We Are Off To Face Certain Death!

Posted on Saturday, November 28, 2020 by Paul

Inspecting mirrors is a job I could really see myself doing.

Today was my 5,000th day of being retired!  Thirteen years, six months and five days I gave up working.  Mary needs to hurry up and catch up with me!

We had our morning coffee, probably the last one I will ever have.  Then breakfast, my last meal.  Then off to the zip line adventure.

Bright and early, the casino sees the sun first!

We jumped into our golf cart and headed to Descanso Beach where the zip line check-in is located

When we checked in, they asked if high altitudes bothered us, I of course said’ “Well as a matter of fact, yes!”  He replied, “Don’t worry, we will supply oxygen bottles”.   Now I am getting worried.  Then he said we are on the 10:00 AM flight!  FLIGHT?  What does he mean?

We are checking in!

Mary takes good care of me, she brought the Depends again but this time I put them on the inside of my pants!

One last hug before we go!

The young lady got me all hooked up.  There were more belts and straps and gizmos than Carter had liver pills.  I am going to me more likely to trip on the belt or hang myself than falling from the zip line.

“Pardon me sir but you must weigh in at under 250 pounds!”

Then Mary says, “Paul, look up!”.  I saw that tower 8,000 feet up the side of the 2,000 foot mountain.  It was terrifying so I volunteered to go back to the hotel and get something, anything.  Nope!  I had to stay.  I was hoping the Depends were the high capacity ones!

High up on the hill are the wires of death!

Now Mary gets all the equipment on.  We are going to be safe because I am going to tie us to a telephone pole.

Tighten her in carefully, she is precious!

They gave us a short class  in what to do and what not to do!  Then it was into the bus for the journey to the top!  We careened around the corners looking down into the canyon.  I swear I saw to skeletons at the bottom but I was afraid to say anything.

If our straps get tangled, we may have to sit together for ever…. M-m-m-m-m, I have an idea!

Here comes Miss Mary…

 

Then we tested the cable strength as my carcass come flying down the line.  It’s going to be OK as the tour guides informed us that one cable is good for 5,000 pounds and the main cable is good for 18,000 pounds.  I did the math and it has 17,800 pounds of margin!

Fearless Mary sets a new zipline speed record.  The canyon echoed as she went through the sound barrier.

Here comes Mary at 45 miles per hour!

She is caught and now safe!

Caught!

Time to return to the hotel but dumb old me lost the golf cart.  Well, it seems the cart is dark green but in the shade it looked blue so I walked by it five times and did not recognize it.  Thank goodness Miss Mary volunteered to assist me in the search and after ten seconds she said, “It’s right there!”.  I was more than a bit embarrassed.  From now on, I plan to tie my underwear on the antenna so I can find the car.

Back at the hotel, we had lunch and rested.  Mary informed me she does NOT nap.  Yeah! Right, she went out like a light.  The Z’s were so loud three buzzards flew over to check her out. I shooed them away, no snacking on Mary this afternoon!

“I do not take naps!”

We had a glass of wine and talked for a while awaiting Mary’s friends to call.

Cute couple if I don’t say so myself!!

We then did a little shopping in town and went to visit Mary’s friends who live on the island.  I thought they were kidding when they said there are 155 steps to get to their house.  They were NOT kidding.

She looks pretty good after 155 steps!

We sat and visited for almost an hour but then the sun started to face, the temperature dropped, and we could see snow clouds forming in the distace so we departed.

Marry brought her little white bikini in case they had a pool?

Going down was easy.  I curled up like a basketball and hurled myself down the stairs barely missing two elderly people and a tiny chihuahua.

Going down was easier!

It was getting dark as we found our way back to the mansion.  We ordered dinner from the Crab Shack and Shaun went into town and got it for us.  Talk about service with a smile.

