Porch number 1069 is now CLOSED 6/19/2018

Good morning everyone!

Here's a picture of the Brooklyn Bridge I took with my phone during the cruise. If Brooklyn (the largest of the 5 boroughs in New York) were it's own city it would be the 4th largest in the country!

Some other little known facts...the Brooklyn Bridge was designed by John A. Roebling, but it was the 2nd bridge of this type he designed. The first one is here in my hometown of Cincinnati. The third one he designed is large, red, and very well known. It's in California.

I'm very glad to be home. New York City is very loud. the constant bustle and noise were getting to me by the end. Also, as I said yesterday, a certain black cat is very happy to have me home.

I did make it up to Central Park (briefly).
I saw Benny Goodman's clarinet and Gene Krupa's drumsticks in the Carnegie museum. (Goosebumps!!)
I hailed a cab
I rode the subway
I saw Times Square
I saw the Rockefeller Center
I saw Grand Central Terminal (in all fairness, my hotel was right next door)
I ate genuine New York style pizza
I went to the Garment District
I saw the Statue Of Liberty and Ellis Island
I got a standing ovation in Carnegie Hall

There were so many more things I would have liked to do, but time was so short, and there is so much to see and do!

Barry - I hope you are recovering quickly from your dental work. No fun that.

Rock - We'll make you a new TV show - "The Book Hunter"

Julie - Sounds like a great elevator! Glad you got to spend the day with your father.

Funny story - apparently my DSIL hadn't heard about the trip and when she sent out the family invite for Father's Day, I declined with my legitimate excuse. She replied jokingly, "I'll be at my opening at the Louvre." I had to tell her it wasn't a joke!! So on Sunday I teased her in reply and told her to have a good opening day at the Louvre!

Good Tuesday Morning, Kids,

I was here earlier before I went to the pool. Evidently, I forgot to click on Post Reply and it didn't post. It was only a couple of lines to let y'all know I'd be back. I took an allergy pill before going but my eyes watered and my makeup is running into them and burning. It's miserable. If it ain't my ears, it's my eyes. Good grief.

Duckie, thanks for starting a new Porch. I'm so happy to read all about your trip to NYC and how wonderful it was to perform at Carnegie Hall. I'm glad you had such a great time. My then boyfriend and I took the same cruise. He took a pic which looks as though the statue is on top of my head. We stopped and visited Ellis Island where both of our ancestors were processed. Bet Worf is over the moon now that you're home.

Julie another nice pic of you and your DD. Glad you and Den are making such good progress. Sometimes, we rise to whatever occasion needs our attention but, at some point, we have to stop and come to grips with our physical and emotional health. It's a good thing to do.

Spring, the pic reminds me of the famous "Footprints In The Sand." I think the kid eventually went out to give talks to high school kids about how a relatively minor crime escalated to murder. I believe he eventually was paroled. His name was Kevin but I can't remember his last name. If I can find his brother in my yearbooks, I can look it up. I'm not sure his brother finished school. I love that cartoon and even the 'man' in the moon is a kitty.

Footprints In The Sand

One night I dreamed a dream.
As I was walking along the beach with my Lord.
Across the dark sky flashed scenes from my life.
For each scene, I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand,
One belonging to me and one to my Lord.

After the last scene of my life flashed before me,
I looked back at the footprints in the sand.
I noticed that at many times along the path of my life,
especially at the very lowest and saddest times,
there was only one set of footprints.

This really troubled me, so I asked the Lord about it.
"Lord, you said once I decided to follow you,
You'd walk with me all the way.
But I noticed that during the saddest and most troublesome times of my life,
there was only one set of footprints.
I don't understand why, when I needed You the most, You would leave me."

He whispered, "My precious child, I love you and will never leave you
Never, ever, during your trials and testings.
When you saw only one set of footprints,
It was then that I carried you."


Granni, I hope the meds help you. I'm doing the softening drops in my ears so I can flush out any stubborn wax. I've mentioned that my DSIL worked as a chef before becoming an airline pilot. His brother works as a chef and, between the two of them, it's a feast when we get together. I just stay out of the way and enjoy the fruits of their labor. I'm starving but don't know what I want. I'm also tired and almost fell asleep waiting to go to the pool. Hope you get rid of that nasty rash.

