Tag: Restaurants

My New Avatar, Solving Household Woes, and Eating Out Again

On By Backporchwriter7 Comments

Here’s what it looks like to work on a video – the little bit I worked on last weekend. Everything is in the timeline I just have to tweak each pic and video, and add transitions, add in layers and text, and then the last thing is the audio. It’s quite the project. And it’s fun until things go wrong. It’s been good to get away from it the past day or two. I’m not sure I’m totally happy with the logo page. And I grabbed the wrong logo to remove the background from. So I had to fix that.

Did you know you can go to “remove.bg” in your browser and remove the background from a pic? So far it’s been free. Now my logo can work on more than a white background. But I’m learning how to do “picture within picture” and that is how I was able to layer on the logo. All that said, once invitations are done I can whittle away it.

I should have been videoing some this week already – like our adventures to buy the washing machine and our going out to eat again for the first time in weeks. But darnit, was just not in the mood and in a hurry I guess. I did at least get photos but I should have video’d a bit while picking out my new washer. I will get in a better habit of capturing our week. For the most part right now these videos are in “test mode”. I mean really other than everything breaking, we really haven’t had anything exciting or videoworthy to share. But I figure those of you that read the blog when there is nothing to share, will delight in our videos as well, lol! I’m really excited about it but I will say it pushes the edge a bit with still being in the learning curve with Mac and iMovie and trying to do big projects instead of itty bitty ones. I dive in always.

So – I got ahead of myself. The washer repair guy showed and said “it’ll really be just as cheap to buy a new one with parts and labor”. George checked and it had been 5 years we had the washer. Warranty just expired. So we went to Lowe’s last night and bought another one. I got tickled yesterday that George told me “the repair man said to just buy a cheap one”. I figured he thought he needed some leverage so I would not go in and pick out the big charmer that sparkled and sang to me in the florescent essence of Lowe’s. I get it. I’ve always wanted those spaceship looking appliances that make you go “woah”. But they were always too big to fit the spaces we needed so he lucked out. I didn’t see many of those by the way. There was one set – the rest looked more normal. But I really liked the glass top. I did not pick the most expensive, but I did pick one that had a fairly good size tub so the comforter could be washed in it. I picked a mid range price. I didn’t get caught up in all the buttons. We purchased extended warranty this time. There once was a day when these things would last 15 to 20 years. Five? Really Whirlpool. It was a part that used to be metal and now is plastic and it broke. Whirlpool die hards would go buy another and Whirlpool gets better sales when they have quicker turnaround sales. But I didn’t play that game. Whirlpool let me down this time so I passed it over. I won’t forget it either. They are tarnished in my book.

So we’ll try the LG from Korea and see how it does. I wanted to buy American but there were only Whirlpool and Maytag and Maytag was the most expensive on the floor. And I wasn’t playing that game either. So they outpriced themselves. And I also passed over a China one I liked b/c frankly I’m just mad -rightly so or not- that there is so much “hype” over how they do things over there. No one can get the facts or the real scoop and they are secret and sneaky. Yet every product we touch was made from there. And I have developed a distrust over the years. I don’t have facts, just suspicions on nearly everything. So I kindly passed the Chinese washer by. “Bless it’s Heart.” lol

Oh and here is a good place to mention that the new toilet wasn’t working properly and kept running. And the downstairs repair work didn’t work right around the downstairs toilet and it leaked. They had to remove the carpet in that restroom. Why was carpet in there anyway? It needs to be something different. lol So plumbers were back yesterday and fixed the toilets, we think. The roofers on the other hand were rained out to fix the leak in the sunroom and to block off the chimney and concrete over and all that. Geez.

Katy and Cody came and got Findlay aka “Little Stink” as George calls her. She is a sweet baby and we will miss her. I was sleepy before coffee when they arrived and I realized later I forgot to hug Findlay bye. She still has so much energy but not nearly what she had.

Here’s a pic of Sunday with Katy working on something for the shower in June. Findlay loved sitting on the sofa in the sun room. We ate dinner in there Sun night. Dinner was Sushi and Chinese. (Yes I know, I’m fickle – I like my Chinese food – most of it was made in America though, lol).

Here’s my Facebook Avatar. I went with heavy set. You’d think I’d pick a skinny one, but I chose to do the plump version. lol. I don’t think it looks like me though. I did the best I could. My hair now is also going to kindof gray and really dark brown/blackish. The brown is almost out with the last cut I did this weekend. So eventually I’ll redo my Avatar. This will do for now.

A duck flew in to say “hi” yesterday at the office.

It was a dull gray day for much of the day. I tried to lighten it but when I did you saw the window reflection. I think I have a duck friend. lol

We had dinner at the Lost Cajun last night after Lowe’s. Our first sit down since the Corona mess in March. Much of what they have is fattening. So what appealed the most was the fried shrimp and catfish platter.

