My Faux Indigo - June 2008

Word of the Day

Incentivize - To provide an incentive for a particular behavior.

MC Daughter made supper last night. We had BBQ pork riblets, cornbread muffins, oven-roasted potatoes, and a fresh garden salad. And...I woke up this morning to a beautifully clean kitchen. Even the kitchen sinks were sparkling. Since the first load of dishes was still washing in the dishwasher when I went to bed last night, I can't take the credit. All I need to do this morning is put away the second batch of dishes in the dishwasher...clean dishes. Not too shabby.

We got a little rain after supper. Not enough to drive us off the dock. We didn't catch any fish but that's OK. Sometimes, not catching fish is as fun as catching fish...this said by the person that would have to clean the catch.

I've decided that Gypsy does NOT like cats. MC Daughter brought Phobia (Cat #1) out to play on the deck yesterday afternoon. Gypsy found her voice and voiced her objections. Yes, Gypsy can bark and she proved it as she hid in her safe spot between my feet...under my chair. I had to stop laughing long enough to reprimand her for her barking. Phobia just hissed a bit in response as she stalked around the deck, checking out my plants. At least she didn't eat any parsley....like Gypsy did that one time. Later in the afternoon, MC Daughter brought out Trifoles (sp?) (not Todd...I had a brain blip, Todd is one of DD Daughter's cats)to play outside in the lawn. This time Gypsy pretended to ignore the presence of a cat...but....I knew that she wasn't really ignoring the cat because she still took up a secure position between my legs...just to be on the safe side. Poor Gypsy. At least, this time she didn't bark.

Murphyism of the Day

Shaffer's Law

The effectiveness of a politician varies in inverse proportion to his commitment to principle.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

The only sure thing about luck is that it will change.

-Bret Harte (1836 - 1902)

My Irises are all done - Picture taken on June 26, 2008

Word of the Day

IMbiguity - Ambiguity caused by the nature of instant messaging and its lack of tone, context, or other visual expressions.

Woodtick Count - 29

They're Here! MC Daughter and D Buddy got here around supper time last night. Unfortunately, HTP and I had already eaten our supper. However, fortunately, I was able to quickly throw a couple burgers on the grill, slice a couple of onions and MC Daughter and D Buddy had hamburgers for supper. No cheese. I forgot the cheese. Sorry guys.

Yesterday was one of those perfect days here at The Lake. It wasn't too cold and it wasn't too warm. Up on the deck, there were no flies, no mosquitoes, no wasps. The sun was shining more than it wasn't. I went down to the dock and caught four fish...off the dock. I hiked with Gypsy up to the main road and back and only got rained on a little bit. Sun shower. No deerfly...yet. Perfect day. Today? It's a bit cool and the skies are overcast. I expect the clouds will burn off by this afternoon. If we get any rain....maybe late this afternoon, according to the forecasts. The forecasts really haven't been all that accurate this summer.

Gypsy had her first encounter with a cat yesterday. At least, this was her first encounter with a cat since her birth home. I know that the people who I bought Gypsy from had at least one cat so I expect Gypsy knew what she was looking at. They also had a Great Dane...but that's beside the point. MC Daughter and D Buddy have two cats. Gypsy was willing to be friends but Todd got all puffed up and bothered which threw Gypsy into a weirded out mode. She actually let out a few scared little barks. It was hilarious to see the reactions of both animals. Todd and Gypsy. Actually, the cats will probably be staying downstairs in our finished basement where we have our guest rooms. I doubt that they'll venture upstairs into Gypsy territory. Likewise, Gypsy never goes downstairs. Chances are we won't have any more Cat/Dog encounters. I wish I'd taken a picture though...another failed Kodak moment.

Murphyism of the Day

Nowian's Law

Following the path of least resistance is what makes politicians and rivers crooked.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

We read frequently if unknowingly, in quest of a mind more original than our own.

- Harold Bloom

Gypsy - June 2008

Word of the Day

Imaccentate - The act of subconsciously imitating the accent of the person to whom one is speaking, thereby causing the person to first become puzzled, and then slightly offended when they come to believe they are being made fun.

Woodtick Count - 29 (I've been out hiking...so has Gypsy, aka, The Tick Magnet)

MC Daughter and D Buddy were supposed to come to The Lake last night but.... Anyway, I got a call that they've been delayed. Tonight? I think they'll be coming tonight. They didn't actually call me. They called #1 Son and #1 Son called me to relay the message. Of course, my Mom silent alarm system was activated at this point. I'm figuring that one of their cars decided to malfunction so they decided to stay put while D Buddy worked on getting it fixed. I seem to recall similar vehicular problems when MC Daughter and D Buddy were ready to hit the road when they moved from Arizona to their current location. At least this time they're not having to deal with a U Haul....yet.

DD Daughter called last night. She wanted to know if I'd heard any weather news about the area where she and GI Joe live. Their power was out and they noted LOTS of tree branches and downed trees when they drove home from the grocery store last night. I hadn't been listening the weather in their region. I was more concerned about the massive orange and red blob that was heading our direction...according to the weather radar online. Actually, we only ended up with a mere 1/3 of an inch of rain. The massive orange and red blob dissipated before it got here to a pale shade of green. However, this morning I heard that there was a tornado in Omaha and there were lots of power outages. I hope DD Daughter and GI Joe and Ms. En have their power up and running again this morning.


I finally got a "toy box" for Gypsy. An old plastic tub. Gotta love recycling. If I find something more esthetically pleasing (more decorative) I'll replace the recycled tub. The thing is that Gypsy has enough toys that a person could trip on them when they're scattered all over the living room. Besides, it's rather amusing watching her fish them out of the tub to play with them. My folks were amused by Gypsy's antics when Gypsy unpacked her little toy bag when she came to stay with them while I was in New York. Now...all I have to do is train her to put away her toys at the end of the day. My neighbor in Arizona has a dog that's been trained to do that. I'll have to ask her how she accomplished it. In the meantime, I'll just keep on picking up the toys as I find them scattered about.

Gypsy went on a hunger strike. She does not like cabbage...or maybe it was the squash? Mental note...don't make any more dog food with cabbage in it. I ended up having to make her another batch of stew. Chicken and Rice Stew. She loves chicken stew. She licked the bowl clean. End of hunger strike. I won't be making that pork stew recipe ever again. Actually, the basic formula for making dog food is: 1 pound of some kind of meat or cheese, 6 cups of some sort of grain, 4 to 6 cups of some sort of carbohydrate, 6 to 8 cups of some sort of fruit or vegetable (no cabbage for Gypsy), 3 to 4 quarts of liquid (milk, water, broth, canned tomatoes), and 2 to 4 tablespoons of fat (which comes pretty naturally with the meat). I may see if Gypsy likes cooked green beans the next time I make stew. I should have some growing in the garden by then. The Chicken and Rice Stew uses carrots and peas. I always keep a bag or two of peas in my freezer. They make wonderful cold packs for sore ankles and muscles. I'll have to add frozen peas to my grocery list since I used all my "cold packs" for Gypsy's stew. I expect that the next time I make dog food, my green beans in the garden will be producing. I hope. Oh...just in case you think I'm depriving Gypsy of a healthy dog diet. Gypsy only gets 1/2 cup of her special stew each day. She gets dry dog food too...which she munches on in the afternoon and she also gets doggy vitamins. She's a self regulator when it comes to eating...bordering on "picky eater" status. Her breed tends toward corpulence but she's trending toward skinny at this point. If that trend ever changes, I'll be more careful with the amount of dry dog food I leave out in her dish each day.


Murphyism of the Day

Perot's Observation

The only thing most politicians stand for is reelection.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

It is curious that physical courage should be so common in the world and moral courage so rare.

- Mark Twain (1835 - 1910)

The Peonies are Popping - June 2008

Word of the Day

Ima - I am going to

Woodtick Count - 27

The lettuce is picked. HTP and I had some of it last night with our supper. Home-grown salad....well....almost. The lettuce and the onion were home-grown. Tomatoes are something I still have to purchase at the grocery store. I don't even have any green tomatoes on my vines as yet. Blossoms. Just blossoms right now.

MC Daughter and D Buddy are planning on stopping by here sometime this weekend. Today? If not today, on Monday. A lot depends upon how much time it will take MC Daughter and D Buddy to finish packing and cleaning their apartment. Plus...load their car and truck. MC Daughter and D Buddy have decided to move to Kentucky. Kentucky? I've never been to Kentucky. It looks like I'll have my chance should they decide to make the move a permanent one. They plan to swing by The Lake to see us en route. It's a bit off the route but they need to pick up a few of their things that they left here at The Lake and....needless to say....see us. MC Daughter assures me that she'll be coming back to The Lake again in a few months with a U Haul to collect the rest of their stuff...as soon as they're all settled in a bit.

I'd thought that #1 Son would be coming up to see us this weekend too. However, he's keeping really busy in The Big City. He tells me that he'll be coming up to see us in a couple of weeks. Looks like we'll be having a quiet 4th of July this year.

Murphyism of the Day

Duck's Political Principle

Any campaign reform only lasts until the powers regroup.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

Never let your inferiors do you a favor - it will be extremely costly.

H. L. Mencken (1880 - 1956)

Gypsy on One of Our Perimeter Checks - June 2008

Word of the Day

Illiteration - Any scattering of similar sounds in sentences which are nonsensical, hence making them seem illiterate.