Rock, glad you found the book. I lose so much stuff that it's amazing I can ever find anything anymore. Your friend was wise. Gifts of rats from cats are indeed gifts of love. I also think that they enjoy showing off their hunting skills so we will be impressed by them and proud of them. It's no less a gift of love if the kitty decides to stop and help himself or herself to a bite or two. I'm so sorry about your Coke. Have you decided to bring suit against Coca-Cola? Geez, what negligence. I'm not trying to make lite of the situation because, damnit, when I want my Coke, I want it and it's a disappointment if half of it is gone. I'm an optimist but couldn't look at that as a can half full; it's a can half empty. I hope you had another.

I've been very upset at things which are going on in our country for some time. What is going on at the border with children being taken from their parents and put in detention has finally pushed my emotions over the edge. My brain has shut down my emotions to protect me. This happened after my divorce and the shrink says it's a form of PTSD. I'm thankful for the shutting down of my emotions because I don't think I could stand the pain of seeing what is going on. Intellectually, I know it's horrible and very, very sad but I can't feel the pain right now. My emotions will return when I'm able to cope but right now, my heart is broken so all I can do is pray.

Sending love, hugs and prayers to all our beloved Porchies.

Love, Mikie

Duck, wow!
Talk about light show! What an adventure!
Hope you are also happy to climb into your own bed and let that cat of yours smother you with all his 'miss you' love and attention.

Julie, I too would be interested in a pic of the elevator.love handy man contraptions, esp if made out of odds -n sods.
I agree with Den about it being important to hang out with your dad.
I just found out from my Aunty that when my Uncle went in to have a routine procedure to do with his prostate, because he was peeing too much at nights, there's evidence of cancer.No one saw that coming and its all hush hush because my cousin who currently lives in Chicago with young fam has been undergoing serious cancer treatment just lately..
No one wants to stress her or her mother out even further.My Aunt and Uncle are the real deal and actually do put others first.unfortunately he has back pain too so Aunty is worried its spread.

Mikie, I too was thinking about the miraculous change in Barb and how theres been such a turn around.
My mil is Barb aswell.theres a few around.
I am praying for your Treasures and in particular for light to be shed on sil.horrible when you dont hv answers.

About Jesus- remember when he told the rich man to sell all his stuff? And he went away sad? I think that may hv been when Jesus said it was easier for a rich man to pass through the eye of a needle than to enter The Kingdom of God...guess it depends on who your god/God is...when i think of all the rich, jet owning preachers, I just figure that they get blessed, sure, but the Bible says we are stewards of what we have and from the one 'much is given, much is expected '
Maybe they are getting All their rewards on earth.I'll be happy to get mine in Heaven.
I think it would be fun, to a degree, figuring out who you can give $$ to if you were rich, coz we dont really Need that much being in our 'lucky' countries....

Sun, I dont know if you'll see this, but it was really heart breaking to read about the boy who committed suicide like that.so so very sad.Apparently theres an epidemic of loneliness in young people and it has to do with technology ...praying you can enjoy your time and pain is at a minimum.

Barry, I hv filled our window boxes (that I made with stock, pansies and strawberries.
I hv loads of bulbs coming up prematurely but they sure look better than nothing!!
Guess we will hv to wait and see what happens in Spring when they are meant to shoot.
I also planted some seed.I half expected everything to drown due to the massive downpours over the last few days, but we hv sweet peas, beetroot, brussel sprouts and more strawberries to name a few shoots emerging.
The sprouts seed is at least 7 yrs old, being an old mothers day gift I finally decided to use, rather than keep.
We still hv heaps of silverbeet, which is great coz guinea pigs 'call' for it now, the main cockatiel shows me he wants his new leaf and the breeding budgies scoff it down.

Granni, glad dh and dd heard from cdd.and yes.it is a start.even if you hv to reboot or restart over and over.
Theres always Hope.

Spring, when I first heard my dad was at the end, my little family and I prayed that God would miraculously reach His Hand into my dad and clear away the mess and cobwebs from his mind and heart, get right with Jesus before he died...apparently just before dad died , my niece walked into the room and he was so loving and affectionate in words and gesture and had such a light about him and in his eyes, she thought he must've been healed...no one could remember him ever being like that.I wonder if he saw angels.that would also explain the light in and around him.

