Lew's Logbook: Cold

(I want my global warming!!! Enjoy Lew's post. ~ Tracy)

 

I believe the words were, “It’s frickin' freezing out there."

 

This is what I said to father-in-law Fred one day this week. He just laughed.

 

I’ve got outside work to do and, although the sun is shining, the temperature is in the mid-to-low 50s and the wind makes it feel like 40. Tuesday the temperature never made it out of the low 40s.

 

I told Tracy I was going to punch Al Gore in the face the next time I see him.

 

Sun shining again today so I got out the mower to do a little grass cutting. I wore a sleeveless shirt like I often do and I was cold.

 

There is no point in complaining about the weather but I feel better by venting.... So maybe there is some point after all.

Too Much

I am seeing more and more blog posts, articles, links on Facebook, etc. regarding "hacks."

"Hacks" are really hints/ideas of how to simplify life and/or how to use/re-purpose everyday items. (Too many "/" in that sentence, but they're staying.)

I've looked at several of these offerings and have even tried some of the ideas I've seen.

Many of the ideas are supposed to be time-savers.

And with the time saved, you can read more stuff on the Internet about how to save even more time.

Sometimes it's all just too much to take in.

I think I'll watch TV now.

My Music Project

About three and a half weeks ago I subscribed to Amazon's digital music service. I wanted to have all of my music "in the cloud" so I could listen to it on my iPhone, so Lew could listen to it on his Kindle Fire, and so we could listen to it on our Amazon Echo.

I then started to get all of my music uploaded. At first I thought I could just select the music folder on my PC and upload it all at once.

Silly me.

Problem number one: I had too much music to upload all at once. It got hung up. So I had to find a way to keep track of what still needed to be uploaded.

Problem number two: Albums that had various artists were uploading as multiple albums. I wanted a one-to-one correspondence. I had to figure out how to organize album songs in my iTunes library so they would upload as part of the same album.

Problem number three: Some of my albums were already "in the cloud" because I had purchased the music from Amazon. I didn't want to duplicate songs. So I first had to identify and track what was already there.

Problem number four: Look up "O.C.D." in the dictionary and there will be a picture of me....

I ended up creating a truly amazing Google spreadsheet to track each album, the number of songs, and what had been uploaded. This spreadsheet is a thing of beauty. It is one of my better efforts.

Anyway, I spent every spare moment I had to get my music uploaded.

It only took me three weeks.

Lew and I have been enjoying the results of my efforts, so the project was a success.

And I sort of miss the project... but not that much.

Dad 303: Bats and Bikes

(Lew reports another win for Josh's team today. Enjoy Dad's post! ~ Tracy)

 

Derf Here! Another beautiful cool spring day. A far better day than yesterday as we had a couple inches of snow falling around midday. None can be seen now. Snow doesn't last as long this time of year. Thank goodness!

 

Lew has gone to Josh's baseball game today. Only the second game of the season. They won the first game, 8-3. Josh played first base for six innings and pitched the last inning. Good luck today. Hope to catch a few innings this year. We'll see.

 

Lew and Glen have their motorcycles out for the season. One of them is licensed for sure. Not sure about the other one. Sure it will be soon.

 

Waiting to get back my mower after being serviced. Due anytime.

 

Spouse and I continue on her road to recovery. Trying desperately to find out how to make her useless arm stop being painful. Hoping our prayers will help. Yours, too!

 

Until next time!

 

Toodle Pip!

 

Derf!

A Brief Post of Disbelief

Today is April 26.

It snowed.

Where are you, Springtime?

The Early Bird

In a moment of insanity, I decided I should try to be at work by 7:00 this morning. I left the house shortly after 6:30, so I actually did it!

 

I was able to complete a printing project (don't ask) and I finished some daily tasks before lunch.

 

I took an extra long lunch break so I could "settle in" to my new workstation. (See this past Friday's post.)

 

I stayed at work until 6:00pm to work on another big project.

 

My productive day at work has left me ready for an early night.