We rode into town to checkout the night life

Mary spotted the Christmas Tree on the top of the casino so we went onto the balcony and sang Christmas Carols.  I did the more traditional ones while Mary sang, at the top of her lungs, “Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer”.  All of a sudden four pairs of shoes came out of thin air and landed adjacent to us.  Does this mean something?  We decided to stop singing and go inside.

View from our room.

I ordered a boggle of wine and proceeded to reduce its quantity as we watched a little TV.  Is was an amazing day!

Finally, rest time!

We crashed and planned for tomorrows adventures.

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Sailing Sailing Over The Bounding Main

Posted on Friday, November 27, 2020 by Paul

Some years after the flood, Noah wanted to sail again Unfortunately, he didn’t remember where he arked.

We are off to Catalina for a couple of days!  To fill our bucket list, we are staying at the Wrigley Mansion in the Grand Suite.  If you plan to do something, do it right!

We dropped off Scout at Becky’s before heading to Long Beach.  However, we did stop for a glass of wine at Old Ranch since the restaurants were closed in Long Beach.  We chugged down a chardonnay and then headed for the Catalina Express Terminal.

I dropped of Mary so she could move all the bag while I parked the car.  OK, maybe she watched the bag and waited for me to move them.

The ship departed right on schedule and the sailing was as smooth as glass.

Mary reminded me of the time I performed my first pole dance and I remember her tucking money into my belt.  I also remember it was three pennies and a wooden nickel.  I never told her that the wooden nickel gave e a splinter.

She asked for an encore and of course I agreed.  This time I felt better as Mary dropped in a whole quarter, two washers, a bobby-pin, and a paper-clip.  Two guests on the ship  saw my plight and gave me two dollars for my effort. At that rate I would have to dance 5.6 days for eight hours each day  to collect enough money for my passage.  I don’t think I will give up my day job right away!

Paul’s world famous pole dancing (notice the money we collected?)

We spotted the casino so we knew were were not entering Honolulu Harbor by mistake.

The casino was magnificent.

The sun was beginning to set and we were lucky as the hotel sent a limo for us and Shaun took all the bags.  We are on our way to the hotel now.

The mansion is perched on Mount Ada, named after his wife.

Did You Know? The house was built in 1919–1921 as a summer retreat for the Wrigleys of Chicago, who owned 99% of Santa Catalina Island, one of the Channel Islands of California. It was designed in the Georgian Colonial Revival style by architect Zachary Taylor Davis, who had also designed Wrigley Field in Chicago, and would return to design Wrigley Field (Los Angeles) in 1925. The Wrigleys used it together until 1932, when Mr. Wrigley died.

Mrs. Wrigley then visited the house until 1947, when she retired to the Wrigley Mansion in Pasadena, California. In its heyday, the Wrigleys entertained Presidents Calvin Coolidge and Warren Harding, and the Prince of Wales at the house.

In the 1970s, it was donated to the University of Southern California, and it was used as a conference center.

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places listings in Los Angeles County, California in 1985.

We have arrived!

The mansion was amazing.  It has seven guest rooms and we had the “Grand Suite” which was Mr. Wrigley’s bedroom.   Mary looked so natural going into the building with her fur coat.

We have arrived at the mansion.

We fired up the fireplace, pun intended.  It took a few minutes and the chill was gone.

The room was cozy and warm.

We walked around the mansion and to get the lay of the land.  Our living room had its own balcony and the view was spectacular.

The view from our balcony was magnificent.

We ordered from Steve’s Steakhouse and Shaun picked up our meal and delivered it to us.  We enjoyed a bottle of wine and the supply was unlimited.  Mary got the rack of lamb with artichokes plus a steak.  Fortunately I saved from potato chips for my meal earlier and I  did not let her see the bag.

Dinner time from Steve’s Steakhouse

We watched some TV before crashing as tomorrow are going zip lining at 10:00 AM.

Did You Know?  Wrigley’s fortune was not made by gum but by souring soap and baking powder. He gave away two pieces of gum with every can of baking powder!
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Turkey Day Has Arrived

Posted on Thursday, November 26, 2020 by Paul

The old woman who lived in a shoe wasn’t the sole owner, there were strings attached.

