The last day of the year

Well here I sit at my new computer on the last day of the year. What did I do today? Well I installed our new wireless printer and it works great. I also drove around Hot Springs looking for a new tool box for my truck with absolutely no luck. I did go by Arkansas tire and they gave me a good location in Arkadelphia at Atwood's. I called them and made an appointment to have one put in my truck on Friday.
Susan had a wonderful time watching the Razorbacks beat Oklahoma yesterday. It's all she can talk about. Mary and Susan are real Razorback fans. They are a part of a phenomenon I have witnessed in all of Arkansas. The people in this state are what I would call super fans. I do have to admit it was an exciting event.
Susan is having her girlfriends over tomorrow. I do love the way she gets so into entertaining her friends. They are wonderful people and they do mean a lot to her.
I am hoping after the first of the year we can head for Texas and a visit to my home (which I have never seen) in Livingston, Texas.
I have a new trailer that I have never used and I can’t wait to try it out.
It will be three years for Susan and I on the 12th of February. I can think of no place that I would rather be then with Susan and the warmth of her home and her heart. We will celebrate the New Year the way I always do sound asleep. I am looking forward to next year, it has to be just as good as 2008.

Christmas

Christmas was as it should be .. a peaceful day shared with family and friends. Leon and I had dinner Christmas Eve with Kay and John and some of John's family. On Christmas morning I prepared my annual brunch and soon the house was filled with the Christmas spirit. All of the cousins were elsewhere for the first time ever so the crowd was small.


David was quite pleased with his new hat thanks to Will. This was his first Christmas to spend with us and we were delighted that he joined us.



John and Kay open their gifts from Will while Leon checks his stack of presents.



Jeff made out like a bandit, then he went to Walmart and bought the new rock band he really wanted!



We got out the Wii Fit that I have had for several months but never had used. Kay led the way.

The next day I was still in the shopping mood so I headed out in the little white car I recently purchased at an auction to replace Little Miss Sunshine! I think I am ready for next Christmas now! The weather during the week varied from 16 degrees to almost 70 with thunderstorms and a little ice at times but no snow!

Movies

We have enjoyed Christmas music, lights, and shopping so now it is time to enjoy a few of the movies that seem to flood the theaters at Christmastime. Leon, Darla, Kay and I went to see Four Christmases on Monday. It was a cute little movie that left you in good spirits and perhaps thankful for the quiet, sane Christmas we expect to experience. There are several others we hope to see. I just hope I can survive all the buttered popcorn!
It is time to shop for ingredients for my Christmas brunch and the temperature at the time is 30 degrees. I can see the icicles forming on the Camelia bush as the rain tries to drip off. By noon it should be above freezing and time to maneuver the crowds at Walmart!

Shopping

Saturday morning was a beautiful sunny day so about 7 Leon and I went for our Saturday Senior breakfast at Perkins. As we passed Belk's I realized crazy folks were already shopping..or maybe they were the smart ones ahead of the crowd. Since I had finished my Christmas shopping I went of to do a little "to me from me" shopping while Leon took off for a new computer. He had spotted a bargain and it was the one he had been watching for. I later encouraged Mary to join me and helped her pick out some new clothes for her Christmas trip to Austin. Then Kay joined us for lunch at the San Francisco Bread Company.
Sunday, while Mary and her son Will packed for Austin, Kay and I attended a magnificent music program at her church. We left before I had to explain two dozen times that no, I was Mary's sister..being a twin isn't always easy.

Music and lights

This December has been filled with music. A new resident who made Hot Springs her home after the New Orleans hurricane/flood is a magnificent soprano. She has surrounded herself with other local musicians and formed a group, The Muses, to further spread the joy of music in the community. My sister and I attended a performance in town and then Chris, Mary, Joy and I headed to Garvan Gardens for another Christmas program.




The Anthony Chapel is a recent addition to Garvan Gardens and makes a grand statement among the stately pines. It was designed by members of the E. Fay Jones architectural firm of Fayetteville. Fay Jones once studied under Frank Lloyd Wright. It was the perfect place for us to enjoy the Christmas music. I especially liked the 4 trombones that joined the 3 sopranos, a tenor, and a bass.


