Rain

We had over 10" of rain at our house between Friday, Dec.17 and yesterday, Dec. 22. We've had waterfalls appear out of nowhere, mudslides on roads (the one pictured here is little and caused no real damage - but consider an entire hillside coming down), and the Bob & Pat $1 bet that Pat lost. Pat's position: It won't rain 5" from Friday to Friday. Bob's position: Yes, it will. Oh well, there goes that $1.00.
It's sunny this morning and we are grateful.

Rainy afternoon

What's a kitty to do on a rainy afternoon? Sleep, of course.

Good news

I've been away for awhile, taking care of my mother. She had surgery on Nov. 29; a planned two-day stay in the hospital turned into a five-day stay because of some complications. I was her "transition care" at home, with some assistance from my brother. We had a rocky few days at the beginning, but Mom got stronger each day. By the time of her post-op appointment on Dec. 14, we decided she didn't need me to be at her house 24/7. I will go back on Friday to take her to her hair appointment, and we'll do some shopping. Thanks to everyone who sent get well wishes to my mom, the 83-year-old with spunk.

The moon

Bob took this photo - handheld! - using his new camera. Cool craters.

Camera is fresh out of the box - 1st photo!

Bob says he's making all sorts of adjustments on his new Canon camera - his photos will get better, but it does capture Ed's spunky little attitude.

Beatles

And what am I doing right now? Downloading songs from the Beatles onto my iPod. FINALLY. It's been a good day, iTunes. :)

Here's looking at you

This is like a double exposure from the old days (and I mean really old days, like when I was a kid). Isabella was "helping" me make the bed and I managed to capture her looking forward and sideways at the same time.

And the answer is ....

The answer to the math quiz is: a. 1, 3, 7, 9.

Math question for the day

Bob and I got a phone call last night from our favorite nine-year-old, Wen-Ting Wong. She needed help on her math homework. The question was: For every prime number greater than 10, which digits are possible in the one's place?
a. 1, 3, 7, 9
b. 1, 3, 5, 9
c. 0, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8
d. 1, 3, 7

This is 4th grade math. Bob and I resorted to Google. Do you know the answer?

Other than wedding

We did see other things on our trip. #1 is Sadie, a very friendly Wheaton terrier who lives next door to Jack and Penny in Troy, OH. #2 is Bear's Mill, a working mill west of Troy in Greenville, OH. The gift shop has all sorts of neat things, including many kinds of flour ground at the mill. #3 is a latte (isn't it beautiful?) from Ithaca Coffee Roasting Co. The barista was a lovely Cornell student - very nice, very good at latte-making. #4 is me at the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, one of my favorite places in the USA. Check the red maple in the background.

More wedding

Aren't they all so darned cute? From the top: Tanja's fantastic blue shoes (for those of you who know Karen Beaton - I can see Karen in these shoes), Tanja and Ryan right after the ceremony, Tanja and the flower girl, and Karlee and her bro right before he got hitched.

The wedding

One part of our trip east was to attend our nephew's wedding on Oct. 9th, held at The Barn, just south of Ithaca, NY. The autumn colors were gorgeous ... and the bride and groom were, too. The first picture, taken right after the rehearsal on the 8th, is the groom's fan club: Grandma Ann, stepmom Beth, sister Karlee, mom Vicky, and aunt Pat. In photo #2, taken right before the ceremony, Ryan poses with Tanja and the bridemaids. In #3, it's the kiss (everyone say "Ah...."). #4 is Karlee and her new sister-in-law, Tanja. More pictures in my next post.

Off to Ryan and Tanja's wedding tomorrow

We're flying to Ohio tomorrow and then driving to New York on the 8th. Ryan and Tanja are getting married at The Barn in Willseyville, NY on the 9th. Friends and family are flying east in the next few days. We're all looking forward to the wedding and reception. Welcome to the family (officially), Tanja!

Relief at last

Our outdoor thermometer peaked at 89.2 and is now 88.1 degrees. Is it time to check the furnace filter? Or find out what I did with those fleece socks? All kidding aside, 20 degrees cooler is a blessing. :)

I'm tired of the heat

I'm sitting on a cold pack in a darkened living room with three fans going. The outside temp is 102 degrees; the inside temp is 83. Unfortunately, the 83 won't hold - it will keep rising. These are the days I'd love AC. Usually, we let the ocean do our air conditioning for us. C'mon back, marine layer!

California quail

I just love quail. In this picture, they're saying, "OK, you look left and I'll look right." They're always covering each other and checking for danger.

Rocket launch ... or not

Bob decided to climb on the roof last night to watch a rocket launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base, supposedly at 8:27 p.m., then postponed to 9:45, etc., etc. He never did see it. But he faked a good "over there" photo while on the roof. We don't know why the bottom of the picture has that creepy aura, but it does add to the whole ambiance. And, yes, I did climb the ladder to take this picture.

Happy Friday

We just returned from a bike ride up and down Bob Jones Trail, with a side trip to the Avila Barn. Corn, apples, grapes, plums, squash ... they're all there. I'm amazed at the number of people walking on the trail while jabbering away on their cell phones. People do not have to be connected 100% of the time. Do they actually look around and notice the trees, birds, rock formations, etc.? Okay, I'll get off my soap box now. Have a good weekend.

Deer: this is war!

I was tempted to title this, "You die, Bambi," but that sounds so harsh. The deer moved through last night and dined at Pat's 3-star restaurant. Look at my marigold 6-pack. Not a blossom left! And my sweet pea 6-pack - chewed, gnawed, nibbled ... generally roughed up. What's a gardener to do? Too bad I don't know any mountain lions ....