This will be the first Thanksgiving without Mitch and Sue in thirty-plus years.  I decided to proceed with the celebration at home, not a Old Ranch.  Our dear friends joined in making it memorable and not nearly as tough as I had thought it would be.  The Duda’s, Zaitz, Branders. Chartier’s along with Greg and Irene made for a delightful and fun filled afternoon.  Mary was a most gracious hostess and we owe the success to Miss Robin who was FANTASTIC, as usual.

We met up with Robin at my house when she brought in the goodies from Polly’s.  I began to sing, “Hi Ho Hi Ho, It’s off to work we go!”  I knew I should stop when the first egg and second tomato came in my direction.

Mary and Robin worked together like a well oiled machine (there was a occasional clank and boing boing).   They somehow found all the cooking utensils and pots/pans/bowls needed.  Further, the clever devils they are, labeled everything with the “put it in the stove time” written on them, amazing!

With Coronavirus being a possible concern this year, what’s likely to be the most popular side dish? Masked potatoes.

Mary cut up the ham but she kept saying, “Hold still”.  I reminded her the ham was not alive.

Mary, using her surgical skills, carved the kosher ham!

The kitchen was awash in activity.  Mitch and Sue would have been proud of the new team prepping for the 2:00 PM dinner time! It should have been videoed as the choreography was sensational.

I asked Mary why the Thanksgiving soup was so expensive and she responded with, “Silyl boy, it has 24 carrots”.

Scout watched the girls carefully looking for any tiny morsel of food dropping to the floor. When one did fall, we heard an “arf” followed by a “woof” followed by a blindingly fast POUNCE.

Adult supervision was available plus the floor was always clean!

Pete and Lisa came extra early because last year they had to stay home was the traffic condition along with a major accident would have made the trip three hours.

What sound does a turkey’s phone make? “Wing, wing.”

People began showing up at 12:30 PM, more time to visit!

Bob and Nick came in about 12:30 PM and they brought more chairs and a card table so we could practice our social distancing.  BTW, when I sat down I was told to get up and sit in the back yard. What did I do?

Mary brought her blow-up turkey with her (that’s him holding the wine glass)

The front yard was also pressed into service to make sure plenty of fresh air was provided. We all laughed, giggled, and carried on until 1:30 PM and then things got serious.  Alarms sounded, Alexa was going crazy, oven doors were slamming, and the microwave was used to much it nearly caused an area-wide power outage.

Robin took everyone’s temperature, provided gallons of hand sanitizer, and had spare masks.

Everything came together at exactly 2:00 PM.  The serving line was formed and the girls has serving utensils at the ready!  Everyone was served and the rooms because silent except for the occasional utensil striking the plate.

Works every year!

The tables were distanced quite nicely but we could still hear each other.  Mary and Robin served everybody as they passed by the kitchen.

No crowding here!

Mary suggested we all think about what we are giving thanks for this year.  After the meal was finished, we went around the room and asked everyone to stay that they gave thanks for this year.  It was quite emotional but also quite lovely.  We are lucky to have such wonderful friends and family.

Dessert was served and we had Mary’s famous blackberry pie, apple pie, baklava from Irene, cheesecake from the Branders; it was a treasure of calorie bombs!

Donna and Bob joined us this year and that was fantastic (Bob and I kept our ladies in stitches most of the meal)

Then it was cleanup time.  I told Mary to stand-back, Team Lisa & Robin has this down pat!  Elbows were flying dishes were clanking and loud screams of joy flew out of the kitchen.  We heard an occasional, “Been there, done that!” The dishwasher was purring like a kitten and the left overs went to the highest bidders.

Cleanup gets underway! Mary could not resist.

And as if my magic, the tables disappeared, the food was packed and the house returned to its normal state.  Greg departed a little early was he has a Zoom meeting he sponsors to go to. Irene baclava disappeared.  I managed to save one piece of black berry pie which I will be thinking about this entire weekend.

