The Best Things

What's the best thing that has happened this week?

• We went to the beach
• I took a long nap two days in a row
• We shared a yummy Hawaiian omelet two days in a row at our most favorite local eatery in Newport (the Newport Cafe)
• We walked out on the dock and watched the fishermen get ready to go out to sea
• We watched a whole movie together
• I shot some great photos
• My hubby met a man who is turning 100 in a couple of days. He was feeding the seagulls at Boiler Bay with a huge smile on his face. I think it made my hubby feel really young. Love that!!
• We stood on the dock and watched the sea lions
• Talked to lots of people with dogs
• I had Monday off
• I noticed it is completely light at 5pm when I get off work

If I stop long enough to look around, I can always find things that qualify as the "best things" that happened this week.

What are some of the best things that have happened to you this week?  Do tell!

love, susan

P.S.  Yes, my husband is licking my cheek in this photo. He thinks it's so funny to do when I'm trying to get a pic of us together. He makes me laugh!

Need a little poke (prompt) for writing? Visit Mama Kat's Writing Workshop. She has hundreds of fun writing prompts.


Mama's Losin' It

Winter Road Trip Pics ~ Newport, OR

 

Signs of Life

What a gorgeous day we're having on the east side of my home state, unlike those poor folks over in Connecticut.

 

This morning I had to turn the car around in the driveway to get the sun to melt the heavy frost from the windshield. By the time I got home with groceries, it had warmed up enough to be outside with just my vest on. I decided to grab my camera and see if anything is poking its head up in hopes of spring. 

 

<<<< Look what I found! Amongst the weeds, there is a bulb sprouting up. Don't ask me what it is. I think it may be a hyacinth but don't quote me. 

I also found a huge, dead squirrel at the bottom of a tree that leads directly up to the bird feeder. My guess is he ate himself to death because I could find no signs that any of our constantly-hungry animals attacked it. That's one less "welfare" recipient at the bird trough. I love the squirrels, don't get me wrong. But they scare the birds away.

Here is another sign of life. I don't know what this plant is called but the flowers are chocolate colored when they bloom. I think they are a smidge early but who am I to say? I'm happy as ever that this plant has survived my home-wrecking border collie. She has totally taken my back lawn down to dirt with her heavy footed landings and take-offs while frisbee catching. I love her more than the lawn.  

Next I decided to take a peek inside the tub I used for putting all my veggie scraps and egg shells last summer. Once I placed the leaves on the top last fall I haven't paid any attention to it. I wondered if there would be a "hot spot" in the middle of it after all the colder weather we've had. I got my little hand rake out and upon closer examination I noticed another sign of life. How exciting!!

 

It doesn't take much to entertain me. I suppose you've guessed that about me already. I wonder what this is growing in my compost??? Regardless, I'm thrilled that my compost is capable of sustaining some kind of life and that all my efforts to recycle my veggie scraps last summer were worth something. I think I'm going to have some rich compost! It's probably time for me to think about adding more to it now. I've been too lazy to put anything in it all winter.

 

The best part of today is not here yet, I'm sure. I have a turkey in the oven and plans to get a lot done today. I just had to share this while I'm taking a break from some major house keeping. I'm not going to go crazy though, keeping in mind what my grandma used to say, "housework makes you ugly". I can't afford to do too much of it.

Hope you have some signs of life wherever you are. Just stop and look around. I'll bet you find some!

love, susan



What 7am Looks Like

This is what 7am looked like yesterday when I stepped on the sidewalk for my little jaunt to the bus stop.

I'm a blue sky, sunshine junkie.

It has a been a busy week and I'm tired but the morning skies really cheer me up.

Long week. No plans. Just living one day at a time, squeezing as much joy out of whatever I can, like catching the sliver of a morning moon.

It's the little things ....

love, susan

My Very Favorite 2013 Super Bowl Commercial

There were a lot of funny commericals, as always, during the super bowl this year. This one really caught my attention and although it's not funny, it really got me. Two minutes is a long time to keep someone's attention for a commercial!  I miss Paul Harvey, don't you?

My favorite funny commercial?  I'm embarrassed to say it was the godaddy.com commerical. The fact that I can remember who's commerical it is goes to show the power of advertising.

What was your favorite?

Random Super Saturday Thoughts

^

^

You know who should have a super bowl?

^ This squirrel ^

 

So, who's playing tomorrow anyway? I need to know. Just kidding. I really don't care. We'll be sitting at home alllllll day tomorrow while my hubby preps for a colonoscopy on Monday. I can't remember the last time I watched a football game.  We're not fans.  However, that new 40" HD tv just might bring the sexy back in football for me.  But probably not. Oh how I wish Madonna was doing half-time this year. The only part of the game I watched last year wasn't even the game. I turned on our old tube as Madonna took center stage. She was so awesome even on that crappy box ... I can't imagine what it would be like on this new one!  Perhaps Beyonce will bring it. I don't even know what Beyonce sings. How sad is that?

 

So, while the rest of the country is tuning in and sitting back with a big bowl of super bowl chili, I'll be encouraging my guy to drink another glass of yummy liquid laxative and try to watch the game. There's always the great commercials, right? 

