60th Annniversary

Last night I had the pleasure to attend a 60th wedding anniversary party for my sister's in-laws. The event was complete with cousins, aunts and uncles, close family friends, and of course the honored couple. There must have been 70+ people in the house all enjoying catching up and eating the delicious catered food. Showing on one big television was a slide show of the family beginning from the couple's wedding day through to today with the celebration of 3 children, 8 grandchildren and two great-grand children! The photo montage was a trip down fashion memory lane, as well as those great family vacations and holiday events. The lesson here: Don't throw away those old photos...people with cherish them in years to come :) Who knows what your children and grandchildren will do with them!

What a great celebration to be a part of! Retirement has been good for them and I hope that Dan and I will be alive and healthy another 27 years so that we can celebrate our 60th anniversary! Congratulations, Pete and Rose!

Baby Gate vs. Dachshund

Danny, who is almost 2 years old is very trustworthy while you are home with him. Not so once you leave. So to be safe I put him in the kitchen, secured behind a baby gate, and left for a short while. Upon my return, the baby gate had fallen over (guess I didn't put it up so well, did I?). To my amazement, there sat Danny, in the kitchen, terrified to step onto the fallen gate to "freedom!" LOL

Apparently he just stayed in the kitchen and waited for my return. At least there was no evidence of mischief while I was gone. Silly puppy~

Fast, Freeze, Poke, and Draw

I woke up at 7:00 this morning prepared to continue to fast before my annual physical. No big deal right? True, except the appointment wasn't until 11:30 a.m. As my stomach growled, I sat in the Doctor's office preparing to have the painful plantar's wart on my heel frozen...yet again. Dang that hurts. The up side could be that I won't have to run tomorrow!

Then the good Doc asked when I last had a tetanus shot? Well, how could I possible remember that...after all, I'm 55 and the memory isn't what it use to be! So in comes the chipper nurse to give me the shot. "Oh by the way, your arm may hurt for a few days, so I'll put it in your left arm!" she says sweetly. Oh swell!

"...and by the way, I think you should have a flu shot while we are at it" the Doc says. Well, I guess I have another arm to stab at, so why not? I can just imagine how my arms will feel in the morning.

Since this was an annual physical, I was able to donate 4 vials of blood to the cause. The tech assures me that I will get the results in two weeks and as I leave she tells me to have a great afternoon. It is now evening and I limp, have stiff arms and a big bruise where I donated blood. Good thing I got to go have a frozen yogurt to make it feel better. :)

I am making light of all this because it really is silly stuff. I am so grateful that our good Doctors and Nurses work hard to keep all of us healthy and when we are afflicted with something, they are right there to diagnose, treat, and support us. I am grateful for the health care coverage and the wonderful family doctor I have. I hope that if the day comes when a test comes back indicating a problem, that I can keep a sense of humor and know that I am in good hands with my medical team and most importantly the good Lord above.

I Miss Them!

Yesterday and today I had the pleasure of substituting at my old school site with my newly promoted 3rd graders. Now as big 4th graders, they rule the campus. It was such a treat to see how they had grown over the summer and the experience their excitement for all the new things they were learning. They were oh, so polite and helpful. I know I was not afforded typical "how to treat the substitute" behavior and I truly appreciated it. There is a reason I am not too keen on substituting at other locations! At least at my own site I know where the restrooms are and where recess duty is!

I get to return on Friday for a group of 1st graders. I have never taught or aspired to teach 1st graders, but I am looking forward to it. I know that the teacher that will be out runs a pretty "tight ship" just like I do, so there shouldn't be any problems...except for the short attention span thing. We'll see how it goes. They are into a series of books entitled Fancy Nancy, so I may think of an activity to do that incorporates those book characters.

Trail of Torment 5K

YES! It is now over! I have been tormented, joggled, and twisted all in the name of being healthy? Oh, that was supposed to be all in the name of FUN! Well, I have to admit it was an enjoyable morning even if it was really early. The San Diego Running Institute offered a run at 7:30 this morning that consisted of a 5K, 10K, and 20K. Since Jay was working the race, we decided to support the run and I sign up for the 5K along with Jay's friend, Heidi. So we left home while it was still dark to drive out to Mission Trails. It was a crisp 57 degrees with a threat of showers. Sounds just like my kind of activity doesn't it?

It was cold at the start of the race, but by the time we finished (no time will be posted :( ), it was sunny and beautiful. The trails were wonderful, but the race write-up indicated that the 5K would be flat and fast. NOT!!! It was full of rocks, boulders, snake holes, brush, and general out door stuff. Again, does this sound like my kind of activity? Thank heavens no snakes crawled out of those holes! So, the run for me was more of a walk-trot affair. Of course, I stopped to talk to people at the aide station as well as random strangers on the trail. This too will hinder your time! Heidi was so kind as to stay back with "the mom" and we became unofficial sweepers for the 5K because there was ABSOLUTELY no one behind us.

