oh, and then go do your taxes!

Much love to you all!

Guess what really cool place WE found?

Dick and Karin — 2011-04-13T01:36:00Z

We were out & about the other day, looking for a computer desk for Jose, and we were thinking of going to Sam's Club for their free lunch - you know, the ones you get one bite at a time, going from vendor sampler to vendor sampler? I'm not really big on those - first thing, most of their stuff I can't eat, a lot of it, I won't eat, and even more importantly, just hang back & watch some of their food handlers.....if you have any bit of a squeamish tummy, you'll be passing up a lot of the samples too. Most of 'em wear plastic gloves, but if you watch closely, it appears they are using the gloves to protect THEMSELVES from the FOOD! I mean, they will scratch their faces, run fingers thru hair, blow noses, cough, etc., all using these gloves, then dive right into the food you're about to receive. Somehow, asking a blessing from Jesus or anyone else, just doesn't seem like enough to protect you from whatever germs they are about to bestow! But I digress, just a wee bit..

As mentioned, we were contemplating the idea of sampling for lunch...when, luckily, I spotted the brand new SELF-SERVE FROZEN YOGURT BAR that has opened up across the street!! Oh. My. GAWD. Talk about spick & span, spotless!!!!! Oh, and lemme tell you...the choices they offered!

First off, it's called CherryBerry Frozen Yogurt, and when you walk in, you are pleasantly greeted by a nice (and CLEAN) young man. He explained the process - you go to the end of the bar, and take a generously sized paper bowl from the stack, then you go down the FOURTEEN spigots, pulling your choice of frozen soft-serve yogurts. As much or as little as you want. And, since we'd never been there before, and we didn't know all these flavors, he was sooooo nice and gave us EACH 3 little cups to do some tastings. We filled 'em up with what looked interesting, then we each ate about half of each sample, passing the remainder to the other, so we each got some of it. Dick even went back and got MORE little cups, just so he could taste more flavors. I got a couple inches squirt of German Chocolate Cake, Strawberry Cheesecake swirled, Pralines (I'm from Virginia, remember?), and something cherry I can't remember. Dick stuck to his usual, German Chocolate Cake & Tahitian vanilla....BORING, but he likes it, so we were both happy. Sometimes I think he gets stuff like that so that I won't be pestering him for tastes!!!

Anyway, once we put our fill of yogurt in the cups, we went over to the toppings wall. Yup - it's a WALL of toppings! Kind of like what's at the bulk foods aisle - big tubs with paddles attached to handles you turn. turn the handle, and out plops whatever is in the tub. Be prepared to catch it with your cup!

Coconut flakes, chopped pecans (could have had walnuts, too), Reeses pieces, chocolate mini-pariels, with multi-colored sprinkles, and then on to the toppings BAR! There, I opted to pass on all the sauces (odd, no?) and picked up a couple chunks of Snickers, Reese cups, of course maraschino cherries (yes, plural!), I'm pretty sure there was some other stuff too, but I don't remember. I know they had fresh fruit available, as well as caramel sauce, choco sauce, honey, etc. All this goodness for only 39 cents an ounce. As loaded as mine was, it only came to about $3.70 & Dick's was a bit less than that. Move over DQ, you have STIFF competition. DQ's blizzards are sorta hap-hazard - sometimes they're fabulous, sometimes they're almost bad, they're so skimpy on the mix-in's. But here at Cherry Berry, YOU pick the yogurt, YOU pick how much you want, and YOU pick the toppings and how much you want! We WILL be back!

So that was a couple days ago. Yum. Today, we went in to Corpus, to get me a new ID card. After a little stumble at the gate (WHY do they say "visitors and vehicles without stickers must use right lane" and when you get in the right lane, and go by a zillion cars, do they have a CONE blocking the right lane booth?????? So we scooted into the Get-Your-Stickers-Here building's driveway, only to find out, it was NOT the driveway, it was the way back to the command center post and the vendor inspection area, and if you kept on going to the right, it was the doggie training/kennel area - and they're NOT training them to be friendly, lemme just say now). Anyway, we got ourselves around to where Dick could walk into the right building, and he got his stickers for the truck with no apparent issues, and very little wait time. Then off we go to the Tricare office to get a couple questions answered - we were ushered right in to the specialist's office, no check-in or wait or anything. She called up our records, based on Jose's SSN, and answered all our questions, right there, on the spot, didn't even have to look anything up. VERY helpful. Then on to the ID building.....where I signed in, waited about 5 minutes & got called up to the office. Told the dude what I needed, he printed out a form, had us both sign it, I noticed my address was correct but Dick's was still Weslaco, got that fixed, got my picture taken (Dick made me laugh by telling me I had bugs on my teeth), and got my new ID card handed right to me, warm from the laminating machine. Could NOT have been any easier or quicker.

