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BLOG DESCRIPTION:
   Shi Blogs Too: from out of the mountains where I live. I will now be keeping a journal. This is something new for me. I have no idea what I am doing, just that I am diving in. This should be an interesting journey for me. Mainly because I consider myself to be a semi-private person. I live with my fiance and our two kitties, in what I have come to recognize as a small community in a somewhat remote area. Retirement has it's own life style and livelihood. Far away from the norm.       ![Merit Badge in Blog Camping
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Sorry for outbidding you in the [Link To Item #2113623] ...I'm not a fan of bidding wars and feel bad about it. I know this isn't the same thing as the package itself, but it's the least I could do. *^*Smile*^*](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/group-Blog_Camping-1788309_13.gif) If you want to find out more about me...read my Author Bio ~
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| I opened up a new signature collection today. You can find it here ~
Really, I have nothing better to do - than to add another collection to my signature shop!  ** Image ID #1546233 Unavailable ** |
| Father's Day is coming up soon. I found a picture of my dad on a nephew's MySpace today. I don't have a scanner, so I haven't been able to upload alot of photo's that I would like to put here. So, I downloaded this one of my dad off of the nephew's site. I'm sure he will not mind. I know this is an early entry for Father's Day, but I can't resist posting it here today. My dad died on June 8, 1974. He was sixty-one at the time. It was one year after his retirement from the old Fisher Body Plant in Flint, Michigan. He was a crane operator there for thirty-five years. I regret that he never got to meet my daughter Julie, nor my two youngest son's Patrick and Matthew. He did, however, get to know my two oldest boys - Michael and Christopher, when they were both very young. He loved children and enjoyed singing to them when he bounced them on his knee. He had a voice like Perry Como's. Only daddy was Irish, English, Scotch, and French Canadian...not Italian like Mr.Como was. Daddy could sing "Ava Maria" as good as any proffessional, though. But, my very favorite song that he would sing was always "White Christmas." He would sing it every Christmas Holiday Season for as long as I could remember. He was notorious for getting up on the stage at the local tavern and singing into the microphone with his velvety mellow voice. He had the good looks to go with the voice too. The locals loved it when "Ray" would get up on stage to sing. It seemed the more beer he would drink the more he would "love" to sing.  My three brothers and three sisters and myself, all loved it when daddy would sing for us. Especially at Christmas time, when he would bring home those huge candy canes and cut them up for all of us. Get out his peppermint schnapps and give us each a sip of it...and sing White Christmas to us all. ** Image ID #1570748 Unavailable ** |
| I've been on here reviewing for the Angel Army, Rising Stars, and my contest. There really isn't that much that has been going on...what with the onset of summer wearther and all. I'm sure I could probably find more to do in here to keep me busy...but I seem to be finding myself coming in here less and less as the days go by. Maybe I just need the break I guess. Yesterday, I spent some time outside weeding around the deck. The weed-eater can't get in that close to the lattice, nor the lawnmower, so it's manual labor there. My choosing of course. Ron always does all of the mowing, so it's the least I can do out there. Atleast, I got it all done before the thunderstorm arrived. The thunder started rolling in in the late afternoon. It was quite loud and lasted for over an hour. We could see it coming directly from the North Cascade Pass and over our Sauk Mountain as everything turned black. Then when the storm got directly over us it poured down hail and rain upon us. Afterwards the sky was almost white with a foggy mist. It hadn't rained in days...but we were getting dumped on all at once! It was actually kinda neat to hear the thunder for a change. ** Image ID #1546233 Unavailable ** |
| We are cooling down here now. Temperatures are in the high 60's and 70 degrees. It's much easier to tolerate after being so hot for so long. I heard from my daughter and she got back the results on her echo-cardiogram. She's normal. I'm grateful for that. Her doctor has her on some meds to help her with her stress. She seems to be doing alot better now. I think getting used to her new job and having to go to bed so early to be able to work the shift she's assigned may have had something to do with her stress related problem. She has to get up between 3:30 and 4:00 am to be to work by 5:00 am. Atleast, she gets off at 1:30 in the afternoon and has the rest of the day to do whatever.Ron is out riding today. I'm catching up on my housework, and spending some time here to get some things done. My sig shops are doing great. My new summer signatures are up. My auction has opened again and the theme in there is "Summer Fun" -
