Happy New Years Eve!!

I was making good progress with my poncho (which still remains unclaimed and feeling very bad for itself since no one wants it) when that four letter word reared it's ugly head - W-O-R-K. I did my first official day of orientation, the second picture is the river I have to cross to get to the hospital, don't you just love it? The day was bit slow and usual for orietation, Karen gave me a boatload of information I won't ever remember. I also had to take a rather involved online test which took the FULL hour and a half which was more due to fact I was continously being kicked off, answers not being recorded, etc. Despite all I got an 88 and Karen said she would have to look at the test herself since I got the same answers wrong everyone else did. The rest of the day was pretty good and all paperwork. Today I am orientating on the ICU and off for the weekend. David is making good his threat of extending the loft over the dining room, he's waiting to hear if his bid on a job will be accepted and wanted to get this done now while he has the time. It looks like it'll go quickly. The people that bought the house next door are out this week, David didn't realize that when he was busy yelling for Charger this morning who was off eating "gifts" from the deer, luckily he didn't call out any of Charger's alternate names. The snow is still here but I think it will melt soon, I can't believe LI got 4 more inches than we did. They're calling for it to be in the 50's next week! Jackson's already complaining about the end of his vacation and getting back to school. Adam seems to be doing fine and hopefully has adjusted to the time zone. I'm sure he'll be staying close to the ship as he is broke. And before I forget - Happy New Year's Eve!

Happy Birthday Jackson!

Jackson turned 15 yesterday. His favorite present this year was from Aunt Janet and Aunt Diane - a cell phone! I turned it on and Aunt Janet called at midnight since by then it was the official time for his birthday. He played with it all day yesterday, we know every ringer tone he has. We took him to the mall in Wilkes-Barre to shop and spend some of the money he got - his favorite store Hot Topic is there where all the clothes are black and very Dramatic and seem to have chains and so forth hung from all corners . The boots he wanted weren't there so David's taking him to an Army store today. We then went to Dickson City so he could go to Game Stop which for Jackson is as close to a religious experience as you can get. He no longer goes to church because he's going through a mad at god phase while exploring other beliefs so we go along with that, he and the big guy will just have to work it out on thier own. For his birthday dinner we did Olive Garden at 2pm and were going to do a bit more shopping but then the unpredicted snow started - what a mess! EVERYONE was making a dash for home so traffic was tied up forever. I'll tell you one thing - I would never buy a minivan, they cannot handle even an inch of snow. They were the only cars sliding and spinning thier wheels. David didn't mind the traffic too much because I put on a radio station that plays ALL the songs you know the words to. Jackson just turned his CD player up to avoid having to hear Buttercup and anything by Diana Ross.  We bought a boston creme pie for the birthday cake as Jackson doesn't eat regular cake and being unable to find birthday candles used a tealight. Whatever works. We've heard from Adam, a list of the stuff he forgot but he seems to be fine. I'm guessing he didn't get in trouble over his leave papers which clearly state on the top DO NOT DESTROY OR LOSE, but didn't say anything about running them through a washer and dryer (oops). He had taped them together so I guess they passed. His ship is going into drydock pretty soon so hopefully that will give him time to look into college loans, etc.. to prepare for his Dramatic Exit in a year and a half.

Sad To See It End....

I woke up feeling not so good this morning. Nothing concrete, just a bit sick to my stomach, vague headache, tired, achey. I'm not sure if I'm coming down with a cold or perhaps the cumulation of a busy and stressful holiday season. Quitting a job, getting a job, Adam's coming home - and the usual messy send off,  the first Christmas and Jackson's first birthday spent away from home. Adam (from what we can figure) must've caught the next flight out and then hopefully transferred in O'hare for Japan. We haven't heard from him yet which is causing mild anxiety - I know with the time zones and his 18 hours of traveling he probably won't contact us for a couple of days, but still - my stint on a trauma floor left me with the indelible lesson that it's called "the unexpected" for a reason. Worry worry worry - David claims I do it because I think if worry hard enough it won't happen. Probably right. Jackson will be 15 tomorrow, we're taking him shopping for his birthday and then out to dinner which are two of his favorite things to do. He's been playing Fable nonstop on his new XBox , turned out to be a good choice of a gift. The cats have been pestering each other all day, it snowed last night about 3" and the temp is about 16 right now. Even Mr. Lee has been misbehaving ,sneaking up behind sleeping Vincent and giving him a good rap upside the head and then sprinting off with him in pursuit. I'm once again attempting to build a fire in the woodstove, I'm beginning to think I might not be getting a badge after all. Unless they're giving out a Smoking Out The Basement Badge this year! Little Update: I just got an email from the CMC of the Gary (Of course I have the Commanding Officer's email, silly geese!!) Adam did arrive safe and sound to the Gary. I guess I can stop worrying.

The Day After Christmas Should Be Cancelled.....

Because it always sucks. David, Adam and Jackson left out of here around 11 am yesterday. It was pretty well controlled mayhem, we'd kept track of the important stuff so there was no frantic scrambling. Adam ended up having to repack a couple of times, sorting through what he was taking and what he was leaving for Jackson to happily glom over, we found a carryon bag for him. In between he fielded a ton of phone calls of everyone saying goodbye. I cried when he left - I always do. I guess because I know I won't see him, it's not like he can come home on the weekends or for holidays. I'll be glad when he's done with this. They got to the hotel in good time - Adam and Jackson had fun prowling the hotel, Adam more so than Jackson since he can legally prowl the bar. Adam's flight is for 6:05 am this morning, the hotel had a shuttle that left at 4:40 much to David's relief - he was not looking foward to trying to find Adam's gate in the dark. Hopefully it'll go smoothly - he's flying American which is in the news today for stranding holiday travelers. The Lester Luck appears to  be holding out. The rest of Christmas was wierd for me, I spent it by myself for the first time in 43 years. It wasn't too bad, just quiet and certainly didn't feel like a holiday. The zoo and I had a nice fire going in the woodstove and then we sat and watched Christmas shows on the tv set. I start my new job on the 30th and I'm looking foward to it, it seems like a nice place to work. Sigh, I just heard from Adam. He missed his flight and is rescheduled for one an hour later. I was able to get ahold of David before he left the hotel thank goodness so we are now in a holding pattern.

Merry Christmas

The only complaint I have is it went way too fast. We opened gifts yesterday and everyone got what they wanted - long underwear is very popular in this neck of the woods. Adam had recieved a set last year from my mother and has worn it ever since. So we bought him a second set and bought Jackson the long underwear shirt which to our surprise - he loved! We went out to dinner early, there's a restaurant near Milford called the Happy Valley Family Restaurant that I've been dying to go to. You will all be pleased to know the food is good and the waitresses are hot so everyone was satisfied. We spent the rest of the day doing a little sightseeing and then back home for a quiet evening by the fire. The boys were both video-gaming themselves to death with all the new games. Adam was still goofing around with Vincent - we've discovered he is a VERY heavy sleeper which is a bit wierd for a cat. I have no idea how he avoided being eaten while he was outside given the fact you can actually pick him up,play with his feet, etc and he doesn't wake up. Adam would sneak him back to Japan with him I think if he could. Today he's leaving, they're heading off around 11 or so and will be staying at the Marriot which is actually on the airport. It works out well because the temps have dipped down into the teens and are going to stay there according to the weather channel. This way they can do thier traveling during the day and I don't have to worry about them getting stuck or lost somewhere in the middle of the night.  If David makes one more comment about how cold it is I'm going to put him on an ice floe and give him something to complain about.

There's No Place Like Home For The Holidays

Merry Christmas Eve! The past two weeks have flown by - I can't believe Adam will be leaving tomorrow. We went to the mall in Wilkes-Barre the other day, it was alright but not the great mall as touted. It certainly was no King Of Prussia! Adam is completely broke, but ok with it. He did spend more than planned but since most things he can't get in Japan he'll just cut back when he gets back to base. Yesterday we took him to Cinemark, the enormous movie theater - he was suitably impressed. You can see it from the highway it's so big, especially since it's sitting on the side of Montage Mountain. We saw Blade which was very good - we went in the afternoon at 2 pm and had to wait on line for our tickets. One thing about that theater, it always seems to be busy. When we got out it was pouring rain and we hit traffic but not too bad. We're going to do Christmas today and go out for dinner. I think Jackson will be going with David and Adam to the airport to send off his big brother. He only has another year and a half left and then he's done. We will miss him greatly. Not much going on other than that, the temp dropped this morning so since we had all that rain last night I'll probably be chipping my car out of it's ice sculpture. The deer have been hanging around our yard which makes a new problem since we have ChargerBarger Poo Eater. It's like a buffet out there!

Season's Greetings

Adam and Jackson with David's parents. I can't believe Adam will be leaving in two days already! David said yesterday it feels like he never left, it's been so good to have him here with us. There were a few things that didn't go right of course - his plans for NYC fell through, but with the limited amount of time he had plus the weather it was near to impossible. He's been shopping like a maniac, most of the things here he can't find in Japan or he says if he does find them, they're so expensive he can't afford it. We're going to the movies today and then will be celebrating Christmas tomorrow pretty much since he'll be leaving after lunch on Christmas Day. The animals have loved having him home, especially Copper. Copper really was Adam's dog growing up and since Adam has gotten here we haven't seen Copper at night - he's back sleeping with his friend, hogging the blankets and stealing the pillows. Adam 's starting to make plans for after the navy and is considering  being an english teacher - who would've seen that one coming? As much as he has not liked the navy I think it was the best thing for him - I think it gave him time to figure out what to do with his life while learning how to live on his own. His two friends are going in, one is starting boot camp in June and the other will be going later in the year. This will be three people that joined the navy because of Adam.

Oh What A Troubled Web We Weave...

