I JUST REALIZED.....

today would have been my dad's 90th birthday.

I'VE GOT SO MANY PICTURES.....

of people (the ones with whom I've been spending my time) and places here in Borger. Unfortunately, I didn't bring the software to put on Shannon's computer that I need to upload the pictures from my camera. Suffice it to say that I will be blogging quite a bit when I get back home and can get my pictures on the blog. I'm more than half way through my babysitting gig and I'd have to say we've done pretty well. We haven't been late for school, either going or coming; we were on time for ballet class last Thursday and the birthday party on Friday; we did cut it close yesterday when we went to the movie (go see "Nim's Island" if you haven't already.....it's an outstanding film) but who wants to sit in the dark listening to THEIR music while you wait on the show to start.....NOT US.....so we arrived just in the nick of time. There have been no major medical emergencies (thank goodness) and only one minor blood-letting (Hannah got a little over-enthusiastic with her pit-tickling and scratched Kristin's arm). Everyone has been going to bed when I say with only (what I consider to be) normal amounts of whining. Hannah has only asked for her mother once a day, usually around bedtime and mostly to have something to say, I think. It's been good to be here for this length of time with just them. Tony and I don't get to spend as much time with our little Texans as we'd like. I won't be able to call them that much longer. What do you call people from Washington State? Is it badgers? Or is that Wisconsin? I'll have to research that. If you know, write a comment. You know, people from Indiana aren't called Indianans or Indianians.....we're Hoosiers. (And I'll bet you didn't know that in Missouri hoosier = redneck. It's a generic word. I'm almost POSITIVE there are a lot of "hoosiers" living in Missouri.) Well, Kristin is at school and Hannah is asking for a movie. (OH! Another really good movie is "Enchanted".....now THERE is an excellent movie!!) I'd better go see what I can find that will suit her.

I LEARNED A NEW WORD TODAY.....

AUTOMAGICALLY.....I don't know if it was a misspelling or intentional; but, I love it!

ABSOLUTELY THE BEST BOOK.....

I've ever read has got to be "The Wedding" by Nicholas Sparks. Get it.....read it.....tell me what you think. Truly.....best book ever. I wrote Mr. Sparks a fan letter. First one I'd ever written to anyone. I promise.....it's a very good book.

MY MAN MITCH (A PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT...sorta).....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90llxghZlrc

I guess I should put a little more than just the link. Like, maybe, why the link is here. I happen to like Mitch. I think he's made the best of a VERY bad situation that he had nothing to do with creating. PLUS.....and this is the BIG reason why the link is here.....the President of the Indiana State Police Alliance just happens to be my brother. (And I'm sure my dad is rolling over in his grave every time someone sees his son endorsing a Republican on the public airwaves.)

TEXAS IS SEMI-FAMOUS FOR.....

roadrunners. Did you know that? I think I might have heard that they have them here. But, I actually saw one today. Running down the middle of the road. Go figure.....

Texas is also famous for long-horn cattle. (They don't generally roam the roads.....but I've seen them penned up along side the roads.)

Meet the armadillo. Affectionately referred to by me as the Texas 'possum. They are just as ugly and you more than likely will see them lying in pieces along the side of the road 'cause they're too dumb to recognize death when it's barrelling down on them at 65-70 miles an hour.

Texas also has lots and lots of snakes, scorpions and tarantulas (none of those creepy, crawly, potentially life-threatening .....THINGS deserves a picture. Besides, I'd probably pass out from a severe case of the heebie-jeebies before I could get them uploaded).....yes, I said tarantulas. Ask Shannon about tarantulas sometime. Oh.....and when you do, also ask her about scorpions. Oh.....and SNAKES, too.....LOLOL (Now I'm wondering what kind of icky things live in Washington State.)

But, if I were to ask you what you thought of when I said "Texas", I'm pretty sure you'd say........cowboys (no not the Dallas ones). And, as far as I can tell all the cowboys look pretty much the same. Here are Buster and Bob. (I surfed around a little bit looking for cowboys. That's how I know they all look pretty much the same. Altho, I did find ONE that was a little different than the rest. And I think he looks like MY kind of cowboy.)

Please don't ask how I got from roadrunners to semi-naked cowboys. It even scares ME to think about that.

