No Shame Christmas Party

58 degree day and a drive to Corvallis

We decided to take a break from the four holiday parties we went to this past week and just have a non commercial day before getting the feast together. Drove to Findley where we found out the numbers are way down on the Canadian geese this year due to dry Autumn. They said the elk were in abundance. We did see both the duskies and the cacklers before we left. Nice sunny drive.

Christmas Bunco Party 2013

As always a very festive and fun time with friends I really enjoy. Thanks to Adele for using her lovely home and making us so welcome. Too bad Julie couldn't make it but she is recuperating from her fracture at her parent's home so posted on FB for her. I took a Waldorf salad that will use for my Christmas Ham Christmas eve dinner as nice crisp taste to all the heavy food. There were many good hot dishes including lasagne, meatballs, cheesy corn casserole, polenta, home baked bread, chicken wings, chip/dips, and champagne toasts. Bunco is a lot of energy and I loved just chitchatting with other women about nothing in particular....what we think, what we like to do and where we think we are going in our lives. No work talk.Yay! No mean words or gossip or mean looks..are these women for real? It was an honor to work with them as I cruised into sunset. Miss them all and I still miss coding. I have no words for nursing....just thankful it was over a long time ago. Amen.

55 degrees and snow finally melting on December 13,2013

After being in the frigid cold and ice for over a week we are finally seeing the ice and snow start to leave. What a week. Hard to get out and drive anywhere even with four wheel drive and snow tires but finally it seems to be over and such an odd thing. We can truly say we have experienced Winter for a change. Snow was gorgeous but not so much the ice and not the cold at all.

Winter Storm December 6, 2013

November 30 2013

Had a great Thanksgiving in Portland with family. Turkey Dinner with all the regular fixings and even Bear Ham. Too many side dishes to remember but all great. 5 different kinds of pies and even managed to watch a Charlie Brown Thanksgiving with the girls.

November 25, 2013 Countdown to Thanksgiving

We are going to Portland this year as haven't ever done the Thanksgiving dinner with family there and told Sue and Steve on Steven's birthday that we would not be coming to their house and think they were actually a little relieved. Ha. I do appreciate all those dinners over the years but I will have our family here in Eugene on Christmas Eve as usual. We will be staying at the Oregon Garden Resort so looking forward to that as a friend recently stayed there and liked it a lot. Will go to Powell's Bookstore on Friday and then leisurely drive home . Went to the holiday market Saturday and it was fun and started my gift box for long distance relatives...all Oregon foods..fun stuff.

November 19 2013

Going to Portland for Thanksgiving this year and staying at the Oregon Garden. Talked to Janean today and she is going to cook a bear ham as well as the typical Turkey Day dinner will be served. Last Christmas we had some of the elk from hunting trips done by Ellis. Very exotic stuff. It will be great to be with family. Sunday we went to a play "Arcadia" at the Robinson Theater on campus. Very nicely done and then we went to grandson's 23rd bday party at Abbey's so a nice weekend.

November 18th, 2013

Yesterday horrific tornadoes ripped thru Illinois and Indiana.......Luckily my family and friends are all ok but others were not so lucky. It came very near my Mother's home......so grateful it was spared. This is a bad time to have this happen with the approach of Winter. Sometimes it seems like the current day is boring...it is raining or don't really feel like getting out of the house but when your house is gone only then do you realize the importance of having it.

November 14, 2013

Last evening we met granddaughter for dinner at Sizzle Pie and then we went to the Bijou Metro to see the Sundance shorts........interesting group and I liked the one from Ireland the best. Today we have our nice young man helping do leaves and since he was here had him help lug in the 8 foot tall fake fir........must say it seems odd to see a Xmas tree against a backdrop of leaves on the patio but we will just turn it on at night for the lights and I will slowly decorate it. This year I intend to get different ornaments down as have been just pulling down a few bins to get the job done but time to look at something new. Working on holidaze plans and have the Turkey Day covered and have planned how Christmas Eve and Christmas Day will go.

Retirement in 2007 and been a whirlwind ever since.

Sunday November 10th 2013

The Film Festival was a hit and the show was full. All the electronics worked well and we enjoyed two parties afterwards. The last party was a crock pot chili feed. My vote went to the Buffalo Bean Beer one and Desiree brought killer chicken wings. Cheese, vegies, homemade apple pie and there were even hamburgers fresh from the grill if those other offerings weren't enuf. Good time and thanks Pam and Jeff for being generous and fun hosts.

