I thought I lost my blog...!!!

I know I haven't posted anything on my blog in a very long time.  But it's been a bad year for me.  I think the last blog I posted was when I lost my sister-in-law back in January, 2014.  Then everything went downhill. 

I lost my Mini Sue...

And, as much as I have wanted to post a blog about her.....I just haven't been able to put things into words.  It's just been too painful.  Every time I even think about her, I bawl.  Every single night since I lost her, I cry.  I want so badly to post about those last days and since....but I can't. 

I had a hard time even figuring out how to get into my blog to post anything....things are different.  But I found it....and now I just don't know what to say....

I need more time....

2014 has simply been a bad year...right from January.  I will be glad when it's over.

I love my blog......I don't want to give it up.   But life kinda stopped when I lost my Baby Girl for me.  I just go through the days.....one day at a time...one month at a time....one summer at a time.

It will be Halloween soon.  I use to dress her up in her Princess Girl outfit.  Christmas will be here and I can't dress her up in her Mrs. Mini Claus outfit.  She won't be here anymore....she isn't here anymore. 

She's my girl.....and she's gone



 

LIFE IS SHORT......

Wow....I haven't posted anything on my Blog in so long I almost forgot how to even get into it! 

My New Year's Resolution was to start Blogging again...and here it is almost March and I haven't written a damn thing. 

2013 ended with a nice holiday getaway up to our cottage in Caseville.  I decorate inside and out and everything is so nice and festive.  There is no holiday stress since it is just me and hubby with no other family obligations.  Yes...sometimes I feel like the holidays with all the get-togethers with family and friends can feel like an obligation.  It is so nice when I don't have to do anything at all with NOBODY!  Although when I do....I really do end up enjoying it.

BUT this year it was just me and hubby and our menagerie of pets....Mini Sue, Keno, Junie the Pigeon and Orange the cat. 

New Year's Eve we spent up at the Eagles Club with friends and that was fun....only a couple miles from our place so the driving is safe. 

Hubby went home a few days later and I had planned on driving back myself a few days after that....

But then the BLIZZARD came....and I got stuck up there.

....and then the most devastating news came....

My son called to tell me that my sister-in-law had passed away suddenly with no warning very early that morning.  It was congestive heart failure from what I gather.  Basically she had been fine....no major health issues going on.  It had been a normal typical day.  About 10 p.m. she had a bad pain in her back.  She took something, got out a heating pad and laid down for a couple of hours.  When she awoke it was worse.  She told her husband she felt something was wrong and she should go to the hospital.  He called 911.  He heard her fall.  He did CPR and she came around but did not look good.  The EMS guys came and worked on her.  Got her to the hospital where doctors did the paddles, etc.  But she was gone. 

I still cannot believe she is gone....

Our families were close.  Her kids and my kids are friends.  Her boys stood up at my boys' weddings.  We spent a lot of holidays together.  The four of us use to go out when we were younger.  We use to talk on the phone for hours.....and then it was emails....and then Facebook.  We always kept each other up to date on what was going on in our lives.  She was only 66.....she died almost 3 weeks before her 67th birthday. 

I still cannot believe she is gone.....

She was more to me than a sister-in-law.  She was also a good friend.   She was the rock of her family.  She was the glue that held everyone and everything together.  Her family is devastated.   This is a life-altering event that happened to them.  Their lives are forever changed. 

She was a big Elvis fan.  She once had a dog she named Elvis.  She died on January 8th, Elvis's birthday.  A couple days after she died packages had arrived at the house of some things she had ordered.  One of them was a collection of Elvis CD's.....

Her mother died the same way....fine one minute talking to a neighbor and then she collapsed.

She was the same age almost exactly as her father.  Her father's birthday was also the end of January.  He was 66.  He died 2 weeks before his 67th birthday.....

I find it scary that the end can come so quickly and perhaps with little or no warning.  There are so many things that I want done before I go.  Guess I better get things done...cause you never know! 

(I guess I'm blogging this so I have an entry of what happened......)
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So now I'm home and it's already February.  I'm back to my tax job.  And anxiously awaiting for all this SNOW TO MELT AND GO AWAY!

My dog, Mini Sue, scared me to death a couple of times.  She has a bad hacking cough that just won't go away and it is due to her heart.  She is on a heart pill and a water pill.  But the water pill makes her pee every 20 minutes!  And there have been a lot of accidents everywhere.  No sense in even thinking of getting new carpet in the living room until ......  well....until later. 

Her vet recommended us taking her to a vet cardiologist and have an ultra sound done on her heart to find out exactly what is going on.  I'm thinking about it.  But not until after tax season.