Afterwards we enjoyed a walk among the Christmas lights in the gardens on an especially balmy 67 degree night. The lighted displays almost make you feel like a child again as I stroll among the candy canes with Joy and Chris.






On a much chillier night Leon and I drove among the luminaries set up in the Prospect neighborhood in town. Afterwards we wandered among some of the lights downtown and even stopped various strangers to get our photo made for our annual Christmas card.

Holiday season

I have always wanted to put lots of lights in the yard and woods and this year it happened. Well, a few were put out! Where we will put them the rest of the year is yet a mystery. We took advantage of a 50+ degree day to electrify the front yard. Putting these things together was not easy in the beginning! Leon got to transport the angel. Since we are at the end of a dead end street with no neighbors in view we are not sure many will see the display but we sure enjoy it each night. We want to wish a very happy holiday season to all of our friends!

Maids of Jubilee

My daughter, Kay, hosted our group of special girlfriends for the annual Christmas gathering. Chris' daughter Joy and Kay visit in the kitchen. It is nice that young people enjoy being with us.

Kay had her house gaily decorated for the Christmas season with her Annalee collection scattered about. She had even climbed the ladder and found a new home for some of her Santas, which made for a magical display.

John came home in time to take a photo of us all at the hearth! All of the group was together and it was a special evening! During the past year we had experienced elation when Margaret got married and devastation when Chris lost her husband after a brave struggle with brain cancer. For seventeen years we have been getting together almost monthly in each other's homes for a meal and a visit and once in awhile we take a road trip. We are always there for each other. We named ourselves the Maids of Jubilee after a Mardi Gras group from Alabama.

Garvan Gardens

Each year Garvan Gardens provides a spectacular Christmas display lighting most of the gardens and turning them into a winter wonderland with more than 1.7 million lights. We joined the Weyerhauser folks, John's employer, for a light supper before walking on the trails.


John, Kay, and Mary are huddled under a wreath. The temperature was 37 degrees with a slight wind that made it colder. The hot chocolate and cider helped us stay warm.

My camera just could not do justice to the brilliantly lit gardens.

Thanksgiving

What a busy week visiting with family. We had the holiday meal at my house and enjoyed Jeff, David, Mary, Kay and John being here. Turkeys were everywhere. Yes, we had a big turkey and also a tofurkey for the vegetarians and even turkey cookies from Mary's kitchen.


On Friday Mary fed us all with soup, sandwiches and veggies. The butternut squash was the best. Kelly and Sean had driven in from Austin and Will came from Fayetteville. Will could only stay one day but he was happy to see food and family.


Saturday night found most of us at Kay's enjoying pizza. John had gone on his annual deer hunt in south Texas. He was pleased to shoot an 8 point buck, a 10 point buck and a javelina. They were just trying to thin out the crop!


On Sunday we convened for brunch at Gilligan's. Cousin Andrew joined us from Dallas and then Kelly and Sean departed for Austin with it snowing outside. It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

Kay did the best shopping on Black Friday. Her new purple shoes will be a hit!

Music Music Music

Did you ever wonder what song was the #1 hit the day you were born? Well this is mine. Definitely showing my age now, aren't I?

If you too are curious then this site will give you the information and take you right to itunes to get a copy .. how clever!

Back to Mac

Several years ago I switched to a PC for the trip software available after having used Macintoshes for years. Today I went to an estate auction to buy a car but the exciting part is that I now am a Mac person again .. and for $100. People that don't know Macs don't always realize the hard drive might be in the monitor so I was just buying a 20" monitor .. or so everyone else thought. Then I found out it is only 5 months old! How sweet!

What to throw away?!!!

Paula and Drew

What a treat to have a visit from our Fayetteville friends. Drew came to hang out with his cross country team at the state meet since he is injured and couldn't travel with the team. We enjoyed taking Paula to her first gallery walk and then supper at Brau Haus.