The auction has been a success. It's great to be able to help raise GPs for the groups that benefit from it. My contest has opened again also. It didn't do as well last round. Hopefully it will get more entries this round. You can find it here -
Well, I guess that's enough plugging today. ** Image ID #1546233 Unavailable ** |
| It actually hit 100 degrees here yesterday afternoon. We had to use the AC in order to cool us down a bit inside. Today is much of a repeat of yesterday's temperatures. It's 100 out there now. I awoke from a nap awhile ago and went out back on the deck. The carpet by the door burned my bare feet! The wooden steps leading down to the deck did the same thing. Ouch! We are having an unusual June SIZZLE instead of DRIZZLE here! Basically all Ron and I have been doing is trying to stay cool by drinking lots of fluids and eating watermelon. Dinners have consisted of hot dogs and my potato salad. Watermelon is great for cooling us down and still giving us the energy that the heat zaps from us. Ice cream treats are on tap for tonight. ** Image ID #1546233 Unavailable ** |
| It has been so hot here lately. Three days of in the 90's for us here in the foothills. We've had all the fans going and are running around in our tanks and shorts. If it gets any hotter we will be using the air conditioner. It's summer here already! We are in for more of the same for about a week, I guess. Not that I'm complaining - I love summer weather. We were thinking of a trip to Oakland and Monterey coming up soon...but...ahh I don't think the weather there is as nice as it is here. So, that may be put on hold for some time. My granddaughter Alex got her cast put on her leg. She did not need any surgery, thank goodness! My daughter Julie had her echo-cardiogram, but has not gotten back the results as of yet. I will probably hear on that this week sometime. We've been playing alot of poker lately. It's fun, it's free, and it's a nice change from scrabble for awhile. ** Image ID #1546233 Unavailable ** |
| It is almost midnight, but I feel I must do a blog entry tonight. I can't believe it's been six days since I wrote in my blog! Lazy me. I have no excuses, really. Tomorrow my daughter Julie has an echo-cardiogram. Her doctor set it up because of an irregular heartbeat upon examining her. Hopefully all will go well with the ultra sound of her heart. I guess this has been going on for quite some time now. I pray it is only stress related and not some heart condition. We are concerned because her father had so many heart problems and the heart problems ran in his family. She will also be taking her daughter Alexandra to an orthopedic surgeon to get a cast put on her leg. She broke her leg at the ankle and above it before the Memorial Day weekend. She was running down the steps at school trying to catch up to her friend and she took a bad tumble and fall. Poor thing has been home lying down with an ice pack for the extreme swelling. The swelling is going down now, so it is time to cast the leg. There is a chance she may have to have surgery done on the ankle first. Gosh, I hope not. I will be saying some prayers for them. I told Julie that I would call and check on them late tomorrow afternoon. Her hubby Justin will be taking time off work to be with her during her testing. For that I am thankful. ** Image ID #1546233 Unavailable ** |
| We watch a movie or an episode from a DVD TV series practically every night. Tonight we watched a sad but well done movie called "Taking Chance." For those of you who aren't familiar with this one, it stars Kevin Bacon as a Marine colonel who volunteers to be an escort to the remains of a young lance corporal killed in action while serving his country in Iraq. It is his duty to make sure that the fallen soldier is delivered to family members in Wyoming. Kevin Bacon does a fine job of acting in the role of the Marine officer. The storyline follows all procedures that are taken to ready the young man's remains for burial. I'll not go into details and spoil it for you...but if you want to see a true to life account of the actions taken when a casualty of war 'comes home' I suggest you see this movie. It will make you cry...and it will make you proud. I guess it just touched a soft spot with me because I have two nephews who are Marines. They are brothers. One is a lieutenant colonel the other is a staff sergeant. They are my sister Ellie's two boys. Her only boys, I might add. We are all very proud of them and love them very dearly. Both of them are home with their loved ones at the moment...but it won't be long and they will be getting their orders again. ** Image ID #1546233 Unavailable ** |