After the hustle and bustle of New York, things are pretty quiet here at The Lake. Gypsy and I had our morning walk and perimeter check this morning. I noted that I'm going to have to knock down a few wasp nests that the wasps are starting to build under the deck and under the eaves. HTP commented that he'd seen a lot of wasp activity out on the deck while I was gone. He didn't realize that I check for nests every day and keep them knocked down. Since he hadn't been doing that while I was in New York...I'll have to get out the RAID spray to zap these nests with before I can knock them down. Wasps can really build nests FAST and before you know it they can become a major nuisance, an nuisance that I don't want hanging around that close to the house. They have the whole woods to build their nests, they don't need to build them on my house.

While out on a perimeter check yesterday morning, I noted that something had gotten into one of my flower beds by the garage. Wow! Huge holes dug out into the bed! A bear? I can't think of anything else big enough that could do that. Rocks from the retainer wall were thrown out onto the lawn and those rocks are BIG. At breakfast, I asked HTP what had happened. He hadn't even known about the damage. I'm beginning to figure out that HTP didn't go outside much while I was in New York. Anyhow, I'll have to fix the damage sometime today. Thankfully, it doesn't look like whatever made those holes (a bear?) did too much damage...at least nothing that won't take an hour to fix.

Other than whatever (a bear?) made a mess of my one garden, how does my garden grow? My iris are in full bloom and my peonies are just starting to pop. I think even my new red peony that I planted last fall might produce one bloom. My faux indigo is blooming and my dwarf daylilies are starting to bloom as well. My vegetable gardens are looking good too. It looks like I can start picking some lettuce...after breakfast? I need to wait until the dew dries off but not too late that the afternoon heat starts wilting the lettuce leaves. The peas are starting to climb on my strings. I had to remove suckers from my tomato plants. I don't want them to sprawl so much...at least not until they reach over the top of the tomato rings. My cucumbers are blossoming. The eggplant in my Earthboxes are doing better than those in the dog kennel garden. Actually, everything that I planted in the Earthboxes is doing better than the things in the dog kennel garden. It's nice to know that if I ever get the point where I can't handle working in my regular garden, I can still grow things in my Earthbox gardens out on the deck.

I'm going to have to start using my new lemon soap that I bought in New York. The mosquitoes are nasty outside...inside too if you're not quick enough closing the doors. I'll have to dig out my lemon oil lotion too. Despite the fact that I don't react to their bites anymore, I don't care for the thought of something noshing on my blood. Ewwww. Besides, I hate listening to their constant whining.

Murphyism of the Day

Cameron's Law

An honest politician is one who, when he is bought, will stay bought.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

Art, like morality, consists of drawing the line somewhere.

- G. K. Chesterton (1874 - 1936)

Our Final Night of "Stoop Sitting" at Paewny's Home - Picture Taken by Proud Ohio Mom on June 23, 2008

Word of the Day

Ignorimagrant - A foreigner who doesn't know how to drive according to the local laws; a really bad driver.

Woodtick Count - 25 (I didn't see any woodticks in New York...even in Central Park)

I'm


Home!


HTP picked me up at the airport in The Big City yesterday and we got back here at The Lake at around 6:30 PM last night. My feet and ankles are swollen and shiny. I had the best time ever in THE BIGGEST CITY...at least the biggest city I've ever been to...and I've got the swollen ankles and blisters to prove it. We did so much while we were there it would be almost impossible to catch you up on it all....but I'll try. I KNOW that I won't remember all of it.

Thursday: Tom and I hopped into the car with my two suitcases and headed off to the airport in The Big City at 1:30 AM. After an unremarkable flight, I was greeted at the airport in New York by my friends in the red shirts. My fellow Marine Moms. And then I added myself to the crowd of red shirts to greet our later arrivals. This is when we found out that Gunny T. was going to be a Grandma. She was ready to hop on the next flight out to join her daughter in Pueblo, Colorado where her daughter had gone into labor...far from home. However, after weighing all the options, she decided she'd stay put in New York. Grandma Gunny T. What a concept! Thanks to our New York connection (Marine Mom Paewny) who brought her sister along to help in the transportation from the airport to the hotel, we made it to the hotel in plenty of time to do some shopping for supper. A special thanks to Paewny's Sis for all her help in getting us from the airport and the special tour guide service that she provided from the airport to the hotel. After checking in at the hotel, we all walked the couple blocks to Paewny's house. We went shopping at The Pork Store for some further supplies to make supper. We stopped at the liquor store for some adult beverages and the bakery for desserts. I made some my spaghetti sauce. Paewny fried up the Italian sausages that we got at The Port Store. Ohio Mom made the salad. We sat down to a wonderful Italian meal. And afterwards we sat out on Paewny's stoop. Stoop sitting became a wonderful ending to all of our evenings.

Friday: Some of our Marine Moms actually decided to visit a gym that was located near our hotel. Every morning. That first morning, some of the other Moms took a nice walk near the water. Me? I'd planned to join them for the walk by the water but ended up walking around near the hotel instead...sizing up the neighborhood. We had real New York bagels for breakfast at Paewny's house after our early morning activities and then hit the subway to Lower Manhattan. The train (subway) was an experience in and of itself. Paewny's Hubby and Paewny were right there to guide us virgin subway riders through the experience which wasn't anything like I was expecting from all the horror stories I've heard through my many years on this Earth. We visited Ground Zero and St. Paul's Chapel. We walked around the harbor. We sampled some street food. Real New York hot dogs from a sidewalk vendor and Real New York pretzels from the same vendor. I need to figure out how to make that sauce that the vendor put on my hot dog. Wonderful! We took the Staten Island Ferry (up and back)and got to see the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island from the ferry. Tugboats. Barges. A military boat that Gunny pointed out that must have been docked for repairs. We walked the entire length of the Brooklyn Bridge. We took "the train" back to Paewny's house and then walked over to Vesuvio's (a real Italian restaurant)for a wonderful dinner. I had Zuppe di Pesce...which was the same as Frutti di Mare which I've ordered elsewhere but...to those who don't understand either...I had a wonderful seafood pasta with red sauce on angel hair pasta (clams, shrimp, calamari, mussels, and lobster)...yummy. After dinner, we walked back to Paewny's house for another stoop sitting session.

Saturday: We got back on the subway and headed to Broadway. Time's Square. LOTS of people. We walked about and saw some of the other theatres and where the Today show is filmed. Gunny T and dale13mom checked out The Mermaid Parade at Coney Island while the rest of us went to see The Lion King. My first Broadway play on Broadway! After the play, we visited the biggest Toys R Us that I've ever seen. There is a HUGE ferris wheel inside the building. Lots of toys. Yes...I bought something for Ms. En. Gunny T. and dale13mom met up with us outside of Toys R Us. By this time, we were all REALLY hungry so we stopped for dinner at Bubba Gumps...the New York version. REALLY crowded. LOTS of people. I got HTP a present and a couple of t-shirts. Then...it was back to the subway and a quick stop at the hotel to drop off souvenir purchases before we continued on.... We stopped at a bar near Paewny's house...I can't remember the name and tippled on adult beverages and watched dale13mom and her daughter play pool while snacking on chips and dips. Marine Mom M2CMC shared a card that her Mom had sent us. Her Mom bought us our first round of adult beverages. Thank you very much Mom2Mom2CMC. Mom2CMC called Mom2Mom2CMC to thank her but it was getting late and I'm not sure if Mom2Mom2CMC will remember. We toasted all the Marine Moms,wives,and Grandmas who couldn't join us on our New York Reunion. On the way back to Paewny's house for another stoop sitting session, we stopped at a store where I found my New York Frog. Mom2CMC is going to UPS it to me. He was too heavy for me to bring home in my suitcase.

Sunday: Oh, my aching feet! I dug out my band-aids and decided it was time to wear my most comfortable shoes. The New Balance that I'd purchased for the trip. Thank God I bought those shoes! They were a life-saver! After breakfast we went shopping at Century 21...a discount store. Though tempted, I decided to do my shopping at the local bakery on my walk back to our hotel. I got some Pignoli and some Seeded Regina to bring back to The Lake with me. Wonderful! I found a recipe on the Internet but I'm not sure if I'll be able to replicate the true yumminess of these confections. Then...we all gathered and it was off to the subway...again. We were getting pretty good at riding the subway by this time. We headed off to Canal Street where we walked to China Town in search of knock-off handbags. Part of the whole experience. On our walk we stopped at a cute little store where I found the perfect birthday present for Ms. En and some cute birthday cards to add to my collection of cards that never get sent. Paewny found a "tour guide" who we followed in our search for knock-off bags. En route we got a tour of a Chinese food market. I recognized many of the foods but we didn't stop to ask what the rest of the odd dried food stuffs were. Nor did we stop to take a closer look at the fish and squid which were proudly displayed in boxes of ice at the edge of the sidewalk. After arriving at our knock-off purse (handbag) destination, it was decided that we really didn't like the location of the shop or the attitude of the vendors...or the location so we headed off to visit Little Italy....a few short blocks away. We sampled real Italian New York Pizza from a sidewalk vendor. Yummy. Paewny taught us all how to fold the pizza (New York-style). It took me a while to get the concept down but I think I've got it now. It's so the grease doesn't drip down your clothes. Loved it. Best pizza ever. More souvenir shopping in Little Italy. I got a couple of new fishing hats. Then it was back to China Town. I got a gold medallion at one of the jewelry shops. And then...just as we were ready to give up on the knock-off purse project...we found our knock-off purse store. What an experience! "Pssst! You looking for Coach purse?" A secret door leading to secret room where there was yet another secret door led to yet another secret room...with the good stuff. What fun! Then...we decided to visit The Empire State Building where we had to have all our bags X-rayed ala security at the airport and walk through metal detectors. Despite my fear of elevators, there is no way that I'd walk up more than 80 floors. I think I did pretty good...I didn't even scream once. Afterwards it was back to the subway, dinner, stoop-sitting and then time to crash. Did we go to a bar that night? I can't remember.

