Wisdom (On The Cheap)

On the way to work (when I am driving), I pass a couple of churches with message boards. When I am biking, one church even has a small one close to the bike path.  These message boards sometimes tell of upcoming church-y events, or sometimes their owners use them to impart words of advice and wisdom.

Which can sometimes be a bit obnoxious…from my perspective.  I remember, back in the day of being 'the minister's wife', looking over such platitudes and helping to decide which #1 would work with the letters we had available, #2 would work with the space/lines available, and #3 wouldn’t offend.

One of these message boards I pass is a new-fangled and modern electronic gizmo, so #1 has no implication, and really, I am not sure that this particular establishment is too concerned about #3, because sometimes?  I get a bit chapped passing that place.  I mean sometime I just want to roll my window down and yell….’whatever! BOZOS!!!’  I don’t even remember what today’s words of wisdom were.  Something about experience and knowledge and THEY DON'T EVEN KNOW ME SO SHUT IT!!!!

In front of the other church today…something about not finding the real meaning of life using Google.

All this for free.

However!  For a mere $3.97 (plus tax), I could have bought a magnet on Sunday from a little independent shop in our Old Town that spoke to my heart, and I remember oh. so. clearly.

“I wish I were as thin now as when I thought I was fat.’

The choice is mine.  Refrigerator wisdom that I have to pay for, but apparently sticks with me, or religious bleatings for free that irritate (but apparently not the hell out) me.

This Time I Did

When it comes to extended warranties, I usually decline.  I read…once…somewhere…that seemed very reasonable and reliable and convincible at the time... that, generally speaking, extended warranties were an income stream for the provider.

Well, they wouldn’t be getting any income that way from me! Nosirreebob!

Even when my computer crapped out after 17 months (or so...I forget now) and the Office Depot guy said, ‘if you had an extended warranty, we would be giving you a new one free right now’ I figured all the times I didn’t buy a warranty and DIDN’T use it paid for the new laptop.

But right after I purchased my fancy smancy camera, a fellow from where I purchased said camera calls me and says ‘…have I got a deal for you…’ And proceeds to offer me an extended warranty, which I declined, then he offers to upgrade my shipping, which I also declined, then he throws in some free filters, and lentgthens the warranty deal…and I start adding up what he is offering, which I know isn’t really costing him much, but it would cost me some dollars to buy, and is really sounding like an okay deal.  Sure it upped the cost of the camera a bit, but I took it.  I got my camera faster, I got extra lens filters, and I got a 3 years extended warranty with a couple of camera cleanings, for the cost of the filters.  I called it good.  I wanted my camera fast…and I also got a sidewise look from Wonderful Guy.

Whatever.

It was aggravating in Cancun when the lens fogged up, and perturbing when it wouldn’t power up.  I was relieved when the problem went away.

Over the 4^th, we traveled to see Wonderful Guy’s family in eastern Kansas where there is a wonderful fireworks show.  I was primed to try my hand at some night photography.  The night we arrived, I checked to see if I knew where the settings were that I needed to adjust.  Camera was fine.  Next morning, taking the pups for a walk, I wanted to take a photo of a cut wheat field….and the dern thing would NOT POWER UP!!  And remained in such a state until the MORNING WE LEFT.

Upon our return, I fished out that extended warranty, and started the process to ship the camera to the fixer-uppers.  Of course, the thing is working, so who know if they will see what is the problem.

At least, I will get it cleaned.

Sunday night, Lovely Step Daughter was in town with her mini-doxie pup.  We cooked out at Only Step-Son’s with his 5 chocolate lab 6 week old pups.  There is a nest of baby birds tucked in the eaves of their front porch.  GrandGirls One and Three enjoyed the Son, and the pups, and their ice cream.

And I was without my camera.

And pouting, so apparently the point and shoot wasn’t good enough to take along…

July 12th

And it’s the day I paid full price for a Kindle book…

Dance of Dragons is released today, and I must have it to read.

I have been sucked in by this series, to whit I cannot wait for the price to drop.  And alas, it will probably be another 4 years before the next book is published.

Oh, Mr. George R.R. Martin…how you tease your devoted readers!

I may just have to read them all again…

PS The SSABs are pretty much awesome, but I have really loud water in my house.

Say Again?

I am looking at my calendar and I am not seeing any days off until Labor Day.

Which is kind of a drag because I have so enjoyed my time away from cubeland since the beginning of May.  I am sort of use to that now.  On the other hand, when I am not at work, the paycheck suffers, so full paychecks will be nice, and work well toward helping with today’s Big Expense.

Today...I buy myself SSABs (aka hearing aids). I have grown to detest the common term, so Eldest and I came up with the more palatable (to me) term SuperSonic Auditory Boosters.  I can live with that.

So. SSABs.

It has been a long time coming, and I have migrated through my family being irritated with me not catching what they are saying, to being solicitous when we are in public together and I am stumped at what the server is asking of me.  I am at the point of often not being able to rely on non-verbal signals to pick up what others are saying, and end up just staring at them.  Or anwering them totally off topic.  Yeah.  That works.  Often TV shows are a total wash.  The volume has to be too loud for me to get all the conversation.

Pretty embarrassing.

I won’t go to the fear about the possibility of considering a job interview.

So after much ado and time, I started the actual talking to audiologists and shopping.  It was truly painful…until I tried a pair…and I heard sounds and low voices and tones I hadn’t heard in years.

Brought tears to my eyes.  And pretty much settled it for me.

Vanity is out the door.  And somehow we would figure out a way to pay for them, but I was going to get myself a pair of those, and I was going to be able to hear birds again.