Rock, your poor little kitty is on guard is she? How lovely its been reading about your romance blossoming with her.
I didnt realise ears got clipped though! Im glad she has the opportunity to love and be loved by you.

Judy, very thoughtful of you to repot your mothers plants and pass them on.

Im worried my post is gi-normous so best call it a night/morning?

My love to all Porchies
Take care
Catch yas later

Hi, Star,

We were posting at the same time. I am so glad to hear about your Dad's being so affectionate and in the light when he died. It's wonderful that someone was there to see it and tell everyone about it. Just knowing that has to give you some peace. I'm sorry about your uncle and cousin. Prayers going up. Thank you for the prayers for my kids. If only the docs could figure out what is causing my DSIL's pain and weakness in his legs. I love him so dearly as I do all my kids. It's difficult to know how hard this is on DD too. I think back in Jesus' day, the rich got that way through dubious means. Many today also get rich that way but some work hard or inherit it. I think it's what one does with one's money that counts. Yes, we are very fortunate. Even those of us without much are better off than most of the rest of the world. I try to make donations, no matter how small, so that I can share what I am blessed to have. Your family is so lucky to have you because you beautify everything around you.

I gotta go figure out what I want to eat. I'm hungry but nothing sounds good. Ugh! I hate that. 'See' ya later.

Love, Mikie

Mikie - I, too, am trying to figure out what I want to eat. Maybe everything is a come-down after New York???

Good morning my Dear Porchies,

DUCKIE - Thanks for the great pics as well as yours. Looks and sounds like you had a great time. Now are you playing catch up while you were gone having FUN??? I have been to alot of the places you mentioned, even though I didn't get to SING at Carnegie Hall, since I was born in NY but not the city most of my growing up years. Well, I guess it is now back to reality for you !! LOL Thanks also for starting us up again.

STAR - Sorry about your UNCLE has cancer that has not been disclosed to all, It is all very scary. If he has it he needs to go to a urologist to see if things can be done to stop it. Don;t know his age and if that would prohibit any treatment or not. I know as my DH has prostate ca surgery years ago probably in age 60's or so for its removal. That has not come back but he did get it on the side of the kidney and that was removed a few months or so ago. Now he just has to go for checkups and hope it doesn't return as that type seems to do a lot of returning I hear. Wish that he would know about it and see if anything can be done to halt the spreading or remove it completely, if possible with surgery or any other method of Rx. They shouldn't just leave it alone unless he is very old and it is in a place where nothing can be done and also if chemo and radiation would not benefit him due to age or other problems. Good luck esp since they are such good people.

MIKIE - How nice and surprising that Barb is trying to be friendly towards you and all. Hope it continues. How long will they be visiting? Maybe she is just having some guilt feelings on things she has said and done in the past and is wanting to go to Heaven when she passes . How old is she? Of course she had a stroke or strokes in the past which caused lots of problems for her and family. Glad you are both friendly and hope it lasts. Not going to say much about the illegal situation except that it is all not as it seems and the rules that are in place now , I believe were rules that were put in place years ago with many past presidents, and were there for a good reason. That is all I will say about it esp since it is now being VERY politicized and many are getting just one side of the story or don't even want to hear the other side of it. Yes, it can be very sad but I don't want keep getting into this or talk about. Not only are we not supposed to be talking about on here but it is upsetting and we have enough upsetting stuff happening the way we feel, without listening to all this stuff. I also don't want to leave my friends because of any of this. Love you all to much !! Ii could say a lot more about it but I will not. Got a headache as well as other things ):!!

ROCK - Glad you are doing pretty well and enjoying Miss Kitty who seems to be enjoying your attention more. That is a good thing for you. I also remember our old kitty when I was little used to bring my mom gifts of dead mice. I guess she loved us and MOM 1

Gotta run and so some work around here. DH is gone to his meeting and our handyman is supposed to be coming sometime but not sure when, before 12, that tells me alot !! DUH !!

Love to awl,
Granni

Hi Kids

Went out and fed kitty this morning. Brushed her. The crow that lives around here sat
in the neighbor's palm tree and croaked a few times. I croaked back, but can't say we really
got a dialogue going.

Gordon went to his stitchery class. Will do some errands on the way back. I saw a wonderful
documentary about Leslie Howard last night. I missed the first few minutes, but I think the
name of the film is The Man Who Gave A Damn. Apparently it was made about 3 years ago.
Howard was a very popular stage and film actor in both England and America during the
30s and 40s. His best known role in this country is as Ashley Wilkes.