I'm going to try and blog more often....at least once a month!  Promise....(Hopefully)

MOTHER'S DAY

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY....

You would THINK that since today is Mother's Day, the man whose kids I gave birth to could at least suggest taking me out to dinner....you would think! 

Other men take their wives out to dinner....I'm assuming....

Other men might even give their wives flowers on Mother's Day.....I'm assuming....

Hubby HATES going out to dinner.

Well I HATE to cook dinner!

He retired from his job.....

So when can I retire from MY job???

So I waited for him to say something like where would I like to go for dinner....

By 5:00 I was starving, so I went and picked up some fucking Chinese food!

Oh...and flowers???.......HARDY HAR HAR....

Our Lilac tree is blooming, and I even mentioned it to him.  Easy enough I would think.  All he had to do was walk outside and cut a couple of nice purple blooms off the tree and bring them inside......and surprise me. 

But that would require him to put on some shoes.....

So no dinner and no flowers.....

Whatever....

The last time we went out to dinner was on his birthday back in February!  And even then he went out under protest.  He didn't want to go out.  (We hadn't been out to eat since New Year's Eve!)  He had suggested getting Chinese.   So when we did go out, I felt guilty like I was making him do something he didn't want to do on his birthday.  So after that fiasco, I decided we will ONLY go out when HE wants to.  Otherwise, I guess I can sit my ass home.

So when I suggested Chinese...."guess we could get some Chinese", I wasn't being serious....I was hoping....

It's been 3 months since he had to endure sitting in a restaurant and eating among strangers. 

Well, we had pick-up Chinese for Mother's Day...

Asshole...

Friday Night....(Saturday Morning)

It's a Friday night.  12:47 a.m. exactly.  Okay....so technically it's Saturday morning.

It's Saturday morning. 

I've been up since 9:00 a.m.

Got a phone call from my carpet installer to tell me he will be here to install our dinette carpeting between 1:00 and 3:00.

I tell hubby

I make coffee

I get the paper

I make myself a cup of coffee

I read the paper

I pee

I put make-up on

I get another cup of coffee

I read more of the paper

I................(well, you know)

I do something with my hair

I get dressed

I heat up my car and brush the snow off

I drive to Ram's Horn and meet my friend for brunch

I order a bacon/cheese Omelet with hash browns and toast

We eat and talk

I drive to an estate sale and buy a watch that ultimately doesn't work

I buy stamps and window washer fluid

I go home

Carpet installer is just finishing up.

Carpet looks GOOD

I heat up some leftover spaghetti and make salads

We eat

I go to Walmart and buy shit

I come home

We watch a DVD movie "The  Burbs" with Tom Hanks

We laugh

I drink coke and whatever booze I can find to mix it with

I type on my blog

Good-Night

A Relaxing Night out at Ruby Tuesday.....Hmmmm

...And restaurants wonder why they lose money and have to go out of business....

It's all about the service....

Last night a friend and I went out to dinner for her birthday.  She had a coupon for Ruby Tuesday in Westland, so we went there.  Neither one of us had ever eaten there before or any Ruby Tuesday for that matter.  Probably got there around 7:15 or so.  There were several people waiting for tables.  A young man was taking names.  I gave him my name and he said it would be 15-20 minute wait.  We asked if there was a bar and could we wait there.  He said 'sure' and that he would find me there when he had a table.  We ordered a couple of pricey beers and waited at the bar...($8.50 for 2 beers is pricey in my book).   Barmaid put the tab down and I laid a $10 bill on it to pay.  I expected change...and figured I'd leave a dollar for a tip.   (Yeah, I know...cheap, but whatever)  It just sat there.  After well over 20 minutes we could see empty tables.....we could see people coming in and immediately getting a table.  WTF?? we asked.....so my friend went up to the guy and asked....OH....he FORGOT ABOUT US.   Told him we'll get our own table...thank you very much. 

We sat at a table and waited for a waitress.  We got our own menus.  She finally came and we ordered the soup and salad bar.  We gave her our soup order and then went to the salad bar.  There were several people waiting in line.  There were no plates.  We had to wait for a guy to bring some freshly washed plates.  Now they were hot, and nothing like putting a cold salad on a hot plate....but whatever.  We got our salads.  Went back to our table to eat.

