The Marvelous and Amazing Adventures of Dick, Karin & Bailey

Your lucky day - 2 posts in one night!

Dick and Karin — Sat, 09 Jul 2011 03:47:11 GMT

This about sums it up:

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

Dick and Karin — Sat, 09 Jul 2011 02:26:32 GMT

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 — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 03:10:00 GMT

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 — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 02:56:53 GMT

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 — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 01:00:02 GMT

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 — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 00:26:36 GMT

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 — Tue, 03 May 2011 02:31:00 GMT

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 — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 03:58:00 GMT

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 — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 01:36:00 GMT

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 — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 02:35:00 GMT

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 — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 22:47:00 GMT

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 $$!!

Has it been that long & what's next?

Dick and Karin — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 02:01:00 GMT

Well, according to the records (oh, and they're never wrong, are they) it's been a while since we've written. A while being defined as more than a week, more than a month even. OK, sorry about that. Apparently, though, you all are too busy (too nice?) to mention it & demand a new post.

So, we deduce we have busy & nice friends. Yay, us! Thanks, y'all, it's been a wild & crazy winter here in the Valley, so our posts have been minimal...OK, non-existant. Y'all didn't even notice, didja. S'ok....we understand. So, here goes our catchup post!

Zoom back to January..it was warm & sunny for most of the month here, we got back to the house for a week, then we came back to a week of FRRRRREEEZING and SLEET! What's up with THAT? We hadn't seen sleet since we left NC, and we sure as heck didn't MISS IT. But, here it was. They closed the highways here, since most of the highways are relatively elevated, with overpasses over all the little streets. You could still get around on the frontage roads, which run alongside the highway, but have stop lights at all the little streets. Of course, there was one couple that decided they could evade the roadblocks and run the highway.....they were running drugs. And since they were the only ones up there, and they'd had to run around the barrels to GET there, of course, the on-the-ball cops went up to check 'em out. No one said drug runners were the sharpest tacks in the box, that's fer sure. Busted, with about a zillion dollars worth of weed. Oh well, there's more where they/that came from. A lot of stuff comes across this little river down here...
in cars, trucks, rafts, etc. With luck, half of it gets stopped. The rest usually ends up in NY or NJ, to get shipped back down 95 and out 40. It's a big business here and it's keeping the Valley economy booming. Sad but true.

Skip February - not much happened exciting or otherwise. It was chilly some days & we worked weekends. Went to Mexico & got a turtle or 2, had lunch & got a haircut.

Fast forward to March, and I finally get in to see a rheumatologist. Yeah, aches & pains haven't gone away....he takes a few x-rays, pokes around a little, watches me stand and walk, and does a bone scan & draws some blood. Twice. Surprise, surprise, surprise. The dude determines I have osteoporosis (apparently, pretty significantly), osteoarthritis, narrowing of the facets in my sacro-iliac joint and fybromyalgia. Oh, and heel spurs & plantar fasciitis, probably from standing up for the last 4 years 'cuz I couldn't sit down! Sooooooo, maybe there IS a reason it hurts all the time. What can be done you ask? Yup, most sane people would, so I did too. Sad to say, not much. Boniva, and manage the pain (with drugs & exercise - yeah, I had to use spell check on that word!)

OK, so I trust Sally Field - after all, she's the Flying Nun, right? She's all over print & TV, telling us how wonderful Boniva is and how it makes her feel sooooooooooooooo good. OK, I've grown up with her, and I trust her smiling face. She's so cute, how could I NOT? Oh, just let me tell you, the biatch LIES!

I took that thing, JUST LIKE IT SAYS ON THE BOX. Empty stomach, didn't eat or drink for an hour after, stayed UPRIGHT, heck, we even went square dancing. O.M.G. THE W.O.R.S.T. case of heartburn from my belly up to my NECK. Remember, I've had ULCERS, and haven't had heartburn like that. Then I felt nauseus all day, so couldn't eat much. Dick finally got me to down some raviolis, but I really wasn't interested. Finally, about 3 am, I lost it all. From both ends! Once it finally got all out, I felt a bit better, but then got a monster headache & trouble breathing, so sleep was just impossible. Of course, that morning, had a foot dr appt at 10 am, so by then I was pretty tired. So was Dick. Then, waiting TWO HOURS to see the doc didn't help any. All he could say was, "so are you gonna continue with the Boniva?" So, who's stupid here, him for thinking I was gonna keep taking that crap, or me, for trusting Sally Field?? His great diagnosis is, plantar fasciitis & my left leg is longer than my right, and let's put a lift in the right shoe. So far, it's really not helping. Not making it worse, but, not helping. And that's where we are on the whirlwind of pain management.

On to bigger, better & more cheerful! The weather here is simply fanTAStic, the orange trees are in full blossom and smell simply WONderful. The flowers are all a-bloom, my internet shop is keeping my busy (I've had a few wholesale orders, and my dear friend Diana has been a steady customer), the pool is keeping Dick busy and Bailey's been a real good girl. She's not messed in the house or camper, she doesn't chew stuff up (well, nothing that's not hers), she barks when someone comes too close to the camper and she really doesn't eat much. Plus, she does get me/us out & walking, which is really a good thing, even if it does hurt like heck.