Monday: We all met at Paewny's house where we gathered our gifts for the firemen from the Fire Station that was closest to Ground Zero. Each of us had brought food gifts from our home states. For example, I brought cheese and venison sausage from Wisconsin and Salsa from Arizona. We ended up with a HUGE basket of yummy foods for the firemen. Unfortunately, they weren't there so...we went over and met Father J. at St. Francis of Assisi church which was right across the firehouse. It was decided that he'd deliver our basket to the firemen but not before he wanted us to wait for a while to just make sure that they wouldn't be right back. Father J. was rather intimidating....so we waited, and waited, and waited. Finally...we escaped after we promised to return when Father J. called to let us know that the firemen had returned. We headed off to Times Square where we visited the M&M store. Wonderful! The perfect souvenir haven....and chocolate M&Ms. At this point Father J. called but...we decided that we'd first visit Rockefeller Center and then St Patrick's Cathedral. At this point, Paewny and the rest of us decided we'd done enough walking. We decided to signal on of the millions of NYC yellow cabs. Paewny did the signaling. We took a cab back to the Fire Station. Whoohoo! I took my first cab ride in New York City! They have a TV monitor in the cab (that's how I learned that George Carlin had died) and they have this little thing where you can swipe your credit card to pay for the cab ride...and even add a tip. And it wasn't nearly expensive as I thought it would be. Actually, I think it was cheaper than the subway. However, we could only get four of us in each cab and that was with one person sitting up front with the cab driver but...it worked. We met with the firefighters and chatted and took pictures. We didn't get to see Father J. again but... And then we took a cabs to Central Park where we met up with dale13mom and her daughter. They'd been off visiting New York on their own. We walked through Central Park...not the entire park, the entire park is HUGE! Beautiful. We stopped for a carousel ride and sampled ice cream. We watched a newlywed couple rowing a boat on the lake. There were a couple of jazz saxophone players standing in various locations playing "the blues". We saw the Dakota where John Lennon lived before he was killed. And then...more walking but this time to Tiffany's!!!!! Yes! I got a little blue box tied up with a pretty white ribbon and placed in a small blue bag with the Tiffany logo on it. Actually...to be honest...I got two of them. ARGH! But...I didn't spend all that much. Actually, you can buy many affordable items from Tiffany's...and they will wrap them up in a box and tie them up with a pretty white ribbon for you. Gotta love it! I bought something at Tiffany's! A once in a lifetime experience. Then...it was back to the subway and back to Brooklyn during rush hour...to Paewny's house....after stopping and dropping our purchases at the hotel. We had dinner at The Salty Dog. Great food and better atmosphere. I ordered a Reuben sandwich which...I couldn't finish. I figured that I HAD to have a Reuben sandwich in New York City....just to compare it with my own. Sorry guys. Yours was good but mine is better. I make a wonderful Reuben sandwich. Afterwards, on our way back to Paewny's home, we were lured into this wonderful cafe which was displaying the most wonderful confections where we each got a chance for a last bite of The Big Apple. I bought some cannoli and some chocolate confections to bring home with me on the plane...which Paewny had to store in her fridge overnight. *sigh* I didn't think over the refrigeration factor when I made my purchases but...they did make it to The Lake so.... Then...one last chance for some more stoop sitting before we all hobbled off back to the hotel to pack.

Tuesday: We enjoyed a last chance at New York City bagels at Paewny's house before we headed back to the hotel to grab all our suitcases and bags. Paewny drove us to the airport. Gunny T.'s packing skills came in handy. I stand in awe. How she managed to get all the suitcases into Paewny's van along with the five of us that were heading off to the airport early on Tuesday morning...I have no idea. Hugs all around for those who weren't leaving until later. Then...it was one final look at New York City as we traveled through lots of traffic en route to the airport. One last look at the Brooklyn Bridge. One last look at the "Lady in the Harbor". One last look at the graffitied buildings that looked like something straight out of a Hollywood movie set. Curb-side check-in. Thank you American Airlines. My poor aching feet and ankles. No problems going through security. Thank you again. And then onto the plane heading to Chicago with my connecting flight to Minneapolis. Too bad my connecting flight in Chicago forced me to trudge across the entire airport...which...normally wouldn't have been all that big a deal but by this time my ankles and feet were protesting and I was starting to look like I had the beginnings of elephantitis. Ouch! And then when I finally got to the gate...there was no place to sit down. ARGH!

Anyway...I'm home. I made it. My ankles are still a bit swollen but that didn't keep me from my morning hike with Gypsy. At least I was able to get my shoes on this morning with only a little discomfort. I'm home at The Lake. The mosquitoes are vicious (none in New York...at least none that I could see, but they do have HUGE waterbugs...at least that's what Paewny called the one that crawled across my hand one night while stoop-sitting). I already miss my Marine Mom Sistah's and sneaking bites of bagel to Paewny's dog Peaches. But....it's good to be home.

Murphyism of the Day

Paewny's Law for Touring New York City

An umbrella in hand is a sure fire way to keep the rain at bay.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

There's no present. There's only the immediate future and the recent past.

George Carlin (1937 - 2008)

Gypsy on Blueberry Hill - June 2008

Word of the Day

Ignorement - The act or process of ignoring.

Woodtick Count - 25

I've got lots to do today. Laundry. Washing my hair. Finish packing. Pack up all of Gypsy's stuff and bring her over to my folks' place. Water the gardens....

I'm leaving....on a jet plane. New York, New York. The real New York City, not the Vegas New York. OooRah Mom Reunion 2008. I missed the OooRah Mom Reunion 2007 which was in Washington D.C. but there's no way I'm missing this one. I've got two suitcases already almost packed. Yes. I CAN bring two suitcases. My reservations were made BEFORE all the "Pay if you want to change your underwear" restrictions. Taking no chances with over-weight baggage, I decided to bring two suitcases. I may not need them on the way home but I need them now. I'm bringing lots of stuff that won't be coming back home with me but...one word...SHOPPING. However, if I have to bring home an empty suitcase...so be it.

Blogging? Chances are that I won't be taking the time to blog while I'm in New York. I'm not bringing a laptop. One of my fellow Marine Moms is bringing her laptop and our hostess Marine Mom from New York tells us that we can use her computer but I'm not going to New York to spend time in front of a computer. I'll keep a journal...the old-fashioned way. Notebook and pencil. I'll blog when I get back to The Lake. I'm leaving at 1 AM on Thursday morning which...in my book of definitions...qualifies as tonight. I won't get back here to The Lake until June 24th...but then I've got to unpack and blogging may have to wait until the 25th. I'll try to catch you up on all the OooRah Mom Reunion 2008 activities at that time. I plan to take LOTS of pictures and extra "film"...memory sticks.

Murphyism of the Day

Lovka's First Political Principle

There is no sincerity like a politician telling a lie.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

The need for change bulldozed a road down the center of my mind.

Maya Angelou (1928 - )

The Columbines are Blooming - June 2008

Word of the Day

Ignisecond - The overlapping moment of time when the hand is locking the car door even as the brain is saying, "my keys are in there!"

Woodtick Count - 25

Will we ever get a real summer here at The Lake? I woke up to 43 F....outside....not inside. It's 66°F inside. HTP hasn't complained to much that I don't want to turn on the furnace. Put a sweater on! I'm not really complaining about the lack of summer heat but I'm beginning to think that the reason we've got so many woodticks this year is due to all this cool weather. Even with Frontline, Gypsy has had a few that I've had to remove...not in my woodtick count. The woodtick count are all mine. I've flushed so many woodticks this year that I'm beginning to worry about the waste of water and electricity.

I haven't actually started packing for New York as yet. The suitcases are still in the closet. I've got my list. Lists. However, I have cleaned out my purse and I've removed all those sharp objects that airline security doesn't want you to have when you board the plane. I still need to get a quart-size Ziploc bag for my lotions. I don't own any quart-size Ziploc bags because I use either the gallon-size or the sandwich-size. Apparently, airline security doesn't like the gallon-size or the sandwich-size bags. I wonder if they get a kick back from the people who make those quart-size bags?

Murphyism of the Day

Sherman's Rule of Press Conferences

The explanation of a disaster will be made by a stand-in.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

I have such poor vision I can date anybody.

- Garry Shandling

Perimeter Walk - June 2008

Word of the Day

IGMO - 1. An ignorant person; abbreviated form of ignoramus. 2. I've Got My Orders. A rueful to matter-of-fact commentary by a person executing a decision of others that may not seem sensible to the speaker or addressee.

