Seniors & Friends

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Good Sunday morning, Everyfriend.  There's pancakes and sausage to go with your coffee or tea.  I wish you ALL a blessed and Merry Christmas.





Riddles

What do you call a bunch of Grandmasters of chess bragging about their games in a hotel lobby?
Chess nuts boasting in an open foyer!


Q: What do elves learn in school?
A: The Elf-abet!

Q: If athletes get athletes foot, what do astronauts get?
A: Missile toe!

Q: What do you get when you cross a snowman with a vampire?
A: Frostbite.

Q: Where do polar bears vote?
A: The North Poll.

Q: What do you get if you deep fry Santa Claus?
A: Crisp Cringle.

Q: What do you call people who are afraid of Santa Claus?
A: Claustrophobic.

Q: If Santa rode a motorcycle, what kind would it be?
A: A Holly Davidson.

Q: What did the grape say to the raisin?
A: 'Tis the season to be jelly.



Perfect Timing

Scripture Reading â€" Galatians 4:4-7
The time came for the baby to be born …
â€"Luke 2:6 â€"
The label said, “Don’t Open Until Christmas,” but the grandchildren cried, “Hurry up; open it!”
Patience is a virtue, and we recognize the importance of perfect timing. But we often have a hard time waiting. This is especially true when we are hurting and want relief, or we are anticipating something special.
The same holds true in relation to God’s work in our lives. We suffer a loss, wrestle with what seems to be unanswered prayer, or face a spiritual struggle, and soon we cry, “Hurry up, God!” We wonder why God hasn’t acted, and the “delay” often causes us to question God.
Or how about when we reflect on Christ’s second coming? We eagerly long for a world free from sin, Satan defeated, injustices set right, and all things made new. So we cry, “Come, Lord Jesus; come quickly.”
For ages believers waited for the birth of the Savior and won-dered, “How long?” But God was not slow. He had a plan, and in the fullness of timeâ€"when the time was ripeâ€"God sent Jesus.
In our lives, as we wait for God’s help or for the second coming, we remember God’s promise that “those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength” (Isaiah 40:31). God might not come when we want, but we can trust himâ€"his timing is perfect.
Prayer
Lord, we see the present, but you grasp eternity. We view only a part; you understand the whole. Help us to trust your wisdom. Renew us and your world, we pray. Amen.


"Christmas ... Is not an external event at all, but a piece of one's home that one carries in one's heart."

~ Freya Stark

Merry Christmas everyone..

We had a great time yesterday,ate way to much ,so today will be easy eating....sent food home with the kids as it would take forever to eat it all here. I did keep the ham bone for pea soup though..
We are just having a quiet day here today,lots of left overs that I don't have to think of what to prepare.No new snow to remove, that is a blessing to me.

Joan, thank you for the breakfast.

Enjoy your day everyone.

 Vanilla-Jackie and Bis good to see you two. we had a great day yesterday .
the girls cleaned up the kitchen and put thing away. they picked the rest of the meat off of the turkey and bagged it up. the youngest girl took care of the finishing touches to the meat Packing.she said she puts water in it and puts it in the freezer that way no drying or freezer burn. when taking it out and thawing
out pour water off or use it in soups all ready. food for thought. Have a great day great day.

Lloyd

Good morning Amy sounds like we duplicated each other pretty much. have a great day. we plan a easy day today also.

Lloyd

Nancy and I both grew up poor as church mice so we tend to horde food now.
we have both a chest and a upright and a side by side mostly full of food + all
sorts of canned fruit's and veggies.

Good morning, Amy.  Glad you had such a nice day yesterday.  GREAT you don't have to dance with any snow removal devices.

Lloyd--Good morning.  That's a good tip about putting water in with the turkey you are going to freeze.

Merry Christmas Everyfriend!  Yesterday was a busy day for me also.  Boy!  Was I ever tired when my son brought me home around 10:30!  But it was such a nice ride home...we talked about things that we don't usually talk about and it was quiet and kind of serious.  I don't get to see this side of him very often.  I really do love my kids but the best part is knowing that they love me, too!

I didn't get to church yesterday or last night so I'm going at 10 this morning.  I was 6 the first time I was taken to Midnight Mass.  This is the first time in 75 years that I haven't gone to midnight mass.  It felt very strange!

Enjoy your families every chance you get.  Cherish them!

Good morning, Janie.  It's nice when we get that one-on-one time with our children.  I do cherish my family.  It would be better if they didn't all live so far away.

 :christmastree:  Good Morning & Merry Christmas    Cats still get hungry on Christmas so must take care of that before getting dressed for church.  Foggy, misty and much too mild for this time of year, but planning on having a loving day with memories of years past, church & breakfast with oldest son & his family, youngest son & significant other to come by this afternoon and daughter to come to town for the week tomorrow.  Weather guessers still talking about possible strong T-storms this afternoon but sure isn't a day for wearing UGGs.  Wishing a wonderful day to all and a day safe from crazies that want to harm others.  God Bless ~ Shirley   :christmastree:   :snowball:

Good morning, Shirley.  Enjoy every minute of your time with family.

Joy--Good morning and thank you. 

Merry Christmas!
I'm the first one awake..­.  mainly because I needed to change positions after Sleeping in a different bed. .Noone young enough to be up to See what Santa brought,
  Had a very foggy "midnight ride" but it looks brighter outside this morning.
Looking forward to a Great Day with the family.

May Every friend be blessed as we remember the reason for this Season .

Merry Christmas to you all.  We are going to have a beautiful day here with a sunny sky and temperatures getting up to 70 degrees this afternoon.  I will attend the 11 am service at Church this morning (there is no Sunday School today).  Scott will be here later this afternoon for our Christmas dinner and small gift exchange.  I did complete my project of getting the Christmas Concert that I recorded converted into an MP4 file format and put together and onto a DVD to give to the lady at Church who requested it. 

Callie, I think I failed to wish you a Happy Birthday so I will do it now:  Happy Birthday Callie. 

Joan, I did not attend the Candlelight Service last night.

Mary Ann, the Jigsaw Explorer is as close to the old Brainsbreaker jigsaw puzzles that I have found to play on my Chromebook.  I try to do the two new puzzles they feature each day although only got one done yesterday.  Enjoy those chocolates. 

Jackie, that is a pretty graphic. 

Phyllis, that news concerning your brother is certainly a downer.  I hope you can keep your thoughts on the good times you have had with him over the years and thus enjoy today. 

June, I bet your living facility will take good care of you all even if it is an employee holiday.  I hope you slept well last night.  Glad you have started using your new laptop.  I have never adjusted to the touch pad, although it is handy with a laptop. 

Joan, I copied your riddles and will use them to have some added fun at the dinner table this afternoon (if I can remember to do so). 

I hope all have a joyous day today.

You will never guess? " of course you will...."  :P  what film is now showing on our telly....the main character is called George Bailey.....

We are having an early Christmas dinner, will be ready by 3.30pm....R is pan boiling his veg, whilst I am steaming mine...Toby of course will get a small share of everything that's left...

No we're dishing up now...

Merry Christmas to everyone.  I am missing church because of my awful looking face following surgery.  Dot's son and wife from Chicago are here so she won't be going either.  If they were open today, the Cholesterol Pit (aka Mr Burger) would miss us, but they are closed for the day.  They're good to their employees, closing on certain holidays.

Annie was here last night to help her dad wrap gifts.  They even wrapped mine - even those to them.  We will have our "big" Christmas Monday morning at Terry and Jan's.  Their son, Geoff, and his pregnant wife, Charissa, are here from California.  Tom's kids, Annie, James and his also pregnant wife, Alicia, will be here from Holland MI and Tim's daughter, Paula and her husband, Eric, will be here with their 11-month old daughter, Avery, from Eaton Rapids MI.  We will pick up Dot and drive to Terry and Jan's, who live with her parents (or vice versa) so we will have a good crowd.

Dot and I used to go to our Christmas Eve service at church when it was at 11 pm.  Our family party kind of interfered with our going because we gathered at Norm and Dot's and there usually were family still there when it was time to leave.  A few years ago, Church changed the service to 10 pm and that made it impossible for us to go.  And now, since neither of us drives at night, we just forget it. 

Mary Ann

Good Christmas Morning.
Waiting on skype call to our Granddaughter in France and the family to arrive here from their various sleeping arrangements last night, simply not enough room at our house anymore.

I hope Santa Clause was good to all, and you got what you wanted.

God Bless us all on this our Saviors birthday.

Good morning, Callie.  It was very foggy here this morning, too.  Enjoy being with your family as we all "remember the reason for the season".

Larry--Good morning.  It's supposed to get into the 80s here today.  Weather people say it's the warmest Christmas in 25 years.  Glad you are going to have some fun with the riddles.

Good morning,  Mary Ann.  You are going to have a pretty big gathering tomorrow morning.  Enjoy making memories.

Sandy--Good morning and thank you.

Good morning halkel.  Indeed, Santa Claus was good to me.

I'm back & thinking about a nap.... been to Mass and took the kids to Denny's for "whatever sounded good"... and struggled through that Grand Slam breakfast myself.  Mind you, I had an egg, 2 pieces of toast & cup of coffee before going to church.  My tummy doesn't believe in starving~~

Reading back over posts I discovered I failed to comprehend that you had a birthday yesterday, Callie... I called my sister last night to wish her a Happy Birthday along with Merry Christmas since she shares this day with the Christ child.  Sounds like you had a wonderful day & know your day with the family will be outstanding.  Hugs to you, my friend, and wishing you many more happy birthdays to share with us. 

Phyll, my sincere sympathy for the sad news about your brother.  I feel like I know him since we don't live that far from each other.  If you decide to come back for a visit "before it's too late"..... I offer my services if you need a ride, but like I've had to tell my kids, "I don't drive after dark". 

I'd better go mix up the meat spread before any of the family shows up.... will have "munchies" for anyone that shows up at my table this week. 

I love hearing about the close knit clans..... and I have a pang when sometimes the blood family is scarce but know it really helps to come find this online family ready & happy to fill in.  God Bless all of you this day, week and year.  Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah, and may the God that watches over all, grant us peace.

Merry Christmas to all from beautiful Collingwood Ontario

Shirley--I am about ready to go see if I can nap.

Radioman--Thank you.

Good morning everyone from a dark, warm and cozy Interior!

I hope everyone is happy and having a wonderful holiday with family and friends! I am hiding out today and enjoying the peace and quiet. Farrah made me realize yesterday just how far she's grown from that frightened cat she was back on the second of May and from those two months hiding under my bed. Last night I was laying on my side on the couch, reading from my kindle and had vaguely noticed Farrah moving to the floor beside "her" end of the couch by the white afghan.

Then she made a small, low "ermm" sound and I looked up and over. She looked at me, then at my sprawled legs in her way and back at me, again with the low ermm. I moved my legs up, out of her way and she leapt, kneaded the afghan once or twice, settled and went to sleep.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGr6B6Rp4PU

Luciano Pavarotti and Ava Maria.....Beautiful!

angelface--Farrah certainly is no comfortable with you and her surroundings.  Thanks for the greeting and the link.

Merry Christmas, on this very warm day. Sun shineing bright and no wind. Very quite around here, as every neighbor had gone to be with family. My neighbor across the street that always has me over to their house,  went overnight to stay with their son who just got married, and wants them there for their first Christmas in their new home.
   last night before they left they brought me over a surprise Christmas Eve dinner, from my favorite sea food rest. which I enjoyed very much, had enough left over for to day.
June, I am also glad you are in a safe place, so everyone can look after you.
Joan, thanks for looking after all of us to day, like you do always. Phyllis such a nice meaningful graphic.  My thoughts also go with you for the loss of your brother.
  Larry nice you, Pat and Scott can all be together.
  WE are still thinking of you Sun and Molly. Merry Christmas if you are just reading. Jackie, I guess and other day is starting for you, but I am still saying HI!
  Callie, a late Happy Birthday.
  To all my other cyber friends Lloyd, Amy Don, Jane, Hal, Shirley, Joy, JeanneLee, I hope you all had a grand day with friends and family, and Santa left you all the things you wanted. Sorry if I left someone out, but this old brain just holds so much.
   Gloria, I am just sending you a wave across the Sound to RI, also happy you can be with your family.

Linedancer--I was alone today, too.  Two different neighbors brought me plates of dinner and many kinds of desserts.  There's enough for three or four days.  Nice that your neighbors got you a dinner before they left.

Joan, we could have had a pity party together, but we are so lucky to be able to get out once in a while, and still have our homes we can get around in with a little help. I just wrote in another post Jess called to day, he is getting around better each day with a walker.  Remember last May we thought he would never walk again. With Gods help, and all the prays from my friends in here he is walking. I have so much to be thankful for

I'm all in but my shoestrings and if I had any shoestrings, I fear they'd be in, too.  It's been a busy (and happy) couple of days!  I've done more visiting and hugging than I usually do in month of Sundays!  I love having family around and we're a family that hugs a lot so I have enough extra to last me a while.  I wish I could share some of them with those of you who didn't get any.  Oh what the heck   :hugs: :hugs: :hugs: :hugs: :hugs: those are for anyone who would like one from me!

Janie....I just snatched one of those nice hugs you were giving away. I have had a very quiet and peaceful day. Went to Church, then on to a big turkey dinner, and home to nap, read, nap, read....haven't touched the computer till now..a rarity for me.

Had a nice warm telephone visit with son Dan. All is well there. He and his wife take home Chinese food on New Years Day...their own little tradition. I am still stuffed from lunch so will have something light here at home.

Have a Good Night dear ones and a happy, healthful tomorrow. God Bless you and keep you in His loving care.

Linedancer, Gloria, thank you for letting us know the wonderful news about Jess.  It is amazing what prayer and lots of will power can do.  Please pass on my good wishes & congratulations to him, thanks for the update.

JaneS, I'm so tired I took my shoes off~~ a non-stop day, great day but now & then a sad moment when a fleeting memory passes through my mind of so many family & friends missing.  It has been a wonderful life.

Thank you, Patricia, I'm listening to Ava Maria for the 3rd time....  I've got to spend more time with the cats, they really do enjoy having no computer to play 2nd fiddle to when we are camping.  Each wants their own time & space, they don't share very nice, unless something scares them, then I find them huddled together.

Joan, thank you for all the time you spend keeping us rolling in here..... I don't know how you do it but "you are the glue..........."

One more Merry Christmas 2016 from me.....

I never got that nap so will see if cats want to come inside before I close my eyes, I may not wake up until morning.  Our storms came through fast, strong winds & off & on pouring rain, but much warmer than I ever remember on Christmas.

Good night, June, and tell Dan we would love to see more of his outstanding photos!

Tisie, I thank you for remembering Dan's photoraphy. He seems to have lost interest with the camera, and is now into his Banjo building.

We are supposed to have a low of 43 degrees tonight, and sitting by my East windows, I can feel the cold coming through. Good sleeping weather, for sure.

Good night again dear ones.

Oh, what a wonderful day.  Full of family, good food and lots of Grandkids.  How can one person be more blessed. I am so proud of all of them.

My old pup kinda got stressed out this afternoon and wanted some serious loving, she draped herself across my lap and just wanted some attention.  When she wasn't with me she went over to my SIL and Steve would give her some loving.

Good Night my friends, God Bless and Sweetdreams,  And Janie, I will take one of those hugs.

I am too pooped to pop - but what a wonderful weekend with family.   I am so blessed to have family who all enjoy being together and having plain old fun!!!
When I'm rested,  I'll tell you about the hilarious game the eight of use played after dinner/gift opening today.  it involved trinkets, a ball of saran wrap, oven mitts and dice.