 

And in case you're curious, I never saw any worms this morning. Smile!

Lew's Logbook: Aching Back

(I think I may start referring to my husband as "Landscaper Lew." Enjoy his post!  ~  Tracy)


My aching back....

My latest project involved digging up some turf next to our wheelchair ramp and putting down some crushed stone.

It’s nice to get some things done that have been on my “to do” list for a while, but I’m finding that the spirit is willing but the body raises some objections.

I keep forgetting that I’m 67 years old. Can’t seem to wrap my mind around that.

Anyway, the secret is to rest. After a day of hard work, I take a day to rest, hang out with the cats, and log some time in my recliner.

The projects will get done in time. No rush.

Musical Workstations

My office-mate and I decided a couple weeks ago to swap workstations; this was with the blessing of the "powers that be."

We were going to wait until the new carpet was put in the hallway and our office before we switched, but we ended up making the move this afternoon.

I thought it would only take an hour or so — but you know how that goes. Fortunately we started a couple hours before the workday ended.

Oh — and did I mention that our office is being painted this weekend? So we had to leave things in a good situation for the painter.

My office-mate is pretty settled into her new space, while my whole work area is in a state of upheaval.

Monday morning is going to be a blast.

Smile!

Prince

I feel like I should write about Prince and his untimely passing today. It certainly has been a big news story.

I didn't really follow Prince nor his music, although I have certainly heard his stuff. I am terrible with names of songs and the corresponding artist, so I would be hard-pressed to name more than a couple of his songs. I'm not even going to try.

The thing I  will remember the most about Prince was when he changed his name to the symbol that had no pronunciation. I loved how the media began to refer to him as "the artist formerly known as Prince."

I have used similar wording for when names of other things have changed — for example, "the exit formerly know as Exit 8." Those familiar with the Maine Turnpike will know the old Exit 8 is now Exit 48. Actually it's been that way for years now. But I digress....

There's not much more I can really say about Prince. Lew told me he was a phenomenal guitar player and quite the overall musician. And even I know he was a good entertainer for his genre.

With the passing of Prince, we have lost another icon of the music industry much too early.

Dad 302: F-o-r-s-y-t-h-i-a

(More signs of Spring.... Enjoy Dad's post! ~ Tracy)

 

Derf Here! Enjoying a great spring day. A bit cool, but not too bad. Should have a string of days like this. A few showers coming but still spring weather.

 

Lew has been rather busy in the yard and has cut back miles of bushes. I'd say forsythia but I don't know how to spell it.

 

Josh's baseball schedule starts Friday at Sanford. He was one of four players mentioned as "key players" for the season. Congrats, Josh. Good luck! Hope to catch a few innings.

 

Our mower is being serviced for another summer of extensive work. Should have it back within a week.

 

This Friday (April 22) will be one year to the day that Spouse returned home from her hospital stay after her stroke. Two eye operations in December for cataracts and a few falls later she is still home and slowly improving. Looking forward to spring weather and much more activity. Keep the prayers coming.

 

Until next time!

 

Toodle Pip!

 

Derf!

Step Away From the Cookie

My father bought some chocolate chip cookies today at Subway. He graciously shared them with us.

There were four cookies total for Lew and me to eat. For those of my readers that are math-challenged, that's two each if the cookies are divided evenly between us.

Lew had eaten 1/2 a cookie before dinner, so I made sure to grab two whole cookies. (They were delicious.) I let Lew have the remaining whole cookie plus the 1/2 of the one he had already bitten into.

Now that I am a few minutes out from eating the cookies, I wish that I had insisted on a 3-1 split with Lew. I would get the three, because it's only fair. But perhaps that would have been unfair to Lew, because it would have left him with only 1/2 a cookie after dinner.

If I had never known about the pre-dinner 1/2-cookie enjoyed by Lew, I would not be questioning this division of cookies.... Would it have been better if Lew had eaten an entire cookie beforehand? I think so. Then a 2-1 split of the remaining three cookies would have seemed entirely fair to me. (Note that Lew would still have gotten two cookies, but I would have known about only one.)