I'm already half way to New York...in my mind. HTP is starting to complain about this fact. Half of my mind (or maybe a bit more than half) is focused on getting ready for my flight to New York where I'm eagerly looking forward to seeing and visiting with my fellow Marine Moms. The other half of my mind is left to deal with whatever needs doing here at The Lake. I've had to start a list of things to do before I leave The Lake at 0Dark:30 on Thursday morning and a packing list for things I'll need while I'm in New York. Unfortunately, this division of my mind tends to manifest total absent-mindedness. The lists should help but....

If my mind wasn't so absent, I would have thought about the fact that starting another batch of rhubarb wine here at my house wouldn't be something that would make much sense. I won't be here to stir the must for the entire 5 days. I'm only going to be here for another three days...four, if you count today. And then I won't be here to add the sugar and the yeast before letting it sit another couple days before adding it to the prior batch of rhubarb wine that I've already got started....airlock attached. I'll have to gather the wine-making supplies and bring them over to Sis' house. We'll have to start this next batch at her place. I'll be home before we get the point where we'll combine the two batches.

I'll need to do laundry one more time before I leave for New York. I want to make a quick shopping trip to the city before I leave too. I've been trying to think of something typically Wisconsin to bring to New York as a gift. Cheese curds are something that screams Wisconsin. I think I can bring it along with some venison summer sausage that Sis gave me to gift. Hopefully, airport security won't blink too hard when I pack these items in my suitcase. I'm also going to pack a couple jars of my home-canned tomatoes. We're going to enjoy a home-cooked Italian spaghetti meal for our first night in New York at the home of one of the Moms. I can make my spaghetti sauce without home-canned tomatoes but...it just wouldn't taste quite the same.

Murphyism of the Day

The Oil Spill Principle

People will accept any bad news if the magnitude of the disaster is revealed gradually.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

There is no reason for any individual to have a computer in his home.

- Ken Olsen (1926 - ), President, Digital Equipment, 1977

Old Grey's Commentary on the above Noteworthy Quote of the Day

Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha...snort...ha-ha-ha-ha-ha....snort. Only one per home? Take my computer? From my cold, dead hands.

Berries on the Juneberry Bush/Tree - June 2008 (not ripe yet)


Word of the Day

Ifnik - Any person whose life, habits and thinking are constructed conditionally.



Happy


Father's


Day!



I baked a cake last night. Chocolate....of course. I frosted it with chocolate frosting this morning. Decorating it was kind of challenging. Kind of a puzzle trying to figure out a "Father" decoration for a Father's Day cake...especially since all I had to work with was those miniature M&M's. It was easier decorating the Mother's Day cake. Flowers. What does one put on a Father's Day cake. Well...they got a stringer of fish...at least....I hope they look like fish and not some weird variety of flower. Oh well...I tried. I was considering the addition of a fishing rod, line, and bobber but...one has to know their own capabilities with materials on hand AND one has to know when enough is good enough.

I made the potato salad last night. Potato salad always ends up tasting better the next day. The flavors have a chance to blend and sink in. Today is the next day. I'm going to boil up the brats after breakfast so they'll be all ready to toss on the grill. Sis is bringing the fixings for Fume (Oriental Ramen Coleslaw). I've already shredded the cabbage and chopped the green onions for it. That's a last minute type of salad. I still need to make the onion dip for the chips....and the regular coleslaw. Oh...and the meat for the baked beans. I just have to pull it off the bones. I'll chop up the raw onion for the brats at the same time that I'm chopping up the onion that I'll be using to cook up with the brats. Plenty of time for all this to get done...after breakfast. The beer is already in the fridge.

Murphyism of the Day

Thomas Jefferson's Rule

Delay is preferable to error.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

You can't make up anything anymore. The world itself is a satire. All you're doing is recording it.

- Art Buchwald

Dwarf Lilacs - June 2008


Say Goodbye to the Tulips - June 2008


June Wildflowers - 2008

Word of the Day

Idiology - Political dogma espoused by anyone whose intellectual credentials are derived solely from his experience in professional sports or the entertainment industry.

Woodtick Count - 22

I'm doing laundry today. #1 Son came home last night at around supper to spend the weekend. Maybe he'll help me with the cake that I plan to bake later on today. I'm going to hold off on making the potato salad and maybe even the cutting up the cabbage for Cole slaw until tonight. I just don't have the room in my fridge for a big bowl of potato salad. At least, I don't think I have any more room but somehow, if I do my Tetris thing, I'll probably find enough room by tonight. The bratwurst buns don't really need to be stored in the fridge...at least not after tonight. They'll be just fine sitting out on the counter for just one night. We'll either be eating them all up on Sunday or I'll be sending them home with #1 Son when he returns to The Big City.

The wildflowers are blooming. Daisies. Wild geraniums. Columbine. Wild mustard...I think. I took pictures of them when Gypsy and I took one of our hikes earlier in the week. We've been taking daily hikes when weather permits.

My tulips are all done. The individual support that I gave them extended their blooming life but since the blooms are done I've removed the supports and trimmed off the dead heads. I've set out the supports that I'd been using on the tulips and additional supports for my iris so they don't get beaten down buy the rains when they start blooming. This last rain already mashed one of the iris stems down to the ground but I think the support that I put in may have remedied it. I also set out supports for the larger buds of my peonies. I have them surrounded by peony rings but still....when peonies start to bloom they have huge and heavy flower heads. One good rain and they bend down and choke themselves. I'm pleased to see that the red peony that I bought has come up this year. I don't expect to have it actually blossom this year, even though it has a blossom bud. It takes a couple years for new peonies to establish themselves enough to blossom. While I'm waiting for the iris and the peonies to bloom, I'm enjoying the dwarf lilacs which have burst into full bloom and are perfuming the area.

Murphyism of the Day

Ameringer's Axiom

Politics is the gentle art of getting votes from the poor and campaign funds from the rich by promising to protect each from the other.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

No one forgives with more grace and love than a child.

- Real Live Preacher

Gypsy Checking Out My Garden - June 9, 2008

Word of the Day

Ideality - Frequently the opposite to reality. A dimension only spoken of in textbooks and lectures, and yet, while greatly desired, never seems to be the case.

Woodtick Count - 22 (I really haven't been outside much due to rain)

I've been tagged by DD Daughter for one of those Internet question/answer games so....

1. Post the rules of the game at the beginning.
2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
3. At the end of the post, the player then tags five people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read the player’s blog. (well...I don't know all that many people who have blogs other than DD Daughter so...nix this one.)
4. Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.

What were you doing five years ago?

Apparently, I was gripping about the fact that I hadn't heard from either of my daughters for a while. Check the archive for yourself.

What are five things on your to-do list for today?
1) Take Gypsy for a walk (done but...we'll go for another hike later)
2) Bilge the boat (done) but I may go fishing later
3) Make breakfast, lunch and supper
4) Wash my hair
5) Work in the flower garden

What are five snacks you enjoy?
1) CHOCOLATE
2) SALTY chips
3) fresh peas...raw
4) smoked almonds
5) pumpkin or squash seeds...I cooked some up.

What are five things you would do if you were a billionaire?

1) Tell no one except a financial advisor and my husband.
2) Sit back and not worry so much about the bills and the taxes or who will take care of me when I'm too old to know what's going on around me.
3) Hire someone to do the heavy lifting that I don't want to do myself. I want someone else to clean my house.
4) Travel wherever I want to go whenever I want to go...first class.
5) Set up a standing appointment at a spa...several spas. Facials, massages, hair, manicures....pamper me!

What are five of your bad habits?
1) I REALLY hate to clean.
2) I procrastinate when it comes to doing things that I really don't want to do until those things become even more unbearable to do.
3) I hate dieting but I need to diet.
4) I can't bite my tongue hard enough when it comes to talking politics.
5) I'm buy and read too many books. It's an addiction. Books = cocaine.

What are five places where you have lived?
1) Minnesota
2) Arizona
3) Oregon
4) Arizona..again and still
5) Wisconsin when I'm not in Arizona

What are five jobs you’ve had?
1) Historical Interpreter at Fort Snelling
2) Clerking at a toy store
3) Clerking at Spencers at a mall
4) Spanish Teacher
5) Homemaker

I know I should be tagging someone on this but I'm old and grey and none of my friends actually have a blog...however, they can read this and enjoy. Right?

*****

The rain has finally stopped. The skies are blue. Gypsy loves her Pork Stew...even with the unpeeled apple chunks. And...I really need to wash my hair today.

Murphyism of the Day

Heine's Law

One should forgive one's enemies, but not before they are hanged.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

First weigh the considerations, then take the risks.

- Helmuth von Moltke (1800 - 1891)

Gypsy Looking Reproachful - June 2008 (And it wasn't even raining.)

Word of the Day

ID10T - Describes a computer "error," which is really user incompetence. Commonly used in computer circles.

I bought groceries yesterday. I needed to buy some food for Father's Day but now I hear that I won't be having quite so many people here to eat the food as I thought. Oh well...it'll get eaten. #1 Son will be coming and I can always send food home with him. And there's always a bit of space in the freezer...right?

