Sierra Vistas

Testing The Waters

2011-03-03T11:51:00.001-08:00

Lucerne, CA

Now that I've been widowed for over four years, I've begun pushing myself into doing things outside my comfort zone. Taking short road trips (by myself) is one step.

Lucerne is a(nother) small town I just love. Its not a fancy place, but is a lovely hamlet along the north shore of Clear Lake. I definitely want to explore the area further...

Does Anyone Even Blog Anymore?

2010-11-02T17:43:00.000-07:00

Me, just yesterday

Yes, its been awhile. Not much has changed in all this time... still retired, same house. Same, same, same... except...

... and this is where I decided to self edit. I believe I'm ready to begin blogging anew, and this post was just a tad too personal!

Sorry about that!

2009-01-03T13:18:00.000-08:00

PJ and the Nativity Scene

We lost the Baby Jesus from our tiny Nativity Scene years ago.

I chose to replace Him with a teensy Santa Claus. I feel it apropos to both my own celebration, and the typical modern American holiday.

Grandson PJ feels that Santa residing in the manger is just not right, so he periodically hides the little bearded elf.

Recent Conversations Overheard At My House...

2008-06-29T11:07:00.000-07:00

idea stolen from Sylvana

So, I'm working out on the property and feel the need to call my daughter.
"Hey Smurfette, its mom... did you see that baby deer leg about 50' from your door?"
"Mom, that's not a deer leg, its a goat leg!"
{silence}... "Oh, okay..."

The grandson loves to pop out of nowhere and try to scare me.
"Jesus PJ, don't do that! You'll give grandma a heart attack! What would you do then?"
"I'd get a hammer!"
"Why would you get a hammer?"
"To make sure you're dead!"

PJ is aware his PapaDon was cremated, knows that is my wish too, and claims he wants the same.
"Grandma, you know how I want to be cremated too?"
"Yes???"
"Well I have a question... what kind of cream do they use?"
"Oh honey, they don't use cream. They put you in a box and shove you in an oven."
{unbelieving stare and silence ensues.}
"Its okay honey, they make sure you're dead first."
"Do they use a hammer?"

Dog Tired

2008-06-05T11:41:00.000-07:00

Mojo

About a month ago, I was diagnosed with high blood pressure. The doctor ordered some lab work, and on May 29 I was also diagnosed with high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes.

Although I had no symptoms, this didn't come as a surprise. My Murray family has had the same troubles for over 160 years. Two of my three younger siblings already had all three diseases!

The new medications have truly made me dog tired (for now,) but I'm hearing that things get better.

Diet-wise, the only big change has been that I'm forced to eat more frequently. I'm not a dessert person, thank goodness, so avoiding sugar is no big deal.

I get exercise working out on my property, but have added some fast walking to my daily routine.

I'm reading up on the subject, and trying to familiarize myself with new terms. I'm getting prepared for my next doctor's appointment, where I'll hopefully get myself a prescription for a tester. So, other than being tired, this hasn't yet become a big lifestyle change!

Oh, and the puppy pictured above? He's my grandson's 6th birthday present!

Its been a long time...

2008-05-10T12:04:00.000-07:00

debris piles

Fire season is once again looming. I've been lucky enough to have a friend cut down a few trees, limb up others, and attack the underlying brush.

This has left lots of debris piles strewn across my property.

Originally, I was going to use my little wood chipper (barely visible in front of the barn,) but quickly found its just not able to do this much work. (Neither am I.)

The debris pile in the rear of the above photo is about 8' tall, and there are many more piles surrounding the house which are equally as high.

So... I ordered a debris bin, which should be here a week from Monday.

The last time I ordered a bin, was when my husband and I decided to clean out the junk the previous owner had left in and around the barn.

A day or so before retrieval, he decided we should take down the old light fixtures and throw them in too. He cut himself badly doing this, and I had to take him down to the local hospital for stitches. (He ignored my warning to wear gloves.)

After getting home, he ripped off his bandages declaring air was good for the wound. Wrong!

Several days later, he began feeling ill.

A few days later, I had to call 9-1-1.

He died of septic shock.

You can believe I always wear my gloves, as well as safety glasses, when I do anything "handymannish."

Anyway... I'm keeping busy, but wanted to wish a Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there!

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-24T21:51:00.000-08:00

me & my brother, a looooooong time ago

Hope you all have a wonderful holiday!

Sears Sucks!

2007-12-16T12:42:00.000-08:00

You piss off my grandma and you piss off me!

Obviously the title of this post isn't original. When I Googled a few minutes ago, there were 4,540 English pages to be found.

I've been buying from Sears since 1971, the year I graduated high school and snagged my first job.

I've purchased (and note the plurals) refrigerators, stoves, range tops, water heaters, wall heaters, washers and dryers. I even had my kitchen remodeled by Sears.

The last water heater I bought is possessed by the devil. The contractor (hired by Sears) installed the thing less than four years ago. He turned on the heater before it was filled, burning out the element. Sears repaired it, days later, and I had to pay for the repair! WTF?

A week and a day ago, the thing began spewing water. Sears sent a repairman who found it was indeed spewing water (when he turned the valve back on) and placed a call to his people, which I listened in on. Hooray, the warrantee covers the problem!

I was to be called back within two to four hours...

To make a long story short, I've called Sears at least five times, speaking to at least eight different representatives. Emailed their customer service, and was given yet another telephone number to try... to no avail.

I've been without hot water for a week and a day (so far.) Sponge baths just don't cut it. I'm hosting Christmas this year. Trying to clean house with water heated over the stove truly sucks.

I threatened to blog this, and here it is. Don't be afraid to chime in, the more the merrier.

Oh, I won't have time to visit my blogfriends for a while. I'm busy heating water.

Thanks a ~~fucking~~ lot, Sears.

Update: I was told yesterday there are no available units at my local store, and no contractors in the area. It was suggested I order one and go down and pick it up when it arrives! I went to my local hardware store (not Sears) and bought one this morning, and it is in the process of being installed as I type. A very strong letter is in the mail, heading for Chicago. A copy of today's bill will be coming right behind it.

Artistry

2007-11-08T09:44:00.000-08:00

Bad picture

The grandson is here once again!

Now that he's 5, we like to occupy ourselves with both educational and fun activities. One of his favorites is photography, more specifically; using Photoshop to correct some of grandma's bad attempts at picture taking.

The photo above was a try at capturing PJ in his Darth Vader (Halloween) costume in a darkened hallway, sans flash... duh.

Upon seeing the resulting bad shot, he went to work, both redoing the photo and creating the caption. This is his creation:

Uh oh
Ghostly door indeed!

Busy, busy, busy!

2007-08-01T08:53:00.000-07:00

ongoing project...

No, I haven't dropped off the face of the earth! Thank you all for checking in!!!

Since my last post, I've both hired out and been a do-it-yourselfer with various home projects.

I've painted, chainsawed, chipped branches and leveled out ground for an above ground pool.

Hired out some plumbing, heating, and electrical work... bringing me to my latest pet ~~peeve~~ project, shown above.

I never liked the entry to my house. Since the actual front door entrance is around the back of the house, the first door encountered is the dining room slider. Originally, one would walk from the gravel driveway straight onto the deck and then take an educated guess as to whether you were in the right place.

There was a small pergola lightly shading the area, which gave me an idea. Why not create an entry-patio? Good idea, bad choice of contractor...

The work this guy has done is great. He built aggregate curbing where there was previously railroad ties. He sanded and stained the entire deck, replacing boards as needed. He built the steps shown above, with lighting beneath. He added to the existing pergola, giving much more shade. He poured the patio too.

This work was completed 5 weeks ago, today.

The trouble is that he has more work to do... clean off the aggregate patio, build one more large section of curbing for a flower bed, and build steps down to the patio from the driveway.

He's been warned he needs to come and finish. Several times.

He must intend to return, as he's left lots of tools and his portable cement mixer. I'm tired of waiting.

I piled some of his tools in the mixer. I have several bags of concrete mix. I'm thinking about mixing a load of cement, with his tools inside the mixer, and letting the whole thing dry.

That'll larn him!!!

Happy Holidays!

2006-12-18T13:27:00.000-08:00

Christmas cards

This year I've received some especially beautiful Christmas cards, displayed in the photo above.

Now that I've 'larned' the cats to stay off my china cabinet, I can finally display them!

It's comforting to know that friends and family still take the time to purchase or make cards, write a short note, and post them... especially this Christmas.

All your comments this year have been much like little greeting cards. You all don't even know how much I appreciate your ~~massages~~ messages, hugs, and smiles.

I'm going to make time to come visit you all before Christmas and leave my own little greeting.

Oh, and a special message to my friend MO... You're waaaaaay late this year!

Name My Road!

2006-12-07T12:02:00.000-08:00

yeah, another view picture...

So, this morning my barking dogs alerted me to visitors. They were County Officials!
I think I scared them, walking out of the house dressed like a vagabond, with my hair tied up in an old lady knot atop my head. Hey, I'm painting, okay?
It appears there was trouble when I called 9-1-1 the day my husband needed medical help... most of the emergency units had trouble finding the house!
To make a long story short, my four other neighbors and I need to name our road.
Sounds easy, right?
Now my first thought is to name it after a local tree. Wrong! We have oaks, pines, cedar and manzanita mostly, and this fact is reflected in many of our local street names.
We all have views. Well, we have "Hillview," "Mountain View," and many other Views already taken as well.
Now if we want to be humerous, there's already an "Oleo Acres," (one of the cheaper spreads- get it?) and even a "Dog Bite Road!"
Any suggestions out there?
I wonder if Sierra Vistas is taken? A little self promotion isn't a bad thing, right?

In other news, Mr. SB's birthday would have been yesterday. I held up just fine. I think the fact that he hated his birthday helped me along. Mr. SB also hated the computer, and wouldn't you know it... both my phone line, and my computer went through some major problems yesterday! Guess I'll have to take it up with him at a later date.

Hmmmmmm...

2006-11-19T15:47:00.000-08:00

Someone wasn't paying attention!

So, I received this card a few days ago.
Nuff said!

Seasons Change, And So Do I

2006-10-16T13:12:00.000-07:00

Twin Oaks

It's now just over three weeks since my husband passed away.
Some days it seems this all just happened yesterday.
Some days I feel years have passed.

The nights are falling earlier, and colder.
Leaves are dropping.
I light scented candles atop my woodstove when the temperature is mild, and burn the oak from my woodpile when the temperature drops.

The season is changing, and so am I.

And best of all... I'm doing fine.

Thanks to everyone, for their love and concern. Just want you all to know that I'm ok. Busy, but definitely ok.

Always and Forever

2006-09-30T17:33:00.000-07:00

Mr. SierraBella 1950 - 2006

My husband of 14 years passed away last Saturday.
It was unexpected.

Now that family has returned home after spending time here, I'm finally allowed to grieve. I really needed some 'alone time.'

I was with my husband as he passed, and the last words I whispered to him were "meet me back at home." Well, he hasn't 'showed up' yet.

My grandson PJ asked me if his "PapaDon" is chasing "hotties" in heaven. I hope so. After all, it is heaven, is it not?

I've been listening to an old song today that breaks me up. I need to cry now that everyone has gone home. Most of you are probably too young to know the song, but here are some of the lyrics...

All day long, wearing a mask of false bravado
Trying to keep up the smile that hides a tear
But as the sun goes down, I get that empty feeling again
How I wish to God that you were here

Baby Come Back, by Player

I'm leaving comments open, although I don't know whether I'll be dropping in much.

Oh, and remember to say "I love you" to someone every day. I did.

No lyin', we saw another mountain lion!

2006-08-13T12:10:00.000-07:00

He followed the deer trail.

Early last evening, Mr. SB once again called me to the window. It wasn't the fox we've been seeing lately, nor the coyote family. It also wasn't the huge buck we saw earlier in the day.
It was another mountain lion.
He was crouched down low, and following the old deer trail which passes through a tunnel created within some manzanita trees.
No, I didn't get the camera in time, ~~damn it~~ doggone it!
After calling the neighbors, I sat out on the deck waiting to see if it would return. This is where I took the above picture.
Night fell and I didn't see him again, although I did see two figures come crashing through the brush. The first was a deer, and I can't be sure what the second animal was. I could take a guess...
The scary part of this tale is that about two hours earlier, I'd been walking the property (alone,) carrying weed spray, looking for any new weeds which might have popped up. I'd even been within the manzanita tunnel spraying some poison oak!!!
Now I'm beginning to wonder if the lion was following deer scent or my scent...

Hell Yeah I Did!