The residents here in the park have been much more pleasant this year than last - I don't know if it's because it's our 2nd year here & they're more comfortable with us or they know us better, or maybe 'cuz the the weather's been so much nicer so they're in a better mood. Dunno, don't really care either. They're nicer all around. Not much cleaner - we still have to pick up the litter they leave, but they're nicer.

So much nicer that we're coming back here to work next winter? HA. No. On so many levels, and for so many reasons, NO. But we won't be far off - we'll be up in our warm, cozy little house, all on one floor, hopefully painting (hear that honey?), letting puppy out in her own fenced yard (while I stay inside in the warmth), and have I mentioned, I get a bigger office! Yay, for both of us...honey will have space of his own & not be over-run with sewing stuff & fabric, and I won't have to pack up my sewing machine(s) every time we want to eat at the "cutting" table. One of the guys (old men) down here finally went into an assisted living center & sold his doublewide, so he had a yard sale & we picked up some fabric storage pieces & some other stuff. We've already taken it up to the house, but all my stash fabric is still here. In EVERY spare space. And then some. And I'm going shopping for more before we leave. There's a lady here who is buying it wholesale, then selling it off at cost to us, so it's running waaaaaaaaay cheaper than quilt shoppe prices. Gotta stock up while I can!

Geocaching - nope haven't done a single one this season. Just haven't really been up to the hiking. Biking? Nope, haven't been on one all season. Swimming? Nope, Dick has, but the pool's just been too cold for me. Hot tub? yup. every chance we get. Birding? A bit. Beach? Um...once, for the Sandcastle Days. That was fun & they were neat. We did get to Hidalgo this year for the Christmas lights...I'm pretty sure they're still not uploaded yet..one day, I will, one day.

Ok, that's enough catch up for now. We've got just a couple more weeks here and we'll wrap up & pack up. We'll have at least one more jaunt across the border - I'm sure there's some tschochky (junque) I haven't bought yet that I've gotta have & Jose needs another haircut. Funny, a Mexican in a doorway tried to get him into his shop last week by telling him he needed a haircut; Dick was gonna tell the guy that was kinda rude, but, he didn't want to get shot, so he just kept quiet & we kept walking!

Y'all take care of one another, use resources wisely, re-use when you can.

Our friends must hate us

Dick and Karin — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 07:46:00 GMT

I'm sorry dear friends, I'm sorry. I know you all are suffering, but remember - it's a choice you made. Maybe years ago, and maybe after much thought & consideration, but, perhaps it's time to reconsider.
We are expecting a wind change tonight, which will bring us down into the high 40's. I know you are worried about us freezing our behinds off, but don't sweat it - we still have jackets, and thanks for your concern. Now, go put another log on the fire & roast a marshmallow in our honor! Oh, but don't use the Mexican ones - they just don't melt right.

Stay warm, safe & dry!

Uh-oh!

Dick and Karin — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 16:32:00 GMT

A few posts ago, I bemoaned the fact that quality assurance seems to have fallen by the wayside in today's world. A case in point was our new furniture - BOTH sofa & loveseat had lumps in the arms. I mean, HARD lumps, too, not something that will wear away over time. Stick-em-up LUMPS. Each sofa had one lump in the right arm - why do you suppose that could be? And remember, how hard it was to get someone to come out? Remember, we had an appointment and the dude just didn't show up, and when I called the store (at 11:30!!) they told me the inspector was supposed to report to the store at 10, but he called in at 11 & said he wasn't coming? So, at 11:30, they start calling customers (or so they say)...yeah, sounded like a crock, to me too.

Sooooo, since we were gonna be gone in a couple of days, they needed to get someone out there. Pronto. Eventually, they did, and it was only a truck and a driver. And he agreed, in fact, he FOUND the 2nd lump! Yet, he couldn't pick anything up, since he was alone. Remember - this store is a good TWO HOURS from our house, and this is all on their dime! I guess it's DOLLAR, since the price of diesel is once again skyrocketing! Probably due to excessive demand, go figure! Think inefficiency has anything to do with it? I digress!

So, OK, we have a truck, a driver, and 2 lumps. What's a girl to do? We arrange for pickup of one sofa. Don't ask me why they cannot pick up BOTH sofas, they just can't - it's not their policy. I know, I'm about ready to stuff a sock my own self. So, now we're at the house, at our appointed time in DECEMBER, and I am calling to confirm they are gonna pick up one sofa on Friday morning, BEFORE 11 am. Why, oh, why should I be surprised when the lady (to whom I spoke in November) seems to have NO FR$$$$$$G IDEA what I'm talking about!

Yup, you read that right. For some reason, she is having a hard time figuring out why I'm calling (are you picking up your sofas here at the Corpus Christi store? uh, NO.) and she needs to check something with the warehouse manager. Oh, but would it be ok if they picked up both sofas at once? Heeeellllllloooooooo, yes, that's what I'd requested in the first place, but was told that was against store policy. An hour later, and I'm still waiting for a call back. Something tells me I'm not gonna be overly thrilled with the conversation that will undoubtedly ensue.

On to brighter topics! The house is still beautiful, our neighbor has done a FINE job of keeping the grass in check (except, he still declines the opportunities to weed all the flower beds...dunno why...he did a beautiful job on his own), no paint fairies have been here, so we still have patches (sample colors) on the dining room walls and the bathroom is no more painted than before, once we figured out we had a crimp in the fill hose for the washer (causing an LF error, which means too Long to Fill, btw), the washer and dryer work GREAT(and FREE, ok, almost free!!), the puppy still loooooves bounding around the back yard, getting muddy feet & chasing the doggies next door, and it's kinda nice to be "home." Traffic around here is MUCH better than in the valley, a lot less of it, and the drivers aren't nearly so crazy! And I even went out to Hobby Lobby by myself, and didn't get carjacked! Or assaulted. Crazy things happening down there in that there valley, lemme tell ya.