Horseshoe Trail

Susan and I went for a 3 mile hike on a mountain in Lake Catherine State park. We had hiked the 2 mile one on Sunday a week ago at the same place. I used to look forward to getting old so I could slow down, what happened? Susan?

My knee is great so now I have to get the rest of the body in shape. I'm overweight by about 15 lbs and it's all in my stomach. Susan and I finally have no hurts and it's time to get healthy. I also swim at the YMCA on Mondays and Fridays for exercize.

Susan was in front of me by about 50 feet and she didn't see the black racer. She must of just missed stepping on it.

Not bright enough?

How bright does one have to be??? The other lady ran the stoplight. Poor "Little Miss Sunshine."

Thank goodness I had my seatbelt on. I was doing donuts in the middle of Central Avenue!

Lights...camera...action!

And I am happy that I am not hurt and I did not run this red light!

Hiking again

We are on the trail again after a long hiking break! We crossed the bridge to a two mile hike at Lake Catherine State Park.

We chose the Waterfall Hike the shortest of the three available. Since Leon hiked it last week we took the reverse route. The leaves are beginning to change and fluttered to the ground as we walked along. There were many visitors in the adjacent campground and the bright sun in the cool morning air made us wish we were one of the group. But one step at a time!

On the way home we stopped at Gilligan's overlooking a windy Lake Hamilton for our second breakfast and decided to call it lunch. The food really tasted good after the exercise. Now I will go drag some trees into the neighbor's woods that I cut yesterday in my fast disappearing woods while Leon watches his eyelids while the football game plays.

Stu and Joann Visit

Stu and Joann, two of our RV'ing friends, stopped for a visit during their trip from Minnesota back to Texas. We did our best to show Joann a bit of history on her first visit. We approached the historic district with a walk down the promenade behind bathhouse row.

Here we descended to the open hot water spring in the national park. Joann found the hot water just a little too much at 140 degrees. It is cooled in the bathhouses but not in this open spring.

We took a detour into the Arlington Hotel, one of the oldest in Hot Springs. I was surprised to find Al Capone's car on display in the lobby. He visited Hot Springs often and stayed at the Arlington. The car was made for protection with 1" thick windows. The back window let down so that the occupants could shoot out the back. He lived a much calmer life while visiting Arkansas.

The fall weather has arrived with the highs in the 60s and 70s and we enjoyed a stroll down bathhouse row. Photography appears to be one of Stu's hobbies.

Only one of the bathhouses is operating as they did in the past when "Hot Springs bathed the world."

Another bathhouse is the national park visitor's center and provides an indepth look at what life was like in past decades on bathhouse row. Leon and Joann try out two of the rockers that were quite plentiful throughout the bathhouses.

This is the men's bathing hall which has lots of tile and marble surrounding the statue in the center of the room. Here men could sit and visit in a group before going for individual baths, steam cabinets, sitz baths, massages, and all sorts of "modern" treatments that would cure arthritis, syphillis, and a variety of other ailments.


There is a magnificent stained glass skylight above the statue.

Leon and Stu got along as fabulously as Joann and I always have. We hope this is only the first of many visits from these two. We went down town one night and stopped in the old Ohio Club before window shopping along Central Avenue. Leon, Stu and Joann did a couple of the hikes at Lake Catherine State Park but there is much more to do!

Leon goes shopping

Leon left this morning for Illinois in hopes of returning with a fifth wheel camper. He sold his toy hauler several months ago and has been watching for the right one to come along. He found what he wants but he could not find anyone to compete with the price he found on the outskirts of Chicago. So if he must drive 11 hours it should be an adventure! I only wish I could be along but projects at home prevent that.
The traffic was heavy going to Little Rock during morning work hour so he stopped at Denny's for breakfast. It didn't seem to matter that he had just eaten cereal and a banana an hour earlier, but we don't have a Denny's in Hot Springs! Since he is going up I55 to Sikeston, Missouri a stop at the Home of the Throwed Rolls aka Lambert's seems like a must for lunch. He then has been forewarned to stop for gas at the BP just a few miles up 57 and that the Cairo, Illinois area is a speed trap. Several have recommended that he spend the night in Effingham, IL. Stay tuned......Leon arrived at House of Camping and the Rockwood was all he hoped it would be. We think this will look great behind Leon's truck. He will leave with it today .. Thursday.