I HAD A POST ON HERE EARLIER.....

telling all about Borger, TX with aerial pictures from Google Earth. But you couldn't see ANYthing, so I took it off. I will just TELL you about Borger for the time being. It's kind of sad that I'm just now getting around to writing about Borger. Our daughter and her family have lived there for almost 4 years and they are getting ready to move to Washington State. So, for some reason, it hit me to write about Borger. I guess maybe because this is my next to last trip EVER to this small Texas town.

Borger is located almost smack dab in the center of the Texas panhandle.....about 45 miles northeast of Amarillo. (Daughter and her family moved here in 2004 because of her husband's job. He took a position with Conoco Phillips at the Borger Refinery.) And it's right at 1,000 miles from Loogootee. We could drive there in about 16 hours if we had to (or even if we didn't have to and just wanted to get there in a hurry.)

Now, this is the third place in Texas that Shannon and Ryan have lived. They have lived in Houston, Corpus Cristi and Borger. And, of the three, Borger comes closest to being "Texan". (or at least what I thought of as "Texan" before my daughter became one)

All around Borger there are ranches.....real, honest-to-goodness Texas ranches; the kind of ranches whose fences go for miles and miles.....the kind of ranches that are so big that you never see the cattle when you're driving by. I've had REAL Texas barbecue in a little restaurant that began life as a convenience store/gas station and whose cook boasted blue-ribbon-winning barbecue (the proof was right there on the wall). Not much was done in the way of remodeling except to put in a dining counter and some tables and chair. And I ate it properly, too.....with brown beans and cole slaw and the "barbecue sauce" in a bottle on the table. (Apparently, barbecue is a METHOD of cooking rather than a recipe.)

It's late.....more about Borger tomorrow. I'll hurry and finish my travelogue 'cause I KNOW none of you will sleep until you've read it all. Nighty night.

(For the love of John, I wish someone could tell me how to get spaces between ALL the paragraphs!!)

I WAS NEVER ABLE TO WRITE ABOUT IT.....

last year. Willie's motorcycle buddies did something absolutely awesome. They staged a whole weekend of activities to make money for starting a college fund for Tylie. They had a yard sale, a cookout for donations, raffles for goodies that any motorcyclist would have wanted, a 50-50 raffle (I have to add right here that the mother of one of Willie's motorcycle buddies won the 50-50 raffle and she gave back the money that she won. Thank you, Kim.) and a memorial ride. Their goal was to raise $2,000. But they didn't. THEY RAISED OVER $5,800!!!! They raised $2,000 at the yard sale alone. They and their girlfriends and wives and parents worked their behinds off to raise that money. I told them then and I'm saying it again right here. There are no words that can express our thanks and gratitude for their hard work and what they accomplished. The only thing we can do is to make sure that Tylie knows WHAT they have done for her and WHY. They're going to do it again this summer. So far, the only definite thing is the date: Sept. 6-7. But, I have it on good authority that there will be things going on that weekend that lots of people will want to see and do. Check back here often for updates about what's going on. You can also check their website: http://www.1150riders.com They've already added a page for this year's event. Check it out.....sign the guest book.....tell everyone about it.....make plans to come and celebrate Willie's life with his family and friends that weekend. This is a picture of the riders and Tylie at last year's cookout.

GOD BLESS YOUR HEARTS, EVERY ONE OF YOU!

I USUALLY DON'T LIKE.....

anything that Will Farrell is in; but, "Blades of Glory" is a hoot. I heehawed the first time I saw it.

MONEY FOR NUTHIN'.....

They have this program where I work. If an employee recommends a person for a job and that person applies for the job and the company interviews them and then hires them and that person stays at least 30 days, the employee gets some money. SOOOOO.....I did and she did and they did and she did. Now I'm waiting on my moolah!! 350 smackers!!!! YEEHAW!!!!!!!!!! (I hope I get it in time for this TX trip.)

IT'S BEEN NEARLY A YEAR SINCE.....

I first whined about Tab and the fact that it was just downright nasty. Well, the Coca Cola people finally wised up and now we've got REAL Tab again. WOO HOO!!!

WHAT A GLORIOUS DAY.....