I made dog food this morning. Pork Stew. Sis tells me that I'm spoiling Gypsy. "Let her be a dog!", she said this morning. I think it was the fact that the recipe for Pork Stew called for Yukon Gold potatoes that got to my sister. I didn't tell her about the recipe for Lamb Stew that is in that same cookbook. No, I did not use Yukon Gold potatoes in Gypsy's Pork Stew. Nor am I tempted to make the Lamb Stew. However, I did use pork. And I did chop up a whole head of cabbage that was called for in the recipe. And I did cook up some real brown rice for the recipe. Egg noodles. REGULAR potatoes....Sorry Gypsy, no Yukon Gold potatoes for you. Canned tomatoes. Homemade chicken stock. Oh...and two acorn squash. Actually, this looks like a recipe that would have been better for the fall but I had the pork and didn't want to buy more chicken or beef. Squash are not in season right now and I hesitate to buy out-of- season produce but...the squash weren't expensive. Cheaper than a packet of seeds to grow my own and I got to cook up the seeds for a snack. I imagine I could have used another type of squash. Winter squash is winter squash. Oh...I forgot. I had to chop of two apples for the stew. I didn't peel them. See? I don't totally spoil my dog. However, I did core the apples. Seeds? I eat the seeds but what would they do to a small dog? Oh well, I don't think Gypsy cares if she's eating an unpeeled apple or not. We'll see. Maybe she'll pick those bits out. I ended up with 12 - 2 cup packages of Pork Stew which I was amazed to find room for in my freezer. I don't have a huge freezer. Anyway, I won't have to make any more dog food for at least a month. Unless...well...the gal that wrote the recipe book tells me that the stews in her cookbook can be eaten by people too. You just need to add a bit of seasoning and you've got people food.

We got rain last night. Lots of rain but not too much rain. 2 inches. It's still raining right now but I classify what's coming out of the sky as an Oregon-style rain. Drippy. Misty. Not enough wet to bother with an umbrella. I went down to bilge the boat. I'll have to finish up on that project later when Gypsy and I take our next perimeter walk. She's not fond of the rain but she's getting better about it. At least she followed me down to the dock this morning...eventually...after she realized that I wasn't going to let her back inside until after I'd finished up with my perimeter walk. Gypsy can look at you with eyes loaded with reproach. Poor baby. She's not fond of wet hair and feet.

Murphyism of the Day

L.B.J.'s Law

If two people agree on everything, you may be sure that one of them is doing the thinking.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

Men are not prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of their own minds.

- Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882 - 1945)

A View From Our Dock

Word of the Day

Iconoblaster - One who iconoblasts on a frequent basis. (See yesterday's Word of the Day for the definition of Iconoblast)

Woodtick Count - 22

The huge jump in the woodtick count can be attributed to the hike Sis and I took to the fresh water spring. Cause and effect..so to speak. We picked a goodly amount of watercress which we divided into separate bags for Sis, Me, and Mom. Sis tells me that her hubby isn't fond of watercress. I'm not sure how fond my Dad is of watercress. I KNOW that HTP isn't fond of the stuff. However, I happen to love it. There's nothing quite like a fresh watercress salad made with a mild vinaigrette dressing along with some finely chopped winter onion. I enjoyed my first such salad of the year last night. Even with a bit of tomato...despite the latest Salmonella outbreak that they've been warning about on the news. I'm beginning to think that we'd all be better off if we'd grow our own produce, pick wild or stick to buying seasonally from local farmers. Last summer we had the E. coli that had grocers pulling bags of spinach off the shelf. I remember a similar scare caused by some bad green onion imported from Mexico. Oh well...I've got my garden planted though I'm still buying produce at the grocery store. I love tomatoes and my own won't be starting to come for a long time. Even then I won't have enough to can for the winter. I'll have to visit my local farmer for canning tomatoes.

Sis and I fertilized the wild blueberries. She dug up a few of the wild plants to transplant near her house. We're not sure if this will work out or not but I guess it doesn't cost anything more than time and effort to give it a chance. We noted that the wild blueberry bushes near the fresh spring are looking quite healthy and loaded with tiny green berries. For some reason or another, Sis and I have never taken the time to hike back down to that area when the berries come ripe. July? Maybe this summer.

HTP and I went fishing last night. The weather was perfect. The lake was as still as glass. Unfortunately, we didn't catch all that much. The mosquitoes were biting but the fish were reluctant. However, I did catch three nice crappie and a nice perch. HTP caught a bass but...it was too small. Size limits can be rather frustrating. I've often noticed that we only tend to catch fish that fall 1/4-1/2 inch short of the size limit for that type of fish. I'm sure this is yet another example of Murphy's Law. Regardless, I cleaned up enough fish last night to fry up a meal for HTP and me for tonight or tomorrow.

I started a double batch of Rhubarb Wine. Sis, regretfully, couldn't be here to help me with this first step of our rhubarb wine-making endeavor due to all the construction activity going on at her house. She's having an addition to her addition put in and her brand-new garage is almost done. When they were using their house here at The Lake as a weekend retreat, a cabin, there was no need for a garage or more room. When Sis and her husband decided that they were going to retire and use their "cabin" as a main residence, more space and a garage became a must. Our Dad (T-Square) came to the rescue and drew up plans. The addition (the first one) was completed last summer. It looks great! But...Sis decided that they really could use just a smidgen more room. She entertains. So, T-Square drew up an additional addition and work is underway. Actually....T-Square and Mom are having an addition put onto their lake home as well. T-Square has been keeping really busy with all the new additions that he's had to draw up for The Lake this summer. The west shore of The Lake is a hive of building activity this summer. Things are lots quieter here on our north end of The Lake...at least...now that the five oak trees have all been removed.

HTP and I need to go shopping in the big city today. Grocery shopping. I'm hosting the Father's Day celebration on Sunday and I need supplies. I've got my menu all planned. I just need to get the ingredients. I also note that the Chicken Stew that I made for Gypsy is down to eight more servings. Time to make more dog food for Gypsy. I'm going to try a pork stew this time.

Murphyism of the Day

Armey's Axiom

You can't get ahead while getting even.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

The only thing that overcomes hard luck is hard work.

- Harry Golden (1902 - 1981)

Word of the Day

Iconoblast - To punctuate one's instant message with an excess of icons.

Woodtick Count - 17 1/2 (Hey...I'm giving that one woodtick a half count because it was on Gypsy...but it was heading my way when I found it. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it.)

The mosquitoes are vicious outside this morning. They are definitely living up to their legend of being our state bird. I'll have to spray myself with deet after breakfast. Sis and I are going to head off into the woods to check on the watercress again...after breakfast. There is no way that I'll head off into the woods today without a liberal amount of deet to protect me. The mosquitoes would suck me dry, leaving only a hollow mummy-like husk behind. We've given the cress two weeks to grow up since the last time we checked. Was it two weeks? I'll have to go back and check my earlier blogs. We only checked the one time this spring and it wasn't ready for picking at that time. Sis and I plan to fertilize the wild blueberries while we're out there. I bought some time release stuff that promises to work well for acid loving plants like blueberries. I imagine Sis and I are wasting our time a bit with the wild blueberries since chances are the birds and wild animals will be the beneficiaries but...maybe...we can go back and check the status of the wild berries later and see if our fertilizing actually produced any benefits for the human animals.

After checking out the watercress, Sis and I will come back to my house so we can start our rhubarb wine. Which reminds me...I should probably take the rhubarb out of the freezer so it can thaw.

I'm NOT doing laundry, even though it's Tuesday (my normal laundry day). I did laundry on Saturday and I suspect that I'll be doing laundry again this coming Saturday when #1 Son comes home. Actually...there's lots of things I'm NOT doing today. I don't think I'll vacuum and dust today either....or clean the bathrooms. But...I'll clean the kitchen, after breakfast.

Murphyism of the Day

Booker T. Washington's Rule

You can't hold a man down without staying down with him.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

We're actors - we're the opposite of people.

- Tom Stoppard

Bottling the 2007 Vintage Wine

Word of the Day

Hypothecary - A person, usually a college professor, so convinced of his or her own intellectual superiority that he or she feels things like the truth are beneath them. Often attempts to expound their own virtue with so-called hypotheses that bear only superficial resemblance to science, reality, or religion.

Woodtick Count - 17

With all the rain that we've been getting comes mosquitoes. I really don't welt up from their bites anymore. I'm not sure why this lack of welting occurs but I imagine that I've been bitten so often over the years that I've developed a certain immunity to the blood-suckers' poison. However there is no immunity from the constant whine or that initial feeling when they settle down to suck on my blood. I suppose I could spray myself off with Deet whenever I head outside but I don't like the stuff. It gives me a headache. I save the use of Deet for those times that I'm going hiking in the woods.

Deetless, I went outside yesterday to merely dig up a clump of winter onions. My bed of winter onions have gotten out of hand. They desperately need dividing and thinning. I may have to see if I can find homes for some of my winter onions. The ones that I can't find room for in my garden and the ones that I can't actually clean and eat all by myself. I noted as I was cleaning up a huge bunch of winter onions for eating that we're getting close to the time when the winter onions won't be usable again until next spring. In the meantime, as I was out dealing with the overgrown winter onions, deetless, I was being driven mad by the constant whine of the mosquitoes that were desperately attempting to sip on my ears and arms. *sigh*
I abandoned the field.

