Milestones

Today was a big day....Megan found out what George Mason University was offering her...and it looks like she will be a student. They are giving tuition assistance and she will work 10 hrs a week as a research assistant. So...now she can breathe a little easier...so can we! Now I just need to get her to go buy some warm clothes.....Pensacola was colder than Indialantic...but she will actually experience fall and winter in DC. She got a coat a couple of weeks ago...that's a start! haha


My Dad was born on August 31st...in 1918. he's no longer here to celebrate with us...but I thought of him often today. Happy Birthday Dad!


Speaking of birthdays ....a good family friend....Mr. Spino will be celebrating his 90th birthday this Saturday. (This is a photo of him with his son Mark)We saw him and the family at mass on Saturday when we went to celebrate Brian and Maureen Hogg's 50th Anniversary. They renewed their vows....and it was nice. I love the small chapel at Holy Name Of Jesus Church. Actually like it better going to mass there...rather than in the big church with 999 or so other people.I love the window behind the altar.....I need John to figure out how to make me a small stained glass window......much smaller...than this obviously...haha

David got a nice photo of the whole family... Brian, Maureen and Elaine, Stephanie and Kevin and families....as soon as I can wrangle a copy from him...I'll post it here. Mr. and Mrs. Hogg both looked great! The best part of the renewing of the vows...was an older gentleman sitting in the front row...he had the biggest smile on his face...it was just priceless...if I could have somehow gotten his picture I would have...he was so cute! That grin...was the best!

And last but not least...my niece Anna B. started college today! She is at SUNY Binghamton. My sister and her husband (pres at SUNY Cortland) dropped her off on Wednesday...and today was her first day of classes. I remember how nervous/excited a little overwhelmed & homesick I felt when I went off to college at UF (back before Internet and cell phones...and in my family you did not make a long distance call unless it was an emergency!) It was the first time I had ever been away from home for any length of time...So I hope all goes well for Anna and Megan on their first days in new places! I'm sure they will do just fine...just like Brenna, Ian and David have done. (and Megan she's been through this before...just not as far away! Makes me nervous...not her...hahha)

Onto September!

"Crabgrass Shoulder"

You've heard of Tennis elbow, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome...well I believe I have "Crabgrass Shoulder" hahahha...and it would be funnier if my shoulder didn't hurt! Lately the crabgrass is growing like crazy...and I just CAN"T seem to ignore it....I'll be out tossing the "bone" to Haze and spot a patch and I am compelled to remove it! (If I wait...I might forget where it's located).

Haze doesn't like this too much...since I am supposed to be playing with him...not pulling weeds!

Or...I'll be mowing the lawn and spot some.....I wish I could just pretend that I didn't see it...but I just can't d#%$ it! So...forget about any kind of manicure for these nails...I'd be getting out of the car from the salon...spot a patch of crabgrass...and it would be all over. hahaha Round-up helps for the really stubborn areas...but it's usually not too hard to get out.....so I guess I'll have to continue. It's just I woke up last night wondering why my neck and shoulder were STILL sore...even though I just had a massage on Friday...and then I remembered...it was that D#@& crabgrass...it gets me every time!

3,2,1 Blast Off!

Into space....we really saw it much clearer than this.......but click on for better view

heading up..................

Last night at 11:59 pm the Shuttle went up again. About10 minutes before launch time we hopped in the car and went down to the beach.(too dark to ride the bike across A1A)

We were not disappointed....right on schedule the whole sky lit up over Cape Canaveral and the rocket went into space! My little camera really didn't capture it very well.....but it was cool to watch. Since we were down on the beach behind the Quality Suites Hotel it's not QS anymore...but I can never remember what it is...so as far as I'm concerned...it's Quality Suites,,hahawith a small crowd of people of all ages, from all over the United States ,many of whom had never seen a launch live, let alone a NIGHT launch live,... there was plenty of excitement.(I know that was a terrible sentence grammatically speaking...but.....)

These photos are of the rocket and if you can see it...some of the people on the beach. It was pretty funny to walk down to the beach at 11:55pm and see a small gathering of people , many of them holding up cameras and cell phones (glowing in the dark) waiting for the lift-off. As I said, my pictures really didn't capture the sight...but they're all I've got...so you'll have to use your imagination! :)

I'm Melting!