The weather was totally awesome. I DO enjoy spring.....and I like summer even better. We spent some time out at the farm today; and we took Tylie with us. She seems to be an outdoor girl.

Maybe I said this before.....maybe I didn't.....our daughter and her family are officially OFFICIALLY moving to Washington state. Somewhere about an hour north of Seattle. Dang near at the Canadian border. They've known for a week or two. Kristin, the oldest granddaughter, is in kindergarten and she was told NOT to tell. Her mother kept reminding her not to spill the beans. Well, last week Kristin couldn't stand it any more and told her mother she was going to "spill the beans and pick up the can." WHERE do they get this stuff?

I'm going to TX next week so daughter and hubby can go house hunting in Washington. I'm sure I'll have a boatload of new pictures of the other three when I get back.

Have a good week everyone!

FOR WILLIE.....

Four Candles for You

The first candle represents our grief. The pain of losing you is still intense. It reminds us of the depth of our love for you.

The second candle represents our courage to confront our sorrow, to comfort each other, to change our lives.

The third candle is lit in your memory for the times we laughed, the times we cried, the times we were angry with each other, the silly things you did.....the caring and joy you gave us.

The fourth candle represents our love. It is lit so that your light will always shine when we enter into any gathering and time of sharing with our family and friends.

We cherish the special place in our hearts that will always be reserved for you. We thank you for the gift your living brought to each of us.

We love you.

We remember you.

We miss you.

PLEASE TELL ME.....

why it is that some companies will spend the price of postage, the cost of the check and the cost of printing and stuffing the check all to send YOU a check for $.09.

OH, MY GOODNESS.....

if time flies when you're having fun, I must be at the freakin' circus. I had no idea that it had been so long since I'd posted. And I've actually got something to talk about.

Today, at work, a fellow came through the drive-thru wearing a Bunny Bread hat. Seeing it took me back quite a few years. I was in Jr. Hi.....probably 7th grade. Or, to be more precise, I think it was the summer between 7th and 8th grades. I don't know how I got roped into it; but, I wore a Bunny Bread bunny outfit (full body) and handed out samples or coupons or something at the grocery store. And got PAID for it.....lol (Apparently, I never DID have good sense.)

IT'S FRIDAY.....

which is good....the weather was nearly beautiful (almost spring-like), which is nice. Now, for something funny. I do work with a couple of really funny women and they help make the long Fridays go faster. I can't remember anything specific they said. I just know they're funny.

I DO wonder about the people who come to the bank two or three times in the same day. It's true. I've seen it may times. We have a handful of customers who, on any given day, might come to the bank three times. I don't get it.....but, there's a LOT of stuff I don't get about other people. It's probably a good thing. If I understood everything everyone else did, I'd probably be nuts. ('Cause I think THEY'RE all nuts.)

YEAH, YEAH, YEAH.....

I know I said every day; but, apparently, I lied. I skipped a day.....sue me. I'll have to sell my computer to pay whatever the court awards you. THEN where will you be? Hmmmmmm?

Anyway, today I had a day off work. My back feels much better at the end of the day when I don't have to work. It's true. Sadly.

I wish I lived next door to Ina Garten.....or Paula Deen.....or (and this would be my first pick) Alton Brown. I'd be as big as a house. Or else in jail for harassment. (Altho, I could probably do without all the goat cheese they use. And, to be honest, Ina uses way more goat cheese than the other two.)

WELL, YOU JUST KNOW.....

that since I posted pictures of Kristin, I HAVE to post pictures of the other three. So, here they are :-)


This is Hannah wearing some of the bows that her momma made.


This is Princess Ty.


And, last but not least, Ellie.

They are the four lights of our lives, mine and Papaw's. THEY are good and nice and funny things EVERY day! (And, in case you didn't notice.....we have TWO redheads.....lol)

GOOD, NICE, FUNNY.....

I'm thinking, I'm thinking.....OH! OH!.....son-in-law got an EXCELLENT job offer and accepted it. Daughter and her family will be moving to Washington state. Her husband has to be there May 1; but, she won't be going until right after June 7. The oldest granddaughter, Kristin, has a dance recital on the 7th. This will be the third one I've been to see. I think I'll insert pictures at this point..... :-)

OOPS.....