Hmmmmm......Where is our silverware???  Are we suppose to eat with our fingers??  Had to ask about the silverware.  Another guy brought us some silverware wrapped in a napkin.  Now here I have another little itsy bitsy problem that I seem to have most places I go.   Ya get ONE measily napkin.  Now unless there is a placemat (which in this case there was NOT), I prefer to keep my silverware ON my napkin and not on the probably germ filled table that people have been sneezing on all evening and putting dirty hands/fingers on.....and I'm sure that the rag they use to wipe those tables down are just as bad.  NOPE....I'll keep my silverware on my napkin, if you please.  Which leaves me with nothing to wipe my hands and mouth with while I eat.   Yeah, I'm picky....but whatever...

So now we have our silverware and eating our salad, but where oh where is our frickin' soup??  Do they make it from scratch after you order??  We had to ask the waitress.  She said she put the order in....walked away, came back and VOILA!...our soup appeared!!

Now I'm thirsty.....very thirsty.  We had no water.  What is it with water with these restaurants nowadays?  It's like you have to special order it or something.  I remember ... oh, back in the good ole days...when water was immediately brought to your table before you even ordered.  And  I AM OUT OF BEER!!!!  So really NOT a good thing.  Had to flag the waitress down again.  We told her we wanted water and another round of beers.  Many minutes later...maybe 15....we are still waiting.  Now we see her with the carpet sweeper SWEEPING THE FLOORS!  WHERE THE HELL IS MY BEER????  So we asked.  OH......she forgot.....she is so so sorry.  So then she comes back with MY water and our beers.  My friend never did get her water.  We got real tired of having to keep asking this moronic waitress for everything.  I mean, we didn't want to start sounding DIFFICULT.....They might red tag us or something....ban us forever from their place of establishment.  Put a Scarlet "DB" on our foreheads (Difficult Bitches).  Nope, don't want that to happen.....

So I guess she assumes we are done.  Actually hoping we will get the hell out of her station.  So she brings us our bill....basically letting us know to pay up and then don't let the door hit us in the ass on our way out.  Well.....we ain't done....We paid the bill and kept eating, drinking and talking....and talking....and talking.  After we paid the bill, we never seen hide nor hair of her again.  Maybe she was off her shift and went home.   And at that point, we were totally ignored.  We were never offered another drink.  We sat there for at least another hour and a half or two and chatted.  Our beers were gone, my water was gone....I'm crunching on the few ice cubes on the bottom....then they were gone.  Nobody approached our table to even ask us if we would like anything else....another drink?  Yes...we wanted another drink.  But did we get one...Noooooooo.  We weren't even offered coffee.  I mean, most people like to have a cup of coffee after their meal.  We were never asked. 

So we just talked and then the last table of people left.  We were still there talking.  Then we noticed they were cleaning up.  We asked one of the waitresses what time they closed.  They close at midnight.....Oops...it was 12:30 a.m.  Guess it's time to go. 

Too bad the service was so bad.  It was a nice place.  Food was good.  Clean.   Almost too clean.
When I went to use the rest room at some point, there was a cleaning lady in there.  She told me I had to wait because all the toilets had just been sprayed with bleach and she needed to wipe one down for me.  DUH.....This was when there were still people in the restaurant.  Couldn't she do one at a time??  Why spray them all down at once??  I have no clue.  So I waited and held it in as best I could.

OMG.....Is it me??  Am I being over picky??  Do I expect too much??  Sorry, when I pick a restaurant to spend my money in, I EXPECT to be treated like the Queen of England.  I expect good service.  I expect to be waited on.  A good waitress should know what her customers want before even they know what they want.  You should not have to ask for a menu...or silverware...or a drink....or water....or your freakin' SOUP!  I mean, it's in a pot....ladle it out into the damn bowl and bring it to me!! 

I gave her a $6 tip and she is damn lucky she got that.  I only gave her that because I knew we would be ordering another round of beers later and I figure it would cover it.  But we never got the other round of beers. 

I almost was going to take my empty water glass into the bathroom and fill it up myself!  But I figured I'd probably have to wait for the cleaning lady to finish washing out the sink or something.......

I sent my thoughts and comments and a total rundown of my experience to Ruby Tuesday on their website.  I'll be hearing from them, I'm sure.  Maybe I'll get a free dinner out of it.  Next time I will be on their ass.....

The end of 2012.......See Ya

Lordy, Lordy, Lordy....I can't believe I haven't written a damn thing since OCTOBER!!  I guess I get too involved in writing my life in Facebook and figure everybody reads that anyway.  But I kinda use this blog as a journal and later when I'm trying to figure out when I did such and such...I can always go back into my blog and figure it out. 