Poof… Like magic

We sat for a few minutes as our guests headed home.  Mary and I decided we needed to go to Joe’s for another dessert but as we turned on to Katella, the phone rang.  It was Joe, the power was out at his place so we returned home.  We had the Santa Ana winds this evening as we drove through a leaf-storm returning home.

We visited with Robin, Bob, and Nick for another hour.

I missed Colleen and Mark but I know they were in good hands and good hearts with their friends in New Hampshire. We will see Joe and Amy  sometime tis week.

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One More Day And Turkeys Beware!

Posted on Wednesday, November 25, 2020 by Paul

Cartoonist found dead in home. Details are sketchy.

Today was” get ready for Turkey Day!”  The cleaning folks were her so I left them alone to do their magic.  I worked in the yard. Domilita has taken care of the house for years now and is a delightful person.

Thanksgiving is on its way!

The living room is ready to go!  We are having twelve folks over for Thanksgiving.  We have tables that sit eight but we are going to make it four people per table because of the pandemic nonsense.

Four at each table should provide adequate distancing!

Silly me, I thought I would have time to do stuff and then I saw water coming out of the garage.  Say what?  I found a pin hole in a 3/4″ PVC pipe that feeds the hose bib on the side of the garage.  Guess what I did for two hours.  The fix was easy, moving the heavy work benches around was not. After the fix, everything was dry again!

Did I tell you I am a wizard at plumbing??

Becca came over and delivered 25 plates that we could use for Thanksgiving?  We will have to see that the ladies want to do.  We bought these plates in 1995 as we used to host big parties all the time.  I do not know what happened to the silverware but Mary offered hers and with mine, we are good to go!

We have had these in the family for almost a quarter of a century and we still have 23 of the original 25 left, not too bad!

I went to the market and got the important things like chips and dips and other non-essential goodies. I have no idea how I spent $200 but I did.  If there is a major event and we are required to stay in the house for a week, I have to food issues covered!

Returning home, I moved to the master bathroom where I went through the medicine cabinet and tossed all the expired items.  Mary found my Neosporin was expired in 2012 so it was time to check everything.  Note to self: Order small amounts of things like instead of 250!

I cleaned up the master bathroom and went through all the meds that were out of date!

Returning to the front room, it looked a little bare so I found the box of Thanksgiving decorations and brought them inside.  The turkey below was made by my mother back in the 1960s.  He always comes  memories.

My dear mother could make anything! She was one of a kind!

Robin came over about 4:00 PM and we had a margarita.  She is staying with me tonight so we can get ready for everyone tomorrow.  We called Colleen on the Alexa device and talked to her for a half-hour.

I love my family and the fact we all get along. Today was my oldest bio daughters 52nd  birthday but alas, we have not talked for years.  Life is funny that way.  She is her mothers daughter!  I am so happy the other are mine!

But the Lord works in mysterious way as I have Robin in my life and that makes life wonderful.  Add Miss Mary to the equation and I am ecstatic. I am indeed a lucky man!

Around 5:00 PM Robin detected that forlorn look on my face and shooed me out and said, “Go visit Mary”. My daughter is not only pretty but she is smart and can read me like a book!

Mary was out doing errands after she made her black berry pie for tomorrow.  I called her and suggested the Rib Trader and that got an enthusiastic response. We both arrived at her house within seconds of each other, perfect timing!

We visited “Jim the Bartender” for a while and Mary downed two steaks and a salad.  I had one anchovy.  That’s all I could afford.  Jim introduced us to two guys who are regulars and we all four talked and laughed.  we finished the evening with a “Chip Shot” before going home.  OK, OK, I did ont just have an anchovy!  I had two anchovies with a steak on the side!

We returned home, watched TV and crashed.  Tomorrow is a big day!

 

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Tuesday Before Thanksgiving And All Is Well

Posted on Tuesday, November 24, 2020 by Paul

“Getting the longer part of the wishbone is a snap.”