Now I'm ready for what I hope will be a low-key week....or longer.

Sleep well, Everyfriend and have Pleasant Dreams.

My Christmas also went well....well no arguments took place but.....the home felt very empty without Benji, and I thought of our - my, other two, Petra and Megan of the fun mornings we once had when I opened their presents and we all had some playtime.....
....it is now Boxing Day, almost 7.am....time to play catch up on the tv....

Good Monday morning, Everyfriend.  There's oatmeal with blueberries to accompany your coffee or tea . I wish everyone a nice day!!





Parachute Jump

I volunteered recently to perform a parachute jump for charity. On our first day of training, the instructor made an important point about preparing for landing at 300 feet.

"How do you know when you're at 300 feet?" asked one woman.

"A good question," replied the instructor. "At 300 feet you can recognize the faces of people on the ground."

The woman thought about this for awhile before saying, "What happens if there's no one there I know?"



The Yard Light
(By Peder Eide) 

I love light!

I mean, if we had no light, we couldn't see things.

We couldn't see each other. We couldn't see where we are going and would step on really sharp toys that weren't put away! We would not know how to stay on the highway at night. We would struggle to get a tan. We would be colder. We wouldn't wear matching clothes.

To walk around in the dark all the time? Awful.

We would miss so much beauty. There is actually a form of depression some people suffer from when they are living long periods of life without sunlight. The list is infinite about how hard life would be without light.

You get the picture. Light is pretty important.

As we enter into this [Christmas season], I want to spend time looking at the message, power of, need, and reason for light. Specifically the Light of World that comes to us in Jesus Christ.

I remember on the farm we had a single yard light that was right in the center of our homestead. It was probably a 75 watt light bulb at the top of a telephone pole that was turned on and off in the house. It was there for the purpose of helping you see where you were going from building to building at night.

Walking from the steel shed or the barn or chicken coop on a dark Minnesota night back to the house could be nerve-racking for a seven-year-old who thought Scooby Doo haunted mysteries could be real.

The yard light, though, was a lifesaver. If I needed to flee from any monsters lurking in the nearby woods, I could run freely without worrying about tripping over a bike, running into a clothes line, or falling in a trap set by an enemy trying to take over the world (starting at my farm! - Yes, I had an imagination...).

As long as that yard light was on, no worries.

But I'd lose confidence when I was closing up the barn door for the night, and my older brother - let's call him Tom - was watching out the window to turn off the yard light. He'd force me to walk in the night without a light.

It changed how I walked, hoping I wouldn't bang my shin on something. The wind, the creaking of branches, gates swinging, and squirrels running were all way more evil than ever before.

My breathing would speed up, my senses on alert, and I'd move towards the house in total fear but with one single goal: don't die before giving paybacks to the brother we're calling Tom.

We need light. Not just physically, but spiritually. God the Father knew it. It was why He sent His Son to a darkening world. We are meant to live this life in the light not in the dark.

Do you feel any of those emotions in your day-to-day life that I was feeling when my brother turned off the yard light? ...

Wouldn't it be great if this Christmas you discovered the light of Jesus in a new way so you don't ever have to fear the dark?

The best part about the light of Jesus? There is no one who can ever turn it off with a switch. It is always on.

Let's get ready to run in the light this Christmas, my friends, because darkness cannot overcome the Light!


"God doesn't make a habit of hiding Himself from us. He is active in our world and available to meet with anyone who is seeking Him. But often we get so blinded by our successes and disappointments, the things we think we know about Him, and the regular chaos of everyday life that it's possible to walk right past the invitation He extends to us."

- Christine Trevino

Good Morning everyone.
Must have been a polock in the jump course.

Lloyd

Good morning, Lloyd.

Good morning everyone...
No sun bathing today temp is 14 ° F but no new snow :thumbup:

Need to tidy up here and put things in order,maybe corral some dust bunnies too. Looking after the neighbours dog and cat today while they so see family, I saw Rex out playing with his gift we gave him for Christmas yesterday...he loves balls!
Ours made short work of a huge chew bone we gave them.

Joan ,thank you for breakfast.

Enjoy your day everyone.

Good morning, Amy.  No snow removal is a GOOD thing.:)  It's nice that your willing to animal sit for friends.

Good Morning Everyfriend!  After an almost 2 hour nap on the sofa last night while the Christmas carols played and then a night in bed, I feel pretty rested today.  I ended up with one of Kiran's gifts left over but she knows it's coming and I'll take it over there today.  I always seem to end up with one unmarked leftover and sometimes I have to open it to see who got missed.  Kiran said "Don't worry about it Grammy.  Now I have something to wait for."  She's growing up so fast!

I made a dish to take to Cathy and Craig's that Craig's mother usually takes and that his family always loved.  I got the recipe from his mother and whenever I make it for whatever occasion, I always take some over for him.  I don't even know if it has a name.  I have dubbed it "Helen's green stuff" and they love that name.  It's written on the back of a church bulletin when I wrote it on the way home from one of Kyle's basketball games.  I used to always pick her up and we went together.  So it's a memory all by itself. 

Mickie is here to tell me it's time for breakfast and she's being very patient but she pats my arm every so often.  I guess I better go feed them.  I hope everyone is rested and ready to meet the day. 

Good morning, Janie.  Kiran sure is becoming mature.  She has things figured out.  "Helen's green stuff" honestly sounds icky, but I am sure it's yummy.:) It's about time for me to feed myself, so off I go.

Getting freezing rain here now, good day to stay in off the roads!!

Hi everyone on this first day after Christmas.  Yesterday we enjoyed a 73 degree day with sun for most of the day.  Today is to be cloudy but still warm. 

We had a very enjoyable Christmas afternoon and evening with Scott. We had a nice dinner around 3 pm,  rested until around 8 pm and then had a piece of pie and opened our presents.  Santa was very good to me this year with some shirts, a nice gift card at Amazon and my SIL sent me two interesting gifts.  The first was four little boxes that contained "Inkers" that you use to line out personal information on documents.  The second was a device to clean your cell phone surface by putting it in the case and a UV  light kills germs. It is called Phonesoap.

We got to say Merry Christmas to our Granddaughter as she was speaking with her Dad.  She will be coming to live with him this week as on Wednesday evening he flies to upstate New York and they will fly back on Thursday.  We will be happy to see her again as had thought that probably wasn't going to happen again in our lifetime.

Joan, we did enjoy the riddles yesterday.  We laughed and had a good time.  Nice of your neighbors to remember you with meals yesterday and now you don't need to cook for a few days--a nice gift.

JaneS, thanks for the hug.  It is hard to get too many of those.  It sounds like you had a wonderful time. 

Hal, your old pup must have felt left out with all the people around and the activity. 

It looks like everyone had a nice Christmas, even those who spent it alone.  Now we can all relax a bit for a few days. 

Amy I am sorry you are getting the frizzing rain. the sun is blinking in and out here. supposed to make it full. Hope it dose. up dated at 9:01 A M , 45º and mostly cloudiness. we had a great holiday weekend. hope all of you did also.

Lloyd

 Here is the link to a video showing what the Phonesoap I mentioned above does:  https://www.phonesoap.com/phonesoap-videos/

Amy--I am glad you don't have to go out in the freezing rain.

Good morning, Larry.  Very interesting about the Phone Soap.  I guess I should get some.  How nice you will get to see your granddaughter.  Glad you enjoyed the riddles.

Lloyd--The sun is brightly shining here, and there's a brisk breeze.

I'm so glad some of you are enjoying the hugs!  I seem to have plenty to share! 

I haven't done a blessed thing all morning!  I've been sitting here doing crossword puzzles and drinking coffee.  About the only time I got up was to let the doggies out but I'm starting to think about lunch and I may have to move.  I did spend about an hour on the phone with my sister.  I think we might have covered everything from remembering when to what going to happen next. 

I'm not even dressed yet and that's next on my immediate agenda.  Then I'm going to get something ready to put in the oven for supper.  I don't know what yet but I'll think of something.  This is my kind of day!

Good morning everyone, did you think I got lost?  I knew I would not have time to get here yesterday morning but thought I would be last night.  I was one tired old woman when I got home after an enjoyable day. I got home in time to get on Skype with my daughter and her family.  Then I laid on the couch to watch the news and fell asleep. Woke near midnight and went to bed. Woke at after 9 this morning. I knew I would be tired but that was beyond tired I think. Now to catch up in here while I enjoy my coffee. It was pretty warm for this time of year and bright sunshine all day. At 5pm all my son's in laws meet at my son's home and were going to have a Yankee
Swap. Told my son to take me home because I would not be able to take all that crowd even thought I like and enjoy my DIL's family. I know I missed a lot of fun but while they were having fun I was sleeping. My grandson and his wife had a delicious ham dinner, ate more than I had in a long time.  My great grandson is a lively little one. He runs-not walks -all over the house. He wanted to open everyone's gifts and did not understand why he couldn't since he opened so many of his own.

JEANNE LEE  Beautiful graphic and hymn. Wish I had heard it yesterday.

LARRY  if I had a bigger monitor I would like more pieces in my puzzles but if I do they are too many and small that I cannot see them all. I do not like having to  turn the pieces. I usually do 100 or 125 pieces.

CALLIE  belated birthday wishes. Since I stopped doing the birthday greetings I never check the calendar anymore.

MARY ANN  never heard of All Star puzzles, will have to check it out. I have a few other puzzle sites but do not check all of them often. Of all the gifts I received was one of my great grandson. One taken by my grson on his iPhone picking out their Christmas tree. For a change this is one not on the computer, I can frame it so I can see it more often.

AMY  that is quite a menu for your Christmas dinner. I love scalloped potatoes with ham. That is part of what my daughter cooked for her family dinner. Got a family picture from my daughter already this morning her and both her sons with their dogs, first time the dogs were included.

HAL a little I saw on TV last night was of the San Antonio parade at the water walkway or what ever it is called.

PHYLLIS  not the kind of news anyone wants to hear at Christmas. I am the last one of my family left. No one left to talk to about family times or members.

JUNE  I try to take only 2 pain pills a day but some days that third one is called for. I still do not like taking them and at times I don't think they help much.

PHYLLIS  your graphic is so appropriate. Thanks.

JOAN  good chuckles yesterday. Love Perfect Timing. Thank you for all the goodies you post every day. I have enjoyed them for many years now.

AMY  my grandson was handing me a bag of ham when we left his home yesterday. I told him that was way too much so he took half of it out. Still a lot but I will enjoy every bite of it.

LLOYD  I have a lot of food, but lack the energy to cook much anymore.

JANE  nothing I enjoy more than one on one with my children. Last time my oldest was here he stayed longer than usual and was talking about what he remembered from when he was a youngster. Amazing. He never talked about that before. There was a lot of ice where my son parked at grson's home and he was right there to help me get my footing on it to get out of the car. Sure did not want to fall. My daughter's birthday is tomorrow and my SIL's in on January 1st. She is 5 days older than him. They will be heading home to Arizona tomorrow.

GLORIA de  so nice of your neighbor to give you that sea food dinner. Waving back at you.  Glad Jess is getting around better with his walker. Waving back to you :wave:

JANE  thanks for the hugs, they always feel wonderful. My family were huggers too but not my in laws. My children and grands are huggers, too, and they always make me feel great.

JACKIE   I think we all think of past years at Christmas.

JOAN  your breakfast is perfect this morning, just what I will have if /when I get hungry enough. Still full from all I ate yesterday. Parachute Jump, wonder if that woman was blonde. Love the Yard Light. So true about how some feel about the dark. Good quote. Thank you for all today's goodies.

JANE  I do feel rested now after all the sleep I got last night.

LLOYD  hope you are rested from your family gathering.

AMY  freezing rain is no time to go out of the house. Glad I no longer have to.

LARRY  interesting about the phonesoap. Would be great to have something to clean everything we touch, not just the phones.

Good Afternoon Everyone, from the cold, partly sunny,  rocky coast of Maine.   

I have oatmeal with blueberries, flax seed,
stevia,  and almond milk for my first "meal" every day around 2PM.   
(Sometimes I have it twice a day)
Plus a cuppa yogurt 3 or 4 times a day.
Along with that  lots of Earl Grey Tea
(with almond milk and stevia) ... 
Most people couldn't eat like I do,  but
alas this is the way I must eat in order to
get back to my girlish figure... (Some day!)
Sure takes a long, long time.

Wishing everyone a very good day.
Sandy 

Larry,  is this the daughter of the son who
lives near you??    It should be nice to see her again!

Janie--I love hugs--and send some to you, too.  You deserve a day of doing nothing excerpt what you want to do.

Gloria--You came home tired yesterday, but IMO that's always a good kind of tired when you've been with family and eaten a good meal.  Nice of your grandson to give you ham to take home.

Sandy--You stick to a pretty regimented diet.  Like other things--"whatever floats your boat".

Janie,   love your hugs!  Thank you. 

I've also had a "leisurely" morning but heard on the noon news that a cold(er) front is making its way toward OKC.

I hear my next-door neighbor out taking down their Christmas lights. Probably be a good idea for me to bring in mine before the wind changes to the north.

Hope Everyfriend Everywhere is having an Enjoyable Day.

Callie--I hope you don't have to climb to get those lights down.

We were talking  a while back about poached eggs so I bought me  a set of Silicone Egg Poacher Cups:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01GNUJVOQ/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I am very pleased with the way that they cook poached eggs..   easy to use and makes perfect poached eggs!

I believe someone in here recommended these,  if not then I recommend them.... 

Sandy

Joan,  absolutely NO climbing!  I don't even ask my family to do that!
I had greenery and red bows along the fence between my unit and the one next door  with a string of solar lights twined in the greenery, Poinsettias in a black kettle, a Christmas welcome mat and a wreath in the outdoor entry and some holly and three sparkly signs reading Joy Peace and Hope in the front flower pots with a "blanket" of solar lights on the shrubs behind them.  All now taken in and put away in garage cupboards for the year.

I don't do much that I can't handle by myself!!

It's really nice out this afternoon and I enjoyed the fresh air.

Gloria â€" if you happen to look at AllStar Puzzles today, don’t be discouraged because they’re not all like that.  I prefer buildings or scenic puzzles, but I can’t have everything my way.

We had our family Christmas this morning, a brunch, at Terry and Jan’s.  There were 14 of us.  Our family is branching out â€" California, Eaton Rapids MI, Indianapolis IN, Holland MI, St Clair Shores MI besides the Grand Rapids area.

I like the kind of day JaneS started out with â€" doing nothing special and relaxing.

Callie, I like to do what I think I can do - if someone will let me.  Otherwise, I'd be a vegetable.  As it is, I'm close to being a couch potato (that's a vegetable).  I don't take any chances with getting up on things, especially ladders. 

Mary Ann

MaryAnn, my day continued with more of the same way it started.  I've really been a "do-nothing" all day.  I did manage to make up my favorite breakfast casserole and that's what I'm having for supper.  And I'll probably have it for breakfast and lunch tomorrow.  It's very filling since it has shredded potatoes, sausage, peppers, onions, eggs and cheese in it.  It also freezes well so I'll freeze some for days when I don't have time to think about breakfast.

I'm glad you all enjoyed the hugs.  I still have a lot left so help yourselves to more if you've a mind to do so.

Sandy--I have those cups.

Callie--Glad you don't climb.  I'm sure those decorations made your place look very festive.

Mary Ann--You had a goodly number at your family Christmas brunch.

Janie--That breakfast casserole sounds really yummy.