That's Vincent being very overwhelmed by a new toy - some cats can't handle it. I attempted to retrieve my paycheck from Moses Taylor, but of course there has to manuvering etc. Apparently it's against policy to mail it to me since if they did that it would cut down on the badgering. The nurse manager called and told me since I had called in sick my last day I wouldn't be recieving any vacation time earned and she was willing to go out on a limb,personal sacrifice,yada yada and could arrange for me to work another shift to make it up. Hmm. That would be a NO. Not that I'm so rich I don't need the money or even want it, but A) I can pretty much guess the one shift would be a 12 hour one on Christmas and B) Can you smell trouble in the making? After my send off of getting written up the last thing I need is to give them another whack at me! I could tell she was pretty surprised that I thanked her kindly and turned her down.  So the next pay period I can come into HR to turn in my badge and then I will get my final paycheck sans any vacation time.I went to my first day of orientation at Wayne Memorial - you have to cross a river on a footbridge from the employee parking which is cool AND it only took me 20 minutes to get there which is cooler. I got there 10 minutes ahead of time to find out they'd cancelled orientation due to only 2 new employees and had moved it to 1/4. They were very apologetic and started making busybee work for me, but I told them I knew they had other things to do and I certainly didn't mind. I scored some brownie points for being a good sport and skeddled back home by 9! I don't have to be back until the 30th. I made reservations for David and Adam on Christmas, since his flight leaves at 6:10 am the 26th I'd figured it would make more sense for them to be there so they'll be at the Marriot which is right in the airport and they have all night shuttle service. It's a shame he'll have to leave Christmas afternoon but I didn't want them driving in the middle of the night in case they got lost or bad weather. He's going to try to make it into NYC - we'll see!

Over The River And Through The Woods

We finally did make it out to the car - an hour later. I got a call from the nursing board before we left - I'd gotten a letter telling me my license was NOT valid because the check hadn't cleared - considering the check was sent July 5th I was a bit upset. After a flurry of activity I got it straightened out - they hadn't cashed the check until Sept - 3 months after we moved and surprisingly the account was closed. ANYHOW -it's fixed and we got through NYC well arriving at Mom's around 12. Adam and I headed out to the nursing home to see Grandma Hendrickson who despite her numerous complaints looks extremely well and she's her usual self. She's back in form, mixing it up with the nurses and gossiping (quite loudly!) about her roommate.We walked all around the nursing home and everyone greeted her as we walked by. I'm sure in another month or two she'll know every gory detail about everyone. I did have to laugh at her bulletin board - I knew Carol had done it because mine and Davids' pictures were the only ones not on there! However, she was kind enough to include my kids so I will give her that. When we got back Adam scampered off and Jackson was already calling to let me know he was staying at Josh's. We went to Dad's the next morning, the baby is 3 now, can you believe it?? I was amazed at how fast she's growing up and can talk talk talk!! She HAS to be from our side of the family!! It was great seeing Janet and we very much missed Diane. John and Carleen were at my Mom's from dinner, the children are so cute and they look great. It was a bit touch and go with Adam and John - Adam is currently Mad At The Navy but he got over it. John may be a captain but he is not Adam's and Adam did have us laughing with his various complaints about THEM. Sunday we went to visit David's parents and Bob finally got the apples David has been promising, buying and forgetting. We've been eating pounds of apples because of this affliction. (David has forgotten on two occasions forcing us to eat the 10 pounds of apples he bought).  We got back here around 3pm - Ray had left that morning because they were calling for bad weather and he has a hard time with that. We were disappointed but I would rather he be safe. We went out to the chinese buffet AGAIN but will be staying home tonight. I do my one day of orientation tomorrow and then am off until the 30th

Just Five More Minutes Mom.....

We had grand plans to leave at 7:30am - here is how we're doing percentage-wise

People with thier shoes on - 0%, Had a shower -66%, Still in the shower despite having been yelled at 4 times we have to get going - 33%, Packed - 33%, Number of suitcases in the car - 0, Still on the computer - 33%.  I think we may be experiencing minor delays this morning. We've got a very busy schedule once we hit Hampton Bays - Adam still needs to see a flotilla of relatives and I haven't been home in a year! David put the tree up and the lights on last night but we will be decorating it when we get home. Isn't it cool that THIS is home now! See ya on the flip side!

Black Bart And His Evil Sidekick

Anyone notice a trend? Poor David is sticking out like a sore thumb these days since he refuses to dress like Snidely Whiplash like the rest of the family. We took Adam shopping yesterday, he seems to be enjoying that the most. We did Borders and the small mall - I'm almost done with my christmas shopping. Adam is having a great time buying american. We're leaving for LI in the am tomorrow - Jacks will miss another day of school but there's no helping that. Ray will be coming out here to Pa on Saturday to pal around with David and then we will be back here on Sunday afternoon to spend some time with him. I'm done with Moses Taylor but still have to turn in my badge and figure out how to retrieve my paycheck. Not much going on! The last two pictures are of the poncho currently in progress and looking like it might be sized correctly to boot (it's worked from the bottom up) - anyone interested let me know. It's going to striped - maroon and white.

The Lifestyle Of The Unemployed

I had a great time by myself I have to admit. Here is a little helpful hint - if burning a fakie log in the fireplace DO NOT AGITATE IT WITH THE POKER. It says that right on it by the way, but some of us can't resist which resulted in some of us debating making a mess with the fire extinguisher vs calling the fire department. I waited it out and it finally died down but it was a bit touch and go. The dogs were hanging around the door ready to abandon ship at one point. Other than that I spent Monday knitting and eating health foods such as Yule Log and Friday's Spinich and Artichoke dip on nacho chips. Tuesday it was back to business, I cleaned the house and did a little shopping, then called in sick for my last day. I think they were laying in wait for me because normally the Nursing Office just takes my call but this time they tried to put me through to Warren. But he was NOT in his office so I got to be the Weasel. I'm sure there will be payback down the road, but I was NOT going to miss Adam again. They got home around one, so we sat around and visited and then took Adam to the chinese buffet at his request. You would think living in an asian country he wouldn't even want to look at it, but he said there they have the real deal - steamed and full of veggies. As opposed to American "chinese" which is drowned in batter, deep fried, slathered in sauce with tons of other stuff on the menu (our chinese buffet serves roasted potatoes and spinich florintine). He went to bed fairly early, I think the time switch and all the activity has finally caught up with him. I found a box of his old clothes and after sorting through we found a good amount of stuff that still fits. We are so glad to have him home.

Jabba The Nut

I should probably stop posting pictures of the cats all the time but they're so wierd all the time it's hard not to take tons of pictures of them. The good thing about having a digital camera is I can erase them so I don't have a zillion prints lying around. David and the crew headed off to LI yesterday, my mom said Adam and Jackson came in the front and ran out the back - they've both been making Big Plans for weeks! I had my last night at work - it's supposed to be Tuesday but I'm calling in sick. As a final Kick In The Pants the nurse manager wrote me up for some silly infraction I hadn't realized I'd committed - I just wrote "I don't remember this event" across it and signed it - I probably shouldn't have signed it at all but the sidekick hit me with it as I was heading out the door and took me by surprise and you know what they say about hindsight.... but it's all the more reason to call in as I would prefer they not get another crack at me. The crew will be home on Tuesday so I'm taking today to just potter around and watch tv. Sounds like a plan to me!

All Ashore Who's Going Ashore

Despite planes, trains and automobiles, Adam made it home finally. Janet picked him up at Philly International - after a delay of over 2 hours. David and Jackson headed out the next morning to take him to LI but he wanted to see me, so they headed back to our house instead. I was so glad they did because although I had resigned myself to not seeing him until Tuesday it was upsetting. He looks very good and his dog Copper was beside himself with joy as were we all. It must be strange for him visiting us in our new house but he does like the house alot. He had trouble sleeping David said, but I'd figured he would since timewise in Japan it would be daystime for him. I just wish he was staying longer. They headed out for LI this morning after I got home from work and will be back Tuesday. I was supposed to work 7 - 7 overnights but have called in for the first four hours each night so it's actually only 11 -7. I think they are annoyed but whatever. I've been there over 4 months and haven't called in once and it's not like I'm calling off for the entire night. Tempting that was, but I didn't.

No Rest For The Wicked

David and I went to Milford again yesterday, it always seems when we head out that way we never have enough time. It's a beautiful little historic town setttled in 1790 and is restored victorians as far as the eye can see. We walked around for a bit but since Jackson had an orthodontist appointment we had to head back around noon-ish. We did spend a tiny amount of time fooling around in New Jersey. For 75 cents you can go over to where the popular people live or you can run the border out of Milford and hope the border patrol doesn't hunt you down like the dogs you are and ship you back to Pennsylvania. I also took a picture of the Delaware River. We didn't get much sleep last night, Adam called me at 1 am all stressed out. He'd left the boat as soon as he could but wasnt sure if he had enough time to make it to the airport., He asked what he should do and I told him GET OFF THE PHONE AND TRY GETTING ON THE TRAIN. We got a quick call at 3:45 am to let us know he was at the airport and he sounded quite chipper. I didnt mind because strangely enough I was not sleeping. The dogs were whining so I let them out around 4 and Claw ran out behind them. I went back upstairs and not 20 minutes later heard Claw howling  A LOT. Please note none of this is sleep-inducing. I called her and she didn't come in but as soon as I shut the door she shrieked again. David ran down and let the dogs out again, there was alot of noise and running around, but whatever was trying to eat her ran off and she came bolting in the house. No more 4 am runs for her! I guess I'll be heading off to bed after dinner tonight despite the fact I probably got a good solid 4 hours of sleep already, sigh.............

Help, I've Been Shot

I went over to Wayne Memorial to do paperwork yesterday morning. While I was filling out everything from parking information to swearing I had never beaten a child I had a PPD done and then the person doing the paper work realized I hadn't had a tetnus so she dug around in her fridge and gave me one while I was sitting there in the office. Hmm. I do hope she was a nurse..... Anyhow I did pee in a cup and got my parking sticker so with the exception of a physical I'm ready to go. My arm is sore today which I expected but hate. In the pictures I posted today is the Jadwin Dam that David and I came across in our travels last week. It's pretty spectacular, the bad things about pictures is they rarely do thier subjects justice, when you're standing over looking the dam it's so huge but in the pictures it just looks like a dip here and there. The 6th picture is me in my furry high heels! So I can be stylish yet warm. I got a letter from Adam today the Grumpy Monkey who is getting quite anxious to leave. I can't believe it's only two more days! And the last picture is of Vincent showing off his rather round belly. If we walk by he flops over so we can rub it for him. David put him out before he left yesterday so when I came home he was a bit hystercial, having been left out on the deck TO DIE. Claw was also left out on the deck to die, but was handling it a bit better. It was nothing a bowl of sardines and a warm couch couldn't cure.