2006-07-26T14:45:00.000-07:00

Christmas stuff
Since it's been too hot to do much of anything these past few weeks, I decided to do some online shopping.
I found an early Christmas sale at Current Catalog, and boy did I take advantage!
The order arrived and I picked it up yesterday, realizing there are only five months left until the holiday...
I'm now stocked up on wrapping, cards and a few extras.
It's kind of strange having Christmas items sitting here when the temperature is right now reading 114 degrees. Oh well...

Been Doing Some Online Gardening

2006-07-13T11:59:00.000-07:00

colorized Nemesia fruticans

Actually, I've been doing lots of watering, in order to keep my plants alive!

I recently discovered a program in my computer which allows one to create a gardener's binder of sorts. It looked pretty good until I realized there wasn't a spot on each sheet to import a photograph... It was suggested one would affix a photo or seed packet onto each page. How low-tech is that?

~~After a few days~~ Suddenly, I realized there was a much easier way to accomplish this task... blog it! Heck, I can begin with photographs, since I'm all about the picturess, add the plant's common names, scientific names, and any other information I care to scribe.

Bingo!

I haven't opened comments, though. I have enough trouble keeping up with comments on this blog, let alone another. I intend to keep it a place where one can stroll through, look at the pictures, and not feel indebted to comment.

I'm beginning to link some of my favorite gardening blogs, beginning with
Sylvana's gardening site.
This is my very favorite gardening blog, which sometimes includes amazing recipes as well.

If you'd care to peek in at my new site, go here.

A Visitor

2006-06-25T15:16:00.000-07:00

The neighbor's peacock

When the temperatures rise above 100, like the 108 degrees we're seeing today, I dream of moving.

As of late I've been looking at real estate online, one of my favorite hobbies.

On various sites I choose my current idea of what I expect in a dreamhouse.

I need: 1 acre or more, a minimum of 2 bedrooms and 1 and a half baths, a fireplace or woodstove, and a view. The kitchen must be good sized, and the master bath must be large as well... with a jacuzzi (or room for one.)

Wishing to remain in Northern California, I could go back to the coast, but I refuse to move away from some winter snow and back into nightmare traffic. Therefore, I'm looking at small towns in the higher elevations.

Prices are steep, not a surprise at all. My concern at this point is choosing an appropriate location. I don't need to be close to shopping, churches, schools, or the opera. I would like to be situated nearer to a few decent restaurants than I currently am.

I stumbled upon this recently, and it's been a blessing! I cruised their forums, and found many others are doing exactly what I am doing... looking for a better place in which to relocate.

Some of the posters seemed to be way too involved in mentioning the price they'd paid on their McMansions, but most people were trying to be helpful. Population, weather, cost (of course) and traffic was discussed, not to mention local schools and job opportunities.

After several ~~days~~ hours of reading I learned something...

Everybody is looking to find their idea of paradise, but once they move there they find everyone else is right behind them... and they don't like it! All of a sudden they're knee deep in traffic, can no longer find easy parking, and start complaining about all the new people moving in.

I realized that I already have my own paradise! Most properties up here are a minimum of 5 acres, so it can't become crowded. People are very friendly. Although I've only lived here 4 years, it takes me over an hour to get out of the local market because you just run into people and get to talking!

I'll have to try and ignore the heat of summer. If that's all I can complain about... well so be it.

After all, how many people experience the joy of a neighboring peacock who strolls over for a visit?

Happy Birthday PJ

2006-05-31T10:58:00.000-07:00

PJ's First Birthday

Today is my grandson's 4th birthday!
He's already taken the physical for pre-school.
Time is definitely flying...

His parents were already living in this area when his mama called to let me know they were going to induce labor. The timing was just perfect for this grandma as we'd already scheduled a vacation week, and were heading up here on that very day!
While packing up a load, mama calls and asks when we're leaving, because the labor was underway. I assured her this labor would take quite a while and even though the trip would take almost 3 hours, I'd be there for the birth.
Wrong!
By the time I got to the hospital, the receptionist was so excited she blurted out "You've got a grandson!" (It's a small, two-story hospital, which obviuosly doesn't see much action.)
By the time I got upstairs, my grandson was watching basketball with his dad!
So much for the typical (meaning long) first-time delivery.
If my daughter ever has another baby, I'm thinking about buying dad a catcher's mitt and letting him handle the delivery...

It's A Dog's Life!

2006-05-27T12:37:00.000-07:00

Tasha on the deck-

A week and a half ago I celebrated the anniversary of 4 years of retirement!

Squirl commented today, wishing me a happy Memorial Day weekend, but wondering whether it's that big of a deal now that I'm retired...

Yes, it still is something I look forward to!

During my working years, I was scheduled more than my fair share of holidays. One year, I recall working Mother's Day, Easter, Memorial Day and The Fourth of July. I held my breath when the Christmas schedule went up, but wasn't too surprised to see my name.

I got even during the final 5 months of employment. By that time I had 5 full weeks vacation and 6 compensating days available. As my husband and I were in the process of getting our S.F. Bay Area home ready for sale and moving up here to the foothills, I decided to schedule a full vacation week each month until I was gone for good. This meant I'd work about three weeks and then go on vacation again... effectively dropping me from any weekend duty as well as Easter and Mother's Day.

Now the summertime holidays are spent with the scanner running, keeping abreast of any local fires usually set by campers, partiers or people attempting to clear their properties.

Today we're not even bothering with listening. It's extremely overcast, and the warmest it's been is 60 degrees. There's a possibility of thunderstorms too.

There's something to be said for a nice quiet holiday!

Hope everyone is having a fun, but safe weekend.

Ode To My Oaks

2006-05-05T10:04:00.000-07:00

my springtime hell

They're big
They're 'purty'
But their falling pollen
Makes my car real dirty.

I could park in the garage, except there is too much stuff in the way.

Wildflowers and Weeds

2006-04-28T12:07:00.000-07:00

Wildflowers
The lovely Kat gently reminded me that it is now springtime, yet my most recently posted photos are snow pictures!
Indeed I've been remiss!

I begin my spring cleaning in February when I start sorting out my tax paperwork; using the opportunity to clean all my files, both paper and data.
Closets and drawers are next. Who knew I had so many clothes to give away, and throw away?
Note to me: Go shopping soon!
Next on the agenda is the annual weed-a-thon which occurs during the week-long springtime weather we receive. This week our temperatures are in the 80s, next week we'll likely be ~~sweating~~ perspiring through the 90s.
I'd rather weed-whack than clean house anyway.
So I began yesterday.
I slathered on tanning cream, donned a tank top and shorts (as well as safety glasses) and headed out.
Not twenty minutes into this project, my weed-whacker hit something only slightly less lethal than a rattlesnake or bee hive...
I hit fresh dog poop.
Yeah.
So as not to gross anyone out (too much), let's just say it involved face, neck and hair. Thank goodness for those safety glasses!
Before I got to the shower, who do I see but Mr. SB, coming from his assigned corner of the property, where he's been working.
He tells me "this is the first and only time I'm going to say this, but you're full of shit."
No duh...
I'm now beginning to contemplate labeling the growth on the property as wildflowers.
One doesn't need to whack down wildflowers, do they?

Weather Update

2006-02-19T12:58:00.000-08:00

Up the driveway this morning

And no, I'm most definitely not shoveling!

As Seen On TV

2006-02-18T09:53:00.000-08:00

Looking west from the deck-

I woke early this morning and checked the local news to see if we might get a little more than the light dusting of snow we received overnight.

Our local TV show, "Good Day Sacramento," was asking for emailed pictures, calling it "Show Us Your Snow," as this lower level elevation snow is not common.

I trudged outside and took a few photos, and ended up emailing the picture shown above.

By the time my husband awoke and was drinking his first cup of coffee, I told him to turn around to the TV, and asked if the onscreen photo looked familiar. It was my submitted photograph!

It's snowing again, so I hope to go back out for more pictures shortly.

I'm thinking I ought to change out of my thermal pajamas and slippers first...

Hooray For Grandma!

2006-01-24T12:05:00.000-08:00

A Happy Little Boy

Several weeks ago I realized that I was chain smoking, mostly while on this computer. I decided it was time to address both the blogging addiction as well as the smoking addiction.

I've quit (smoking) twice before by going cold turkey, and felt I wanted to try a different method this time.

I decided against the gum or the patch, why keep nicotine levels high? Reduce the nicotine, and reduce the craving!

Then I saw a documentary about severely overweight people having stomach surgery done, and began thinking... Why are these people going through intense medical procedures to reduce the size of their stomach? They know that post-surgical consumption of food is limited, and that this is where the weight loss comes from. Why don't they skip the middleman and just do the diet?

Relating this to my smoking, I thought "Why not cut down, then cut down again and again until I'm no longer addicted?"

To date, I've cut down my smoking to half of what it was.

I keep the smokes out of easy reach, along with a log. I do not allow myself a cigarette until a specific time period has been attained.

If I start jonesin' I run in place, take a walk, or do stretches.

I'm trying to avoid the things (like blogging) where I'd normally be sedentary and smoking.

My husband is doing the same thing! We've decided to spend the money we're saving on something fun... and believe me, it's a lot of money!

The first item on the agenda is a flatscreen TV for our video games. The second toy is that Nikon D70 I've been waiting on.

I'll still be blogging occasionally while going through this process, after all I am allowed some fun, however I won't be online so frequently.

Most likely, I'll be out in the fresh air taking a walk.

A Blogging Dream?

2006-01-10T11:33:00.000-08:00

A recent sunset-

Yesterday, with a few minutes available, I dropped by to visit a few blog-friends.
This must have had some impact, because I had this dream last night...

Bucky and her husband dropped by my home (from Michigan?) to invite my husband and myself to a birthday celebration they were holding for me the following day in Lansing.
The reason they'd come was to introduce me to their children! Rather than bring the children, Bucky brought along a photograph which she'd created out of Play Doh.
(I knew I was dreaming and I recalled seeing a Play Doh photo over at Jessica's.)
Now I know Bucky has no children, but she had several blonde-headed girls, which I recognized as Kristine's daughters.
We all drove to Michigan that night, and awoke the following evening amidst sleeping bags jumbled all over Bucky's living room.
Our gracious hostess asked us to hurry outside, where the party was to be held.
Now I've never been to Lansing, but in my dream it looked like New York City.
The street was wide, and it appeared to be an older neighborhood full of brownstones and cottages huddled together. Looking down the street, which seemed to go on forever, you could see the city lights of downtown.
All of a sudden, people came out of the woodwork! Balloons appeared, as well as a parade of sorts.
Someone told me that Squirl and Ichabod were on their way.
I was then introduced to Indiaiynke and her husband, who lived across the street.
Just as I was being handed a telegram, expressing regrets from Susie, I awoke.

I'm thinking that Susie just didn't want to be associated with a known Blogoholic!

Nothin' Looks Sadder Than...

2006-01-07T14:13:00.000-08:00

My grandmother's house in Rochester, New York

There's nothing sadder than holiday decorations displayed after said holiday.

Since my family has pushed Christmas forward, and now celebrates on Christmas Eve, I'm ready to dismantle and store things on December 25.

I have to force myself to hold off until New Years Day, which I did.

Well... I thought I did, until I spied my Christmas blocks (which spell out Merry Christmas) still sitting on my kitchen window sill.

OK, this happens every year. There's always something which escapes detection for a few days.

So yesterday (January 6) I was enjoying the almost 70 degree weather on the deck, and when I turned around to re-enter the house there was a wreath still hanging by the door!

It's packed away now, but I'm expecting to find something else still displayed in the next few days...

Gosh I hope not.

The Christmas Box

2005-12-28T14:10:00.000-08:00

The grandson came to spend the night before Christmas Eve, along with his mom.

After playing with my Christmas Village, admiring the Charlie Brown tree and looking for his presents under that tree, PJ wandered into my home office.

Although all my gifts had been wrapped, I've learned to leave all the giftwrap paraphernalia out as someone generally drops by in need.

The grandson located an empty box and asked to wrap it. He chose a couple of small toys and an Advent calendar he'd received, put them in this box, and decided a ribbon would do. He carefully placed it under the tree, but would periodically slide the ribbon aside and peek inside.

When he awoke the next morning, he thought it was time to open presents! I explained it was only Christmas Eve morning, so he decided to check his box...

The Advent calendar and toys were still inside, but there was a single candy-kiss nestled in there as well.

His eyes widened, and he let out a whoop! Santa came early!!! He barely unwrapped the lone candy before popping it into his mouth.

Later that afternoon, we all met up at my sister's house for dinner. PJ looked through the presents we'd all put under the tree. "Where's my box" was his immediate question.

Trying to think quickly, I assured him that we'd left it under our tree, and perhaps Santa would return.

I'm hoping to see him before we take the tree down, because Santa has indeed returned. His little box is now entirely filled with candy-kisses!

I hope everyone else had a wonderful Holiday!

