January 2
Today, Kathy is 42. When I was 42 we lived on Laser Ct. in Sparks. Tony was 22 and in the Air Force, Scott was 19 and going to UNR, and Kathy was 17 and still in high school. We were kept pretty busy.
New Years Eve was spent quietly at home. We gave Mackie 1 and 1/2 Valium and went to bed at 9:22. Bill said she heard the fireworks at midnight, and got on the bed between us, but it didn't wake me up. He scratched her ears for 20 minutes until the noise stopped and then she went to her bed.
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| New Years Eve party animals |
Last night was much more exciting. We had gotten into a good sleep when one of the smoke alarms decided to go crazy. Usually, when Bill has forgotten to change the batteries, and one of them gets low, we hear little tiny chirps every minutes or so, until we do something about it. This time, it started shrieking. Bill changed the batteries in all three of them and we went back to bed. Mackie was a little unsettled, but she went to bed after some reassurances. I had just started to drift off to sleep, when, suddenly, there went the shriek, again. We jumped up and Bill took them all down, tried to figure out what was wrong, which caused more intermittent shrieks, and finally, he took the batteries out and unplugged the units. But, this time, going back to bed and telling Mackie to do the same didn't work. She needed to be curled up next to me, trembling, and she refused to leave. Bill said she wasn't bothering him, so I tried to go to sleep with her head stretched across my neck. I tried for over 20 minutes, but just couldn't get comfortable. She had finally stopped trembling, so I got up, made her get off the bed, and had her lie in her bed, covering her with a blanket. I got back into bed, and so did she, right on top of Bill. I sternly told her to go to bed, which she did, reluctantly. I covered her, again, and this time she stayed there.
We woke up to a very cold morning. It was 7 outside, and 29 in the sunroom. I am happy, over and over, that we moved the furniture around over a year ago, so the TV and couch are in the great room, and the dining room and sitting room are in the sunroom. We don't use the room much, but, when we do, we only have to run the heater out there for an hour or so to get it comfortable. After we sell the condo, one of the things that I would love to do is tear down the sunroom and have a real room built, extending the great room and having one large area. Then, maybe, we could extend the kitchen into the existing great room. I can dream, can't I?
Kathy and Rommie and the girls are coming over for Kathy's birthday tomorrow for dinner and games. I'm going to make pork chops, rice and salad. For dessert, since she doesn't like desserts very much, we're going to pull the pumpkin bread, leftover cookies and whatever other goodies we have saved through the month and serve them for dessert. That will help to clean out the freezers.
I went for the biopsy on Dec 10, the day after Bill had his diverticulitis diagnosis. They weren't able to do it, because they couldn't get enough tissue to stick the needle in. So, I have an appointment next week with Western Surgical to set up a surgical biopsy. I hope they can get to it soon.
Bill will be going into Renown on January 20 to have surgical repairs of three hernias. Dr. Hansen said it is a simple repair, but, because of Bill's Xeralto, he will probably have to spend one night. He will be on the surgical floor, though, and Dr. Hansen said that the nurses there are excellent. We shall see.
I sent a complaint to Livanta, regarding the treatment Bill had at Renown. I also plan to send a complaint directly to the hospital administrator. I just was waiting to talk to our friend, Casey, who is the head of ER at St. Mary's, to find out to whom to send it.
January 6
Kathy's birthday dinner was really nice. They stayed for only a few hours, and we didn't play games, but we talked for a long time. I experimented on them by soaking the pork chops, which were just over one inch thick, in brine and sherry for six hours and making a mustard/Hoisin sauce for them. I browned them and then baked them for 2 and 1/2 hours. Rommie loves pork chops and he said they were the best he had ever had. I will be making them that way from now on.
We did a mystery shop at Mimi's on Monday for breakfast. The meal was perfect and the service was impeccable. Best of all, we had a coupon so the second meal was free. Since they pay for the first meal, the whole thing was free and I'll get paid $20.00 for the report, which was very easy. We need more of that kind of work. I have a shop coming up on Friday, where I have to call a hotel in Las Vegas to make a reservation, and then cancel it 12 hours later. For that, I'll get paid $20.00. Again, super easy.
Yesterday, we went to Carson City for Jack Artz's memorial. We were very surprised to know how much he had to do with range management, fire control and other important programs in Northern Nevada. We sat with Alan and Veronica and even Alan said he learned some things he had never known about his dad.
It has been snowing off and on for a few days and we are expecting snow or rain every day this week. The snowpack is over 120% of normal, so, maybe, if this keeps up, we will have a good summer.
January 9
We went to Dr. Holka, yesterday. I liked her right away. She explained what they are going to do, and said that in 80% of this kind of case, the results are good. That's the kind of odds I like. My biopsy is scheduled for January 27. We're counting on it being nothing.
Speaking of odds, the Powerball jackpot is over 800 million dollars. We have two tickets for each drawing through January 23. People might just as well stop buying tickets because we have the winning one. Although, the more tickets that are sold, the higher the jackpot. Ok, keep on buying.
Saturday, just over one week into the new year. We've been trying to keep warm, but it's not good to sit around too much so we venture out whenever it is warm enough to stand being outside. We've taken a few walks when it is only 35 degrees, and, as long as the sun is shining, and there isn't any breeze, it isn't too bad. This morning, we went to Rock Park and walked one mile, looking for the bald eagle. We didn't see him, but the river looked beautiful all icy and sparkling. There was one spot, where the water had formed a big snowball, that was rolling around, trapped by some ice.
The photo I took of the river and of the GSR came out with special effects, but I don't know what I did to make them. I guess that's what comes of wearing gloves while using the camera.
January 15
Things have been pretty good, but Bill had a setback, yesterday. The diarrhea returned with a vengance and his blood pressure was going down alarmingly. Since it was during the day, I called Dr. Gini, and got him in there. He said to take Bill to the ER for fluids so we spent about six hours at St. Mary's. The treatment was much better than what he got at Renown, although, they did put the wrong name tag on him.
Dr. Barnes prescribed Vancomycin, again, but capsules, this time. I about fell over when I picked it up at the pharmacy. The pills are $31.31 each. Our insurance covers some of it, but we still have to pay over $300.00 for 40 pills. Ouch!
Bill is lying down for a little while, with stomach cramps and chills. I just washed my hair, so I will be ready if we decide to take him to the hospital. Shit!!!!
January 19
I was ready to take Bill back to the hospital the other day, but after lying down for just a half hour, he felt way better. We realized that the last time he was in the hospital, he was on IV Vancomycin for two days before being released, and this time, he was released from the ER and sent home with a prescription for the same drug, and it took two days before he the drugs started working. So, we have to remember the next time to give the drugs a chance before we jump.
The night he came home from the ER, we were getting ready for bed and he realized that we forgot to bring his pillow home. I have called several times and it hasn't been found. How do you loose a down pillow with the name "BILL" written on the end of it in four inch tall letters in a hospital? I know they didn't mistake it for one of those pancakes they give a person to put their head on. So, apparently, we will have to go to the store to buy a new pillow. I hope we can find one on sale again, because down is much expensivo.