The Excitment Never Ends Around Here.

We had more than a dusting of snow last night which then turned to rain and then ice.  I find driving in the snow enjoyable but I do NOT like driving with ice. While coming down 348 I saw a car stopped and turning so I tapped my brakes and proceeded to slide about 60 feet. The car seemed to just sitting there for an eternity  but I'm sure that was just my perspective as I was cheerfully slaloming towards them with no way of stopping. It turned before I got there and I was able to slow my car without anymore dramatic turns of events, but I guess I'll have to be more careful. The countdown at work continues - the nurse manager seems to be coldly polite to me. I'm trying to watch myself as it's very nerve wracking and to add to it the staff seems to be getting shorter and shorter. I'm sure any input from me at this point would add fuel to the fire, but the management seems to have no clue how to treat thier staff. My old boss at Stonybrook had his moments but overall he defended us and went the extra to make sure we always had enough help and it was the same at Mon Gen in WV. This place in response to the shortage  is to badger the staff to work extra or even worse, force them to. I've had four nurses so far come up to me asking about WM in the past week People are calling out sick which makes it worse and working has become hellish to say the least. And to add to that the manager and her sidekick have no respect at all for the nurses which makes the low morale even lower. You would think with the shortage they would be nicer to us, but I guess that hasn't occurred to them yet. We are on the countdown to Adam's return, 4 days to be exact. I'm trying not to get too excited as there is room for something to happen. Jackson asks everyday when he'll be here. Jackson by the way is getting his braces off next week!! Whoo hoo!

Hugs And Kisses....

is something Vincent very much objects to. If you kiss him alot, he gets this look of pure disgust on his face, this of course encourages me. He's such a big baby it's hard not to pick him up all the time and squeeze him! I tried to take pictures of the lights I've put up, they look much nicer in real life I have to say. David has had the fireplace going every night, he's out in the yard cutting up the trees every morning, the dead one he took down fills the backyard. We went out Christmas shopping yesterday and did quite well - we even had fun! There's an indoor flea market that we've never been able to make so we went did get there yesterday. It was huge and really great! I forgot my camera -I would have loved to take pictures- but Jackson was all over it and got most of his christmas shopping done there. It was an interesting mix of yardsale type things along side of nice things including jewelry and jukeboxes.  Jackson found an Army/Navy store that he loved, David nixed the disarmed torpedo despite Jackson's reassurance he did have somewhere to put it. We went to the Burlington Coat Factory which I'm sure is the same store as the one on LI but this one is way nicer - I was all over THAT.  Jackson managed to somehow talk his father into buying him a full length black trench coat. He has no "inbetween" coat so we've been looking around for one and Jackson found a lined trench coat. Between him in that and me in my full length leather black coat, we're starting to look like a family of bank robbers. David and I got about half of our shopping done, now we just have to finish cleaning up the house!

How Attractive Is This!

As you can see, Kim got the sweater and then like any good daughter, forced her Dad to try it on. Gene is a good sport isn't he? She has reported it's the size of a bathrobe so she'll be using it for TV watching instead of impressing her neighbors by parading up and down her driveway in it. I'm currently working on a poncho right now, I figure if I oversize it that's ok - it's a poncho! I'm on the Work - Countdown, things are getting a bit tense. I'm not sure if it's just my paranoia but it seems that when the manager is near, things go a bit silent. Adam will be home in less than a week, I can't believe it. I'm so nervous something will go wrong my letters are full of information he already knows. You would think that since he's been living on his own in a foreign country no less for almost 3 years he would know how to travel, but as his mother I'm obligated to make him crazy telling him what to do. We're going to make another pass at Christmas shopping today, I've managed to buy a few, but most of the time I go to the stores, get confused, despair and then head back home. We will most likely be doing gift certifciates again this year. And of course I'll be starting a new job all in the mix of this!! I think if this next job doesnt work out, I'll look into agency nursing since I seem to have turned into a nomad since I left Stonybrook. The person that hired me at Wayne Memorial told me someone gave me a glowing review so I'm curious to see who it was. I have a sneaking suspicion it WASN'T Moses Taylor! And in the Tree Slaughtering Dept we had a surprise visit from the Gestapo yesterday due to someone's chainsawing activity. He managed to skinny by them but he had better watch his butt or it will be Condo Jail for him!

Merry Cat-mis!

I've been busy decorating the house steady, AC Moore's  been having tons of sales so I have garland and velvet bows to spare. Vincent is shaping up to be trouble for the holidays, he's finding decorations are fun to bat around - the idea of him around a tree full of shiny objects and lights is daunting to say the least. Mr. Lee has been doing her part by marching around on the handrail and chewing the bows a tiny bit. The wind has been howling all day with rain off and on. David's been trying to finish cutting up the trees. Yes, I did use the plural. Yesterday he went out and was tugging on a vine wrapped around another tree by the house. He gave it one big yank and snapped the tree in half! I went out to see a large trunk suspended about a foot above our roof  by vines. David is claiming it was an accident but I think it was not. He's been sneaky cutting down trees steady since we got here. I told him that people that do not like trees should not live in the WOODS. Anyhow he told the Gestapo and they told him it was alright to cut down any tree within ten feet of our deck which give the Tree Hater something to think about. I will be living in a desert by spring. Work continues to be work. Wayne Memorial called yesterday to offically offer the job and I AM getting a $2500 bonus spread out over a couple of years. That's getting to be standard, Moses Taylor stopped offering a bonus because they would give it with the understanding the employee would stay a year and then  the person would leave. And it's not easy getting it back - so they just stopped giving them. As far as I'm concerned it's just gravy on the side.

 

TIMBER!

When we first moved in the Homeowners Association gave us permission to remove the large tree in our yard.. It was about 15 feet higher than the house and dead. When Ray was here he thought we should take it down now - if we get a large storm it could fall and hit the roof, so yesterday David and Jackson took it down. They had a great time since the entire activity involved Mayhem and Destruction of An Incredibly Huge Object. They had ropes and sharp objects going,  Jackson was having an especially good time swinging the axe. They got hung up at one point - there was just a little bit left on the bottom, but that small part was like iron(#5). I suggested they give it up as it was getting dark but they refused to back down from our Enemy of Wood. After more chainsaw, ropes and pushing they managed to bring down the main trunk so now our entire backyard is a mess, branches and logs all over. David will be cutting it up for firewood, one of the other reasons we took it down now. The last picture is David and Copper relaxing, Copper being all tuckered out from supervising and barking. In other news Wayne Memorial called yesterday to arrange for me to come in for paperwork, physical and of course drug screening. I've been drug screened so much in the past year everytime I see a jar I want to pee in it. I wasn't sure I'd been hired til they called so I acted cool like I knew it all along. I've got two more weeks at Moses Taylor, two long weeks I might add. The whole thing is very nerve wracking as it's two weeks to do something Very Wrong so every shift is just one more day to get through.

Black Friday

Although most people spent Black Friday shopping, others of us spent the day relaxing. The second picture is of the sweater I just finished which is currently winging it's way to Boston. It's the size of a bathrobe(someday I will learn to gauge!)  so I thought it would be best for it to do it's duty as a sweater in the sub zero home of Kim. Not to mention the color is Boston Rose. I slept til noon and then we went off adventuring, heading out to Dingman's Ferry. When we got to the bridge David pulled over - according to him and Ray there was toll to cross the bridge. I told him if one of the big spenders in the front couldn't pony up the SEVENTY FIVE CENTS to cross the stinkin' bridge I certainly could, sigh. Dingmans' Ferry is just that. A Ferry. The rest is B-O-R-I-N-G. If  I'd known it was going to be nothing but road and a couple drugstores, I probably would've thought twice about coughing up the 75 cents and haggled it down to a quarter. We headed out to Milford which was much nicer and I'm looking foward to going back when I have more time - it's all these beautiful old historic building with lots of knick knack stores. We had a great time walking around, David and Ray had been there  when we were looking for a house. A fixer-up cost about 150,000 so it's a pretty expensive area.  We ate dinner in the italian restaurant uptown where we had dinner with Janet and Diane and then back home. I've got to call the dentist today, one of the crowns he put in last week is hurting which stinks since I have to go to work tonight and the only day off I have is Monday. I'm back to work tonight, time is just dragging of course. And Ray heads back to NJ tommorrow. The weather is really cold now, 20 degrees but no snow yet!

Friends That Bite

As you can see, Claw has no problem biting the hand that feeds her. Or any hand as a matter of fact. Stinky work just got stinkier, I got my new "Schedule Of Revenge" - you dont want to know. I completely blew off Thanksgiving, I was so stressed out I couldn't sleep so I told David, Ray and Jackson to go out without me. I thought about going, but would've spent the entire time counting down the hours I had left to sleep and how long til I had to be back at work while hurrying everyone through thier meal. We're going out again today and I'll celebrate the holiday without having to worry. Ray is here for a few days, the temp dropped big time last night! It's now in the 20's we got a dusting of snow so I think it's a prelude to the rest of the winter. David prefers to stay delusional for now. Ray's down for a few days, I was thinking we might try to shop but I don't know as it is black friday! So we may just limit ourselves to Post Thanksgiving Dinner. Jackson the Stinker is still in bed and Vincent is busy making troubles upstairs. David and Ray went out to breakfast which is traditional for them.

Working Without A Net..

I must enjoy chaos in my life since I seem to be inviting it in everytime it shows up. I quit my job this morning, handed in my resignation at 7:30 am sharp. I think I've mentioned things were not going well - from my point of view at least - and yesterday David suggested we go to Wayne Memorial in Honesdale. It's a small, rural community hospital and I've always regretted not looking at them closer. I just showed up (as is my habit) and was directed to Human Resources across the street, housed in a turn of the century home. I filled out an application and was told they would call me later. I decided to do an independent tour of the hospital and just walked right in and wandered around until I found the nursing office. I was offered a job in the ICU and Telemetry (you float between the two floors) they sent for the nurse manager and my application. They seem to be better staffed, it pays $3 more an hour, FREE parking, closer to home and I can toss the all whites. There were a few strange things - I did mention it's a rural hospital - I actually saw two nurses wearing white dresses and CAPS. The nurse manager said they've always worn the caps and it was ok with her. Quitting this morning was not easy - as much as I don't like the way they staff the floor I have become quite attached to some of the people I work with. The manager was very gracious about it but looked about this far from crying which made me feel really bad. My last day will be the 14th - RN's have to give 3 weeks notice but I think maybe I'll send everyone to NY then and can finish up while Adam and them visit. It'll work out. Right now is a stomach clencher of course because I have to wait for my references to come back, etc...and there's always room for error. Oh well, there's always the Wal-Mart Greeter job!!

