Ready, Set, Go!

If packing were an Olympic event, I would be considered very slow to get out of the gate or off the starting blocks.  I had planned to spend the week getting ready for our Alaskan cruise, but I dilly dallied for too much of the time.  The weather forecast for our cruise was for cold, rain, more rain, and maybe even a frozen mix.  What?  What was I thinking, agreeing to go on this cruise.  It did not sound appealing at all.  However, the reality of our ever nearing departure loomed in the fast approaching, immediate future. 

Saturday, it rained off and on all day, which was great for the yard and gardens and kept me inside where I needed to focus on packing.  I got my hour walk in before breakfast, without getting rained on.  My second breakfast was blueberry pie and ice cream.  I figured I had to get my body prepared for all the sweet deserts it would be exposed to.  And besides, we still had three cartons of ice cream left over from company.   

All morning I worked on last week's blog and finally got it posted.  I did get interrupted by other computer distractions... the usual Facebook and e-mails but also lots of messaging with Britney.

Once Joe got home from work, I tried to pin point him on some packing questions, new phone issues, and pet care items; but he had already laid down for a nap.  Seen right, he eventually got up and took this photo with my i-phone to show me how to take a photo without it taking a one second video at the same time.  He thought he had been successful, but later I discovered, he hadn't.  By then, he was already outside mowing because it had stopped raining.  He needed to take care of this pre-vacation job before more rain came.  His Ready, Set, only takes seconds before he Goes.

I don't know where the day went, but pretty soon we were headed out the door to go to the dinner/dance at Legends.  It was nice to not have to come up with dinner plans and we even did a little dancing, but once I got home, I was too tired to accomplish anything productive.

Sunday I slept in and skipped my hour walk and then, still had pie and ice cream for breakfast.  This was the forth day in a row of rain and I couldn't help but wonder if that was part of my problem with getting motivated to do anything in preparation for leaving on our cruise.

Shirley and I chatted while waiting for the rain to let up before leaving Church.  On a rather long walk after Church, Maggie and I both got rained on.  Maggie looks silly in the left photo, getting caught shaking off some rain drops.  I finally started to get my non-clothing items organized for packing.  I also wanted to have everything I needed from Joe before he would be leaving on Monday.  Joe was at work, so I left the technical (i-phone, i-pad, printing, etc) for him to help with later.  But soon after he got home from work, he left to spend the afternoon golfing.  I was beginning to feel like I was in a holding pattern and that the starting gun would never go off.  So I wasted time (all afternoon) here at my computer, until I got antsy and decided to go to the gym to work out.

Our neighborhood fox was passing through and laid down on the hill just below the 17th green.  He/she appeared (video) to be grooming itself and resting I guess.

Joe got home at dinner time, but we each just grabbed what leftovers we wanted.  I was getting the refrigerator emptied out, ready for us to be gone.  Our evening activity consisted of some organizing, planning, printing tickets and documents we would need, and going through packing lists.  And adding to my to-do list.  Ugh.



Monday I did my morning hour walk as the sun came up, (which is later these days).  I started the first of three loads of laundry I would get done during the day.  Joe left for the Nashville airport at 10:30.  Seen left, papers I needed to read through as I tried to figure out what I would need to take (pack) for our cruise.  I was still trying to figure out my i-pad and i-phone and ended up computerizing and procrastinating, and never really packed anything.


Jan, and later Brian, came over for cat care instructions.  (I did get their notes typed and printed)  I also had to find keys that would work the garage doors.  I was going to re-pot my parsley and throw the rest out, but decided that the tomato and pepper plant were not done for the season because they had a bunch of new blooms.  So I moved them off the deck and put them by the back door with all my other potted plants to make it easier for Brian to water them.



I got all three bathrooms cleaned.  I hate leaving a dirty house when I go on vacation.  I texted with Patty and Shirley about some documents/passes I wasn't clear on, as to whether or not I needed to print them.  And I even played with the cat and dog, as if I had time for that.