On Sunday, he felt well enough to go to the Nugget for breakfast. He got a waffle, and enjoyed it a lot. That night we went to a birthday dinner with Susie and Kurt and the boys and their families at Los Compadres. We had a wonderful time. Dinner was delicious. Afterward, we went to Susie's house for cake and she opened her presents. Chris and Charlie's son, Chase, is a Chris clone, and he is really well behaved for a two year old. Smart, too. Nick's boys, Landon and Pierce are also fun to be around. Landon started out the evening a bit disgruntled, because, at 12, he thought he should have been allowed to hang with friends instead of going out to dinner with the family, but he got over it pretty quickly. He sat next to me and we chatted about school and Mexican food.
Yesterday, we both went to Renown for our pre-op check-in. I was happy to learn that I didn't need any blood work because I take so few medications. Of course, Bill had to have some done. He also had an appointment for a heart ultrasound because the Yervoy he was on is known to be hard on hearts. We hope to hear something about that, soon.
Today, we went to Meadowood Mall to walk because it was raining. I tripped on my feet and sprawled out flat on the floor. I felt really silly, lying there, but I couldn't get up for a minute or so. I didn't really get hurt, but now, after three hours, I have discovered that my shoulders, arms, back and legs are pretty sore. I hope the soreness will go away quickly. Tomorrow, I will have to sit in the hospital for several hours while Bill is having his hernia repairs done.
January 22
Bill had his triple hernia surgery on Wednesday, and after two days, he is feeling pretty good. He was able to come home the same afternoon, and that was wonderful, because we hadn't been sure that he would be able to. Today, we even took a drive and went into Lowe's to look at doors and cabinets. We have decided that we have to to to Maui to work on the condo. We hope to replace the doors and cabinet doors and remove the popcorn ceiling. We booked our flights for April 11 to May 3. We had enough miles to go over First Class, but we will fly home on coach. We've asked Monique and Brian if they would like to go over for part of the time. The problem would be having someone that could take care of Marcel while they are gone. I've been texting Gee for the last few hours, and she is very excited that we will be there. We are planning to go kayaking and visiting some whales.
January 30
We walked downtown on Monday and got a fresh shot of the new bridge.
My surgery was on Tuesday. At 7:00 am, they took me to radiology, where the needle was inserted in my breast while it was being smashed by the mammogram machine, and then the wire was threaded through. Bill was able to stay with me until the actual surgery at 10:30. Dr. Hulka came in to see us before the surgery. Bill never remembers anything from when them take him out of the pre-op waiting area, but I remember being taken into the OR and the mask being placed on my face.
It has been such a long time since I've had to have any surgeries, I think since 1995, when I had a hysterectomy. Anyway, the next thing I remember is waking up and feeling just a little tired, I wanted to go home, but, it was probably another half hour before they even took me to the post-op area where Bill was able to be with me again. By the time he came into the room, I was dressed and ready to go. They said I should take it easy for a couple of days. When we got home, I felt fine. There was no pain.
On Wednesday, we both had follow-up appointments with our surgeons, so we went to the hospital an hour before the them and we walked 1 and 1/2 miles. I was surprised how tired I got. I guess the anesthetic lasted a bit longer than I had expected. The results of my surgery were that there is no cancer.
On Thursday, I started to hurt, and it still hurts a little bit. I have a beautiful, purple boob.
Yesterday, we walked 2.3 miles downtown and today, between the snow showers this morning, and the rain this afternoon, we walked 2.6 miles at the marina. I put a roast in the crock pot this morning, and the smell is starting to make me really hungry.
Bill just got up from a nap. He didn't sleep well last night because of worrying about the condo and the fact that we can't find any contractors who will call us about doing the work. We think we have decided to just paint the kitchen and bathroom cabinets. It would be a lot of work, but wouldn't cost upward of $6,000 that we don't have.
I walked into the office on Friday and found that Bill has all his clothes already laid out for Maui. I guess he's happy that we're going.
I added some of my clothes to Bill's clothes for the trip. I had fun trying on shorts, shirts and long dresses that I haven't been able to wear for a very long time. I weigh less now than when we lived in Maui, so I even had to put some of the things I wore often into the give-a-way box.
We got a lot of snow last night. Our official next-door weatherman told us that it was three inches. It snowed all day, but just really lightly, almost like a heavy mist. The roads cleared pretty well, so we went to the buffet at the Nugget for dinner, but driving home was a bit hairy because the roads had already begun to freeze.
Bill's largest incision began to leak a watery substance last night and he soaked through three washcloths before it finally stopped. I was concerned that he would have to go in to get it looked at, but this morning, it seems to be fine. He has a Peet's Coffee mystery shop and I have a Buffalo Wild Wings shop to do by Wednesday. We had planned to do the coffee shop this morning, but the temperature at 9:30 is still only 26, so we are thinking that the roads will be icy. We'll probably do both shops tomorrow.
We drove downtown when we saw that our street had melted. There was still a lot of areas that had icy patches, but we managed to get there without a problem. We walked 3 miles, including going up and down the stairs at the bowling stadium.
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| At Pentamonium |
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| Wingfield Park |
February 2
We still have a lot of snow but the areas that get
sun are pretty much melted. The snowman Kathy made us for Christmas feels happy being covered with snow.
While walking downtown, we noticed that this area near St. Mary's has a sidewalk that doesn't go anywhere. Strange.
February 8
I had an appointment with Dr. Gini this morning to see if I can stay off the cholesterol meds, but my numbers have gone from 143 to 240, so I have to go back on it. I only take two types of meds, that and thyroid so I guess I'm not doing too badly.
We walked at Oxbow for about 1/2 mile, but found that the path was still pretty mucky, so we left and went to park at the McKinley Building and walked around some of those streets then over to see the Virginia Bridge. We did another 2 and a quarter miles. For this month, we have already logged 18.58 miles. The weather has been getting a little warmer every day so it is much easier to get out to walk.
Photos at Oxbow
Photos downtown at the river
February 10
Bill saw Dr. Hansen yesterday. He said that the leaking from the incision was normal, and that Bill is doing very well. I went to Dr. Hulka today, and I am healing well and don't have to go back to see her. I need to have a mammogram in three months and then I should be able to go back to having them yearly.
We have walked 24.7 miles in February. The weather has been perfect and we've been going to the river a lot for our walks. Today we went to Chrissie Caughlin Park after my visit to Dr. Hulka.
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| Mayberry Park Feb 9 |
We have the best news! We've known for a few days, and Kathy and Rommie have known since the first of December, when they went to back to Virginia. Tony and Anais are going to be moving to Sacramento!! He will be the Chief of Intelligence at the FBI. Here is what he said on Facebook.