Say Cheese! (Cake!)

The weekend went well - I slept not too good Friday morning - I was too excited about guests!! and was a bit nervous about the dentist. I had TWO crowns put in, I've got temporaries and the one in the way back is shiny metal so I spent most of the weekend making gang signs at Diane since I now have a rapper tooth.. Janet and Di arrived around 7 pm - just in time for the roast chicken to be done and then we sat around the fire, drinking wine, watching tv and talking. Everyone was tired so we all went to bed early and of course everyone was up at a ridiculously early time the next morning. Well, some of us. The rain started before dawn but we're hardy souls in Pennsylvania and can shop in any weather. We drove out to the Pocono Cheesecake Factory - it's very expensive but worth it. Jackson and I got chocolate (1/4) and cherry (1/2) for $25 - Janet and Di got about $50. The man behind them was ordering a HUGE amount, taking 4 cheesecakes of this, a couple of that, we should've stayed to hear what his bill was! We had lunch at the local diner - man does not live by cheesecake alone - and then off to the outlets. We did great and had so much fun shopping. We got home by three and everyone sacked out for the afternoon. We had dinner in a local italian resturant where Di and Janet told us all about thier trip to Italy. This morning we went to breakfast at the clubhouse - dinner there is outrageously pricey, but breakfast is reasonable. After breakfast we drove and around and showed them the rest of the hideout and then they left around 11:30. The animals tried to behave - but failed. At least Copper didn't have that awful gas he had the last time they visited! And Mr. Lee showed off her balancing skills on the loft. We went out this afternoon to Dixon City, I decorated the mantel over the fireplace for Christmas. We didn't buy too much as we need to look and see what we have. But we did have a very good weekend!

Bend Over And Open Wide

This is an interesting picture I took at the Coal Mining Museum - it's a pair of antique bowel forceps - I'm not sure exactly how they were used, but the ends are made of leather. Hygenically speaking I certainly wouldn't want to be the SECOND person  in line to be seen!! Antique medical equipment can usually out do any torture device known to man, most of it is scary just to look at. I'm finally off today, I've got a dentist appointment at 3:30 and then Janet and Diane are finally coming to visit us! I've got a three day weekend so I 'm really looking foward to having visitors and being awake the entire time for it. Janet said Diane isn't bringing her bowel forceps because they're in the dishwasher at the moment - I guess we'll just have to share mine. Work is not going very well, we're always understaffed and they have a strange nursing model. They use "pods" which is actually team nursing. It's me, an LPN and an aide - but they always pull the aide and even though the LPN is responsible for labs, dressings and meds if they dont' do it or miss something I'M responsible. And there's 12 patients to each pod. I might just nose around at the other hospital I considered in Honesdale and put it on the back up list for now.

We've Had Our Fill Of Roadkill

One of the things they don't do here that they do on LI is clean up road kill - ever. The most effort I've seen is the dead animal slung up on the shoulder of the road if it's blocking traffic.. Someone hit a beaver a few months ago shortly after we moved here. Beavers are NOT this size of bunnies in case you don't know - they're actually about 60 lbs. Anyhow, since it's a road we frequent we get to see it - or what's left of it - quite often. I kick myself for not getting David to skin it - free fur! But we do get the entertainment of watching it disintergrate and left to it's own devices, a body takes a very very VERY long time to disappear. First it poofed up big and then the next week even bigger. This was followed by deflation, infestation and flattened out. It's almost gone now, you can't even tell what it was. Everyday a little bit more disppears, it's just a sad little smudge on the side of the road.  And there's all sorts of roadkill here, I've seen just about every indigenous animal ka-powed on the road except for birds. And there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of birds around here anyhow, I've seen some Canadian geese and there's that annoying woodpecker that taps on  my bedroom wall at the precise moment I fall asleep, but other than that not much in the way of avian life.  Tons of deer however! And the deer hate Vincent for some reason which we find hilarious to say the least. We don't worry about Vincent being roadkill because he would have to move away from the door for that to happen. Jackson is going to be roadkill if he doenst get his grades up - he's failing both science and math - we're getting on him a little, but after having moved twice in 6months we can give him a little grace period. Just a little side note - Kim found a copy of that tape of the house of WV so she gets at least 6 Brownie Points! Thank you!

Something more Familiar....

That's Vincent with Jackson, he's come a long way, hasn't he? Jackson jokes around that he could be his "familiar" but I told him most familiars don't grunt and fart all the time. He also snorts if you pick him up which of course means we pick him up all the time. He's playing now too - much to the alarm of the dogs, his favorite thing is to sit in a kitchen chair and whap the dogs as they walk by. He still surfs the bowls but has lost that stray cat behavior of eating everything as fast as he can. He's not out  too much - we try to put him out once a day which doesn't do much good. He just sits outside the door looking peevish until we let him back in. Janet and Diane are coming to visit this week, I have a 3 day weekend but I'm paying for it ahead of time by working shift after shift with only a couple days off here and there. The weather has been good this week, in the 50's and the snow melted but I'm sure that's a temporary situation. We've been seeing more deer (I didn't think that was possible!) and even some bucks have been coming around. As you can see, not much has been going on lately - I feel like all I do is work and sleep, and knit of course! Jackson was messing around with the woodstove last night - he didn't start a fire but was putzing with the hot ashes and managed to smoke the entire house out. Instead of sleeping we were awoken around 10:30 flinging the doors open and running the fan to clear the house, another relaxing evening at the Lesters.

The Grudge

Jackson and I finally made it to the movies today - we havent been to one since July I think. Since I've always worked nights we go in the afternoon - Jackson doesn't mind and if it's a scary movie even better - the possibility of being stalked by the Undead is much less on a sunny afternoon. We went to the theater on Montage Mountain which I've mentioned before. Here we are out in the sticks and it's a complex that houses TWENTY MOVIE THEATERS. The parking lot covers at least two acres and the inside is beautiful - marble and red velvet and couldn't be cleaner. We saw The Grudge so we were scared while sitting  in our plush reclinable seats. We had a great time and will be visiting there again. It's not too bad of a price, $20 for the two of us including popcorn and so forth. David's off visiting his new friend Roman who lives here on the weekends  and is originally from Russia. The weather is very cold and is a bit bitter. I've got to work all weekend which is stinky-poo, but work wise it's not too bad since most of the Md's don't admit on the weekend. BRRR!! I think I'll put a sweater on!

A Hazy Shade Of Winter

It snowed again today with freezing rain mixed in so I'm guessing winter comes early in this neck of the woods. David's been perfecting his firebuilding skills, the woodstove thing is sort of tricky. If you don't heat the chimney first the smoke backs up - but you've got to fast heat it up. At the moment I'm squinting for all the smoke and he has the fan on, better luck next time! Work has been busy, working full times night shift  can be overwhelming at times but I've been sleeping much better and am getting used to my schedule. I'm not entirely happy with this hospital, I've recently found they like to write everyone up for everything. One patient didn't have thier compression stockings on for 48 hours and 8 nurses had to sign some silly paper including me. It doesn't amount to anything of course, but it's annoying and upsetting to say the least. But I'm not going be too hasty picking up and moving on -there isn't a whole lot of places to pick from around here and starting over at another hospital you're taking your chances that it might either be the same situation - or worse.  David has slowed down on working on the house recently and got his contractor's insurance renewed. The house next to us was sold - in under a week no less! I hope they arent going to be noisy people. The Hideout seems to be the ghetto for NY and NJ people, everyone here is from those two states. This must be where they contain us!

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!

Here's a picture I took of the first snow yesterday.  Actually, there were flurries on Monday but it didn't stick not to mention I was sleeping so that didn't count. It's pretty much all melted now, but the temps are supposed to be in the 30's this week so we may have a repeat. We're supposedly getting a cord of wood this morning. David had called a guy about 2 or 3 weeks ago and he said he'd call the night before he brought the wood. The guy never called so Monday David started looking for someone else and lo and behold guy #1 calls last night to tell us he'll be here in the am with the wood. I'm guessing since no one ever mentioned a time frame, no foul has been committed. I made a beef stew last night which everyone enjoyed and I made dumplings with it. Jackson didn't know what they were and brought his plate over to me so I could look at them. I did admit to putting them in his plate, he sat there and poked and prodded them like he had small animals in his dinner. He finally took a bite and then I found him in the kitchen snarfling down the extra.

BEEF STEW:

2 -3 lbs of stew meat. 8 potatoes, 1 lb baby carrots, 5 cups water, 4 beef boullion,bay leaves, 1/2 Rolling Rock Beer**, 3 tablespoons Wisteshire sauce, 1 large sweet onion, olive oil, flour, corn starch

Dredge meat in flour, brown in oil, remove. More oil, saute onion and add beef. Boil the water while you do this, add to pot and mix in everything but the vegetables. Cook on low for an hour and half, covered and stirring occasionally. When meat is cooked through, add vegtables, turn up to med low and cook til done. When done make a slurry with tsp of cornstarch and cold water, whisk in to thicken gravy. If you want dumplings buy Bisquick and follow directions. Everything here is approximate, I haven't measured in years, add or subtract according to taste.