Granni, kitty used to come by now and then. For the last 4 years or so, I don't believe she has
left our yard. No evidence that she has ever hunted or caught anything. But she has
definitely changed from being afraid to being affectionate. Hope your handyman shows up. We've had a couple over the years. They were all unreliable when it came to showing up. But generally did good work.

Mikie, I'm so glad you understand the shock and trauma I experienced when I discovered I
had been swindled outta half a coke twice in my lifetime, I decided action must be taken.
I have written to the Coke people and told them I will initiate a class action suit if they do not
immediately send me a coupon good for a can of coke. That's fair because I lost 2 half cans.
This will show them they are not dealing with just any old fool.

Starlight, here's a joke I heard decades ago dealing with one aspect of wealth and religion.
A man as rich as Croesus was told he was mortally ill and had only a few hours left. He
instructed his servant to pack his bag with gold and to bury it with him. Arriving at the
Pearly Gates he was told no baggage was allowed in. "But I need it," Croesus pleaded. "Well,
open it up," said St. Peter. "Let's have a look."

So Croesus opened his bag and St Peter looked at him in amazement. "You brought paving?"

Duckie, I'm glad you had such a wonderful trip. That's an impressive list you posted. I feel
that I've almost been to those places myself since they've been appearing in movies all my
life. When was it that every other movie seemed to open with a passenger plane landing at a
New York Airport? The 70s?

I think The Book Hunter would be a great name for a TV show. Perhaps it would attract
more viewers if we titled it "The Bookinator" and got Arnold Schwarzenegger to star. Great
pic of the skyline.

Hugs, All
Rock

Hi, Kids,

Duckie, you are soooo right about everything gastronomic being a letdown after NYC. OMG! The food there is soooo good. I enjoyed seeing the pic of you; you look sooo happy like you're having a grand old time.

Granni, I'm sorry if you thought I was trying to have a political argument with anyone here. I also love all our Porchies. I was making a personal reference to how sad the situation is for me. Seeing those kids is breaking my heart. Barb is about 85. I don't think her newfound happiness and kindness is an act. She seems genuinely happy and I'm so happy for that. It's something I've prayed for for a long time. I believe prayer works. Hope your handyman doesn't keep you waiting.

Rock, one emotion which is not numb right now is humor and I so appreciate your funny posts. Your post about the Coke cracked me up. Also loved the joke about the gold paving. Last time I was at Publix, there was a big crow trying to get to food inside a plastic bag. Evidently, someone had bought lunch at the deli and tied the paper and any leftovers in the plastic bag. That crow was rolling the bag over and over and stopping to caw at it. A bigger white bird came over and tried to peck at it with his beak to no avail. This really upset the crow who thought he had first dibs. I had to leave so didn't get to see whether the crow ever got into the bag. Crows are so smart that I bet he did get it open.

I see someone else has posted so I'm gonna post this and come back.

Love, Mikie

Hi, Barry,

So glad to see you here. Glad that you're up to posting after that extraction. I'm sorry there are more in the offing. Your home sounds so wonderful. It's great that there are so many windows so you can be more of a part of the beautiful nature there. It's a bright sunny day here too but it's in the 90's. So, I'm inside in the A/C. My A/C guy gave it a bill of good health yesterday. He's such a nice guy. I've known him more than 12 years now. It's good to have an A/C guy one can trust here. So many scammers out there. We have to have A/C here. So far, the heat hasn't been bothering me but I'm sure it will get to me in a month or so. Weather experts now say they believe an El Nino is definitely on its way and that bodes well for the hurricane threat. When do you have to have another extraction? Hmmmm, I wonder whether there's a patron saint for teeth.

I'm just resting today. I was tired before I went to the pool and have been drifting off ever since I got home. Zzzzzzzz

Love, Mikie

Good Wednesday Morning, Kiddies,

Up early with a sore throat--allergies! Bah! Nothing much going on so will stop back in later.

Love, Mikie

Awww.sorry to hear that Mikie.
Hope you get to feeling better soon!
Yes.I think we all hv a sense of Peace about dad's last moments and where he's gone.
I believe our prayer was answered too and yes it was great that my niece was there at that moment of love.
He died holding her hand.
Thanks for your kind words.