So I’ve got some news. I left home in 1988 to venture out into the world. Since then, I’ve had many great (and some not so great!) adventures- I’ve climbed to the top of a Space Shuttle launch pad, travelled all over the world, met and married the Love of my Life, rode 4000 miles on a Harley to Sturgis, been involved in two wars, closed down Bourbon Street on Fat Tuesday, dealt with some of our nation’s most depraved criminals (and learned that sometimes there is still good in those who are considered the worst of the worst), fought several of those criminals including a naked man (which I really do NOT recommend!!!), been grilled in court on the stand by some of the most evil defense attorneys I’ve ever met, done CPR on someone who lived (and several who died), had more of other people’s blood on me than I’ve ever had of my own, had my photography hang in a Washington DC art gallery, toured the White House and US Capitol, made some great friends all over the place, run races I never in my wildest dreams I ever imagined I could accomplish, and had more crazy escapades than I can remember!!
about to begin because I’M COMING HOME*!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(*OK, not exactly Home, Home- but Sacramento is a LOT
closer than DC!!!!!!!!)
closer than DC!!!!!!!!)
We will plan a trip to see them as soon as they get settled. They think they will be living in Folsom and his work will be in Rancho Cordova.
February 14
Happy Valentine's Day to us. We went crazy yesterday and got a brand new Lexus. The idea three weeks ago was to get a smaller, cheaper car that would bring our monthly payments down. We started looking at the auto show on Friday, and Bill quickly vetoed most of the cars on my list as being too small, too cheap, or made in the wrong country. We dropped by the Lexus dealer, just to see what they had to offer. The car we loved had payments that were more than we wanted to pay, so that didn't work. We decided to look at another Prius, to see if we could get a 2015. We found a used Camry Hybrid with only 6,000 miles, that we liked, but we had already driven the Lexus, which was similar to the Camry, but way nicer. We went back to Lexus and asked about a used one. They didn't have one, but when we asked about extending the lease from two years to three or four, we got a deal we couldn't refuse. with payments that are lower than we were paying on the Prius, as we had wanted. The service at the Lexus dealer is so much better than anywhere else, too. When you go on a trip, they will let you drop your car off at the showroom, drive you to the airport, store your car until you come back for free, and pick you up at the airport in a clean car. Also, we can take the car in any time for a free car wash. They have lattes, pastries, etc. in one of the waiting areas. We could get used to that kind of treatment.
When we left, we drove up to Costco and found Rommie and Kathy, so we could show them the car. This morning, we are going to the Nugget for breakfast, as we often do on Sunday mornings, and we will surprise Micky and Maxine with our new toy.
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| Being driven off the showroom floor
February 22
We got the car on Valentine's Day, got to enjoy it for two days and took it in to have the windows tinted and the invisible bra put on the front. Today, six days later, it is still in the shop. They found chipped paint on the front, so they had to repaint the whole front of the car. We have a nice loaner car, but we want our new car back. We wanted to show everyone on game night and we couldn't.
Game night was at Sherri's. Kurt and Susie didn't go because his mom was in the hospital and not doing well. Alan and Veronica were in Washington taking care of her mom, so we had a small crowd.
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Dinner was really good. Sherri baked large potatoes and had butter, sour cream, two pounds of bacon, chili, onions and mushrooms to top them off. Of course, there were appetizers before dinner, so we all got enough to eat.
We played Trivial Pursuit after dinner and had a great time, as usual.
February 27
We finally got the car back on Thursday afternoon. It looks wonderful, but there is a tiny mark on the front that concerned us. They assured us that it wouldn't devalue the car, so we decided not to pursue it.
Yesterday, we drove to Fallon and Hawthorne to do three mystery shops. While driving by Walker Lake, Bill saw a large herd of mountain goats, so I pulled over on the shoulder and we got out to walk back so we could watch them and take pictures. It was really a thrill to see.
We got to see Bailey for two minutes this morning, because she was at softball tryouts at her school, and Kathy called us yesterday to ask if we could take her a Port Of Subs sandwich for lunch.
Also, we got a call from our realtor telling us that there are some people who are doing a 1031 exchange and they are interested in our condo along with three others. She wanted our rent totals so far this year. Luckily, I had the document on the phone, so I was able to give them to her, because we were three hours away from home at the time. We have our fingers crossed!!
We walked at the Lazy 5 park this morning, after taking Bailey her lunch and we went onto the trails instead of staying inside the park. It was a lovely, peaceful 2 mile walk.
We wondered what kind of bird made this huge nest.
When we got home, I went out to the yard and discovered that there are some signs of spring, which is a little worrisome because there should be some cold weather ahead.
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| Crocuses |
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| Hyacynth |
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| Onions and strawberries |
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| Great mileage! |
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| Fairy garden |
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| Add caption |
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| Rhubarb
March 8
Wow! So much to write about the last week. Most important is we got an offer on the condo on February 29. Not the price we wanted, but close enough that we couldn't turn it down. So, we are in escrow.
We finally got the car back last Wednesday and found that there was a rip in the upholstery on the passenger door panel, most likely from the installation of the window tint. We took it back on Friday to be repaired. We walked to the mall to see Canstruction and I found that the blouse I have been waiting to go on clearance had finally done so. It was originally $38.99 and I got it for $8.00. The distance was a little over three miles, so we were happy to get our exercise done while waiting for the car. But, it wasn't finished when we got back, so we took the loaner car they had offered us and went home.
 The Lexus dealer had a tech brunch on Saturday morning to teach people how to use the technology on their cars. We got there early to pick up the car and then had a nice brunch. We enjoyed the magic show they put on and then we hung around for a few minutes, but we understand how to work everything, so we didn't stay for long. Today, we took Bryanna's car to get an oil change while doing a mystery shop at Tires Plus. We traded cars last night and then she took us and Bailey to Red Robin for dinner. That was a wonderful surprise and we had a great time, staying long after we were finished eating, just to talk. Bryanna is going to Las Vegas next Sunday for a competition in Sports Medicine. She is really excited about it. So, today, we got to the store for the oil change and started taking notes because it was a mystery shop/audit. When it came time to pay, Bill gave the attendant the coupon we had and she said that they didn't take coupons for Tires Plus. Turns out we were at Jiffy Lube, next door to Tires Plus. I was totally embarrassed and told her that were doing a mystery shop and we were at the wrong place. She gave us $15.00 off, saying that she would give us the friends and family discount. When they tried to start the car it wouldn't start. Now we think the starter is dead. Bryanna picked us up and drove to her house, where her friends were waiting to take her to lunch for free pancake day at IHOP. We feel so badly for her.
And, we decided to go ahead and book a cruise with Monique and Brian. We are going to do the Alaska cruise again. We would love to go on a Panama cruise, and we still plan to someday, but this is Monique's first cruise and she is a little worried about being on the ship. We were looking at shorter cruises for her, but she saw that one and thought it sounded perfect. It is from May 31 to May 10, out of San Francisco. That whole story will be in our Trips blog.
March 24
We had a great game night on Saturday after going to Bailey's softball game at her school. They won the first game but we had to leave before the second one because we wanted to get ready for game night. Bryanna was at the game for a while so we got to see Kathy and both girls. Rommie was on his way home from a week long trip to Ireland with his brother. We heard he had a great time.