Last night after dinner we drove around our neighborhood, then went up to Cuero, a little town about 20 miles north of us, to view the Christmas lights display. (Hint: click the words "Christmas lights" in the previous sentence to go to the slide show and see what we saw). Oh, gosh, it was such a sight to see. Some of the displays were animated, like we had in Clemmons, but one big difference - it was FREE to the public, and each piece was sponsored by a family, group or individual. Of course, donations were accepted at the end of the tour, and of course, we contributed, but it wasn't like Clemmons, where they were trying to finance the whole county operations from this one park event. Plus, I bet there were fewer ~~crooks~~ hands in the pot!

Well, I spent yesterday at Hobby Lobby & Hancock's, and I guess I just got my appetite whetted, 'cuz I'm itchin' to go back for some more stuff! What can I say - some people drink, some smoke, some do crack. I guess we all have our vices. Besides, if I stay here, Dick's gonna make me clean the bathrooms! You'd leave, too, wouldn't you, given that choice??

Y'all be good, stay warm & dry! Much love & holiday cheer!

Ramblins from the road

Dick and Karin — Thu, 02 Dec 2010 03:50:00 GMT

Hello again, FINALLY. I've been meaning to write for a while, but, life has sorta gotten in the way. What exactly have we been doing, you ask? OK, so you didn't ask, and maybe you don't even care, but I'm gonna tell you anyway, so there!

Just a quick promo tho, 'cuz I'm really excited about this. My work has been featured in a few "treasuries" that have been put together by other sellers like me on my shopping website, etsy. That's always nice, but I've not gotten much exposure by that method, and no sales, that I know of, as a result of a treasury feature. BUT, not too long ago, I got an email about IndieArtisans putting together a JURIED (that's like JUDGED!!) treasury, and the requirements for that are a bit more stringent than typical or "I like this item." I got invited to participate!! Like I'd say no thank you - are they NUTS? So, please, go HERE (yes, it will be a new window & you can easily come right back & read all the rest of my rambles!!) and see all the really pretty Fall & Thanksgiving items these lovely ladies have put together for us. And feel free to make a purchase, ANY purchase, doesn't have to be mine, but if you DO buy something, please mention I sent you there!! With a bit of luck, I *might* get invited back!! THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT!!

Now back to originally scheduled posting.......First, a while back, we went to Sand Castle Days, down on South Padre Island. Finally, a good exhibit. The weather was superb (unlike last year, when Red Tide had us all gasping, coughing & tearing up), warm, sunny and a bit breezy. But, WARM, did ya hear? And, because we went on Friday, the crowds weren't too bad. Most people go on Sat and/or Sun, when the sandcastles are a bit more complete, and the judging has been done. Nope, we're not like that. Well, don't forget, we have to WORK on Sat & Sun. We took John & Lora, another workamper couple down there with us & we packed in our little picnic lunches & had a good time. Even Bailey came along for the ride and she did really well, considering. We did get some really neat pictures, and one of these days...you know...I'll share. Send me some chocolate, and maybe you'll see them sooner!

Shortly after that little day trip, we boogied on out back to the house for a few days. Believe it or not, we have to read the electric meter & turn in the results to the electric coop. Yes, we have a great neighbor that would probably do it for us & email it to us, but, ya know, he already watches the house, takes in the mail, cuts & edges the grass, takes in the free (weekly) newspapers, and probably a myriad of other things I don't even know about, so we really hesitated to add yet another task to his list. Soooooo, off we go. Besides, we had a mountain of laundry we'd been saving up, I needed to pick up my other sewing machine (yes, I had to get it, and yes, it's still in the trunk of the car - don't even ask!!), we had a few items to bring back to the house, and most importantly, I had to refill the puppy's food cannister. Oh, and Dick wanted to do some painting, too, and my new eyeglasses were ready (supposedly). Oh, and the inspector was coming to inspect the arm of our loveseat, where there's a hard lump.

So, off we went! Looooooooooooooooooong ride back, lemme tell ya. Remember, the last shot I had was back on Oct 1, and it was worthless - didn't do a thing for me. And the results, you ask?

Well, no painting was done. I *did* get the sewing machine (see above, and don't ask). Laundry was done, YIPPEE!! Quickly, efficiently, in MY washer & dryer!!! FREE!! Mexican trinkets were placed in the home, look fine. Eyeglasses ready? HAHAHAHAHA! no. There, and I could see out of 'em, but NOT tinted, like I've paid for & been trying to get done for 2 months now.

Inspector out on time? HAHAHAHAHA, surely you jest. Silly me, I did NOT confirm the appointment on the day before he was due. Yes, I thought about it, but, I deliberately decided not to, allowing that people would honor their appointments & commitments without me pestering them to do so. HAHAHAHAHAHA - I crack myself up. So, 11 am, on the appointed day arrived, and no inspector. Then 11:30 came, no call, no nuthin. So, yeah, I called back to the store. Wouldn't you?? What a story! Apparently, the inspector is due in (to the store in Corpus Christi) at 10 am, but he didn't show up. So why didn't they call me? Who knows! When I called THEM (at 11:45), the lady told me she was just getting around to calling customers, and wanted to know when would be a better day to come out. Well, since we were only gonna be there another day or 2, I asked for the very next day. She was not happy, but it eventually got done, with only two more phone calls. Geez. Put this one in the category of "why don't people just do their job anymore?"