Rock, I really liked your 'gold pavers' joke..

Barry, ooh.sorry you are in pain with teeth extraction. And more to come?
Also, I can relate to growing ivy as a mistake.

Duck, recovered from being in the fast lane yet? Congrats on singing at Carnegie and in front of the Statue of liberty.

Granni, thanks for info on the prostrate cancer.I did some research on it last night.He is in his 70s, but aside from this latest, really good health usually.for some reason he has to wait till July before a plan is worked out...?

Spring, had green curry, chicken breast last night, but boy oh boy did i over do the chilli!

Judy, hope things are improving for Vickie.

Julie, good to see you guys are getting sooo much done! Must feel great getting some order.
Hope you arent spending too much time on the mower.

A big Hello to all our fellow Porchies!

Take care
Catch yas later.

Hello

Dripping sweat. Im sat in a cafe. Just polished off a piece o'carrot cake, a butterscotch th icecream, a cup of tea. I saw this foreigner lady combing down a stray dog laid on a table. Getting the tufts out. Two other young girls were helping.they were grooming a stray dog each. Buckets of water and shampoo. The dogs were so happy. They were lying down, eyes closed, revelling in the attention. Then they dabbed in mangy spots with ointment. Volunteers caring for street dogs.

Mikie - im so happy the young offender turned good. We need all the good news we can get in these turbulent times. Footprints in the Sand is soul touching. Im sure i have been lifted many times as i stumbled through life.

Star - thank you for that beautiful news about how your father was with your niece. I think the angels did come down and brush him down of some of the negativity so his true light was able to shine. Your last post was so upbeat. I was happy for you.

God bless

Morning Kids

Sorry to hear about your sore throat, Mikie. The Saint for sore throats is Saint Blaise. There
is a village named after him in England. Apollonia is the Saint for teeth problems. Are you
still drifting? Which would you rather drift along with? The tide or the tumbling tumble
weeds?

Well, I wonder about that Publix crow too. Do you know what the white bird was? I remember
stopping at a drive in with my brother years ago. We were in Hollywood. There were lots of birds hanging around. Sparrows, pigeons, and two gulls. We occasionally get sea gulls at nearby Echo Park Lake. Haven't seen our friend the cattle egret for a year or so. We're about 15 miles from the ocean.


Barry, hope your extractions aren't to excruciating. I had lots of 'em. Sometimes they hurt
for a few days after. But most of the time the pain went away after a few hours. $400 for a
bird? Yikes. I would never pay a lotta money for an animal. With my luck it would promptly
die. After much cajoling I bought my son a corn snake. Musta been about 3o years ago. The
animal was beautiful. But it died the same day I bought it. Years later I realized I probably
killed it when I sprayed for bugs. The pet shop was also selling a parrot for $1500 and a
big fish (an arowana, I think) for $300.

Well, Kids, time to sign off. Tune in tomorrow to see if Mildred will become the Home Coming
Queen and to hear about Harold's progress in the Best Floor Waxer Contest at the shop.

Rock

Aaaaah, I'm inside and the A/C feels soooo goood. As is usually the case, sitting here thinking about thinning out the plants on the side of our bldg. was worse than actually doing it. It only took me an hour. I cut down two small plumaria trees which were too close to the foundation and trimmed back a kind of bush that I don't know the name of. They spread and grow a bit taller than I. They were keeping the sun from shining on our sensor and the outside lights were staying on. They have orange blossoms which bloom all year. The bird of paradise plants have overrun some of the other things I put out a few years ago but I'm not going to do anything. The weaker plants will die.

I took a bath before I went out which seems counter intuitive but, if I injured myself or got really sick, I wanted to be as clean as possible if I had to go to the ER. As it is, I'm not that sweaty even though the humidity has picked up. I'm drinking a ton of water. I came in and changed my clothes. SV got up on the sofa and licked the sweat off my leg. Good grief! He also sniffed my shoes all over. He misses those good dirt and plant smells from outside. I had to trim around a little spider's nest. I was careful not to destroy it. I told the spider that I meant her no harm. She must have understood as she sat still.

Star, I'm so glad your Dad's death has brought some peace to you all because he was in peace at the end. Thanks for sharing that. Good news for any of our Porch Family is good news for us all. I've been holding sad things in their own little space emotionally. I'm aware of them but cannot let them break my heart. At some point, I'll likely break down and cry but right now, I can't. I'm taking in all the happy and funny things I encounter. So good to see you here.