A Charlie Brown Christmas Tree

2005-12-16T14:33:00.000-08:00

The Tree-

I suppose most people have seen the movie "A Charlie Brown Christmas."

If I remember correctly, Charlie Brown purchases a forlorn little fir tree which disappoints his friends no end. The children discover the real meaning of Christmas, and with that, they lovingly decorate their little tree, turning it into a thing of beauty.

Well... We climbed down the hill, pruning saw in hand, to our little grove of young pine trees, as we've been doing for several years now. We found almost every one of the trees had died!

We did find one, barely alive. It was spindly, with some dead branches, but salvable (I thought.)

I had planned on loading down the tree with tons of ornaments and tinsel, but after hanging only two strings of lights the tree began to lean!

I fully expect this lightly decorated thing to keel over before the end of the holidays, and if it should, I'll post a photo.

In the meantime, though, I'm sort of enjoying this sad little tree. It is fresh, after all. (I'm trying to be optimistic here!)

Now I normally don't shop the day after Christmas, since I hate crowds, but this December 26 I'm braving the masses with the intent to purchase an artificial tree.

Hallelujah!

Strange (But True) Facts About My Christmas'

2005-12-11T11:54:00.000-08:00

A Winter Sunset

My first Christmas after moving out of the parent's home, on a very limited budget, I trudged down to Sears and bought some Christmas decorations. My favorite color is blue, so I purchased one string of blue lights, and two boxes of blue ~~balls~~ ornaments. *heh heh heh* This was when I learned that yes indeed, there really is such a thing as too much of a good thing! Hey, I was only 19 years old.

I now prefer clear mini-lights, especially outdoors; although I do have colored lights.

Before wrapping gifts, I check whether batteries are needed, and include them with the presents. There's nothing sadder than a child, big or small, without the appropriate power supply.

The Baby Jesus from my Nativity Scene went missing many years ago. I'm thinking the Little Guy saw that he and his family were nestled amidst garishly packaged gifts, and decided to take a hike. I lovingly replaced him with a tiny Santa Claus figure which happened to be lying around. I feel this sums up the typical American Christmas.

I set a dollar amount to gifts, as most people do. If someone's total is under the budgeted figure, they receive the cash to compensate. Generally I stuff the money into the stocking of that person, but several years ago I got a bright idea- I created what's known here as The White Trash Christmas Gift!

My eldest was the first recipient. I had a crisp $20. bill I needed to give her. I also had this 30 foot long gum wrapper chain to get rid of...

I'd made this gum wrapper chain when the kids were small, and we used to wind it throughout the Christmas tree before adding ornaments and tinsel. The kids loved it when they were small, but I was totally over it. Nobody wanted the thing, but they surely didn't want me to trash it either.

I found an oblong box in which a previous holiday gift had arrived, and placed some tissue paper, the $20. bill, some pinecones, and the gum wrapper chain inside.

This created much laughter, and a new tradition. Each year since, my family eagerly (?) awaits the possible honor of being the recipient of the White Trash Christmas Gift.

I don't know whether my daughter finally trashed that gum wrapper chain, but I have a suspicion it will somehow return to my house... if it's not already here, hidden in some seldom used closet.

A Little Tit For Tat

2005-12-04T12:27:00.000-08:00

A Free Christmas Card-

I've always been a little anal about Christmas cards. Now that's an understatement!

I keep a yearly list, and if you've not sent me a card for two years- You're off my list- period!

Generally I purchase both religious and non-religious cards, with stamps to match each genre.

I carefully choose each card, stamp and usually a sticker to affix to the back of the envelope for every addressee, individually.

Anyone who has been reading this blog for a time has read a couple of postings about my husband's family, such as this one, knows I'm a little miffed at them.

Well, I'm working on my Christmas cards yesterday and tell Mr. SB his brother (who I'll call Ron, because that's his name) hasn't sent a card the past two years... and you know what that means.

Mr. SB, nice guy that he is, says "Let's be bigger than that- go ahead and send them a card anyway."

I can do that.

You know those cheap cards we all receive free, either from charities or sometimes arriving gratis within a mail order? Well I have some. The intent was to perhaps use some of the artwork, cut from the cards, as gift tags.

Let's just say, if you receive the card pictured above, and your name is Ron, let it be known that you're on my shitlist... and by the way- Merry Friggin' Christmas!

oh, and P.S.
I ever-so-carefully chose one of the uglier stamps, and the "Goodwill Toward Man" sticker especially for your card- enjoy!

... To Grandmother's House We Went

2005-11-30T12:47:00.000-08:00

Me and my brother at Christmas

During my childhood my father worked for United Airlines, and was transferred from Washington D.C. to San Francisco in 1962.

This meant we usually traveled twice a year, back to visit the family.

The Christmas visit was my favorite for many reasons, one of which was both locales had snow! I'd previously lived in Maryland, Washington D.C. and Virginia- and was not happy about living in sunny California with it's absence of snow.

My mother's family home in Maryland was decorated simply during the holidays, the main focus being on both food and family. We always took a separate day-trip to see my cousins nearby in Cockeysville, otherwise we were mainly with adult family members.

Grandmother Warren served dinner daily, around 1pm. Supper was usually soup and sandwiches, and eaten in the early evening. Her meals, especially the big Christmas dinner, were consumed at a large dining table, groaning under the weight of various home-cooked foods. This is still my idea of the perfect holiday meal, although I now serve buffet-style due to the size of our dining area.

On the other hand, my father's family in Rochester New York was less formal. My cousins lived just down the street, and were always up for some sledding. The house was decorated to the max, with a huge tree and home fully lit.

Grandmother Nicht's best friend from across the street was a destination in itself! Mert's home was off the charts. One could hardly walk through the living room for all the decorations. There were several trees, trains, tables loaded goodies; and even their bathroom was screaming Christmas!

This grandma cooked things I'd never had anywhere else. Boston Baked Beans, served with brown bread steamed in used cans was a favorite. She always served Swiss Steak, definitely not something I was partial to. Liver and onions...

Returning home after two weeks was always a let-down. Sure, the first thing we did was run to our friend's to see what they received from Santa. It's always good to sleep in one's own bed too... but I always missed that magical snow!

~Disclaimer~ To all you bloggers who are already sick of snow, keep in mind I was a child and didn't have to shovel, nor drive in the stuff. I now live in a place where we get a little of the white stuff- and I still sit up all night watching it fall.

Getting Ready For Winter

2005-11-26T12:00:00.000-08:00

Knucklehead wearing his winter coat

I had a wonderful Thanksgiving, and hope you all did too! Friends, family, an abundance of good food... what more could one ask for?

The meal was hosted elsewhere, so I used the week to begin my Christmas shopping, and I'm almost done!

I hung the outside wreath last night, my annual first step towards Holiday decorating. Afterwards, I dragged out my wrapping supplies and began wrapping!

My sister will be hosting the big Christmas Eve get-together, and we discussed the menu over coffee, after the Thanksgiving meal. She and I are both leaning towards the non-traditional. We're so tired of the typical turkey, ham, mashed potatoes and gravy...

My favorite Christmas Eve dinner ever, was something non-traditional to our family. I'd pre-warned the guests that I was working a half-day shift, so I was serving dips, coldcuts, a shrimp platter and a huge pot of homemade bean soup. I'd also ordered a medium platter of croissant sandwiches. The market lost my order, and to compensate, gave me an extra platter for free!

I was able to spend time with my guests- what a concept!

Needless to say, I'm excited to see just what my sister comes up with.

Note to my kids: I'm preparing pretty much the usual Holiday meal on Christmas Day, since I know you expect the customary.

So- are you sticking with tradition this year?

Off To A Good Start?

2005-11-19T12:09:00.000-08:00

Morning Shadows

I awoke yesterday morning, saw the time and swung out of bed, forgetting I'd thrown my water-resistant down vest over myself during the night.

Instead of my feet touching ground, I slid over the vest and off the mattress heading toward the floor... not a big deal, except one of the dogs was laying beneath me!

None too gracefully, I hit the floor mostly horizontally, eliciting a string of at least ten swear-words strung together. (The dog was fine.)

Just a bit sore, I gimped my way into the kitchen for a lovely breakfast of coffee and some Advil.

My husband was already up, having some tea, and didn't say a word.

Later that day I mentioned my mishap to the spouse, and he admitted he'd heard the whole thing!

My mouth agape, I inquired "AND...?"

He responded "When I heard those blue-darters coming out of your mouth, I figured you were OK."

Ain't love grand?

Shouldn't It Be "Sweet Pee?"

2005-11-16T14:54:00.000-08:00

The septic truck

Well, it was finally time to have the septic system serviced! We weren't exactly sure where the tank was located, but the digger remembered the location from the last time he was here over six years ago!

Being naive as to home ownership in the country, we'd thought we were getting away with some savings... after all, we don't have to pay monthly water bills, nor any sewer charges on our property tax.

Wrong!

We recently had that new well pump installed {$$$}, and this septic service came to $480.

Note to my children: Your inheritance is depleting rapidly, pray the stock market recovers.

By the way- am I the only blogger who can't get into my comments from my last posting? It could be my own stupidity...

Update! Now that I've posted again, the comments are working. Hmmmm.

Enjoying The Quiet

2005-11-12T11:36:00.000-08:00

A Light Sabre Fight

My guests have gone, leaving me with some much needed peace and quiet!

The visits culminated with a lunch, attended by all of my three children, two friends, and of course my grandson.

My son had assured me he was on a diet of steamed vegetables, but regressed to his usual stir-frying within a day of his stay. He stir-fried his rice, his vegetables, and even the semolina flour he used in an Indian pudding he made for the lunch.

I'm still cleaning olive oil from the stovetop, the cupboards, and even the doorknob to my office, which my son used as a guest bedroom.

After all this, I was dreading 'doing' Christmas this year, and thinking of offering to host Christmas Eve instead of the usual all-out Christmas Day meal. Setting out lots of appetizers and perhaps a lasagne or some homemade soup sounded appealing as well as easy on the cleanup.

Then I checked my emails. My sister offered to host Christmas Eve, letting me off the hook! Sure, I'll have to drive 3+ hours to get there, but it's a dream-come-true.

I'll probably bring some home-made bread, and whatever else is requested, but I can promise there will be absolutely no stir-fried foods traveling along with me!

Waiting On Hold

2005-11-03T10:50:00.000-08:00

The grandson on the phone-

We have some unexpected company! They'll be here until our expected company arrives early next week.

Needless to say, my blogging is curtailed for a while.

Hopefully I can visit my blogfriends sometime during this period...

Happy Halloween!

2005-10-30T12:22:00.000-08:00

Halloween 1990. Deb, Ruby and me at work-

Just a quick post to say Happy Halloween to all!

This photo was taken 15 years ago at work.

Traditionally, we had no parties in the workplace, not because it was prohibited, but due to the fact that the workforce had been mostly male in the past. Without beer and strippers, my male counterparts didn't have a clue as to how to put together a party.

Then along came Deb (pictured above.) She came from a clerical department and fully expected a party. She chose the pirates theme, and delegated responsibilities.

Our male counterparts chose not to come in costume, but did bring the paper plates, cups and other items assigned. They were fully aware that if they didn't, they wouldn't be eating!

The day of the party we were totally surprised that they'd not forgotten anything. More important was the fact they had all gotten their heads together and each purchased and worn identical Pittsburgh Pirates tee shirts, their own unique way of being in costume!

We weren't allowed to drink alcohol on the job of course, but there might have been some spilled into the punch.

Sometimes I really miss my co-workers!

The Games People Play

2005-10-27T11:05:00.000-07:00

My great-grandfather and his sister

When I bought my very first computer, I quickly found (and became addicted to) both Solitaire and Free Cell.

Next came Mah Jong, and then Poker.

More recently I've found I need my daily dose of
Cryptoquote, as well as Zuma.

My most recent addiction is to the game of Text Twist.

I'm aware blogging takes up a lot of time in our lives, but I know you all are playing games too! For example, Cheesecakey has an affinity for Poker, both online and in real life.

So what computer games are you playing?

After Midnight

2005-10-24T12:47:00.000-07:00

a color altered sunset

During bouts with insomnia, some people read. Some people stay in bed and try to force themself to sleep, as my husband does. I watch TV.

If I could be viewed while watching late night/early morning TV, you'd most likely see me rolling my eyes in disgust. Literally.

During the day, I hate hearing the phone ring... probably caused by years of ringing telephones at work. At night there's a commercial for some technical institute which drives me crazy. It's set up to look like a telethon, and while one of their supposed former students is 'interviewed' about his wonderful life since graduating, there are phones constantly ringing in the background. I'm quite fast with the mute button lately.

There's the Lamisil ad, which has cartoon charactors lifting up a toenail so they can destroy nail fungus... ick.

