No Swimming For Me

It poured today.

While driving to work I heard on the radio that there were no flood concerns.  "That's good," I thought.

By late morning there were flash flood warnings and actual flooded areas in and around the Portland area. Several of us at work even got a flash flood warning on our cell phones.

By the time I left work things were back to normal. This was a very good thing as I didn't want to swim home!

Stock Market Tip

Buy shares in Kleenex!

I know for a fact that the demand for tissues has increased significantly over the past 24 hours.

Don't believe me?

Just look in the trash can by my desk at work!

(Disclaimer: No, this is not really a stock market tip. But I don't think you have to worry about insider trading should you decide to buy Kleenex stock.)

Monday Musings

I woke up with a sore throat.

I managed to get through my full day of work.

I'm now trying to stay caught up on my home chores.

I'm tired and feeling yucky. The "cold" has won today's battle.

But I am going to win the week's war!

(I'm so tired, I'm not even sure this makes any sense.)

A Sweet Morning

Lew and I had a sweet babysitting gig this morning -- the highlight of our week! :)

Rest for the Weary

My place of employment closes at 4:00 on Friday afternoons.

People start to head out before then if they have their 40 hours of work in for the week.

I was one of those people today!

I'm enjoying my job, but it sure was nice to get home early and have some quiet time.

Tonight:  Pizza and TV shows.  :)

Dad 272: Glasses and Crashes

(The sun has gone to bed as I enter this, but it was indeed a sunny day. Enjoy Dad's post! ~ Tracy)

 

Derf Here! Enjoying another sunny day in the Northeast. We're gradually working our way to fall temperatures. Bring it on! Must get plow ready!

 

Josh's football team won again and is now 2-1. Homecoming this weekend against Sanford. Another win??

 

Took Spouse to the eye examiner yesterday for a glasses check. They checked out well but her vision is cloudy due to cataracts. Next step is a consultation with the specialist about cataracts. The specialist is my glaucoma doctor. We'll see him November 2, 2015.

 

I was woken up at 2:00 AM Wednesday as Spouse crashed to the floor. She claims she was asleep and got up to go to the bathroom. A few sore spots but nothing broken. The physical therapist checked Spouse and thinks a twisted tendon in the knee is about all that happened. Lucky!

Things to do:

• Put plow on!
  
• D-con the cellar!
  
• Close garage refrigerator!
  
• Order K-1!
  
• Shut off outside water!
  
• And the list goes on!
  

 

See you next week, sooo....

 

Until next time!

 

Toodle Pip!

 

Derf!

Five O'Clock in the Morning

Kitties wrestling on my bed 

.... doo dah 

.... doo dah 

Kitties wrestling on my bed 

.... at 5 A.M.

Last night I set my white noise machine to stay on all night, rather than the 90 minutes I usually do.

Success! If there was any traffic noise, it didn't keep me awake.

However, I was awakened before my alarm went off.  The "why" is described above.

At least it was almost time to get up anyway....  Meow!

Four O'Clock in the Morning

I had a hard time getting out of bed this morning. I woke up at 4:00AM and could not get back to sleep right away. So I was more tired than usual when it was time to "rise and shine".

At 4:00AM I was listening to all of the traffic going by our house. I usually don't notice the cars because of the noise our fan makes. But we slept without the fan on last night. Everything sounded different.

While I was listening, I wondered where all of the cars were going. An early shift at work? The airport? A head start on a long automobile trip?

One vehicle I know I didn't hear at 4:00AM was the mail truck. The mailbox flag was still up this morning. I had two more items to mail, and I decided to trust that the system would work today. I added the pieces to what was already in there from yesterday.

My trust was not misplaced. Our mail got delivered! We are one excited household.

Postscript: Dad called the postal service to ask about yesterday. Apparently our regular carrier was ill and the substitute didn't have a chance to complete the route... "nor illness" is not in the motto!

Monday Mail Call?

It is 9:00 p.m. and our mail carrier hasn't been to our home yet.

We know this because Dad and I each had one piece of outgoing mail in our box. I was surprised to see the mailbox flag still up when I arrived home from work.

We received no mail last Monday. But we also had no outgoing mail. Was there mail delivery in our neighborhood that day? We're wondering.