Spring, I'm drooling reading about what you ate. Publix makes delicious carrot cake with cream frosting. You made my day with the story of the volunteers' grooming the stray dogs. How wonderful. We have a lot of volunteers here who work at the shelters and groom and exercise the dogs. I looked through my high school yearbooks but couldn't find the brother of the kid who killed that old lady. I think I was in junior high school when it happened and the brother dropped out of school. He was so horribly traumatized by it all. He felt his brother's shame on him. I stayed friends with him as best I could. Another schoolmate committed a robbery and went to prison and turned his life around. There are some who can be saved, especially the young ones. Thank you for sharing the good doggie news.

I'm beat. My allergies weren't that bad outside but the Red Tide is worse again. It never goes away anymore but it gets worse at times. The big water releases from Lake O seem to cause it to bloom. There are big projects on the drawing board to try to mitigate the problem but it will be a few years before they are completed. If the Army Corp of Engineers hadn't tried to improve on Mother Nature's work, we wouldn't be in this mess. They straightened our river, taking out the oxbows where the water gets cleaned. Now, they are putting them back in. Our tax dollars at work! What really needs doing is rebuilding the dirt Hoover dikes on the south end of Lake O. They are like the ones in New Orleans which gave out during Hurricane Katrina.

OK, enough whining! I hope everydooby has a great day.

Love, Mikie

Back again. I was typing from the cafe. Then it was time to come home beating the five to six rush hour traffic.

Rock - i laughed so hard at your pavement ,coke can post and Harold and Mildred. A laugh a day keeps the doctor away. I had four. My mom and especially Dad had great senses of humour. Boy, when our family laughed, we laughed. You bought a snake for your little boy? We had parrots that didnt live. We just werent for them. The other birds, lovebirds, little dark birds sparrow like, gineau pigs they did fine. Dad kept them. The gineau pigs loved gudpak a sweet dish..if they got a whiff of it, their noses would twitch like they were battery operated.

Granni - i heard Near Death Experiences can change peoples nature for the better. It seems Mikies friend Barb had one. The immigration situation is a sad one. Most heartbreaking/unfortunate for those affected. Very difficult for those in the govt. all i can say is im glad im not the one deciding. Your CD calling her sister was a breakthrough. How much she and her DS have gone through. Of all things that are bad in this world, mental illness must be the worst. For the sufferer and their loved ones. Imagine if she comes out of it, and is able to get back a normal life. I believe anything can happen. Miracles. If the Berlin Wall could come down. And apartheid in S.Africa abolished. China stopped being so hardline communist. Yes, hope there is for us all.

Everytime i have a normal day, go about my chores, a catastrophe doesnt come calling, i thank God. Its draining to go through some health issue or other continuously., colours the world more gray. Affects our outlook on life. I hope your DD that had to have her doggie put down is somewhat recovered. I still hurt thinking about our Hobbes . Our Lab. Though the raw pain is gone.

Mikie - that Red Tide. I so hope something can be done about it. Glad to read you went and cleared a patch of your outside greenery. It is stimulating me to do something similar tomorrow. I smiled at your tete a tete with the spider. I talk to the plants all the time. And i know they understand. I know your sad about your DSIL. Who wouldnt be? I know you didnt need that on top of your own health issues. I pray so hard for him, you, all of us, our loved ones, pets.

Ack! A chore beckons. Will be back.

God bless

Dear Ones,

STAR- Don't feel around with prostate cancer if you know he has it. Get him to a urologist to check on status of it and what can be done. My DH was in 60's inn 01 probably originally when he had prostate removed and then just recently he started with blood in the urine. The urologist found it was a tumor or cyst (cancerous) on the outside wall of the kidney. Luckily it was growing out and not in . Leaving it to grow only makes treatment and survival less possible. You might ask or tell your uncle or family about this. Prostate cancer is usually slow growing so hopefully it hasn't already spread. Don;t just let it go, if you can help it. I know it isus to the person with it but he needs to know and have it at least checked.. They have more options now and some not so severe. Glad you got some peace from your dad's death, as MIKIE mentioned., and hope it stays that way.

