While we were standing in line to disembark the ferry from Martha's Vineyard, there was a gal expounding at the top of her voice as to what a horrible, evil person Sarah Palin is: "She Doesn't Believe in Evolution! This is the 21st Century!" Good thing she was in Massachusetts. Imagine how that would play in the Bible Belt! I expect there were liberals who were shifting from foot to foot with discomfort due to her wild-eyed maniacal manner.
Speaking of powerful political pundits, apparently Lindsay Lohan via her MySpace blog has blasted Sarah Palin for being a "narrow minded, media obsessed homophobe." Coming from a narrow minded, media obsessed lesbian, those words carry great weight.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Monday, September 01, 2008
Signs of the times
There are certainly places I can really see where the state of the economy is affecting folks. I've not taken a huge hit, personally. I’m only supporting a couple of people, and I make a pretty decent wage, so I haven't had to make any truly dramatic changes in my lifestyle.
But ... when I go out for coffee or to lunch or dinner, I see far fewer people doing the same than this time last year. I know that's an easy way to save money when times get tight. It definitely is less expensive to fix food at home!
Another place I notice the difference is when I go to my favorite nail salon (Village Nails). I'm a "walk-in" person, and the only time I’ll make an appointment is if I'm trying to get squeezed in right after work. Used to be, the place was nearly full, there were three or four technicians working, and I always had to wait. The last several times I've been in, there might be one other customer the entire time I'm there, and often the owner is the only person working.
Today, there was a gentleman getting a pedicure when I got there, but the rest of the time – however long a pedicure and getting some facial waxing takes – I was the only customer there. At least an hour, maybe longer.
But ... when I go out for coffee or to lunch or dinner, I see far fewer people doing the same than this time last year. I know that's an easy way to save money when times get tight. It definitely is less expensive to fix food at home!
Another place I notice the difference is when I go to my favorite nail salon (Village Nails). I'm a "walk-in" person, and the only time I’ll make an appointment is if I'm trying to get squeezed in right after work. Used to be, the place was nearly full, there were three or four technicians working, and I always had to wait. The last several times I've been in, there might be one other customer the entire time I'm there, and often the owner is the only person working.
Today, there was a gentleman getting a pedicure when I got there, but the rest of the time – however long a pedicure and getting some facial waxing takes – I was the only customer there. At least an hour, maybe longer.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Movin' Day!
I helped Cat move yesterday. It's amazing how much one person can accumulate in one bedroom in one year! She moved from a second floor apartment to the second floor of a townhouse. Lizzie had helped her move the big stuff on Friday, so we were just getting boxes and bits and ends. Two car loads full.
Her new bedroom is considerably smaller than the previous one. 8' x 9'. My sisters have walk-in closets larger than her room! We got her a loft bed last year when she moved, because that room was smaller than hers was at home. Thank goodness for IKEA! This time, we got her a wardrobe, so she'll have some storage space. The closet (such as it is) attached to the room is also really tiny.
Too bad we didn't video ourselves putting it together - I'm sure THAT would have made an excellent addition to youtube, since we both speak blonde quite fluently (being natives, and all): "Could you give me two of those little black plastic thingies?" "Okay, now I need six of the little wooden peggie thingies..."
It was fun hanging out with her, but it was a long, long, long day. We started about 11am, and I threw in the towel, er, I mean, handed off my tools, when Zack showed up at around 20 minutes past Midnight.
I think all that was left to do was finish tacking down the backing, install the doors (hinges and knobs, oh my!), and put in all the inside shelving and stuff. Oh yeah, and carry all the boxes we left in the living room upstairs and put everything in them away.
Her new bedroom is considerably smaller than the previous one. 8' x 9'. My sisters have walk-in closets larger than her room! We got her a loft bed last year when she moved, because that room was smaller than hers was at home. Thank goodness for IKEA! This time, we got her a wardrobe, so she'll have some storage space. The closet (such as it is) attached to the room is also really tiny.
Too bad we didn't video ourselves putting it together - I'm sure THAT would have made an excellent addition to youtube, since we both speak blonde quite fluently (being natives, and all): "Could you give me two of those little black plastic thingies?" "Okay, now I need six of the little wooden peggie thingies..."