At any rate, I can only say "the check's in the mailbox" if anyone asks.

Postscript: Incidentally, there is no snow nor rain nor excessive heat. But we are now experiencing the gloom of night. 

Stop and See the Flowers

I took a picture of our front lawn this morning. As you can see, It was not a good summer for the grass:

As I looked closer, I saw one little burst of non-dandelion yellow sprouting up on our desolate lawn:

Lew noticed it, too. He mowed today, but I believe he preserved this miraculous little splash of color!

Cheezburgah!

This morning we learned that today was National Cheeseburger Day.

This meant that dinner was planned!

Lew made burgers for our entire household (excluding the cats), and they were scrumptious (the burgers, not the cats).

.No cheese was found on any burger, however... not a one.

So I'm not sure that we celebrated National Cheeseburger Day to the letter.

But we sure did celebrate in spirit.

Yum!

Dad 271: A Big One Point

(The best time to lead is at the end of the game. Enjoy Dad's post! ~ Tracy)

 

Derf Here! Enjoying a summer-like week in September. Temps in the 80s. Told fall-like weather will arrive next Monday.

 

Josh's high school football team beat a perennial powerhouse last week by scoring the tying touchdown with 39 seconds left and then kicking the extra point. Their only lead of the game.

 

Got my truck serviced so I can put the plow on for its fall check-up. Between last year's registration and this year's, the truck had only been very few miles. Pretty much used for plowing. Trying to use a little more now. Not hoping for a lot of snow this winter. The almanac tells us to expect a cold snowy season. Boo!

 

A good report today as Spouse's therapist said she seems to be regaining some of her balance. Hope she continues. Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers! Thanks.

 

Enough for today.

 

Until next time!

 

Toodle Pip!

 

Derf!

Kitty Daycare

Lew and I adopted both of our cats during my non-working time, so Jerry and Marilyn are used to me being home during the day.

Jerry had already been visiting my parents at various times, but now Marilyn is doing so as well.

Jerry usually naps and then gets sent back home when he starts to get into stuff he shouldn't (example: potato chip bags).

Marilyn's habits are yet to be determined, but we hope today's activities aren't the norm. She shredded the tail end of a roll of toilet paper and decorated my parents' bedroom floor with it!

I am glad that Mom and Dad like our kitties and that they don't mind having them saunter over to visit.  :)

A New Non-Habit

A couple days ago Lew and I saw a news story about making your bed. Apparently it is better not to do so!

When you make your bed, you are trapping all of the little dust mites, etc. that thrive in the warm, cozy environment. Leaving your bed unmade allows it to "breathe" and doesn't let those little critters take over.

I have found it very easy to follow this advice... very easy!

Fantasy Football Flop

Lew and Matt are co-managing a fantasy football team in the church league this year.

They talk on the phone just about every day regarding their lineup and any moves they want to make. (This is serious stuff.)

Matt won one of the two church leagues last year. Lew came in toward the bottom somewhere.

Will Matt's good fortune outweigh Lew's bad luck?

If their Week #1 result is any indication, they are in for a long season.

Get 'em next week, guys!

Weekends

Now that I am a working woman once again, the weekend actually feels like the weekend.

 

Today seems less hectic and more relaxing than weekends past, even though I may be just as busy.

 

I guess I'm more appreciative of the fact that it's Saturday.

 

It's kind of nice.

One Week In the Books

Woohoo!

I survived my first week back in the workforce. Granted it was only a four-day week. (Thank you, Labor Day!)

I'm pretty tired right now, but I'm also very happy. It's going well so far.

I will try to make my blog posts more exciting than they have been this week. I will try to do so soon, anyway! I write better when I am fully conscious.

Smile!

Dad 270: Cool It!

(Dad now writes on Thursdays. Enjoy his post!  ~  Tracy)

Derf Here! A sunless day today. It is, however, a lot cooler than the last few days. It was so hot that a couple of school districts sent their students home early. I guess classroom temperatures close to 100 degrees were just too much. Afternoon activities and practices were canceled or moved inside away from the sun. I don't recall students sent home due to the heat before. We await tonight's rain. Supposed to be heavy at times. Should help lower the temperature. We hope!

I will try to keep you all up to date with what's happening on a weekly basis. I will try to be brief because Tracy (owner of the blog) is now employed full-time.