Up at the clack of dawn (I have a Japanese alarm clock).  I jumped out of bed, raced to the thermostat, and set it to well-done.  It is getting frosty these mornings.  I did have a scare when I passed the mirror.  My hair looked like an explosion in a hay-stack. Is it time for me to sleep with a hair net or should I put a Ralph’s grocery bag on my head until the hair gets combed? Another item to ponder!

I did chores and got The Silver Fox ready to go to the doctor by cleaning him up a little. The backseat floorboard looked like the burial ground for old water bottles!

I decided to call Nancy at Mary’s office and order another pair of sunglasses.  I cannot believe I lost two pairs of glasses in two weeks.  This time, for sure, I will put them into their container when I am done, and I will not lay them down! I am getting so absent-minded!

So very true!

I watered the new garden, cleaned up and washed down the walkway so people could get up close and personal with the little plants.  Then into the kitchen where I am reorganizing things so it will be easier on Thanksgiving Day.  Robin and Mary are serving the food so we can keep close contact at a minimum.  I will be in charge of drinks, that is like putting the fox in charge of the hen house!

At noon I headed to Lexus of Cerritos so the Silver Fox could visit the doctor and get his oil changed and tires rotated, plus a myriad of other little things done.  He will be a happy boy.  He dives about 83 miles a day, but that figure has the Sedona trip in it, which was about 1,000 miles, so it is more like 63 miles/day.

He was born on September 16th, 2020.

While at the car dealership, Mary called, and she is coming by so we can scan her retirement paperwork into a PDF file.  Then she can send it in, and she will be free after January 1st, 2021, after thirty-three years with the VA.  She is an amazing person! I had forty years with NAA/Rockwell/Boeing!

Knowing we would be pressed for time, I set up the scanner, did a trial run, and was ready to go when Mary arrived.

Getting everything ready.

Waiting for Mary, I called Diane, and we chatted for quite a while.  She has been essential in me moving along in life, and I thank her for it!

She arrived with a steamer trunk full of paper and notes to herself. The number of items to scan and the fact some were single-sided and some double made my head hurt. Too many forms and paperwork.

She finally got it done and I suggested a Staples visit would be the best thing to do. They have a double-sided scanner and could email the PDF file to MAry as well as the intended receiver.  Time to go to Staples, but alas, we needed a second witness. Ah ha, Vicky, my dear next-door neighbor!

Paperwork, the pits!

We called Vicky and before we walked over there she had a witness sign-in table ready for us by the time we got there.   There was a large tip-jar also for us to controobute intoShe is so very clever!

Sign in for witnessing documents.

We hit Staples at 7:40 PM and were out of there with everything done in ten minutes.  The Staples employee was amazing!

I could tell Mary was hungry as she was drooling at the candy bar rack in Staples.  We called the Rib Trader, but they did not answer, so we went to The Fish Company.  That turned out to be a great idea.

Decorated for Christmas.

It was cold outside, but the fires were perfect. We stayed toasty the entire time.  It really helped as Mary ordered Drambuie and was taking shots, not to drink, but to throw onto the fire machine.  Drambuie is a golden-coloured, 40% alcohol made from Scotch whisky, honey, herbs, and spices. The herbs and spices made the flames, which were shotting ten feet into the air, smell quite nice!

All was going well until four Indians showed up and asked how Mary knew smoke signals.   We bought them some firewater and sent them on their way!  We enjoyed the meal and celebrated with a glass of vino!

Keeping the girl warm.

It was 9:30 PM, so we left to go to Mary’s after dropping a load of oysters off at Vicky’s home (Vicky loves her oysters)!  We returned to Mary’s at 10:00 PM.

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Prepping For Thanksgiving

Posted on Monday, November 23, 2020 by Paul

“My family told me to stop telling Thanksgiving jokes, but I said I couldn’t quit cold turkey.”

Up and at it at 6:00 AM doing our exercises.  It felt pretty good.