Anyway, the dude finally does show up the next day, a driver, not an official "inspector." And surprisingly, he agrees, yup, there's a big lump on the loveseat arm. And, oh look, there's one on the sofa arm, too. Color me surprised. Calls the store dispatcher, TELLS her there are lumps, and asks her what he should do! Geez. Pick the darned thing up, put it on the truck, and DRIVE, I think to myself. How hard is that? Apparently, it's too hard, 'cuz that ain't what happens. We have another appointment scheduled for pickup of ONE couch. Next month. They never take both pieces at one time, 'cuz "we don't want something to happen to one while the other is getting repaired." Does that even make sense to you? Yeah, not to me either.

Anyway, so our time at the home draws to a close, and we load up the car. Oh, yeah, that was the other thing - we were gonna swap out the truck for the car...better gas mileage, easier parking, etc. Stuff that puppy to the doors, but it all went in, with plenty of room for us 3 to stretch out. Got almost back to the Valley (just north of Harlingen, for those of you that are interested) and realized the refilled puppy food, along with 2 fresh baking potatoes, is still in the pantry. I'm betting the potatoes will not be so fresh next time we get there, either. They don't call me Queen of Walmart for nuthin - at the very last opportunity, we picked up some emergency rations for the puppy, so don't worry, she's doing well.

We've been back for only a few days now, and boy, have things changed! There was a gunfight in Matamoras, somewhere between 6 and 56 people have been killed, among them, the head of the Gulf Cartel and 2-3 of his top aides. Yesterday, a helicopter was flying circles over the area, drug busts & car jackings are familiar news stories. Today, while we were in Progreso & Dick watched an armored truck roll by with grenade launchers on it. We're *thinking* it was a shift change for the guards, but we did duck into a store for a little bit, just to make sure we were not in the line of fire, should it break out. The streets were not jammed with tourists or vendors today, but our restuarant, Old Town, was a-hustle & bustle! Thank goodness, too, 'cuz the waiters were really hurting. Seems like it's gonna be a weird winter. But, at least it's warm.

We are still enjoying 80-90* weather daily, mostly sunny, somewhat breezy in the afternoons. Clear, cool nights, but NO SNOW!! The residents & guests are beginning to return, lots of cars are breezing thru the park. Amazing how old (and, yes, decrepit) they are and STILL DRIVING. Like they had good sense! They don't even KNOW they can't see or react! I was behind one old couple (yeah, at W-M), and she started writing a check. Now, keep in mind, we'd been standing in line like, forEVer...but, she waited until EVERYthing was fully rung up & bagged. Not like her hubby couldn't keep a watch on the prices, oh, nooooooo. So, she starts writing, puts pen to paper, and STOPS. Yes, you read that right. Fully STOPS. Looks all around, then asks the cashier what the day was. Ok, ok, I hear ya...I don't always know the current date. But get this......wrote the date, moved the pen to the payee line, and STOPS, looks all around AGAIN. CANNOT FIGURE OUT WHERE SHE IS!!! Apparently, seeing the McD's jogs ye olde memory, and you could actually SEE the recognition as she nods & looks back down to her check & finally starts writing again. Sad. They drive. And Harriet, oh my GAWD. She's gotta be 98, drives eyes forward, foot on gas. VROOM! Don't step in front of her car, lemme tell ya. You will be flatter than a pancake. Hershey's kiss, melted. In an instant.

K, I guess that's enough for now - go shop!! On etsy!! At SewWriteCreations!! Or, save some money & email me what you want; I take cash & checks from my friends! Better yet, drag your butt on down here & pay me in person!

Y'all take care & bundle up. I hear it's chilly your way. <hugs all around>

We have arrived! And we're BACK, too!

Dick and Karin — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 02:19:00 GMT

Allrighty then! We had an uneventful trip down to the Valley (let's all hear it for uneventful!!!) on Thursday, because I had a doc appt lined up for Friday morning. Got to the park in pretty good time, no travel troubles, just a couple of stops along the way, and pretty much no real traffic. Gotta love that! The gate was open (whoohooo, 'cuz we didn't remember the code) and pulled right in to our spot!! And the electric was ON!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YAAAAY!! Not like last year, when we had to park down the street and then move after a couple of weeks.

Got set all up, checked the place out and hopped on over to CiCi's for the all you can eat buffet. Man, I can put away some salad. And cinammon buns. Oh, they have great buns. Then back home & settle in for some great TV - Big Bang Theory, Bleep My Dad Says and The Apprentice. Dawns Friday, & we travel out to Mission. Surprise, surprise, move over to the next exam room & bare the butt for an injection. Or 2. Get the injections & come on back to the camper. Of course, I have to stay off my feet for 4 hrs, 'cuz, well, because it's not funny watching someone fall down 'cuz they can't feel their leg, foot, butt. So, we wait the required 4 hrs and go out for Chinese comfort food. We only travel a short distance from the campground and get all set to pig out. While we were up at the buffet, the manager brought a monkey dish of candied walnuts to our table. In an effort to not insult him, I felt impelled to eat 'em all up! Well, I did have help from Jose, but I ate at least my fair share. Maybe and then some, truth be told.