So, at game night, we played Cards Against Humanity, and then Susie brought our Quelf. a board game that has cards with questions or scenarios that have to be acted out or accomplished. Almost everyone groaned at first, but it turned out to be really fun. Greg and Bill got one where they were supposed to write a haiku about their armpit. Neither of them wanted to do it, so they took the penalty, but I said I would do it. I came up with one that everyone clapped for.
My pits do not sweat.
They also do not smell bad,
They are like posies.
Then, a little later, Greg and Bill got another challenge, which Bill decided to try and he did a great job of it.
The link works, but it takes you to my facebook page. I think, if you search for Quelf task, that will take you to the video. Here is what he wrote.
We are good looking men. Have been since way back when. All the girls want to look at us. All the guys want to be us. There will never be any like us, again.
I woke up Sunday morning feeling terrible, coughing, sneezing and achy. Monday was still pretty bad, and Bill took such good care of me, not letting me do anything. I was better, yesterday, so we did one mystery shop, and went to look at some cabinets in a house that John Spinola remodeled. Bill started to feel like he had a cold coming on, yesterday, and today, he is bad. I was just about ready to take him to the hospital at 4:30 this morning, because he after coming out of the bathroom, he passed out on the bed, and was unresponsive for almost a minute. His eyes were open, his tongue was hanging out and I was terrified. I was slapping his face and calling his name when he finally focused on me and said he was really tired. I'm wondering if it was a seizure, because that's what I remember his mother being like when she had one. I took his blood pressure and it was normal. He felt a lot better after that, but he wanted to sleep. I got dressed and ready to go if anything else happened, but every time I checked on him, he was sleeping normally. He got up about 10:30 and ate a little bit of cereal, then at noon, some banana and toast. He is back in the bed, sleeping and I am keeping an eagle eye on him.
May 4 Escrow closed April 14! Yay. April 10, 11, and 12, we went to Sacramento to help Tony and Anais hunt for a house. They bought the first one they looked at, but not without a lot of research and making sure it was the right one. We had dinner at the Spaghetti Factory.
May 18
Tony and Anais are on their way to Sacramento, but they are driving through tornado country. Unfortunately, there is no other way to get here.
We got our new refrigerator and a new freezer for the garage. Yay!
And this is our quartzite slab. The cabinet door he is holding is the one we picked out first, but we decided to go with a darker wood.
 Last night was AARP's night at Picaso and Wine, and we all had so much fun.           And, yesterday, on our walk, I took a little fall. We had dropped the car off at the Lexus dealer to have it washed and were going to walk to Target via Longley Lane, which would have given us about a three mile walk. .7 miles into it, I tripped on the sidewalk and landed flat on the left side of my face on the sidewalk. There was a little bit of bleeding from my forehead, and a whole lot of swelling. A kind man, who had seen me fall, stopped his truck and yelled out to Bill to ask if we needed help. Bill said that would be great, so the man drove into the parking lot next to us and took us back to the dealer. They gave me ice and we drove to St. Mary's where I had my first CT scan. After almost four hours, I was released with the assurance that nothing broke. I didn't even get a headache, but I do have a cheek and eye ache that will probably last a couple of days.  Waiting to go into a room at the ER  
The second day.
 We are only 13 days away from the cruise to Alaska. We are so ready to go. The remodel is moving along slowly. The cabinets should be in the shop today, and we will be able to go look at them. Next week the demo will start and soon after that, the cabinets will be installed. When we come back from Alaska, it should be all done. May 20 Anais and Tony have made it to Arizona, so we think the threat of tornados is over. 
This is Thursday evening, two and one-half days after my fall.
We are having colder weather today, so we walked at the mall, about two miles. On Wednesday, we walked twice for a total of 4.3 miles and yesterday, we had a really good walk, five miles.
June 23
One week after we returned from the cruise, Marcelle died, so we went over for the funeral. Tony and Anais went, too. It was nice to see so much of Monique's family, who we hadn't seen in many years.
 
June 27 - back on my soapbox
The Supreme Court decision on the abortion law in Texas is going to make the clinics that can't meet the rigid standards close. That appears to be a good thing. However, what is likely to happen is that with so many clinics gone, women will resort to back alley abortions like they did in the days before abortion was legalized. While I am morally against abortion, I do feel that those who choose that path, should be treated with the best medical care possible.
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With all the space left over after organizing the kitchen, I decided to work on the laundry room. I took all the sewing and craft stuff and made a craft cabinet in the bedroom.
June 30 - and again.
Beginning this year, the Academy Awards will be more diverse. The nominations will include more women and people of color. This is more fair, right? So, let's say that Laquasha DeMarkalini Lopez (made up name,) an Black, Italian-Mexican-American woman, wins an award for best actress. She may be the absolutely best actress of all time, making her totally deserving of that award. Or, she may be just the right person to make the quota for the year. Just wondering.
July 2
Monique has been spending most of her time in Sacramento, because her granddaughter, Becca, Steve's daughter, had a stroke the same day that Marcelle died. It is a genetic disorder, inherited from her mom. As of today, she has been in the hospital for two weeks. She was airlifted to Denver this morning, for surgery. Tony said that there is a surgeon there who has had success with this kind of thing. Michelle started a Go-Fund-Me page on Facebook to help with the medical expenses.
The remodel is finally complete, except for some extra shelves we ordered after we started putting our things away, and a dimmer switch for the new under-cabinet lighting, and some of the painting. We adore it!!!
     
We were finally able to make our meals in the kitchen instead of the sunroom.
Kathy remodeled her kitchen, too, and it looks awesome.
  
Last Sunday, we went to Sherri's for dinner, and to visit with her mom, Alice, who hadn't been here since Sherri moved into her house. It was a fun evening. Everyone there is going to Heather's wedding except for us and Susie and Kurt. We would like to go, but the expense is way over our budget.
Kurt and Susie came over for dinner on June 29 to celebrate our anniversaries. I made a new recipe, which was a great success. Chicken, Bacon and Garlic pasta. They both loved it. We had a good time, playing Skipbo after dinner. I also made a Huckleberry Merlot cake from a mix that Susie and Kurt gave us some time ago. They all liked it, but I thought it was a little too blueberryish.
July 10
On Thursday, we will be meeting Bill's cousin, Colleen and her husband Kirk, at the Wild River Grille for lunch. They live in St. George, Utah. Bill hasn't seen Colleen since he was a teenager, but I met her a few years ago when Kathy and I went to DC for Uncle Dinny's funeral. Kathy, Rommie and Bailey will be at Mammoth for their annual cul-de-sac camping trip, but Bryanna might be able to go to lunch with us.
I got some beautiful cloud pictures two nights ago on a neighborhood walk.
  
And these ones were kind of eerie.