MIKIE - Sorry about your sore throat. Hope it is getting better. All your speaking of food is making me hungry esp the stuff I am not supposed to have like carrot cake, yummy ! Sorry about that darn Red Tide. Wish it would go away forever instead of causing problems for people like you. You should be pooped after all your exercising at the pool , shopping and everything else you have been doing. Keep hanging in there !!

Will be going out to lunch with 2 DD's as the guys and kiddo and DGS went to Galveston to go on the rides. It is a long ride from here and hope they don;t encounter flooding or a lot of rain. Wondering if they close the rides down if it is raining. I don't know but they wanted to go anyway. Can't go tomorrow and DGS has work again on Friday. I told DD#2 I would pay for her lunch for her bday that was the 9th.

SPRING - Yes, I almost forgot about Barb's after death experiences and I imagine that is why she is behaving more civily , if that is word ? Yes, I am sure having to put down a dear pet is hard for a very long time. Hope things stay sunny and bright for you with no gray days with no sad things happening.

Glad to hear from you ROCK . . Hi's to everyone inc JUDY, JULIE, SUN ( hope you are having a good time), DUCKIE, BARRY (Hope the extractions went well without to much discomfort- not sure when you were having that done).

Love to awl,
Granni

Hi, Kids,

Rock, I'm so sorry, we were posting at the same time and I missed your post. I knew about Saint Blaise but not Saint Apollonia for teeth. Thanks. Good to know. My Gyno's name is Blaise. He is such a kind man. There was a woman named, Apollonia, in my home town back in the 50's. Her husband sold, repaired and stored furs. They were old country and seemed a bit scary to me. She looked like Elsa Lanchester. She died her hair black, wore a lot of makeup and often wore furs. The little white bird is some kind of smaller wading bird. I have a difficult time identifying them if I don't have my book. There is a small retention pond next to Publix and tons of various birds hang out there. Just like with us old folks, FL is a great place for birds. Or, is FL for the birds? The ones that hang out near grocery stores and restaurants don't even have to work for their food. The Burger King down the street looks like a bird sanctuary. People come out after eating and there may be five or more birds standing on their cars. As you know, my Mom sends me feathers from Heaven. When I see a flock like that, I say to her, "Geez, Mom, you don't have to give me the bird." I know that makes her laugh. To answer your question, I think I'd rather drift in and out of consciousness. Zzzzzzz

Spring, Barb did have a NDE but it was a couple of years later before she did her turnaround. I think not being able to live alone and selling her condo to her kids made a huge difference. She basically has no worries now and the kids see to her every need. I know it bothered her to be on the outs with me, especially since I continued to be as nice to her as I could under the circumstances. Living with anger in one's heart takes its toll and I think she got sick of it. Also, the two of us always had so much fun together and I think she missed our friendship. In any case, you are right; it is a miracle, one I prayed long and hard for. I thank God for everything and try to live in gratitude. No matter how bad of a time I'm having, there are so many living lives of sickness, pain, terror, wars, you name it. My worst day would probably seem like Heaven to them. I thank God for my appliances too because I can't imagine getting along without them. Thank you for your prayers. I appreciate them and keep you in mine.

Granni, I hope the rain spares you and your family. It sounds busy at your place. I know it's great to have family around but it can also be exhausting. Yes, I'm tired but am pacing myself. I only worked outside for an hour. My friend, the other Barb, goes to the pool every day but I can only do it three times a week. My legs hurt when I'm through. There has been a lot of inflammation in my thighs and I've had to rub it out. It's sooo painful to do that but it does help get the inflammation out. I keep your DD in my prayers with Saint Dymphna and your DH with Saint Peregrine. I keep all our Porchies and their families in my prayers. Like Spring, I do believe in miracles, great and small.

A/C 'expert' on the news says that the thermostats should be set no lower than 78. She said every degree lower than that raises energy costs 8 percent. I keep mine at 77 and that is perfect. She also said ceiling fans don't cool the air and just use energy. I use my fan every day. Air moving across my skin feels cooler even if it doesn't change the temp in the room. That keeps me from setting the A/C lower. Some of these 'experts' have to be taken with a grain of salt.

I hope everydooby is keeping cool and having a wonderful day.

Love, Mikie

Good afternoon everyone!

I started to type good morning, but realized that in 2 minutes it will be afternoon so I changed it.