So I guess what I'm saying is I should only be aware of an odd amount of cookies. That way I can always have one more than Lew. If perchance there is an even amount, Lew can secretly eat one beforehand... but he must eat it in its entirety. It's just the right thing to do.

A special note to Dad: Thank you for the cookies! I hope you enjoyed my post, which was mostly about my love for chocolate chip cookies and not my selfishness regarding same.

A Study in Jerry

Lew's Logbook: Yard Work

(I love Lew. Enjoy his post!  ~ Tracy)

We have a big row of “bushes” in our yard that has been expanding over the years.

Last summer I said to self, “We must cut this back”.

Self was thinking of all kinds of ways to do this, knowing that it would be a lot of work.

I considered hiring someone to do it, but I couldn’t justify spending the money when there was a perfectly healthy man available to do it at no cost (that would be me).

So I took on the project.

I’m sitting here resting my tired and sore muscles.

It took me about 12 hours (over a 3 day period) of cutting and hauling, but it is all cut back.

Still some clean-up to do but the worst is over.

I told Tracy that if she really loved me she would never have let me start this project.

I was right…it was a lot of work.

[I think Tracy really loves me.  :) ]

A Matter of Perspective

My workplace closes at 4:00pm on Fridays, so Lew and I have developed a wonderful routine. He takes me to work, picks me up at closing time, and together we go to Pat's Pizza for dinner.

Because we are there before 5:00pm, the lunch specials are still available. Lew enjoys the personal pan pizza and salad.

And because it's Friday, the macaroni & cheese is on the menu. It's THE BEST mac n' cheese. Yummy. I love it.

The mac n' cheese is a large portion, so I usually get a to-go container for the leftovers. On the ride home tonight, I almost kicked over the container.

I told Lew, "I almost kicked the macaroni & cheese over in your car. That would have been sad."

He said, "Oh, that would have made a real mess! Cheese all stuck on the car's floor. That would have been really sad."

Sad because of the car? I was talking about the macaroni & cheese!

I Scream for Ice Cream

All of the local ice cream shops are now open for the season.

 

We have three places we normally go to, but we've only patronized two of them so far this year.

 

And because we haven't had a treat from the Dairy Corner yet, I am feeling ice cream insecure. (I think that's kind of like saying ice cream challenged, only trendier.)

 

ICE CREAM!!!

Dad 301: Play Ball!

(Ahhhh, baseball.... Enjoy Dad's post! ~ Tracy)

 

Derf Here! Enjoying a beautiful sunny day in the Northeast. The experts tell us we have sun and warm weather at least through next Tuesday. What a treat!

 

Went to my foot doctor last Thursday and he cut tendons to the two toes that have ulcers. Went back Monday and the next appointment is in two weeks. The ulcers on the hammer toes have healed and I no longer must treat them each day with healing medication. Hope my next appointment goes as well. Looks like my toes will remain with me.

 

Baseball season is here and we have great hope for the Red Sox. However, they now have four losses in a row. Not really the way to start the season. Still have the Celtics in the playoffs next week. They won't last long either. Saving Red Sox opening ceremony for our "away" family to watch when they visit.

 

Spouse and I must now get busy with constructive therapy. The weather is getting better and we (especially me) must get busy. Keep your prayers coming.

 

That's it, sooo....

 

Until next time!

 

Toodle Pip!

 

Derf!

Best Line of the Week

On our way home from breakfast this past Saturday, we were behind a car sporting the following bumper sticker:

Eat More Kale

Lew read the bumper sticker out loud.

Then he offered his own editorial comment: "I'm not going to eat ANY kale."

I am still laughing!

A Room to Live In

Lew has his new chair and our old couch went to live at Emily's brother's place, so I wanted to make a few more changes in our living room:

 

Lew cleaned the cat hair off of my blue recliner. It is now available for humans to sit in.