It was fun hanging out with her, but it was a long, long, long day. We started about 11am, and I threw in the towel, er, I mean, handed off my tools, when Zack showed up at around 20 minutes past Midnight.
I think all that was left to do was finish tacking down the backing, install the doors (hinges and knobs, oh my!), and put in all the inside shelving and stuff. Oh yeah, and carry all the boxes we left in the living room upstairs and put everything in them away.
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Coco View - August 9-16
Moon over ... cabana
Post check-out dive parade
Hawksbill Cay from the bar
The lovely and talented Miss Chiquita
Seas are finally calm. Must be Friday!
This dance had quite a story, which started with these two young ladies doing laundry.
I flew "second seat" on the seaplane
Sunday, July 20, 2008
All my bags are packed...
Not!
However, those who know me will be surprised that I've already packed most of my stuff for our August trip. The big challenge will be fitting everything into one checked bag. Continental now charges for the second checked bag, and we plan to avoid that. My really big bag is just within the size limits, but it weighs nearly 30 pounds already and is only a little more than half full. My goal is to have it weigh around 40 pounds, so there's 10 pounds leeway for souvenirs and such. And dirty clothes do weigh more than clean!
I've got to measure my little rolling bags to see if any of them fit within the dimensions for a carry-on, so I can bring one instead of my usual backpack.
P.S. Big anniversary today: On July 20, 1969, Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin became the first men to walk on the moon.
However, those who know me will be surprised that I've already packed most of my stuff for our August trip. The big challenge will be fitting everything into one checked bag. Continental now charges for the second checked bag, and we plan to avoid that. My really big bag is just within the size limits, but it weighs nearly 30 pounds already and is only a little more than half full. My goal is to have it weigh around 40 pounds, so there's 10 pounds leeway for souvenirs and such. And dirty clothes do weigh more than clean!
I've got to measure my little rolling bags to see if any of them fit within the dimensions for a carry-on, so I can bring one instead of my usual backpack.
P.S. Big anniversary today: On July 20, 1969, Apollo 11 astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin became the first men to walk on the moon.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Life Stinks
Terrific Mel Brooks movie! I'd never even heard of it, but stumbled on it in cable's "free movies" section. We split it over two evenings, because we're lightweights when it comes to staying up late.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Change of season
Cat & I visited Alex & Jem last weekend. It's a totally different season there! Lovely, lovely cool weather was a pleasant change from our mid 90s. And whoever did that survey on most expensive gasoline missed a town - we paid $4.79 for regular! Ouch!
Being out of town was a good thing. Got back Sunday evening and heard there'd been a shooting IN OUR PARKING SPACE Saturday night. Nice.
Being out of town was a good thing. Got back Sunday evening and heard there'd been a shooting IN OUR PARKING SPACE Saturday night. Nice.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Monday, June 09, 2008
We're number 1!
And it's quite the dubious distinction:
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080609/A_NEWS/80609022
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080609/A_NEWS/80609022
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
New Trick
Lucy just came over and shut off my computer. Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks?
We had a power outage this morning at work, and my PC was a casualty. Never came back up. It was quite sad.
I must be death on hard drives -- I had one die last year, as well.
Notice how calm I am? 90% of my files are stored on the server. Fool me once...!
I did lose a bunch of images, and I'm sure I'll discover more that's missing as time goes by. Life will go on!
We had a power outage this morning at work, and my PC was a casualty. Never came back up. It was quite sad.
I must be death on hard drives -- I had one die last year, as well.
Notice how calm I am? 90% of my files are stored on the server. Fool me once...!
I did lose a bunch of images, and I'm sure I'll discover more that's missing as time goes by. Life will go on!
Friday, May 23, 2008
Cold Panic...
One of our facilities was selected for a random wall-to-wall by Cal/OSHA earlier this week (lucky us!), and the inspector gave us quite the laundry list of documents he wants to see. One of the many things my manager asked me to pull together was the Forms 300 and 300A, current year and previous four years.