And why are there fast food commercials in the middle of the night? Our nearest Burger King is about an hour away, and I don't even know if they're open all night. I'm certainly not willing to dodge deer and possible drunk drivers to get a late night snack! Speaking of Burger King, those "Wake up with the King" ads are just plain freaky...

Then there are the the ads for local talk lines, where beautiful (hot) singles are shown chatting, and sometimes meeting up. Yeah, right!

Of course I have to mention the "Girls Gone Wild" video pitches. People must be buying the product, but I don't see the fun in watching girls flashing their boobage. I'd rather watch porn. At least there's an attempt at a plot.

I can now work the remote with both the right and left hand, laying down and sitting up. But believe me when I say I'm most definitely asking for TiVo this Christmas!

More Antics From The Grandson

2005-10-20T13:32:00.000-07:00

Doing "The Rock" impression-

I swear this child's going to be metro-sexual!

He actually spent time going through his backpack, creating a matching outfit for our visit to the local market! (Socks too.)

He was distressed to find that due to our pump troubles he couldn't take his usual "acuzzi" the evening he was here.

He critiqued my clothing choice, asking me to change a top I was wearing. Actually he was right...

He asked if we were poor, since we don't have jobs. When I explained we lived off investments we'd made, he wanted to know just how much money we had invested!

He told grandpa he needed a haircut, and needed to trim his moustache. Quite true.

When he noticed I was running around barefoot, he advised me I would get ugly feet.

The morning he was leaving, he told me he had a secret to share. "Grandma" he said, "I have a boob fetish!"

We're all going to have to watch this child.

Money's Just Flyin' Out My Butt

2005-10-18T12:24:00.000-07:00

The K.C. Pumps Truck

The past week and a half or so we'd been noticing a marked decrease in water pressure, and had set up an appointment with our local "pump guy."

We carefully conserved water, as the next available appointment was one week from today.

Saturday, the pump pressure decreased to zero, which meant we scrambled and shut down both the pump and the water heater. Of course this occured in the middle of a shower...

We don't drink the well water, although we could, so we were OK for drinking water.

Full out showers could wait (sort of) since we can sponge-bathe.

I went out and bought paper plates, plastic utensils, and foods we could BBQ, since we can't wash the dishes. I bought ice, because there's no water to the ice-maker.

The houseplants had just been watered, and we had a recent rain shower.

So far, so good.

Except we can't flush the toilets!

I called K.C. yesterday, and he was here today thank goodness.

The upside is we'll be back in business tomorrow, or Thursday at the latest. The downside is this will cost about $2,500.

When we first purchased this home, we were elated to find there would be no monthly water bill. Yeah, right!

A Short Post On A Busy Friday

2005-10-14T09:59:00.000-07:00

Movie Poster-

This was a short, and fun project I stumbled across yesterday at:
this place

Hope you all have a nice weekend!

Oh My Gawd!

2005-10-12T11:22:00.000-07:00

photo borrowed from website

My ex-husband's family was devoutly Catholic, almost like The Kennedys without either the political clout or trust funds.

His parents were wonderful people, and went so far as to periodically take their children and their spouses on vacations!

One such vacation was to Medjugorje Yugoslavia to view the children who claimed to see the apparations of The Virgin Mary.

The ex and I didn't travel with them at that time, partly due to vacation scheduling, and partly due to the fact we were the heathens of the family. (We did, however, get sent to Mazatlan Mexico when our vacation came about!)

The in-laws traveled a lot, usually bringing back religious souvenirs for all.

One such gift was a bottle of Holy Water from Lourdes, much like the one shown above.

We kept our bottle on display with other knick-knacks, and after several years noticed the water was evaporating.

One Sunday, after work, I arrived home to find the ex and his best friend had been partying. We opened another bottle of wine and I joined in- but they were well ahead of me, drunkwise.

I've learned over the years that being less inebriated than your friends can either be distasteful or downright funny...

These two guys created a scenario which included a little of both.

They decided it was time to drink the Lourdes water.

I advised them that diseased people bathed in the waters... yet they polished off that little bottle.

Neither of them caught anything, nor did they rise to Heaven like drunken angels.

All I know is that I'd sooner eat the little worm at the bottom of a Tequila bottle than take a chance like that!

The Professor Who Taught Too Well

2005-10-10T13:02:00.000-07:00

The rapt student-

Within a year or two after this photo was taken, one of my best friends moved away from next door and a new neighbor moved in.

My mother was quite impressed with this man, who I'll call Dr. Smith (simply because that was his name.)

He taught oceanography at our local Jr. College, was recently divorced, and quiet (at first.)

Dr. Smith was young and reasonably good looking. I'm pretty sure the Dr. affixed to his name didn't hurt his chances with the ladies.

He began holding study classes at his home, mostly populated by his young female students.

One abnormally sunny day in our foggy neighborhood seemed to beckon my little brother to stay inside and play in his room. This was a boy who'd would normally play outdoors in any weather.

I walked into his room to find him peeking out the window which overlooked Dr. Smith's side yard. He shushed me, piquing my interest, so of course I went to the window.

Dr. Smith was ummmm tutoring one of his young students in a way which would ensure her a most excellent grade!

We ran and told Mom, after studying this phenomenon a few more minutes.

I don't remember whether she (or Dad) had a talk with him, but I do remember the shade in that room was firmly tacked down for quite a long time afterwards.

But if you looked real close you could see that shade became a little stretched looking, right about the height of my little brother's nose.

Some er Interesting Neighbors!

2005-10-08T13:53:00.000-07:00

My son at the Fremont house-

When my husband and I bought our first home together we'd each survived a divorce, and therefore had about half our assets intact.

We both worked in Fremont California, which is somewhat between Oakland and San Jose, and decided to buy a home there. We chose a small home in an area called Niles, which as you can see is nestled against some hills, affording us a little bit of country in suburbia.

One day, my little criminal daughter and her blackmailing friend (look here) told me about the great new neighbors who were moving in! We'll just call them The Ho's, and you'll see just why.

The Ho's home was modest, as was the rest of the neighborhood, yet they had much nicer cars. You never saw them outside, ever!

Soon after their move, the Ho's began paying the little criminal girls $20. apiece to pull their little dogs around the block in that red wagon mentioned in the other posting.

When Halloween arrived, the Ho's were the hit of the neighborhood. Although they didn't appear to be home, they'd left the porch light on, and several cases of 1 lb. boxes of chocolate covered macadamia nuts outside!

We soon learned just how ahem Mr. and Mrs. Ho were able to be so generous.

The local police began a major crackdown on our local Massage Parlour, and when the case was about to go to trial, the Ho's moved out in the middle of the night.

Goodbye $20. dog pulls and goodbye chocolate covered macadamia nuts.

If you're trick-or-treating this year and find cases of quality candies on someone's doorstep, you'd better act quick, because they'll most likely be moving on before next Halloween.

October!

2005-10-06T11:53:00.000-07:00

October Sunset

The first year of my retirement I spent an ungodly amount of time watching TV.

I actually got to stay up late and watch all those things I never was able to see when I had a predetermined bedtime!

I also discovered HGTV, and literally burned myself out viewing both the home and garden programming.

Once I was able to get it out of my system, I went back to mainly watching news, Discovery, The History Channel and of course HBO.

But now that October is here, I'll be back to watching me some HGTV for their upcoming Holiday shows! I'm not very creative, but I'm real good with copying ideas.

I'm really excited about Halloween night! Living out here in the country means we have absolutely no trick-or-treaters. I can finally watch spooky movies all evening without getting up to answer the door every few minutes!

Yes, we'll keep the porch light on, and some quarters but not candy around, but are planning on a nice quiet night.

I'll miss seeing all the little costumed children, but not that much!

It's A Little Too Quiet Here

2005-10-04T15:18:00.000-07:00

Heading up the driveway-

PJ went home last night, leaving this grandma's house awfully quiet!

While he was here, we Blogged, watched Sponge Bob and several movies, we played with toys and we hiked.

Whenever we walk around the property, we take along what we call our "Mountain Lion Sticks." The fact that lions generally attack from behind isn't important, we just feel more secure carrying them. One of our cats almost got skewered by grandma when it approached from the rear proved to grandpa that my hearing is still good.

The picture above shows PJ carrying his little stick, which he assured me would kill anything from a rattlesnake to a mountain lion.

Heading up our driveway we noticed the deer have taken to pooping in the middle of the road about every 20 feet or so.

PJ's "Mountain Lion Stick" became a poop dissection tool.

As we headed further, we found some unknown excrement. Upon examination, we found the animal had been eating berries which might have meant it was bear poop, a fact which delighted my grandson but not me...

During our hike we talked about everything under the sun. We heard what sounded like a car crash down on the main road, so PJ asked if I'd ever been in an accident.

I told him about the time I was sitting at a stop light, and the driver behind me wasn't paying attention and crashed into me.

In all seriousness, he looked up at me and asked "Did you get killed grandma?"

Like I said, it's a little too quiet here right now.

Guest Host Post!

2005-10-02T10:50:00.000-07:00

PJ in his Halloween costume, Dash from The Incredibles-

Today's posting is guest hosted by my three year old grandson PJ.

He chose which photo he wanted posted, because grandma already has six of them.

Here is his creative writing:

54xZ .
aaaaassfdt4553695trqrrrrrrryyyyyyyyo0=``087777yyyyhyhfdddsaw
3q2w22d ;ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo999999999999
pppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppppp
ppppppppppjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjj
jjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjj
jjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjj

Tag, I'm It!

2005-09-29T12:00:00.000-07:00

photo courtesy of Len E., another Shipley researcher

I was tagged by the always interesting Homestead!

The Rules:
1. Go into your archive.
2. Find your 23rd post.
3. Find the fifth sentence (or closest to).
4. Post the text of the sentence in your blog along with these instructions.
5. Tag five other people to do the same.

And so I give you this tidbit of inanity...

They're dead too... is my heartwarming sentence!

I normally don't like to tag people, but here goes:

Cheesecakey
Eclectic
SoozieQ
Squirl
Sylvana

If you've already played I apologize, I haven't read postings in the past day or so. I will be catching up on my reading throughout the day, I promise!

Update! I see that SoozieQ and Squirl were already tagged! Does this stuff move around quickly or what?

A Lesson On Charitable Giving

2005-09-27T12:26:00.000-07:00

"Who Me?"

About six years after this picture was taken, I happened to stop by my house during a lunch break.

My daughter and her best friend were heating up a huge can of chili, not unusual as we seemed to feed all the neighborhood children.

I noticed this was not a brand, nor size I'd ever purchased.

Best friend, always the quick thinker, claimed they brought it over from her house. Although I believed this, something in their behavior seemed questionable.

After coming home later that day, as I was watering, I spied a red wagon in the side yard. Upon closer inspection I saw it was filled with canned foods of all sorts!

An interrogation ensued, along with a phone call to Best friend's mother, and the truth came out...

The girls had gone door to door earlier in the day, asking for donations for The Poor Children!

It took several phone calls to actually find an organization which would accept canned food donations, and the girls came with me to present this gift.

This was just the beginning of their life of crime.

There's a whole 'nother' story about the time they collected a wagon full of snails (yes, the same wagon) and blackmailed the neighbor.

These hooligans actually pulled this thing up to a neighbor's door, and boldly demanded he pay them $2.00 or they'd set the snails out in his yard!

He paid...

Opinions Wanted!

2005-09-25T11:05:00.000-07:00

Photo taken from "The Shipleys of Maryland 2002"

I haven't yet decided on the style in which I wish to produce my Family History book intended as a gift to my children and siblings, but yesterday I began writing.

There is a lot I have to work with, including (in most cases) names, birth and death dates, census data such as occupation, marriage information, and photos. In more recent family history I have some interesting stories and anecdotes.

I began writing with my early Shipley family, and it looked much like this:

"In my two year family search, the earliest of our documented Shipley family is Adam Shipley, born about 1650 in Yorkshire, England.

Adam was transported to America, along with nine other young men, by John Pawson (also of Yorke, England) in 1668. These men were to serve an apprenticeship for a period of time before receiving their fifty acres of land, which Adam earned by 1675."

Although historically correct, this reads much like the oh so boring history books which were required reading in school, where one was going to be tested on names and dates rather than content.

Now I could go off the deep end, and write something like this:

"Young Adam, with icy saltwater sheeting down his face finally espied the new land, the new life for which he'd been searching- America!"

I'm now toying with the idea of using snippets of family lore, told to me by my mother and linking these tales to the information I've found:

"... when my mother told me about an ancestor who sold himself into slavery. She explained he likely couldn't afford the passage to America, and had contracted his services for a period of time becoming an indentured servant.

This man was Adam Shipley of Yorkeshire, England, who arrived in America in 1668..."

Keep in mind, I'm not talking about a published book here, just a family memento.