Then guess where we went??? Oh, yeah, JoAnn's!!!!!! Even after all the fabric I purchased in Weslaco for Yvonne, and you know I'm talking HUNDREDs of dollars, and YARDS and YARDs of fabric...I got a custom request. For a strata star. IN BURGANDY. And some sage green. Ok, that's nice, and it's our lovely neighbor, who's turning into a spectacular customer, but BURGANDY. I did NOT get any burgandy. Sounds like a good reason to spend some time in the fabric shop, no??

Of course, while there, I found what promises to be a spectaculy combination for her strata, and the fabric was on sale for 30% off, and it was fairly reasonably priced to start with, so, of COURSE, I purchased enough to make her some placemats AND enough fabric to make the same strata for my etsy shop. I just know it'll be gorgeous!! I have learned a thing or two from Yvonne, that's fer sure!! Oh, and all thread was on sale, too, at 50% off, so of course I had to stock up on some colors I use a lot and then some new & unusual colors that I didn't have. And, while we were there, I'd been eyeing those thread racks that hang on the wall, so since they were on sale, too, a couple of them just jumped into my buggy. Another hundred dollars later, it was time to go! Not sure how I'm gonna recoup the cost of THAT strata!!!

House-wise, we had a lovely visit with Carl & Sharon, as they stopped by on their way back to Michigan. They called us from Camp Wally-world & we went over & picked them all (including Rusty) up and brought them back to our house for an after-dinner (we'd stopped for Chinese buffet) drink. Concocted a yummy drink, loosely based on a recipe that HEB published - mix up a frozen lemonade can with a frozen limeade can, pour in a bottle of sweet white wine, then pour in some Sprite. Mix well & chill. Oh gosh - we went thru that pitcher very quickly. Of course, there were six of us and it was a small pitcher. Sorta. As the sun went down, it got chilly so we lit up the chimney, and all sat around, sipping, chatting & watching the pups play together.

Since then, we've hung up the rooster we got in Mexico - and he is STUNNING, hung the throw-away rack from Brenda, put some faux greenery & grapes - it, too, looks lovely, put up some under-counter task lighting (LEDs) and they are fanTASTic, switched out the microwave to a new convection oven/microwave, changed all the light bulbs to the new energy-efficient ones, and have gotten a good start on cleaning out the fountain in preparation for painting it. Hung a few pots with purple & pink flower combos, and got a trio of large cobalt blue pots for the front porch....planted with some attention grabbing specimen plants and they do look nice. Pretty soon, it's gonna look like people actually LIVE here!

Healthwise - Dick is doing well (thankfully), and I am learning to cope with the hand I've been dealt. Talking with Yvonne about fibromyalgia & its effects was helpful and somewhat comforting. While it's not totally debilitating, and there are many, many other diseases and injuries that could be worse, it's bad enough to be challenging and cumbersome. But we're coming up on the date we had set for taking my Boniva tablet, and Dick's encouraging me to try it again. I just don't know.....it wasn't any fun as I recall!!!!!!!! Perhaps he's forgotten just how bad it was; perhaps he hasn't, but is hopeful I will somehow magically have built up a tolerance to it. Just don't think I have the guts (now how punny is that) to try it again.

So now it's time to play with Bailey - she's be by herself all day, so she's more than ready to play!! Just thought I'd share Cherry Berry with you - if you get the chance, GO. Enjoy!!

Till next time!! Y'all take care, stay warm, travel safe!

What a lovely way to end the winter!

Dick and Karin — 2011-03-28T02:35:00Z

One of our co-workers here this winter decided to tackle the project of re-doing her coach. Let me just say up front, her coach is BEAUTIFUL to start with, but she did want to freshen it up some and make it even more to her liking. So, not too long ago, we (she & I) spent the day at one of the fabric warehouses down in the heart of McAllen. We looked at bolt after bolt after bolt of fabric, trying to find just the right one for her window treatments. Eventually, we found THE perfect combination of rusty-gold-red nubby, creamy soft nappy (nooo, not like that!), and all trimmed out with navy "ribbon" embroidered with creamy-gold geometric designs.

Unfortunately, I have no pictures of what we ended up with, but trust me when I tell you it is abSOLUTely FANTABulous! She was going to wait and do it this summer, up in Iowa, where she'd have tables & room to work, but somehow, having the fabric sitting there waiting & the time to do it just ate at her until she broke down & started taking the windows apart. She started with the frame around the main slide, that being the easiest, since we had decided not to trim that out. Once she got that up & we all loved it, she got confident and started taking down the window surrounds. Again, once the first one got completed & duly admired, her confidence level SOARED (as well it should!) and she just kept on going!! Heck with waiting!! Poor John, her hubby tho....he came over to our camper a few times, just to "get away from the sewing stuff." OK, so I dunno what he's thinking - like *I* don't have sewing stuff strewn all over???? Maybe he was dreaming..