I pulled out our trusty Form 300 binder, which goes clear back to 1987, and I DIDN'T HAVE 2004 or 2005 for that facility. So, of course, I went through the binder over and over and over, page by page by page, hoping they'd just been misfiled. Then I started going through every piece of paper in my office, all the while thinking "ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod..." And I kept waking up last night with the same thing running through my head, over and over and over.
Finally, this morning, I turned to my manager and said, "We may have a problem. I can't find 2004 or 2005." And he says...
"Oh, yeah! Glenn was taking care of those, then. They should have them over there."
Jeez Louis. I think I just aged about 10 years in the past two days.
I pulled out our trusty Form 300 binder, which goes clear back to 1987, and I DIDN'T HAVE 2004 or 2005 for that facility. So, of course, I went through the binder over and over and over, page by page by page, hoping they'd just been misfiled. Then I started going through every piece of paper in my office, all the while thinking "ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod..." And I kept waking up last night with the same thing running through my head, over and over and over.
Finally, this morning, I turned to my manager and said, "We may have a problem. I can't find 2004 or 2005." And he says...
"Oh, yeah! Glenn was taking care of those, then. They should have them over there."
Jeez Louis. I think I just aged about 10 years in the past two days.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Why is it...
...dogs act like they're being beaten when we give them baths?
Poor Lucy had her first bath of the season today. She crouched down on her belly and looked terriby abused!
I took her on a walk immediately following, so I am forgiven!
Dog's diary vs. Cat's diary
Poor Lucy had her first bath of the season today. She crouched down on her belly and looked terriby abused!
I took her on a walk immediately following, so I am forgiven!
Dog's diary vs. Cat's diary
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Big Changes at Lincoln El
There's major construction at Lincoln El. I expect those of you who went to school there won't recognize much of it next time you visit.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Take me out to the ball game...
Our insurance folks took us to a River Cats game. They've got a suite! It's totally the best way ever to watch a baseball game. We had an air-conditioned room full of food and drinks, then were able to go out on our own private (shaded!) balcony to watch the game.
And the icing on the cake?: the River Cats beat Salt Lake City, 7 to 4.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Slots of fun!
For the first time in a long, long time, the slot machines were friendly to me! I actually left Reno with more money than I arrived with. Of course, we all do realize that ultimately ... The House Always Wins!
I think I might brave a Blackjack table next time. A very low limit one.
Most of the table games are a complete mystery to me.
We had dinner Friday evening at Louis' Basque Corner. It was delicious and delightful, and I highly recommend it!
Saturday night we had dinner at Sterling's and enjoyed it so much, we returned on Sunday for their Mothers' Day brunch.
I think I might brave a Blackjack table next time. A very low limit one.
Most of the table games are a complete mystery to me.
We had dinner Friday evening at Louis' Basque Corner. It was delicious and delightful, and I highly recommend it!
Saturday night we had dinner at Sterling's and enjoyed it so much, we returned on Sunday for their Mothers' Day brunch.
Also saw FloorPlay on Saturday night. If you like watching ballroom dancing and enjoy performances with inhumanly crazy levels of energy, you'll love it, too!
Saturday, March 22, 2008
C-Squared Do Disneyland
How cool to stumble upon the Dapper Dans - definitely on our Disneyland favorites list! We went to the music shop on Main Street to ask about getting one of their CDs, and had to paste really polite expressions on our faces as the lady there explained to us, quite long-windedly, that it's not always the same four people. Well, duh! I've only been seeing them since I was a little girl. They must have quite a painting in their attic...
Proof positive that we're at the happiest place on Earth!
Okay. It's a lousy picture. Great subject, though! The only thing better than enjoying Billy Hill and the Hillbillies is enjoying them over a couple of bowls of ice cream!
These garbage guys were absolute animals with drumsticks! Trash Can Trio.
Quick sidetrip to Arizona...
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Our Cruise
Itinerary
1 Los Angeles
2 At Sea
3 At Sea
4 Acapulco - Noon to Midnight
5 Zihuatanejo/Ixtapa - 7:00 AM to 2:00 PM
6 Puerto Vallarta - 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
7 Cabo San Lucas - 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM
8 At Sea
9 Los Angeles 7:00 AM
Leaving the Port of Los Angeles - loved the tall ships!