Any opinions would be greatly appreciated. You're such a creative group, I'd love to get your feedback.

Update! I'm now looking at Cafepress. The upside is a 100 page book (with a choice of bindings) can be printed for about $10.00 per book. The downside is that there is a whole world of publishing formatting I need to study before I begin. To think I thought writing this would be the difficult part!

Among The Living Dead

2005-09-23T12:08:00.000-07:00

Before the storm-

This photo was taken several evenings ago, as a lightning storm was heading our way.

Due to the marathon ancestry research I performed recently, my old neck injury has come back to haunt me.

Advil and periodic rest keeps the pain down to a dull roar, but the most disconcerting trouble is my altered sleep pattern!

If left to it's own device, my normal pattern consists of three hours of solid sleep, upon which I waken, and remain awake until sunrise. At that time I generally fall asleep another three hours.

This is doable, since I'm retired, but just not right!

During my genealogical research, I found my G-G-G grandmother Margaret Kaufman's family had migrated from Pennsylvania to Maryland around the early 1800s. It appears her family were Ashkenazic Jews, who lived throughout Eastern Europe before settling in America.

Now I'm wondering if my wandering Kaufman family didn't take a little detour, and perhaps live in Transylvania at some point in time.

This might help explain my strange sleep habits.

Sierrabella, Girl Archaeologist!

2005-09-21T11:29:00.000-07:00

August 1907 Edition -

This old edition of National Geographic belonged to my grandfather. This particular issue was likely given to him upon the arrival of his first birthday.

Upon my 9th birthday, he and my grandmother gave me a card in which I was advised my gift was a one year subscription to this magazine. To be quite honest, I wasn't thrilled at that time.

Shortly thereafter, I received a mailing from National Geographic's Headquarters welcoming me to their family! Most important was the wording, something to the effect that I was a Member of the Society, with all the rights and privileges associated!

I was an Archaeologist! What a wonderful gift this had become!

The first issue received had a major report about the French in Viet Nam (before America became involved as I remember.) Although I had no interest in this particular subject, I studied each and every article... because I was going to need to know this stuff!

I began checking out books from the library on archaeology and anthropology.

By the time I was 10 I was ready, so I approached my parents and told them I would miss them, but National Geographic needed me!

They were very kind, and didn't even laugh when I showed them my most valued treasure which was 'the letter from the Society.'

My parents explained the truth of the matter, and this reality rivaled the Santa Claus conspiracy!

Afterward, I continued my interest in these topics, and developed other interests such as psychology and architecture.

By the time I was 11, I'd read some Freud, decided he had issues of his own, and headed elsewhere in my search for career options.

That's when I decided to become a stewardess!

My Research Is Done (For Now)

2005-09-19T10:54:00.000-07:00

Is It Safe To Come Out Yet?

My subscription to Ancestry.com has finally expired, bringing me back into the world of the living.

I worked 11 hours straight on Saturday, thinking my subscription ended at midnight, but found it was still activated on Sunday! Needless to say, I worked all day Sunday on my search.

I finally ended up with 1,453 entries, and a new average lifespan of 59 years and 7 months...

I intend to go blog visiting today, and then get some sunshine! I need it.

I'm Back- Sort Of...

2005-09-13T11:19:00.000-07:00

My G-G Grandmother Ellen Campbell Murray-

Although I wasn't enjoying cleaning house, I was having a great time with my ancestry search these past few days.

My family file statistics now show 1,343 people listed in my family tree!

Sadly, the longevity is now down to an average lifespan of 55 years and 8 months. For the past year it held at 59 years and some-odd months.

I have almost one week left on my Ancestry.com subscription, and intend to make the most of it... after all I'll be 52 this December, so I'd better work fast!

**Update! I'm now have 1,395 people logged onto my family tree, and the average longevity has risen to a whopping 60 years!

Goofiness To Ensue Shortly

2005-09-06T10:36:00.000-07:00

My dad, clowning around-

I have a busy week ahead!

We may, or may not be having company come by this upcoming weekend, giving me the incentive to begin my fall housecleaning. At this time, I don't know whether our potential guest is planning to stay here a few days or just drop in for a visit.

This past weekend I had the urge to start weeding seldom used clothing from my closet, restore order to my pantry and straighten up my office.

My subscription to Ancestry.com expires in two weeks, so I'm using the remaining time to revisit and recheck their database for anything I may have missed. I must have spent 8 hours yesterday alone on this task.

I won't be as active as usual here in Blogworld, but intend to peek in at everyone throughout the week. I wouldn't want to miss anything you know!

Ode to Tech 115 at Prospect Motors in Jackson

2005-09-03T12:03:00.000-07:00

Gettin' towed

You signed off your work as complete, but alas it wasn't... because you forgot one little task: You forgot to clamp down the radiator hose!

My husband was driving our Toyota Tundra down Scenic Highway 49 right after you worked on it when he saw the engine was overheating.

I assume you live in the area, Tech 115, and are aware our local roads have pull-outs spaced few and far between?

It was a good 4 miles before my husband could pull over.

By the way, I wish to thank both the female Highway Patrol officer and the young man who stopped to offer assistance!

I rode into San Andreas and spent $21.52 on coolant, water, a hose clamp and a screwdriver to tighten the clamp.

We got the truck home safely, and called your service advisor who promised a tow back to the dealership...

The tow truck driver called us 6 times to give status on a possible arrival time, and finally arrived at 8:43pm.

Our truck has only about 13,700 miles, and through your carelessness Tech 115, the engine (and God knows what else) is likely ruined.

We're waiting to hear the prognosis...

And you know what else pisses me off about this whole thing Tech 115? You also signed off on the complimentary car wash and vacuum, which wasn't done either!

*Update: The "Toyota Guy" is off today, so the truck will be looked at on Tuesday... I'm thinking this "Toyota Guy" is Tech 115! Hope you have a nice holiday weekend bub, because the proverbial shit is going to hit the fan on Tuesday.

Stuff Portrait Friday Again!

2005-09-02T08:32:00.000-07:00

I put my stuff in my trunk -

The back of the dishes -

This week's Stuff Portrait Friday is hosted by Renee. The theme is to show: a favorite alcoholic beverage, the trunk of your car and your dishes.

I decided to put all these items into one picture, but couldn't resist adding another photo showing just where I found my screen name!

Although I own three sets of dishes, I chose this set as it most relates to my theme here.

Oh, and just so you know~ I'm not planning on eating and drinking in the trunk of my car!

Goin' Down To Jackson

2005-09-01T12:43:00.000-07:00

Heading down our road

We had to head into the town of Jackson today to drop off Mr. SB's Tundra for some safety recall work.

Heading down Highway 49 we passed the area of yesterday's fire, and could understand why the CDF had to call in so much aircraft. The terrain there is quite steep and has very few roads the firefighters could take into the area.

Now we're used to seeing roadkill along the winding roads up here, but today's Roadkill Menu included a young pig!

To top off today's oddities, our nearest restaurant had a menu posted at the entrance to their parking lot, with Roasted Goat Leg as today's Special!

I'm wondering if tomorrow's Special will be roasted baby pig...

Fire!

2005-08-31T16:45:00.000-07:00

I received my homeowner's insurance bill in the mail today, and wouldn't you know... there's a fire somewhat nearby! Yeah, you'll have to look closely at the photo to see the smoke.

It takes about 35 minutes to drive to Mokelumne Hill, but the map shows it 12 miles due West as the crow flies.

Our usual afternoon breeze is starting up, meaning the fire is heading directly towards us.

So far, about 50 acres have burned.

The CDF is throwing everything it's got at this fire, but they'll have to land the aircraft for the night in about two hours when the sun sets.

Ahhhh, life in the foothills...

Can't wait for the photo op I'm expecting around sunset!

Update! This fire has been contained, but two new fires have started about 25 miles southwest of here. Thanks for all the well-wishes!

Our New Lawn Ornament!

2005-08-30T14:30:00.000-07:00

Sleazy Rider -

OK, I'm still thinking about landscape design...

This is way better than a pink flamingo, don't you think?

Not to mention it should ward off those Jehova's Witnesses who tend to ignore our No Trespassing sign!

Would You Hire These People To Design Your Landscape?

2005-08-29T12:10:00.000-07:00

Neighborhood eyesore 1 -

Neighborhood eyesore, same property -

I missed playing Stuff Portrait Friday hosted by Kristine, but I loved the idea of posting about my neighborhood eyesore.

This property is approximately two miles down the hill from me, on the main road.

I've read the owners are landscape designers, and wished to make their property something in which to showcase their work...

It's been several years since they began, not a good sign for potential customers who wish to complete their own yards in a timely manner.

To date, all I've seen go in is a large mound with a few plants atop, and I mustn't forget the hand painted planters.

Along a portion of their frontage usually sits this artwork which consists of what appears to be 5' pieces of concrete sewer pipe standing on end, and hand painted by what looks to be five year olds.

As for the heavy equipment and supplies housed on the property- I understand the necessity of this stuff... but you're supposedly landscape designers. How about hiding this mess behind that berm, maybe build a tall fence or perhaps plant some new trees along the roadside?

Has anybody driven past your property, fell in love with your vision and hired you?

I think not, and if so... they deserve you.

Just Playin' Around

2005-08-28T12:40:00.000-07:00

Magazine Cover

To dishonor all those spam commenters!

Oooooh, My Aching Back!

2005-08-26T10:30:00.000-07:00

Mrs. Boyd was a family friend, way back in the "good old days"-

Visiting over at Greenie's recently, I see that Nick is about to have back surgery for the second time!

This brings to mind my own back surgery back in September 2001.

Surgery was scheduled about one week after the infamous September 11 attack, and I arrived early at Stanford Hospital. News cameras, and hundreds of people wandering about in front of the hospital seemed a little odd.

I seriously doubted this extravaganza was due to the fact that former San Francisco Giant Willie McCovey was having surgery just ahead of me.

Nope, it was a bomb scare.

Hours later, when we were finally allowed inside after sitting in the hot sun, I was dehydrated since I wasn't allowed food or drink since the previous evening.
I was hooked up to an IV almost immediately, and the surgery, although later than planned, went ahead.

I had been told I'd be spending at least one night in the hospital, and due to the late surgery, it looked as if it might be a two night stay... something I really didn't want to do.

I decided to get walking, and prove I was doing fine. I buzzed the nurse and told him I had to get up, and when he saw I could walk, he allowed me the pleasure.

Like a ghost in a backless gown I wandered the hallways (never coming upon Willie McCovey or anyone else.)

During one of my bed rests and a most welcome shot of Demerol my new roommate arrived. She was much older than myself, and had just had neck surgery. She slept on throughout my roaming in and out of the room.

Back in our room, about 4am., my roomie awoke. Still out of it, the nurse on duty propped her up at a small table at the end of her bed with an early breakfast of juice and oatmeal.

Then the nurse leaves...

I'm observing her head, bobbing and weaving like a drunk at closing time when I see her drop face first into her bowl of oatmeal.

She's not reacting at all.

I'm getting up, buzzing the nurse as I do so. Somehow I lifted and wiped her face while trying to keep her neck as straight as possible. Thank goodness she was a thin woman. She was still breathing!

But no nurse has arrived, and no footsteps are coming down the hall.

Here's the funny part... picture Ms. Back Surgery holding up Ms. Neck Surgery. I was able to twist around somehow and get the phone with my right foot. Thank goodness for touchtone, because I used my toe to call the front desk!

"Hello... I need a nurse in here immediatley... blah, blah, blah. Yes I tried the buzzer! My back is hurting bad, send someone NOW!"

Within a minute or two, nurses came running. Right behind them was my roommate's neurosurgeon... and he was totally pissed off!

As a thank you, I was given an extra shot of Demerol. I needed it.

When my own surgeon arrived several hours later, he'd already heard the tale.

I was released by noon.

My roomie and her daughter thanked me profusely as I was leaving.

Was I a hero? No. But if you're ever drowning in a bowl of oatmeal, just call me, I know what to do.

Better yet, order the fruit bowl.

Company IDs and How I Met My Husband

2005-08-24T11:17:00.000-07:00

My very first company ID

When I began working for The Telephone Company back when there was only one, we were issued IDs. You can see the low level of importance by the way they affixed my photo all askew.

Over the years, the company became more security conscious, and we were required to clip our IDs to our clothing whenever on company property.

It was a rare occasion when anybody would actually look at this identification, mainly when we were required to visit the San Ramon complex which came to be known as the Death Star.

A co-worker, I'll call her Ronnie (mainly because that was her name) decided to paste a photograph of Alfred E. Newman (from Mad Magazine) over her ID picture.

She'd been wearing this altered ID for quite a while when she was summoned to the Death Star for some class or another. Upon entering, visitors were required to show their ID at the nearest desk and proceed on. The guard glanced at Ronnie's photo ID, never noticing the picture was of a white male, and a famous one at that! Ronnie was an Asian female...