Three hours later, oh. My. GOD. Incredible intestinal pain. That lasts for flippin HOURS. FINALLY, things break loose and dinner starts to flow. From EVERYWHERE. UGH. For HOURS and HOURS. Come Saturday morning, Joe & Fran went to the island for a little getaway, leaving us on duty. What a looooooooooooong day that was after such a long & painful night. Anyway, we fell right back into routine, picking up litter, finding little projects that needed doing & just generally making ourselves useful.

Finally on Sunday, we had our first guest arrive & we got to greet & park 'em. That was at 6 pm!! Another loooooooooooooong day of finding things to do that needed doing but kept us around the office. Puppy is just loving the park - we walk all around at least once a day (that's supposed to be 2 miles) & she gets to go off-leash in the playpen 3-4 times a day. Not quite as good as her back yard, but good enough for now.

Along the way, tho, I made a comment on one of the blogs I follow, and GUESS WHAT! The owner of the store decided to GIVE ME fabric & finished squares!! I simply ADORE the fabric and couldn't be more excited!! Soooooo, what do I do? I emailed her our address. Only thing is, I gave her the wrong street number. DANGMEDANGMEDANGME.

But, here's the good news. The hot tub is now hot & functioning well, the pool is pumping (and will be getting warmer soon, I hear), the park is clean, we have 2 signs base-coated & paint purchased, so we're off to a good start. Today we went over to Mexico to get our toofies cleaned up. We were cruising on down the street, looking at dentists, 'cuz I was not happy with ours from last year. I had in mind a specific one to try, and you got to his 3rd floor office via a storefront. Inside the store, I found a sign that promised a free exam with a $25 store purchase. Well, we knew we were gonna buy 2 bottles of tequila (you're welcome, John), so there was $20 already. Plus, I've been eyeing those big, ceramic birds in rings for quite some time, so there was another 5-6 $$.. Aha - I do believe that was sufficient! So, we ring up our $25.90 purchase and get a coupon for a free exam. Rode the elevator up, and walked into a very nice, clean, attractive office. Oh, and EMPTY, save the receptionist & dentist. Oh, and CUSHY chairs!! Quite unlike last year's dude. Unbelievably, I had a very small cavity, and Jose had 2!! We had brought over only enough money to do our business, so we had to be careful about how much work we had performed.

All in all, we paid for 2 cleanings & 1 cavity fill...can you guess how much? If you guessed $40, you'd be right. FORTY DOLLARS, for both cleanings and my one filling!! And it was a white resin filling, no less. Then we scooted on down the street, picked up my satin cording (for 10 cents a yard!!!), a small vanilla for $1, and THREE spools of embroidery thread at only $1.50 a pop (they run about $3 on sale, in the states). After all that shopping, we stopped in at Old Town to have lunch with Jesus, but we forgot that he's off on Thursdays. What, you don't believe we were planning lunch with Jesus? Diana, tell them it's true! Two taco salads, 2 margaritas and a Sprite, and it only cost $12.25. So, what a good day that was! Cheap, and we returned safely to boot.

The weatherman was just on - he says we are running a bit below the normal temps for this area, this time of year. Oh my, that doesn't bode well. If WE're cooler than normal, what's that say for the rest of the country??? Hope y'all have your longjohns out & ready!

Puppy is now up & about, and I believe she has some business to tend....so, it's time to mosey along. Y'all take care - watch out for Otto!

Here we come!

Dick and Karin — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 15:20:00 GMT

Ah, yes, the joys of packing! I've just discovered why it is that some people don't like camping. It's really a hassle to pack everything up & drag it out to the camper then unload & put it all away. And you know you're gonna hafta UNdo it, eventually. Yeah, now I understand their point of view. Up until now, we've just always had a set of stuff for the camper, a set of stuff for the house, and the only thing we needed to pack was a week/month's worth of clothes & perishables. Either that, or everything we had & owned was in the camper, and had its own special place, and never came out. Well, not THIS time.

Some things we didn't duplicate when we purchased the home - you know, like the waffle iron, popcorn maker, SMOOTHIE maker, stuff like that. And when we put the camper in storage, SOMEone (yeah, me) had the bright idea to remove every last bit of paper or plastic product and food that a mouse could possibly chew. Oh, and the cans, too, since I believe in rotating stock! So, basically, we started out with a camper shell & some dishes, silverware & pots and pans. And whatever we own that is winter clothing.

Took us THREE FULL DAYS to pack this puppy back up! Of course, we (I) could only work on it for a couple hours at a time, before I had to lie down & rest/recouperate. There are 3 steps INto the camper, and 2 steps IN the camper....bringing the total to like a gazillion. Steps are hard. And painful at this time. And all that reaching - remember, those cabinets are HIGH! I actually have to stand on a stepstool (another 2 steps) or a chair (one step, but it's a biggie) to reach a lot of our larger cabinets. Oh well, it's all done now, and we are ON THE ROAD.

Dr appointment for me tomorrow - hopefully he'll have a hypodermic fully loaded & ready to go!! And with any luck, dentist on Monday. Was hoping for dentist on Saturday, but found out that we are gonna be on duty starting Friday night. Sure don't waste any time on training or settling in this year! Fran & Joe are gonna go to the island (that's South Texas speak for South Padre Island) for a little mini-vacation. Hope they plan on comin' back!!