** It's important to buy good beer because you get to drink the remaining half for lunch.

Living For The Weekend

Ray left yesterday - we had a great time. On Sunday we went to Montage Mountain and took some pictures. There was no one there but I'm sure once snow season starts it must be hopping. We also found the movie theater which for being sort of in the middle of nowhere, it's extremely huge - it's bigger than the cineplex in Brookhaven and has a parking lot that covers a couple acres. There's also a really big stadium there - there was some sort of game going on at the time. Next we went to the Anthrocite Coal Mining Museum - Rays' father was a coal miner at one point after immagrating here from Poland so he found it very interesting. You can take a tour of a real coal mine too, but we didn't since some of us have issues with being buried alive and stuff. After that we went out to dinner and then back home. I had to work that night so I went to bed right after supper and passed out for about 3 hours. The temp has dropped considerably AND it snowed last night! Not much, about half an inch, but it's snow. The dogs and I are very excited but David is being a big CrabbyPants about it which he needs to stop since we live in the SNOW BELT I'm sure it will snow at least a couple more times (haha). Maybe I'll put him on an ice floe to teach him a lesson like the eskimo's do. He's got to order a cord of wood, I love having two fireplaces. I guess I'd better go get Jackson to get out of bed, he's been fine-tuning his Bed Clinging Technique and has his apprentice with him this morning!

At The Olive Garden, You're Family!

See, EVERYONE was out to dinner last night! Did you know that's how they feed cows? I thought they just threw stuff around but apparently there is a Cow Feeding System. Ray's out for the weekend and the weather's co-operating - chilly but nice and the sky couldn't have been bluer! The second picture is us out to dinner at the Olive Garden(I prefer thier Feeding System)- we decided to go early and had dinner around 4pm. Good thing, around here on the weekends going out to dinner is big. When we left around 5:15, the line was out the door and I'm sure the wait was over an hour. We rented a couple of movies, don't rent Stuck On You - the blurb on the back is way funnier than that stupid movie will ever be. We got through about 20 minutes of it and  turned it off just in time to catch The Quiet Man - now there's a good movie. We've been watching alot of old movies lately, Jackson particularly liked Psycho and The Bad Seed. We're going exploring today, I've got to work tonight but not until 11 pm so that leaves me the day to wander about and I'll go back to bed after dinner. Adam called this morning, he has indeed secured a flight and will be leaving on the 10th. The only bad thing is his return flight is Dec. 26th out of Philly International AT SIX AM. I guess we'll figure it out. He's going to be underway again for awhile so figured he'd call before he left. He's still a Stuck On The Boat Monkey and will be for awhile. Ray will probably come out while he's home for the holidays which will be great, all of us together again. Ray's nephew has also offered to help us with the WV lawsuit thing (he's a lawyer) which makes me feel better. Are you wondering about the 3rd picture posted?? I told you we went out for dinner - and it's always a good thing to HAVE PIE FOR DESSERT. EEWWWW!!!!!

One Last Look At The Leaves....

...since they certainly don't look like that now! They were in the process of turning all brown and then for the past two days we've had rain and high winds, which subsequently stripped the trees bare instantly. It was like instant winter.  We'll be out and about today so I'll take pictures and post them . Ray's coming out again today, we'll probably do dinner and a movie today and then drive out to Montage Mountain tomorrow. I can't tell you how great it is that he's so close to be able to visit us whenever. I'm sort of off for the weekend, I'm off yesterday and today, on Sunday for an 11 - 7 and then off for two more days. The shift in the middle sucks, but I'll take it, especially since I worked the past 9 days out of 11. We haven't heard anymore from WV, but I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop. I'm figuring since they've gone to the trouble of hiring a lawyer to represent them they won't go away that easily. Does anyone have a copy of that videotape I sent out before we moved there? Has anyone looked for it?? PLEASE let me know. The animals are fine, David and I were awakened around 4:30am this morning to some frantic rattling. Mr. Lee had shut herself up in the linen closet, much to the amusement of the other two cats who were probably laughing their butts off. She tried to walk with some shread of dignity out of it, but failed. We're hoping since she's going on 15 she'll grow up this year, but remain doubtful. The temp has dropped considerably this week so we've been using our fireplaces quite a bit, Jackson likes to stoke up the woodstove on his floor to tropical temps - the cats LOVE HIM. They're calling for possible flurries this weekend which I'm looking foward to. AND I heard from the Sea Monkey, he has secured a flight on Dec. 10th and will be flying back on the 26th. So that should make the holidays better!!

I'm Looking For Something

And what I'm looking for is a copy of the videotape I made of the WV house before we moved there. Remember when we first bought the house and I made copies of a videotape I'd taken of the whole house and sent them out? IF ANYONE kept it, please let me know - there should be some shots of that back wall in question that we're being sued for.  We've been looking but I think when we moved the second time it was either lost or thrown out.  I've started working 12 hour shifts, the good thing is I work one day a week less (2 twelve's and 2 eights) but of course the downside is working 12 hours straight. I am sleeping much better though, Mr. Lee gets ix-nayed to Jackson's room with a litter pan which of course helps a great deal. David took Jackson to the supermarket since we once again have NOTHING to eat. I'm off this weekend - I only have to work one 8 hour shift in a five day stretch so I'm much looking foward to that. I think we'll be going to Montage Mountain this weekend for a look around. There's also a movie theater that I might try to take Jackson to - do you realize we haven't been out to the movies since we left WV??

Shouldn't They Call It "Fell"?

The trees are already looking quite bare and we certainly don't have to worry about anyone sneaking up on the house. We're having a lot of fun slogging around the yard ankle deep in leaves and we always know where the dogs are. . I had my first night off orientation Sunday - Halloween to  be exact and it went well with the exception of my having to infuse a total of 4 units of blood to various patients. I didn't have a problem it was just time consuming. The vampires would've gone home empty handed on my floor!  I get along with everyone but I think there's one LPN that doesn't seem to like me. I'm not sure if it's a personality thing or the fact that she's super-duper religious and she can smell a heathen in the midst. Jackson got his new glasses on Saturday, he's nearsighted and needs to wear them except when he's reading. He likes them a great deal and does indeed look rather spiffy in them. We're still working on the lawsuit thing though the novelty of it all has worn off a bit. Now we're annoyed and will soon shift gears into Pretty Mad About The Whole Stupid Thing. David's slipping into Battle Mode - anyone that's ever seen him in action would appreciate it. I've seen him win against insurance companies so this could get interesting. Animals are fine, Vincent's gotten more comfortable and now will go outside for a couple of hours, I think he's not worrying about being abandoned anymore. The only thing we've noticed is he'll come back in to use the litter box and then go back out which we wish he wouldn't do. When Vincent uses the sand box you KNOW he's been by - he could win prizes for his hair raising visits to the facilities. Oh well, such is life.

Happy Halloween!

Of course I have to work and since most of my patient population is older than dirt and incontinent to boot - well, there will be NO trick or treating there! I had to work the daylight savings time night which sucks half of the time. If you're lucky you can work the Spring Ahead which is an hour out early. I was not lucky. I worked the Fall Behind part of the program which is having to stay an hour extra and since they don't change the clocks til later everytime you look at it you think it's 5 am! And then you deflate realizing it is only 4 am. This is exacerbated by dayshift scampering around happily since they get to come in an hour late. I ended up waking up at 1 today, the shift in time has me off schedule, but I'm off tomorrow for one day so I  can catch up on my sleep then. I made Jackson get out of bed, he doesn't even have the excuse of working, now does he? We haven't had one trick or treater and I'm trying very hard not to trick or treat myself - at least not too much. The weather is beautiful today, isn't it? I had the dogs out and they're still on Gopher Hole Patrol, we haven't seen one yet, but I guess since I'm always digging at the holes, they've probably moved.

Things Are Moving Along

Some more pictures of the family room in progress. Over the winter we'll be furnishing it, there's no hurry so when we come across something we like we'll buy it. Of course we ARE being sued so perhaps it will have to be very inexpensive furniture. Maybe that french stuff, "plas-teak". We're kind of over the shock of it all, David has touched base with thier lawyer and will speak further to her next week. This is all coming at a very bad time, we're dealing with trying to get Adam home, David's mom needs surgery, I'm adjusting to my job, etc. But on the other hand I suppose there is no "perfect" time to get sued! Jackson's doing well, he seems to be making acquaintances in school now, no real friends yet but has been having fun on the bus and at lunch - and of course metal shop. The new thing is smacking each other on the elbows with slags of metal, Jackson got nailed last week and gave it back this week. I've got no idea where the teacher is in all of this, from what I can tell he just sort blanket-yells at everyone once in awhile and then wanders off, no one seems to have an issue with this. Jackson is also taking badmitton in gym - isn't it interesting that in NY gym is all basketball and track - you get out of state and it's cup-stacking and badmitton. Last month he was playing field hockey - the boy version where the goal is not the net, but various limbs of the opposing team. Despite the rough-housing he seems to be adjusting.

A Boy Named Sue

Well, that really isn't a pictureof a boy named Sue, but while we're on the subject WE are being sued! The people that bought our house developed water and mold problems a few weeks after we left and are claiming we covered it up. The fact that we only lived there for 7 months, never saw any of this and fixed everything else from the hot water heater to the septic system -  why would we have let that go?? AND to add to it when David was doing his painting he was trying to find a better color to paint the downstairs so he experimented behind the wet bar, sigh -where the mold is. He couldn't decided on a color so just used the paint the former owners left. so it looks like he painted over it. WV seems to be the never ending saga. They've had the house inspected and it seems the house was waterproofed at one point and there's some sort of french drainage system that doesn't work and no one seems to have known about it. Not to mention they've had record rains in WV which may have been why we never saw this. We're trying not to stress about this - the bottom line is they're suing for $10,000 and even though it's ALOT of money it's not a super scary amount. The problem is even if we fight this we'll still have to pay court costs and that could amount to or supercede the amount they're suing for. David called the inspector that did the WV house and got her wife. When he told her we were being sued she told him to join the club - they're being sued for $15,000 over some peeling wallpaper at some other house he inspected a few years ago. . We're not getting crazy over this however, David's made some phone calls and we'll just let it work itself out. On the other hand any advice would be greatly appreciated at this point (or maybe donations). On other news I will be off orientation on Sunday finally! Just in time for Halloween, how strange is that? I'm also off for the weekend of the 6th in case anyone wants to visit! (BRING CASH)

Change Is Good For You!