After dinner I went on a walk with Maggie, headed to Mirror Lake Blast.  These cairns showed up on the Lakeview hiking trail that goes from Flossmoor to the Library Building.  Seen below, Maggie between two, to give you an idea of their size.  A miniature cairn seen right; made me wonder how they stacked these on such little edges?






As soon as we got to Mirror Lake the band went on break.  So we continued to follow the walking trail down a ways and swung around the other side of the lake and back up to Cromwell and home.

Before bed, I organized my to-do lists by days (the last three remaining) and crossed some things off, deeming them not necessary to do.  Going to bed early, exhausted, I ended up having troubles sleeping because I had so much to do, all running through my mind.  Ready, Set, Wait a minute please.

My hour long walk Tuesday morning was before sun up.  I needed to get the show on the road, so woke early.  At 9:00, as if I didn't have anything better to do, I went to the barn to go riding.  I did pay my September board, so could cross that off my list.  Also, because I will be taking a three hour horse back ride in Alaska, I felt I was getting ready and set to go, by preparing my leg muscles for the longer ride.  I didn't even take any photos of our ride, but here's one from June, of Jim.  I met him and Terry out on the trail.  He had trailered his horse Zip to Terry's farm and they left from there.  We had a good ride, and were out a little over two hours.




I had lunch on the back porch when I got home at 1 pm.  I took some photos and this video of Stevie playing with Maggie.  I finished reading all my documents for the cruise and organized my packing list and then went to the gym to workout and shower.



The evening was ended with more dog walks and sitting here accomplishing very little in terms of getting ready to leave on our cruise.

Joe and Ben did an over night, camping out on Tuesday.  Here is Joe at the Summit of Mt. Bean.





I cut my usual walking time in half Wednesday morning, only going 30 minutes because I felt an urgency to get going on my packing job.  I took this video of the early morning golfers going out for their 7:30 shot gun start.  Before going shopping at 9 am, I cleaned the kitchen and did a (hopefully final) load of laundry.  I got gas, then help at the ATT store with my new i-phone.  I ran into a clothing store looking for a hoodie, and ended up coming out 45 minutes later with five new shirts, on sale, each under ten dollars.  I got the hoodie, and other necessities at Wal-Mart and didn't get home till 12:30.  After a quick lunch I was off to work from 2-7.

As soon as I got home I did one more load of laundry, consisting mostly of the new clothes I had just bought.  Stevie hung out under the bench at the end of our bed while I rooted around in the closet and brought possible clothing selections out.  I was matching shirt to slack, trying things on as I went and putting outfits to be packed onto the bed.

At one point during the night, I was cleaning the laundry room and cats pan.  Stevie escaped, during a lapse in my carefulness, and I ended up outside for nearly an hour searching for the cat using my cell phone flash light.  Brian was up, heard me, and came out.  Stevie was under his back deck.  I finally got her corralled with Brian's help and was back in the house about 11:45, to resume getting ready to go.

Thursday morning came all too soon, with only four hours of time in bed, and some of that was spent thinking through my to do list.  I still had a LOT to do before the black and white checkered flag would wave.  After Stevie's escape, I was extra paranoid, and kept checking on her where she was (video).



I did a plethora of things including talking with Brian and Allen, watering all my plants, walking and taking Maggie to the kennel, working out, and getting all my stuff from the bed into the suitcase.  I cleaned house a little cleaned out the refrigerator and kept checking on Stevie's where a-bouts.


As you read this, I am hopefully well on my way to taking an Alaskan Glacier Cruise with Joe, Patty and Shirley.  Shirley is picking me up soon, and we will go to Courtney's for the night, before going to the airport for our very early flight Friday morning.  I will probably be off line (including i-phone) for the better part of this next week.  Anchor's aweigh and bon-voyage. 

Where Did It Go?

Nope, I am not going to talk about Hilary and her missing e-mails, or all the things Trump is missing.  This blog reflects on the passage of time and miss-placing personal items.