Puppy was funny...last night when we were walking down the sidewalk in front of our house, she finally realized the camper was here and she tried to leap up the stairs! Oh, boy, did she want IN. And again this morning! I guess she remembers how much fun it is!! Why was I walking her when she has that wonderful fenced backyard? 'Cuz Jose sealed the concrete patio and it's not fully dry yet - didn't want footprints & didn't want sticky feet! Besides, I'll have to get used to walking her soon enough, so might as well start now.

We're at Refugio now, so I'd better get going on navigation or we'll end up at Bayfront in Corpus Christi - NOT something we want to do with a 40' trailer in tow! Went thru downtown San Antonio (thank you very much, Lora & John!!), on a weekday, no less, but it's not something we wish to repeat in Corpus.

Hugs all around!

Ummm...oops?

Dick and Karin — Sat, 18 Sep 2010 02:13:00 GMT

Does anyone see the irony of a ranting blog about quality assurance lacking starting off with a sentence containing a typo? Just saying.

More rain today, puddles everywhere. Hummer festival in Rockport tomorrow, but don't think we'll make it this year. We have hummers right here in our own yard, don't really need to spend money on more feeders or anything, and then there's the puppy. Probably would be too hot for her to stay in the car while we went thru the vendors' space, and we'd be gone too long to leave her in the house alone. S'ok, we have Pat & Dick from Rockport scheduled to come up and see us for happy hour, so that should be fun.

Donna & Jerry, friends from Branson, are already down in the valley, so it won't be too long before we all meet up again.

Jose finished up painting the hallway today - and boy, does it look GOOD. Nice and creamy, and CLEAN. Oh, so clean. Still not fond of the pumpkin/cantelope color of the foyer. Can't find any big artwork I like or can afford, either, so no cover up in store for us anytime soon. Maybe in Mexico.

That's about it for now, everything's pretty quiet. Y'all take care! Much love to all, k

K, so whatever happened to quality assurance????

Dick and Karin — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 13:11:00 GMT

Alrighty, now, get ready to rant aloong with me! Here's a very short list of things that just aren't/weren't RIGHT the first time!!

We ordered solar window screens. The guys came out & measured. Twice. We waited & waited, and waited some more. Made a couple of calls, too. FINALLY, they came in & the guys came out to install. When they GOT HERE, they noticed that the large, half-round for over the door is bent badly & they cannot install it. OK - so, WHY did it even leave the factory that way? And WHY didn't they notice it when they received it at the installer's?? Soooo, we waited some more, till it got re-manufactured. Today, it arrived. Almost two full months after the order was placed.

Our new car. We purchased the car & asked them to change out the seats to leather coverings. Simple, they told us. Drove *our new car* to San Antonio - heck, WE didn't even put that many miles on it. Came back with a rattle in the door. What's up with that? Every time we closed "my" door, it sounded as if something inside was loose. Took it back to the shop, and they spent the day trying to track down the source of the rattle. Turns out, there was a loose adhesive strip from the leather insert on the door. WHY was that not discovered at the time of installation?

Dick purchased a yard implement. I don't know what you call it, but basically, it's a motor to which you can attach a weed eater, a blower, an edger & probably a lot of other things I don't know about. But, those are what WE purchased. Used it once. Used it again. No problems. Used it a third time. Hard to start & oil leaking out of engine case. What's up with THAT? Took it back to the store & had to get a whole new engine part. Argh.

Washer & dryer. OK, when you spend $1800 (AND wait for a month for them!!) for a washer & dryer you expect them to be right. And work. All the time. Not some of the time, ALL the time. And you DON'T expect the installers to put a big ole footprint in the middle of the front panel. But, seeing as how the washer didn't always dispense the Clorox II, and if you know us, you know THAT's a MUST, and yes, there was a big ole footprint where someone man-handled the dryer into position. Another phone call & another month later, the new ones arrive. THESE, so far, are right.

Dining room table and chairs. From a reputable store, too...not the one going out of business down the road. This store has warehouses all over the state! AND, the owner of the local store lives ACROSS THE STREET AND 2 DOORS DOWN from us. Bring the set home, all fully padded & boxed up.....open it up to put together. TWO out of SIX chairs have gashes (I mean, cut thru, down to the wood!!) in the upholstery of the seats. The store was good about it and exchanged them, but geez, SOMEONE at packing, should have noticed that!!! WE did, immediately!

TV stand. We had originally purchased a set of 3 tables for the living room. A coffee table, and end table and a sofa table (long, skinny thing) that we were going to use if/when we purchased a TV. Well, we got around to buying the TV and set it on this long skinny table. For the record, Jose never liked it, nor did he want it. Yes, I insisted, and he gave in. OK, so he was right. It makes for a rotten TV stand. No room for any peripherals, and you can see all the dangling wires down the back. Yes, he was right. Sooo, we go out & price a real TV desk at the furniture store who sold us all our stuff. WAAAAAY out of our league now. So, we go back to the store that sold us the dining room. Got a decent deal, saved about $300 over the other store's product. Open it up & put it together, and what's that on the door? A scuff mark on the edge. And a scratch on one of the shelves. And yet another bunged up edge. ARG. Got out my trusty pecan and hopefully, colored 'em up some so they're not so noticeable. WHY was it packed like that??