David's been working on the house steadily, what a difference it is for him to have the time to actually do the work instead of trying to squeeze it on the weekends and nights. The first picture is the guest room which we're leaving intact for now, the decor goes with the furniture we brought with us. I found some old pictures of the living room and family room so you can really see the difference. After David's done, we'll reorganize and straighten it out, since he's constantly moving things there's no point in trying now. Jackson did make his mountain last night, when it's painted I'll post a picture. David gave him a couple of cans of instant insulation so he just squirted a mountain out on a piece of cardboard. I still dont' see the point of it myself, I can see this project for elementary but for high school students?? I'm still working on my sleeping - I waited to go to bed until 10am and got a few hours. I'll go back to bed after dinner for a couple hours more. I find it a bit silly that I've had to make sleeping a project, of course our Vincent has made it his life. We've been making him go out and it's a struggle, the second you get near the door he starts squriming to get down. He occasionally will ask to go out, but I dont think he'll ever be an outside cat again.

The Face Of Innocence

I ended up shutting Mr. Lee down the basement today, I'm having enough problems sleeping without her leading a commando assaults on the bedroom door. It's not as bad as it sounds since the "basement" is actually a carpeted family room and Jackson's bedroom is down there too. When I got up she was playing with Jackson and refused to come upstairs until later to eat, so I'm guessing she didn't suffer overly much. I'm still having trouble sleeping, insomnia during the day is an odd animal. It's not that I'm not sleeping - I am - I'm just not sleeping when I WANT to be. Instead of falling asleep when I get home I can't seem to be able to drift off until noon or so which puts my whole schedule of sitting around and watching tv off entirely. We're currently at odds with Jackson (hmmm, arguing with a teenager, how strange is that?). He was supposed to have done a project for school which was to build a mountain out of  the material of your choice. He thinks it's stupid, as do his parents but it needs to be done. So far it's a week overdue and he's been dodging his mountain building responsibilties all evening. If they thought bringing the mountain to Mohammand was difficult, they should've tried to bring it to Jackson - he apparently has been sprayed with Mountain Repellant. David's planning on launching another assault in a little while. I guess it makes the day go faster!

Hang Ten!

Of course, with Vincent naptime pretty much covers most of his day. He's got this new habit of sleeping with various parts hanging over the side of the loft which we find quite amusing. Mr. Lee's been practicing her circus act by marching back and forth along the handrail so the loft has been a great hit with the feline members of the family. Yesterday was quiet, devoted to phone calls and housework. We went out to the chinese buffet and Jackson tried the sushi. He didn't think much of it and refused to try the squid salad even though it was very cool looking with all it's tiny tetacles and tomatoes. It actually looked like something you might dare a very drunk person to eat. David met a guy down the road named Roman who's from Russia and is very nice. He's a limo driver in NYC but spends every single weekend out here. The weather's been getting chillier and the leaves are starting to turn from thier brilliant colors to drab brown. Jackson is off to see the eye doctor this afternoon and I am back at work. This week  I work a day during the weekend which I'm glad for as it will break up the week - 5 nights straight week after week is a bit hard to handle. I'm starting to Christmas shop, picking up little things here and there. Every year I try to get started early, lose steam and end up running frantically two days before Christmas. We also joined the local video store, it's no blockbuster but they seem to have quite a bit.

Just Hangin' In The Hood!

It's hard to believe it's almost Halloween. Probably because all the stores have been decorated for Christmas since September. Most seem to have thier Halloween displays butted right against the trees and holly. It's hard to feel spooky amongst the twinkling lights and snowmen! We went to a craft fair yesterday, all candles and ribbons type stuff. Jackson and David were a bit miffed, they thought there would be Dead Animal Crafting so in retalitation they persisted in following right behind me like a pair of demented baby ducks. After about half an hour of that I gave up, bought a couple of things and ix-nayed out of there. We ended up in our favorite spot, Commerce Blvd in Dickson City. Jackson reserved the Metroid Game and got a free tee-shirt which he gloated over all the way home. We went to Sam's Club to buy Jackson his weekly Cartful Of Junk which he'll run out of by Wednesday and then trail around the house claiming There's Nothing To Eat. Vincent the cat continues to be quite the popular boy except for Claw of course. He jumped her this morning which caused all sorts of troubles and ruckus - he doesn't hurt her but it certainly doesn't help her disposition. Mr. Lee has taken up walking along the railing of the loft, it's amazing how she's regained her sense of balance after all the damage she sustained back in April - and to think she's be going on 15 this year. David continues to work on the house - we've decided to give it a couple more months. With what we had left over from the sale of the house and my salary we can afford it and it's easier if he just gets it done now, instead of trying to do it piecemeal on the weekends. He's tiling the family room this week and doing the never-ending painting.

Passing The Buck

Driving to work at night has special challenges up here in the forest. First off there are NO streetlights, at all. If you turned your headlights off at any time you would be plunged into a darkness so deep it would be unbelievable. You don't notice how many lights there are in NY until you move out of it. Then there are the tractor trailers that do most of thier traveling at night, most times I'm the only one on the road with less than 18 wheels. I've learned very quickly to keep a close eye on the truck in the next lane - I've been pushed off the road once already - they don't always see the little CRV when they're changing lanes. And the deer, Holy Toledo! They just stand in the road like you wouldn't believe, I almost hit 3 in one night. It looked sort of like Happy Hour at the Boardy Barn - you know how they get all wasted and just sort of stand around in the road? It's exactly like that except the deer aren't wearing wife-beaters with gold chains, barfing in the bushes and making a general ass of themselves in front of thier girlfriend.. I'm once again having insomnia, though it's cat - related. Mr. Lee has not only been scratching the door but has figured out how to pop it open letting the sunshine in. She woke me up 3 times and when I finally got up fit to be tied,  I found her snoozing on the couch like she'd never moved. I've got two more shifts to go this week. Jackson is fine, still working metal in school. David is busy working on the downstairs room, he's carpeted and painted and will doing the tile soon. He cleaned out the woodstove and had it going the other night, wowee!, does it work. Even the loft was roasting. I'm off this weekend, thank goodness.

Greetings From The Pocono Brewing Company

Well, Dad's visit went very well. We stopped in Mt Pocono and poked around a  very kitshy store, Dad bought Jackson a sword there. Then we drove out to the Pocono Brewing Co, the place where everyone goes for lunch at cousin's weekend. Dad managed to almost make the waiter cry - he was brand new and Dad gave him a traveler's check, thereby completely freaking him out. He didn't know what to do with it so he kind of hovered around hoping for guidance. Dad was very kind to him and walked him through it.  Lunch was of course ex-cell-ent  - Jackson was in heaven all weekend, hitting one great meal after another. We went out the Crossings outlets and shopped for the afternoon,then back home again. The drive home was great, all the leaves are in full color so we pulled over and got some great pictures - although the pictures could never do them justice. The colors are beyond amazing, they've got some trees here that turn lemon yellow and orange and when you see a whole mountainside of them it just takes your breath away. For dinner we ended up at the Chinese Buffet down the road and then Dad took off this morning. He's heading out to Lancaster to bother the amish. I don' t know why anyone would like that bunch of fakers, but to each his own. I'm off to work again tonight, another round of 8 hour shifts. David's busy trying to get a "deal" on tires, he's thinking of the place in Honesdale where the tires are $25 - INSTALLED. I hope it's not that Barely Used Tires place, I'm personally a bit leery of what "barely used" might be.

How Spooky Is That!

That's a picture I took at night with my flash - let's face it - there's only so many pictures of gopher holes people are willing to look at. I made it through my first week of night shift. It was much better than the day shift and by the end of the week I've almost gotten back into the swing of things sleep-wise. I had one person ix-nay on me, but it wasn't unexpected nor was it in my power to prevent it. It was actually my preceptor's fault as she had made the statement that no one would die on her shift. In my world, that's so asking for it. I had to work Friday night and got home on Saturday morning - an hour before Dad arrived. He made it here without problem and managed to slide right by the Gate Gestopo without incident. I only stayed in bed for an hour and got up around ten since I wasn't sleeping anyhow. We had coffee and then off to Dixon City. Dad took us out to lunch at the Texas Steakhouse and in case you're wondering - there are a surprising amount of things for a vegetarian to eat on the menu. I had one of those giant fried onions and Jackson had a huge shrimp platter which he not only ate the RICE but just about licked the platter!! I was shocked as there were PEAS in it and he even ate them! We had planned on going out to the chinese buffett that night, but since Dad had left at 3am and I'd been up for about 36 hours everyone  decided to take a "nap". I woke up from my "nap" around 7-ish and Dad got up later! So it was pizza for dinner. Today we are planning on driving around and leaf-peeping of course! And Dad wants to out for dinner to the Olive Garden which of course The Appitite is looking foward to. Claw doesn't like Grandpa because he teases her but then again, she probably shouldn't have tried to bite him. You know how they have wine tastings? Well, Claw likes to have a "guest tasting!"

Jack Frost Will Be Nipping At Our Nose Quite Shortly.

That' right - they are predicting SNOW on Sunday! One of my co-workers assured me it would only be flurries in the higher elevations. That would be me in the higher elevations. David's got the woodstove in working order already, he had to replace a pipe and clean it out good. We've got tons of deadwood behind the house so we're going to burn that first before getting any more. He had to shut Mr. Lee down in Jackson's room, she is determined I will sleep with the door open so consequently, I didn't get to sleep until 10 am again due to her picking at the door. I tried to keep her in the room with me but she just picked the door from that side to get out. She's driving me crazy I might add. I'm doing alright at work, the first night I just followed my preceptor, the past two nights I've done half the group and tonight I get the whole enchillada. I can't see them keeping me on orientation for FOUR WEEKS, can you? Jackson is great, really enjoying what he refers to as "the dungeon". He's been down here every evening arranging and rearranging, David hooked up his cable and he has a phone. He'd like a small refridgerater, but I'm afraid if we get him one we'll never see him again!

Help! I Fell Down a Hole And I Can't Get Up!

Yes, I am once again perfecting the art of photographing Gopher holes - getting better aren't I? Today is Adam's 21st birthday - I can't believe he'll be celebrating another one without us. Anyone who wants to email : lestera@gary.navy.mil -he's a bit down in the dumps as he's stuck on the ship again. He has been approved for leave and is just awaiting official word, but will be home from Dec 10th to the 28th. Work is going alright, I'm still getting used to the night shift. Yesterday I went to bed at 8:45 am and was awakened by Mr. Lee busting her way in. I put her out. She busted in again. I put her out and blocked the door. She stuck her paw under the door and scratched it. I pinched her. She did it AGAIN. I shrieked and she patted the door. This went on for an hour and a half until she finally gave up and then I laid there too awake to fall asleep. Sigh. I love animals - don't you?