 

The round white table that belonged to my grandmother (Mom's mom) is now in one corner of the living room. Lew wasn't so sure about this change, but I got Eli to say, "Grampa, I like this table." This was a bit devious of me, but I was desperate.

 

I love my "new" LIVING room!

 

 

Lew's Logbook: Saturday

(Lew can also add "write for the blog" to his list. Enjoy his post! ~ Tracy)

For as long as I can remember, Saturday has been my favorite day of the week.

Of course when I was a kid it was because there was no school, and as an adult I’ve always had a job that did not require work on that day. (For many years my job did require Sunday work).

But more than that, Saturday is a day when things happen.

Today, for example, my son called and asked if we could watch our youngest grandson Adam for a while. Not planned, but a pleasant surprise.

Also, I was working in the yard and our neighbors with their two small children came over to visit. We haven’t seen them in a while and the kids came running to me for hugs.

This is all after breakfast with friends this morning.

As a Christian man I could say that Sunday is my favorite day of the week, but to be honest it is still in second place.

A Week of Late Nights

On my way home from the ballet (I'm not driving). Saw a beautiful performance of Sleeping Beauty.

Other late night's this week included:

Monday. NCAA men's basketball championship game. Buzzer beater! A great game. Congrats to Villanova.

Tuesday. Women's turn for basketball. The game was never in doubt. Four years in a row for UConn. Great job, ladies,

Last night. American Idol finale. My favorite won. Hooray! I love Trent.

This weekend. I think a nap (or two) may be in order!

My New Glasses

The "normal" pair:

And the "computer" glasses:

Dad 300: A Milestone

(I'm glad that my father accepted the challenge I gave him a few years back.... Enjoy his post! ~ Tracy)

 

Derf Here! Another beautiful sunny day this spring. Step outside and it is still winter. It is too late in the year for car frost every morning. Really!

 

I have been reminded by my editor of today's milestone: This is my 300th post. About six years worth. Hope some of you have followed the last six years of the happenings that I have experienced. I'm looking forward to another 300. Stay tuned.

 

As I sit here on this date I am looking forward to exactly 4 months from today. If all goes as planned, we all will be in Illinois for granddaughter Kelsey's wedding to Zachariah (Zach). We're planning on reaching our destination two days before the wedding day. It will be a fine family reunion. Our rooms are reserved and an RV has been rented. Looking forward to this joyous occasion.

 

Spouse is now in her second year recovering from her stroke. I pray for a miracle every day. Please pray that her arm recovers. That is her major problem now. Thanks for your prayers.

 

No more for now. Sooo....

 

Until next time!

 

Toodle Pip!

 

Derf!

Lew's New Chair

Freezing Cold

It was 20 degrees outside when I went to work this morning.

It snowed during the day.

When I left work to come home, I had to sit in my car a few minutes to let it warm up. THERE WAS ICE ON MY WINDSHIELD.  Ugh!

Where are you, Spring-time?

Why can't I find you?

Sofa Sale

(Lew writes again today for Mainely Tracy. Enjoy.  ~  Tracy)

Since retiring in February, I have spent a lot of time on the sofa.

I’m finding that my back doesn’t like the sofa so I (we) have decided to sell it and buy one or two recliners.

I have never had a recliner but it seems appropriate at this time in my life.

However, there is one member of our family who may not be too happy about the transition.

For Sale: Sofa. (Cat not included.)

A Funny Marketing Fail

About four and a half months ago we heard the unwelcome news that Tim Horton's was closing its Maine locations. The shop here in Scarborough closed within nanoseconds after this story broke.

I sent my niece Kaelen a Facebook message at the time, informing her of this. Her response was, "Oh no!!! That's terrible!" (followed by a sad-faced emoticon).

The old Tim Horton's building has now been empty for weeks and weeks. Rumors continue to abound as to what should/might go in there.

In the meantime, today's mail brought a coupon flyer containing 10 coupons for Tim Horton's. I made a paper airplane out of it.