I forgot that I was supposed to do this every day. Yesterday, Saturday, the good thing that happened was that I opened 3 (THREE) accounts at the Shoals branch. A CD, a checking and a savings. I felt pretty good about them when they were done, too.

As for today, Sunday, it was Easter. Easter Sunday, in itself, is a good and happy thing. But on top of that, Tony and I ate dinner at his mom's house and darn near ALL the family were there. Lots of good food was carried in and we ate way too much, as always. We didn't get to see Ty; but, she was with her mom and sisters playing at a waterpark in a hotel in Indianapolis and that was a good thing. Also, another good thing.....my mom brought a leftover fruit tray from her church's Easter morning breakfast. Nothing much better than free food, as far as I'm concerned...... :-)

I'M REALLY GOING TO TRY.....

to find something good or happy or funny to write about each day. (Notice I said EACH day.......and also that I said TRY........lol) Right now I'm only halfway through this day. And already there's something good to write about. I get off at 3:00 today instead of 6:00 (due to it's being Good Friday. Altho, no one I know is going to attend any church services until probably 7:00 tonight. I'm not complaining, however, just enjoying.) PLUS!!!.....I get paid for the three hours that I would have worked.......errrrrrr.........that should be 2 hours. I get off an hour early every other Friday and this is that Friday. (I need to remember that when I get back to work and re-enter my time on my time sheet.) Oh, well.....time to go shove a couple more taquitos in the micro-wave before I have to get back to work.........see y'all later!

THE ONLY THOUGHTS I'VE.....

had since the beginning of the year are mostly about losing weight. I've put on a few pounds (well, MORE than a few, actually.....but we'll leave it at "a few"). It would be nice if my back wouldn't give me fits and I could walk on a treadmill. Hell, it would be nice if I could walk anywhere.

I'M TRYING NOT TO WORRY.....

DEXTER MORGAN

I've been watching "Dexter" on Showtime. (As a matter of fact, I subscribed to Showtime just so I could watch "Dexter".) It disturbs me a little that I enjoy this show. For those of you who don't know, Dexter is a serial killer. Plus, he works on the police department. He studies blood evidence. The FBI has entered the hunt for the "Bay Harbor Butcher" (what they're calling Dexter). I find myself rooting for Dex. I know I shouldn't hope he gets away with it; but somehow, he's rather endearing. Apparently, it's a very well-written show if I'm rooting for the bad guy. At least that's what I'm telling myself.

I'LL BE GLAD.....

when this year is over. I know you're not supposed to wish you life away, but I can't help it. The second half of 2007 has not been kind to us. Willie's dying would have been more than enough. But, Tony had a heart attack at the end of September. It was a mild heart attack and there was minimal damage.........but the damage was in a really bad spot and a day or so after the attack, his heart stopped. From what we gathered from everyone we talked to, he very nearly died. Meaning, the hospital staff worked on him and came very close to quitting. Add to that the fact that my back has been acting up since May and I'll eventually need some surgery and Shannon's mother-in-law died November 2 after a long and hard-fought battle with cancer. I'm going to try to do better after the first of the year with this blog. By the way.....Tony is doing wonderfully. He saw Dr. Adam yesterday, Nov. 20, and Dr. said he didn't see how Tony could be doing any better than he is. We thank God daily for the miracle of his life.

WE'RE GOING TO.....

Yup, we've never been and we're goin'. Our 35th wedding anniversary is July 29th and we've decided to splurge. We'll be staying at the Wynn Las Vegas Hotel from August 4th through the 11th. We're going to see the sights, take a couple of tours, go to a couple of shows, lie by the pool, nap, eat and have an excellent time. We've got great flight times and we will be staying a week. We are SOOOOOOOOOOOO excited!!!!!

WATCHING PAINT DRY.....

We've been talking about painting our bedroom for the last three years."Honey, I'd like to paint the bedroom." "Honey, we REALLY need to paint the bedroom." "Honey, if we don't paint the bedroom, folks will think we've been mining for coal in there."