What Song Mentions Pennsylvania??

There is: The Night The Lights Went Out In Georgia, Sweet Home Alabama, New York New York, etc - does anyone know a Pennsylvania song? Otherwise we might have to Whistle Dixie. Ray went home this morning after a full weekend of excess and debauchery - the Hideout is a racy place you know. On Sunday we set out for Mt. Pocono and had to detour due to an accident. I don't know about you but when there's a detour it's supposed to bring you back to where you were supposed to be in the first place, not just leave you in the middle of the woods. It was a lovely and somewhat long drive due to the "detour" but we finally made it to Mt Pocono which was not as great as it had been touted. We continued to drive and Jackson and I recognized it right away (picture #2!)  when we saw that sign - it was where we went to the Smith family reunion. So in case anyone is interested, the Cheesecake Factory is about 25 miles from our house. David has been busy all day, he finally got Jackson's room to the point he can move into it. He's been sidetracked by one thing after another so he got Jackson's furninture down there and is currently setting up the guest room (HINT HINT EVERYONE!!). I start 11 to 7 tonight - I'm looking foward to getting back on "my" shift, but the adjustment of going from nights to days will be a bit rough. I haven't been on the night shift since July, can it have been that long? The cats are fine, Ray found our newly expanded zoo very amusing and at times overwhelming I think. Mornings around here are pretty wild complete with a ruckus. David and I are strongly suspecting Vincent was an inside cat and Vincent of course is hoping to continue that tradition by not going out AT ALL. I'm still mucking about with my computer - has anyone else had problems with the Windows XP update? I told everyone here they are NOT to update under pain of death. If anyone has any suggestions or comments feel free!

All Systems Are Go - For The Moment At Least!

The advantage to living here in the fall is there is an endless opportunity to take postcard quality pictures at all times. Ray arrived yesterday much to our delight - he's so happy we're within driving distance again and so are we! We went to Olive Garden yesterday for an early dinner. We had a great time, the food was WAY better than any chain-restaurant should be and our waiter was hilarious. Then to Borders where Jackson fed his addiction for Caramocha coffee. We're braving Mt Pocono today. I'm still having issues with my computer - in order for us to be able to connect to the internet again I had to restore it all the way back to October 1st along with strict warnings to all not to update the XP no matter how much the computer begs and wheedles. I got kicked off again this morning with the computer sullenly insisting it saw a Norton Firewall but it did NOT - I have no idea where it comes up with these things. David had said to me yesterday it was "just a computer", but it's really not. I've found that computers are now as necessary as washing machines and refridgerators. Without it, there's no way I can stay in touch with everyone - even this website has replaced letters and phone calls. Everytime something goes wrong with it and we can't get on the internet my stomach clenches up and I get a bit frantic. I really feel like I've lost all communication - I know that seems a bit overboard, but I doubt I'm alone in that feeling! Anyone with advice or knowledge feel free to contact me.And of course there's Adam, the bad sea monkey. He will be on leave from the 10th to the 28th so we'll have to start making plans soon. But the airport in Wilkes-Barre does get flights from Japan which is a good thing. I swear this month has been nothing more than an uphill battle all the way.

All's Well That Ends Well

What a crappy week - nothing catastrophic by any stretch of the imagination, more like a continous level of anxiety fueled by one event after another. First was the old cable co. from WV which I hope is straightened out, but only after David and I took turns with everyone from Monique to Shamicka. One would tell us we owed nothing and the modem had been returned while the other one was busy sending us yet another threatening letter. This has been going on since August, can you believe it??Then I'd lost a huge filling that I'd been dragging my feet about - I was going to wait and see and in the meantime the dentist was going to clean my teeth and do x-rays. BUT instead it was way worse than he'd thought it was so instead of half an hour after work it was an hour and a half of drilling, molding, and off I went with a mouthful of novicane and temporary crown. I didn't get home til after 6 pm. The computer has been on the fritz all week, we had the cable guy come and he restored it. It worked for a few hours and then that night refused to connect to the internet despite threats, bribes and pleas. I'm finally on again today -I think the windows XP update isn't combatible with our internet connection - not to mention the firewall thing we've had going all month!! - so I did the time warp thing and returned the computer back to happier days, before the update, to a simplier time in it's little cyber-life. I'm crossing my gigabytes and hoping it stays this way. We had quite a time with Adam and his little drunken escapades in Thailand, but he's all squared away, so to speak. He's been told it's alright for him to put in for leave so he'll do it on Monday and will buy his ticket when he gets back to base - if that goes alright he should be home for Christmas. He should have plenty of money for a ticket since Mr. Happypants is on restriction til they get back to port. Today things seem to be a bit better, the computer is working, Ray is coming for the weekend, Jackson's doing well, and Vincent is upstairs laying on the couch (within earshot of the rustle of food bowls). Mr. Lee is upstairs on my bed, hanging out. She's been a bit of a pest lately - her new thing is marching around the bed at 3 am and purring loudly. It's very annoying and there's no way to stop her, who can hit a happy cat?? Especially our Mr. Lee!

Not Quite The Yellow Brick Road

That's the bridge I take in Scranton to get to Route 84 - for some reason it reminds me of driving thru NYC  so of course I took a picture of  that instead of the magnificently restored victorian houses that surround the hospital. We've been currently going around with our Adam (AKA The Sea Monkey). It seems someone got a "bit" tipsy and then showed up very late to the boat, without a buddy to boot. He thought they would cancel his leave, but after all was said and done, not to mention a flurry of emails I think the end result will be no liberty for awhile. He was a good boy and took complete responsibility for his actions, but he will be a sorry boy for his 21st birthday next week. And to top it off he lost his ATM card in the machine in Thailand and will have to wait until he gets back in port to replace it. I had to call Navy Federal for him - it is completely staffed by morons. Apparently I can CANCEL his card without being on his account but cannot ask them to send him a new one. They said he could call or access the internet but he doenst have access to either on the ship. I pointed out if they sent a new ATM card it would go to HIS address not mine but they refused. When it rains it pours. His email address is lestera@gary.navy.mil if anyone wants to drop him a line. Not much going on in the Hideout this week, I'll be done with tele on friday and then starting Monday back on the night shift. This weekend we are going exploring in Mount Pokeyournose which should be fun. It sounds very tourist-ty so we should be able to come home with at least a tee shirt or a mug. Or maybe some Lederhose!!

Ask Not For Whom The Bell Tolls....

it tolls for thee. That's Jackson right before Claw bit him, again, She does NOT like Vincent at all and has been very bad lately taking out on everyone. Of course, as I've pointed out, she doesn't like US either but she needs to lay off the biting or she'll find herself being one with nature (I will be planting her!). David's been referring to Vincent as The Bum since we've noticed if we don't put him out he'll lay around on the loft for days one end, only getting up when food is in the bowl. I'm on my last week of dayshift, I've got to sit telemetry for a week. As much fun as it is to sit for hours on end staring at a screen of wavy lines, the novelty is wearing off fast. I'm sure though when I'm back on the floor next week I'll be missing it. I got a letter from Adam, he might not be home for the holidays, he screwed up on leave and thinks they may yank his approval for leave - we'll just have to wait and see. I'm hoping very hard that won't happen, we haven't seen him for over 2 and a half years and having to wait again will be awful, to say the least. Jackson is fine and continues to love working in metal shop - he's been set on fire once - from his reports that seems to be a class activity. But he hasn't sustained any serious injuries and when you combine teenage boys and blow torches, you've got to expect a little mayhem here and there.

I Wish Fall Was In The Air......

instead of all over my driveway -and it's only October! I hope the Homeowners Association doesn't expect us to rake up all this crap.  After all, when you build houses in the woods you've got to expect leaves here and there. And there. And there. And... well, you get the point. It does look pretty right now, the leaves all over the drive are still colorful and red. I suppose when they turn crappy brown it will be another story. But then there's tons of snow to cover it up, so I think I've got it all under control. I always enjoy a master plan that requires no effort on my part. We're fighting with our old cable company from WV - we got another bill -this one is almost $300. It seems that the person who was supposed to shut off our service back in August didn't and the new homeowner who is recieving free cable - ain't complaining. We can't call the new homeowner because the cable company says they've tried and the phone was disconnected. We get a different story out of everyone and I'm taking names. David got home today, it only took him 3 1/2 hours the way he went this time. He's brought a small aluminum boat his dad gave him, my bike and a few other items we've got no room for. The weather's a bit chill this morning and we had a herd of turkeys in the yard. A gaggle? No, that's  geese. A cell? No, that Al-kida. Hmm. I guess we had a small grouping of turkeys. They were sort of cool in any case.

Knock, Knock. Who's there?

It's Vincent of course! Back from the dead or where ever he hangs out. I'm starting to think  this cat is actually the reincarnation of the guy your mother told you to stay away from and all your friends hate. I mean - think about it. Vincent shows up whenever he wants or he needs something, eats my food, hogs the couch, never calls, disappears without any explanation and then shows up expecting to be welcomed with open arms and a bowl of wet cat food. And in David's opinion there's also the money we spent on him but it's not like he borrowed  the $65 and blew it all on catnip and rubber mice. I'm sure he would've preferred if David had kept his $65 and he'd been able to keep his parts. We just enjoy him while he's here (like all the guys that are no good for you there's just something about him that's irresistable!) and don't worry when he's not. David is due home tomorrow, he's busy collecting all the stuff we left behind last year. I'll be glad to have my bike back, just in time for autumn leaves. Jackson and I went to Sam's Club - according to Jackson we're "completely out of food". That is true if you consider Fruit Roll Ups, Slim Jims and Pop Tarts food. The Sample Lady was giving away samples of rolled chicken which he LOVED so he talked me (the vegetarian!) into asking for one - I felt like a bit of a fraud to say the least.  I was afraid PETA would see me, but I seem to have escaped thier radar at the moment. Better yet - while she was giving me my free sample she asked Jackson if he would like another piece (SCORE!!) so we hurried around the corner and he proceeded to snarfful down all his ill-gotten gains. We bought a box so he's having it for dinner also - he's a happy camper today. It's raining again, but I don't mind. I finally found the book I've been haunting Borders for - it's about a little known epidemic of the bubonic plague in victorian San Franciso - gosh, I love buboes, don't you?