At this point, I was ready to stay inside for the rest of the day but... Sis and I need rhubarb. My rhubarb needed picking so, risking the barrage of mosquitoes, I returned to the great outdoors. Deetless. Do you remember that old child's tale where the hero swats five flies in one single swat? Well...I was swatting multiple mosquitoes while picking rhubarb, risking major injury because I was armed with a knife to clean the rhubarb. Swatting mosquitoes while armed with a knife is not all that great of an idea. However, I escaped injury. I picked, cleaned, and froze six pounds of rhubarb. I'd been hoping for more rhubarb, but alas, it looks like Sis and I will only be able to make a double batch of rhubarb wine this year. Next summer we'll be able to make more. I've started three more hills of rhubarb that look like they're coming along just fine but they won't start producing until next year.

Not to worry. Sis and I will end up with plenty of 2008 vintage wine this year. We increased the amount of dandelion wine we made this spring. We plan to experiment with a batch of Juneberry Wine....though...it may end up as Blue Juneberry Wine if I can't pick enough Juneberries and have to supplement with blueberries. We're hoping to increase the amount of Prickly Gooseberry Wine we make so I'll have to pick even more of the prickly morsels than I picked last summer. And...then we've got the Currant Wine we'll be making. Sis and I will be keeping busy.

Murphyism of the Day

Main's Law

For every action there is an equal and opposite government program.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

Happiness is not a station you arrive at, but a manner of traveling.

- Margaret Lee Runbeck

The Lake

Word of the Day

Hydroholic - A person who is addicted to water. This person must drink at least two litres (approx. eight cups) of water a day, and, in order to match their mood, choose bottled water based on flavor and mineral content.

Woodtick Count - 17

Fade to Black

We've lost power countless times in the last couple of days. Just short glitches that were enough so that all the clocks in the house had to be reset. Oops! I just remembered that I've got to reset the clock on the answering machine. I hate resetting the clock on the answering machine. Maybe I'll wait a couple more days to make sure that the glitches are gone. So, anyway, HTP and I had already reset clocks five times this weekend and then last night, no warning (no storms, wind, no heavy usage of AC or other indicators), our power goes out for long enough that our generator started up and got a good workout. I decided to call my folks but got a busy signal. I decided to call my sister but got a busy signal. At this point, I figured they were on the phone with each other asking each other whether or not they had power or not but apparently this wasn't the case because it wasn't long before my folks called me to ask if I had power. They didn't...have power. I called the power company and was put on hold for fifteen minutes. However, before the fifteen minutes were up, I got disconnected by our security company. Our alarm box started squealing to let us know that the power was out and at the same time the phone went dead. So, I had to call the power company again. Ten minute wait.

You know, when you call the power company to report an outage, the person on the other end of the phone has no idea who you are and where you're located...even when you tell them. *sigh* They couldn't find a record of my location because they don't have our phone number on record...or our address. This is because we do all our bill paying online and the only snail mail address the electric company has for us is in Arizona...oh...and AZ phone number too. I finally ended up having to use my folks' phone number to get any kind of response from these people and then what she said didn't make much sense. HTP thinks she was looking at an outage in Wisconsin but probably for the Chippewa Falls area. A tree down on 69th Street? There is no 69th Street anywhere near our little town. I gave up, having decided that it was time for bed anyway so why worry too much. HTP decided to call the power company again while I was taking Gypsy for our nightly perimeter walk. This is when he discovered that the power company for here at The Lake only had our Arizona information on file. This is also when he discovered that we wouldn't get our electricity back until the wee hours of the morning. They always tell you that it'll take hours to get your electricity back. I think it's so that you don't call them back to yell at them every ten seconds until they finally get things working. Regardless, they normally fudge/tell you that things are lots bleaker than they are and that you won't see electricity again until your next birthday.

In the meantime, I'd grabbed a flashlight so I could take Gypsy outside. I discovered that Gypsy is totally weirded out by flashlights. Gypsy is totally weirded out by a lot of things but apparently the beam of light projected on her by a flashlight was rather a disconcerting event for her. I suppose she felt a bit on stage with her own personal spotlight while she was expected to do her business. Hey! A little privacy here! Too bad. I wasn't going to go out into a pitch black night without a flashlight. It gets really dark outside at night here in rural America when your nearest neighbors are miles away and the skies are a bit overcast and the electricity is out. Heck! It gets pretty dark inside the house...at least the parts of the house that aren't a part of the generator system. My bedroom, for example. Oh well...brushing one's teeth in by flashlight isn't such a bad thing, because at least we had water, thanks to the generator. Besides...the electricity went back on just as I was finishing up with that last nightly ritual.

Have you ever noticed that after the lights go back on...after a power outage...that there are lots more lights on then you remember leaving or turning on before the outage? Good grief! I'm glad I wasn't in bed yet or I'd have been scared to death at all the illumination. So anyway, before going to bed, I had to turn off all the lights.

Of course, none of this electrical outage excitement effected #1 Son. He decided to return to The Big City yesterday afternoon. He decreed that he was just fine and it was time to go "home" to his apartment. Work on Monday.

It's just as well. It's raining here today at The Lake. A bit drippy and dreary. But...We Have the Power. (Oblique reference/quote from an old cartoon...He-Man... that #1 Son used to watch on TV when he was a little boy.)

Murphyism of the Day

Adler's Rule

It is easier to fight for one's principles than to live up to them.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

There are only two kinds of people who are really fascinating: people who know absolutely everything, and people who know absolutely nothing.

- Oscar Wilde (1854 - 1900)

A More Peaceful View of The Lake, The Dock, and The Boat - Summer 2007

Word of the Day

Humstinker - One that is extraordinary or remarkably smelly, and who has probably never thought of using deodorant in a considerably long time.

Woodtick Count - 15

Whatever Floats Your Boat

We didn't get much rain yesterday. Oh...but the wind is another tale. It was windier than I've ever seen it for such an extended period of time. All day time. Trees in the woods that surround our house were pruning themselves. I've got shattered leaves stuck to my once clean windows. Dead wood and leaves are littering my driveway and the yard that surrounds our house. No big deal really but...

HTP was on his way into town to get the mail yesterday when he happened to glance outside toward the lake and...our dock....and our boat. Because of the wind the lake was wild. I remember saying to HTP in the morning that it was NOT a good day to be out in a boat. White caps. Huge waves...for a small lake. I imagine that the big lake was worse. Our lake is smaller and somewhat protected by all the trees but there was no protection from the winds of yesterday. The waves just kept rolling across the lake....from the south. Anyway, HTP glanced down at the lake and our dock area and our plans for the day changed.

HTP was the first to see that our boat was almost completely swamped. The waves on the lake were crashing over back of our boat. The dock was standing up under the onslaught but the boat...not so much. The entire rear end of the boat was under water. HTP and I raced down to the boat with buckets in hand to see what we could do about the situation but this was going to have to be a battle that was well thought out. The waves were crashing over the rear of the boat, replacing whatever water that HTP and I could remove with our buckets. We had visions of having to call our insurance man and....how does one get a sunken boat off the bottom of a lake? I mean...it was still tethered to the dock but the boat was sinking fast.

HTP and I abandoned the sinking boat...to think about it. Me? I removed my wet jeans and socks and thought about the problem. HTP went off to town to get the mail. I put on a pair of shorts and tried to remember what my Dad and I had done when my sister's boat had found itself in a similar situation. If I could only lift the back of the boat so that I could get a stinking chance at making some headway with bailing. Enter #1 Son. Yes, he's recovering from surgery. No, he can't help with the bailing. However, he was dressed and ready to leap into action. Desert military boots all laced up and ready to go. And so, with #1 Son at my side, I headed back to our sinking vessel...bucket in hand.

I had #1 Son stand in the very bow of the boat to counteract the weight of the engine. Hope. The waves were still crashing over the rear of the boat but...not as much? I added my weight in the bow of the boat and my hopes were raised. I started bailing and I could see progress. More water was being bailed out of the boat than the waves could replace. By the time HTP got back from town, I'd made enough progress that he added his weight and bailing skills to the "party". At this point, we figured that maybe the bilge pump on the boat should be working. Unfortunately, the batteries were flooded. They were almost flat-lining. No bilge pump. HTP tried to figure out a way to get the bilge pump running using all his electrical engineering background but...no luck. Time to call in the professionals but first...
more bailing. HTP disconnected both of the batteries which he would later take back up to the house to put on our battery chargers. At this point I'd been bailing for at least two hours. I was exhausted but we really needed to bail out the storage adn battery compartments so we could give the boat half a chance until the professionals could come and help. Fortunately, HTP was at my side because I'd pretty much bailed myself into sick exhaustion. Muscle shaking, stomach rolling, exhaustion. I had to sit down and recover for a while before I could even make the hike up the hill back to the house.

Before even removing my wet clothes I called in The Professionals. Seasonal Power Toys. I explained our dilemma to Mary Helen (no bilge pump, no functioning battery) and was told that I wasn't the first to send out a frantic scream for help. Her guys were already out on a job but she'd have them call me as soon as they got back. Hugs to Mary Helen. Her guys didn't call...they came over within a half and hour. During that half hour I decided that I was just too sick and tired to put on the dry jeans and socks and shoes that I'd set out before calling in The Professionals. Despite the cool weather, I found a pair of loose capris and slipped on a pair of sandals. A dry shirt...loose...and I was OK. A lot more OK than I would have been if I'd tried to struggle getting tight clothes on a water-logged body. That half hour also gave me time to drink two glasses of water. Water, water, everywhere but not a drop to drink. I'm not sure why I was so thirsty but I guess bailing water is thirsty work.