When I went to my phone, I got a message from Google Photos saying they had photos from the past 15 years I have used their service.  I clicked on it the picture was from 2006.  It hit me like a ton of bricks.  I lost my wife and my son this year.  Sue and Mitch were best-buds and worked together in the kitchen like a finely tuned machine.

I miss you every day.

I am so very blessed to have re-discovered Miss Mary.  We have been friends for almost twenty years.  She has given me a new life, and she is just so extremely special to me. So with a deep breath and an eye toward the future, I continue…

I began the turkey day prep by locating all the items I needed for Thanksgiving dinner, including tables, chairs, etc.  We are going to really locate people away from each other, so we have two card tables and our log tables.  Robin and Mary will be the servers, so people will not congregate around the food table.  We have a plan!

I set up the tables today, cleaned the kitchen so there is room for the girls to work on Thanksgiving, and went to the market and got some necessities, including wine, milk, and snacks.

I finished off part of the Sedona Trip and then messed around the house until 5:00 PM when Mary called and said she was heading home.  I jumped in the Silver Fox and flew like the wind arriving well ahead of her.

When I arrived at Mary’s, I turned on the fireplace, lit the candles, put up Scouts deliveries (he gets special delivery dog food), got the mail, and did some other chores I knew needed to be done.

Mary arrived soon after, and we had our glass of wine and discussed our day’s activities.  She told me coming home with the fireplace on, house warm, candles burning was appreciated.  However, she also said it would have been better if there was a little romantic background music going.  Well, I aim to please!

I may even try two bottles next time!

We also discussed Thanksgiving plans, and Mary volunteered some wine and champagne for the event. She went into the wine rack and pulled out some excellent wines for the occasion.

A little bit of this and a little bit of that ought to do it!

As she sorted through the wine, we recalled the adage:

That means we ought to have our wine on the way to work!

Mary took a gander at the refrigerator and decided we are having breakfast thanks to Old Ranch’s potatoes and mushrooms.  We got the turkey bacon going, and I chopped the potatoes, mushroom, and the last of this year’s homegrown tomatoes.

She got into her comfortable cooking uniform, made of asbestos, so she will not catch fire as she cooks.  She decided her flame-proof cooking bonnet, complete with a four-gallon fire extinguisher, was not required as the bacon and eggs are generally cooked on medium heat unless they are rooster eggs.

The white spots on the normally purple cooking costume are instant fire extinguisher buttons.  Touch and of then and you will be extinguished, instantly.

As she was cooking, I heard her say, “If Shakespeare cooked breakfast, he’d make a Hamlet.” Of course, I responded with, “You’re bacon me crazy.”

Cooking up a storm! Old Ranch baked potatoes with mushrooms, yeah!

She likes polka dots!

Dinner was ready at 7:30 PM just in time for “Two And A Half Men,” which we always enjoy watching.

We watched part of a Gilmore Girls movie before declaring a successful day and crashing.  I made it home about 9:30 PM and fell sound to sleep as tomorrow is a busy day.  The Silver Fox gets to go to his first Lexus checkup as he has 5,400 miles on him already.

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Sunday Was A Busy Day

Posted on Sunday, November 22, 2020 by Paul

Lettuce Romaine Friends

We were up and early because Mary wants to play dirty.  That did not sound right!  She wants to play in the garden, dig in the dirt, so we drove to H&H in Lakewood, got a mess of veggies, and returned to my home to plant them.  Mary loves gardening, as I do, so we had fun all morning.

She did look at me a little funny this morning; I wonder why?

I was gardening!

Today I am hobbling as the knee is again giving me fits.  Mary loaned me the brace she used when she broke her leg.  It is quite stiff, but it does keep the kneecap from rotating.

I still cannot believe when she was in medical school training to be a surgeon, she rented a chain saw and chopped down a tree by herself, truly an amazing person.

The garden has been rototilled and is ready for planting.  There is 400 square-feet in these gardens.