Shaggy Dog Film Festival Debut

After years in the making the SD finally hits the big screen and Mike has a short film he made with friends entered as well as the films the Shaggy Dog group has been working on. This afternoon I will have my I pad taking photos of the event and the people who come so should be fun for me. Altho not directly involved except our home being used as a control center with thousands of phone calls and emails and even one film it was used as a set, I would have to say I have paid my dues so looking forward to some calmer moments ahead as much of this film making is truly labor intensive and major league frustrating best I can tell from comments coming from the film makers. Yet they persist so I figure they got the hi-tech gene that I happily seem to have avoided. I am puter literate and finally am navigating my mini I-pad but still don't want a smart phone and do not want to be hooked up electronically 24/7. Getting cards out for the family November birthday and yes, I can holler Happy Bday on Facebook but still like to send a paper greeting and also Turkey Day cards are ready to address and mail. Barely able to see them as everything in the stores is red and green now.

November 3 2013

Yesterday I went to a genealogy class at OGS and was thoroughly entertained. It was called "Preservation of Books, Documents, and Photographs as well as photograph identification. We had 10 folks which makes for a nice size and very knowledgeable speakers. Who would have known that there were books out there that you can pinpoint the year taken just by what the folks were wearing and their hairstyle, etc. Good stuff and I am happy I joined and looking forward to more classes and research. Nice folks and not many distractions there which is what you need when you are trying to figure out that family tree. Currently working on the Palmer line and awaiting some family history and research from two of my cousins and also want to work on my grandmother Mary Edna Morris Miller.

All Saint's Day

Went to early Mass for all Saint's Day. My Saint is Catherine of Sienna. It is one of my favorite church traditions to do. Yesterday was book club and we met at a local eatery. I led the discussion of Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice . Last evening we watched an old Vincent price movie, "The Pit and the Pendulum" by Edgar Allen Poe. Did chili dogs and just enjoyed taking turns to open the door for all the trick or treaters .

October 27, 2013

The dark days have been hanging over us for about a week and it already feels like November here. We are hopeful of some more sun early in the week. Yesterday was awesome in terms of cheering on favorite teams. The Ducks won and so did the Cards. Life is good. My cousin Cheryl celebrated her birthday by going dancing all weekend. Lots of little great stories going on and even heard from cousins regarding my genealogy so all good. Met some friends for lunch at Party Downtown yesterday and we all had awesome food. I had biscuits and chanterelle gravy and meatloaf.....How is that for a brunch? I bought a breadpudding we could all share. It was caramel apple with a doughnut flair......we didn't leave a crumb of that one behind. Then a friend on FB showed me a neat app for making Halloween photies of friends and what fun I had with that one. It was even easy to do.

I can see clearly now

October 24th 2013 Today I noticed some odd symptoms with my eyes and got in to see my eye doctor who established although there was a basis for the "floater" in my eye, I was right to get it checked out. I appreciate him taking the time to see me and reassure me . Sometimes we don't know what we have until we might lose it. I couldn't imagine a world without sight. I am so very thankful today. The leaves never looked more brilliant and colorful than they did on my way home...of course I had a dilation and even had more colors in the surroundings due to the chemical agents used but if you saw a woman driving today with sun glasses in the fog, know she wasn't crazy just immensely grateful for knowing her eyes were ok today.

Wednesday October 23, 2013 Unusual weather for us and we have cool foggy mornings followed by warm sun and almost 70 degrees yesterday but not complaining. My cousin in Illinois says possible snow there today and hard to believe after spending hot days in August there with dripping humidity. I could become a fan of global warming if this is the trade-off. It won't last here and soon the dark days of Winter will hit. Finally got the last of the tomato vines out of the garden and most of the patio stuff is put away. Working on Halloween trick or treat bags and that is coming up quickly. October is a lovely month for colors and remains a favorite with me. The trees are absolutely brilliant and at their peak before the rains hit.

Summer Vacation

October 18, 2013. We took a very long and interesting trip this past Summer to 9 states. It was a combination driving and flying venture and we really enjoyed all the sights. Driving from Eugene to Boulder, Colorado where we spent a week at the Mars Society Conference and visiting Diane and Allen in nearby Evergreen. Lots of fun catching up with our cousins and getting ready for our flight into Indianapolis, Indiana where we got a rental car to drive to Ohio, Indiana and Illinois where we visited many relatives and enjoyed a typical hot and muggy Midwest Summer.