  
July 11
We went to some of the Arttown activities on Saturday, and the bonus was taking a walk in our favorite neighborhood, the old southwest. There were artworks along with some questionable junk, displayed in some of the yards in that neighborhood. The real bonus was being able to go into three of the beautiful yards and one of the old houses. The artwork was nothing we wanted to own, but fun to look at. One of the houses had a music duo that we really enjoyed, because the singer sounded like Helen Reddy. We spoke to her for a minute and she said that Helen was her favorite singer in the 70s and she was pleased that we thought she sounded like her.
I got on my old bandwagon and wrote two letters to the editor yesterday, after the senseless murders of police officers on Friday in Dallas. Tempers are flaring and my thoughts were flowing. One of the letters is from me and the other one is from Bill.
From me.
In my memory, the Watts Riots of 1965 stand out. I was 16, lived in Granada Hills, an area just north of Los Angeles, and we were glued to the TV for days. It was the first time I was really aware that people were not all treated the same in our country. I learned about inequality in school, but I had never seen it in action. Progress has been made since then, but not enough. It seems that we take several steps forward toward complete equality, for blacks, LGBTQ, women, Hispanics, Muslims and more, when suddenly, we are thrust into the past by the violent act or acts of extremists, and we lose so much of the gains we have made. I don't know the answer, but our people shouldn't have to be afraid. Our country feels more like a third world country than the United States of America, land of the free and home of the brave.
From Bill
All the news coverage of
heinous acts of violence keeps getting more provocative. The media, both
print and on TV, sensationalize every incident. For example, “The terrorist
bombing killed 43 people, more than any other bombing in the history of (insert
name of city.)” And, “The sniper killed
six police officers and injured three, also injuring 21 bystanders. No other
mass shooting has taken such a high toll.” Why does each act have to be reported as “the
worst, the most property damage, the highest death toll?” Doesn’t that kind of reporting just give the
terrorists, both domestic and foreign, a goal to beat? If they want to make
history, they have to make their act even worse, kill more people, or destroy
more property, than the last act. It’s horrible that these things are
happening, but if the media would report the facts, without giving opinions or
comparisons, maybe we would be a little bit better off.
And, I found a piece on Facebook that brought me some understanding of Black Lives Matter. I shared it on FB and here it is.
The Problem with Saying
‘All Lives Matter’
There's a difference between "true" and
"helpful."
By Tyler Huckabee
Imagine that you wake up late one night to the sound of your home
being burglarized. Through the crack in your bedroom door, you see several figures
hauling out your television, computers and nice china to their getaway car
parked outside.
Thinking quickly, you dial 911 on your iPhone.
“911, what’s your emergency?”
“Help!” you whisper. “My home is being robbed!”
“Stay where you are, Miss,” the other voice assures you. “We’ll
look into it.”
“Thank you,” you whisper. “My address is—”
“Woah, Ma’am,” the voice on the other end says. “Why are you
bringing addresses into this?”
“What?” you say. “My home is being robbed! Aren’t you going to
come and stop them?”
“Well, I don’t know why you need to make this about your
home, ma’am,” the operator says. “All houses matter.”
There is a difference
between something being true and something being relevant. In the above
conversation with an imaginary 911 operator, what he was saying was very true.
All houses do matter.
But at the moment, it wasn’t relevant. It wasn’t even helpful. All
things considered, it was downright dangerous. You had an actual crisis going
on at your house—that’s why your house mattered. While the operator was
lecturing you on how important all houses are, bandits were trying to figure
out whether they could get all your stuff in one load or if they’d have to make
two trips.
It’s the same error people who respond to “Black Lives Matter”
with “All Lives Matter” are making. It’s not that what they’re saying isn’t
true. It’s just that it’s unhelpful. It’s an attempt to erase an actual crisis
under the guise of being fair. And by continuing to use “All Lives Matter” to
drown out the cry of “Black Lives Matter,” the real problems the movement is
trying to address are being ignored. “All Lives Matter” is useless. It is
destructive. It is hurtful. We need to stop saying it.
Following the death of Trayvon Martin,
three women named Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors and Opal Tometi began tweeting
#blacklivesmatter. What started as a hashtag became an ethos, and has
transcended Twitter to become a true movement, one of the most forceful and
ubiquitous of this young century.
It has no official leaders or spokespeople.
There’s no agreed upon charter. The only thing being insisted upon is the value
of black lives. As the website has it, it’s “a call to action and a response to
the virulent anti-black racism that permeates our society.”
The idea that racism remains a very
real reality in America is contentious, but it shouldn’t be. The studies
proving anti-black racism remains a common, if not foundational reality
of everyday American life are too numerous to cite in one article, so we’ll go
with just a few.
We might as well begin with pre-school.
Black children make up 18 percent of America’s preschool population, but
represent nearly half
of all out-of-school suspensions. This treatment
continues into the court system, where black children are 18
times more likely to be tried as adults than their
white peers. It also extends to the job market, in which white college
graduates are twice
as likely to land a job as black college graduates. We
haven’t even gotten to the justice system yet, in which black people are
given 20
percent longer sentences than white people are for the
same crimes.
These numbers could go on and on, but
even if they didn’t, it should be clear that the people who say racism remains
a real, frequent reality in America have their heads on straight. They are not
making this up. Those who suggest that black people are imagining racism aren't
just devaluing someone else’s experience—they’re ignoring the plain facts.
It was in the face of these facts that
#blacklivesmatter sprung, but now anywhere that cry is heard, you can be sure
that someone else will come along with the rebuttal: “All Lives Matter.”
It certainly sounds reasonable
enough and in most contexts, it would be. But the thing is, when people say
“Black Lives Matter,” they are acknowledging an important context that involves
several centuries of slavery, civil rights, mass incarceration and brutality.
It’s specifically highlighting the value of black lives because, historically,
this country has often ignored that value.
The problem is “All Lives Matter” is
that it ignores context. Like the 911 operator who doesn’t
understand why you’re worried about your own house. Or, as The Daily
Beast’s Arthur Chu says, like someone who “runs through a cancer
fundraiser screaming ‘THERE ARE OTHER DISEASES TOO.’” The context of “Black
Lives Matter” is not that other lives don’t. The context of “Black Lives
Matter” is that the value of black lives remains under assault in the United
States.
Love
Matters
When a parent says, “I love my son,”
you don’t say, “What about your daughter? Don’t you love all your
children?”
When the president says “God bless
America,” we don’t say, “Shouldn’t God bless all countries?”
And when a person says “Black Lives
Matter,” we should not say “All Lives Matter.” It is an attempt to to diminish
the ongoing reality of white supremacy in America. It’s effectively a way of
demeaning other people’s stories, like Job’s friends who kept trying to point
to the bigger picture of God’s ultimate plan instead of truly listening to Job
and mourning his grief. It is rude. It is hurtful. It is dismissive. And it has
to stop.
And yes, some people who associate
themselves with #blacklivesmatter have called for police deaths. Some
Christians have called for abortion clinics to be bombed. The cries of a few
fringe groups do not invalidate an entire movement, thank God.
So when you hear the words “Black Lives
Matter,” don’t be so quick to assume it’s a judgement about white lives.