Hunger pains started when we got home from H&H Nursery.

We were hungry, so Mary whipped up several egg McMuffins from scratch.

To the yard, we went, and we worked our tails off until 2:00 PM when we had to head for home.  We planted oodles of veggies.  While I arranged the plantings, Mary dug the holes, applied fertilizer, and planted them.  I returned afterward to mulch the areas.  Then we watered.

Mary did real good AFTER I reminded her that the roots go down!

We finished right on time!

She said I would get the bill next week!

I decided to take a quick shower before we returned to Mary’s place.  We stopped by Albertsons to get some munchies, and Mary fixed her appearance, although I thought she was magnificent already!

Robin and Bob came over to Mary’s for a visit, and we sat and jabbered for a good hour and a half before we had to leave for the dance.

Ready to go and tonight is special; Bridgette is celebrating eighty years on this planet.

We had dinner with Bob and Donna, and Bob wore his “gold outfit.”
I am starting to worry about this guy!

We arrived as the party was getting underway.  I caught Mary putting on her war paint.

Caught!

The cake was a perfect size, so all old folks would not pig-out and put unnecessary calories into our systems.

It was a magnificent cake!

We await the speech and the extinguishing of the candles.

Prepping the cake!

Go, Girl, Go!!!  Those candles did not have a chance against Bridgette!

Perfect, candles out and knives and forks at the ready!

We departed at 9:00 PM as Miss Mary has to work tomorrow. We are starting our exercise program, meaning every morning we ride the elliptical and peddle the stationary bike before going to work.

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Saturday Has Arrived And All Is Well

Posted on Saturday, November 21, 2020 by Paul

Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday Those were the days.

We’ve been told that only 6 people are allowed to meet for Thanksgiving Day this year, but 30 people for a funeral.

Therefore we will be holding a funeral service for our pet Turkey named “Butterball” on November 26, 2020. Refreshments provided.

In place of flowers, please bring a side or dessert.

 

We got up early and headed for Mary’s house as we have a pedicure appointment at 9:00 AM.  Yes, I am doing it again. It really feels good.

 

Mary good a shot of me in the chair, enjoying the foot massage.  It was pretty relaxing.

I had no idea Miss Sneaky captured me in action!

I, of course, reciprocated with my iPhone in stealth mode.

Mary gets the color I selected on her toes.

After the pedicure, we were hungry, and we concocted a plan! We will get breakfast to go and head to Jan’s house. I suggested the Original Pancake House because it was good the last time I was there, and it was a couple of blocks away.

Pre-COVID; we got our order to go, and everyone was eating in the parking lot.

We called Jan on our way to her house and got there in about eight minutes.  She was quite pleased (and surprised).  We told her about our trip to Sedona.

Then it was back to work.  Mary had some required paperwork to do, so I offered to do the wash while she works. Seems like a fair deal. I sat while she did her work and did some off jobs around the house; it felt good to be wanted.

Finally, it was time to clean up and go to dinner with David and Diane.  Well, we got in the car, and just before we arrived at Seal Beach Blvd, Dianne called and revealed Patty’s Place was closed.  OMG, someone in their staff was sick, and Nick decided to close the place down and make sure it was not the COVID-19.

Panic, what to do?  I decided to go to Old Ranch and have dinner.  They were at full occupancy, so we walked around and saw Teri and Shaun just finishing dinner.  We sat at their table, and when Dianne and David showed up, Teri and Shaun took off… They saved us.

Here is our birthday boy, 99, this week!

Dianne is always smiling, and I gave her the grand tour of OR.

Of course, Miss Mary is always happy, and she enjoyed the impromptu dinner.

We are so bust we do not know which way is up!

We headed home, arriving at about 9:00 PM.  We watched a little TV and then crashed for tomorrow is another full day of activities beginning with buying and planting the winter garden at my place.  Robin is coming over about 3:00 as she will help take care of Scout over the weekend, and then we are going to dinner and dancing with Donna and Bob.  We are busy little people.