Oh my gosh, it is glare ice out there!! I fed and let the dog out..glad to be home.
Janie , thank you for the hug...

Finely it stopped storming here so that I could make a quick run to Walmart to pick up a few things. Milk , Yogurt. All the usual. Thought would be in and out but it was packed. Busier than any day prior to Christmas week.  Lots bringing things back. At least they put a few more checkers on.  Notice not garbage pickup and Mail today.

I'm going to bid you all...

Good Night Everyfriend and may God bless us, every one!

:hugs: :hugs:Good night hugs!

I am in to say Goodnight. I don't know what happened but the last pain pill I took was at 4 A.M. and I have been napping off and on ever since then. I did get dressed and went down for a bandage change, then home to sleep some more. Went down for a baked stuffed potato for supper tonight, now home and here. And yawning.

I enjoyed reading all about your various Christmas "doings". Sound like fun was had with family and friends.

Hal, Your day sounded especially happy for you, and I am glad. Your dog was probably as tired as you were.

Gloria, I am so glad you got out, but I can relate to how tiring even small things we do, can wear us out.

Bed is calling my name, so I will reply, and lay me down to read and so to sleep.

God Bless you all with perfect health, a peaceful night and lots of loving memories to help us finish off the year with hope and joy.  June

well it is 2;35 AM AND SEE NO MORE YESTERDAYS so I must even beat Bis here today, wish everyone the best for today,

Lloyd

Good Tuesday morning, Everyfriend.   There's a breakfast casserole to accompany your coffee or tea. I wish everyone a great day!!




Newspaper Classifieds
(Actual excerpts from classified sections of city newspapers)

20. Stock up and save. Limit: one.

19. Illiterate? Write today for free help.

18. Our experienced Mom will care for your child. Fenced yard, meals, and smacks included.

17. Auto Repair Service. Free pick-up and delivery. Try us once, you'll never go anywhere again.

16. 3-year old teacher needed for pre-school. Experience preferred.

15. Great Dames for sale.

14. Wanted. Widower with school age children requires person to assume general housekeeping duties. Must be capable of contributing to growth of family.

13. Vacation Special: have your home exterminated.

12. Christmas tag-sale. Handmade gifts for the hard-to-find person.

11. Used Cars: Why go elsewhere to be cheated. Come here first.

10. Get rid of aunts. Zap does the job in 24 hours.

9. Man, honest. Will take anything.

8. Dog for sale: eats anything and is fond of children.

7. Man wanted to work in dynamite factory. Must be willing to travel.

6. Mixing bowl set designed to please a cook with round bottom for efficient beating

5. For sale: antique desk suitable for lady with thick legs and large drawers.

4. Tired of cleaning yourself. Let me do it.

3. Wanted. Man to take care of cow that does not smoke or drink.

2. We do not tear your clothing with machinery. We do it carefully by hand.

1. Our bikinis are exciting. They are simply the tops!




Lean On Me
(Author Unknown)

As the road ahead seems rugged
and the path is getting steep,
I feel that I can't make it
so my heart begins to weep.

Then my eyes are suddenly opened
to One beside me on my way
I see it is my Lord
and He slowly turns to say,

"Lean on me.....
when you have no strength to stand.
When you feel you're going under,
hold tighter to my hand.

Lean on me......
when your heart begins to bleed.
When you know I'm all you have,
then you'll find I'm all you need."

Then when I felt that no one cared
if I lived or died,
and no one bothered asking why
I'd go alone to cry.

When the burden got so heavy
I could barely face the day,
I felt His arms around me
as I gently heard Him say,

"Lean on me......
when you have no strength to stand.
When you feel you're going under,
hold tighter to my hand.

Lean on me......
when your heart begins to bleed.
When you come to know I'm all you have,
then you'll find I'm all you need."


If God is your co-pilot, swap seats!

--Author Unknown

Good Morning Bis I even beet you here today but but I am going to go get a drink of water to take care of the dry mouth and go back to bed, see you later;

Lloyd

Good morning, Lloyd.  I hope you were able to go back to sleep.

Good morning Everyfriend!  Joanie, I love those missteps made by advertisers.  I've corrected many of them in things I've written over the years! 

I'll be off to Wally World at 9 this morning.  We're having warm weather today...45º right now and it rained over night.  We are to have a bit more rain this morning and then the sun should come out.  We'll see!

Have a good day Everyfriend!

Good morning, Janie. Glad you enjoyed the missteps.:)  Hopefully, all in your line at WM today will be wearing a smile.  It'd be nice if you could send some of that rain this way.

Good morning everyone..

The rain stopped and we now have a huge skating rink outside. We have buckets of sand to throw about on the driveway and I will do the path for the dogs.

House is getting back into shape slowly. I think today will be building a ramp as the front ramp may be unusable if we get more ice build up. Never know if one may need it or not but best to have it in place.

Joan, thank you for breakfast

Enjoy your day everyone.

Good morning, Amy.  I marvel at how handy you are.  Now you are going to build a ramp.  Tread carefully when you are outside.

Good morning everyone, raining and very windy. Wind has been howling most of the night, woke me of course. In the 40's, warm for late December.

JOAN  I did not do much of anything yesterday. At least I did not sleep the day away like I did the rest of Christmas day.  I was looking at old pictures yesterday and came across one  after the holidays when I was living at my son's house. We got hit with one snowstorm after another and the Christmas lawn decorations were buried under the snow till every thing finally melted away in the early spring. I had icicles hanging from the eaves the full length of my windows and touchin the roof of the downstairs porch. That was the last year my son did not have a snowblower. He had  trouble shoveling the snow any higher on the piles of snow.


MARY ANN  I did not check All Star Puzzles yet. Like you I like scenes best. I cannot stand without holding onto something so I would never think of using even a step stool anymore. At times I get to thinking of the things I used to do and get mad at myself that I can no longer do them. I'll grab a few more of those hugs.

AMY  I hope you did not have to go out again with nothing but ice underfoot.

JUNE  seems like no matter what I go out for these days just wears me out. Getting so some days I would just as soon stay in nightgown and robe instead of showering and getting dressed.

LLOYD  I was awake and could have joined you here at the time you posted. Just to lazy to get up.

JOAN  thanks for breakfast. Today is when I start having a CNA every day during the week. If the one I get on Tuesday and Thursday knows how to cook I might get a couple of good meals. The one I have all the time is a terrible cook. I have stopped asking her to cook anything. I sure did chuckle with your chuckles this morning. Lean on Me is a keeper, one to keep on my desktop. Thank you for all today's goodies.

JANE  on local TV they said is is 40° warmer this morning than yesterday. I did not go out at all yesterday but did see frost on the cars when I pulled up the shades. Hope WM is not as busy as stores were yesterday.

AMY  no chance of the rain we are having now freezing. Supposed to clear by afternoon. Be careful outside.

Good morning, Gloria.  Temps are fickle in many places.  It's been in the 80s for a few days, but they say we will be in the low 60s by Friday--and for here that is COLD.  I hope this new CNA can cook and will fix some meals for you.

Hi everyone on a foggy but reasonable warm morning here in South Carolina.  We are predicted to reach 70 degrees this afternoon.  I really had a good nights sleep last night and didn't get up this morning until 8 am.  Pat was already up and fixed her own breakfast. 

Today I will probably go over to COSTCO as Pat is about out of strawberries, which she likes to have for her breakfast.  I also need to go to Lowe's and purchase some new light bulbs.  Pat is going to try to get into see the Chiropractor today and I think we will eat our big meal out as she hasn't been out of the house since last Wednesday.  I also need to call Comcast about getting new rate for my Internet.  This is a job that I detest and have put it off about as long as possible. I don't know why I dislike this so much as almost always end up with nice people to deal with. 

Joan, the Phonesoap is a little case with a UV light on the top and bottom and you just lay your phone in it and plug it in and it clean the phone in about 10 minutes.  It has a light to tell you when it is cleaned. 

JaneS, I think you deserved a quiet day of crossword puzzles and coffee as know it was a busy lead up to Christmas to you and the tiring hours spent at the cash register. 

Gloria, glad to see you enjoyed your day with family, even if you ended up extra tired.  Isn't it fun to watch the little ones at Christmas and the pure excitement they experience.  Pat doesn't like to turn the pieces either on her jigsaw puzzles. I just looked up the All Star jigsaw puzzles and will also check them out. 

Sandy, all I can say is I am glad that your diet and not mine.  I don't care for oatmeal or yogurt.  I also don't like poached egges.  Yes, my granddaughter is the daughter of our son and our only grandchild and the one who bore the four great grandchildren that live with their father. 

Joan, great humor for today.  Thanks.

Amy, please be careful on that ice as one misstep can bring terrible results. 

Good morning, Larry.  I hope Pat is able to get in to see the chiropractor.  How do you go about getting a new rate from Comcast?  I watched the link you posted yesterday for the Phonesoap.  I think even a dummy like me could easily use it.   How is it you like your eggs cooked?

Gloria, both my 3-step ladder and step are in the kitchen beside the counter.  I can only step on them by the counter, not in the middle of the room.  I think often of what I used to be able to do and I think Tom does too because he often does something before I get a chance, so I guess I don’t really know what I can still do. 

I had my hair washed and cut this morning so that is done for another month.  I have had more activity this week than I’ve had in ages.  I am not very active at any time, leading a very sedentary life.  Yesterday was our family Christmas with 14 of us present, today haircut, Wednesday I get the stitches removed from my face and Thursday Tom’s family and I will have our Christmas.  That’s four days. 

Yesterday we got over 50 degrees and right now it is 27 degrees and will be nowhere near 50 degrees.  It is a dreary day, damp and cold.

Larry, poached eggs are my favorite way to fix eggs and I like the runny yolk on my toast.

Mary Ann

Mary Ann--You sure have been busy.  I love poached eggs, too--and with a runny yolk on my toast.

Good Afternoon Everyone.. from the sunny and warmer, rocky coast of Maine.    Lovely day,  today.

I can't think of any food that I don't like,
or if it is not my favorite,  will eat anyway  in moderation.       

My Mother never made me eat anything,  and I never made my kids eat anything that they didn't want to,    but as we grew older,  we all
gravitated to eating just about anything that
was put in front of us.   

The only reason  that I am eating the way that I do now,  is my desire to get back to my
youthful figure,  or as close that is comfortably possible.   

Bottom line is this does not happen overnight,  but instead takes many  months/years
being very careful what I consume.   And making sure that I get the correct nutrients in the process.    Had I paid better attention through the last 40 years,  I would not have to face these issues today.   

Otherwise,  life is good, and I have no complaints. 

Sandy

Good Day Everyone!

I think I am back among the living, at any rate I did manage to balance and checkbook and still have some change left in the bank.

What a mix of weather among us.  From sheets of ice and howling wind to warm rainy weather (we are the later).

Any old how, June I do hope the leg is getting better, I know how pain is.  It can be so relentless.  You are in my thoughts and prayers.

Gloria, were you alone over Christmas, I hope not.

All my clan but two left yesterday.  Have one daughter still here and one staying with my other daughter.  It is going to be quite when all have left.

Everyone have a great day.

Sandy--I know eating so selectively is not easy.  I'd be glad to take a few of your pounds.:)

halkel--Good to hear you're feeling better and that your checkbook balanced.  You know how I feel about that activity.

A late Christmas greeting to all.  We stayed in Tucson this year and had SKYPE conversations with family and friends.  It was different and sad and at the same time the roads have been iffy for a drive of 900 miles.  Don had one hearing aid in for repair and then accidentally dropped and lost his other hearing aid.  Cannot wait until the pair arrive back from the VA. 

Our neighbors had 14 people including us for dinner yesterday and it actually worked alright for Don had two people nearby who spoke clearly and directly so he could understand.  He was dreading the dinner but it turned out so nice. 

No snow but high winds mixed with dust and heavy rain hit the area just as we were about to run to church.  Chairs and etc. in the yard went flying - and parts of the dips in the roads were flooded.  Wild weather and then so calm. 

I made a Cheeseburger casserole and froze portions for Don's meals at times.  He eats a low-carb meal whenever possible.  Today, the baking was Cranberry Walnut biscotti (3 batches) ready to be frozen.

Oops, I did not send this note yesterday.  Nothing new here - we did go to the gym and exercised - love the shower there too. 

Amy - ice is so frightening.  I once fell on ice while carrying a baby into the house & thankful I was able to get up to tend to the other little munchkins - no one saw me so that could have been a disaster.  Baby was two months old & he was fine.  I want to send a hug to you as well.  Take care. 

Good morning everyone, at least it is only mid morning here! We are still having the same weather from last week, warm, moist, with intermittent snow. But no actual snow gain.

Farrah is in a snit as I ran out of treats and when she kept whining by the treat closet, I put her food dish in front of it. Now she is attempting to kill her felt mouse by using it as a shot put.

I am attempting to get my grammar lessons and my PSP lessons ready and up to date for when Christmas break is over and classes resume. I am also slowly getting everything cleaned and put back after having my apartment deep cleaned. This guy, mid-sixties, isn't cheap, doesn't mess around and I can see why he is so highly recommended! I need either clones or simply more hours out of the regular twenty-four!

Sandy, I know exactly what you mean! I have worked hard trying to stay busy and eat right. I've given up extra salt and extra sugar additions and do not use artificial sweeteners or sodas.

I hope everyone is managing to stay healthy, active and happy for whatever state we're in. I deal with my own constant issues so while I cannot know your pain, I can sympathize.

Carol--It's nice to hear from you.  That's too bad about Don's  hearing aids.  I know they are pretty expensive.  Sure was nice that your neighbors invited you for a meal.  You two seem to be pretty active when you are in Tucson.

angelface--So I guess Farrah is going to be in a snit until you buy her more treats.  The complex where you live doesn't provide cleaning people?

Farrah has become a small diva who does a snit well. She is wonderfully affectionate and good company. I purchase a ten dollar container of snacks each month and she now expects it as a morning supplement. At first, she would alert each time I went past the closet. Then she would go to her mat and tell me, "Win!" "Win-Win" is breakfast, she differentiates sounds. I am not going to give in and have her become overweight. I am even thinking of giving her just one or two a day instead of the handful she expects. She is intelligent, highly verbal, robustly active and healthy. I am not going to turn her into a couch kitty!

Joan, this complex is owned by a company, that includes seven buildings here with others in Anchorage. You call the Anchorage number, free, and they schedule maintenance to come if you need them. Since this building is independent living for disabled seniors, they don't supply cleaners. They do have a list of approved cleaners, most of whom are expensive. However, this guy was highly recommended by word of mouth and I can see why as he was fast, got right to it and did a wonderful job.

Each of those seven buildings serves a different type of senior for those of limited income, disabled, dementia or needing around the clock medical care, and more.

Angelface, I mentioned to my sister several years ago that I wished I knew where to get some extra time and I asked her if she knew anywhere that bottled it and sold it.  She said she didn't and we all laughed, including my niece who was there.  That was in the summer.  However, my niece did more that just listen and laugh.  She had an herb garden and that Christmas I got a beautiful little bottle of dried Thyme....labeled "Time in a bottle for AJ"  I'm her Aunt Janie but she and her brother and now their spouses and kids all call me AJ.

Must go feed the doggies.  They are getting restless and beginning to sound like pitifully starving animals.  They can really be dramatic!

Angelface--Thanks for explaining about cleaning.

Janie--I like your "Thyme in a Bottle" story.  Poor doggies.:)

I too liked your thyme in a bottle! What a great idea!

