A Few Things

I've just spent a little over a week in Oregon with no time for blogging. Here are just a few things.

I posted this picture on Facebook, but never got around to blogging it. We celebrated 44 years of marriage on August 21st. It's so hard to believe---the time has flown by. It was the best decision I ever made! We were babies!

Mitchell's car finally bit the dust. It gave our family 16 good years! First Butch, then Greg, then Mitchell. It still looks so good---no dents or rust. I think the place they donated it to are pretty happy to get it. And, by the way---10 yr. old Elizabeth was the one that found a place that would take it---via the internet. Kids these days know their way around anything electronic!

There's nothing like a surprise in the mail. My cousin, Chrissy made this wreath. In fact, she makes all kinds of fabulous wreaths. I admired this one and a week later it was in the mail to me!! She chauffeur me all around St. Louis---she's always been so generous to me. I love her!!

Upon arriving in Oregon, we went to a restaurant in Portland near the university. I've already forgotten the name of the place, but it came up on a list of the best sandwiches to have in all 50 states before you die. This one was called the Reggie Deluxe. Butch and I split it. It was a chicken biscuit with sausage gravy and a fried egg on top. Pretty much anything with a fried egg is a deal maker for me---like roasted red peppers or avocados! If those are in the description---I'm getting it.

Butch and his brother had not fly-fished in 30 years. They still had it in them. It was a very successful fishing trip---finally. They have the worst luck when it comes to fishing.

I liked to say we hiked the Oregon trail. But the truth is I have no idea where the Oregon trail is or if we even came near it. Instead, we hike a mile and a half to this waterfall in the Willamette State Forest.

 We arrived at our bed and breakfast and this is what greeted us---a big tom turkey with the gobble gobble thing.

The bed was so tall---thank goodness they had a step stool under the end table. I have a little step up in to my bed at home, but I could get in it without the step. Not this one.

This was the largest dog I've ever seen---even bigger than a Great Dane. I thought it was a giant poodle, but it was something else. I never heard of it before---thus I cannot remember it.

We saw so many deer everywhere in Oregon. We see a lot of deer here in Tennessee, but not this many---and not ALL day long. Our deer are more nocturnal. At the Powder Creek bed and breakfast, they were so tame that they would eat right out of your hand. I was happy just taking the picture. I would have had to wash my hands after.

And while we're talking about animals, I want to set the record straight. People accuse me of not liking animals. The truth is, I LOVE animals!!! To look at. I don't want to own them or have them in my house. I don't want them jumping on me or slobbering on me. I don't particularly want to touch them. And I don't like the smell. I just want to observe them and be amazed at unusual animals. I've always said that if someone put a gun to my head and said I had to have a pet, it would be a cat. They seem to be the least amount of work. We have fish---but when you travel as much as we do, even they are a pain!

Don't get me wrong, we've had many outside cats over the years. And, I get attached just like everybody. It's just not worth the heartbreak when they die. I learned that lesson at 10 years old. Our pet boxer disappeared. I cried for a couple weeks. I had the sense to tell myself that it was ridiculous to be so upset about an animal. That pretty much did it for me. I try not to get attached. But when one of our cats fell victim to that poison pet food about 10 years ago, I sobbed like a baby all the way home from the vets.

I get it---pets are family! They are just not my family!

Five on Friday

I thought I would share a few of my favorite websites with you.

1. I just found this one while looking for a photographer for Mindy's wedding.
Thumbtack is really unique. Think of it as a bulletin board that you've "thumbtacked" a bunch of business cards! Whatever you need---painter, landscaper, help with technology, interior designer, tutor, or in my case photographer---you put in that information. Then you will fill out a brief questionnaire that includes your zipcode and how much YOU want to pay. Then you just wait for offers to come in via email. I put in a rather low bid for a photographer and got 2 bids. Both show excellent work, but I chose the one that had 22---5 star reviews. It was also the less expensive of the two bids. The other looked equally as good, but only had 3---5 star reviews. The whole process was very easy. In fact, I'm trying to think of something else I need just so I can use it again! Connie, find us a window washer!