Realizing that another week has ended, August is more than half gone, and summer is basically over, I have to ask "Where did it go?"  And I am sure by Sunday night, I'll wonder where the weekend went.

Not only does time escape me without notice, I also seem to misplace things like cell phone, car keys, employee name badge, and even my water glass.  I am still missing some kitchen utensils from when we had company help with the daily task of emptying the dishwasher.  Where did it go?




Any idea what the right photo is a picture of? 
For awhile, sister Carol used to do a 'guess what this is' photo on her blog.  Up close it is kind of hard to tell exactly what you are looking at.  I'll give you a different view of it and the answer, at the end of this blog.
Oh the suspense... or shall I say suspended?





I got this vacation photo from Patti after finishing last week's blog.  I had to include it now because these two are just so cute and precious to me.  I love seeing our girls.  (I'd like to get updates and photos from Daniel too.  Hint hint)  How did our three babies get to be so big and grown up?  Where did their childhood go?







Saturday morning, after my hour walk and then tea, I met Jan and Kayla at the barn. 


Kayla is one of the Wildwood Stable workers who recently got her rescue horse Patience and is working at training her.  She usually takes her on the guided trail rides.


Jan has been riding with her to build Patience's confidence and show Kayla the Glade.


We went for a two hour ride.  It was fun being out on the trail together and showing Kayla places in the Glade where she has never ridden.


We ran into Karen who was out on Behiem.  The dogs were so glad to see her.






Both dogs decided to follow Karen home to Terry's instead of staying with us.  We knew they were with her but wondered how they would get themselves back to Wildwood Stables.  (Karen ended up driving them back.)


I got home at lunch time, after which I did light yard work such as raking the mulch that the creature of the night has been spreading into the grass while digging through it.  I also fertilized, while watering many new plantings and some of the old established stuff that looked thirsty.  I do a lot of thinking while alone, and couldn't help but wonder what this world is coming to... with our government, politics, and even the unrest all around the world. 


Joe had left for Cherokee after getting home from work.  I got so sleepy late afternoon, I came in and took a two hour nap.  Sheesh, where did my energy go?  I was also sore from the weight workout the day before, but decided to take Maggie on a nice long walk to get some of the lead out.  Notice, leaves are starting to turn colors and drop from the trees.  Where did summer go?  I think this early fall is partly due to the extremely dry conditions and stressed trees.  At least the heat and humidity had let up a little bit.

After attending Church with Shirley Sunday morning, I took a short little nap.  I keep getting so sleepy.  It has me wondering what my problem is. 

I had planned to ride Amiga to the swimming hole, but discovered she had lost a shoe.  Where did it go?  So I kept our travels near the barn on trail that is not too rocky.  In the left photo, you can see our trailer, which Billy happened to be backing into its parking place.  Terry had borrowed it to take the rescue horse Stormy (seen below) home.  Her new name is Sunny Blue Skies.










I also worked Amiga out in the grassy yard, trying to get her to slow down out there.  She was quite sweaty by the time she conceded to walk back to the barn.  After Amiga got hosed off, when I turned her out in the pasture, she
stopped...                                                               dropped...

... and rolled, as usual.

Notice that her back right shoe is missing.

Once home, I wanted another nap, but did not give in to my sleepiness.  Instead I went to the gym as planned.  My workout wasn't great, but I got it done.  And I tried a little extra stretching of my sore muscles at the end.

More watering was necessary in the evening, but then after dark when I got in the car to take Maggie for a walk in a lit neighborhood, it started raining.  By the time (ten minutes) I had gotten back home, the rain had stopped, so we just walked in our dark neighborhood.

Monday morning's walk was a bit rushed to give me time for my tea and toast before going to the barn.  I met Tom there at 8:30, so he could take care of Amiga's shoe problem.  He ended up putting new shoes on all four, since she would be due for them just when we will be leaving on vacation.  Below, she was a little concerned about Oscar who had walked behind her to get a drink.