I wanted potato salad and red beans and rice instead of slaw and fries. The potato salad had one diced potato in it, the rest was just the sauce, lol lol lol. George gave me some fries and I cut it up and put it in there and called it a day. That was kinda weird. Otherwise it was all excellent. The red beans and rice was really kind of a main dish or a big bowl anyway and was an upcharge. They should have it has a side option as a cup of gumbo. Other than having a “side problem” the fish and shrimp were great, the service was excellent. The staff was happy to be there and serving and in a great mood. And they serve beer – not much – they could improve by offering local brews to support the community. Their choices were Bud products and Abita and something else. Not a lot of choice but we went with the Abita Amber. (I think). Yes you get honest reviews from me. I will even give pointers on how they can improve their business in case they read, which they won’t. Unless some skimmer program picks it up. If so “hello there”. lol

Speaking of people who read, I’d like to say hello to the following Countries that have visited the blog:

I know some bloggers/readers from Australia and UK and I know someone who is in Singapore but it doesn’t mean that is who is reading. Someone from Canada has been reading for a while. And India has been showing up for some time as well. Sometimes China will. We’ll see if they show up after this post today. They were reading as I posted and blogged about the pandemic, for sure. I thought that was interesting. I think France, Denmark and Uzbekistan were just mistakes? lol. Anyway, welcome to the blog!

Well it’s payroll day and I need to get a move on. I am happy knowing that the washer is on the way.

I am worried about getting the invitations done and having time to do that while working FT. I want to mail them over the weekend or at least by first of next week.

I have to put two inserts with it – it’s why I made sure to get an envelope type. Anyway I plan to work on this some tonight, but I’m taking Friday off too. I just need a long weekend to try to get some things done, get laundry done, do some home projects and geeky projects and have a great long holiday weekend. One step at a time.

I joined the premium Zoom for the shower and now I need to see if I can add Ellen as a user and host – if not I’ll let her have the account and I’ll sign on as a guest. I think. I also need to go and shop for a few shower gifts and decor, in coordination with what Katy is doing. So we can get that in the mail. But one thing at a time. Invitations first.

So I’m glad to be taking a PTO day Friday.

It’s payroll day so once again…I keep typing, but I need to go! I am in a much better mood knowing the washer will be delivered Thursday. And it did much for my morale to go out to eat last night.

Roger says Hello. Bless him. He’s getting old now and his feet and legs are so wobbly. See you in a day or two or three as life happens.

Ya’ll have a GREAT couple of days!

Living on Tulsa Time

On By Backporchwriter4 Comments

The plane ride to Dallas was smooth. I sat next to a talker. We had an empty middle seat between us. But midway we ran out of interesting things to talk about and broke off into our own worlds.

On the plane, during boarding, a big group who was settling in to their seats got up and grabbed their bags and left. They had to get luggage off for them underneath the plane and our flight was late to Dallas.

We arrived I was excited to get to see my girl! She had a table at a restaurant waiting!

We split a salad as it was pretty expensive.

It was perfect to get us through the next few hours!

Our ride to Tulsa was only 45 min in the air. No service. They claimed it was too bumpy but it really wasn’t. Often on short rides they claim that.

We arrived in Tulsa and got the rental car. And drove to our hotel. Tulsa is dryer and less Green than Oklahoma City. The roads are in need of paving in some areas. But seems like a nice place so far.

We wiped down our hotel room as we had our plane seat area.

And changed clothes to get out of any germs. I will say that as close as you are at the airport and in planes- it would really be hard NOT to get something contagious. Especially while in a huddle trying to load when lining up. We took inside seats on the plane.

American Solera Brewing, Tulsa

We found a cute brewery- but we didn’t like their beer so much. We spent 48 dollars on two flights and an appetizer and tip. (Insert your favorite rolling eye emoji here.)

Katy said next time she would choose a brewery with normal brews instead of decor. lol Don’t get me wrong. We had a great time and good conversation and the beer – well – it’s great for those that like sours and the new flairs of brews. I’m still trying to like IPA lol – but it was fun regardless. We each have our own tastes.

So it was t our favorite but it might be yours! The place was adorable!

The evening was warm. 70’s!

We then went on to our dinner at the Irish restaurant. We were so excited to go in. A true Irish experience- not that we really know what that is! lol

Kilkenny’s, Tulsa, OK

I picked a nice Italian wine for dinner. and ordered this wonderful dish.

It was the Jenkinstown Cottage Pie. Not many peas and carrots I noticed but the dish tasted great!

After dinner we wanted to get Gelato at the place we saw down the street. We went in and I went to the restroom first. When I came out Katy Said “we have to leave”. I said “why?”

As we walked out Katy said that they were closing early because the employee had been exposed to someone being tested for the Corona virus. And yikes I just used their restroom.

So we went back to the hotel from there. Slept pretty good. Woke up a couple of times. I’ll stop there! We are on the way to Pioneer Woman!

Work Dreams, Buy-Outs, Night Outs, and Geeky To Do’s!

On By Backporchwriter1 Comment

Well, I’m loving this weekend! It’s been a great relaxing time. Kinda of a geeky unwinding as we near the end of our extended “hibernation” period. Past Valentine’s Day, and looking toward spring – although no where near it yet, it does begin to feel like life will emerge soon! We’ll be headed into March before long and will have more warmer days here and there, more flowers, and….more plans. The year will fill up fast, if not already getting there.