In November I nearly lost little Junior, my pet pigeon.  I was in Caseville with the dogs and her.  I thought she was in the cottage.  I had shut the doors thinking I was locking them up in the house and then I went through the attached garage and out the back door to do some yard work.  Apparently, she had flown into the garage and I didn't know it.  So when I went outside I heard the flapping of wings.  I turned around and saw her flying out the door.   I yelled her name and she ignored me and flew right over the roof of the house.  I ran into the front yard and she was nowhere in sight....basically....she flew the coop!

Saying I was upset is an understatement.  I was shaking.  I called hubby and had to tell him that she had flown away.  It was because of my own stupidity.  We thought she might try to fly back home where he was.  So he put her cage out on the patio and kept an eye out.  I kept the front yard light on and back yard light on and the garage doors open with lights on all night.  I had her favorite seeds in a bowl in her cage in the garage.  It got dark.  She didn't come home.

I cried for her.  I was sure that she wouldn't survive the night.  It was in the 30's out there.  She is not use to cold weather.  She has never had to live outside.  She is house bird.  I'm sure it was dark and scary for her.  And I was sure that a hawk would find her before morning.

The next day I drove all over looking for her.  I kept checking her seed cup in her cage and it was never touched.  Hubby called and said he was driving up the next day.  I felt it was probably useless.....she was gone. 

All I did was cry and beg for her return.  I couldn't eat.  All I could keep down was soup and canned fruit.  I was physically ill. 

The next day hubby drove up.  He walked all around looking for her.....hoping she was still in the area and would see him and fly down on his shoulder.  Nothing.  Another long night went by.  We kept all the lights and doors of the garage open. 

The next day.....the fourth day.....we were both convinced that she was gone for good.  Although neither one of us said so, we felt she was probably dead.   I knew of a barn somewhat in the area that pigeons had flocked to.  We had talked with the guy who owned the place.  I told hubby that maybe she found her way to his barn and that we should go over there and check.  It was a last resort......a last straw.....the last hope. 

It was noon and I was sitting on the couch thinking I need to get dressed.  A thought of something I had seen on TV had crossed my mind so I stayed on the couch and proceeded to relate it to my husband who was sitting across from me on his recliner.  When I finished the story, I was looking out the window across from me.  In my line of vision I could see a small portion of the corner of the garage roof.  Just then I saw a Pigeon land on that part of the roof!  I said...OMG, a pigeon just landed on the garage roof!!  I jumped off the couch and told hubby that it just HAD to be her cause it's a pigeon.  I've never seen pigeons near our place before.  I told him to hurry....so she could see him.

We ran out the back door and there she was!!....Prancing on the garage roof when she saw us.  We called her name.  She flew down on my husband's shoulder, and I grabbed her and brought her in the house.  SHE WAS HOME!!  My prayers were answered.  I thanked God over and over and over again!!  I was literally jumping for joy and hugging my husband.  I couldn't take my eyes off her.  I couldn't believe she was actually home.....she was okay. 

SO WHERE THE HELL WAS SHE FOR 3 DAYS AND 3 NIGHTS?????? 

Only Junior knows.....and she ain't tellin'
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Had a great Christmas and New Years.  We were home for the holidays this year.    Had my place all decorated up...inside and outside.  The boys and their wives came over.  We spent some Christmassy time with neighbors on Christmas Eve.  New Years we went out to dinner and then came home and rang in the New Year with Keno, Mini Sue and Junior/Junie (for short). 

Basically 2012 was a good year.  I hope 2013 is even better. 

Furniture, Carpet and Cats

Nothing ever goes the way you try and plan it.  So when the upholsterer's picked up my furniture, I immediately got my carpet ordered.  I was told that after they measured and I paid, then they would order the carpet which would take about 4 days to get in....then they call and set up an installment date.  GREAT!  With the main furniture out of the room, we can move the rest out and have the carpet installed BEFORE my furniture is done and back in the room. 

So I went to Caseville and hubby got everything else out of the room so he could take up the old carpet and pad.  He had to work around the big-ass entertainment wall unit cause we both have to get that out.  So he just cut the carpet around it.  He had everything cleaned up nice by the time I got back.  I even took the dogs with me, so they wouldn't get in the way and breathe in all the dust and crap.  Then we waited to hear from the carpet guys.....

....and we waited.....

Then the phone rang and it was the upholsterer calling saying our furniture was DONE and he wanted to bring it back to us.   DUH......still no new carpet in.

So they brought all my furniture back and put it on the bare floor, with the little bit of old yucky carpet still sticking out from under the big-ass wall unit.  The guys delivering it looked a little confused, so I explained about how I had expected the new carpet to be installed before the furniture was done....but oh well.....