Just had a long chat with one of my favorite nurses. Turns out my leg infection is one that must be treated with an I.V., so I will be transferring to our own Care facility for a week or so. I am taking my lap top with me, so will have plenty of time to practice on it.

Some nurses will be coming soon to transfer me to an adjacent  building, so I had better say a quick goodbye, and  be off to my new place.....for a week or two. Love, hugs, and prayers to all. June

June,  May God go with you on your new adventure.

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!

I'm duplicating a post I put in another folder to save time and energy so hope you will excuse me! December kind of "knocked the stuffing" out of me and it's taking awhile to get back to normal.

I've missed checking the messages for more than two weeks so had to jump to the end. December has been a busy and tiring month. My husband was in the hospital for a few days and I spent a lot of time going back and forth. The hospital is fairly close, about 6 miles.

I think I mentioned that our granddaughter, Erin, and her family spent a week with us right after we returned from our trip to Aruba. In between then and Christmas we had several social activities. Our oldest daughter (mother of Erin) and SIL arrived here on the Thursday before Christmas. They drove to Gainesville to spend Christmas Eve and morning with Erin. We managed to squeeze in the Candlelight Service at our church on Christmas Eve. They have a beautiful service.  Christmas Day there were nine of us here including three boys, 16, 14 and 7, for dinner........Thank goodness for all the help from Donna! I think I'm getting too old for this.  :) Donna and Mike left early Monday morning and she just called to say they are safely back home in Vermont.

This looks like a diary but I wanted to explain my long absence. Sometimes spending time on the computer is one thing too many!

I'm going to try to catch up on some of the happenings while I've been away.

June - Sounds like a wise decision going to the Care facility for your leg. I know they will take good care of you! Glad you will be able to stay in touch with your laptop!

Good very late evening almost 10.

I had a full day, my friend go takes me nearly everywhere, is going to Fla for 3 months. So she took me out to lunch, then grocery shopping. I was very tired when I got home. Then I had some kind of a spell with raceing heart, but after and hour I feel a little better. I came in here just to read, and I saw Junes note.
June, I am praying that leg gets better, and I am happy you are in such a good place, that they take care of you. Glad you have the laptop.
Carol, I also lost my hearing aide a while back, but can not afford two, at nearly $3000, ea. For a couple of weeks I did a lot of smileing, and hope I said yes and no at the right time.
Nice to see you back Beverly

June, my best wishes for a speedy recovery also go with you.  That is such a good place to be and I know you will have good care.  When you can, check in and let us know how you're doing.

I went over to my daughter's after work today to say a sad goodbye to my granddaughter and grandson-by-love-and-marriage.  They will be leaving to return to Houston at 6 a.m. tomorrow.  Their flight leaves Harrisburg, PA around 10.  I will really miss them but they will be back for her friend's wedding in May.  That's something to look forward to.

I'll be going off to bed pretty soon so I'll say...

Good night Everyfriend and my God bless us, every one.

JUNEDRABEK.....
...If that is what it will take to get your leg better, so be it....hope and pray it does the trick...

JANE S....
....there is a well known expression......."thyme" and tide wait for no man....."  :)

..........................
....Well I am up and about at 4.30 am....dont want to be up, but I am up, so I shall stay up......Made myself a cup of coffee, dont normally drink coffee but I tend to drink far too much tea and just fancied something different for a change....
...see my new avatar picture, I've even got my cup ready.... ;)

Good Wednesday morning, Everyfriend.  There cherry toaster strudel to accompany your coffee or tea. I wish everyone a great day!!



Veterans

A trio of old veterans were bragging and jokes about the heroic exploits of their ancestors one afternoon down at the VFW hall.

"My great grandfather, at age 13," one declared proudly, "was a drummer boy at Shiloh."

"Mine," boasts another, "went down with Custer at the Battle of Little Big Horn."

"I'm the only soldier in my family," confessed vet number three, "but if my great grandfather was living today he'd be the most famous man in the world."

"Really? What'd he do?" his friends wanted to know.

"Nothing much. But he would be 165 years old."



Expecting Help
(By Peder Eide)


So Thursday was a hard day. It was the day my daughter Allison's pet rabbit Patches died. We came home from downtown and right as I walked into the house Allison went to check on Patches where she found him lying in his cage barely breathing. As soon as she called "Daddy, it's Patches, Patches, Daddy, it's Patches!!!" The fear in her voice and cry for me to help was deeply hurt filled. We grabbed Patches and hopped in the van racing to the vet, but 20 minutes later, Allison's precious rabbit passed away.

It's sad. It stinks. It's hard to watch your daughter experience a loss like that for the first time.

Allison cried out for Dad because she knew Dad would come. It's a promise she knows I keep even though we never have to remind each other. She calls "Dad"; I respond. It's what dads do. It's a commitment I never break... [Likewise] God has made promises and keeps them. If we seek Him we will find Him. Promise.

He will never leave nor forsake us. Promise.

He claims us. Adopts us. Promise.

This week, say out loud what God has promised and expect His truth to win. Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, all expected God to keep His promises AND He did.

You can expect the same from God.

God is good all the time.

Peace and love,
Peder



"Jesus did not come to make God's love possible, but to make God's love visible."

- Unknown

Good morning, Joan & Jackie, too much on my mind to sleep but not hungry yet.  We had our family gathering last night & am pretty pleased with that whole crowd of people.... even the 2 new little babies.   :thumbup:

Enjoyed the "Veterans", Joan, that's the kind (along with golf ones), that Cas loved.  I would e-mail them to him & he would print out to take to McDonald's for the golfturnedcoffee bunch.  One of the guys called me last week to say Merry Christmas. His wife died this past year and he is in terrible health, gave me a run down on the others that still meet on Tuesdays.

June, hopefully it won't take long to get that leg shaped up. I've had a hard time NOT suggesting you soak it so am glad they are going to be more aggressive about getting to the root of the problem.  Extra prayers for you, please keep us posted on that new laptop.

I had better go back to sleep, busy week, all day-every day. 

EDIT: I think my clock is off.... My computer says it is 4:00 am.... not the 5:00 posted here. 

Good Morning everyone,
I just ran our weather It say's it is 33º and clear. glad you get to gather went well Shirley. the little ones is always the best part smiling and all dolled up in
Fancy clothes. Have a great day everyone.

Lloyd

Good morning Everyfriend!  I'm up but I don't think I'm "me" yet.  At least, if I am, I'm using someone else's brain because I'm afraid mine isn't functioning properly.

I do remember that I loved the Thought for the Day.  It's so true!  His love was always possible but we sometimes don't accept until we "see". 

Now I'm going to finish my coffee and go back in the bedroom and look for my brain!

Good morning, Shirley.  Glad your family gathering went so well.  It's nice to know some of the stuff I posted got shared by your husband.  Hopefully you are back to sleep.

Lloyd--Good morning.  I'd say it's pretty chilly there.

Good morning, Janie.  I sure hope you find your brain.:)

Good morning everyone
Well there is more snow out there but I am not sure if I am going to leave it there to stick to the ice or remove it yet.
We did get the ramp built yesterday,job well done .Now we can go straight into the garage from the house and not go outside.
Need to do my inside work today and we may have some friends coming for a visit later on,she is going to call first.

June, prayers your way for a speedy recovery and I am glad you can still keep in touch with us!

Jane, I know that feeling, I always say my brain
went on vacation and forgot to take me with it.

Jackie,Lloyd,Shirley good morning

Joan, thank you for breakfast.

Enjoy your day everyone.

Good morning, Amy.  Kudos to you for getting that ramp built.  I say--leave the snow to stick to the ice.:)

But if you do leave the snow to stick to the ice, remember if you go out that the ice is under there and be careful how you walk.  Nobody needs to fall.

I think brain function is slowly returning.

Good morning on a bright, sunny morning in NC.   We've had several days of dreary, drizzly weather so I am very pleased to see the sun this morning.

We had a quiet but nice Christmas.  Since then I have concentrated on clearing all of the goodies from the "groaning board", aka dining room table.  Some were made by me and some were gifts from neighbors.  All of them so good and so fattening but, to tell the truth, I'm tired of all the sugary stuff.  I made a big pot of chili and it tasted so good......salty and savory.

I must do a little research to see where I want to spend all these gift cards I received.  That should be a lot of fun.

June, I am both sorry and glad that you are being sent to the care unit for awhile.  That continuing leg infection really needs to be dealt with.  I wish you comfort and healing and prayers for both.

Jane, I've given up looking for my brain.  It disappeared long ago.

Janie--Glad you found your brain function.

Good morning, Phyllis.  I haven't seen even a drizzle of rain in eons.  You and Janie underestimate yourselves.  You are both very smart women.

Hi everyone on another overcast but relatively warm morning and we are headed up to 68 degrees this afternoon.  I did make it to COSTCO to pick up the strawberries for Pat.  I got there early and it wasn't crowded and it only took me probably 15 minutes in the store.  Pat and I did go out for dinner last evening and when we got home I watched one of the football bowl games.  This is the season for many bowl games from now until after the first of the year.  I slept in again this morning and Pat had fixed her own breakfast by the time I got up.  She was in a lot of pain when she got up.  I don't plan to go anywhere today but rather after I finish the message boards I am going to do some cooking in preparation for our dinner tonight.  I always have more energy in the mornings than the afternoons.  We have some roast thawing out which we will fix in the crock pot adding some vegetables later.  I plan on fixing some green beans to heat up to go with dinner.  I may make some more sausage muffins for Pat.  It all depends on my energy level.

Yesterday I did call Comcast and found my current plan is good until April 24 of next year.  So I will call back a few days before then to talk about a new plan.  During the next few days, before th beginning of the year, I want to get things ready for next year here in my office, which means sorting through papers and preparing files for next year.

Joan, the chiropractor's office was closed yesterday but is open today and she was able to get a 4 pm appointment.  While she is there I will go down the street to Aldi's for a few vegetables as that will save me having to do so tomorrow.  Regarding Comcast, I was told by a Comcast agent that I should call and ask about another special offer before the current offer ends.  I have friends who have done that and gotten much better deals.  I like my eggs scrambled and don't want anything running across my plate.  UGH!

Mary Ann, I do hope you avoid even the three step ladder as it is so easy to take a misstep or lose our balance.  Does your ladder have the high handle?  When I moved here I got rid of the one I had and bought one with a high handle.

Sandy, glad that life is treating you well. 

Hal, glad you are feeling better and with the Christmas activity over you and your wife can get some rest to complete the recovery.

June, aren't you glad you got the laptop.  It is a great way to spend idle hours as you get the I.V.'s.  Nice you don't have to leave the facility to receive the needed treatment.  Some infections can be so difficult to get rid of.  I bet they will take good care of you in the Care facility.

Jackie, that is a pretty cup.  Is that one of yours?

Shirley, I well understand the joy Cas had from the golfturnedcoffee bunch.  I did that for about 20 years on a daily basis, then about 4 times a week and since I moved I have cut back to one day a week.  However, I miss my friends in the old coffee and lunch groups I participated in.

Amy, my folks had a ramp in their garage into the house and it was very handy.  The man who had owned the house before was in a wheelchair and thus it was a necessity.  I have thought about the same thing in our garage so it would be easier for Pat to get down and up the one step from the garage to the house.  The way the door is situated into the house it would work very well.  When you said you were going to build a ramp I was thinking about an outside ramp.

Phyllis, tough job on those gift cards! However, I bet you figure the problem out.  :)

Good morning, Larry.  I'm glad Pat got an appointment to see the chiropractor.  I know her pain is unrelenting.  I never knew that about these internet plans.  I am going to call and see what they tell me.  With the way eggs are cooked. I guess that's "whatever pleases your palate". 

Good morning everyone.

Well the last two just left a f new mins ago.  I am not sure what the weather is going to do.  Sun is trying to peep out and humidity is very high. 

I hope everyone has a great day.

Joan, the snow is sticking nicely to the ice.sure makes walking easier.

Jane I don't forget about that darn ice ,one minute your up and the next your looking up!!

Larry, we have a ramp from the front door  down to the driveway but it is in the elements ,this one is much nicer to use if we have nasty weather.

Somewhere along the line I have lost my get up and go....guess it got up and went on me.

halkel--It must be very quiet at your house with your guests all gone.  The humidity is high here, too.  Ugh!!

Amy--Glad to hear walking isn't difficult.  Maybe if you catch a nap your "get up and go" will return.:)

Good morning everyone, no sun today, storm on the way. Weather guesser says rain but might turn to snow/ice. How is that for a weather report? They don't know so they give us everything and one will be right. At least it is not windy today.

JOAN  I hope that new can will work out but she talks more than my regular one. She is full of herself. I do not think she ever cooked anything. Will wait and see just how long she lasts.

LARRY  bad enough with real puzzles getting the pieces face side up, especialy on the 1000 piece puzzles. At first with Brainsbreakers I could not get anything to fit and nothing made since until I noticed the box about not turning the pieces. Then I clicked that and was  happy. I never pick show edge pieces only to get a puzzle started. Glad Pat felt well enough to get her own breakfast. Great.

MARY ANN even the one step stool I would not take a chance on. If I had one my sons would take it away from me. Poached or fried I love the runny yolk, best part of having an egg.

HAL  I had Christmas at my grandson's home. Wonderful day especially with his 16 month old son. He did not know whjich one of his new torys to play with and he kept bringing them to me to show what they did and what he could do with them. So smart.

CAROL  I only made biscotti once, too much work but they sure were better than what can be bought.

PATRICIA  like you if anyone here wants aa cleaning they have to pay for it. Every thing from wall washing to floors and carpets. The manager can give reccomedations but tenants can hire anyone they want.

JANE  like what your niece gave you. Not everyone has Thyme in a bottle like that.

JUNE  glad you have that laptop so you can keep in touch. Hope the IV works for you. Prayers and hugs go with you you.

BEVERLY   looks like you had a very busy Christmas. I did nothing but spend the day at a grandson's home and came home worn out.

GLORIA  de  seems like going out anywhere these days tires me out. I know you will miss your friend while she is in Florida.

JACKIE  like the avatar. Beautiful cup and saucer.

JOAN  will enjoy that toaster strude. Goodness I am late today. My CNA is here already.
Good chuckles, that grandfather sure would be famous. Love Expecting Help. Wonderful quote.
Thank you for all today's goodies.

SHIRLEY  how nice of that man calling and letting you know how Cas' friends were doing.

LLOYD  I agree, Chistmas is always better with little ones around.

JANE  I think my brain is still sleeping.

Gloria--Too bad the new CNA talks to much and doesn't know how to cook.  Can you ask for a replacement?

Good Morning,

I am really enjoying these nice sunny days with no "discombobulations".....yet!
   
The laundry cart was groaning under its weight so I've taken pity and am trying to help its distress.

I've almost finished undecorating and putting the regular things back in place.

Life is good.

Hope Everyfriend Everywhere is having and Enjoyable Day.

Callie--Is that w--- you are doing?:)

Good morning!

I had one of those nights and fell asleep about ten, awoke at one and couldn't fall back to sleep or interest myself in my Kindle, so got up and did pickup and some light hand washing until three this morning. After tossing about some more, I finally fell back to sleep until just recently about eight am. I will need to really tire myself today to keep this from becoming an issue.

Since I paid out for that deep clean, I have been vigilant in keeping it up as well as using the activity to exercise more. After two years, I am within 20 pounds of my goal, and this is an easy way to become more active. I had gained over stress and got too comfortable with believing I couldn't do anything about it. I think Sandy has the right of it as I tend to eat clean both for food allergies and to lose more consistently.