I was amazed to see so much space on a ship.
Ships passing in the ... morning?
Can you believe it? Glass elevators on a cruise ship!?!
This is the ceiling above Gatsby's lounge, where we discovered champagne martinis (just add about a teaspoon of orange liqueur to your champagne - really excellent with Delicato's raspberry sparkling wine, by the way).
My little turtle buddy - took his picture from our mini-suite as we were entering the port in Acapulco.
Can you find all three divers in this photo?
Capilla de la Paz
View of the Fort of San Diego from our balcony.
A tender moment.
Zihuatanejo
Now I've seen everything. A single-wide VW bug.
Lost in translation...
Why we had to take tenders in to Puerto Vallarta...
ATVito Bandito!
First of two delightful margaritas - in hand-crafted souvenir mugs! Cups...whatever.
Ask me about our $183 bar tab. Not bloggable!
The sort of picture one just MUST get after four (or so) margaritas and a couple of shots of fine tequila.
"Let me explain you." It was so cute how a couple of tour guides used this phrase. Our guide for our trip to Todos Santos was surprised that we wanted to spend as much time as we did in the museum.
We can shop anytime, but how many chances does one have to see an original Frida Kahlo, I ask you?
Another shot one simply MUST get after having too many margaritas! (see Hotel California Bar sign, above)! This is the view from the toilet in the bus station restroom in Cabo San Lucas.
Another view from our balcony.
The last tender from Cabo. We ended up leaving a half hour late and one passenger short.
This was one of the funniest things I've seen in my life. The large man in the toga was our cruise director. I believe they called it "fountains," and they took turns artistically spitting streams of water at each other. All very straight faced and totally hilarious! I found a similar performance on youtube, for your enjoyment.
The ship was rocking and rolling so much our last evening, it was impossible to get a focused shot. No margaritas involved this time!
Our final (and cutest) towel critter.
1 Los Angeles
2 At Sea
3 At Sea
4 Acapulco - Noon to Midnight
5 Zihuatanejo/Ixtapa - 7:00 AM to 2:00 PM
6 Puerto Vallarta - 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
7 Cabo San Lucas - 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM
8 At Sea
9 Los Angeles 7:00 AM
Leaving the Port of Los Angeles - loved the tall ships!
I was amazed to see so much space on a ship.
Ships passing in the ... morning?
Can you believe it? Glass elevators on a cruise ship!?!
This is the ceiling above Gatsby's lounge, where we discovered champagne martinis (just add about a teaspoon of orange liqueur to your champagne - really excellent with Delicato's raspberry sparkling wine, by the way).
My little turtle buddy - took his picture from our mini-suite as we were entering the port in Acapulco.
Can you find all three divers in this photo?
Capilla de la Paz
View of the Fort of San Diego from our balcony.
A tender moment.
Zihuatanejo
Now I've seen everything. A single-wide VW bug.
Lost in translation...
Why we had to take tenders in to Puerto Vallarta...
ATVito Bandito!
First of two delightful margaritas - in hand-crafted souvenir mugs! Cups...whatever.
Ask me about our $183 bar tab. Not bloggable!
The sort of picture one just MUST get after four (or so) margaritas and a couple of shots of fine tequila.
"Let me explain you." It was so cute how a couple of tour guides used this phrase. Our guide for our trip to Todos Santos was surprised that we wanted to spend as much time as we did in the museum.
We can shop anytime, but how many chances does one have to see an original Frida Kahlo, I ask you?
Another shot one simply MUST get after having too many margaritas! (see Hotel California Bar sign, above)! This is the view from the toilet in the bus station restroom in Cabo San Lucas.
Another view from our balcony.
The last tender from Cabo. We ended up leaving a half hour late and one passenger short.
This was one of the funniest things I've seen in my life. The large man in the toga was our cruise director. I believe they called it "fountains," and they took turns artistically spitting streams of water at each other. All very straight faced and totally hilarious! I found a similar performance on youtube, for your enjoyment.
The ship was rocking and rolling so much our last evening, it was impossible to get a focused shot. No margaritas involved this time!
Our final (and cutest) towel critter.
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