Having been able to sleep in to 6:30 or 7 instead of the 4 o’clock weekday traumatizing awakening – it’s been great to just sleep in, but on the other hand, you DO lose a bit of time. I’ll take the sleep as it makes me catch up from the loss of it during the week.

Waking up later makes you dream as you are likely to wake up during the dream and can remember it. Last night I dreamed that our work went out of business. And in during the last days of the business we had to volunteer (lol) instead of get paid and we had to move to a church to finish out the work. There were only a few that volunteered (why would anyone do this, lol?). Anyway I remember in the last days George and I (not sure why he was volunteering too) we had to move out the last of the belongings from the church pulpit, as directed by our big boss. (Yes this is weird.). I woke up as I thinking – what are we going to do with all this stuff, where is it going to go and why am I here doing this and where is everyone else? Oh well. Glad again to wake up and find I’m not moving office furniture from a pulpit, and I’m still very much employed. I do know we dream about our fears and also I do know that I have been a part of how many company buy outs now? Let’s see – oh let me count the ways and give my age, lol. In it each time, God took excellent care of me:

  • Cain Sloan was bought by Dillards. I worked downtown, that store was closed and a position opened up in Green Hills for me and it was where I met my spouse. Oh that is a story in itself. Best to not go there. Interesting times to say the least.
  • Cyanede Plastics – I left Dillards in search of better pay as I was “topped out” in that range and that was unacceptable to me – a new boss that didn’t know me was not going to fight for a raise for me like the old one- so off I fled for a better position encouraged by my Dad who said manufacturing held more opportunity – no weekends and better pay. No sooner than a month after landing that position I learned it was being bought by Atlantis Plastics. I learned a lot about manufacturing, safety, and hiring, and exploring the field of HR instead of “personnel”. But Atlantis Plastics closed the Nashville plant about 2 to 3 years in.
  • I went to Atlantic Envelope pretty much before the end of Atlantis Plastics. Both home offices had been in Atlanta so travel began entering my world, my HR experience expanded exponentially as I had worked under the best VP of HR EVER, a lady named Nancy who taught me so much and showed me that I didn’t have to be like everyone else to be successful, that I brought unique skills and unique ways of looking at things to the team. I mention that because I was always comparing myself to others. But I had to learn that it’s ok to be different. That said, about 3 years or so into that – there were changes. We were sold and we were bought out by a guy that bought companies and sold them. We knew we were in for a ride. I knew it was kindof a joke when the owner drove up in a jeep without any kind of license plate on it, and asked us to improve the business by “googling” our way through it. He knew nothing of running an envelope company and was having to do that himself I guess. I believe after that we were sold to another investment firm and then eventually sold to National Envelope which gave us several more years. An interesting survivor story from the holocaust, owner William Unger (his story and book was incredible) we were proud to be a part of our new owner. However, Mr. Unger at the end of his life, retired and his daughters took over the company. The envelope industry became very competitive in an age when internet communication was taking over, and companies like Fed Ex and UPS began using alternative materials like plastic and cardboard instead of Tyvek to do their shipping. National Envelope, unable to keep up with trends, and unable to maintain costs, went bankrupt. Arising from bankruptcy in a remodel circumstance, our plant with its loss of business from Fed Ex, was closed.
  • So on to my current facility which shall remain nameless and since I’m employed there still will not discuss company business. However no company remains exempt from the perils of the normal business world. Change can and does and will happen.

“Job Security is a thing of the past” is something that you often hear people say. I think that is a mistake to allow oneself to think like that. We have often placed ourselves at the mercy and power of our companies and not enough belief in ourselves. Read just about any modern day business book or personal self help book and the mindset of being able to market yourself and your own brand – is key. So regardless of the dreams one wakes up to find, and the scariness of the situation of the end of a job era – one must realize – it’s happened before and likely will happen again. Change is enevitable. God sees us through.

I didn’t even mention what George just went through with Gibson’s bankruptcy and the ousting of all the older crew there – we just cannot escape it – it seems regardless of the size of company or circumstances. However, it’s scary to go through it because we are always afraid of the unknown, but we do need to have faith in ourselves and God. So….dream on. lol

You never know where this blog will go. lol

Well, I have a hair cut coming on and you know I’ve been undecided as to what to do. But all in all – there was really only one or two weeks where I didn’t like my hair. It was a shock at first. But even when I didn’t like it – what I DID like was getting up and not having to do anything much to it. And I began to like it. 😉 So in a couple of weeks I have an appointment and I’m going to go let her cut it again like she did before only maybe not so short. Even if she does, it’ll grow out. I kinda want to let it grow but really I think I have to keep getting it cut short til the color grows out as I’m letting my original hair shine through. I had said I’d wait til 60 but I’m not wanting to put the chemicals in my body anymore. So I’ll keep it short for while longer and then let it grow to bob status again when all the color is gone, unless I decide not to.