Beverly, with the trip, the company immediately after and then Chape's hospitalization, keeping up with the computer should be far down on your list! I hope he is doing better and that you are getting some proper rest. You need to take care of you first sometimes!

Farrah has become very affectionate, very verbal and I wonder if this is her way of cajoling me into thinking she needs her treats? Or am I too cynical?  ::)

Gloria, I am so sorry to hear about your friend, but it is a cautionary tale. I used to walk back and forth to work and other places to save money and because I enjoyed seeing animals and just the walking. I walked seven miles each way to work, twenty or so a day and thought not a thing of it as I couldn't drive due to my disability. Then in 2/2014, I fell onto both knees, hard onto the black ice and all that went away. I  can't walk long without severe tiredness, and I wear lifeline for falls inside my building.

June, I am so glad that you are going to have more intensive care on your leg!

Larry, I just got an image of a small egg with stick arms and feet trying to run off your plate.   ;D

Amy and Jane, I don't even begin to function until after that first cup of coffee and a sit-down. For the majority of my working life, I would get up an hour early just to have that first cup of coffee, a sit-down and then a leisurely getting ready for the rest of the day. When I didn't have that, the day often went horribly wrong.

Jackie, with our two avatars, we should get together for a drink.  :)

Callie, laundry is also on my agenda, unfortunately!

Gloria, would you be able to put it into your agreement about not having CNA's talking too much?

Larry, I have a standing monthly lunch date with friends, but everyone is busy with families, work or other reasons to do more. We do sometimes have dinner and cards or go out as a group with tag along significant others. I found it interesting that the majority of our socializing revolves around food.

We are still warm with intermittent snow and no real accumulation. Another warm winter, we are going to think we're no longer in the Arctic with that high-pressure area hanging in after three years.

Angelface--Hopefully you can get your sleep pattern back to normal.  Kudos to you for being so close to your weight loss goal.  Most of my socializing, too, revolves around food.

I wish those of you who are so efficient with the de-decoration would keep it to yourselves.  I predict that my decorations will still be up come Spring.  But then, I was a lot later than most of you in putting them up so I have to take longer to enjoy them....right?

I heard two people talking in the living room, Don and his new electronic friend - Alexa.  How spooky is that?  He asked "Alexa" to play iL Divo songs and now that is playing through the little disc.  He asked for the Tucson temperature and heard the entire week of forecast.  Well, Alexa will keep him entertained - just wish "she" would help around the house. 

Beverly:  Glad that your hubby is home from hospital.  May January be smooth and calm for both of you. 

June:  Best to you on mending quickly in the care unit.  You deserve the special care. 

Linedancer:  Don tends to nod "yes" even when he doesn't understand me.  It is a circus at times. 

Gloria:  I do like to bake and since most of the retirees here do not like to cook or bake - this is a small treat for friends. 

Callie:  Laundry baskets can't stand to be empty.  It is a fact.  Just like feeding the family - the next meal comes around much too soon. 

My sewing task today is measuring and trimming 6 inch squares of fabric for a quilt.  Aching back has me stopping early and checking in on everyone here.  Also, I am listening to a Maeve Binchy book - love the Irish accent. 

By the way, I asked Alexa about her IQ and she had no idea so we are all still safe from being totally taken over by electronics - for now. 

Quote from: JoanFL on December 28, 2016, 01:11:07 PM
Callie--Is that w--- you are doing?:)

:-X

I agree, Janie.  You should keep those decorations up for the same number of days you would have if you had started earlier!   :thumbup:

Feet and hip muscle are telling me "Enough, already!" - so it must be Recliner Radish time. 
CUL8R......

Janie--Right!  :thumbup:

Carol--"Alexa" could be a big help.:)  Phew--glad we aren't going to be totally taken over by the likes of Alexa.

Callie--See what happens when you do too much w---?  Now you must resort to being a recliner radish.

hi from June,residing in the hospital section of Rowntree gardens. Gary was jus t here and hooked up my lap top, so I am learning new stuff.le

JUNE DRABEK....
....hope all is going as well as it should be......

ANGELFACE....
....your cup of tea looks more interesting, I can see yours is full, and can see its hot, while my cup is empty...time for a shared brew, I think.... ;D

GLORIA, LARRY HANNA....
...no the avatar picture is not my cup...I only have the one pretty cup and saucer but its too delicate for me to hold with my numbing right hand....so I tend to stick with a mug...

June--How wonderful to hear from you and you are doing great with your laptop.  I pray the treatments are doing their job.

Vanilla-Jackie--I had a lovely collection of delicate teacups and saucers.  But alas, when I moved here I left them behind.:(

June,  so happy to see that Gary has set you up to communicate with us.   Here's a gentle hug with best wishes for the speedy success of the IV treatments.

But...but....but, Joan.  I thought you approved of "taking it easy".   

Hal,  I suppose S.A. is being invaded by Cowboys and Buffaloes.  (Sounds like a round-up!)    None of my bunch will be there in person but I suspect they will gather with OSU friends for an Alamo Bowl Watch Party tomorrow night.

Jackie, I'm a coffee drinker so we can have one of each and some cookies.  :)

I used to have quite a tea cup collection, inherited from my mother and from working at that import shop. I also had to find new homes for mine when I moved.

It sounds like we will be like Albany. I just received an under the door note in all caps with lots of exclamation marks.

Heads up!!! 1-2 feet of snow coming?!?

Know where your meds are!
Keep flashlights handy!
Draw up some water just in case!
Offices open if weather permits!
Phone number for maintenance listed!

We in the Arctic are not used to snow and wind and are used to hearing about it further south or from the East in Canada. So if I am absent for awhile, I'll probably be buried under all that snow!  ;)

Good evening, EVERYFRIEND. 

I am playing catch up tonight..... it has been a very busy time around here over the holiday.  Monday night I had three  of my four sons together, and that is always precious times.  The 5 grands got to play and spend the night together.  They were all so happy.  I was very happy as well, but did not get to spend any one on one time with the Chicago grands at all.  They left for their mountain home in Vail and will be there all week.  Youngest son and family left at 4 AM, to drive home to Austin.  The drive was a good one and they did it in  under 14 hours. 

JUNE, you are having extra prayers tonight as I ask God to watch over you while you receive the extra care for that wound on your leg.

JACKIE, I do like your tea cup but I must admit that I miss seeing your face. 

Carol, I assumed you and Don stayed in AZ since we did not hear differently.  Glad all is going well for you.  You will be missing some very cold temps early in the new year, so be glad you are not here.

Most of you are snoring logs about now, so enjoy and pleasant dreams to all.

Jenny

Good Thursday morning, Everyfriend.  There's  cinnamon rollups to accompany your coffee or tea. I wish everyone a good day!!




RIDDLES

Why can't you gain weight by eating pretzels?
Because its knot food.

What happens when an egg laughs?
It cracks up!

Why did the kid put his head on the piano?
Because he wanted to play by ear.

How do you keep a skunk from smelling?
Hold its nose.

What do snakes put on their kitchen floors?
Rep-tiles!




Hope for Peace

By Rebecca Heys
Scripture Reading: Isaiah 2:1-5

They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks.
Isaiah 2:4
Those who follow Jesus hope for peace. The prophet Isaiah promises a Savior called the “Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6), and Jesus is called “our peace” (Ephesians 2:14).
Different groups of people within the Christian church have held different views about war, peace, and the role of government in our world. Some Christians believe that war is never the right choice, while others believe that sometimes there can be a just war. But not everyone agrees on what makes a war “just.”
What all followers of Jesus do agree on, however, is that war is tragic. War is not the way in which God means for people to engage with each other. Though it might be necessary at times, war is not a part of God’s good plan for creation.
We can give thanks for the hope we hear in Isaiah 2 about God’s peaceful kingdom. These words paint an interesting picture of weapons that have been turned into farming implements because they are no longer needed for war.
This is a picture of hope even in times of war. Weapons are still used for violent purposes, but one day they will have no purpose other than for growing good crops for food.
We pray that God will grant us wisdom now as we engage in the realities of war, and that God will grant us hope as we long for a future of peace.
Prince of Peace, we lament that war is still a reality in our world, and we pray that your peace will reign everywhere soon. In your name, Amen.


“Do no harm and leave the world a better place than you found it.”

~ Patricia Cornwell

Good morning Everyfriend...and a special Good Morning to you, Joanie.

It's snowing here right now and it looks like it might have started about an hour ago.  I'm supposed to show up at my son's house about 7:30 to look after Kiran for the day.  The plan was for me to allow her to sleep in and then bring her to my house when she woke up with a stop at McDonalds for lunch.  I think a revision might be in order.  I might wake her about 10 and hurry home before too much snow accumulates.  I've forgotten what they said we are supposed to get and I thought it was to be on Friday.  RATS!!  It's going to ruin our plans! 

I'm going to have my coffee and then check to see how bad it is so far.  Enjoy your day, Everyfriend!

Good Morning everyone. tomorrow I am going Back to work earning a few $$$ for two three weeks running a friends bulldozer, weather permitting. I sure hope it stays good I sure can use the extra $$. hope everyone has a great day and a better tomorrow.

Lloyd

 JaneS good Morning hope you are up because there too many lumps in your bed and not sick.we have a very good bed but it seam's to get hard so when nature calls  I stay up some times and go to couch and take a nap there. next two or three weeks may help that a little. as I will be putting in 9/10 hours a day on bulldozer. may get tired enough to sleep all night. have a great day.

Lloyd

Good morning, Janie.  I am sorry the weather might ruin your plans, but I know you'll enjoy your time with Kiran one way or the other.

Lloyd--Good morning.  You sure will be tired after working 9/10 hours on that bulldozer.

Good morning everyone..

Woke up to new snow, rather be saying no snow but it is what it is. Not a lot of snow may just do the walk ways and the garage apron and let the driveway go,will know better when I go out. I do not want snow tomorrow,we have to be on the road at 6 am or earlier to head to the city for hubby's chemo treatment.

Joan, thank you for breakfast.

Lloyd, that is tiring work..you will sleep at night for
sure.

Jane safe traveling ..

Enjoy your day everyone.

Good morning, Amy.  I sure hope you don't get more snow today since you have to be on the road so early tomorrow to go to your husband's chemo.  I'll pray for no snow and safe travel.

Well, our latest winter storm is under way.  We're told to expect from 2" to 12".  Unless we get more.  Or unless we get less.   :o

Hi everyone.  We awoke to a rainy morning but it is suppose to be gone around 11 this morning.  The moisture is welcome.  There is a wind advisory out for us today.

Yesterday was an interesting day.  I got a lot done yesterday morning including the cooking projects I had on the schedule.  Pat did get in to see the chiropractor about 4 pm yesterday and I went to Aldi's, where everything was very much picked over and some of the produce items I wanted were out of stock.  I will stop there again this morning after coffee to see if they have restocked as the cashier told me the restock items were coming in this morning.  I only have coffee this morning as our Wisdom group is not meeting because the minister is out of the office today.  We are fixing a roast in the crock pot for our dinner tonight and the meat is ready as are the vegetables.  So I look forward to a laid back day.  I am sure I will watch some football before the day is over as South Carolina plays at 2 pm and then Virginia Tech plays a little before six.

While I was at Aldi's yesterday Scott called me to say his flight from Augusta had been cancelled due to staffing problems.  That was going to mess everything up in terms of his flight back this morning, the car rental and whether he could get a re-ticketing or would we lose the expensive fare for the return ticket. However, about an hour later he texts us and says they have him on another flight leaving 30 minutes earlier than he originally expected.  He did make it to Albany, NY, and we had another text from him early this morning saying they were at the Albany airport and their plane back was on time.  So it appears all has worked out for which we all are very thankful.  I look forward to seeing our Granddaughter, whom we haven't seen for probably 7 or 8 years.   

Joan, I will be interested in your experience with Comcast. 

Amy, I planted the idea with Pat that a ramp in our garage might be a good idea.  Now I just have to wait for her to make it her idea. Fortunately we only have one step down from the house and she can use her cane in one hand and hold on to the door frame or door knob to get in and out.  It sound like your "get up and go" just needed a day of rest.  I don't think I have mentioned that Pat is very pleased with her Singer Featherweight and actually sewed a little on it yesterday.  She has it set up in our sun porch area and plans on sewing up strips with it for a patch work quilt.  The machine was in great shape. 

Gloria, I do use the command to turn the pieces of the jigsaw puzzles and also just show the edge pieces as the screen on my Chromebook isn't too large and that helps in the display of the other pieces.  Pat doesn't like to have the pieces turned either and she likes some of the odd shaped pieces whereas I always select the old-fashioned type pieces. 

Carol, my best friend has had the Amazon Alexia since it came out on the market and he uses it all the time.  I just cannot justify in my mind that I would use it very often and have access to Siri and the Google assistant.  I may change my mind one of these days. 

June, glad to see you are settled in your room and your laptop is working.  Good show!

Good morning, Jeanne Lee.  I hope you don't need to go out when it's snowing.

Larry--Good morning.  It seems many places are getting rain, but STILL none here.  When I stepped out to get the paper I could smell the smoke from the brush fires.  I called my provider (was Brighthouse--changed last week to Spectrum).  Actually it's part of Roadrunner.  My contract doesn't run out until May.  Glad everything worked out with Scott's flight schedule.

Good morning everyone, yesterday the weather guessers said snow today, this morning they are saying rain and possible mixed with snow at times. I know the cars are full of frost this morning and  it looks cold out side.

JOAN  it is my insurance that wanted the other 2 days, not me. 5 days is a bit much, I am not a slob so my place is never dirty for them to clean. Not much for 2 different people to clean. I know the company that supplies the housekeepers and CNA's is short handed. They only pay minimum wage and as soon as they can find a better paying job they quit. Wish I could ask for a replacement. There is one I have had at times that I asked about but she is all booked.

CALLIE  this is the first year I did no decorating for Christmas. Just not up to it soo had nothing to put away.

PATRICIA  wish I could gain but since I am not very active anymore I am seldom hungry and never feel like eating. I do eat because I know I have to but seems like nothing tastes like it used to. But
Christmas at my grandson's the food was all so good I did eat and felt full for 3 days after. I well remember when you used to walk everywhere and always with your camera. I used to walk a lot and loved it. Now I mostly sit, even with the rollator I cannot walk far anymore. I used to walk around the parking lot here a couple of times a day. One man drove his car around the parking lot and said 5 times around was a mile. Well I did that and more every day.

JOAN  anything with cinnamon is tasty, healthy, too. Cinnamon is good for us. Good riddles. Hope for Peace, I think that is something many of us pray for every day. Thank you for all today's goodies.

JANE  hope the roads were OK when you went for Kiran.

LLOYD  hope the weather is good so you can run that bulldozer.

AMY  you need clear roads tomorrow for the trip into the city.

LARRY  I like trying the odd shaped puzzle pieces, some I like and others I never use again.

Good morning everyone!

My son has Alexa and I find it to be both fun and helpful. When we were up there, my son and I were in the living room talking and Alexa suddenly joined in the conversation!  ;) Apparently it sounded like we asked her a question.

Patricia - I hope you don't need to leave the house for a day or two and that the power stays on. The children in the area will have a ball!

Jeanne Lee - Hope you have someone checking in on you today. Stay warm!

Time for me to w**k on getting the house back to normal. I plan to leave the tree up till after the New Year.