Honey finally told me it was time to paint so I made big plans. I bought a new bedding ensemble: sheets, pillowcases, comforter, shams, bedskirt, valances.....it was ALL totally coordinated. Then I went to work deciding on a color to paint the walls. This was not an easy task for me. I have trouble deciding between paper or plastic when they ask at the grocery store. The bedding was predominantly blue, but there were numerous shades of pink, cream and green in it, as well. I took one of the shams into the bedroom and held it up, doing a lot of squinting and trying to imagine what the whole room would look like. I pretty much ruled out pink from the get-go. I'm not really a "pink" kinda gal, even on my most "feminine" of days. And cream was out because we were going to be painting over cream. (The cream that white turns into after 15+years.) And I had painted the bathroom green a couple of years ago. That left only blue. OK, I had my paint color.....blue it would be.

Now, I'm not a handyman, or even a handywoman, but I think Home Depot is an awesome place. I only had one small problem: getting past the supremely futuristic refrigerator they had blocking the entrance. Man, if I had an extra 15 million bucks lyin' around, that's the one I'd be gettin'.

I did eventually make it to the paint department.....and immediately had a "decision meltdown". There were at least four brands from which to choose: Behr, Porter, Disney and some "designer" paint which I knew from the name would be out of my price range. And the Disney paints seemed to be geared more toward playrooms and circus tents. That narrowed the field by two. But I'm still basically faced with the "paper or plastic" decision. And, as I stated, at the very least, I get sweaty and my head starts to pound when faced with even minor decisions. (Some of you may think picking out a paint color IS minor, but it's not. I mean, if I decided that I had made the wrong choice when choosing paper over plastic at the grocery story, I could just throw the mistake away. But I'll have to look at these walls every time I wake up for the next 15 years. [remember, we don't paint very often])

AHA! I'll ask that knowledgable-looking man (wearing an apron with his name written in magic marker on the chest). He and I spent the next 15 minutes discussing the various pros and cons of Behr and Porter paints with a few offhand remarks thrown in by an impartial bystander. And it was decided that Behr is the paint of choice.

I then turned around and was confronted with the Behr paint display. I wish I had a dollar for every shade of blue on that display. (I could have hired the whole job out.....including the decision-making!) ARGGHHHHHH!!! Talk about a headache. I had taken one of the shams along with me and was nearly reduced to tears trying to pick just one shade of blue off of it to try and match. Forty-five minutes later, after accosting a couple of strangers for their opinions, much muttering and swearing under my breath and again consulting with the apron-clad paint expert, I made a choice: Viking (trust me, it's blue).....two gallons, semi-gloss, non-returnable. (The non-returnable part nearly did me in.) I went toWal-Mart and picked up an all-inclusive set of rollers, brushes, masking tape and all the other accoutrements needed by the "paint-a-room-once-every-15-years-whether-it-needs-it-or-not" school of thinking.

I think it turned out very well. And Honey only threatened to quit twice during the painting process. (After the second time, I thought it wise to keep my comments to MYSELF considering that he was doing it all by HIMSELF.) Thanks, Honey. I "HEART" you!!

I NEVER REALIZED.....

.....what I sick woman I am until I looked at myself through someone else's eyes. I ran out of bookshelves several years ago and started using this couch in the basement. I need help.....I really do.

WHY YOU SHOULDN'T WORRY TOO MUCH ABOUT BEING CLEAN.....

I decided to clean the bedroom today, dust, run the sweeper, pick up stuff and put it away. When I do that, I take everything on the desk and put it on the bed. I take the computer apart and when I'm putting it back together, I clean all the pieces. When I got to the keyboard, I pulled out the vacuum cleaner and really gave it a good vacuuming. Then I got the windex and tried to clean the keys. I found something crusty on the back of the space bar and was trying to get it off. I succeeded, too. I also noticed a smudge of something on the next key up. I nearly had THAT cleaned off when I realized it was the "comma". Someone help me, please.......

WILLIAM THOMAS (WILLIE) WALTON

June 5, 1979 - June 9, 2007

OK.....

the new Tab (which is in a cute little can all covered in pink squares and called "Tab energy") is absolutely NOTHING like the old Tab. It SUUUUUUUUUCKS!!! Don't buy it!!! To the Coca Cola Bottling Company.....fool me once, shame on you.....fool me twice, ain't gonna happen.