The Professionals arrived, bringing a freshly charged battery and what turned out to be a bilge pump...a new one. HTP was amazed that they'd come so prepared. Me too. However, that's why they're called Professionals. I imagine this wasn't the first time they've run into problems like ours. After hooking up their fresh battery to our bilge pump, it was discovered that our bilge pump wasn't working all that well. It was kind of working but not well enough to actually move...or remove...any water. Time for a new bilge pump. The Professionals replaced the bilge pump with the new one that they'd brought with them...hooked up the battery again and the new bilge pump started pumping. Water. Water out of our boat. Woohoo! Success! HTP sat with the boat, waiting for the bilge pump to remove all the water (the water that we hadn't been able to remove by bailing buckets alone)from the boat. This was going to take a while so HTP sent The Professionals on back so they could get to their next emergency. He promised to return their battery as soon as the bilge pump had finished doing its thing.

At this point, supper time, it was decided that no-one was in the mood to make supper. Killing two birds with one stone, we all piled into the car to return the marine battery to Seasonal Power Toys and take in an All-You-Can-Eat Friday Night Fish Fry (another story). When we got to Seasonal Power Toys (absolutely the best place ever to buy and rent and Mary Helen is my new best friend), we listened to all the tales of horror (other emergencies similar to our own). On the big lake, a boat lift had "lifted" over its dock and dumped upside down on the other side of said dock. Major damage to the dock and a pontoon boat. More swamped boats and similar tales of boat lift issues. 45mph winds and boat lifts do not mix. I guess I won't be thinking about getting a boat lift anytime soon. As long as I can keep my bilge pump working, we shouldn't have anymore boat swamping incidents. Knock on wood.

*****

So, I'm going to do laundry today and try and give my stiff and sore muscles time to recover. I've got to go check on the boat batteries (charging in the laundry room) to see if they've recharged enough for HTP to reinstall them so the new bilge pump can bilge. I'm keeping my fingers crossed and knocking frantically on wood that I'll find them fully charged despite their near-drowning experience of yesterday. If not, HTP will have to drive into the city to buy a couple of new batteries for the boat...this morning....before it starts raining again....before the waves (it's still pretty darn windy out there)swamp the boat again and we end up with a repeat of yesterday.

Murphyism of the Day

Calvin Coolidge's Comment

You don't have to explain something you never said.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

In taking revenge, a man is but even with his enemy; but in passing it over, he is superior.

- Sir Francis Bacon (1561 - 1626)

I haven't seen any frogs this year. I think it's been too cold.

Word of the Day

Humongify - To make extremely large or enormous.

I actually resorted to unplugging my computer last night. HTP had unplugged his computer long before I did. After the third power glitch, I figured it was time. We got a nice storm last night. Right around supper time. I was helping #1 Son in his efforts to make pizzas. One in the oven, one on the grill. Quite frankly, last night was not the best time in the world to make a pizza on the grill. However, he managed to get the pizza grilled before the major part of the storm hit. It was raining, there was lightning, but it wasn't all that nasty...believe it or not. Anyway, we ended up with two very yummy pizzas for supper. As we were sitting down in front of the television to watch The Jimmy Kimmel Show, the picture became pixulated. Lightning flashed and boom! Out went the power. It came back on but the TV had to reboot itself. And then...not three minutes later, repeat the above. Then repeat again after another three minutes. At this point, I decided to unplug my computer for the night. All the constant power surges are not good for a computer no matter what kind of power strip you own. Having said this, I plugged my computer back in this morning, booted up, and everything is fine. We never got another power outage after that third strike.

We did get rain. Lots of rain. Attempting to watch TV while it's raining outside here at The Lake is something of a frustration factor. We have DirecTV. No cable. So far we haven't found a cable company that thinks it's worth their while to run a cable down our 1/2 mile driveway. Antennas don't work all that well and they won't work at all after the digital TV thing kicks in. DishNet and DirecTV are going to be the only choice for people here in rural America. Really rural America. They've got cable in the little town near us and in the city. We just don't live in town. Anyway, whenever we get sheets of rain, the satellite can't be found. Pixulation and then the black screen of death. Since this part of the country seems to get its share of heavy rain storms, the TV doesn't work too well if you want to check the weather. Not to worry. I've got a NOAA radio that will wake me up in the dead of night to warn me of dangerous weather. It'll even warn me about dangerous weather several counties away. That's OK. It was nice to learn all about the tornado watch that was issued for....was it Chisago County?....I can't remember. It was late.

So, to keep myself entertained last night, I could have read a book. I didn't. Instead I checked to see if my XM radio might be having similar reception problems to that encountered by the TV. It wasn't. I settled in with Gypsy to listen to Rusty Humphries and work on Sudoku puzzles. The rain had let up some by Gypsy's bedtime so I took her for our nightly perimeter walk and found out that one of our main floodlights had died. I'm not sure if it got struck by lightning or what but...I'm not really looking forward to fixing that floodlight. I'm pretty sure I don't have a ladder that will reach it. *sigh* Oh well...HTP knows about it. We couldn't fix it last night and it doesn't look like we'll be fixing it any time soon.

The weather outside is dreary and rainy and you can hear the distant rumble of thunder. Gypsy and I did our morning perimeter check in the rain...not too rainy...but it was rainier than the last time I took her for a perimeter check. We got 1 1/4 inches of rain last night. Seemed a bit more than that at the time but one of my rain gauges (the old-fashioned one) registered that amount. The electronic rain gauge only registered .98 inches of rain. I choose to believe the old-fashioned one because....well...just because. Since it promises to continue raining into the weekend and most of next week, I'll have to decide when to empty the old-fashioned rain gauge and reset the electronic rain gauge. Should I measure the continuous amount of rain that we're supposed to get? The grand total? Or should I dump for the next load of rain? I've decided that I'll wait on the dumping until it stops raining long enough for me to take a walk with Gypsy. There's really no point in dodging raindrops to empty out a rain gauge.

Murphyism of the Day

Santayana's Observation

Fanaticism consists of redoubling your efforts when you have forgotten your aim.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

In archaeology you uncover the unknown. In diplomacy you cover the known.

- Thomas Pickering

The Lake - 2007

Word of the Day

Humography - A funny story that is only funny to those who were there. If told anywhere else, or at a different time, it becomes dull.

It's not really raining outside. Not really. Just a typical Oregon-style mizzle. Of course, Gypsy categorized it as rain but she doesn't like it when wet stuff comes out of the sky. She sat under the front door overhang where the steps are dry and looked out at my as I called her to join me on our morning walk. It was only with great reluctance that she finally joined me for our morning perimeter walk. It wasn't really raining. The ground was wet but if I'd felt like going fishing, this fine mizzle wouldn't have stopped me.

Grey. Dreary. Just a light mizzle. It's hard to believe that it's June. The temperature outside yesterday never even got up to 70°F. Maybe we might get up into the 70's later this weekend. Maybe. The summer that never was? I do remember one summer when I brought the kids to The Lake for a couple of weeks. Summer. 4th of July. The weather was so cold that my Mom had to dig out old winter coats and sweatshirts for the kids...and me. It never occurred to me to pack for winter weather in the middle of July. I'm not sure what year it was. It was before all this global warming hysteria which has now morphed into global climate change because there aren't too many of us that believe that the colder than average temperatures outside this year are an indication of global warming. I'm not biting on the global climate change thing either. Probably because I do remember colder than average summers, warmer than average summers, winters with more snow, winters with very little snow, summer nights spent in the basement because tornadoes were spotted...lots of tornadoes some years, very few during some other seasons. Big storms, little storms, lots of rain, very little rain. My memory isn't all that short to buy the global warming/global climate change hysteria. Weather happens. It changes. I don't think holding our collective breath is going to change things one way or another.

Murphyism of the Day

France's Rule of Folly

If a million people believe a foolish thing, it is still a foolish thing.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last.

- Sir Winston Churchill (1874 - 1965)

Viola Garden - 2007

Word of the Day

Humilify - Gently humiliating; putting someone in their place by citing an example of their incompetence.

We were only in The Big City for one overnight! But when we left my dog kennel garden was still sleeping. I was shocked to see the difference just one night could bring. The seeds are popping like the popping corn that HTP cooks up in the frying pan on the top of the stove. Most of the peas are up. Most of the beans are up. The lettuce is up and I can see that I'll have to thin it out. I even have radishes! I wasn't expecting to see that seed sprout. It was REALLY old seed. I only planted it because I found it in a jar at the bottom of my gardening drawer. Radishes? Supposedly, radishes are the easiest thing that a gardener can grow. All the garden books tell me this. Hah! I beg to differ with the garden books. I can't grow radishes! At least I can't grow radishes here at The Lake. I used to grow great radishes in Arizona. Anyway, I've tried growing radishes here at The Lake. I think the soil is too....something. I get lots of green tops but no actual radish root. After trying to grow radishes for two summers, I gave up. It wasn't worth the waste of garden space. I stuck these seeds on the edge of my lettuce beds. I figured that if they sprouted, they'd at least keep the weeds down until the lettuce was big enough to start harvesting. I still have no faith that I'll actually get edible radishes from my garden. I'm still waiting on the zucchini to sprout. I'm beginning to wonder if Walmart sold me some faulty seeds. Only half of the seeds that I planted in the Earthbox have come up so far. None of the hills in the garden have sprouted. It has been rather cool outside so....I'll wait for a bit longer before tucking in more seeds. The thing is, the growing season here at The Lake isn't all that long. It looks like this year's growing season is going to be even shorter than average.