Anyway, when I went over there one night, and saw the dinky little sewing machine she was using, I felt I had to step in & offer up one of my machines and a walking foot to go with. You know the old adage - the right tool for the job makes the work MUCH easier!! She worked tirelessly, night & day, day & night, and yesterday, they brought the machine back...job done. And FANTAStically, I might add. If I can, I'll see if she'll let me take some pics to post.

But, tonight, being our last night, and our dishes are all packed up for travel tomorrow, they wanted to thank us by taking us out to dinner. Because of the health issues of John's dad, they didn't want to stay gone to awfully long or go to awfully far, so we all elected to go to our local & favorite Chinese buffet. And while there, John just happened to mention it was Lora's birthday today! WHO KNEW?? They were successful in keeping that under wraps for the longest time, but once they told us, well, you know the story!!!

Oh, yeah, it wasn't long before the waiter knew! We had a lovely, leisurely dinner & we were just sitting there, chewing fat (like we didn't have enough else to chew!), and over the PA system comes the strains of a very Chinese Happy Birthday....and here come the waiter & the manager with a lovely tray of goodies and a lit candle! There was red & green jello cubes, a very decoratively cut orange & zucchini, maraschino cherries, little cakes, ice cream & sherbert. How lovely! And unexpected!!! Of course, Lora thought we'd put 'em up to it, but nope, not this time! They just took it upon themselves, and made it up & brought it out. Soooo sweet!

We all oohed & ahhhhed, then we each dug in. I took the veggies (surprise, surprise), John & Lora took the icecream, and Jose took a cherry & a piece of bannana. And here's what Lora did with the orange:

Who needs Mexican dentists when they have Chinese just down the road!?

Happy 29th birthday Lora! THANK YOU for taking us out to dinner! It's been a wonderful & wacky winter, and we've loved every minute of working & playing with you!!! Y'all drive safe & have fun at Coffeyville!

What came out of the sewing machine this week?

Dick and Karin — 2011-03-26T22:47:00Z

Well, Alex (for those of you that don't know, he's our 8 yr old grandson) has been visiting the principal's office waaaaay too many times....so one of his teachers took an interest in WHY he's been visiting the principal so often. Turns out (oh, and who's surprised by THIS??) Alex is BORED TO TEARS by his everyday teachers & lessons. He gets finished with his assignments, then turns into this little elf (imp? devil?) that finds it fun to instigate. Guess who he's related to!! So, anyway, this teacher had him do all kinds of tests & observed him a bit and decided he's not a troublemaker at all - he's a very gifted & intelligent young man that needs to be challenged more so than he currently is! WHOOPWHOOP! So, now, he's in a gifted program, and with a bit of luck, he & the principal won't be on such intimate terms anymore!!! As a special thank you, I decided that this very blessed teacher needed a very special thank you from Kim & the whole family. What do I do best? Well, imho, I sew pretty well, so I decided a professional tote bag was just the ticket.

I even paid $11 and BOUGHT A PATTERN! Yeah, right, me, of no-pattern, just snip & stitch fame, bought a tote bag pattern. Oh, boy, did it look complicated, too. And called for WAY more fabric than I had purchased. So, by the wayside it went. Snip, snip, cut, cut, sew, sew, serge a little, seam a little, and presto! There's a tote bag, with way cool pockets, inside & out!! Let me see if I can get some pictures posted up here!!

Well, you get the idea....It's a cool tote bag, fun on the inside, professional on the outside & I made it in just one day! Then, there's Diana's domino tote bag, with turtles, and an embroidered pocket, that took a couple of days. After that, the machine took a rest, and so did I! Oh, except for another 9 luggage handle wraps, to finish up that wholesale order! whoohooo!! I believe that completes that order, and what an order it was! I was thrilled to get it, and thrilled to complete it!! I have 104 luggage handle wrappers going to a roofing convention in Reno, NV next week - with any luck, I'll get some repeat business from them! Wouldn't THAT be a hoot! Enjoy your week!

We wrap up our gig here in the Valley tomorrow, just placed what should be our last overnight guest in a site. Tomorrow, we bundle up all our recent purchases, be they fabric, Mexican art, plants, or food (oh, they're mostly fabric, I cannot tell a lie!), hitch up the horses and we'll be ready to roll out early Monday morning, weather permitting. ETA, Monday afternoon, in Victoria! Watch out Lowes & Home Depot, we come ready to spend $$!!