I cleaned up the kitchen, computerized = read Facebook posts, blogs, and e-mails; and then walked the dog before going in to work.  We had little pop-up showers, off and on throughout the day, in various neighborhoods (except ours).  I had to clear the pool for 35 minutes during the only rain we had out there because it had been accompanied by thunder.

Joe got home from a fifth place finish in the Senior Poker tournament and dropped by the pool for a swim.  I was able to leave work right at 7 pm and when I got to the Conference Center with the deposit, I stayed to listen to the band.  It had been moved inside because of the weather.  Michelle was there, having just finished two hours of pickle ball, and we ended up dancing with the crowd (in our sweaty shorts and t-shirts) for several songs, until 7:30, when the band quit.  There was more Olympic TV watching once I got home.

Tuesday, as the sun rose, I had a nice long walk of ten of the holes of Druid.  Then I sat here longer than I should, sipping tea and computerizing.  It looked like it would rain soon, was in the forecast, so I didn't rush to get outside.  Right after lunch I was going to go for a ride, but the plants and grass were screaming for water (I had given up on the rain coming) so I took care of that first.  Then when I was walking Maggie before putting her in the Mancave, I noticed that the creek bed was completely dry and I should collect some rocks while it would be so easy.  So I did that, setting almost 30 good wall building rocks up on the bank near the hiking trail.

Finally, getting to the barn around 1:30, I got Amiga ready to ride.  Judy, Ambrie, and Kayla were fixing to go on a trail ride and were most willing to let me join them.

Judy started out leading the way and Kayla brought up the rear.  Notice the looming rain clouds as we left the barn.


We had a great time, and took tons of pictures.






Camera wars.







I on Amiga.








Kayla on Patience.






Judy on Levi.





Ambrie on Redman.







It was so much fun being out together.

Seen left, we rode to Terry's to say hi.







We did a bit of trotting and cantering and had fun going up the short steep hill (video).  When loping Amiga beside Patience, they wanted to race each other.  Silly girls.






We got sprinkled on at one point, but it was nothing significant.  On the way back to the barn we enjoyed cantering up the big steep hill (video).





As we un-tacked and hosed off our horses, we chatted and continued to horse around.  Kayla gave Zorro a taste of her Mountain Dew.  He said, 'Yahoo.'

  




There was thunder in the distance, north of the barn when I left, and I thought for sure we were getting rain.  But no, when I got home it was still bone dry.  I moved my pile of rock up out of the woods and put them near the road where I could get them with the wheelbarrow.  One boulder I couldn't lift, and rolled it the whole distance... I am guessing over 200 yards.

When Joe got home at 6 pm, from golf on the Brae, (north of us a few miles) he said it had poured.  Wish we got some here.

Joe and I made a much needed shopping trip to Food City, getting groceries and then dinner from their salad bar.  We hadn't put Maggie in the Mancave when we left because it was just a quick trip, and look what we saw when we pulled into the driveway.  <->  The dog isn't even allowed to go up stairs.


We enjoyed our salads and then Joe helped me load the bolder onto the wheelbarrow and we wheeled it home.  I made three more trips with the wheelbarrow, getting the rest of the rocks.  Some of my new assortment seen left.

Wednesday morning's walk lasted only 40 minutes because I slept longer than usual and Joe and I were planning to go shopping.  We took Maggie with us, leaving a little after 8:00, and dropped her off at Bed and Biscuit, for doggie day care, as an introduction before being boarded there when we go on our cruise.

I finally got a new i-phone, 6-SE with 64 GB.  They were out of stock so I would have to wait for it to come in the mail.  We ran errands, and ended our shopping trip at Wal-Mart.  Then, after a relaxing lunch at the Glade Cafe, we picked up Maggie at the kennel.