| I kept telling myself to enter a blog lately and it seems I've been way to busy to remember. The weather has just been too nice to get on here much. So here's my blog for today. |
| I had a great time while visiting all of my kids and some of the grandkids too. We had lots of good Mexican food during my stay. My son Matt picked me up at the ferry landing, and we stopped by the Albertson's where he works to pick up the fixings for Pica de Gallo. I showed my son Patrick how to make it when we got to their duplex. He really enjoyed helping me and turns out he loved it too! We fixed taco's for dinner and doused them with the salsa speciality. My oldest son Mike was able to come and enjoy the taco feast with us. We had a really good time. Mike presented me with a beautiful blue hummingbird plate. That was a surprise and very sweet of him. I got to meet my youngest son Matt's new friend. Her name is Julie, too. She has a son by the name of Tyler, also! Those are the names of my daughter and her son! I really like her and her son. The second day of my visit she drove me to Gig Harbor to the Costco there. I shopped for Ron for his birthday gift. His birthday is the 23rd. of this month , but I always give him his gift days ahead of time! As it turned out we ate lunch across the street from Costco at a Mexican Grill. It was so so. I guess I am spoiled by the good Mexican food up here in Skagit County. Julie enjoyed her lunch anyways. We got to know eachother better and she is just a down to earth gal. Later in the day my daughter and grandaughter Alex arrived for a visit at the duplex. I gave Alex her early birthday gifts and she was elated. She will be fourteen on the 23rd. also! It doesn't seem possible. I still call her "Chick-a-dee"...like when she was just a little thing. I had forgotten my camera(which seems to be a habit anymore) so I did not get any pictures this time...again.  On Friday, my last day down in Port Orchard, Patrick's two son's Jayce and Christian arrived to spend the weekend with their Dad. Christain had bought a bright red electric guitar with his monthly check that he gets from his Dad's Social Security now. The guitar was delivered just before he got to his Dad's! His uncle Matt tuned the instrument for him and gave him a small amplifier he no longer used. He was thrilled of course. Dad had to move him out into the attached garage within the hour to save our hearing! Pat was preparing a feast for some friends coming over later. He was so busy in the kichen making shish-ka-bobs and cutting up steaks. He even made more Pica do Gallo! I sampled a shish-ka-bob before Matt whisked me away to catch the ferry back to Edmonds in time for the train to Mount Vernon. Matt handed me the cutest Mother's Day folding card with puppies all over it and signed by everyone of them! Then when Ron picked me up at the train station we drove into Mount Vernon for more Mexican food at our favorite restaurant!I had a great Mother's Day time, and I hope you all did too! ** Image ID #1546233 Unavailable ** |
| Happy Cinco De Mayo everyone! I am leaving on the morning train out of Mount Vernon tomorrow morning to go down to Port Orchard to see all of my kids. I'll probably be back on Friday evening. ** Image ID #1546233 Unavailable ** |
| It's that time of year again...the calves have been taken away from their mothers. We live right across from the pasture where the Ovenell's have their cattle grazing. They own a very large working ranch with horses and cattle. The young calves are taken away from their mothers every spring. The mother cows bellow and bawl for a few days afterwards. Usually it's the first day that they are taken away when it is the noisest outside. Sometimes we can hear them calling for their babies even after we are in bed for the night! My first year here I really felt so bad for the cows who bawled for days afterward. Traditionally, calves of beef cattle are removed from their mothers well before the biologically predetermined age of weaning. Enforced mother-calf separation is stressful for the animals. This common management practice is primarily based on the belief that allowing the cow to wean the calf herself would affect her reproductive performance, and hence the rancher's profit. I'm not sure if this is the reason that the Ovenell's separate their calves from the cows, but it seems logical to me. I have noticed that the calves have been separated by only a fence for awhile, allowing the calves fenceline contact with their mothers for several days before being permanently separated. If anyone is familar with these actions and the reasons behind this type of separation, I would love to hear your thoughts on this matter.  Here is a photo of the pasture across the road from us. That's Sauk Mountain in the background.  ** Image ID #1546233 Unavailable ** |