2. Next up is Etsy. Most of you have probably heard of Easy but I'm posting this for those of you that don't know about it. Basically, it's a marketplace for individuals to sell things. Most of the items for sale are handmade things. But you can find other things there too. Just put whatever you are looking for in the search box and see what pops up. That's how I found my scrabble tiles for my newly remodeled rec room.

3. I always talk about the nearly 200 blogs I follow. There's no way I could list them all, but here are a few of my favorites:
For scrapbooking, storytelling and clever titles:
From High in the Sky
For great recipes and weekly menu plans:
Six Sisters Stuff
For great home interiors and decorating ideas:
Between Naps on the Porch
For a good lifestyle blog on fashion, home decor, recipes and fun---these sisters are out of Springfield, MO---although Elsie has just moved to Nashville:
A Beautiful Mess
For a little of everything---and just because the blog itself is beautiful---you wouldn't expect anything less from this designer:
Susan Branch (I have no idea why this one comes up blue)

4. I could never follow over 200 blogs without a blog reader. I recommend it for anyone---even if you only follow a few. The best thing about Bloglovin' is that it lists all of the blogs you follow that have a new post. That way, you do not have to go to each individual blog to see if there is a new post. It doesn't cost anything---you just need to sign up. If you are on Facebook, you can sign in that way. Then you just put the blogs you follow in the search box and you can add them to your feed.

5. This list would not be complete without Ted Talks. You can find talks from 10-30 minutes on just about any topic under the sun! I like to listen to them while on the treadmill.

So there you go---great places to while away your time (as if you needed more ways!). You might notice that I did not list Facebook. As far as I'm concerned, Facebook is a huge time waster! There's a lot of crap on there. Don't get me wrong---I do check it out a few times a week, but I don't love it. I like family pictures and clever comments, but for the most part, it's just a whole lot of crap. In fact, I prefer to refer to it as Facebook!

If you have any questions, or need any help just let me know.

By the time you are reading this post, I will be off again. Butch and I are meeting Walter and Chris in Oregon for 9 days. We've never been there. Butch has spent hours finding out the best things to do and see. I'm really looking forward to having "high tea" since I didn't have it in London!!

Have a great week!!

I Never Knew

That my Starbucks card could be hacked!

In the airport on my way to St. Louis, I reloaded my Starbucks "card" with $50.00. I paid for my "venti iced black tea shaken with three equals please" using the new balance. $50.00 usually lasts me 3 or 4 months. I didn't get another Starbucks until this past Saturday when Steph and I went to Knoxville. My balance showed zero, so I reloaded it again with $50.00. I checked my credit card account when I got home and discovered that I WAS charged the first $50.00. I checked my Starbucks account online, but couldn't figure out what happened to it. I contacted customer service and got this response:

Hello Barbara,

Thank you for contacting Starbucks.

On 8/16 there was only one reload of 50.00 on to account . Have sent your reload and purchase history for you to 
review. 8/16 reload of 50.00,  8/16 purchase 6.77 balance 43.24 : 8/16 purchase 13.90 balance 29.34 : 8/16 purchase 
10.40 balance 18.94  8/16 purchase 6.90 balance 12.04 : 8/16 purchase 12.04 balance 0.00 : reload on 8/22 for 50.00 
: purchase of 15.68 balance 34.32 : Current balance on card is 34.32. If you wish to discuss this further please call 
1-800-starbucks.

If you ever have any questions or concerns in the future, please visit us at customerservice.starbucks.com.

Sincerely,

customer service

Aside from the very first purchase, none of those charges were mine!! I called Starbucks and 

found that all of those charges were made from a Starbucks in California. I have no idea how 

that happened, but the customer service agent was very nice. She is sending me a new card 

and crediting me the original $50.00. I have no idea how something like that can happen! It's 

amazing what crooks can do!
*****************************************

I never knew that I would love my new toilets so much!