Good morning, Beverly.  Alexa might be fun, but right now I am saving my pennies for a laptop.  You're going to do w---?  You know what that gets you.:)

Good morning from “clear” Grand Rapids.  I have no idea what is in store for us, but I seem to recall seeing that we would be cloudy with rain Friday.  I hope that is true because Tom’s kids will be here for our Christmas this afternoon.  And that will end this Christmas season for us.  Tom left this morning, supposedly to return at 3 pm but I hear his voice downstairs.  I was asleep when he returned, so I don’t know what his plans are now.  Annie will be here about 3 pm and we’ll start things for supper tonight.  Gifts have been wrapped and I didn’t wrap any of them.  Even those to others so I’ll be surprised too.  I did pick things out and I paid for them.  Probably the strangest Christmas I have ever had and it’s kind of neat for a change.

JaneS, I hope your snow holds off for you at least to allow you to get home.

Lloyd, that is a long working day.

Amy, I hope the snow holds off for you too. 

Jeanne Lee, that’s the way it goes â€" if it snows, you don’t know how much really is going to fall.  Our snow now is mostly lake effect and so far today none has fallen.  The roads are clear so in about an hour I’ll go after the mail.  When we have a lot of snow, Tom gets it and if it’s icy, he drives his car across the road to get it.  My days of skating across the road are over.

Larry, I am glad Scott’s flight to Albany was on again.  I don’t like to fly at this time of year but I used to fly to Florida in February when Norm and Dot were there.  As to puzzles, I like the classic shaped pieces and I don’t turn them around.  I find out how large the puzzle is, then sort out the edge pieces.  When I have a good start on them, I move other pieces so I can put the top of the puzzle at the top of the screen and leave the lower edge until I can put the entire border together.  I like that puzzle as much as I like my All Star puzzle; to me, they’re similar.

Beverly, I did not put up my small tree this year.  I asked Tom to bring it up but the base was missing and I think he forgot to look for it. I did put out my remaining Father Christmases, Mary and Joseph, and the four angels playing instruments.  I even had an ornament that I could hang over the cat’s food and water dishes.  I don’t think he appreciated it, but it was there.

Tom just left, this time to return at 3 pm; I think he has a meeting.

Mary Ann

Good morning, Joan and all the other friends.

Thanks for the cinnamon roll--ups this morning.  I plan on having them with a big glass of chocolate milk.  Every once in a while, I just have a urge for some chocolate milk.,  I make up my own chocolate syrup, and that is how I use up some milk before it goes bad. But, it has to be icy cold.  So, with the cinnamon rolls, it should taste good.  Might have a cup of coffee later on.

It is a kind of dreary day here and it was supposed to have been a little icy rain earlier.  But the temperature has gone up, so that is good. 

June,  sure hope that your leg is showing some improvement.  Glad that you were able to stay close by and not have to go into the hospital.  Sounds like you are getting good care and glad you can still keep in touch here.

Hope everyone will have a great day.

Joy

Mary Ann--You sure are having many Christmas celebrations.  How nice!!  Enjoy the time with family.

Joy--I can't drink milk, and I dislike those that are supposed to taste like regular milk.  It's to be in the 80s here today and tomorrow they say it won't get out of the low 60s.  That's a BIG drop for us.

Afternoon All!

Windy day here today.  But it has served one purpose, cleaned the leafs off the trees pretty much, now if it settles and I have any left in the yard I will get the yardman over to mulch them for the final time. Like Joan said, it is warm here, no new front until next week or so they say at this time.

Hope June is doing well in her new digs and getting treatment she needs to clear that leg up.

I still feel a little droppy and out of sorts but the cough has just about gone now the old nose is running again with all this wind and whatever it is bringing in.

Everyone have a great day.

halkel--Sorry you feel droopy and out of sorts, but at least the cough is gone. 

Our sunny Florida day has turned into a cloudy, misty day. Temps are still near 80.

Joan - The w**k didn't involve much exertion!  :)

Good Afternoon,

A friend and I went out for our annual "Halfway Between Birthdays" lunch today.  Mine was December 23 and hers is January 5.  We laugh about being born in the same year but only being the same age for about 2 weeks before she's a year older than I am.

Joy,  I add powdered chocolate mix to milk that's approaching its expiration date - but mine has to be warm.

Larry, glad that Scott's flight plans worked out well.   Miss Ellen had no problems returning to NYC yesterday - thank goodness. She flew through Houston so missed the snow moving across the far northern part of the country.

Hal,   good to know your cough is gone and hope the droopy out of sorts feeling improves now that you don't have to be "on" for company.

Janie,  I'll bet you've come up with a great alternative plan for Kiran.  Hope you've been able to get where you needed to go and back home safely.

Hugs and Good Thoughts to our June.

:hello:  to those I didn't mention specifically.    I hope Everyfriend Everywhere is having an enjoyable day.

Cute little pixie, Sandy's Fe at eight months.

http://www.seniorsandfriends.org/index.php?topic=11.msg66889#msg66889

We are still awaiting the massive storm here with most saying it's a tempest in a teapot. We've been having intermittent snow with no accumulation for the past week.

"Winter storm warning in effect from 3:00 o'clock PM AKST until Saturday 6:00 o'clock AM AKST. Source, U.S. National Weather Service

MORNING UPDATE: 12/29/16
Thu, 12/29/2016 - 05:42 -- jrlewis
WINTER STORM WARNING.
TODAY, FLURRIES IN THE MORNING, AN INCH OF SNOW IN THE AFTERNOON, HIGH ABOUT 9.
TONIGHT, 6â€"9 INCHES OF HEAVY BLOWING SNOW, WINDS GUSTING TO 30, LOW AROUND 5.
TOMORROW, 2 MORE INCHES OF BLOWING SNOW, WIND GUSTS TO 35, HIGHS IN THE 20S
EXTENDED OUTLOOK: SNOW LIKELY AND 27 SATURDAY, CLOUDY AND 15 SUNDAY, CHANCE OF SNOW SHOWERS ALL NEXT WEEK, HIGH 5 TO 10; AIR QUALITY FORECAST IS GOOD IN FAIRBANKS, AND NORTH POLE; AND THE AURORA FORECAST IS LOW."

We rarely have snow so this is new for us in the Interior.

Beverly--W--- that doesn't require exertion?  Bring it on.:)  It's overcast here, but they are still saying down in the 40s tonight and not out of low 60s tomorrow.

Callie--Nice that you and your friend, whose birthdays are close to one another, could go out and celebrate.

angelface--Thanks for the link.  I had already seen that cute picture.  I truly am glad our weather is not like yours.

There was snow on the roads when I left to go to my son's this morning but not enough to worry even an old lady driver.  I got there in plenty of time and when they left for work, I took a nap with a kitty cat snuggled up to me.  Then I got up and scrounged something to eat and reheated their left over coffee and checked my email on my ipad.  I let Kiran sleep until 11 then I got her up and we went to my house to let the doggies out. We decided to stay here and have spaghetti for lunch.  I have some new games on my computer for her and she played them for a while and then we watched "SOUND OF MUSIC" together on the DVD player.  All in all, an OK day!  Daddy just took her home.

Now I'm going to have some more of the spaghetti for supper and feed the doggies and probably watch some TV through my eyelids!  That's the best way!

Enjoy your evening Everyfriend!

Janie--I had spaghetti and meatballs today, too.  I am sure Kiran enjoyed the new games you have on the computer for her.  I love "The Sound of Music" and have watched it over and over.

Joanie, THE SOUND OF MUSIC is the only movie I ever remember my grandmother going to see.  She asked lots of questions about it before she decided to go and it was a 4 generation trip.  It was probably Cathy's first movie ever and Gramma's last movie ever.   Gramma, my Mother, my sister, my daughter and I all went together.  I must have seen it a hundred times since and I watched the reunion of the kids who played the Von Trapp's at least 5 times.  I'd say that was the "Movie of the Century".

I had spaghetti today as well....  I put shredded cheese on mine & let it melt down.... and had garlic butter on some good french-type wheat bread. 

Callie, my sister was born in 1930 and I was born in 1935... should be 5 years older/younger, except she was born on Christmas Day & my birthday in Jan....  for less than a month I am really 5 years older but I've always "gotten her goat" by saying she is 5 years older.   :2funny:  When I called to wish her a Happy Birthday the other day, I reminded her that "for now, she is really 5 years older".  She doesn't have a sense of humor............ ::)

Hal, I gave in and picked up half a dumpster full of leaves from my front sidewalk & steps while ago.... have cleaned my yard several times but the wind keeps blowing in more.  Today the wind shifted again & I stood at the window above the sink & watched leaves flying into the yard & stacking up between the rails by the sidewalk & on the porch.  No sense trying to do more than "clean a path" because nobody west of my house picks up leaves so a never ending job.

Wish I could talk all of you into sharing the snow.... I didn't even get the snow blower started last year and no sign of snow yet.  We had a dusting a week or so ago & even washed the car to get the salt & slime off.  When it gets too bad I can't get in & out of the car without getting my pant legs dirty.

Janie, like you, I've seen Sound of Music a hundred times but I haven't seen the reunion.  I feel deprived... make that depraved.  :crazy2:  I have not seen a single movie ... of all the classics... this year.  One of my favorites is the one with Nat.Wood... (Mir. on 34th St)  ... nary a one did I find this year. 

My kids are freaked out about Carrie Fisher & Debbie Reynolds... and have been doting on me all week.  My daughter is same age as Carrie & they thought of Debbie as indestructible as their mother.  Sad for Carrie's brother, Todd.... and I don't know if Carrie had any kids (edit, Google says she has a daughter)... but what awful memories for that family every year at Christmas. 

Must get busy. Kids coming back by tonight, they were in & out all day.  Son put a new lock & latch on the front storm door and new lock & door knob on the hall door going to the garage, both had parts that broke & he can fix/replace anything (after we made a trip to the hardware store).  Must say, this has been the best Christmas of my life.  My kids know me and if they had not given me a single present.... it would still be the best ever because they knocked themselves out being happy & loving people.  The gifts were over the top!

Wishing all of you sweet dreams and a day of peace and calm for tomorrow.  God Bless & as June would remind us, "HE will be watching over us".   Hugs, June.....

Shirley, I always say that Christmas can't come until I've seen MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET, IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE and WHITE CHRISTMAS.  This year, my DVD player is acting up and will only play B&W.  That's fine form Miracle, and wonderful life.  They were filmed in B&W.  But I refuse to watch White Christmas without color.  So I guess Christmas will have to wait.  OH WAIT!  It came and went already, didn't it?  I guess I'll watch White Christmas in color whenever my son gets around to checking the DVD player.  I guess that will be after the high school basketball season is over.  Oh Well, Christmas in July is fun, too!

Good Night Everyfriend.  I'm off to the living room to watch the rest of It Happened on Fifth Avenue...probably through my eyelids...

Callie I am watching the OSU/CO game and the Cowboys are doing okay.

Shirley, I am with you.  My Christmas couldn't have been better.  My family took care of dear old Dad, my ever need was seen to and with much love. 

I am off to bed to watch football, might even see it to the end....if not the score will be in the paper.

Good night, God Bless and Sweet Dreams

EXTREMELY painful to watch my Buffs being beat so badly by OSU!  Boo hoo!

Shirley stop letting the Leaves bother you. Just get out your Lawnmower and
Mow them several times over Making a mulch of them (good for your yard).
and a lot easier on you and your back. also cheaper than commercial fertilizer. Have a great day.

Lloyd

spell ck is good most of the time but I mess it up so bad it can't fix it. when Nancy is up and around she can mostly do it for me OK.  but she is in bed now and i had to get out my cdl drivers license to spell commercial correctly
spell ck wasent smart enough for me.

Good Friday morning, Everyfriend.   There's a baked egg souffle to accompany your coffee or tea. Make it a good day!!




Pie Manners

In a country home that seldom had guests, the young son was eager to help his mother after his father appeared with two dinner guests from the office.

When the dinner was nearly over, the boy went to the kitchen and proudly carried in the first piece of apple pie, giving it to his father, who passed it to a guest. The boy came in with a second piece of pie and again watched his father give it to a guest.

This was too much for the boy, who said, "It's no use, Dad. The pieces are all the same size."


Hope for Completion
By Rebecca Heys
Scripture Reading: Philippians 1:3-11

He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
Philippians 1:6
Some Christians can point to a single moment of conversion, a moment when they accepted Jesus into their heart and began to follow him. Other Christians grew to know Jesus so gradually that it is hard for them to point to just one moment of conversion. They talk about experiencing several different moments of conversion instead, or a lifelong process of conversion.
No matter how one’s Christian faith began, it is never finished at that moment. Following Jesus is a lifelong process. When the apostle Paul wrote to the Philippian church, he prayed that their love would abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight. When the Philippians first became Christians, they began to love God and their neighbors, but they still had much more growing to do. And so do we.
The process of Christian growth should not be daunting or intimidating. God has promised to generate the growth within us. Even the process of growth comes to us as a gracious gift from God.
Our growth and progress as Christians will not reach completion in this life. No matter how mature we are, we can still grow more in Christlikeness and in love. But God promises that our love will continue to grow, and that when Christ comes again it will be complete.
Dear God, we praise you for the lifelong process of growth that you work in us by your Holy Spirit. Give us patient endurance as we grow to be more like you. Amen.



“If you don’t control your own mind, someone else will.”

~ John Allston

Good morning everyone.

Shoveled snow yesterday and although some fell overnight it can stay put till we get back home from the city. Not sure if we will have time or feel like doing a few errands while we are in there or not.A lot depends on how hubby is feeling after his treatment.

Larry, I am sure Pat loves her Featherweight,they are an awesome machine! Good luck on the ramp.

Joan ,thank you for breakfast.

Enjoy your day everyone.

Good morning everyone, well the storm yesterday have a few white flakes but was mostly rain so no complaints around here. On the late news last night the weatherman said along the coast they had over an inch of rain. Of course they never tell us what we got in this area. This town is seldom mentioned. He also said if it had been snow it would have been over a foot of it. Glad I do not have to clean off a car to get out to work. When I pulled up my shades and looked out the windshields have a bit of snow on them but if it froze with the rain on top of that snow it will be ice. The parking lot looks like it is icy. Glad I will not have to walk out there.

JEANNE LEE  if you got that snow I hope it was 2” or less.

PATRICIA  glad you will not have to walk miles to work if you get all that snow.

MARY ANN  hope everything stayed dry yesterday so you could have your last Christmas celebration for this year. Even the computer puzzles it seems we have to get that border done first, no matter how many pieces we choose.

The plow man is here but just sanding the parking lot. Sure glad I woke early this morning. Not fun when he wakes me up.
Nest with be the maintenance mae out there spreadding icemelt on the walks and path to the back rows of cars.

HAL  you must be tired of trying to keep up with your running nose. I can just picture your nose running away and you trying to catch it.  :2funny:

CALLIE  my daughter is 5 days older than her husband. She told me once that when she was expecting my first grandchild they had gone somewhere and a woman went up to him and told him he should be ashamed of having  such a young wife. She was tiny and always looked younger than her age. We had a good laugh with that one. They were both in their 20's.

JANE  you have some wonderful movies to watch on those DVD's. The Sound of Music is one I never get tired of seeing.

SHIRLEY  glad I still have a sense of humor. Before my daughter was married and we would go shopping we would have people looking at us  wondering what was going on. We sure had fun together. Still do even on Skype. Like you I did not see any of the old classic Christmas movies this year. Lot on the news yesterday about Debbie Reynolds dying of a broken heart.

BEVERLY  just heard on TV that Vermont had 2' of snow. Skiers up there must be happy.

JOAN  a baked egg souffle sure looks good. Like Pie Manners. Hope for Completion, are we ever complete? Not yet. Good quote. Thank you for all today's goodies.