My furniture looks great!  Love, Love, Love it!!  Before it was a light oatmeal color.  Now it's a richer brown look.   See pics below:.........


This is BEFORE................................: (With dirty carpet)

This is AFTER...................................: (On bare floor).....(That's Keno at the window)

 

 

There is also a chair and ottoman in another corner. 

After waiting a few more days I decided to go up to Home Depot and find out what the hell is taking so long.   I want my carpet installed before I head back up to Caseville.  Cause then I'll be gone for 2 weeks.  I was told that after the carpet is ordered it usually takes from 7-10 days to get it...not 4 days like I was told.  She checked and my carpet had just come in that day or the day before.  And they always do an inspection of the carpet before they call for an installment date.  Then she said that the next available installation date would be October 31, Halloween!  Well, I'm going to be in Caseville Halloween!!......so obviously that ain't gonna work.

So I just made the appointment for November 14.  I'll be back by then.  Mini Sue is having dental work on the 12th.  Actually Nov 14 will also be her 13th birthday.....so she'll be getting new carpet to piss on for her birthday!!!  Yippppeeeeee

Then I came home and told hubby we may as well put all the rest of the furniture back into the room and when we get back in November, we'll just take it all out again.....plus, now we not only have to find room to put the big-ass wall unit, but we now have to find room to put all the furniture in too.............grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.......so not how I had planned it.  Not AT ALL!! 

I'm leaving tomorrow for Caseville.  I'll take Mini Sue and Keno and Junior, the Pigeon.  Jerry says he'll drive up next week and bring the cat.....Orange Kitty......the stray cat we got hooked into keeping....the one we refuse to name.  He's orange and white....so we just call him Orange now. 

See Orange Kitty.................:

 

....And talking about stray cats......well, that's another story for another post.  I'm going to bed.  Everybody enjoy your Halloween.  I'll be at the Eagles dancing to the Monster Mash!

Ciao

Redesigning a room.....

It's been a while since I've posted anything.  Seems like Facebook takes up all my time and I basically let everyone know what I've been up to through that.  Plus, I write in a regular journal for myself.  It's been a few years since I've started writing a journal on a daily/or weekly basis.  So between the two, I have just plain been ignoring my blogging. 

The holidays are coming and my family room sucks!  The carpet is dirty.  I tried cleaning it with my carpet cleaner, but that was a big waste of my time.  Doesn't look a whole hell of a lot better.  Needs to be professionally cleaned.  The furniture needs to be professioally cleaned....it's a light mushroom color.  And you know how you just get use to looking at things and not really seeing it for what it is.  Well, I took a good look and saw how bad it is looking.  The chair is worn in spots and cleaning will not help....it needs to be reupholstered.  So I figure I may as well just reupholster the whole thing.   I have a sectional in a corner....basically a couch and love seat combined, and a chair with a matching ottoman.  It's a wood frame, so it just has cushions...seats and backs......easy and much cheaper to upholster. 

The kids think we should just go buy a new set.  Now why on earth should I buy a new set???  I love my furniture!  I loved it when I bought it 35 freaking years ago!!, and I still love it.  It fits perfect in the corner.  Oh, once before I looked around.  Went to alot of furniture stores on a chance that maybe there might be something else out there that I would fall in love with that would fit so perfect in that corner of my family room.  And sure there were a lot of nice sets, but they make them so huge now....that overstuffed type....way too big for that corner.  And anything you find in a furniture store is going to look nice but, trust me, everything is made with cheap material.   They don't make 'em the way they use to.

So I just reupholster.  This will be the third time I've reupholstered that set.  Plus...it's cheaper to reupholster than to buy new.  I'm getting it done this time for only $1350....that's a couch, love set, chair and ottoman...plus two bolster pillows!   And it's good fabric.....regularly $82/yard on sale for $62/yard.  Some material I looked at was under $40/yard, so this is good fabric I'm getting.  It better be, cause it's going to be the LAST time I'm doing it.  It better last until I'm dead and gone!!  Then my kids can sell it, throw it out, or put it down in their basements....I won't care by then...

And why get my carpets cleaned??....I'm replacing that too!

Went to Home Depot and got it ordered.  They'll be coming to measure on Monday.

So by the holidays I will have a whole new family room look.  Hopefully, maybe, I'll get my new TV by then too.  I don't know why Sears isn't getting the model we want...grrrrrr.....I keep checking.   I've tried talking hubby into just getting a Samsung or a Panasonic or anything else....but nope....It has to be an LG.  So wait we will do.....

So that's what I've been up to lately. Redoing my family room.  (It's cheaper than moving)