Fabric wardrobe. Purchased one of those put-together wall units for all my fabric. Paid good money for it, too. Came to Wally-world, and 4 days later, got the email that it was there. Ugh - why not on the day it arrived? Anyway, we were having thunderstorms, and it looked like we would for the next few days, so we took a chance & in between showers went & picked it up. Nicely packed, fully padded & boxed, etc. Whily laying out all the pieces, we noticed there's a gouge in one of the doors. WHY was that not noticed at packing??? WE noticed it right away!

And finally (and there are probably other things I've forgotten about!), my glasses. I guess I should say our glasses, since it took Jose 6 months to get his pair right. We ordered THREE pairs of glasses from Sears. Of the 3 pairs, only one is correct. Mine, neither were right. My clear ones were ok, but they couldn't get 'em adjusted right - kept on being cockeyed. As if I'm not already cockeyed enough. And my shades, oh, my, they were just WRONG. I kept having to turn my head to see out the tiny little "sweet" spot, and they gave me monstrous headaches. So, back we go! Got 'em adjusted and spent another day trying to get used to them. Still not right after 3 more days. So, back to the eye dr to see if she has a machine that can read 'em, since we know Sears doesn't. Oh, yes, she has one all right, and guess what! NEITHER of the pairs is what she prescribed. ARGH....Back we go to Sears, now, armed with this paper that tells them to recheck & remake. The nice lady there rechecks my measurements, and guess what! My shades? Well, some reading is supposed to be 25 (mm??) and it's not - it's daggum 28!! Apparently, that puts the wavy part of the bifocals right smack dab in my normal vision spot, making it very hard to focus and probably giving me headaches. Geez, ya think!? And the clear lenses, well, they're just not the right prescription, but they're not far off. And the tinted lenses I'd ordered LAST week? They came in, and I can't even SEE out of one of 'em - it's WAY off on script; I didn't even bother having her switch 'em out with the ones I'm wearing. I'll deal with the squints from the sun instead for a while longer. GEEZ, they have a certain set of measurements, WHY can they not produce a product using those measurements. And WHY are their products not checked for accuracy prior to leaving the manufacturer??

For the most part (furniture excepted), all these products were manufactured here in the gool ole US of A. I'm sure that SOMEone should have been looking, testing, measuring, SOMEthing, to make sure everything was right prior to shipment, or at receipt or something. To have this much crap just wrong IS just wrong. In MY humble opinion, anyway.

So, thanks for reading along...here's a funny little story I grabbed off another blog (thanks, Joanna!). Maybe I'll give her method of anger management a shot. What have I got to lose??

When you occasionally have a really bad day, and you just need to take it out on someone. Don't take it out on someone you know, take it out on someone you don't know, but you know deserves it.

I was sitting at my desk when I remembered a phone call I'd forgotten to make. I found the number and dialed it.

A man answered, saying 'Hello.'
I politely said, 'This is Chris. Could I please speak with Robyn Carter?'

Suddenly a manic voice yelled out in my ear 'Get the right effing number!' And the phone was slammed down on me.

I couldn't believe that anyone could be so rude.

When I tracked down Robyn's correct number to call her, I found that I had accidentally transposed the last two digits. After hanging up with her, I decided to call the 'wrong' number again.

When the same guy answered the phone, I yelled 'You're an *sshole!' And hung up.

I wrote his number down with the word '*sshole' next to it, and put it in my desk drawer. Every couple of weeks, when I was paying bills or had a really bad day, I'd call him up and yell, 'You're an *sshole!'

It always cheered me up.

When Caller ID was introduced, I thought my therapeutic '*sshole' calling would have to stop.
So, I called his number and said, 'Hi, this is John Smith from the telephone company. I'm calling to see if you're familiar with our Caller ID Program?'
He yelled 'NO!' and slammed down the phone.
I quickly called him back and said, 'That's because you're an *sshole!' And hung up.

One day I was at the store, getting ready to pull into a parking spot. Some guy in a black BMW cut me off and pulled into the spot I had patiently waited for. I hit the horn and yelled that I'd been waiting for that spot, but the idiot ignored me.

I noticed a 'For Sale ' sign in his back window, so I wrote down his number.

A couple of days later, right after calling the first *sshole (I had his number on speed dial,) I thought that I'd better call the BMW *sshole, too.

I said, 'Is this the man with the black BMW for sale?'
He said, 'Yes, it is.'
I then asked, 'Can you tell me where I can see it?'
He said, 'Yes, I live at 34 Oaktree Blvd, in Fairfax. It's a yellow ranch style house and the car's parked right out in front.'
I asked, 'What's your name?'
He said, 'My name is Don Hansen,'
I asked, 'When's a good time to catch you, Don?'
He said, 'I'm home every evening after five.'
I said, 'Listen, Don, can I tell you something?'
He said, 'Yes?'
I said, 'Don, you're an *sshole!'

Then I hung up, and added his number to my speed dial, too. Now, when I had a problem, I had two *ssholes to call.

Then I came up with an idea...