 

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Time To Work In The Garden

Posted on Friday, November 20, 2020 by Paul

A friend of mine used to live in a duck pond, but he moved out when he got fed up with all the bills.

So we could go out to dinner, I took Scout with me, and he stayed at my house.  We got up early and decided to ready the winter garden.  Mary was off to work in HB, so Scout and I developed a plan of attack.

The plan involved me working my buns off and Scout sitting on his beddy-bye watching we slave away. All the summer veggies are now history although we did get some tomatoes two days ago and they were excellent.

200 gallons of debris laster, and the gardens are ready to plant.

Mary called, and she forgot to fix her lunch today, so I quickly thought to myself, “Can meals on wheels deliver this fast?”.  So I decided I would become “Meals On Wheels,” so, at lunchtime, I went to the local Subway and got a veggie for me and a roast turkey for Mary.  We sat in the parking lot outside her office and devoured the sandwiches quickly.

I returned home, where Scout was still sitting on his pillow, pointing at his watch, and asking me, “Why are you late from lunch?”  I continued working, and he continued supervising.

Robin is coming over today, so I decided it would be Patty’s Place again.  I called to get reservations, and we got Mary’s squeaky table.  Robin showed up first, and we did a margarita while discussing Thanksgiving.

Fresh as a daisy.

Mary had a couple of difficult patients and showed up at 5:40 PM, which was perfect.  Chuckie always holds the table for us.  I had the best table because I had the two most beautiful ladies in the house!

Mary and Robin get along so well, it’s like magic.

We tried a new appetizer before ordering our meals.  We all were satisfied with dinner, and we even ordered dessert.  Well, I should clarify that!  Do chocolate martinis and chip shots qualify as dessert?

Then it happened.  I was sitting there minding my own business when I felt a pair of lips on my face.  What could this be I asked myself.  Then SMOOCH, my eyes rolled back in my head, I gasped for air and restrained from yelling out, “MORE!”.

The water in the fish tank behind us started to boil!

In the middle of our conversation, Mary asked if Robin had seen me in my Depends.  She hadn’t, and Mary pulls out her prize photo. She promised NOT to show the picture around Patty’s Place, or I would never live it down.

They were a perfect fit. Mary had them available for the zipline adventure.

After dinner, we all returned to my home, where we talked for a while before turning on the TV and watching a new series.  We were feeling no pain, so I suggested we stay at my place and go home in the morning.

We attempted to duplicate the picture on the table!

We have an appointment for a pedicure at 9:00 AM, so we have to get moving quickly.  Mr. Scout is quite comfortable at my place, and he was ready to settle in for the night.

He was tired of supervising me all day!

 

 

 

 

 

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We Weak Is Almost Gone; The Strong Isa Here!

Posted on Thursday, November 19, 2020 by Paul

Traveling on a flying carpet is a rugged experience.

Mary is back to work today, so I am at home doing much-needed jobs around the house.  At 11:15 AM, I hoped in The Silver Fox and headed to the Elks Lodge for the weekly “Girls Night Out.” the five of us just jabbered about everything.  I told them about the trip and said we would have pictures out pretty soon.

After the vacation, I was up a few pounds, so I took it easy at lunch, NOT!

After the meeting, I went to MAry’s and got the baby Scout as we don’t want to leave him alone that long.  He came to my house and stayed with me.  He helped with the chores.

We had a dinner reservation at Patty’s Place, and when Mary departed the VA, she came over here.  We hurried out and made our 6:00 PM reservation.  Filet Mignon was the order of the day.  We had a load of fun and visited with Chuckie, our favorite bartender.

Good groceries!

I showed Miss Mary, my bandaging job, and she disapproved.  Well, it was a tad messy.  She said she would do a proper job later on.

It looks like an explosion in a tape factory!

We watched a little TV before saying goodnight to each other.

Posted in Dining Out, Just Us, Working Around House | Leave a comment