I guess the shopping wore us out and we both napped once home.  Upon waking, I was trying to talk myself into going out into the heat and humidity to do some yard work, but then it got very dark and looked like rain.  The storm never really hit, but it did finally rain for a little while.  This garter snake must have liked the moisture and came out of hiding back near the pond.
I expended what little energy I had left, finally going and working out at the gym.  It was a quiet evening at home since Joe was at his weekly poker game.

Thursday I got my hour walk in early because rain was expected.  Maggie and I got sprinkled on at one point, but nothing of significance.  More substantial rain started up while I was enjoying my tea and then it really came down for awhile.  It was much needed rain.

Nancy, my manager, called and said that Dorchester was not opening and a decision to do so later would be made before my 2:00 shift.  It looked like it would rain all day much to my delight.  I had so much I needed to get done around the house.  But first I just sat here working on this blog and writing a to-do list.

It cleared off at 11:30 and I got the call, to see if I was willing to go in to work two hours early.  I did, with the hopes that the afternoon rains would come at 4:00 and I could close early.

From 12:00 to 2:00 I had no customers.  I spent an hour cleaning the pool and deck.  When the sun was out, it was hot.  It was nice to be in the water scrubbing the tile.  






I read the paper while waiting for people to come, and ended up getting a pretty good turn out.

We got our 4:00 shower, and half my customers left.  In the first of this series of deer photos, you can see the rain coming down.  I took the above photo from the entrance gate of the pool.  The golfer got quite close to this deer.

While the remainder of my pool people were sitting under the cabana out of the rain, the sun came out and this doe came up to the fence.  She walked back and forth along the fence eating vegetation and crab apples (video).









Some people got back in the pool, and the doe hung around for over an hour.

At one point the doe walked around much of the pool and eventually laid down to chew her cud (video).  More rains came and fairly soon, all my clientele gave up on the sun and left.

          Once all my customers were gone, I got the go ahead to close an hour early.  I finished with bathrooms and trash, and then while I was in the office closing down the computer, the doe wandered into the pool area.  She startled me, as I did her, and then I quickly shooed her back out into the parking lot (video).  She looked healthy, but it was worrisome that she was not very afraid of people and seemed to be looking for something.

I got home at 6:15, with the long to-do list still sitting on my desk.  Joe had started dinner.  I finished cooking it and we ate on the back porch as usual.  After working here for awhile, we ended the day watching Olympics.

Friday was predicted to be rainy most of the day.  The dog and I got in our usual hour walk before breakfast, without getting wet.  I have decided that many golfers don't spend long searching for a ball hit off track or asking 'Where Did It Go' because Maggie finds golf balls all over when we walk the courses.  We put them in a bin when we get home, but sometime Maggie has troubles parting with what she considers is hers (video).

While I worked on this blog, Maggie kept an eye out for golfers gone astray, looking in back for their lost ball.  Where did it go?... sometimes we can see the ball lying right in the open in our yard.  





UPS brought my new phone just before lunch time.  I grabbed a bite and then headed to the AT&T store to have the sales lady from two days earlier help me convert my data from one phone to the other, as she had said she would.  Long story short, she wasn't working so the manager helped me.  But their computer system wasn't woking so he couldn't do the data transfer for me.


After getting my hair trimmed and a quick stop at Wal-Mart (they had charged me twice for an item) I got home and gave Joe the instructions for my new phone.  He set to work on it, needing to upgrade and download some things onto my computer first.  While he was so kind to do that for me, I went to the gym and had an exhausting workout.

The rain continued off and on all afternoon.  Joe went to town to catch the movie 'Star Trek Beyond' and a little later Shirley picked me up and we went to the Conference Center and enjoyed the playhouse performance of 'Some Enchanted Evening.'  We were blown away by the guest appearance of Nathaniel Hackmann who has performed on Broadway.  What a great voice, and some nice eye candy too.




Every night when I hit the hay and reflect on the day, I wonder 'Where did it go?'  And tonight was no different.

Here is another look (from a different angle) of the first photo.  It is of a spider web, attached to some of my rocks out back, with water droplets suspended on it.