They are taller, so they meet you half way! That will definitely come in handy when I have my s

econd foot surgery in September!!
*********************************
However, I DID know this:

What things have you learned this week?

Another Move

I got home from St. Louis on Friday morning. I left at 6:45 on Saturday morning to go to Jordan's new apartment in Knoxville---3 hours away. I thought it would take 2 hours---max---to get her settled. I knew we were in trouble when I saw this when we walked in the door:

In all fairness to Jordan, she's only been here since Wednesday. She did have her bedroom fairly settled.

Everything had to be unpacked and washed. She didn't have any dish liquid, so that delayed the process. The light cover on the ceiling fixture fell down as you can see.

There was no room for her kitchen table and chairs, so we had to take that back home. Considering she lives on the THIRD floor---Stephanie and Jordan had a LOT of hauling to do. But not nearly as much as her dad and boyfriend had to do to get all the furniture up there.

As usual, I'm the boss on these sorts of projects. No way was I going to do all that hauling! No elevator either! Luckily, I love this sort of work. There's nothing more satisfying to me than making order out of chaos.

We brought the white shelf with us (thanks Connie). There are actually two of them, but Morgan has the other one in her apartment in Murfreesboro. I didn't realize until now that they were meant to be used as a set. You can tell by the top moulding that's flat on the right side. It fit perfectly in this spot. She definitely needed the storage space.

The round table was actually on the balcony of her last apartment. This one doesn't have a balcony. Since there was no place for the regular kitchen table and chairs, I felt like this was better than nothing. She can easily pull this out so that two people can eat at the table. Otherwise, it's "sit on the couch and use the coffee table" for meals.

I put the other chair here in her entry. Still easy to pull up to the table when necessary. I'm sure it will be piled with stuff in no time at all.

 It's a nice apartment and pretty much space for one person---just never enough storage.

The sectional looks pretty good in this picture, but really, it's a piece of junk. Still, for a poor college kid's apartment, it's just fine.

This is her bedroom furniture from home. She "made" the silk scarf above her window. It was her idea to tack it up there. She made it in high school art class. She's actually a pretty good little artist herself. Most of her pictures on the wall are things she's painted.

There was no place to store her trash can. This was the best we could do. As long as she keeps it clean, it will be fine. There are plenty of cabinets in the kitchen---most of these are empty. She doesn't have a lot of stuff. In fact, her last roommate, took her pots and pans. She has a cookie sheet and a muffin tin---that's it. I'm pretty sure she'll be getting pots and pans for Christmas!

She didn't want to use the little plastic drawers, but she needed the space. We convinced her that it didn't look bad here.

It was a lot of work and took longer than I thought it would. Butch would say that's par for the course---I always underestimate how long things will take. I work pretty fast, so that's why I think things won't take so long. By the time we finished, we were exhausted. My legs and feet were worn out. We didn't get home until 8 p.m.---with drive time, that's 13 hours! Still, it's nice to know that she's settled and can now focus on her classes.

The next time we'll see Jordan is over Labor Day weekend. She's going to be home. We're having a family barbecue/pool party, so she'll be here. I can't wait to hear how she likes her "new" place!

Chrissy

This is an early picture of my cousin Chrissy and I. We've always loved to dance and it looks like it started early! This past week when I was in St. Louis, we didn't do any dancing, but we did just about everything else! Just being together is lots of fun.

One morning, we went to her house. Her gardens are beautiful. And I love her garage doors---too bad I don't have a photo of them. They are the type that look like  carriage doors. If ever I replace mine, that's what I'll get.

I didn't take any pictures outside, so I had to have Chrissy send a couple. You can't really see how nice her gardens are from this shot---but the part under the deck looks really good.

 I took this picture of her bedroom to show off the artwork below.