Yesterday I had to laugh at the following. I pop in on this family from time to time as I do several places that are my favorites. I snapped this b/c I was thinking this guy was funny in his house shoes. I can’t for the life of me imagine that this family knows they are on line. But anyway. Here ya go. I mean is he not in his underwear? lol. It’s the shoes that got my attention.

So the day went fast yesterday and before we knew it – it was time to go out. We went to Southern Grist, which has very weird and hazy beer – but then not so much. Any I have ever had, I’ve liked there.

We met my BIL and SIL there, Kevin and Susan. And then we all headed over to Nicky’s Coal Fired (same parking lot) where we had dinner reservations.

We ordered an array of appetizers, pasta dishes, and a pizza for the table and did family style so we could taste a little of everything. It was wonderful.

And then we did dessert and espresso.

Grand time had by all.

While there, Susan and I figured out we would throw a double shower for two in our extended family that are having babies! I wanted to do something for Ellen and Justin (Justin is Kevin and Susan’s son and Ellen, Justin’s wife). I was entertaining the thought of how to do a shower for Ellen (who is in the Knoxville area) and Susan had wanted to do a shower for one of the cousins, so we decided to pool together and have the family in (at my house) for June 20th for a double shower – making it easier on the family to come together all at once. So we have a project to work on and I’m glad to team up with someone. Now we can get together in planning mode and decide how to do it – themes, address lists, invitations, food, etc. Looking forward to it. And Susan and I get some girl time in planning. We can meet for coffee or a beer and get our thoughts together.

Here’s a funny for ya. Made me laugh. Something to pull when you have to wait in line:

Yesterday, I bit the bullet and downloaded Pixelmator for the iMac. I did a couple of YouTubes on it to learn about it. I’m not sure if I’ll be able to do a lot of making graphics with it using the graphic files. But you can take photos and put text on it and change photos and do frames and it has most of the tools that PSP (Paint Shop Pro) has. Almost the same. I’m just not sure if it will take my PSP type of files. I’ll check it out though and see if it will do the tubes. I really don’t do much of that anymore anyway. I mostly just like to make blog toppers and logos and things and I can still do that. Heck I really don’t even use blog toppers anymore with the current blog. I kinda want to change the way the blog looks but I’m scared to. It took so long to get this one going I’m afraid I’ll mess it up if I change. The problem is that I don’t have a large chunk of time anymore of my own except for a bit on the weekends. lol But I’d like one that you could decorate with the seasons. I miss that. But I like WordPress a whole lot better than Blogger and I get more comments from you guys which really make my day!

Today I also went in and redeemed my Audible card – I think it was my SIL gave me. At first it didn’t want to accept the code. George even watched me enter it correctly. I was about to give up and decided to try one more time and it finally took. So I spent the morning joyfully picking out three more books. They are: Michael Pollan’s “Cooked”, Tightwads on the Loose by Wendy Hinman about a family sailing around out there in the Pacific, and Thomas Sims, “On Call in the Arctic” about a doctor who is called to practice there. Can’t wait. I have several other books in the waiting on the wait list since I found several. So this was on my list and I just needed some time to sort through and find ones that appeal to me. I love the adventures and the biographies. I also kinda picked by buying the more pricey ones with the three credits this card gave me. You get more for your money with Audible versus buying a real book. I think I got three for the price one hardback book would have been. Looking forward to my commute and my ironing time now. 😉

While in there I researched how to delete my former books from audible. I don’t want the ones I’ve read crowding up my library. I’m weird like that. And it doesn’t appear you can share with anyone unless they are in your family on the family plan but they have to have audible themselves. So I just deleted them. I won’t ever listen to them again. Life’s too short. Too many books out there.

So, today I need to go to the store so I’m prepared for the week. And then I need to spruce up a bit and do some more laundry. It’s totally been a weekend of relaxing. I need to wrap our gifts for Christmas with the Irelands and “French nite” – still two weeks away. Going to spend next weekend with Mom though – well Friday night and will head home around lunch time or afternoon Saturday so I have half the weekend to do something. I need to gather my ID’s for the new license thing and try to get that done. I hear it’s really busy with everyone getting their upgrades but I want to get it done soon so I can get it out of my mind. I plan to maybe go at an odd time and do it – like mid morning or mid afternoon and just take an early or late lunch. If it takes two hours – so what – when you think of the time I’ve worked over. I also want to go to Hobby Lobby but that won’t be today! I need to finish getting my phone pics saved on my iMac soon so I can take more pics in Tulsa next month. Need to clear out my phone. Also have some shows to watch. And all kinds of fun stuff to do on my to do list. I love it when I get down to the good stuff.

The good stuff is all the geeky stuff – non responsibility stuff – learning, playing, creating, planning, watching, writing, researching. I geek out on this stuff.

So enough for today. I can’t write away my day! Gotta go be a bit responsible for a little while. What you all doing today?

Valentine’s Day, Mystery Solved, and Weird Dream

On By Backporchwriter2 Comments

I was running a bit late yesterday due to sleeping late and blogging too but I just COULD NOT leave my flowers like this. I was so happy to have them and they looked lonely and sad all closed up. So….I arranged them before I left.