Brief aside, most insurance companies do not cover hearing loss, or hearing aids.  Nope.  Footing the entire bill for this one.  I could smoke, and they would pay my bills for lung cancer and heart disease.  I could drink and they would pay for my liver disease.  I could eat my way into obesity and they would pay for my diabetes treatment and related issues.  I’m not judging…I’m just saying…but I digress.

SSABs of today are not the hearing aids of yesteryear.  Mine will be programmed to my hearing loss, to emphasize what I cannot hear and leave alone the frequencies that I can. Pretty much awesome from where I sit right now.  I hope it is going to be all I hope it is going to be.

I hope the sound of eating chips doesn’t freak me out.  I hope that the sound of my own voice isn’t so loud I quit talking.  I want to hear birds again (I still hear meadowlarks and morning doves and finches, but miss so many others) but I know there are lots of really irritating sounds I don’t hear right now that’s probably for the good.  Along with the good will come the irritating, I suppose.  I wonder if I will hear everyone in cubeland typing.  People aren’t going to be able to sneak up on me anymore because I can’t hear them!

Tomorrow is going to be a new day, full of surprises.

I wonder if anyone will notice.

We're Walking...

Beginning a couple months back, I have been trying to get a walk in at lunch . Part of this is about wanting to lose 5 pounds, and being unsuccessful, and part is working where there is a great place to walk close by and wanting to take advantage of it.

When I worked here previously, I walked All. The. Time.  Well. Not all the time…I was working, after all.  I mean I walked almost every day.  Especially through the Dee-vorce, walking through my lunch helped me maintain my sanity, I do believe.

Anyway.  ANYWAY!  So I have forced myself to #1 put down the Kindle, and #2 put down the knitting, and #3 walk out the door and #4 breath some fresh air.

I have seen some interesting things, too, among them an eagle, a muskrat (I think), an osprey (I think), the ubiquitous Canadas, mallards, a heron, and now…the Poudre flowing full and flowers are blooming.

Well.  I thought to myself, I should bring my fancy smancy camera for my walkabout one day.  So I did.  Unfortunately, lots of fine feathered fellows thought to pose for me, and being successful has it’s drawbacks.  I am now rewarded and might have to tote that puppy more often!

Here’s is where I walk, and here is what I saw.

The river, usually not this high.  I know...by eastern standards, it is more of a 'crick'.

Woodsy-type places.

A Canada pair.

A flicker (like a woodpecker).

And some flowers...

Not great photos, but giving a inkling of why I like to get out at lunch. (Clicky for biggy...)

The Trip

(More about Mexico)

Three days before the trip, I realized the last name on my plane ticket was not the same as the last name on my passport. (I use both my unmarried and Wonderful Guys name.  Except sometimes I get lazy.)  Add to list….call Frontier.

Standing in ‘show me your passport’ line, in Mexico, the Guy and I are chatting it up with Youngest and the Bebe Daddy, with whom we traveled.  I hear….from afar…my name…my name…and yet…my daughter’s mouth is not saying anything.  And we realize that Dearest Sister and Middle Daughter are in the same line way a ways in front of us!  We wave, but alas.  Not the time or place to give us cuts!

The tower at the airport. Seriously.

After arriving at our resort, and finding our room, I start to ‘move in’.  After about fifteen minutes, Wonderful Guy mentions the A/C doesn’t seem to be working.  Not good.  He sets out on a mission…and by mission, I mean he goes to the front desk.  Within minutes, we have cool air flow.  Very good.  But we forgot to turn it down (or is it up?).  And we froze through out the night.  But better that than A/C not working!

We had clouds and 'strong breezes' and finally rain the day of the wedding.  Real rain the day after.  But the clouds broke up after that, and….all was sunshine, lollipops, rainbows, and silver linings!

The wedding, the family, the resort, the beach, the food…all of it absolutely the best.

My shawl worked perfectly, especially since the wedding and meal were inside, due to weather.  It is not known whether there are any photos showing exactly how well it worked. Eldest wore her cover-up until it started stretching and bagging.  I told her to take it home and toss it in the washer!  My wrap around the hips/sarong/shawl was perfect for duty as well.  I love it when a knitting plan comes together! 

Snorkeling is my new favorite thing. Unfortunately I have lived in land-locked states my entire life (yes, the panhandle of Texas is a land-locked state).  Once I was in the water, the whole breathing thing came naturally.  Flippers turbo-charged my swimming! Must. Have. More.

I did a shot of tequila. Snorkeling and a tequila shot.  It was truly a day of firsts.

After 6 days of no cell phones, no internet, and no drama, we arrived back in the states, where they let us back in.

It was one sweet trip. Thanks, Eldest and Mr. Eldest (what shall I call him now???), for sharing your good times with us.

The Garden

There were wonderful and beautiful iris. Almost at peak bloom they were.  I scurried out to photograph one evening.  And later that night…we were wakened by…hail!  Loud hail.  Big! Loud! Hail!

Hail that not only sliced iris blooms but made lace of hollyhock leaves, mashed soapwort, mangled hosta, dashed the newly opened peonies, and also…watered the basement.

I dutifully deadheaded later, and noted that the hateful hail even damaged the buds of my iris! It’s a good year to be a roofer in northern Colorado.  But! There were still blooms to come and I enjoyed them even more, I think, because of the destruction.

And then, when the last vestige of the icey destroyer was shaken off?  The night before we left for Mexico?

More hail.  So much for Iris 2011.  Whatever. (At least it wasn’t a wheat crop….)

Now it’s time to move on.  Lavendar is in full spread.  Roses are starting.  Carrots show promise, and so do the peas.

And the first evening back from our trip, sitting on the patio?  The fragrance of my honeysuckle was evident.

My tomatoes survived.  So there’s that.