I opened up my auction again for the eighth round. The theme this time is "Beauty Is A Rose." All of the images up for bid are images of roses! Come on in and check it out here -
Also, I am plugging a contest for photography and graphics that one of my dear friends here is running right now. She needs more entries in this NEW endeavor! Please visit Nancy's -
** Image ID #1546233 Unavailable ** |
| This morning I had artificial flowers sent to Dawn and Dustin's house. Tomorrow they are having a private gathering at their home instead of a funeral service. My daughter Julie and her husband are going. Julie's hubby Justin works with Dustin in the Navy Shipyard. I know the names are alike! I told Julie that I had ordered a silk flower bouquet of cali lilies from all of us. The gal in the shop told me that she too had lost a son many years ago. She was very understanding and promised to make the bouquet big and beautiful with several of the cali's in a glass vase, plus the added greenery. This is a very sad time for all the family members. And friends too of course. I can remember so cleary what my family, friends, and myself went through when my son Chris died in 1997. I know that real flowers are always sent for funerals...but real flowers don't last long. I'm not saying that flowers can take the place of a lost loved one...far from that! I do believe, however, that the flowers can bring an appeal of beauty, love, and peace to those who are suffering so terribly. I still have the silk flower bouquet of cali lilies on my dresser in a ceramic vase that I received from friends when my son died over ten years ago. It represented love for my son and it brought me peace to just look at it then...as it still does. |
| Ron brought the phone into our bedroom this morning. Even before I put the phone to my ear, I could hear my daughter Julie saying slowly and deliberately "Mom, do you know what Tyler told me this morning?" Tyler is her eighteen year old son. Before I could answer she began desperately exclaiming stuff about one of Tyler's friends, blurting out what sounded like "Shawn's son committed suicide". I knew then that I was hearing her wrong because Shawn is one of Tyler's best friends. I told her to slow down that I wasn't quite awake yet...and to say that again! Then I got it straight. She said that her friend DAWN'S son Destry had hung himself! Destry was the same age as Tyler and one of his friends. Dawn is the head nurse in charge of the Intensive Care Unit at the Bremerton Medical Center. She is the one who called my daughter when she saw that my son Patrick was in ICU in November. She is a beautiful person dedicated to saving lives. I was totally shocked. Neither of us spoke for a few seconds. Then she said that she had spoken with Dawn and that Destry's funeral was Saturday. Dawn asked that Julie be there. She told Julie that she did not know why he would do such a thing...she only knew that he was having differences with his father and that drugs could have been involved. I told Julie to please give her a big hug from me. My stomach knotted up. It scared me to think that this could be some kind of "trend" with kids his age. I worry about my grandson Tyler. He is sooo quiet and has moved out of his Mom and Dad's house twice over the past six months to go live with his friends. He has differences with his father, also. And, he is experimenting with drugs. Julie has caught him smoking pot. He is a very intelligent young man, but it seems that he does not have a sense of direction in his life yet. Before I hung up the phone I also told Julie to give Tyler a great big hug. She said she already has and that she will hug him very close again. Then I got out of bed, sat on the toilet and cried. ** Image ID #1546233 Unavailable ** |
| It looks like Spring has finally come to stay in this mountain area. For awhile there winter just kept coming back with scattered snow and freezing temperatures at night. We are getting much warmer weather now and it is hanging around longer. The sun sets at around 8:30 every evening giving us more time to enjoy the daylight hours. Nothing is in bloom here at home except for our wild cherry tree, however. Everything else is just budding. It looks like it will be May before the rhoderdendrons and azelea's are in bloom. That goes for everything else too! Our big snowfall that hung around for over two months has just stunted so many of our plants. The heather that we planted last fall did not do so well underneath that prolonged blanket of snow. It had turned brown before we left for our vacation. I see now, that it is slowly coming back with some green around the edges. I'm hoping it will all survive such a harsh winter. My daughter has rhodies in full bloom already. Her azeleas are blooming, also. I am seeing the resulting differences in our planting regions according to our weather patterns. I'm hoping this might mean that my blooms will stick around longer through the end of Spring and early Summer months. I can't rave enough about our green grass though. It is really green and lush. Ron was able to get the mowing done a couple of days ago. At long last, it looks much like a park setting again around here. ** Image ID #1546233 Unavailable ** |