Every time there was a camera we did run...or trot. Everyone who finished the event got a medal which is so cool because it can be inspiring. Now Dan did this race last year and this year he beat his time in over a minute! The scary part is that from the date of the last race until today he has not run, jogged, or trotted at all. I work with a trainer and a little running group and struggle.

All this running works up an appetite. The big breakfast burrito I wanted wasn't going to happen because I did not burn nearly enough calories for that. So, IHOP gratefully offered a 350 calorie breakfast of fruit, juice, and an egg-substitute spinach and mushroom omelet. It was great!

Final thoughts: Running on a trail is so pretty and if you don't care about your time, give it a try. Wow! I wish I had taken the camera to share some of it with you. However, your race time suffers...greatly. Besides, if I carried a camera with me, there would be NO DOUBT that I am not a serious runner! If you run on a street or track, you just move forward with the flow of the folks and so your time will be better. All in all..what a great way to start out the day :)

Bye Padres!

Last night was the final evening game for the 2009 San Diego Padres. They lost the night before to the Giants, so we weren't really sure what to expect. But since it was the last season game, we decide to eat out first...you know make it a real "date night." We like to eat at the Omni...not because the food or drinks are so great, but because we can get our tickets stamped and use their sky bridge over to the stadium and right to our seats.

By getting there early, we enjoyed the Happy Hour menu of 3$ burgers. Yum. The cranberry juice was good-but who can make that wrong. Dan's beer was good, as always. It is so great to sit outside and watch the folks get off the trolley and make their way to the stadium. Even on the last night of a very long losing season, excitement was abound. But then, maybe it was the full moon???

Once in the stadium we sat down ready to watch. Our young pitcher, LeBlanc, did a good job of keeping the game moving. Their VERY young pitcher slowed things down considerably...he had almost 100 pitches by the top of the 6th inning. The game finally ended with a Padre win and we headed for home.

The Padres will be a different team next year with a new GM and all of the new players recently acquired. The new players are fun to watch and I hope we get our season tickets again next year, although I hope to move right over third base as opposed to just off third. Not to be greedy or anything!

Sleeping In...NOT

As a working woman, I was up and out of the house while it was still dark through most of the school year. I always longed to sleep in. That does not include when you stay home because you are sick...I am talking about the decadence of sleeping in just because you can.

Now that I have had a few months off, the ole' time clock is adjusting and I am trying to sleep in an extra hour. Well, the other day I thought I would just lounge around until 8:30. NOT! Do you have any idea what goes on in a neighborhood while you have left for the day? YIKES

First there are the beloved "trash-pickers." These are the homeless and not so homeless folk that root through the trash cans beginning about 6:30. They are NOT QUIET or SUBTLE about what they are doing. Some even leave trash all over the street after sorting through trash bags. Now, I am all for recycling, and I am glad they are helping out in their own way, but they leave a mess and are very LOUD while many of us are trying to sleep. The banging of a trash can lid can scare you right out of a deep sleep.

Once the trash-pickers have come through, the house begins to shake and rattle as the trash collector truck rambles across our antiquated, pot-holed street. That wakes you for sure if you were able to drift off for a few extra minutes. Stop-go-stop-go. Geez those trucks are loud. You may be thinking, "Get over it-it's just once a week!" A big NOT to that!! Our alley must have no less than 4 different service companies sending trucks rattling down it. That is a trash truck almost every day of the week.

OK, so now I am up and I plan some quiet time to read. NOT! The gardener comes with his truck. He has a mower, a blower, and a weed-wacker. HE wears industrial ear protection like those worn by airport groundsmen. What do I get? NOISE. He is a popular gardener because he does several homes in a row...that means several HOURS of noise. I do live on a pretty street though.

So, pretty much until noon, there is no such thing as quiet. Who needs to sleep in anyway when there is laundry to do, dusting, mopping, cooking, toilet cleaning, ironing, cleaning out drawers, sorting files, updating computer data, writing this blog, checking on the dogs, calling other retired friends, card making, cleaning out the car, and so much more. Doesn't retirement sound appealing? I always wondered how Auggie could sleep all morning...he's deaf!

Actually I am excited that next week I get to substitute teach for 3 days back at my old school. I wonder what that will be like? I'll keep you posted. But first I have to get through the Trail of Terror 5K coming up this weekend. I will definitely share my thoughts on that and maybe a picture or two. It is supposed to be cold out on the trail at 7 a.m. (that works well for us "hot-flash" mamas)!