Instead, see “Black Lives Matter” for what it is: a rallying cry to make a
difference and take down the unjust status quo that holds racial equality at
bay in America. You can join the movement and commit yourself to the social and
economic liberation of black people, or you can choose to stand on the
sidelines. But don’t silence the cry with the words “All Lives Matter.” This is
an emergency.
This morning, one of the GOG wrote about the protests so I answered her.
Why in the world do protestors want to shut down highways where all races are affected. This is so disrespectful to all people. Now Baton Rouge protestors trying to shut down a section of the interstate. Stop being stupid.
On a lighter note, Bailey is taking her driver's test this morning. Go Bailey!!! She did it. On the first try! Way to go.
We went to lunch with Colleen and Kirk on Thursday. Colleen is Bill's cousin, and they hadn't seen each other in 50 years. We had a delightful time. Bryanna went with us and she enjoyed herself, too. They live in St. George, Utah, and they said they would really love it if we could visit, so we now have a new place to go. Bryanna is thinking about going to see them, too. She and Candace want to take a trip in the fall and their place would be a great spot for a pit stop.
July 16
So, I started painting rocks a few weeks ago. We have so many of them in the front yard, and I though it would be a fun hobby. I did the first one for Tony and Anais for their new house.
You can't tell, but it is on the table, just in front of the large fleur de lis.
 
I now have several finished ones lined up for the Jesse Hall craft fair in December, and I have made a birthday rock for Patty for her surprise party in two weeks. I am having fun doing it, and I am getting better at it.
       
August 1
The weekend of July 23rd, we drove to Tony and Anais' for the weekend. We had planned to walk a few miles along the American River on Saturday, on the way there, because they had gone to 6 Flags in Vacaville, but by the time we got there, the temperature was in the high 90s, so we went to their house and hung out, just reading and relaxing.
We enjoyed Patty's surprise 60th party on Saturday night. She knew there was a small party, because someone let something slip, but she didn't know that a lot of relatives and old friends from the bay area and Oregon would be there. It was a luau, and the dinner included pulled pork, which was delicious.
     Our peaches are beautiful, but awfully small. We hope we will get some to grow larger before we have to pick them.    We discovered a couple of problems with the kitchen. The first one was that the microwave was installed under a 14 inch cabinet and the maximum depth is only supposed to be 13 inches. We found that when Bill cooked a pound of bacon and discovered that the vent sent the steam up into the cabinets above the microwave, making the inside of them wet. Harley sent a couple of his guys out last week to add a piece of wood at the back of it to bring it forward. The stove can't be moved close enough to the wall so there is a 1 and 1/2 inch gap between them. Kathy made a shelf out of her old wood, so now we can have some things displayed on top of the stove. It looks great.   August 4 Bryanna and Bailey came over for dinner and games last night. We grilled two tri-tips and got Applebees Oriental Chicken Salad, always a favorite. Then we played Skipbo and Spoons. We had homemade strawberry banana muffins and ice cream for dessert. It was a wonderful evening.  After they left, we went for a walk, but Bill was too tired to go very far. He went .8 miles and I continued to 2.5. So far, since Sunday morning, I have walked 17 miles. Gee called last night to say "Hi," because they were driving through Sparks on the way to Fernley, but they weren't going to stop by. What the heck? Today, I talked to her and she said she spent several hours at the NNMC ER but she didn't say what was wrong. She is ok now, and she will call later when she wakes up all the way. We might go to Fernley for dinner. She confuses me. August 7 We still haven't seen Joe and Gee. Joe called on Friday evening and said they would be here at 6:30 and we would go to dinner and walk around at Hot August Nights. Gee called at 6 and said they weren't going to make it because she was still not feeling well. We'll see what happens. We went to Victorian Square anyway, and had a good time walking and looking at the cars, watching the cruise and just being there. We had gone downtown to walk among the cars in the morning after Bill's scan. We met Tony, Anais, Kathy and Bailey for breakfast at Jack's . They had driven in on Friday night, so they were at Victorian Square a couple of hours after we were.  
All last week, I had kicked around the idea of going to the Abbacadabra concert on Saturday night. Gary had told us about it when he was over a few days ago. I really wanted to go, but the idea of going back there with so many people was off-putting. So, we made a last minute decision to have dinner at Great Basin and go to the concert early so we could get great seats. Dinner was very good, fish and chips, zuccini sticks and cheese soup.
 We got to the concert area at 5:30 and found that people had brought their own chairs and there were only 12 chairs for the concert that were not private. They had signs on them that said, "Reserved for Abbacadabra concert." We decided that since we were there for that concert, that we could use two of the chairs. We moved them to a shady spot and waited. Route 66 was playing so we enjoyed that music three times over the next two hours. It was very loud, but, at least it was the kind of music we like. Finally, The main event started and it didn't disappoint in the least.     They sang all the hits of Abba. At the end, they said goodbye and left the stage. The MC got the crowd going and calling them back for an encore. When they came back, Gary said that they had done all the hits and there were no more to do. The crowd started chanting, "Dancing Queen." Gary went over to the piano and started to play the Queen song, "Bohemian Rhapsody." They sang that for about one minute then transitioned to "Dancing Queen." It was fun. I walked yesterday morning, at home. Then Bill and I went for a walk after breakfast. Then we walked at HAN. My total for the day was 7 miles! the week total is 32 miles, and 3,500 calories. August 10 We finally got to see Gee and Joe. They came over about 2 pm on Sunday, and we went out to get pedicures.  Then we drove to Kathy's house and saw her and Bailey. Bry was out getting a pedicure with a friend, so we went to the salon to surprise her. She didn't know Gee was in town so she was very surprised. We went downtown to have dinner at Wild River, but found out that the dinner menu is very different from the lunch menu. Way pricier and no sandwiches or lighter food, so we went to Chili's instead. We all enjoyed our dinner and we had a great visit. They came over for a couple of hours after that, so the evening was really good. They went back to Fernley and are on their way to Denver unless they find somewhere to intrigue them.   We decided to take the cruise on the Freedom of the Seas, which is the one Abbacadabra will be on. It leaves from Ft. Lauderdale on December 4. We are using our FF miles with United to fly, so it will cost us very little. Except, we are going to have to leave here on Dec 1, go to Denver, spend the night, and catch the 8:30 flight to Ft. Lauderdale. Originally, we had booked the flights for Dec 2, but United changed their schedule (only a few days after we booked) and the flight to Florida will be leaving 17 minutes before the flight from Reno to Denver will land, so, rather than have to make two stops on the way, and spend over 14 hours traveling, we thought it would be fun to just explore Denver a little bit. At least this will extend our vacation, even if it will make it more expensive. August 16 We had the Spinolas over for dinner on Saturday. I made baked mostaccoli, salad and home made bread, which I spread with garlic and cheese for a really yummy accompaniment. After dinner we played Skipbo. It was a very fun evening, and, as always, the bonus was a very clean house. On Sunday, we went to the mall to walk for a little while because it was very hot. We went to Nightingale Hall at UNR for The Age of Love. It was a movie about seniors speed dating and we really enjoyed it.  So far, for August, this is how far I've walked. Over half of it was with Bill. DISTANCE67.56 MIDURATION26.99hrsCALORIES7,258BurnedWORKOUTS29Yesterday, we planned to get up early and head up to Sand Harbor. Bill has trouble getting started in the morning, so we didn't leave the house until almost 9. We stopped off to get the car washed and got to the beach a little before 10:30. So, we weren't able to get a parking spot in the first lot, but we got a great shady spot at the far end. We walked down the beach for just a few minutes, because the sun was already too hot for Bill. When we got back near our spot, I was going to walk further and maybe get in the water near the rocks, but I stepped on a bee and got stung. I had forgotten how much a bee sting hurts. I hobbled back to my chair and we fought off the bees for the whole time we were there, We read and enjoyed the peace and beauty of the lake. When we left, I drove and we decided to go down via the 50 through Carson City. We stopped for gas and a couple of groceries at Costco and were home about 3 pm. It was a lovely, relaxing day.    August 22 Back to school pics. Bry and Bailey went back on August 8.