For much of my career, I worked in the central office environment, along with the telephone switching equipment. Most of these buildings had no windows, and if they did, they were bulletproof glass.

Everyone who had a need to access one of these buildings was issued a key.

As the company became more security conscious, they issued new swipe-card style IDs and took away our old keys.

In their infinite wisdom (?), the swipe-cards were not issued to many of our outside techs who occasionally needed access to the central office.

My job as a facility tech was a busy one, to say the least, and this serious ommision of entry required us to add the job of door man to our resumes.

I was extremely aggravated one day, and trying to get some work done at our computer terminal which was about 350 feet from the entrance door, when the buzzer summoned me back to the door (for the umpteenth time that day.)

Now irate, I opened the door to challenge this person to show their ID.

I did happen to notice this guy (I'd never seen before) was tall and very nice looking, but did that appease my anger? No!

A big smile lit up his face, and I could see that horndog look in his eyes. Great, now I'm really pissed.

He says, with that look in his eyes, "Oh, who are you?" (OK, now he's a slimy horndog.)

Sweetheart that I am, I replied "Who the hell are you? I need some ID here!"

I ended up having to assist the horndog with some testing, and he actually listened to the reasons for my stress, and commiserated!

We became friends, and later married.

It's been just over 13 years since we were married, and ever so often he'll look at me and say "Remember... Who the hell are you?"

Oh, I do!

Boyz Gone Wild!

2005-08-22T10:09:00.000-07:00

Oh, yes it is!

The grandson has returned! Not the sweet boy who played his own unique form of Simon Says recently, oh no... This child is spewing chunks, not unlike the little girl in "The Exorcist!"

Not to mention a case of diarrhea as well...

His mama was recovering from her own flu, so when the little guy became ill it was all too much for her, and she came running.

I've been trying to keep up with the resulting laundry, spot cleaning floors and carpets and making chicken soup. A poor defenceless wall also had to be cleaned at one point.

Didn't I mention spewing?

Needless to say, my blogging will be seriously curtailed for an unknown amount of time. I'll attempt to keep up with reading... in between these other chores.

Ain't life grand!

Linguini and a game of Simon Says

2005-08-20T10:26:00.000-07:00

The three year old grandson visited the other day, arriving just before dinnertime.
We sat him down to a plate of linguini with chicken in a four cheese sauce, hoping he'd be able to handle those long noodles.
As you can see, he did pretty well with his first attempts, and as soon as several photos were taken he learned to twirl it on his fork!

I wasn't feeling well, and not up to our usual more physical after-dinner games, so we decided to try and teach the little guy how to play Simon Says.
If you're unfamiliar with the game, or just plain forgotten how to play, a player becomes Simon, who names simple tasks to accomplish prefacing each task with the words Simon Says. If Simon can trick you into performing a task without saying Simon Says, you're out of the game.
Grandpa was the first Simon, and the grandson picked up the game pretty quickly.
Grandma was next, and pretty soon the grandson got his turn at being Simon.
He begins with "Simon Says- put on your hat." We did so.
Next came "Simon Says- throw your hat on the ground," which we also did as requested.
Finally came "Simon Says- get naked!"
While we're laughing, the grandson pulls down his pants, points his little finger at us while exclaiming "Grandma, grandpa- you didn't do what Simon Says! You lose!"

We're going to have to find a different game to play next time...

This Means War!

2005-08-17T12:00:00.000-07:00

My G-G Uncle Edward Campbell-

Back on July 17, I posted a rant about Mr. SB's siblings. It boiled down to the fact they seem to find time to visit each other, but keep making excuses about how they can't all find a time to visit us en masse.

I was angry, but Mr. SB asked that I let it go. OK...

As I've mentioned before, a favorite hobby of mine is ancestry search. My subscription to Ancestry.com is about to expire, and since I'm hitting the proverbial brick walls I'm letting it go.

I figured, since I had a few more weeks left, why not work on my husband's family tree? Earlier conversations with his siblings made it clear they only knew their ancestry back two generations... and even that information was somewhat sketchy.

So I ran with it, spending almost three days researching and updating the data.

I emailed the more available sister asking a few questions, and she was thrilled at learning more about her family.

Since I'd logged quite a bit of data, I emailed all three siblings with my findings, along with the promise to update later.

Of course I received a thank you from the sister who'd helped me with the added information... but from the other two I've heard nothing whatsoever.

So that is exactly what they'll be getting back from me in the future, nothing whatsoever!

I feel sort of silly posting this, especially after reading other blogs with much worse in-law stories, but this was seriously on my mind several days ago when I saved my first draft. Since then I was feeling ill, and am now feeling much better. Thanks to everyone who commented with get-well wishes, and especially to
SoozieQ for her e-card!

Campin' Stories

2005-08-15T10:00:00.000-07:00

I've always loved to go camping, in fact it's one of the reasons we decided to move up into the forest.

Many years ago, we camped at walk-in tent sites at Big Basin State Park. These sites were situated on a hill, and each site was on a teeny-tiny plateau. Oddly enough, there was little shrubbery and no trees in that small area, meaning absolutely no privacy.

Being seasoned campers, we began our dinner shortly before nightfall and watched our nearest camping neighbors scramble to finish getting set up. This mother, father and young son appeared new to camping. The tent finally went up... and then they sat there. And sat, and sat.

My husband (at the time) went over to see if they needed assistance. We were thinking they'd forgotten something, and we were willing to share if needed. The husband was quite embarrassed, and finally admitted the only thing he couldn't figure out was how to strike a wooden match! I'm totally serious!

Once we observed a family camping next to us, also at Big Basin, but in the tent cabin area. Mother and two boys set up camp, and did it quickly. Later in the day, dad drives up with two business associates who appeared to be from Japan.

The guests were attired in brand new camping duds, and pitched an also new tent.

Mom ran the show, cooking and cleaning, and later the entire group went for a jog. Afterwards, at campfire time, the men stayed up late drinking and playing cards.

All were up for an early jog and huge breakfast. I'm sure a promotion came soon after, and I'm also positive the wife was a huge part of this success.

Yet another time, my current husband and I went to those same tent cabins for a weekend without the kids! It had rained recently, so the place was empty. Even the camp host had left the park to go fishing.

It was extremely cold the first evening, so we hit the Southern Comfort early while preparing dinner. We'd brought some nice thick filet mignons and baking potatoes which turned out divine. Bundled up by the remainder of the campfire, we heard a screaming coming from nearby. Thinking it might be a mountain lion, we sat quietly. Some raccoons we'd been watching suddenly went flying up the nearest redwood, and we could hear rustling in the bushes just out of the firelight. Soon the raccoons came back down and we went on to bed.

Early the next morning, we went for a long hike to work off those steaks. We ambled through some campsites on the way back and came upon a small group of people with movie cameras and lighting. The ummmm stars of this movie were wandering about in bathrobes, with apparently nothing on underneath!

Ahhh, the joys of the great outdoors!

Stuff Portrait Friday Again

2005-08-12T10:12:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm playing this week!
SPF is hosted by Kristine, a fellow blogger from California.

My Ride (the 4Runner)-

Near my home (5 miles away)-

Favorite place (the deck)-

Other favorite place (the 'acuzzi)-

"They Will Come"

2005-08-11T12:34:00.000-07:00

Waitin' for the fish-

As I've mentioned before, we have a fairly large room downstairs which serves as both a guest room and temporary storage for my youngest daughter.

Whenever my daughter and grandson visit, I urge her to go through her stuff and allow us a little more storage for our own things.

During a short visit recently, while his mama was busy, the grandson decides to help with the sorting. We hear his little three-year-old feet running downstairs and back up, bringing old toys he's re-found.

After quite a few trips, we can hear him huffing and puffing, and he staggers in with an empty fishbowl he's discovered on top of an old buffet which is taller than he is!

He was very pleased with himself, and told us he'd climbed on the bed and crawled across the "dresser" to get to it. *Grandma is having a heart attack here*

I ask if he wants to take the fishbowl home and he says "No way!" I then ask what he wants me to do with it.

He said "Put water in it Gramma." I reminded him we have no fish here.

He replied rather perturbed "Duhhh, if you put water in it, Gramma, the fish will come!"

Well duhhh...

Oh Say It Isn't So!

2005-08-09T11:03:00.000-07:00

The grandson-

As many of you know, one of my hobbies is genealogy.

I've decided to let my subscription to Ancestry.com lapse, partly due to the expense and the fact that I've hit the proverbial brick walls on my family search.

My subscription ends in September, so I'm using the remaining time to wade through my notes once more to be sure I've not missed anything. Needless to say, this is quite boring, as I've delved through the online information so deeply as to have almost memorized much of it.

For fun, I decided to take a look at Mr. SB's ancestry. Since this would be a totally new search, I'd be able to actually find stuff!

I knew Mr. SB's mother came from Mormon stock, so my first stop was the LDS website. I never take for granted what I find there, but I do find good leads. I then take the information gathered and head elsewhere for census and other records to verify the data.

After going back and forth gathering data, I was looking at Mr. SB's G-G-G Grandfather, and found six wives. This wasn't too unusual back in those days, as people had harder physical lives and died much younger than now. Women tended to give birth almost yearly, and many died in childbirth. The men would take on a new wife as soon as possible to give their children a caregiver.

Looking more closely at the data, I found this man had six wives concurrently! Aha, he was a polygamist! I've read only a little about Mormon history, and I'm pretty sure I read that non-Mormons didn't accept polygamy, so I decided to look at the Federal Census data to see how they reported their unusual lifestyle.

I found this G-G-G Grandfather would show himself living with his primary wife and their children at one location. His other wives were listed as head of household in other physical locations nearby along with their children.

My husband is not at all interested in my hobby, but did get a laugh about his polygamous ancestry.

His comment was "I can't handle one wife... how could I deal with six?"

He's a smart man, he said the right thing. But I wonder what he really thinks?

Here's One For The Googlers

2005-08-06T14:00:00.000-07:00

The Pyramid at Telume-

Checking my stats recently, I found the most common Google search linking to my site was "Telume Mexico."

Oddly enough, my site is the only site given with that particular search.

The only time, (other than this) Telume is mentioned was in a post where I wrote that my ex-husband had threatened to throw me off the pyramid (shown above.)

Although the ex was of Spanish descent, he must have received some psychic impulse from the ancients directing him to perform a traditional sacrifice.

What an idiot, he knew I wan't a virgin...

Why I No Longer Shop At Thrifty Drug Stores

2005-08-05T11:23:00.000-07:00

My oldest daughter-

Several months before this portrait was taken, my daughter and I were involved in an incident at our local Thrifty Drug Store in San Bruno.

I used to enjoy shopping there as it was close to home and prices were affordable. We could get a single-scoop ice cream for 10 cents, a real treat a single mother could lavish on her little girl.

One day after work we stopped off to pick up some Pampers diapers, and to look at toys so we could advise Santa on what to bring for Christmas.

I guess we lingered a little too long, because my daughter who was almost fully potty-trained said she had to go poop... now!

As we quickly headed to the check-out counter she stopped dead in her tracks, became glassy-eyed for a few moments then continued walking. As I looked back while trying to urge her to speed up, I saw a perfectly round piece of poop fall out of her diaper and roll down the aisle.

I'm not one to carry Kleenex, as most mothers do, so I gently kicked it to the side so that no-one would step in it. As I did so, another little ball of fun came rolling out!

As I put down the items I no longer had the courage to buy, and pretty much dragged my daughter out of the store, the last thing I heard was a disgusted voice come over the intercom...

"Cleanup on Aisle 3"

Indeed!

"We'll Leave The Light On..."

2005-08-04T12:10:00.000-07:00

Part of the house-

It was getting toward sunset the other day when I left my computer to take a few photos.

This one shows my office already lit up for the evening, which is rare since I usually go offline when I begin dinner.

Mr. SB is silhouetted in the dining room, patiently waiting for me to return.

As you can see, I haven't done much in the way of planting off the deck. We have patches of iris, and I have a small experimental garden hidden behind and below the maple tree in the foreground.

There are two reasons this garden is experimental. I'm still working on finding truly deer resistant plants is the #1 excuse. The fact that the house needs sanding and painting is another reason not to expend too much time and money.

I've had homes painted in the past, and lost many plants in the process. The saddest loss was a large bouganvilla some painters tarped and bent away from a wall and trellis... snap!

When we finally get the painting done, I'd love to get a blogworld Dream Team to magically appear and help me make a design plan. I'd choose:
Greenie, Sylvana, and Susie for starts. I realize Susie doesn't talk much about gardening, but I've seen pictures of her yard!