I called *sshole #1.
He said, 'Hello.'
I said, 'You're an *sshole!' (But I didn't hang up.)
He asked, 'Are you still there?'
I said, 'Yeah!'
He screamed, 'Stop calling me,'
I said, 'Make me.'
He asked, 'Who are you?'
I said, 'My name is Don Hansen.'
He said, 'Yeah? Where do you live?'
I said, '*sshole, I live at 34 Oaktree Blvd, in Fairfax. A yellow ranch style home and I have a black Beamer parked in front.'
He said, 'I'm coming over right now, Don. And you had better start saying your prayers.'
I said, 'Yeah, like I'm really scared, *sshole,' And hung up.

Then I called *sshole #2.

He said, 'Hello?'
I said, 'Hello, *sshole,'
He yelled, 'If I ever find out who you are...'
I said, 'You'll what?'
He exclaimed, 'I'll kick your *ss,'
I answered, 'Well, *sshole, here's your chance. I'm coming over right now.'

Then I hung up and immediately called the police, saying that I lived at 34 Oaktree Blvd, in Fairfax and that I was on my way over there to kill my gay lover.

Then I called Channel 7 News about the gang war going down in Oaktree Blvd in Fairfax

I quickly got into my car and headed over to Fairfax. I got there just in time to watch two *ssholes beating the crap out of each other in front of six cop cars, an overhead news helicopter and surrounded by a news crew.

NOW I feel much better. This anger management stuff works great!

Thanks for sharing my day! Till next time! Oh, wait - I almost forgot!! THE GOOD NEWS!! Guess what I've won - I entered a contest for some really cool giveaways on another column I read (all about sewing stuff - nothing you'd want to see) - I was hoping for some cool rulers or patterns or something. Oh, no, I won a book on how to spend money! Well, not really, but the opportunity is there. It's a travel guide, listing fabric shops in various cities throughout the US and their addresses and phone numbers. YES, it's cool that I won it, and I surely don't mean to sound like a poor loser, but poor Jose - that's not really something he needs me to have, ya know what I mean? He's already dragged around to more fabric stores than he cares to see (ONE would be more, much less the 2 or 3 I subject him to weekly!!), in more cities than he cares to visit! Oh well, *I* think it's a cool book, and I can't wait to crack it open when it arrives. First stop, ummm......I dunno, we'll just have to see! I'm sure Jose will accept donations of sympathy, dollars, Steven King paperbacks, whatever you have on hand you think he could use while waiting for me to check out all the goodies I'm sure to find!

Well, that's it for now (WTF?? GREEN AGAIN?? All I did was hit enter, enter!!)....so, till next time, carry on & keep smilin'! Much love, k

Congratulations Are In Order!

Dick and Karin — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 13:36:00 GMT

Yeaaaaaay, Carl & Vance/Theresa! And Debbra, you're simply incorrigible!! And Chuck - you're just way off the mark this time, sorry!! A few nights ago, it poured - it was our first real rain of the summer, and we heard a froggie (we knew we had a couple - Bailey kept chasing them!) chirrruping aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaallllllllllllllllllllll night long. I mean, all night, non-stop!

The next morning, I happened to be walking by the pond (as in Beverly Hillbillies cement pond - that's what we've taken to calling the fountain) and looked in to find looooooooooooooooooooong strings of what I thought was algae. TONS of 'em! I reached down and tried to pick some up, to pull it out & clean up the thing, but daggum if they didn't just all break up and turn into lots of little beady-lookin things. TONS of 'em! Then it dawned on us, they were FROG EGGS! Sooooo, we left 'em alone. I was *gonna* take a picture, but life got in the way & we didn't give it another thought till the next day, when the strings were all gone. We looked close, tho, and there were billions and billions of tiny little spermy-lookin things. THAT's where the hint (8 hrs) comes from. Don't believe me, look it up for yourself (thank you Google & Wiki!). Gestation time for frog eggs is 8 hrs.

Soooo, they were really too tiny to take pictures of, so we waited until day 2, and that's what you saw. Yesterday was day 3, and they were even bigger! You could see eyeballs and little buds forming where legs would be. But then, Hermine moved in.

We had rain all day yesterday, and all night, too, so this morning, about 4 am, I went & checked our babies. During the night our pond overflowed, and we have several million less pollywogs today. It's still raining, giving new meaning to the term "it poured," and the sky is overcast, signalling continued rain all day. It's even become a bit breezy. Oh, and there's some thunder, too, so I'd better hurry & finish this post.

Sooooo, thanks to Hermine, our whole yard is now a pond, the doggie won't walk out from under the patio cover - heck, who can blame her! - we can swim in the flower beds, and I'm sure our grass seed has washed away with our baby frogs. BUT, on the bright side, we won't have to water the lawn this week, and probably next, too!

We are beginning to think seriously about packing up for the Valley in the next couple of weeks. What to take, what to leave. Of course, we can always come back, but it will take 5 hrs up, then 5 more hrs back down, so we want to limit those rides. It'll be nice, tho, to go & get our teeth cleaned, get some fresh avocados for cheap & maybe even ride our bikes again. Maybe, I say.

Here are some more shots of day 2; I don't know what we'll see tomorrow, but if there are any left, I bet they'll be hardy ones!

And, here's full frontal C-U-T-E:

(photo deleted as it showed our phone numbers up front & personal, and clear as a bell. Not wise!! Our friends HAVE our numbers, and our frenemies don't need 'em! but, it was a cute, cute pic, sorry!!!)

Well, that's it for now, there's a let-up, so I guess I better try to get a puppy-poop & a shower, before it starts up again. I know, TMI!

Much love & thanks for all the guesses!! Kewpie pies to you all!!