 

By the way, what does Beyonce sing?

 

love, susan

Cheaper by the Dozen

Today was a stellar day.  Yesterday was gloomy and gray. We got out of the house about 3 in the afternoon and decided to go fill the car up with gas, just for something to do. We thought about going to a movie but quite frankly we just bought a new 40" tv in November and after he hooked it up to the stereo, it's going to be harder and harder to pay $15 to sit with strangers to watch a movie.

 

The hubby and I are still in the stone ages as we have a working VHS hooked up to the tv along with the DVD player. So we hit the Goodwill store near our place as they are now practically paying their customers to take the VHS tapes away. 5 for $.99!!  We came home with 10 movies. Some of them we've seen, others we have not, and maybe one or two we simply just can't remember.

 

I plugged in "Phenomenon" last night. I knew my husband would love it. He's kind of a sucker for sappy stories, and I was right. He loved it. I loved watching it again for about the umpteenth time. John Travolta is never sweeter than he was in this flick. If you've never seen it, you should.

 

Then we decided to stay awake for "Basic Instinct".  I couldn't believe my hubby had never seen it. How can that be? It's naughty and fast moving. I love the character Sharon Stone plays. And how about the big, round cop who played a part in Jurrasic Park? He's so weird!

 

We didn't get to plug any tapes in today but perhaps "Cheaper by the Dozen" will be a nice Sunday evening watch. Neither one of us has seen it so that will be a treat! Besides, there's nothing on TV worth watching.

 

Seen any good flicks lately?  Do you have any old favorites?

love, susan

January in Color

What a beauty!

We ventured out to chase the sun today. Turns out it was sunny all day long at home but that's okay. If we had stayed home, I would have missed this eagle sighting.

It's always interesting when we get ready to leave on a day trip. This morning, I took a trip to the grocery store very early and noted the crisp, blue skies. When I got home all I had to do was mention "let's g..." and he was Ready-Freddy. With no idea which way we would travel, I heated up the thermos, got the coffee brewing and made a couple of lettuce turkey wraps for lunch.


Looks a little like an upside down pineapple, me thinks.

Can you spot the eagle?

We decided to drive down the gorge. At first it felt like a big mistake. As we got closer to the river, the fog was laying low. But we pushed through it and enjoyed sunny weather all the way to The Dalles.

On the drive down the gorge, we spotted the usual long horned mountain sheep/goats (I can never remember which they are). Unfortunately, they hang out where there are no places to stop so I'll never get a picture of them.

Everything is closed on Sundays in The Dalles except for our favorite Thai place. Since I packed a nice lunch, we decided we should pass on the spring rolls. Luckily, we really liked the lettuce wraps I made or I would be kicking myself for passing up an offer for Thai.

When we pulled up to this park (pictured here) to eat lunch, I spotted the eagle in the tree and got close enough for a fair shot considering I have a little point & shoot. He didn't sit still long enough for me to get a better shot.

It has been a most excellent day. The blue sky certainly kicked it up a lot of knotches!

love, susan

Hawaii Dreaming

It's 26 frigid degrees here this morning.

 

I'm so happy I have photos I can whip out and be transported somewhere else for just a moment.

 

I shot this photo the first morning  in Honolulu in 2010. We stayed 2 short blocks off the beach but could see this veiw from our room.

I love everything about Hawaii.

I love the warm air.

I love the smell of Kona coffee, fish on the grill, and salt water.

I love how everyone is so laid back and easy.

I love that drivers in Hawaii don't honk their horns.

I love the fresh fruit.

Okay, I'm back now.  Mahalo.

love, susan



 

Just Think About It

 

    "Love is the only force

capable of transforming an

enemy into a friend."

      ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.                    

Good Food and Friends

May your house be too small to hold all your friends. ~ Irish Blessing

It was a party at my house last night! One of our good friends suggested we serve Hawaiin Chicken Haystacks. What you say? Yeah, I'd never heard of them either. Seems it's a dish she discovered while living in Utah for a short time. I'm guessing it's a "Utah thang" because if I had ever known about haystacks, I would be having them at least once a month. 

 

I did some research on the net and found several ideas and combined them to make a fantastic crowd pleaser. All I can say is that the combination of flavors just makes you wanna dance. There were 13 of us and I would definitely make this again for a crowd.

Later on, we headed over to Cavanaugh's for karaoke. There was a fun-loving, younger crowd there with quite a few awesome singers. I'm always surprised when I hear really great voices in the most unlikely places. When we got home at midnight, I made another party on a plate before I went to bed. Oh so good! Guess what I'm having for breakfast today?

If you're bored and want winter to pass more quickly, I highly suggest having a party at your place. Food seems to always entice people to get out and visit. It helps to have the best friends ever. We are so rich in them that when they leave, I can hardly quit smiling and I start thinking about the next party. February is always a good month for a chili feed. One of our friends gave us a 3-pot crock pot last year and it's time to break it out. 

My house is definitely too small to hold all our friends. I feel a twitch of sadness that I can't invite them all over at once. If I was rich and famous, I would have the biggest house ever and there would be no one left off my invite list.

 

Peace out everyone. Enjoy the day!

 

love, susan