In the meantime, I'll have to content myself with looking at their sites, reading landscape design books, and asking questions at the nursery.

Oh, and getting that painting done of course.

Any suggestions out there on great gardening and/or landscape design books? My 'bible' is the "Sunset New Western Garden Book."

The 'Dogz'

2005-08-03T12:26:00.000-07:00

Tasha-

We have three dogs living in our house, and making me crazy with their shedding.

First there's Dobie, the three-legged one who actually belongs to my daughter. Having a three-legged dog almost qualifies us for hillbilly status, except Mr. SB and I still have all our teeth. She lost a leg when my daughter's former landlord let her out (without permission) one night, and she was a victim of a hit and run. Dobie is also know around here as Mama-Dog, as she is the mother of our two pups.

Our only male dog was named Lobo at birth, one of three large males in the litter. I intended to keep only the runt, but Lobo was so good-hearted! When the runt would get knocked away at feeding time, Lobo would push his way in, and make sure the little one could eat. He is variously called Bobo, Bo, and affectionately as Big Butt.

The runt of the litter was Tasha, shown above. She's grown to about 75 lbs. now. She's also known as Natasha, Baby Girl and Rocket-Butt! She earned this last nickname when we first moved up here and she encountered her first deer. She chased a deer family (which included a large male) up our driveway and disappeared for at least 15 minutes. As I was resigning myself to the fact she was probably lost, she came running down the hill as if a rocket was attached to her butt... hence the name.

The dogs have learned to ignore our animal visitors. They just watch the deer, foxes, and other wild creatures. They do alert us to visitors of the two-legged variety, but the time we saw that mountain lion they didn't make a sound!

Perhaps we trained them a little too well?

Feeling Lost In The Woods

2005-08-02T10:59:00.000-07:00

Nearing sunset-

Are Blogfriends real friends?

My very old dictionary defines friend as:
"One attached to another by esteem, respect and affection; an intimate."

My answer is a resounding yes! I visit my blogfriends almost daily, reading about their lives. Although most of us have created an anonymous visage, the intimate details of our lives bleed over into our postings.

I prefer reading blogs which make me laugh, but sometimes life makes one cry. Being a blogfriend means you want to comment whenever possible, and make a special effort to help friends through hard times.

Sometimes I just don't know what to say.

I recently read a rant, written by a normally upbeat and good author. The rant dealt with blogging, something we can all commiserate with. This author was so angry I couldn't really put together the cause of distress. I went so far as to reread several postings back, along with the attached comments, and am still perplexed. So I said nothing.

Another old dictionary definition of friend is:
"... one of the same nation, party, kin..."

This brings me to mention Sarah. I've seen her comments in the past on other's sites, but we've never met. The site linked is manned by her sisters and significant other, who are keeping Blogworld informed on her medical progress. The last posting indicates she is not doing well.
I've gone over to visit, urged to do so by the wonderful Susie, but again, I don't know what to say.

I want to say "Been there," but that doesn't help. At this point I'd like to say "It's OK to let go" but I'm not sitting there helplessly watching my sister slowly let go of this earth.

All I've been able to say is "I'm sending my love and prayers." It's not enough, but I have no better words of comfort.

So pardon me blogfriends, but I think Sarah's family needs comfort. Instead of visiting my usuals, I'm going to sit here awhile and try to find something of value to say to someone who really needs it.

You can't stay in your corner of the Forest waiting for others to come to you. You have to go to them sometimes. --- Winnie The Pooh

Sarah passed away Tuesday, at 4am. Goodbye Sarah, may the next world be kinder to you.

They're Not The Bee Gees!

2005-08-01T12:59:00.000-07:00

Dad holding "Pookie"

I was recently tagged by another of my favorite bloggers Romani Heart to post the 10 songs I'm listening to now.

Normally I listen to oldies, in fact I'm so far behind on current music that it's not even funny!

A friend of mine, John, has been kind enough to burn tons of CDs of our favorite oldies and mail them up here. Thanks again John!

When I drive, I usually turn on Newstalk Radio, and if Mr. SB is with me it's Sports.

So what am I listening to now?

Several nights ago I watched a documentary about the Bee Gees, and now I'm hearing their old songs running through my head!

"How Deep Is Your Love"
"Massachusetts"
"Stayin' Alive"
"Islands In The Stream"
"You Should Be Dancing"
"Nights On Broadway"
"Jive Talkin'"
"Lonely Days"

That leaves me two more- so I'm choosing two of my all-time favorites which are always stuck in my brain:

"Last Dance" by Donna Summer
"Every Kind Of People" by Robert Palmer

Please Lord, get the Bee Gees out of my head! Well maybe not Barry Gibb, because he's ummmmmmm delicious...

The "Red-N-Blacks"

2005-07-30T12:27:00.000-07:00

Yesterday's Stuff Portrait Friday, hosted by
Kristine, directed we include a photo of "something you sleep in."

Although I didn't participate yesterday, the always funny and wonderful Eclectic was gracious enough to display a quite lovely pair* of her underwear.

Eclectic, as well as another of my all-time favorites SoozieQ have been pushing me to publish my "Red-N-Blacks," so here they are!

Note: It wasn't until today that I noticed they're Christian Dior!

*Can anyone tell me why underpanties are always known as 'a pair?' It would seem it more likely to call a bra 'a pair.'

Fires And Other Local News

2005-07-29T11:19:00.000-07:00

Old firetruck in Mountain Ranch-

My friend EJ emailed yesterday afternoon alerting me to a nearby fire. We'd heard some aircraft, but not thought it enough activity to bother turning on the scanner and by the time we did, the fire was under control.

This morning, I checked our local online resources to see what had happened, and lo and behold nothing was mentioned at all!

I shouldn't have been surprised.

Recently, I checked KCRA Sacramento online for our local weather and found they'd stopped giving forecasts for our foothills area. What's up with that? We're about a two hour drive from Sacramento, you'd think we'd rate some kind of mention!

Up here, the California Department of Forestry seems to be the first on the scene for almost any problem. Bless them all!

I guess we'll just have to leave the scanner on full-time, if we want any local news whatsoever. I'll have to adjust, period.

Toys, Toys And More Toys!

2005-07-28T10:06:00.000-07:00

Grandson with the water cannon-

The grandson and his mama dropped by for a visit, so we decided to erect this pool he received from his auntie.
Dang, I wish they had stuff like this when I was little!

My siblings and I had a swingset, as well as a metal sandbox which became both hot in the summer, and the neighborhood cat depository most all the time.
This photo was taken seconds before the grandson took me up on my request to spray the camera so grandma can get that Nikon D-70 to replace the Olympus D-380 she's currently using!
Doggone it, my camera still works...

Just Trying Another Direction Here

2005-07-26T19:37:00.000-07:00

My mouse pad-

I have an obsession with Ouija boards! I own the one given to me as a child, with an old dyno-label on the back indicating it's ownership. I don't recall playing with it much as a child, maybe at a slumber party or two.
Years later, my youngest daughter broke the plastic circle out of the planchette in the belief that it would invalidate any real use of the board.
The last time we had multiple guests stay overnight, my son chose to sleep in my office. He asked me to remove both my Ouija boards from the room. The second board is my mouse pad, pictured above.
Periodically I check eBay for the older version, but find them too pricey.
Some people might find this creepy, but I've done stranger things...
My parents passed away within three months of each other. They both chose cremation as their plan for eternal rest, something I totally agree with.
It took well over a year for the siblings and I to set a date to get together and take their ashes out onto the Pacific, as was desired.
In the meantime, I kept their ashes in my bedroom, something that really freaked out a co-worker I happened to mention it to.
So where should I have stored the cremains? A closet? The garage? We didn't have a mantle... besides we didn't purchase an urn as the intention wasn't to display them like a trophy or souvenir.
My eldest daughter is the appointed executor of our estate. She collects items such as skulls and skeletons from the Mexican Dia De Los Muertos.
Now where do you think this child of mine is going to hold my cremains?
I'm thinking it'll be the someplace like the top of the toilet tank in the guest bathroom, along with some lovely towels. I hope the guests don't think I'm some kind of bath salt...

Things Are Getting Weird!

2005-07-25T16:07:00.000-07:00

Oak tree and the moon-

OK, I just added AdSense onto my site a few minutes ago...
What do I see as my very first ad? Religious stuff!
This is something I thought I'd never see on my site, so I'm guessing I'd better watch the content of my future postings!
I normally post about inane subjects such as deer, plants and flowers, hauntings, and even local Mountain Ranch real estate.
It might prove fun (for a while) to see what kind of advertising pops up with each posting... and maybe not.
I believe I'm going to pour myself a Yukon Jack on the rocks (since it's hotter than heck outside) and mull this over.
Goodnight all!

Abbreviated Sermons Anyone?

2005-07-24T10:56:00.000-07:00

Mountain Ranch Lutheran Church-

Across the street from our local Post Office sits this church.
I believe it was built by Benidito Devoto as a home for his family, sometime after the late 1860s.
Mr. Devoto, born in Italy, opened a bakery in what was then known as El Dorado, and now known as Mountain Ranch.
As a child, I'd attended various churches with my family including Methodist, Baptist and Lutheran. I've visited Catholic churches as well, and also a Jewish Temple, yet I don't believe I've ever seen such a small place of worship!
If I still attended Sunday services, this would have to be my church!
Looking at the small size, and the lack of visible air conditioning, I'd imagine the sermons would be short and to the point.
Now that's my kind of church.

Goin' Downtown

2005-07-22T14:19:00.000-07:00

The biggest sign in San Andreas, at the Bank of Lodi-

We had to head down the hill today to the next larger town which is about 16 miles away. According to the year 2000 figures, San Andreas contains a whopping 2,615 residents!
Our city claimed 1,557 people, with only about half residing year-round.
Needless to say, traffic jams aren't a problem unless the Calaveras County Fair (home of the Frog Jump described by Mark Twain) is in progress.
If you're heading to the San Franciso Bay Area from here, the first stoplight encountered is about 45 minutes away!
Mr. SB smirked when I took along the camera. We both know there isn't much to photograph along the way because pull-outs on the road are few and far between. The road is winding, yet the little traffic encountered moves about 50 mph.
Just a couple of miles down the hill we saw what appeared to be a roll-over, with some witnesses standing off to the side of the road.
As I slowed, Mr. SB noticed me looking for the camera and said something to the effect of "you're not going to blog this... are you?"
Of course I'm not, but I really thought about it.

Oh Hell No!

2005-07-21T10:37:00.000-07:00

Mom's book-

Going through my mother's keepsakes recently, I came across this booklet which includes approximately 25 pages of photographs of the British Royal Family.
I would guess it was printed in early 1949, shortly after the birth of Prince Charles.

My mother carefully inscribed her name on both the cover (which is now barely legible) and inside the cover.

She was not yet married at this time, and I can only imagine what possessed her to want this book. Was she perhaps thinking someday she would have a daughter who would grow up and marry the Prince?

Being the firstborn daughter, born several years later, I would guess that would have been me...

Problem number 1: I'm American.
Problem number 2: I don't have a hyphenated name.
Problem number 3: Let's just say I'm not enamored by his looks.

Solution number 1: Have a birth certificate forged, showing me as British born.
Solution number 2: Create a name such as Sierra Parker-Bowles-Bella.
Solution number 3: Blind myself!

Now if Charles looked anything like his son William, now that would be a whole 'nother story!

Back To School

2005-07-20T10:19:00.000-07:00

Oceana High School, photographed by Alan Lee-

This photo must have been taken on the one non-foggy day the town of Pacifica gets each year. Anyone who's lived there, or just driven through, knows what I'm talking about.

Looking at the close proximity between the high school and the beach tells you the likely spot to find the truants. Even I skipped school once or twice!

The yearly Pacifica Fog Fest is coming up soon. Our high school reunion has gone informal in recent years, and the plan is to meet up at the festival. I almost attended last year, but a knee injury kept me home.

I'm thinking a four hour drive, reconnecting with old friends, and some nice chilly fog sounds real good right now. We're still in the triple-digit weather, and it may continue for quite a while.

Now to find where the heck I packed away my sweaters...