Murphyism of the Day

Marshall's First Law of the Legislature

Never let the facts get in the way of a carefully thought-out bad decision.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

Our greatest pretenses are built up not to hide the evil and the ugly in us, but our emptiness. The hardest thing to hide is something that is not there.

- Eric Hoffer (1902 - 1983)

Garden - 2007

Word of the Day

Hu - A 3rd person gender-neutral pronoun. Its brevity and morphological structure (one open syllable: a consonant + a vowel) make it similar to other 3rd person pronouns -- a typical, easily recognizable member of this class: he - she - hu.

We're Home! PTL!

Yesterday was a "fun-filled" day. Sometimes it's hard to express sarcasm in the written form of a blog. I did have some fun yesterday but.... Our drive to The Big City started a 2 AM on Sunday. #1 Son and I entered the hospital to get #1 Son registered for surgery at around 5:30 AM...as per schedule. While #1 Son and I were doing the register bit, HTP was finding a place to park the car. He joined us later in the Surgery Family Waiting Room. There we waited until #1 Son was called for surgery prep. 6 AM. Nothing to eat or drink for #1 Son so....HTP and I honored this and waited until after he'd gone for prep to sip on a bit more coffee. We were called into a back prep room to join #1 Son after he was all prepped for surgery. We got to meet the anesthesiologists and helpers. We got to meet the nurses and helpers. We got to meet the surgeon. This hospital is part of the University. Lots of helpers in training for titles. At around 7:30 AM, they wheeled #1 Son off to surgery and HTP and I were free to explore the culinary delights of a hospital cafeteria. Actually...it wasn't too bad. Either that or we were just too tired and hungry to care. They even had Starbucks coffee. I've decided that I'm not fond of Starbucks coffee. Tasted a bit like cigarette ashes. But...that might be because I was tired and coffee never really does anything to wake me up.

After dining on the culinary delights offered by the hospital cafeteria, HTP and I returned to the Surgery Family Waiting Room to wait. And we waited.... I didn't kill the man who was waiting for his wife who was having surgery. I was tempted. He kept humming. Tunelessly humming. I worked on Sudoku puzzles, read a book, worked on more Sudoku puzzles, gritted my teeth and took deep breaths and attempted to ignore the tuneless humming. People came and people left. The hummer remained. And then....

Enter The Yuppie Family. It's rare to see such a stereotype outside of a cartoon. First to enter was The Yuppie Wife and The Yuppie Husband. They were late. They weren't upset that they were late. Their attitude was...so what if we got here an hour late for surgery. Doctors are supposed to accommodate the stereotypical Yuppie Family...and apparently, they did. Enter The Yuppie Wife's Sister. Ms. Yuppie Sister. Enter another Mr. Yuppie (I'm not sure if this was Yuppie Sister's husband, or brother or....he was another Mr. Yuppie). And then...too round things out...enter The Yuppie Wife's Mother. Yuppie Mom! Yuppie Mom and Yuppie Sister discussed the great job that Yuppie Mom's doctor had done on her latest face lift. The Yuppie Wife entered complete with three suitcases! I have not idea what kind of surgery she was expecting for herself but apparently she felt that she needed to pack for all contingencies. Of course, with yuppies come Yuppie Cellphones. They ALL came equipped with Yuppie Cell Phones. Name dropping began. The merits of eating beef or going vegan were discussed. Clients were discussed and NAMES were dropped for spice. Entertaining at the lake for the weekend. Menus were discussed.

Needless to say, I was so intrigued by The Yuppie Family and all their entourage that "The Hummer" faded away from my consciousness. The Yuppie Family didn't seem to mind my goggling stares of amazement.

In the meantime, HTP found a computer terminal, which, after a few tweaks and adjustments was able to keep him entertained for quite some time. HTP is really good at tweaking computers. He noted that after he'd wandered off to read the paper, several other people raced over to use the computer...the newly functioning computer.

Finally, around 12 PM, the doctor (surgeon) came out to tell us that #1 Son made it through his surgery just fine. Relief! Four long hours of surgery don't seem long to someone like #1 Son because he's out in la-la land under the influence of the good drugs. HTP and Me were sitting in constant worry and discomfort in a Surgery Family Waiting Room. Nevermind the entertainment factor of The Yuppie Family. Those who sit and wait aren't spending their time playing cribbage...oh...wait a minute... The hummer's family were playing cribbage...come to think about it. 15-1, 15-2, a pair and that makes.... Shuffle the cards and.....

At around 1 PM, we were able to go see #1 Son in his room up on the 10th Floor. We didn't stay long. We just wanted to see him. Hey! I'm a Mom. I'm allowed to see my son, especially after sitting in Surgery Family Waiting Room for seven hours. He was fine. He was sleepy. He was uncomfortable. He didn't want visitors. But...he got a hug before we left him to the squads of nurses.

OK...here we were in The Big City and nothing to do...right? Wrong. Since we knew that #1 Son wouldn't be released from the hospital until today, we checked into our hotel, dropped off our bags and went to see HTP's Mom and Dad. Just a short visit. HTP's Mom and Dad don't deserve that we come to The Big City and don't stop in to see them.

After that, we drove to a movie theatre where we bought tickets for that Indiana Jones movie that just came out. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. HTP has been dying to see a movie at this particular movie theatre with REALLY GREAT SOUND SYSTEM. Blow you out of your seat sound system. Actually, it was pretty good. I guess I'm not into sound systems all that much. HTP is and he loved it. The movie? Well...I have to say that I preferred the other Indiana Jones movies to this one but, aside from a couple of hokie bits of special effects that were a bit over the top (the monkey scene and the prairie dogs and...well...maybe the nuclear bomb test thing was a bit over the top too but...), I loved it. I think I'll probably end up buying the movie...just because. Aliens? Huh?...oh well.

After the movie, HTP and I connected with MC Daughter and D Buddy. We also managed to get a call through to #1 Son at the hospital. He was doing just fine...oops...another nurse. Gotta go. We (MC Daughter, D Buddy, Me and HTP) went to The Outback for supper. The Outback is pretty much the same wherever you go but sometimes consistency is a wonderful thing. They've always been consistently good. If you order your steak rare, you get your steak rare. The loaded baked potato soup is wonderful. The chopped blue cheese salad is (ditto) wonderful. And, they know how to make onion blossoms. Besides, they bring you a really nice frosty beer. You can't go wrong with that. I ate half my salad, I ate half my prime rib, I ate all my baked potato soup and I drank all my beer.

After taking MC Daughter and her hubby (D Buddy) back home, HTP and I retired for the evening at our hotel.

****

Flash forward to this morning. We got up and enjoyed coffee and rolls. Free. Gotta love free continental breakfasts. As we were sipping on our coffee, we get a call from #1 Son. He called to let us know that things were going just fine and it looked like he'd be checking out of the hospital by 10 AM. Cool. We checked out of the hotel and hit the road for the hospital. Rush hour. However, we did get to the hospital before 10 AM. After circling the parking lot several times, HTP finally found a spot that wasn't too far from the elevators and wasn't out in the rain. Oh...it was raining.

It wasn't long after we got up to #1 Son's room that we were all packed up and ready to wheel #1 Son off. They really do insist that patients sit in wheel chairs for this last bit. HTP raced off to get the car while one of the charge nurses and I wheeled #1 Son down to the front door.

It's a long drive from The Big City to The Lake. We had to stop a few times for #1 Son to stop and walk around a bit but we arrived in the city to do some shopping and pick up the prescriptions for #1 Son at around 2 PM. Here's where we encountered a bit of a rub. Walmart had never heard of the doctor that had signed the prescriptions for #1 Son's medications. Argh! Cell phones come in handy! I called #1 Son (resting in the car) and got the number for the hospital which wasn't on the top of the prescription paperwork. HTP called that number and they redirected him to the 10th Floor of the hospital where a first year resident had signed the prescription paperwork but failed to enter certain important numbers that Walmart requires. The nurses on the 10th Floor put in a call for the first year resident. He returned the call and then called Walmart in the city. Numbers were given. And...after two hours of waiting...the prescription was filled. Was it? After all this I'm proud to say, I wasn't so trusting. I checked. The bag only had two prescriptions where there should have been three. The Walmart pharmacy in the big city filled two of the prescriptions but didn't see the third. I ran back inside Walmart, dodging raindrops, and pointed out the error. They filled the third prescription and cut $5 off my bill for the error of their ways.

We're Home! I picked up Gypsy from my folks' place. She sure did look comfortable sleeping the that little basket at Dad's feet. However, I'm glad to have her home too. I'll blog on about my garden tomorrow. Tonight? I'm making spaghetti with Italian sausage for supper.

Murphyism of the Day

Lowe's Law

Success always occurs in private, and failure in full public.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

Doing a thing well is often a waste of time.

Robert Byrne