Hang Ten!

Well, it's finally Friday and the weekend has not started so good. Stinkin' Vincent went out 3 days ago and hasn't come back. I would worry but he seems to do this. As much as I like him but if he comes back he does, if he doesn't, well, chances are  he found better digs and better chow somewhere else. David called last night and it rained again so he got held up on the roof and Jerry wants him to do some work so he'll be home on Sunday. Work was super busy today  - and  I appear to be working my magic. One patient died, one stroked, and one I found unrousable in the past two days. They had prior conditions leading up to these events of course - but  I had my other patients so that made for a lot of running around. Then  I get home and Jackson informs me he missed the bus this morning. He left at the usual time but missed it by about two minutes so it probably just came a little early. However, since we don't have or know any of the neighbors he had to stay home for the day so that's two days he's missed this week. And I've been battling Charger all week (AKA "Poo Dog") over the litter box. I am determined he will NOT go treasure hunting for tiny tasty nuggets and he's determined to snarf down as many as he can before I catch him out at it. The end result has been me lurking around the sand box like some demented ghoul and when I catch Poo Eating I come out of no where and attack. It scares the crap out of Charger but that's about all it does, he's one stubborn dog. I've pretty much given up and just try at this point to beat him to the litter pan and clean it out. Before he does, figuratively speaking.

Does This Make My Butt Look Fat?

So, no takers on the scarf? It's made with that furry yarn! Not much going on this week, David is still on LI and will probably be back either Friday or Saturday now. He got held up with the roof he's doing due to the rain and his sister Maryann and her husband Scott will be up from Florida this week. That's been terrible for them, they moved to Florida around the same time we moved and they've had nothing but problems - not to mention hurricanes!! - ever since.  I've got two days left of dayshift, I can't wait for this to be over! I am so tired of being up around 4 am 5 days a week I could just scream. And of course the second I hit the door when I come home half the zoo wants to fed, the other half has to go OUT NOW. Jackson seems to be enjoying the morning bus, he's come home with a few names and is trying to figure out who lives near us. The carpet guy's coming on Saturday so we can finish Jackson's room downstairs and he can move in finally. We'll finish the rest of the basement over the winter I think.

Does This Color Bring Out My Eyes?

Copper, part dog, part plaything. That's the scarf I just finished the other day, not sure what I'll do with it. Anyone want it? I just started making a sweater since I've got an entire dresser crammed with yarn and am trying to use it up before I pass away. I think that will be possible if I can manage to live to the ripe old age of  214.  The rain is coming down in sheets this morning, Jackson will have to stay home. David is still in NY and there's no one to drive him. I would make him walk, but the bus stop is over a mile from the house and he's just getting over being sick, not to mention he would have to spend the day in school with wet clothes. I'm sure it will break his tiny heart. I'm on my last week of dayshift orientation and it couldn't go any slower. Even my preceptor thinks it's stupid - I'm orientating for a shift I won't be on and all the things I'm mastering I won't be doing. I'm trying hard not to be a slacker but I just want this over with. Cats are fine, Vincent hasn't been out in two days. I'm not sure if he was formerly an inside cat or has just simply had enough of the Great Outdoors. I think our neighbors are back - they were on LI too visiting thier daughter out in Aquabogue - they're originally from Levittown themselves. Things are very quiet in the hideout and we are getting to the downside of the beautiful autumn leaves which would be the Not So Beautiful Autumn Leaves All Over The Yard.

Fall is in the air....

The leaves are already turning, I'm sure in the next two weeks they'll be spectacular.I had to pick up a  CD I'd ordered in Honesdale and since Jackson wouldn't get out of bed, went by myself. I was probably  better off as he tends to complain a lot and finds none of the late 18th century architecture quaint, he refers to them as a "bunch of boring old buildings". The temp if just a bit chilly today but the sky was a blue as it could be and the scenery is right out of a Norman Rockwell painting. Jackson and I are hanging in there, but I've got to admit even after 3 months I wish we'd never left WV. Jackson has not made one friend and neither have I, Scranton and Wilkes Barre are dangerous in some areas and we're not familar enough to know where not to go and no one here is overly friendly. Moving closer to home was a big waste of time since no one has visited us yet - I think we saw more people when we lived further away.  I suppose there's no point in whining about it - we can't undo it, but I wish we could.

What Do You Mean I'm Not The Queen!

 I can't believe it's almost October already! David left FINALLY for Long Island on Thursday, it was one delay after another for him. First Ray's accident and then Jackson getting sick - he didn't think he'd ever get out of here. He's already gone bass fishing with his father and was a bit overwhelmed by all the changes that've taken place since we've left. It's hard to believe it's been almost a year since he's been home. Things went smoothly after he left for about 18 hours - Friday 5:30 am I found a message on my machine from Verizon stating I owed over $150 on my phone bill and I needed to call them right away. I got the automated thing which only repeated I needed to address the issue right away and nothing more. Nothing like a little extra stress in the morning. Jackson got up for me alright but then there was the worry of him not making the school bus, if the dogs would be alright since no one was going to be home to let them out for 10 hours and now this thing with Verizon. Work was busy, I'm still on orientation due to policy but since no one needs to actively watch me my prececptor the nurse educator ditched me Wednesday so I'm with one of my co-workers now. I've got one more week on the dayshift floor, the next week I sit telemetry for a week and then I go on nights - and get precepted for FOUR MORE WEEKS. According to them, policy is policy. I called Verizon when I got home(after worrying all day about what was wrong) and it turned out I hadn't paid my bill for two months because they'd been sending it to the wrong address. Jackson and I went to the chinese buffet which was fun then came home and played with all the various animals. Vincent is pretty much all better and has turned into quite the couch potato. David said all he wants to do is eat and sleep, but I pointed out he and Dr. Davis had taken away his other activities. From what I can see Vincent is just happy to be HERE, when you walk by him he just starts purring! Mr. Lee likes him, they both sleep on the loft now and Claw continues to despise everyone. She just sits and growls at him and Mr. Lee, luckily she's too lazy to make the effort to back it up. She's such a pill.

Excuse Me, Someone Left Thier Cat On The Couch

Isn't that hilarious? Everytime Copper comes across Vincent he either points him or sits and stares like he's seeing an alien or something. Otherwise they're  fine and occasionally share the couch like old friends. Vincent continues to improve, he's walking on 4 legs now and the ear seems to be healing up fine. We've been letting Claw outside - David was so mad at her the other night he threatened to give her a gravy rub-down before he put her out. She likes to bite our feet while we're sleeping and that doesn't improve her popularity around here. Jackson's recovering, he does have a cold and complains but still had to go to school. David will be leaving tomorrow in the am but isn't sure how long he'll be staying. Work is ok, I neither like it nor hate it but am getting increasingly tired of the next shift running late. Tomorrow I'm being given the whole group so we'll see what happens. I'm off for the weekend - it'll be just me and Jackson which should be fun. We've already made plans to go out to the chinese buffett on Saturday - anyone interested in joining us?? Let me know!

There Are Some Things You Just Can't Make Up

I saw this sign and had to take a picture - do you think anyone stood back and actually READ this before they put it up?? I would've loved to have stolen this sign but there were too many people around and I would hate my first crime in Pennsylvania to be for stealing a GAS sign. Jackson's been home from school for the past two days - I think he has a cold and he thinks he's terminal or at least good to stay home for a few more days. Since he was able to play his video games and go on the computer I think he will be ix-nay to school tomorrow. David will be leaving for LI either Wed or Thursday, I'm thinking Thursday since he seems totally unprepared today. Jackson will have to catch the morning bus instead of the dad driving him but I'm figuring he'll survive. Work was tough today, I'm still on orientation, my 2nd day of being on the floor as the RN - the nurse educator Warren is my preceptor for now. I had half the group today and they were a rough crew, not to mention I'm not used to working days when they're all being shipped off for surgery or off to various tests so I was running most of the day. It's all paperwork and protocol that's buggering me up. But on the upside I did get lunch and was only 5 minutes past when I was supposed to leave so it's not all bad. David's been busy all day painting, he left the paint lid on the kitchen table and when he came back there were tiny white footprints all over. Mr. Lee size I might add. Not to mention the evidence of that her toes are all white now instead of black.

Holy Rubber Ducks Batman!

Boy did we get rain yesterday! 5 inches were reported in this area. The 2nd picture (do view larger) is a manhole cover that's  floating, the water is running so hard out of it. Anyhow, the reason we were out is we had to get our licenses changed  for our insurance and I could only go Saturday.. Before we left I asked David if he had all the papers and he said yes. We got there right after they opened, were the 2nd in line where I discovered David had brought only Jackson's birth certificate, not ours. So, back home we went in the pouring rain. We got Jackson up and got back to the DMV around 11 am -  it was packed so instead of being done in 15 minutes it took almost 2 hours. It gave me time to practice my Glaring Skills on David in any case. And of course there was the Requisite Retard holding up the line. You know, the person that brings all the wrong papers but refuses to get off the line until she's exhausted everyone by having them make phone calls and faxes? And it's always so much fun to be the person after them when they've totally cranked out the person behind the desk. Jackson was the only one who had a good time because they were doing the motorcycle testing in the parking lot next door and now he wants a motorcycle. David dropped Jackson and I off at Boarders after while he went to Home Depot and I got Jackson his own Latte since the last time Jackson ordered an italian soda that he hated and drank all my coffee.Then we went to Sam's Club to stock up on supplies for Skinny Boy. Speaking of boys-  Vincent came back yesterday morning, we're trying to get it through our heads that he survived without us for months so a night out does not mean he's dead. But we really love him - he's such a sweet cat and of course there's the $65 we spent on him - plus he's still recovering from his injuires. But the swelling on his leg is down and he used it a little this morning so he's better. Jackson's very much into reading now, he's a big fan of Poe naturally! I'm back to work tomorrow, the educator told me I've got to do 3 more weeks on days before I go to my shift. I'm still trying to finish up a scarf I started, I was considering putting it aside and knitting something else for awhile, but I know if I do that it'll sit in a drawer making me feel guilty until it's done.