I went and picked up my new CPAP machine. It has lots of bells and whistles that my old one didn't, including a wireless (cell phone) connection to my doctor's office, so they can see how I'm doing with it. The insurance company can also see if I'm actually using it. I have to use it at least 4 hours a night or they won't pay for it.

I'm supposed to get my car back from the repair shop today as well. I've been driving my DS's...right after the accident happened, my DM bought a new car and gifted her old one to him. So I turned in my rental.

Tomorrow we are going to an off-site work meeting...at Churchill Downs! We may get to stay and watch a horse race or two if they don't start too late. I got a shirt at Carnegie Hall (it says 'Ask me about my debut') that I'm going to wear, and I decorated a hat with a musical theme to go with it.

Mikie - Bummer about the sore throat. There are new programs being formed to try to get farmers to work in ways that reduce the amount of fertilizers they need to use on their fields. The Nature Conservancy is a big advocate in this area. As per usual, with the advent of heat and humidity in Cincinnati, our office climate control is throwing temper(ature) tantrums again. It got up to 81 yesterday, and it's sitting at 77 right now. I'm with you...a fan makes me feel cooler! Your white bird was probably an egret; very common down there.

Rock - Your humor is, as always, a blast! I have to ask...what possessed you to spray the snake for bugs??

Spring - Yummy food. I had lots of yummy food while I was in New York.

Star - it is great that your family found some peace at the end. When I hear stories such as yours, I feel so blessed that I have a good, strong family. My DH's family is also strong.

Barry - Another new visitor at my feeder - a white-breasted nuthatch. I love how the chickadees, nuthatches and tufted titmice fly in, grab a seed and fly away with it.

Nearly 2 hours have gone by...guess I'm not going to get much more written between those obnoxious work interruptions. Hugz to all!

-Duckie

Good Thursday Morning, Kiddos,

I'm gonna jump into the shower and go to the pool. I'll be back later, y'all.

OK, I'm back. Had a nice hour of walking in the pool with my pal, Barb. We went at 8:00 and it was wonderful. The sky is blue with puffy white clouds. The palm trees are swaying in the breeze. The pool water was warm. A respite from the insanity in the world.

Last night, Nancy, Claudia and I got soooo silly on our nightly text. I was cracking up. It was just silly stuff on the level of a ten year old but it was just what I needed. Laughing is a great release.

Love, Mikie

Morning, Kids

It's 64 degrees here at 3 AM. California has nicer weather. Minnesota has more interesting
weather. Today will be a busy day for Gordon. The orchid club is having its annual auction.
He will be spending most of the afternoon at the Arboretum getting ready, setting up the
tables, the plants, etc. The auction will be in the evening.

Duckie, send us a picture of you in your T shirt and hat. Here's a racing joke for you.
A yearling named Practical Joke was purchased for $240,000 a couple years ago.
Looks like he raced at Churchill Downs last year. Folks, you can see him run on Youtube.

As for the pet snake I didn't spray it. I sprayed the carpet because the landlord had
lots of cats and a big dog and there was an infestation of fleas. I forgot all about the
snake.

Mikie, you are absolutely right about fans. Gordon, who is educated and well-informed
on numerous topics, is always hot and desperate to cool off. He insists fans should run
all day and night. Even if nobody is home. That way it's cooler when you get home.
I hope you enjoyed your game of pool. Regards to SV.

Granni, I haven't had carrot cake for ages. Or "yonks" as our Northern correspondent
says. One of the supermarkets sells it now and then. They always put a carrot made of
frosting on top. I never heard of carrot cake until I was an adult. It's not bad, but
can't compete with chocolate. My great aunt Myrtle made the best chocolate cake in town.

Springwater, I looked at some images of gudpak. They were so different I couldn't tell
much of anything. I did find this though. "This is a delicious Nepali dessert made from
sugar and milk. It is really very tasty freshly-made — hot and soft." Does it have
chocolate in it? One site had a picture of a chocolate bar.

I don't remember any coke can joke. Will have to go back and look. I can always use
a good laugh. Well, who can't? (Answer: important people who find humor insulting.
They revel in their importance and dignity. Apparently unaware that they are often
the butt of jokes.) Mikie, what's a four letter word for butt of a joke?

Well, time to go back to bed. Maybe I'll play a game of solitaire first. Our score is
up to 78 million.

Hugs
Rock