\
   Carson and Brendan didn't have to start until August 22   August 31 Bill's 67th birthday was last week. Kurt and Susie took us to dinner at Los Compadres, followed by Skipbo and carrot cake at their house. It was a fun evening. On Sunday, Rommie and Kathy took us to Peg's Glorified Ham and Eggs for a birthday breakfast. Bailey was able to join us, but Bryanna was home with a cold, trying to feel well enough to go to school on Monday. Lisa Shannon has bought one of my rocks! It is one of my favorites.  I put one up on eBay, and I posted several of them on Facebook. I found out that the craft fair will take place while we are gone on our cruise trip in December, so, even though Kathy said she will sell them for me, I have slowed production. I really have fun with them, and I hope I can sell more of them online. Here are a few others I really love.       I had a laser procedure done on my eyes, last Wednesday and today. It hurt a little bit, but mostly it was scary. It is supposed to relieve the pressure in my eyes, because that could lead to big problems. We're taking care of Cooper for a few days in the middle of September, while Maxine and Micky go to a family reunion in Las Vegas. We will all sleep at their house, so he won't be alone. We would bring him over here, but he won't fit through our dog door, and his tail could be lethal to our glass cabinets. On Sept 30, we are going to drive up to Longview Washington to visit with Craig and Jackie for a few days. We have booked a room at The Grey Cat Inn in Cottage Grove, Oregon on the way, and we'll figure out if we want to stay somewhere on the way home or just drive straight through. Maybe we'll stop in Sacramento to see Joe and Gee, if they are there. Bailey will come over to our house to take care of the dogs. She will be out of school that week, so it works out perfectly. My total walking for the month of August. DISTANCE136.57 MIDURATION54.16hrsCALORIES15,272BurnedWORKOUTS
Sept 11
It has been 15 years since the World Trade Center and Pentagon bombings. We are still afraid but life goes on as much as possible.
Tony and Anais came here last weekend for the Best In the West Nugget Rib Cookoff. We met them for some walking at Crystal Peak Park when they got into town, and then spent the rest of the day together.
 
We parked at BJs and walked to the cookoff. It was very hot, but we had a good time. They got food, but we only had tastes of theirs. Afterward, we went to Sweet Frogs for yogurt and back to our house for a game of Trivial Pursuit with Tony. Anais was too tired to play, so she napped in the recliner in the sunroom.
On Sunday, we met them for breakfast at Water Springs, the new restaurant near Kohl's. The food was very good. The girls had spent the night at a cabin near Frenchman's Lake so they weren't home, yet. We drove around looking at old houses, and just killing time until Bryanna and Bailey got home and were ready to go. Bill and I came home to be here for the close of a couple of auctions, and then we met them at the cookoff. I got a really good, but spicy, pulled pork sandwich, which Bill had some of. While walking through the booths and music area, Anais and Bryanna stopped to dance to one of the songs. It was so much fun to watch them having a great time.
  
Then we all went to Kathy and Rommie's house to hang out for awhile. The girls both had plans so they left, and we stayed for a little while longer and then came home, to have a good night's sleep. Tony and Anais left the next morning, encountering a lot of traffic due to Burning Man as well as the cookoff.
Kathy and Rommie had gone to Corning for a family party, but had trouble with the brakes on their truck, so they ended up spending $1,000 to get them fixed. They were fortunate that they didn't have an accident, though.
This weekend, Kathy and Rommie flew to Las Vegas for a George Straight concert. They had a great time.
   September 14 Bill has been having some pain in his leg, so we got him in to see Dr. McKenzie today. It isn't a blood clot or a blockage. The doctor said for him to do some exercises that might help the pain, He thinks it might be a pulled nerve in his back. Patty is having a garage sale this weekend, and she said I could take some of my rocks over to sell. I have been working on several new ones with a Halloween theme that I think might be good sellers. I also painted two small lighthouses.         I took the training for the early voting job that we will be doing next month. I took all the tests so Bill wouldn't have to bother with it. Really, there is no need for us to know most of the material, because we have specific jobs to which a lot of it doesn't apply. October 20 We worked at the Nevada Women's Expo for AARP last weekend. It was fun because we were with people we enjoyed. Lynda and Donna, and Lynda's boyfriend, Damon were there Saturday, and Lynda and Donna were there on Sunday, with Mary Leverati getting there around noon. It rained a lot over the weekend, and we had a leafy mess to clean up in the backyard on Monday. I have several Halloween rocks, coasters and trivets and I have been working on Thanksgiving and Christmas. I sure hope they will sell at Kathy's craft fair.           October 21 Yesterday, we went to the early voter training and met our team. They all seem friendly. Lois, our manager, was very nice and didn't seem like the pushy type. We'll see. Today, we went to Legends to set up for the voting which starts tomorrow. I walked to Legends from home, and Bill met me there. It was just over 3 miles, so I had a good start to my day.    A nice surprise came at the end of the set up. Richard said he always gives little gifts to all the team members, usually at the end but he decided to do it at the beginning this time due to some possible health issues with his mother. He presented everyone an old circulated coin, which he bought on a trip in 1982, from Arabia, with Marie Therese, who was a leader of her country from 1740 to 1780. He told an interesting story about her, most of which I have forgotten. I think that was a lovely thing to do. 
We had a good time while making enough money to pay for our upcoming cruise. We hope to work early voting again in 2018.
I wrote this on Facebook. Why are some people so stupid?
Yes, Your Signature May Be All You Need To Vote, But….