It was a VERY cold day yesterday but the sun was out and I believe that was a gift in itself for all Valentiner’s out there. I wore one of my favorite sweaters that I bought in Breckenridge, TX – at the Walmart of all things. (I was shocked Walmart could have cute sweaters. I love shopping in Texas b/c you can find things your size. It’s hard to find anything cute around here w/o paying out the HEE HAW for it. Too many people get to it first.) So yeah, got to wear a cute colorful sweater yesterday that was just right for the temperature. I often can’t wear sweaters because I get too hot.

I realized I was a colorful girl when I reached down to pet Roger – sweater and socks. The skies have been so gray until yesterday we needed color in our world so – Valentine’s flowers and my sweater rocked with color making the gray go away and the sun felt so good coming in the window at work.

Our receptionist laid the “adventurous” heart on my desk yesterday. She is a kind sweetheart. I wish I had a servant spirit like hers. I have an administrative spirit for some reason instead of a servant heart spirit. But I guess we all make the world go round in our own ways. However, I admire her zest for life and in her ability to make everyone else’s better. I do have an adventurous heart, even if it is in my own mind. I don’t swing from trees, bungee jump, or mountain climb – but travel is my adventure and watching and reading about others adventures. So that was fun to be realized for my love of adventure. And then she had a spread for all of us. And I DO MEAN a spread.

So at lunch I did a FB post for George with a whole lot of our couple shots from the past. One of my favorite was this one.

Here’s a few:

Fun times down memory lane.

We did actually work yesterday though. I finally finished entering 208 W-2’s for the state of Oklahoma manually – every stinking field of the W-2. (My company doesn’t have the software that the state requires to upload them. So I’ve spent HOURS entering these manually.) Social, name, address, and 8 fields of numbers and up to 12 fields for those that had insurance and 401k both. Anyway, at the end it all has to balance to the W-3 for that state so….if there was a transposing of a number or miskey – it throws you off. Its taken me two weeks of “spare time” to enter these and I finally finished yesterday but didn’t balance. I have been through the W-2’s FIVE TIMES and found a few of the errors but I’m still $40 off in one field. $6 off in another and $20,000 off in another one. lol lol lol. I finally gave up and went home – I didn’t get my PTO’s set up for Monday so I’ll have to do that. We have had system issues all week too where it keeps logging us out and I got logged out so it was a good time to work on these w-2’s. Hopefully next week I’ll be able to find it. I’ll have a bit of time Monday afternoon, and then it’ll have to wait til payroll is done and I can try again on Thurs and Friday if I can. I don’t get a lot of extra time in this job to spend on things like this so hopefully I can get it to balance Monday. I just can’t find the erroneous figures. I have other things I need to do in my “spare time” like boxing time sheets and sending the 2019 files to another a cabinet so the 2020 files can build up in the current cabinet in my office. Once I get these w-2’s for OK’s website to balance to our records I can move on in life. lol

Once home I was hungry and ready to “Valentines”! However, when I got home George was wandering around in the garage with a frown on his face, looking confused. I thought “oh no, we’ve been broken into”. But he had laid his phone down and could not remember where it was. He thought it was in his coat pocket. He had gone to work and it was not there. Came home and it wasn’t where he thought he might have left it. So we both looked around the house. We tried calling it – no answer – but he said it was probably on silent anyway. He said it might have fallen out when he went to pay the power bill but he thought he would have heard it (my heart sunk b/c he doesn’t hear me often when I say anything to him). Then he remembered he got out of the car to go back and feed the cat on the back porch. So I looked around on the porch and didn’t see it. Then he remembered that he had picked the cat up in the yard to pet him and take him to the food and he went to that spot and lo and behold – the phone was upside down on the ground and had been there all day! Thank goodness we have not had the big rains we have had nearly every day this week. He says he’ll stop putting it in his pocket. I’m so glad he found it. And glad it was ok. Glad a deer didn’t step on it, lol.

So off to celebrate Valentine’s – first at Catch 22 – a neighborhood tap room. And then on to Smiley Thai and Sushi.

My incredible date that I enjoyed my time with. We had good conversation. The food was a little slow but the place was new and trying and doing a very good job of getting people in and fed. Our food came out at different times – George was almost through eating before mine came out. I was starving! But George ordered an appetizer for dinner so you can’t blame the restaurant. They brought it as an appetizer. I had spring roll, but I forgot that we had ordered Larb Gai and so when it came out, it was so late, I thought it was my dinner. lol. (I don’t know my Thai food I guess.). I grabbed a fork and had a bite and told George “oh no, I can’t eat that”. I didn’t like it. He thinks it’s fish sauce I don’t like. I don’t know what it is but tasted and smelled dead. He said I normally liked Larb Gai anyway, whatever. I finally realized that wasn’t my dinner – I was about to order something else. And then my real dinner arrived. And I absolutely loved it. I ordered something like Panang Curry. I could be wrong. But it was along those lines and had asparagus and green peppers and beef. I will have to go back and get this again. LOVED IT!