We have our physical therapist (PT) and occupational therapist (OT) on board at home now. Spouse continues to work with the therapists and we try to do exercises on the off days. Please keep your prayers coming for Spouse as she struggles to recoup her skills. Thanks.

Enough for today, sooo....

Until next time!

Toodle Pip!

Derf!

Adjusting

One of my Facebook friends just started a doctoral program.

 

This week she is focusing on finding her "new rhythm" as she balances classes with the rest of life.

 

I'm doing a similar thing, aren't I?

 

Here's to new rhythms!

Employed!

Day #1 at my new job is in the books!

Am I tired? Yes!

Am I overwhelmed? Of course!

Will it be fun? Absolutely!

I am going to really enjoy it.  :)

And now it's time to sleep.

 Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz......

Schedule Changes

I start my new job tomorrow! At 8:30AM I will be employed full-time for the first time in almost five years. I'm looking forward to it. But, no, I don't know what I'm going to wear yet!

Due to my new daytime schedule and our Wednesday night housechurch meeting, there will also be a change on Mainely Tracy:  Dad will be writing his posts on Thursdays starting this week So, Derf is moving from Wednesdays to Thursdays.

Mom's shower schedule is also being adjusted.  :)

I'm facing the changes!

Yard Sale

Our breakfast buddies and a couple of their daughters had a bunch of yard sale items, and what better place than our house to have a sale?!

 

We started setting up shortly after 7:00 this morning and "closed" for the day around 3:30ish. We will "open" again tomorrow around 8:00 in the morning for day two. (There will be no day three!)

 

The sale items are covered with tarps in our driveway, so I suppose someone could do some midnight requisitioning. But I'm not too worried.... The driveway is right below my bedroom window, so I would probably hear them.... And then I would go outside and help them pack the stuff in their car!

 

Pastor Dave's and Laura's two young daughters had a lemonade and popcorn stand at our sale today. Their cuteness factor alone would have given them great business success! But the lemonade and popcorn were quite tasty. Yum.

 

Lew and I had a few items in the sale today. But I spent all of our profits buying stuff from our friends!

A Lovely Day

Morning walk with Ellen.

Lunch out with Emily.

High school football game with Lew.

Josh is #56, one of his teams' four captains. (Second red jersey from left in the middle of the field.)

A lovely night for football!

Location, Location, Location

Lew and I went for pie & fry just now. On our way home we took a slight detour and utilized our iPhone cameras. After taking these photos, we were home in about two minutes. Vacationland....

Dad 269: Farewell to Summer

(It is once again time for reading and 'riting and 'rithmetic. Enjoy Dad's post! ~ Tracy)

 

Derf Here! Enjoying another beautiful sunny day in the Northeast. Predictions for the next two days through Labor Day show very good weather. Possible showers every now and then. We will enjoy the stretch of weather.

 

Football season is upon us. Zack's freshman team has a game tomorrow. Josh's varsity team opens the season Friday night. Josh plays center on offense and defensive end on defense. He was also elected one of four captains for the year. Congratulations, Josh! A well-earned title!

 

Even though Labor Day is still ahead it seems that summer is over. Lew and I went down to sister Deb's cottage yesterday to complete the closing. Deb stayed in Tracy's & Lew's guestroom last night and left at 3:00 AM for Pittsburgh. Another season has passed. They seem to go by faster every summer. Or is it that we're getting older?!

 

Spent the morning at the dentist getting a permanent crown. I have another expensive tooth. I hope it lasts.

 

Our home is abuzz waiting for Labor Day. You see, the day after Labor Day Lew's vacation is over and Tracy starts her new job. We are all excited. Good luck to both as they go back to work.

 

Spouse has started her in-home physical and occupational therapy. The O.T. has the week off as she is on vacation. We are praying and hoping for an improvement in Spouse's abilities. Your prayers are wanted at this time. Thanks.

 

I think my proofreader and editor probably think I've written enough, sooo....

 

Until next time!

 

Toodle Pip!

 

Derf!

A Vacation Day in Four Acts

Act I.

IHOP.

Act II.

I shop.

Act III.

I read.

Act IV.

I drop.

Zzzzzzzzzzz....