AMY  hope your DH does not feel sick after today's treatment. Safe travels.

Good morning, Amy.  I hope no more snow comes down so you can safely travel to and from your husband's chemo. 

Gloria--Good morning.  You're up extra early this morning.  I stepped out to get the paper, and it sure felt chilly.  The wind is also blowing which makes the 55° temp at my house COLD.  Guess I will have to switch the furnace on.

Good moring Everyfriend!  I was up way before 6 but I had to make dog food this morning because I forgot about it last night.  Now we're ready for 4 more days.

Gloria, I have way too many movies on DVD and tape!  I'm thinking about posting them on a FREECYCLE network that we have around here.  I need to get rid of a bunch of stuff.

I wish all of you and yours health in the new year.  Safe travels to all on the road and warm homecomings (or home stayings) to Everyfriend.  Have a wonderful day!

Good morning.  Your sweet dogs are so lucky to have you making them homemade dog food.  Do you remind them how lucky they are?:)  I heard some fireworks last night and am sure that will intensify tonight and tomorrow night.  Are the dogs scared by them?

Fireworks and thunder terrify them.  The only thing that calms them is to be close to me.  I find a place to sit, turn the TV as loud as I can stand it and talk to them and pet them.  I forgot that crazies do fireworks on New Year's Eve.  I never really cared for fireworks. 

I'm off to get ready for smiles and cheery customers at Wally World this morning. 

Janie--I feel so sorry for your dogs who are so frightened by the fireworks and thunder.  I hope all at WM are wearing smiles today.

Hi everyone.  We have a bright and sunny morning that starts for me at 44 degrees headed into the low 50's for later today. 

The good news yesterday was that Scott and his daughter, Jennifer, arrived safely and on time yesterday afternoon back here in Augusta.  We invited them out to dinner last evening but they were so tired from the trip that they declined.  This was understandable as Scott said he had been awake since 1 pm on Wednesday and it had been a lot of flying and uncertainty. 

The housekeeper will be here later this morning.  I plan no cooking today as we have plenty of left overs from last night for this evening.  I plan on staying home and watching some of the bowl games, including Georgia playing at noon.  I saw two good games yesterday. 

Gloria, glad you missed the snow as 2 feet is a lot of snow. 

JaneS, it sounds like Kiran is getting an early start to becoming a teenager sleeping until 11 and having to be awoken then.  Usually the younger kids will get up earlier.  I wrote to the father of my great grandchildren yesterday asking if he thought my great granddaughter, who is 12 and just got a DVD portable player for Christmas, would enjoy some of the older movies.  I have maybe 2 dozen old movies on DVD that I got on sale for $1 each several years ago.  I will send them to her depending on the reply I get from her father.  We don't even have a DVD player hooked up and rarely bought DVD's. I have never really cared for fireworks either as it seems to be such a waste of money. 

Joan, your "Pie Manners" humor sounds so realistic as to what a young lad might say.  It certainly brought a chuckle.  I haven't heard any fireworks here.  There are two big fireworks stores about 2 miles from us so expect we will hear some fireworks in the next couple of days. 

Shirley, Pat watched many Christmas movies on the Hallmark channel.  I think they started in November, if not before. 

I hope this turns out to be a good day for you all.

Patricia (angelface555) asked in a another discussion that a link be posted here showing some pictures of her cat and other things including the snow they had yesterday.  Here it is and be sure to scroll done:  http://www.seniorsandfriends.org/index.php?topic=11.msg66938#msg66938

Good morning, Larry.  Glad to hear Scott and Jennifer arrived back in Augusta with no problems.  Very limited types of fireworks are allowed here, but somehow folks seem to procure the ones that fly through the air and explode.

Good morning.

Gloria - Wondering if my some of my family up there made it to work this morning. The snow plows must be working overtime. I'm not surprised about the 2'. We used to joke about getting 2' of "partly cloudy".  :)

Our weather turned colder overnight. It's only 53 here at 10 a.m.

Good Friday Morning from the Sunny now, but snow covered rocky coast of Maine.   

After catching up on the daily news in the morning, I
turn to Netflix, Hulu, Showtime or Amazon to watch
some series.     

Right now I am playing catch up with the original "Twin Peaks",  and "The Affair" on Showtime,  and the  "BlackList" and "Damages" on  Netflix.     

Between these and my daily shows on starter TV, 
I am very satisfied with my ability to stay tuned in,
with out having to pay much attention to current events
and dasterdly politics.    Which I have given up as a matter of poor policy   (for me,  now and in the future) ...

So all is well here,  and it looks so pretty out with all
of the snow cover that we got last night.  It is  pretty
with the sun shinning on it.   

Have a good day,  everyone.
Sandy 

Good morning, Beverly.  I just checked, and it's 54° here and very windy.  At least you and I don't get snow.:)

Sandy--Good morning.  You can look at that white stuff for me.  You sure enjoy a variety of series.  What is "starter TV"?

Good morning everyone from a very snowy Interior. We had 15 to 19 inches of snow yesterday and expect another 11 or so inches today. The storm warning is in effect through Saturday at 6 AM and we have had 55 mph winds. We had a 3.2 accumulation before the storm so the plows are out for the first time all year with warnings of overladen trees falling. So far, no blackouts although we have had three incidences this morning where the lights have gone off for a minute or two and then returned.

The entire coastline, both north, and west are under blizzard conditions with the rest of the state under a winter storm warning so this is unusual for us but at least we are not in the blizzard areas.

Thank you, Larry, for posting the link to my photos of snow and Farrah from yesterday. I know Amy had expressed an interest in seeing photos of Farrah.

I'm glad Scott and your granddaughter returned safe and hope they are getting the rest they need.

Good morning and happy new year to all posting here!

angelface--Please stay safe with all that expected horrible weather.  I enjoyed seeing your photos of Farrah.

Joan, I have no plans to go outside.

Local preparations:

11 a.m. update: A travel advisory is in effect for the Fairbanks region. Road crews are working overtime to clear the roads, according to DOT, but may not reach all areas today before a second round of heavy snow moves in.

The Steese Highway is closed Eagle Summit, between miles 101-116. Travel is not recommended on other Interior Alaska highways and Fairbanks police recommend residents travel only if absolutely necessary.

Scattered power outages are reported from Healy to Goldstream to North Pole. Winds are picking up up through the region and more outages are expected.

With some vehicle accidents and two people sent to the hospital, police are asking people to stay home if at all possible

• Heavy snowfall, blowing snow, and drifting snow have made driving conditions hazardous on Interior Alaska highways.

The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities says driving is hazardous on the Elliott Highway from milepost 92 to milepost 106.

The advisory says motorists should use extreme caution through this section of highway.

The road is expected to become impassable tonight, the DOT says. No maintenance is scheduled after 5:30 p.m.

The DOT also reports difficult driving conditions this afternoon on the Parks Highway from milepost 276 to milepost 344, just outside of Fairbanks. The DOT reports heavy and blowing snow and poor visibility.

Driving conditions are also difficult at Eagle Summit on the Steese Highway and from milepost 235 to milepost 250 of the Dalton Highway, the DOT reports.

• Emergency response officials are getting a weather briefing today at 2:30 p.m. from the National Weather Service as they continue to monitor the storm, according to Baird Stiefel, emergency manager for the Fairbanks North Star Borough.

• The city of Fairbanks will beef up its snow plowing operations beginning at 7 a.m., Saturday Mayor Jim Matherly said today. He said the city's snow removal crews are scheduled work two 12 hour shifts to keep snow removal going for 24 hours. Extra vehicles and temp workers are scheduled to work as well. City crews will also work to clear bridges, handicap ramps, and roundabouts.

• Matherly is asking people to park off-street so that roadways are clear for snow plows.

• "We saw a huge uptake in generator sales, we had two trucks from Anchorage bring more generators, and we have another scheduled to arrive tomorrow with the last generators from our distribution center, in Anchorage." said Chris Morris, general manager of Alaska Industrial Hardware in Fairbanks. Morris said generators are still in stock at the store. He said a "ton" of cordless heaters, propane heaters, and snow shovels were also brought in and that items are moving off the shelves quickly. A similar situation was reported at other Fairbanks retailers.

Angelface--That sounds like the weather reports we got when we lived in Central New York.

It also sounds like the weather reports from Anchorage, 400 miles to the south of us. We are not at all used to humidity or snow here in the Interior. Evidently, there are a series of extreme storms making their way in from the coasts where they have unusual blizzard conditions.

The entire state, all 663,300 miles of it, which is unusual because of the mountain ranges and three separate climate and geographical regions, are impacted by these storms, so this is huge for us. This weather is our version of a hurricane. I have to wonder if they will veer East or South and run down or stay intensive. And if they will move into Canada and the states or if they move into Washington and Oregon

hi,all is well

Angelface--All I can say is I Pray everyone stays safe.

It's very quiet here in the SS today.  Must be participants are resting so they will be ready to hoot and holler--tomorrow night--New Years' Eve.:)

June--So glad to hear from you and know all is well.

hi Bis, as I was posting the fellow came in to take my order for tomorrows meals.  Yes, all is well, I will have to stay here till next Wed., or longer  depending on healing. I have a bacterial infection on my leg, so have to get the antibiotic through an I.'v. I am sleeping a lot ,reading, t.v......the usual time-passers. Fortunately I am allowed to walk around, but confined to my room,as this form of bacteria is highly contagious. The staff and family have to don a gown before entry. One couple from the Apts. just stand by the door to the hallway and chat. So,onward and up ward.  June

Angel. That is quite a storm. Good thing the got the bug problem taken care of before it came.
You now safe indoors.

I picked up a couple items on the way home and when I got here, I realized that I was very tired.  So I took care of the doggies, had a bite of lunch and chased down some zzzs that were trying to hide in the sofa. 

I was just barely awake when Cathy stopped by to drop off some grapefruit and oranges that were cluttering up her fridge.  We chatted a bit and then she went home. 

I decided not to do anything the rest of the day so I put a Christmas movie in and watched it.  Have any of you seen "CHRISTMAS COMES TO WILLOW CREEK"?  It's a feel good type of movie starring the two guys from The Dukes of Hazzard. 

Now I'm going to clean up the kitchen and then hit the hay early.  I wish you all a good night and may God bless us, every one!

June all my best to you and for sure that bug is going to depart your system wishing it had never met up with the likes of you LOL


Everyfriend,

In soft glistening of the night of stars,

  I hope all your aspirations come true.

May every star present in the sky,

Bring love and mirth to you.

For as well I I wish you

to have magical Mondays,

terrific Tuesdays,

warm Wednesdays,

thrilling Thursdays,

fun-filled Fridays,

sweetest Saturdays and special Sundays

this year and always

Experience a great new year.

Much love!

Make it happen this year, don't just watch it happen

Happy New Year 2017

Best Wishes, Mycheal

June - Happy to hear from you! I'm wondering if the leg infection is MERSA. I had a friend with it and I know it's difficult to treat. You're fortunate that they take such good care of you at Rowntree. The infection may be contagious but so is your faith and upbeat attitude.  :smitten:

Joan - My hootin' and hollerin' are all fizzled out. I went for blood work early this afternoon and then to Sam's Club and grocery shopping. Problem is I hadn't eaten much (a bad habit of mine!) so I didn't feel well by the time I got home. A peanut butter sandwich and glass of milk helped. As I was pulling forward after backing out of my parking space at Publix, a woman opposite me backed out of her space and just nicked the rear corner of my car. I saw what was happening and blew my horn before it became a catastrophe!

Patricia - Stay warm! Hope you have plenty of supplies on hand.

Mycheal - What a lovely poem for the New Year! Wishing the same for you.

Good Morning everyone . wish you all a great last day of this year and a very happy and prosperous one in the  year to come.

Lloyd

Good Saturday morning, Everyfriend, on this New Year’s Eve day and the last day of 2016.   There's a full breakfast to accompany your coffee or tea. I wish everyone a good day!!





Visit

Our son is in the Army, stationed in Georgia. He invited my husband and I for a visit.

After driving endlessly through unfamiliar streets in search of an entrance to Fort Stewart, my husband suddenly said, "We're getting closer."

"How do you know?" I asked.

He pointed to a sign that read: "Sonny's Bar-B-Q: Tank Parking Available"



Future Hope
By Rebecca Heys
Scripture Reading: Jeremiah 29:10-14

I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
Jeremiah 29:11
This verse could be printed inside a graduation card. It sounds encouraging and positive about the future. We might imagine that these words could be used to give encouragement to someone who has accomplished great things and is on their way to even greater things.
But the Lord was speaking through the prophet to people who were in exile. What’s more, they had just heard the news that they would be in exile for many more years before they could return to their homeland. These were not people who had accomplished great things, and they were not people who were feeling positive about their future. They were probably feeling quite discouraged about the exile and about their dim prospects for the future.
To these peopleâ€"and to us todayâ€"God does not promise health and wealth and a great personal life. Instead he promises something so much deeper and better: God promises that he is saving the whole world and that we can be included in that salvation. Our hope for the future rests not in our own selves but in his power and love. In our own exile of sin, God gives us not just a graduation card but certain hope for a future held in his care.
Do you have that hope? Rest in it today!
God of the past, present, and future, we entrust ourselves to your care. We trust that in times of joy and in times of sorrow, our hope is in you. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.


“There is no path to happiness: happiness is the path.”

~ Buddha

Good Morning Everyfriend!  Another year has almost ended!  They seem to go by faster and faster each year.  My prayer for the new one is happiness and health for all my friends and family and that includes all my friends on S&F.  You have become almost like family to me and when I don't visit, I miss you.  And when one of you is missing, it's a hole in my life.  Be happy, love God and stay warm and healthy.  God bless us, every one!

Good morning, Janie.  I  pray for all my friends at S & F, too, and hope the new year brings everyone only the best.

It's 43° at my house, and for here that is VERY cold!!

Good morning everyone..

We had a great day yesterday, roads were good and we made good time to the city. Dr was pleased with the numbers on his blood work  and  stayed with the same "recipe" for the chemo.

Angelface, love the photos of Farrah, I think the first one is my favorite, looks as though she is playing peek a boo with you. Thank you for sharing.

Jane, I agree with you, gosh time does fly past fast.

Mycheal, beautiful poem, thank you.

June, prayers for continued healing...and so thankful you can come in and post .

Joan, thank you for breakfast.

I wish everyone a healthy Happy New Year all the best in 2017.

Enjoy your day everyone.

Good morning, Amy.  Glad to hear all went well with your trip to the city and your husband's chemo yesterday. 

Hi everyone.  When I looked at the temperature at about 7 this morning it was 33 degrees but don't think it was that cold here at the house.  We are expecting the mid-50's this afternoon with no rain.  I had a very quiet day yesterday and plan another one for today.  I fixed Pat's breakfast and now will work in my office this morning and plan on watching the college football games today as they start at 11 am the four games will take all day.  I will work a little nap in there somewhere. 

Beverly and Joan, that is pretty cold for your area this time of the year.  Hope it warms up for you all today.

Sandy, it sounds like you are staying as busy as you want with your many TV viewing choices. 

June, glad to see you are not confined to bed as that is what weakens a person so much.  Even walking around your room gives you some exercise.  Do you have to take the IV pole around with you or is it connected only during the time of the IV?

JaneS, those zzzs sure are elusive if they are hiding in your sofa.  Glad you found them. It has been many years since I have been able to eat grapefruit or drink grapefruit juice. 

mycheal, thanks for the New Year's greeting. 