And I had to have the Green Tea Creme Brûlée. It was not as good as regular Creme Brûlée but I believe it was a healthier version so I’ll take it. ;-). It was a great place and we’ll want to take people there. We will be back.

This morning, the sun room was filled with “Jack Frost” on the windows.

So I coughed a bit last night. I’m not sure what that is all about. I had the slightest of a sore throat this morning but it is gone with coffee.

HOLD ON – I gotta go for a refill on the coffee.

OK I’m back.

Since Maisy let me sleep in this morning, I was able to wake up and remember my dreams. Kind of a weird one. There was a knock at the door in my dream and an older woman with several suitcases came in the door and said “I’m here!” I was confused as anyone would be, and George said “oh she answered our ad to rent the extra bedroom”. In my dream I remembered saying “yes” we can rent out the extra bedroom. But I also thought we’d have time to prepare it. I remember being panicked but trying to make the best of the situation. The room was not prepared. The sheets needed changing, the clothes needed to be removed from the closets and the drawers. Then I realized she didn’t have a car. Family had dropped her off and she was our elderly person to care for and cater to – for the rest of her days. It wasn’t just a simple “rent the room” deal. However, I found that I was ok with that. A chance to help someone that needed help. We would make it work. But I felt bad we are not prepared and had not provided a “welcome spread”. So then as dreams do – we ended up with new carpet in the room all of a sudden on that same day – lol. Wow, some kinda new carpet it was. It was ugly with all kinds of designs and it was “heated carpet”. After it was installed, it caught fire. I saw it rip through the wires throughout the carpet but when George looked in, it had quit. I had to convince him we had a problem. Somehow he realized the carpet had burned through. (Men have to see for themselves as opposed to believing a word a woman says sometimes, lol – good grief, even in my dream.). So we called the carpet people back and I woke up just when I realized that we now didn’t even have a room for this poor lady to sleep as the carpet had been on fire (who dreams this?). But despite our lack of a proper welcome, and a proper room, the lady seemed just happy to be there and could care less and I found her digging into the leftovers in the kitchen to find something to eat. Oh my gosh, I thought, we forgot to even offer her a proper dinner? lol. I woke up and was glad that we were there alone without all these issues going on. Geez.

But why did I dream that? I think I’ve been worried about Mom and when to start bringing her to our area, when to get her in assisted living, or to an apartment – or if something happens medically and we can’t get it done quickly and she needs help she’ll need to be with us here for a while and adjustments we would make. I think all that is rolling around in my head. She insists it is not time yet for these changes. But the woman in my dream did not in any way resemble or even make me think of Mom in the situation so I’m not sure it’s that – other than – I do remember thinking in my dream that if this elderly woman is here, what if Mom needs to come here too- what will we do then? lol. I’d give up my office if we had two elderly folks here lol. Maybe we’d let them have the house and we’d move out. lol lol lol No seriously what a weird dream. Maybe it’s because we rented the vacation house and want family to fill the extra rooms if they want to stay there too. I remember saying I specifically didn’t get a house with carpet in the common rooms b/c of the dogs. We were talking about that last night how we could all have a few days together there in the VRBO house as it had enough bedrooms. But all in all, It was mainly a dream about not being prepared. About being surprised. But we handled it and everyone was accommodated and happy regardless. I was the only one stressing – in normal fashion b/c I don’t like surprises, I do like to be prepared, and I do want people to feel welcome.

Anyway, I’m glad it’s Saturday morning and our carpet is not on fire and I don’t have to redo a bedroom today!

The things on my to do list are piddly – even fun. I will spruce up the house some, do some laundry, work on my piddly to do list. And go from there.

We have some fun plans today with BIL and SIL, Kevin and Susan. And I’ll share more about that tomorrow.

What you all planning to do today?

Birthday Weekend & Joy in the Kitchen

On By Backporchwriter6 Comments

First of all let me just say that this weekend was glorious. Getting to catch up on sleep did my soul and spirit wonders. I had to make myself stay in bed though at 3 or 4 a.m. for another round. And while I missed “to do” time at home, I made up for it by having double energy and a good attitude. 😉

The early parts of Saturday and Sunday were spent sipping coffee, doing laundry, spiffying up the place a bit, and for me, writing and doing things on the Mac.

And somewhere along the way, while putting up a southwestern towel with cacti on it, another with turquoise and orange and yellow (southwest colors), it occurred to me how well these colors would go with the kitchen. I’d been trying to think what would make me happier with the kitchen since the stove is old and the linoleum is “forever blue” — named forever as I’ll probably never see another color in this house. Maybe one day. I’m trying to be patient but I do realize that it was one of the first things I wanted to change and we have been here 12 years. The counter tops are ugly and old as well. Before I die, I’d like to have an updated kitchen. By the time that happens I’ll be too old to do anything in it. lol. George doesn’t like to replace anything that still works. I’m lucky we got the fridge. So I’m trying to be patient. And decided I’d give the kitchen a facelift. Only in the curtains, decor, and a bigger chalk board for menu planning. I told George about this and was met with a blank face and no return comment, which anyone can give their best interpretation. However, it was my Christmas and Birthday money to spend. ;-). Also I’ve been dumping my Isagenix earnings into our account to help pay for Christmas. And I also quit getting my hair colored saving us about $60 or $70 the other day. ;-). We did Christmas up right. Holidaying and vacays are over.