I wish to clarify the information contained in Ask the RGJ, on Sunday morning, regarding what is needed to vote in Washoe County. The process is not as simple as this article states. Bill and I were two of seven poll workers at Legends, in Sparks, for all 14 days of early voting, from October 22 to November 4. We took the names, printed a label with the voter information, got the signature on a roster sheet, compared it with the signature on the computer screen, and activated a voter card. Early voting and the general election are done a little bit differently, but both processes are efficient and we try to make it easy for every voter. True, all that is needed to vote is a name and signature; however, in order to verify that the person standing in front of me is, indeed, the right person, the signature must be compared with something. The signature is in the Washoe County voter data-base, so it shows up on my computer but not until I narrow it down to the right person. Scenario one, based on Ask the RJG: You walk up to the intake station and give me your name as John Doe. Neither I, nor the computer, know which John Doe you are, out of 14 who are registered to vote in Washoe County. All 14 of them show up on a list on my computer screen with their various birth dates. I could make an educated guess. You look about 23, so I can probably narrow down my choices to four, all of whom were born in the 1990s. But, maybe you just look young and you are really 40. Now, I have 8 possible voters from which to choose, all born after 1975. I still need to figure out which John Doe you are. So you need to show me your signature. I can’t ask for ID, so I give you a piece of paper to sign on. Then I have to click on every John Doe that might be you, and compare the signature with what is on that piece of paper. After five tries, I find you. I can’t ask you for your address, so I hope that you live where the computer says you live, so that you are receiving the correct precinct information in the mail. I print out a label with your information, place it on the roster sheet, and have you sign that, because Washoe County wants to know that the correct John Doe was found and was able to vote. I activate a voting card and give it to you. The process took three minutes and 17 seconds. Scenario two, based on what actually happens in the early polling place: You walk up and tell me that you are John Doe. I look at the list of 14 John Does and say, “Please verify your birth date.” You say, “April 21, 1989.” I immediately find you on the list and click on your name. I say, “Please verify your address.” You give me an address and it matches what is shown. I print a label for you and place it on the roster sheet, asking you for your signature next to the label. I compare that with what is shown on the screen and I am able to match it, or at least some of it, because, people’s signatures do change, but usually contain enough identifying elements to make a match. I activate your voting card and you are on your way. The process took 32 seconds. One more scenario: I can’t find you in the data base by your name, and you say you are a registered voter in Washoe County. I look for you by your birth date, and then your address. If I still can’t find you. I take you over to the manager of my polling place and she makes a call to the Washoe County Registrar of Voters. They are able to find you, and they will update the data-base, but meanwhile, you are given an activated voter card and you are able to vote. Mistakes do happen and we absolutely don’t want to deny anyone their right to vote. The process is somewhat different in the general election, but we still need to know which John Doe we have in front of us before sending him to the next station to sign the roster book. Please know that we only ask for the information that is necessary to make sure that you are you. We will be at Jerry Whitehead school on election day from 5:45 in the morning, until well after 8:30 that night. We are all volunteers who just want to help make the voting process safe and easy for everyone. It’s your right.
We had a small break and then it was voting day, November 8. Voting day was not terribly crowded, so we didn't work very hard. There was plenty of time for snacking and talking with the other workers. We processed over 1100 voters, the same number that we processed the last day of early voting at legends. We had a good team and we will plan to do the early voting and regular voting, again the next time.
 
On Veteran's Day, we went downtown to walk and then we decided to join the AARP group to walk in the parade. We found Julie, Lynda, Damon and Donna well before the parade started, but we were still standing around waiting to start after the parade had been going on for almost two hours. Bill was getting too tired and he was in the sun too much, so we left before it started.
    
We took a trip to see Joline and Bill and then on to Las Vegas for an AARP function. The story is in the Trip blog.
Bryanna went to the 2016 JA Dance last weekend and she looked gorgeous. We went over to pick up the dogs on Saturday, after driving home from Las Vegas, and Bryanna got home from getting her makeup done about 40 minutes after we got there, so we got to see her in her beautiful dress.   Kathy and Rommie went to a house in south Reno for a photo session and they got some wonderful shots of Bryanna and her friends.  I've officially stopped painting until after the craft fair. If things sell, I will continue, because I enjoy it, but if they don't, I can't keep on painting rocks, coasters and trivets and just storing them.      Kathy and Rommie and the girls were going to drive to Tony and Anais' for Thanksgiving, but Cowboy had to have emergency surgery on Monday night, so they won't be able to go. Tony and Anais are driving over on Friday to stay with them and then we were all going to go Christmas tree hunting before going over to Sherri's house for dinner. Now, we will go to Kathy's house to stay with Cowboy so they can all go hunting trees. We are going to Sherri's for Thanksgiving dinner and then again, on Saturday. The kids will be able to go on Saturday, too. I made apple and pumpkin pies for both days.      This is one of two apple pies Our cruise is in one week and, because Cowboy can't play rough for a while, they can't take the dogs. We have made arrangements with Maxine and Mickey to take care of them. They agreed to take them over to their house for, at least, part of the time. I hope they realize that it is a lot easier to take care of them over there, because I don't like leaving the dogs home alone for such an extended time. November 25 It's hard to believe 2017 is only 5 weeks away. We spent Thanksgiving afternoon and evening with the Shannons. Lisa and Dave couldn't be there, but the rest of them were, even Alice, who is 92, came from southern California to be there. It was a lovely, relaxing time with good friends,          Today, we got up really late, after 8, even though we got to bed before 9 last night. After breakfast, we drove to the car dealer to have the car washed, but the service department was closed. We also bought tickets to see The Arrival at 1:25 with Maxine and Mickey. When we got home we took the dogs for a walk, stopping by the dog park for them to run around. We'll be leaving for the movie in a few minutes. Caribbean Cruise - see 2016 Our First Caribbean Cruise December The cruise got us behind on our Christmas shopping, but we caught up quickly, because we weren't getting much. Just a few small things. We had a really hard rain in mid December. We went to Rock Park to see the river and found that the water was over the picnic tables at the edge.   Patty and Bob had a Christmas open house on Dec 23. We had a good time and the food was delicious.   We spent Christmas Eve at Grace's house with most of the regulars. We played games, courtesy of Lisa. She always comes up with fun things to do. It snowed on Christmas Eve, but not on Christmas day.     Christmas morning at the Browns was fun as always. We opened presents and then had our regular breakfast. The girls liked all their presents, although nobody got anything major this year. Their dog, Cowboy, had to have surgery in late November, so that cost them a lot of money and that was their main present.      We went to Susie and Kurt's for Christmas dinner, which was really fun. Being with the kids when they opened presents is always fun.We played Reverse Charades, and we decided that we want to do that again with the game group.      We had a couple of days of good weather so we were able to take some walks downtown. One day, after Christmas, we went to West Elm which is in the old post office building, and were able to go up to the second and third floors. Tony would have enjoyed that, because there were no people at all, and we got to explore the whole place. 
Across from the Believe sign
        River from the second floor   Riverside and the courthouse from the third floor On New Year's Eve, we watched some TV after a delicious dinner of tuna salad. We went to bed at 9:30, with Mackie wearing her thunder shirt. At a few minutes before midnight, we were awakened by a few pops and one bark. Mackie got up on the bed, and spent the next half hour between us, but she wasn't barking or trembling. That shirt is wonderful. We are so glad we discovered that it can calm her down. |
feeling disgusted.