As luck would have it they had to switch the tv in the Rockwood so Leon spent the night in the parking lot and will head home on Friday. And this is where he slept.

Well, Leon made it 120 miles down the road before the 12 volt system went out. He returned to House of Camping only to find out that his truck was the problem, not the Rockwood. They had to rewire the truck and then he luckily realized that the universal joints were about to go out on his truck. Saturday morning he spent at Firestone getting that fixed. He then started on a safe trip home and arrived early Sunday afternoon. Woody is ready to be loaded for his first adventure.

Treat yourself

Make it do! Wear it out! My grandfather died when my mother was a teenager and her mother raised five young children by herself. They were taught to be frugal as times were difficult. Their idea of toys were china chips. And fruit was something they got at Christmas in their stockings. So perhaps this is where I got the idea that I must be frugal; no, make that cheap!
My ironing board cover was looking rather dismal and the foam underneath might as well not have been there. But it worked and it wasn't worn out. Only when a friend spilled Austrian grapeseed oil or some such did I reward myself. For only five dollars at the local Walmart I now have a new ironing board cover. I have never minded ironing and often reflect on how I would visit with our maid, Johnnie Q, while she ironed and showed me how to properly iron a shirt. So when is the last time you treated yourself to a new ironing board cover? Mine is a soft, moss green.

David's Dilemna

Many decided not to leave Galveston with a level two hurricane approaching. They recalled the disastrous exodus for Rita where many had been stranded on the highways for hours and days in what must have been a nightmare, many even losing their lives.
Even as early as Saturday morning the water was 3 inches deep in David's yard which is located on the back side of Galveston Island near Offut Bay. To stay there was not an option. So with a bag of clean clothes and a bag of medicines he chose to take cover under the 61st street bridge which has a 16' clearance. His Castle Heights military boots from the 1950's didn't fair so well as the leather fell apart when it got wet. Luckily he had an extra pair of shoes. If one is going into combat be prepared..right? One wave came and washed his bag of clothes away and as he reached to save it the bag of medicines were swept away. His glasses were so wet he couldn't see but they stayed on while the nose piece broke off against his face. Of course one would not weather a storm in his good glasses, so he wore an old pair and had all his good ones in his medicine bag. When the storm was finally over on Sunday morning he heard that the Red Cross was at Ball High School so he trekked through the streets of Galveston for twenty blocks falling once in a hole he could not see. All the while his shoes were rubbing blisters on his feet. At one point a refrigerator drifted by and he opened it and found a couple of sodas to quench his thirst. He arrived wet and tired only to learn the Red Cross was not there and he would not be able to procure medicines as thought. When he tried to leave he was told he would be arrested so he was "kidnapped" and put on a bus to San Antonio. This photo shows what is left of his mobile home park.

In San Antonio the evacuees were registered and he was sent to Kelly Air Force Base. In his first call he mistakenly told us it was Andersen Air Force Base which we learned was in Guam and that led to some confusion on our part. Since he had given his money to someone that was trying to leave Galveston on Saturday he arrived not only wet and tired but penniless.
He was fed well at Kelly AFB and the phones available for their use "resembled a Jerry Lewis telethon. It was like a high school reunion running into people from Galveston that he hadn't seen in years." I wired him some money and Monday he was able to get to Walmart and buy some dry clothes and shoes. After another day of kids running wild everywhere and lines of people, he caught the 5am Greyhoud for Hot Springs. While he rode in comfort we got busy and got the rental ready for him. Thank goodness it was empty. Every man in his 60s needs his own space especially when that is something to which he is accustomed.
As the bus crossed the bridge leaving Galveston he could see that both vehicles and his modest abode were all gone. The ground was again white revealing the oyster shells that had been brought in long ago to create the land. But one wonders what happens to the many he left in San Antonio that have no family, no place to go, and nothing to which they can return.