I'm Melting! At least that's how I feel right at the moment. Of course it's my own fault for taking a walk at 10:00 am....as the day continues to heat up! Oh well.....I didn't want to wait until this evening when showers and thunderstorms are always a possibility and sleeping in felt awfully nice...so I guess it was worth it.

Besides... when it comes down to it.....how can you complain when you have the day off, blue skies and sunshine, music playing in one ear and the sound of all the crickets chirping in the other with the smell of freshly mown grass along the way on a late summer morning! I'll melt anytime!

Which one is You? This was our craft for the day. Personally I like the dog...but my boss preferred the cat. she didn't come out and say it...but I know she didn't like my little dog I am happy to report that I had 12 kids today...6 chose the dog, 6 chose the cat...so I know I wasn't totally off base. haha The tails sticking up on the back of the "hats" were the best. We read "Cats Sleep Anywhere: a Poem" by Eleanor Farjeon, "Five Little Kittens" by Nancy Jewell, "10 Dogs in the Window" by Claire Masurel, and "The Great Dog Wash" by Shelie Braeuner...equal time for both...hahaha, then we did a cute song by Hap Palmer "Birds in the Circle" before we made our hats. It was fun!

Sad day

Maybe this sounds corny...but I was really sad to hear the news that Ted Kennedy had died. I have pretty much quit watching the news on TV....because with the new 24/7 coverage I find it hard to listen to any of them any more! Everything is so sensationalized and each network is determined to be the "First on the scene" with "Breaking News"....half the time they aren't even Sure if they have the facts straight...but God forbid they don't get on the air!....but today I was glued to the TV..I know people think I'm a die hard liberal.... and I am! But no one can deny the legacy Kennedy left behind...with his work on issues that affected women, children, the disabled, the elderly, students, civil rights, Aids victims....and the list goes on and on. He truly devoted his life to public service. Of course he was no saint...he had some major screw ups...but he still persevered. He lost a brother in World War II, Jack and Bobby to assassins, one sister in a plane crash, another sister was the victim of a failed lobotomy....and then his own three children all had some form of cancer...(two of them serious) and his former wife battled breast cancer. I don't know about you...but I'm not sure how I would survive all that and still have the faith he had and the strength, courage and determination to speak out for change and to work for the good of the country, especially for those whose voices aren't always heard. Either my Mom used to say this...or I heard someone use this expression...but all I could think was "He was one of the good guys." Listening to the news reports and comments from people he worked with over the years I am convinced that he was a great statesman . Flawed yes, but he overcame his mistakes and made a difference in the lives of millions of people. Now that he's gone........It's a sad day.

Sparks were Flying

We were noticing our lights flickering ....(even the nightlights) and wondered what was going on.

It was unlike any power surge we've ever had....knew something was up.but out of my control Well....we were getting ready to leave and saw Ra and Pilar in the driveway looking up. Okay....we looked up and saw what they were looking at...a flame(?) coming out of the transformer that is in the back corner of out yard. Looked a little dangerous....Ra was calling the Fire Dept. and they arrived shortly thereafter. Meanwhile the neighbors were all gathering in the street trying to figure out where the FPL guys were....and wondering what to turn off/disconnect in case the whole thing blew up. One guy from around the corner came by with his baby son...told us he had just installed a light fixture when the lights started flickering and his wife was convinced it was all his fault. He was just glad to know he wasn't to blame! hahhaha

I was watching the occasional sparks falling..wondering about the thick palm fronds below...in MY backyard

The flame would go down and then shoot out 2 feet! or so...it looked dangerous. FPL (Florida Power & Light) arrived and cut the power. John was over where the FPL truck was (around the corner) and asked the guy if we should go out like we had originally planned to do...or wait...he said "Go". Good idea.....we left, made a stop at some friends and then got something to eat...pulled into the driveway and the power came on 5 minutes later. That's what I call good timing! It's been working fine ever since...until 2 minutes ago when we had a power surge...that caused this computer to stop and restart. I checked the back yard...no sign of flames!