When I Was Native American

2005-07-19T09:45:00.000-07:00

Due to the fact that my father was in the Air Force at the time I was born, I began life in Alamogordo New Mexico.
We lived off base, in a place where frequent sandstorms left daily deposits of sandy silt on windowsills and under the doors.
One of my earliest memories is of playing with my best friend, and I'm sad to say I don't even remember his name! We were about 4 or 5 years old, and he was teaching me The Eagle Dance, something he was being taught by his grandfather who was chief of the local Apache tribe.
I'd seen the women's dances, awfully boring with the shuffling feet and not much else, so The Eagle Dance was both graceful and fun for an energetic child.
All of a sudden, both my friend and I were plucked out of flight by the back of our necks- it was friend's grandfather and he was mad! He told me to go home, and as he grabbed my teacher away I heard him tell him that you don't teach women a brave's dance, especially a white woman!
Now I was furious! I'm not white, I hate white people, I'm Apache! I want to be Geronimo when I grow up! My friends grandfather, The Chief visits our home, smoking hand rolled cigarettes and knocking the ash to the floor! He wouldn't come to white people's homes!
I was inconsolable when I learned the truth.
There is a photograph, somewhere in my house, showing me and my friends outside playing cowboys and indians. All of the white kids are dressed as Indians while me and my Apache friend are dressed as cowboys. The cowboy outfit shown in the picture was my dearest birthday request, yet once I learned the truth I refused to wear the costume.
I recently reconnected to a favorite set of cousins who have told me our grandmother claimed Native American heritage, something I never heard before. I'm thinking that maybe, just maybe, I can still grow up to be Geronimo!

Defying Logic Once Again

2005-07-17T10:06:00.000-07:00

the grandson, after grandma took one too many pictures-

I love my family and extended family. That said, my story begins.

Back when Mr. SB and myself were employed, our work schedules varied, forcing us to take our turns working Saturdays, Sundays and sometimes both. Choosing corresponding vacation weeks was also a nightmare due to the high seniority co-workers in each of our departments. The fact that my husband was frequently forced to work overtime (sometimes) daily, and at one point had him working up to 12 hours a day, 7 days a week, precluded our having time off together period. This was especially bad when his children came out here for their summer visits, because they were bored, bored and more bored.

Mr. SB's family could never understand just why we were unable to attend many of the family commitments at that time. They all had more normal 9-5/Monday-Friday jobs, and lived closer to each other than we did. Their reaction to a turn-down to a party was "Tell them (the company) that you have plans!" No-can-do... our employer was much like the U.S. military except that we were issued helmets, but not guns.

Bringing us to nowadays. We live one hour closer to the family, who have moved even closer to one another not unlike our American pioneers circling up the wagon train. We now have the time to be social... and they don't! Their jobs have become somewhat like ours were by forcing some weekend duty on a few of them. Understanding this, we have given them all an open invitation... come by when you'd like.

We've been getting apologies to the effect that "We can't all get the same day off to come by!" This is Mr. SB's family so I don't want to start something, but who said you all have to visit at once? Are you afraid that once separated we'll break you down and make you tell us some family gossip we're unaware of? Whatever!

Last night, while babysitting my grandson (shown above,) I receive a phone call obviously originating at a party, and it takes the caller almost a full minute to identify themself. Let's just say they were very happy! Surprise- it was the family! They were having a party, and thinking of us!!! Isn't that nice? Too bad they're all so busy they didn't think to invite us.

This is the third family party in recent months we know of, where this has happened.

This really wouldn't bother us, except one of my sister-in-laws gets on the phone and says "We all really want to come up and visit, but can never get the time off!" This defies logic altogether, and is making our idea to visit, and perhaps move up to Washington state much easier to plan!

So hello Greenie and Eclectic, you may be having new neighbors sooner than you think!

For My Blogfriend Kitty

2005-07-16T16:10:00.000-07:00

Evening-

I can't tell you "been there, done that" (although I have), since every sorrow is personal.
What I can promise you is that tomorrow really is another day, and you'll feel much better.
Come sit with me on the deck, *name beveridge here* in hand and enjoy the breeze... even if only in spirit.

xxxooo

Stuff Portrait Friday again!

2005-07-15T10:36:00.000-07:00

SPF, hosted by Kristine, is something I enjoy doing occasionally, so here goes:

This week's subject is the 80s. I combined something from the 80s you can't let go of with a picture of you from the 80s in this first photograph from 1983.

Me and 'Nettie' -

A favorite CD of 70s and 80s music -

The second photo shows a CD or movie from the 80s. My favorite Earth Wind and Fire music is from the 70s, but there are a few 80s songs on this one.

It's already 100 degrees in the shade up here, and my icemaker is slowing down, so it's out to the store for me. Enjoy your weekend everyone!

Got Tagged With Another MeMe-

2005-07-14T14:42:00.000-07:00

My son and a friend, about 20 years ago-
The always interesting Rae ann tagged me with this:

10 years ago, Working for SBC, having my 3rd wedding anniversary with Mr. SB, had only one child still at home but had the stepchildren staying with us all summer.

5 years ago, Working for SBC and counting down the final 2 years toward retirement, taking vacation time to begin moving things up to this house and getting the house in the Bay Area ready for sale.

1 year ago, Pretty much the same as yesterday, today and tomorrow. Scanning and identifying the antique family photos I inherited.

Yesterday, Watered the houseplants and deck plants, sprayed the few weeds which have recently come up (about 2.5 acres worth, in the hot sun,) read the latest Vanity Fair and took a 'nekkid' outdoor shower because it really was that hot!

Today, It's already 3pm, so- BBQ chicken and make fresh green beans, shower and finish up this post.

Tomorrow, Blogging maybe, answering emails, watering my deck plants, and I plan to take a lukewarm jacuzzi.

5 snacks I enjoy: Cheese, black olives, Yoplait yogurt, macadamia nuts and more cheese!

5 bands I know most of the lyrics of their songs: Beatles, Eagles, James Taylor, Doobie Brothers and Earth Wind and Fire.

5 Things I would Do with 100 million dollars: I'd buy another home (see my preceding posting,) give non-taxable gift money to my children, donate to some reputable charities, buy a small travel trailer, invest very conservatively. yeah, the market was up today, but who knows about tomorrow.

5 bad habits I have: smoking, and I apparently snore! I'll add more as they come to me... or are brought to my attention by Mr. SB.

5 locations I would run away to: Maui, Italy, England, Ireland and maybe soon... Washington State.

5 things I would never wear: Pants that show your buttcrack (unless you're perfect it shouldn't be done!) A bikini in public (for the same reason,) blue eye-shadow, fake nails and a coat in the summer.

5 things I like doing: Cooking, gardening, ancestry search, sex and blogging- not necesarilly in that order.

5 biggest joys of the moment: Fresh air, no traffic, quiet, no local wildfires happening and great blogfriends... not to mention children and a grandson!

5 famous people I would like to meet: I don't know that I would care to meet any famous people. Who wants the notoriety?

5 movies I like: The Godfather series, Casino, Goodfellas (do you see a trend here?) Fargo and Fried Green Tomatoes.

5 TV Shows I like: Sopranos, Desperate Housewives, House, and most anything on The History Channel and Discovery, as well as the home selling shows on HGTV.

5 favorite toys: My ouija board (although I'm afraid to use it,) my computer, my TVs, my camera and Mr. Sierrabella.

I'm not going to tag anyone, but feel free to play if you'd like.

*Update: Just checked the thermometer, which is only partly in the sun, and it now reads 110 degrees, great...

Sometimes You Want To 'Git Outta' Dodge

2005-07-13T09:01:00.000-07:00

The driveway-
Sitting here during a week of triple-digit temperatures sends me straight to a favorite website: FindYourSpot.
I mentioned it a while back as a place where you answer a few questions regarding what sort of place you'd like to live, and you'll receive numerous choices complete with links to local real estate firms and other information.
I've been touring online, to my heart's content, looking at places such as Mount Vernon Washington, Ketchikan Alaska and Telluride Colorado.
Don't get me wrong, I love where I live, but hot summers make me crazy!
I realize as I get older, I will need to move. I don't believe Meals on Wheels delivers to this area, and maintaining 5+ acres will become a burden.
My question is: Where would you love to live?
Are you happy where you're at?
Have you discovered the perfect place while on vacation?
Are you planning to move out of the U.S.?
I'm sort of a gypsy, except my stuff wouldn't fit into an Airstream. I can't live without my framed photographs, my numerous plants and all my kitchenware.
I should start traveling more, and perhaps I'll be lucky enough to actually find that perfect place... as long as it isn't so dreadfully hot in the summer.

Going Postal

2005-07-12T08:15:00.000-07:00

The old Post Office-

The old Post Office pictured is no longer in operation, replaced quite a while back with the more modern and typical building we normally see.
Prior to that, there was a much smaller building which claimed to be the smallest in the entire country. That one closed in December of 1956 and has since been moved to Pollardville, near Stockton.
Our P.O. is so much different than the more urban offices I've become used to.
It actually closes for lunch between noon and 1pm!
A parakeet named Rocky lives there almost full time, and occasionally can be seen flying about.
You will not get packages delivered to your door, ever. If a parcel doesn't fit inside your mailbox, you'll get the card advising you to come pick it up... but when you go, they know you by name!
We do have United Parcel Service and FedEx which delivers to one's door, but there's something special about walking into a rural facility where there's a bird in residence and time for a little chitchat while doing business.

Foxes Climb Trees?

2005-07-10T08:21:00.000-07:00

Common Gray Fox-

Another blurry picture- I really need that Nikon!
Last evening, just before dusk, I spotted the fox pictured above.
It was nosing along the ground like a dog, running circle patterns on the dusty dirt.
When I appeared in the window with my camera, the fox took notice, but continued the search for food.
At that point I wasn't even sure whether this was a fox. The snout appeared shorter and it was making noises not unlike a cat.
Then it ran up a fruit tree! What the heck kind of creature out of the Island of Dr. Moreau was this?
Checking eNature I found that yes, they do climb!
Simply amazing!

The Misfit

2005-07-08T08:50:00.000-07:00

Yep, she's eating our peaches-

We've been seeing this female deer for the past three years, and she's always alone!

Since we've lived here, we have seen numerous deer babies born and grow up. One of the baby males grew up and mated with two females (one of them no doubt was his sister- but hey, this is the country.) Last summer he'd be seen watching over his ladies, and their three fawns as they ate.

This lone female always keeps her distance from the other deer, in fact she seems to be on a different time schedule, rarely here when the others are. The one time they were all here at once, she was chased away by the male.

You have to wonder- did she do something terribly wrong in the past? Is she the Hester Prynne of local deerdom, wearing an invisible scarlet letter? Maybe she imbibes in oleander and foxglove, getting a buzz on when she should be at work? Or could it be she's just plain ugly?

What I do know is she's getting gray around the muzzle, and probably won't be around too much longer. I hope deer heaven is kinder to her than this earth has been. Maybe in heaven she'll be beautiful.

So How Do You Blog?

2005-07-07T09:06:00.000-07:00

A morning cup of coffee-

This morning while having coffee on the lower deck I was lucky enough to see both a mama deer and her fawn feeding below, but not quick enough to catch a decent photo!

Lately I've found myself setting my alarm for 7am., making a pot of coffee, and intending to blog (and return emails) until 8am at which time we can get ourselves outside and fire up the weedwhacker or the wood chipper without disrupting the neighbors.
The usual plan is to get things done around the house, and blog only at breaktimes after that initial coffee-hour.
By 3pm I'm done for the day, ready to start dinner and relax with Mr. SB.

I'm curious, though. Do you blog from work? Do you allow yourself a limited time in which to blog? Do you write some days and just read on others? Do you need to wait for the family to get tucked in for the night? Are you an insomniac writer?

How do you blog?

What's Cooking?

2005-07-06T09:47:00.000-07:00

My kitchen-

Two days ago I posted, showing a photo of my dream kitchen.
Well this is my real kitchen, most of it anyway. What's not shown is the pantry wall.
This kitchen works, but when there's more than one 'chef' toiling away, they'd better be used to working as a team because it's pretty small!
Mr. SB and I were reminiscing about the meals we used to create when we had our children in the household. You know what I mean... those meals which are both filling and inexpensive. So what came to mind??? One of our favorite casseroles!

Layered Enchilada Casserole

4 chicken breasts
1 can Cream of Chicken Soup
1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 cup milk *I use 1 small can of Las Palmas Green Chile Enchilada Sauce
1 can green chile salsa *I use Herdez Salsa Verde, unless I have homemade
12 corn tortillas
1 lb. grated cheddar cheese *I use less
1 medium onion, finely chopped
*Optional layer ideas:
halved or sliced black olives
canned chiles

Wrap chicken in foil *I add chopped garlic and garlic salt, bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour.
Pour saved juices into lasagne pan.
Cool chicken slightly and either cut, or tear into small pieces.
Mix together the soups, milk *or enchilada sauce and salsa.
Cut tortillas into 1" strips.
Line the bottom of the lasagne pan with 1 layer of tortilla strips.
Then 1 layer of chicken,
1 layer of the chopped onion,
then 1 layer of the soup mix.
Continue layers, ending with soup mix.
Cover with the shredded cheese.
Cover and refrigerate 8-12 hours (to soften tortillas.)
Bake, uncovered at 300 degrees for 1 - 1.5 hours.

Well, my chicken is cooked and I'm off to get started!