Where's my marine layer?

Isabella is outside in her Kittywalk; it's 99 degrees. Need more be said?

A Nook snuggie

I ordered a knitted Nook cover through Etsy from a dedicated knitter in Colorado named OmaSocks. Isn't it the cutest thing? My Nook is so warm and happy in there.

Ah ... retirement

Bob's playing golf, so I'm listening to opera, eating vanilla ice cream with peaches from my Uncle Lew's mini-orchard, and playing with my little Nookmeister. Project Gutenberg and I have become close friends. There's much to be said for retirement. If you're undecided about the Big R: I say go for it. :)

More pictures from Deer Camp

Here are more pictures from our gathering for Carol at Deer Camp on August 1st. Cousin Joe Valdez tending a tired little one, my uncles Roy and Lew and cousin Jeff (his daughter just announced her engagement), Pat & cousin Jim (Carol's brother and chief caterer for the gathering), and aunt Shirley.

Gathering for Carol at Deer Camp

We gathered on Sunday, August 1st, to celebrate the life of my cousin, Carol. She passed away last Monday. There are a lot of pictures, so I'll do more than one post. In this first tribute to Carol, there's a picture of the table with photos and flowers. Also, a shot of Carol's grandson (so cool in his shades) with her mother, Amelee (the proud great-grandmother). Finally, a picture of my uncle Lew, Carol's dad, and my uncle Bob.

Update to "Drink more water"

We took Mom to Upper Crust for lunch yesterday. No incidents! It was a perfectly normal lunch. Yay.

Drink more water

We had a scare this week. Bob, my mom, and I were out to dinner at Olive Garden in Santa Maria and my mother felt faint at the table. She was unresponsive for a few minutes, so we called 911. The Olive Garden manager and our server were so helpful. The firemen paramedics and EMT ambulance people arrived at the same time. Mom was alert by the time they got there (of course!), and was greatly embarrassed that a fuss was being made IN PUBLIC. They convinced her that she needed to be checked at the hospital, so off she and I went in the ambulance. Bob followed in our car. The nurses, doctors, techs, and admitting staff at Marian Medical Center are the best. Early tests indicated that Mom was dehydrated, but the ER doc wanted to admit her for more tests. Did she want to do this? My heavens no. But Bob and I worked on her for a little while and she relented. She ended up staying two nights while they ran tests on her heart, her carotids, her kidneys, etc. The conclusion seems to be an irregularity with her heart rhythm, which the docs are thinking came from the dehydration and one of her blood pressure meds. She'll see her primary care doctor today; also we're being referred to a cardiologist. Meanwhile, she seems fine. The hospitalist at Marian consulted with Mom's primary care doctor, and they decided to take her off the suspect blood pressure medicine - but they doubled up on another blood pressure drug. Plus, everyone told her, "Drink more water!"

Father Marquette and his trusty guide

We went canoeing today in Morro Bay. I was in front and Bob in back. So I turned to him and said, "Do you feel like Father Marquette exploring the Mississippi?" The answer was no, he did not. :) Note our nearly matching and so fashionable hats.
The canoe rental place has a great dog mascot, a friendly Aussie shepherd. Of course, we must include a photo of the dog. Bob got a good shot of a black-crowned night heron, too.

Ed hangs 10

Ed says, "I had to go to the vet last week for rabies and CPRT shots. I did fine. All the technicians and nurses exclaimed over my lovely coat. They asked if Pat and Bob bathe me. To this I say, 'Bah, humbug.' Can you imagine me submitting to a bath?"

First Friday ... no wait, it's First Thursday

Because the coffee shop in the library is closed on Friday during the summer, First Friday is now First Thursday until Cal Poly begins its new school year in late September. The following photos are from our gathering on Thursday, July 1st. Joan Kunkler, Sharon Fujitani, Denise Wessels, Edna Hjerrild, Karen Beaton, Jan Kline, Donna Lister, and I sat down for a chat. Joan Kennedy and Mary Ellen Baker stopped by to say hi.

Just cruising along

We've been doing errands, making sure the house is clean for a realtor and his client who never showed (not our realtor, I hasten to add), and making decisions about retirement accounts -- if we do this, then what about that?, etc. Here are a few photos of the past week or so. The one of Bob and his finger needs explanation. He had to have his finger lanced because of an infection under the nail. I know that "lancing" would usually equal pain, but he said it was NOT painful, and his finger feels much better after the event. The picture of Isabella's kitty walk on the deck also needs explanation. We cover the netting with towels so she won't be exposed to the sun - she is a little blonde girl and we don't want her to get skin cancer. When she's set up like this, we call it her little Conestoga wagon. She's crossing the Great Plains on her way to the Oregon Territory.

Second month of retirement begins

I'm getting used to this no-work stuff. More time for reading, sleeping in, and just hanging around. We're trying to sell our house, so there are always projects to do. We want to keep the place looking good, but we are living in our house - so it does get dirty and disorganized sometimes. And, darned if weeds don't grow in the garden, too.

Last Friday, we took Mom to the grocery store, but we had time for a picnic lunch at Atascadero Lake. Bob took a photo of the three of us. Also, Bob and I are enjoying the spa. I actually have tan lines, whereas before I was a fairly pale person. The spa is a good place to exercise my "bad" shoulder, which is doing much better after the intra-articular shot of cortisone in late May.

More out and about

We decided to to take pictures of the demolition of Cabo San Luis, a restaurant that burned a few months ago. Check our Flickr page for some demolition shots.
After the photo session, we had to have coffee and a treat at New Frontiers.