| We arrived home from our vacation in San Diego last night around 8:30 P.M. Needless, to say, we were exhausted but happy travelers. Our flight down and back was very pleasant and without any problems. Unless, you want to count, having our very large tube of toothpaste confiscated at the baggage check in the Sea-Tac Airport. Our plane arrived on time to the delight of all of us. Roger(Ron's brother) and Judy(Roger's wife) greeted us with open arms and we were driven to their spacious and beautiful home in the La Costa Resort. We were given the grand tour of their 4000+sq. foot home. I thought it looked like a mansion compared to ours! After settling in we all went to an Antique Show on Friday afternoon. Saturday I was able to make contact with my granddaughter Meranda who lives in San Diego. She, little Jayla, and her hubby and his two Navy buddies all took me to Hooter's for lunch! It was fun. We exchanged pictures and I gave her an early birthday gift. We did have some problem finding their apartment address. Roger and Ron dropped me off with the kids and we met up about three hours later. Roger went out on a limb for me to be able spend time with her and her family. That was really very sweet of him, but just testifies to the really great guy that he is. On Sunday we went to Coronado Island with Roger and Judy. It just so happened that there was a big car show that day! The guys were delighted. So they went to that and we gals did some shopping in and out of the wonderful shops. We went inside the very old Hotel Del Coronado. Then headed down to the ocean beach. The beach was very sandy and went on for miles. It was so crowded with people...the likes that I had never seen anywhere else. We took a lot of pictures while on the Island. Monday we four went to Sea World. Judy had passes and we were able to see the Shamu Show and The Dolphin Show. What a thrill to see the killer whales perform their acts! I have personally been able to have the opportunity of seeing killer whale in the waters of Puget Sound many times...but this was great seeing them perform in captivity. I can remember when my children were young we would drive down to Manchester to the cove where Namu was penned for months before her removal to Sea World. I believe she was the first killer whale to be held in captivity and she was transported by flight! I don't remember all of the facts but I remember how magnificant that whale looked. I was in awe at age sixty-five of these remarkable creatures. I think that was a highlight of our already marvelous trip for me. ** Image ID #1552667 Unavailable ** Sea World Shamu Show ** Image ID #1552623 Unavailable ** Me poolside at Roger & Judy's ** Image ID #1552627 Unavailable ** Ron & I on Coronado Island ** Image ID #1552597 Unavailable ** Roger & Judy at the car show ** Image ID #1552593 Unavailable ** Meranda and Jayla ** Image ID #1552876 Unavailable ** |
| Well, time sure goes by fast! Tomorrow we leave for the motel across from Sea-Tac Airport. We are staying there over night because our flight to San Diego leaves at 7:00 A.M! We will have to get up about 4:30 A.M. to arrive at the airport at 5:00 because we need to be there two hours before flight time. Our neighbor Larry is here right now getting our "kitty" feeding instructions. Hey, he even offered to keep the littler box clean! That's something I never expected him to do at all, as we usually leave two litter boxes for them when we go for overnighters. We will be coming home on Tuesday, April 21st. I am not sure if I will have access to one of Ron's brother Roger's computers while down there ...we'll see about that. If not, then, I'll be absent from this site for atleast five days!  I'm sure I will have computer withdrawl. I've got lots of packing to do yet and all of those little things that need to be done before we leave the house early tomorrow. We will be checking into the motel early in the afternoon. I think I have convinced Ron that we need to bring either our scrabble game or chess game for entertainment during the long hours at the motel! |
HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE! ** Image ID #1547244 Unavailable ** ** Image ID #1546233 Unavailable ** |
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