Chrissy's husband, Steve is quite the artist. They have his paintings throughout the house, but I have to say, these are my favorites.

 Now you're getting a little glimpse in to her closet. She's always had a "thing" for watches.

 These are great storage ideas for jewelry.

Her closet is perfectly organized. In fact, she's always been like this. When we were teenagers, I was a mess. When she came to my house on the weekends, she always re-organized me. I did tease her about this photo. I told her my closet was better---only because I have ALL matching hangers!

Okay, this is a little over the top---who needs this many white shirts! I have to admit, there are different sizes here. I always have hope! I think my cousin taught me well. I'm pretty sure she's proud of me! Actually, shocked is more like it. After all, she knew me when....

St. Louis

I was in St. Louis last week. I went specifically to be with my Aunt Marie. I flew in--it costs less than $200, so I doubt I'll ever drive again! Of course, that does put me without a car. But luckily for me, my favorite cousin, Chrissy is now retired. She actually likes being my chauffeur. I love spending time with her, so it's a "win-win" for both of us.

I had such a good time---here are a few photos:

On Monday, Chrissy and I went to Janet's to help set up her scrapbook room. We finished sooner than expected, so we went to the movie and saw "The Gift" with Jason Bateman. It was really good---he's a great actor. But be prepared---it's suspenseful. We jumped out of our seats a couple times with Janet elbowing me twice and Chrissy yelling in my ear twice!! We met up with Ronnie, Jackie, Greg and Evie for dinner. Evie was wearing her Frozen socks. She put them on a while back, pointed to Elsa and asked her mom if that was "Aunt Barb." Apparently, she thinks I'm a Disney princess!

 One day, I got a facial in old St. Charles---recommended by Jeanne. It was awesome. While in the area, I saw this tiny house. I would have loved to see the inside. Rather than being part of "tiny house nation"---this one is really just a very old tiny house. It was so cute.

I stay with Jeanne when I'm in town, so I spent some time enjoying Jeanne's gardens. Chrissy and I even dug up some ferns for her house.

These hydrangeas actually were the blue ones. I love that when they "die" they are this lovely multi color.

Jeanne has a magnolia in her front yard. It's not a Southern Magnolia, but the blooms are pretty similar. I didn't know that magnolias could grow in St. Louis' climate.

 Just a side view---so pretty. I want my gardens to look like this!

 I don't know anyone that does pots better than Jeanne!

One day, we picked up Chrissy's sister, Judy and went to lunch. After, we decided to take a drive "up north" to the old neighborhood. By now you've heard of Ferguson, Missouri. Well, I grew up very near there. It is no longer a very nice place to be. This was the first apartment that Butch and I lived in when we got married in 1971.

Nothing fancy, but the price was right---$110. a month.

This was us back then. In fact, we celebrated 44 years together this week.

We continued our drive---went by Spanish Lake, Aunt Stella's house, St. Aloysius Church and school and our old house. The whole area is pretty run down. 

It saddened me to see signs like this all over. In fact, in hindsight, we probably should not have been driving around there. Thankfully, we were not victims of a random shooting. On the other hand, I think most of the thugs were busy in Ferguson!

It was a busy few days, but so much fun. I got to spend a lot of time with Aunt Marie (my purpose for going) and I got to see Mary, Mary and their kids too. Aunt Marie went to lunch with us one day. She has good days and bad. I feel so bad for her. She's only 81, but takes a lot of medicine for different ailments. The sad part about it is that she is one woman who did everything right in her life---watched what she ate and was always active---even playing golf until about 2 years ago. She's slowing down. She thinks her medicine is what's causing it and I have to agree. Still, I was happy to be with her. She told me so many stories of her childhood and my great-grandparents from Italy. I had no idea there were skeletons in the closet! She exposed some of them---so interesting. Ahhh, but those are another post!

I'm so grateful that Chrissy drove me all over! Thanks for that---and to her husband, Steve, for letting her devote the week to me!