And now it’s time to save. (It’s really time to start planning the next vacation but that has been halted for now as George says he is unsure about what will be going on with work. This work thing getting in the way of vacations sucks. I think we have to wait til Feb to plan this one as he will have a better idea of what week will work and what is going on – recently taken over by another company.). However, I guess Katy and I can get our time on the books and get the date on the calendar. Then we can pick the place for sure and get that booked later. Getting it on the calendar is the hard part. But it is time to save some. We have been spending like there is no tomorrow. And well, you never know.

We do have a lot of things to do at home and I enjoy being at home so much. We also have our friends who love foodie excursions – either out or on the Homefront. And here’s me wanting to lose more weight, but love my Nashville cuisine and friend time.

We did it up right this weekend too. We went to Mexican Friday after work, already mentioned and then Saturday we headed out at 3 p.m. to go by Farmer’s Market and also the TN State Museum. George wanted a pewter TN license plate holder for his car for Christmas. You couldn’t get them on line but he had seen them there. But They didn’t have them.

Nashville’s Farmer’s Market and Capital in the background.
Inside the Food Court and Shopping section of Nashville’s Farmer’s Market

We got a beer at the Picnic Tap room there. As we were leaving a gentlemen stepped forward and asked if I remembered him. It was my friend Mac from Cain-Sloan and Dillard’s. I am not sure he worked long at Green Hills but we had hung out some during that time after Cain Sloan closed. My memory fails but I believe he worked in security. We had lunch some. I was really close to his Mom when I went to the Dillard’s Green Hills location as she worked there in Customer Service and Gift Wrapping. (Dillard’s bought Cain Sloan and that was their introduction to Nashville many years ago – an Arkansas based extended family business at least at that time. I’ve seen Mr. Dillard in person! Although he is probably not around now.). So it was fun running into him and he and George talked about the Gibson and guitars and such.

Then we headed to dinner but we were early so we stopped at Union Common and got a cocktail to pass the time. We had been there on a “foodie tour” once and had always said we’d like to go back. No one is ever there, but as George said “we are early as the crowds eat late these days”. It’s turning into New York lol. Places have to stay open later and later for dinner service I guess as people just can’t get there by dinner time. And to think I grew up when 4:30 to 5:30 was dinner hour – it was ready at some point during that time frame. Then when I moved to Nashville it became 6. George always ate around 8 or 8:30 so we had extreme adjustments on when to eat. I will never get used to 8 or 8:30 as a meal time. And George will try to have it ready by 7:30 or 8. He usually cooks. When I cook, I have to clean and have the kitchen perfect and do the laundry reboot first, so mine is often late too. But there was hardly anyone in Union Common and hardly anyone in Giovani’s.

Giovani’s Nashville, and George on the front steps.
A “lighted” wine list

When you open the wine menu it lit up. How cool is that? There were also some $2500 bottles of wine on there. No Thank you.

Barbera D’Asti, Michele CHiarlo 2016 – an Italian Wine, and a very good one.

We picked one and it was so good. I got gluten free spaghetti. It just seemed better for you since it was available. And there was an awkward moment when the waiter said “ok I will remove the crouton’s then from your salad” and I said “oh please don’t I want the croutons”. (lol). He said “but if you have gluten allergies?”. I said “I don’t have gluten allergies, just cutting back on…” and he looked away and finished taking George’s order. I wasn’t sure if I was cutting back on calories or what I was cutting back on – “bad stuff” I guess. That is it. Cutting back on the bad stuff.

Anyway, we had a wonderful dinner. The food was good. I had a Caesar salad. I wish the lettuce had been broken up a bit and easier to eat without having to cut the romaine, but it was good and served with a crispy piece of bacon. I have had better Caesar salads, but it was still good. No picture of my spaghetti bolognese which was really ziti I think as that was what was gluten free. You just don’t feel as bloated when you eat the gluten free, but often it is not as good. This however, if it was truly gluten free, was good. The sauce was excellent. The bread was good. It was a pretty place. A fine dining experience.

And then Sunday afternoon at 3 my SIL and BIL came over to swap Christmas and also we headed out to do my Birthday celebration.

Susan and Kevin

This is George’s sister and her husband. We had a fun Christmas swap and then went to Bar Taco where I had picked for my birthday.

Bar Taco, 12th South, Nashville, TN
Bar Taco, Nashville, TN
  • Key Lime Pie in a Jar
Nashville

Some may have wanted to go out to another place and I was game if they wanted to, but they let me decide and I chose home. The 4 a.m. hour comes way too early.

I finished shopping on line as I had not gotten to finish earlier and then I realized – yikes it’s 10 p.m.!

Anyway it was a splendid weekend and now that the birthdaying is over, and Christmas events are over, I can go ahead and begin gathering up the Christmas stuff, and look forward to doing the kitchen decor redo. I’ve taken the before pics already. You won’t be able to see much difference I’m sure as it’s only a few small changes. And mostly have to be upclose. So I probably need to take some more unclose photos for my before shots.

Very few “to do’s” scheduled for this week. A birthday gift to send out, and schedule doc and dentist and dog appointments, and see when friends want to set dates for various things. There are about three friend dates hanging out there and I’m afraid they are all going to come about at once. Also friend Christy wants to go see Little Women.

Anyway, I better go get ready for work. I really need to be leaving about now. Probably won’t blog for another couple of days or toward the end of week. It seems to be working well to do it this way. I also have more material to cover, lol. If I blog every day I end up getting too deep and personal and this way I keep it on the surface. For the most part. I still usually thrown in if something is heavy on my mind though.

Hope you all have a great week. I’m about to dive into mine.

Excursion to Downtown Nashville

On By Backporchwriter5 Comments
When Company Comes….Fresh Flowers

So guess who is home for a visit? Our Kate! She brought her friend Shelby that she teaches school with. And we have had a blast. Picked them up at the airport Thursday night and we ate Sushi at a local Asian restaurant that we love. Then Friday the girls met up with friends at Arrington Vineyards, in Franklin, TN area while we worked. Then we headed to The Pharmacy Burger.

Just to make them feel special…

Saturday we had a lazy morning where I did laundry and worked on the blog and they slept in and watched Lifetime Channel. Then we headed out for a day on the town. We caught a hop on and off Trolley Tour and was able to allow Shelby to see Nashville. I must insert that waiting for the trolley that very few minutes was hot as Hades and it was hot on the bus but at least shaded.

Superfood salad from Milk and Honey, Nashville, TN

So we got off in “The Gulch” in Nashville and tried to grab a seat at The Pub but it was overly crowded. We walked further down and was able to get a seat at the counter (ok -bar) at Milk and Honey. After last night’s burger and knowing what was for dinner, I tried to eat healthy. This salad was excellent.

Beautiful Day in Nashville but it was HOT!

We got back on the trolley to get back to downtown Broadway, where we were going to pop into Robert’s Western World, to let Shelby experience it. Much to our surprise some friends of ours were there from Michigan and also some local friends. Imagine our surprise.

Me, Katy, and Shelby on Broadway in Nashville
Katy and Shelby
Katy and our friend Herb (Who jokingly leaned in to Photobomb)

We had plans to meet some friends of Katy’s at Hattie B’s for some Nashville Hot Chicken. So we headed to our car and headed over. Mainly due to parking, we found ourselves doing a lot of walking yesterday. I had four miles on my Apple Watch by end of day.

Hattie B’s Nashville Hot Fried Chicken

Not exactly a healthy meal. I at least got the black eyed pea salad. And the crinkle fries and ketchup were on my radar. For some reason my piece of chicken was “complicated”. It was a breast and wing (quarter) and it was hard to get the meat off of it. I laughed at my term “complicated”. I mean who ever gets a complicated piece chicken? Me apparently. It was wonderful. However, I am afraid my “hot, sticky, and miserable” began showing. I am sure I seemed quiet the rest of the night. I was truly miserable, tired, hot, sticky. I tried not to complain. Everyone else was too. I was ready for a/c and a nap.

India and Casey

Katy wanted to go to Jeni’s ice cream after. So we went there. A storm began brewing. We finished up and everyone wanted to go get a cocktail at a speak easy place, Patterhouse House.

Patterson House decor, Nashville, TN

The cocktails were good but the place was hot – very hot and we were crowded around in a small booth. I was glad to be with my girl and her friends, but I truly was miserable. I could hardly join in the conversation. It was after 9 at that point, my shoulders and neck were hurting, hot, sweaty, could not cool down, sleepy, and morale dwindling. So finally we left and came home with a/c full blast. I took a shower and put on jammies and the bed felt so good.

Last night our Roger dog didn’t sleep too good. He moaned a few times and this morning continues to moan at times. He often moans when he needs to go out. We take him out. He had loose bowels yesterday so may be something he has eaten that is not setting right with him or hurting him. He seems to not be comfortable. We are watching him to see if this is just a tummy issue or something else entirely. But we are worried about the little guy.

I think even after two cups of coffee, I may try to go back and get another few minutes of sleep before beginning the day. Today Katy and Shelby are going to eat lunch with Cody’s family and then George and I are going downtown Nashville to an old friend’s retirement party. I am not sure what the plans are for tonight. All I know is it’s HOT here in July in Nashville. And the heat is certainly oppressive and no one’s a/c downtown seems to be working very well. So hopefully today will not be as hot. It’s cloudy right now.

I don’t really have an actual list of things to accomplish this weekend- however I do have a list rolling around in my head. At some point should put it on paper.

Well, I’m heading back to bed! I need more rest! 😉 Ya’ll have a wonderful Sunday.