Beverly, going to Sam's Club and then grocery shopping is a lot for one day.  Sorry to read of the little accident.  A few years ago Pat was backing out and someone across from her was also and just happened to have a convenient witness watching from inside the grocery store and of course it was all Pat's fault (not) and the person was going to sue but never heard anything else about it.  I am ever so careful when I back up but it is still dangerous.  If I ever buy another new car it will certainly have the alarms on it to let me know.  It seems I usually get parked next to a big SUV or pickup truck where I have to back out blind. 

Lloyd, Happy New Year to you.  Did you get your major job started?

Amy, glad your husband had good numbers and was able to have his treatment and that the weather cooperated with your trip. 

Good morning, Larry.  So many football games on that I'll have to channel hop to find something I care to watch.  Supposedly, it's to get up to 70° this afternoon, and be in the 80s tomorrow--buy still very chilly at night.  That's fine with me.

Good Morning Everyone!

Yep it is the last day of this year and as Janie said it sure did slip by fast.  I have lots of hope and optimism for this new year and I pray that it all comes about.

Amy, certainly happy to hear your doctor was happy about your hubbys numbers.  Hope your weather is improving.  Our weather guy on TV said that Siberian air was coming into Canada and on down to visit us here in Texas and it was going to get cold next week, it it cold here, well, you gonna be freezing.  Fill up the old wood box.

Larry, I am like you, no grapefruit or juice for many years and I love the stuff, especially the Ruby Reds.  I have been watching a lot of football but I am getting a little burnt out.

Joanie, thanks for the full breakfast.  You must have a lot of energy this morning to be up and putting out a nice breakfast.  Hope your day goes as planned.

Lloyd, thank you for your New Year wish and may I return the same to you.  Hope your old cows reward you with lots of babies and stock prices stay decent.  Hope this Blue Norther headed our way is kind to you and you don't have to get out in it too much to feed the cattle.

Everyone have a great day.

Larry, I was really laughing when you mention a car with all the back up warnings... my little Buick Encore has that back up camera & the ones in front & side because when I back out of the garage, with the RV just a little over the car length.... that poor little Encore nearly has a nervous breakdown.  It has different types of screams for each part in danger... so as the back nears the RV & the front fender nears the side of the doorway, all bells & whistles are going off.  It has to turn into a pretzel since the RV is in the lane of the garage I use... son's little A- frame camper is parked in the other side, & the driveway curves so this works best.  I have caught my bike that is parked against the right wall, when the handlebars stick out too far, so far no scratches on the Encore.

Oops, call from Gr-son bringing his 6 & 2 year old to help take candy off the tree. 

Good morning everyone, by golly I think I am getting better at getting those drops in my eyes. At least some is getting in there but it takes the whole vial to do it.

JOAN  guess I made up last night for waking so early yesterday. We had some snow squalls yesterday. It would be sunny and the clouds and wind came in and it would snow about 5 minutes, so hard I could not see the other side of the parking lot. Looks like my daughter and SIL are getting used to the difference in temperature in Arizona. A lot cooler than San Diego. She remembers winters here but for him it is an awakening.

JANE  I had a lot of tapes but when the player I had quit I stopped watching. Got rid of all of them when I moved. I only have some music on disks that I play often.

JOAN  where I was living there were a few that would let off loud fireworks at midnight woke a  lot of the neighbors up.


I have been sitting here wondering what hat taken the coffee pot so long, went to check and I forgot to turn it on. Now I can hear that last gurgle so can finally have some coffee.

JANE  it is so sad to see dogs so frightened of those noises. I have been with some like tat and it is so hard to calm them.

LARRY  glad your son and granddaughter made it home safe. Your son must have been tired. I used to love the snow and getting out in it, now I will be happy to just see it and not have to go out.

PATRICIA  wow you really did get snow. Looks beautiful when it is fresh fallen and everything is so clean and still.

BEVERLY  we used to laugh at the forecasters. They would say flurries and we would get a foot of flurries, then they would say a lot and we would get nothing. Even these days with their expensive equipment they can not get it right. Might as well follow the Old Farmers Almanac. As that old saying goes, if you don't like the weather, wait a few minutes and it will change.

PATRICIA  wow you said you do not get much snow in Fairbanks, looks like Mother Nature is getting back at you for saying that.  I would never go out  in all that snow and pray I could stay warm in my home. I well remember some storms when we were without power and glad to have a little wood stove to keep warm and a gas stove so I could cook. Don't know what would happen in this building, everything is electric. I would be stuck up here because no way could I make it down 2 flights of stairs with a cane and if I made it I can no longer walk with just a cane. My sons would be OK but do not know if grandson would be prepared and with a little one it would be hard to stay warm. I just hope he has a generator. Stay safe.

JUNE  so good to see your post.  I pray that leg is healing.

JOAN  unless I cannot get to sleep I will not be awake to welcome in 2017.

LLOYD  I wish you the same.

JOAN  now that I have had my coffee a full breakfast will be so good. Love the sign in Chuckles. Rebecca Heys writings are so good. I enjoy reading her words when you post one of them here. Thank you got all today's goodies.


JANE  I feel like we are family even if we have never met in person. We pray for each other and worry when we do not hear from a member. That is more than some flesh and blood families do. I would love to have a red grapefruit but they are a no no for me.

AMY  so glad things went good yesterday. I pray 2017 will be a healing time for your hubby. Then perhaps you will not have to do so much driving.

LARRY  like you I can no longer enjoy grapefruit or the juice. Darn cholesterol. I used to look for parking spots I could drive through so I would not have to back up or back into a parking spot. I was always afraid to back up into the lot.

HAL  like you I would love to have a Ruby Red or even a regular red grapefruit. I used to peel one and eat it like an orange, no sugar either.

SHIRLEY  hope they get all that candy off so you do not have to eat it.

I wish everyone a Happy Healthy and Wonderful 2017

Good morning, halkel.  I think we are already getting that cold front that you are talking about.  That breakfast appeared like magic.:)

Shirley--Good morning.  My car doesn't have any cameras.  Guess it might be time to trade.  Sounds like with your parking situation, you need MANY cameras.

Good morning, Gloria.  I have my wool socks on today, so you know it is COLD.  I can well imagine it's an adjustment for your SIL to get used to the colder weather.  I won't be awake to welcome 2017 either--unless fireworks keep me awake.

Good morning, early for me to come in here. Cloudy, not quite as windy as yesterday. If we were home, would watch Time Sq. but now I do not like the music.  So most likely will be watching something on HallMark.
Joan, as I wrote above I watch a lot of the Christmas Shows on Hall Mark, they leave you with a good feeling. The only news I watch is on GMA.  I listen to the radio when I am here, with my friends. WLNG, has my kind of music also local news.

Jane, I also agree with you, this is my home, we worry about each other and care.

mycheal, that was a beautiful poem. thanks

Shirley, Taffy goes crazy try to follow a flash light beam.

Amy, glad to read hubby had a good reading. Also your roads were alright for travel.  I have to go Monday to the hemotalogiest to check my blood count, and see if I need that $800. shot?

Hal, I am missing my golf. Glad to read you had a nice time with your family.

Gloria, I keep forgetting to put the eye drops in 4 times a day. I keep one bottle here at the PC

Larry, a few years ago I had backed out of my space and a women hit my right front door.  she claimed I backed in to her, but she did not want me to call the police, as she was going to  work. No way was I not calling the police, it was my door she hit, not the end of the car.

Happy New Year to all my wonder friends.  June I am thinking of you

Linedancer--I watch the GMA news and also local news on our ABC affiliate.  Hopefully you will find you don't need that $800 shot.

A sunny Good Morning on the last day of 2016,

Thank goodness for a week with no "discombobulations"!! 

I discovered many years ago that, when things are "discombobulated" with unexpected events,  I tend to deal by "organizing" something.  (A psychologist would probably say that's me trying to get back in control.  Whatever!  ::) )
And that's what I've been doing this week - leisurely and with time-outs when I wanted them.
Long may it continue!!!!!

Looks as if Jenny and Shirley are sending me the Blue Norther and I will pass it on to Hal.   Hal, it's your job to shoo it out into the Gulf of Mexico. 

BTW,  Jenny,    I turned the OSU/CO game off before the end so didn't get to see the Buffaloes score.  Glad it wasn't a complete rout!
Hope the Sooners  can do as well against Auburn in the Sugar Bowl on Monday.

I noticed that the TCM channel is airing both "That's Entertainment" movies back to back tonight.  Looks as if that will be my New Year's Eve celebration.
Lindancer - I used to watch the NYC program but, like you,  can't stand the music nowadays.

Miss Ellen told me she had tentative plans with NYC friends but they did NOT include Times Square.   I think she avoids that area as much as possible when Events are going on.  She says it's too hard to get home via subway when there are big crowds.

Wishing Everyfriend Everywhere an Enjoyable Day.

I'd like to say Good Morning but it's already afternoon.  I guess the exhaustion I've felt lately caught up with me. I went to bed at midnight and didn't get up till after 11 this morning! Half the day is gone but we will probably stay up and watch the New Year come in on TV.

I agree......I can't take most of what passes for music on New Year's Eve. Where is Guy Lombardo when we need him??  :)

Joan - I'm too late for breakfast. I don't suppose you're serving lunch!  :D

Larry - I didn't stay long at Sam's Club. Don't know when I've seen it so busy. Even the snack bar area had a long line and few places left to sit.

My car has a wonderful camera and alarm for backing up but it didn't help me this time. I had already backed up and put the car in drive to go ahead when I saw her out of the corner of my eye, just in time to lay on the horn. Fortunately I have just a tiny scratch. If I had needed them I also had witnesses.....two ladies who were walking to their cars.

Our car is four years old now so doesn't have the new technology to warn that you're too close to the car ahead, etc. so Chape had something similar added recently. It screams at me if I cross the yellow or white line or get closer than a couple of car lengths behind the next car. It doesn't happen if I'm braking at stoplights, etc. Chape says it's making us better drivers.  :)

It's a beautiful day....69 at the moment.

Hope you all have a good day!

Callie--You don't like things "discombobulated" so then are you an organizer or a manipulator?  I don't blame Miss Ellen for avoiding Times Square.

Beverly--Must be you needed that extra sleep.  You could eat the breakfast and call it brunch.:)  My car doesn't have much new technology--it's six years old.

Joan,  I didn't realize until a few years ago that I tend to find something to organize when I feel stressed.

  Could be as simple as straightening a stack of magazines - or just restacking the items I've tossed on my work table.   :)   I'm not a stickler about it  (My spices are not alphabetized  :2funny:) and I don't think I've ever been tempted to organize anybody else.  I just shut the teenage sons' bedroom doors and let them figure it out.

I hope I am NEVER guilty of "manipulating" anybody for any reason.  That sort of person is at the top of my Annoying People To Avoid list - and I'm pretty good at not falling for attempts to do so with me!!!!!!

I relieve stress by cooking!  But before I can cook, I have to organize...(clean up my space).  Those coloring books that are supposed to relieve stress would drive me right up the wall.  I didn't like coloring when I was a kid and I tolerated it with my kids and grandkids. 

Jane,  I liked color books as a kid - but not "ART" type coloring.   For Christmas 2015, a  friend gave me one of those new adult coloring books and the colored pens .  I think I managed to color in one small section of a picture!   
Some of my friends "clean something" when they're stressed. That isn't my idea of stress relief in any way shape or form.   :P

Sun out today and about 35 deg. Should take a nice long walk but think will just start the year out by having a lazy day and a lazier New Years Eve. Just make a few phone calls. Got the first one this morning and it lasted 2 hours so sort of talked out already
Think will make a bucket List this years. Do it tomorrow. Never made one.  Not alot done last years. Will be no Gyms, Diets and promised that I know could not be kept.  Just fun things to do.

Going to do cooking today and fill my freezer a little . It is just about empty. I like to have lots in I can fall back on on lazy days.

Happy New Years to all on S and F.  Hope those not in the best of health get better soon. The ones in good health just remain that way.
We may see lots of changes in the Country in 2017. Just have to accept and think the best. Myself I will miss the Obama's and seeing their daughters go along with life. Wish them the Best also.

Callie--I guess most have something they do to relieve stress.  Since I am very limited in what I can do physically, I tend to snack when I am stressed.

Jeanne P--Bucket lists and resolutions are fine for those who are so inclined.

It will soon be 2017 for some of you and others, like me, may not be awake to toast the New Year, so:

Thank you, Callie.

Joan, my little Encore just happened to have all those bells & whistles, went to trade because Cas had the Enclave with 7,000 miles on it & I didn't want a big car to drive around town, had conversion vans since 1984 & since I had the Rialta for the highway, I wanted a town car.  My Ford Escape was still under warranty with only 9,000 miles on it, but it had a problem the dealer adjusted twice & it still would act like no gas when I needed that extra power to get out of a tight spot.

I went to the dealer & salesman that we bought the Enclave from.  They took it off the show room floor for us, that white one as seen in the commercials, Cas had been all over the internet & knew it was the only one in the state like it... with every option offered.  The Ford conversion vans that had a queen size bed in the back was smaller than the Enclave, I didn't need that to run to the store.

The salesman was so eager to get his hands on it with that mileage he made me a deal I couldn't refuse.  A bunch of money "to boot" and the new little car on the show room floor with a 7 year warranty... & it has been the most fun car I've ever driven. Frankly, I don't know how to use all the bells & whistles.... every time one of the kids gets in it they show me something else it can do.  :-\  And the over all gas mileage, 13,000 mostly town (only 2 trips on the highway)... is an amazing 26.7 mpg.  And I don't get a dime for this sales pitch~~

Since it is going on 4 years old I guess I should not think of it as "new", but I love it & dread having to trade.  My reason for getting rid of those other cars was practical, time to pay taxes & get new tags for them & taxes on cars in KS is not "chump change".  I had to growl when it came time to change insurance.... my one little car cost several hundred MORE than the other 2 combined.... (and they gave me thousands back so without question, the 2 were worth more than 1).  Multi-car discount ... and they couldn't count the RV.  I couldn't get a better offer from any other company.  Enough whining.... but I do love this little Encore & don't have a clue what one costs without those trades!

Joan, I tend to snack when stressed as well.  This past week it seems I've been waiting every day because someone says they are going to come by.  Trouble is, they don't know when so I have munched myself quite a waist increase.  Honestly, my slacks are snug & I don't like "snug". 

Another Sat night- hair wash time so I'd better get a move on.

:cheer: :bravo: :bubbly:  Happy New Year to All!!!    :bestwishes: :cheer:   :bubbly:

Imagine I am here at this time. No I do not intend to stay up and welcome the New Year watching the ball fall in Times Square.

GLORIA de  glad I do not have to put drops in my eyes that often. Would not be bad if there was someone here to do it for me. I waste more trying to get them in than I get in. I used to like to go for a long walk when I was stressed. These days I do not let anything stress me unless it is my computer.

SHIRLEY  I don't think I would be able to drive a new car with all the gadgets on them. I get I my son's car-2 years old â€" look at the dash and everything there and it scares me with the thought of learning what they all are. His wife's car is I year old, a bigger car and seems like it has even more things than his has. Of course I have not driven in 6 years now but my car when it died was 20 years old. No bells and whistles back then BTW my slacks keep getting looser, will have to start wearing a belt or suspenders. That or they will fall or when I am out in public. Can you picture that?

http://www.jacquielawson.com/ecard/pickup?code=6644324254939&source=jl999

We went out to eat at the Road House with Daughter and SIL and came home.  We went early but still hit a crowd, but the meal was good.

Watched some of the Times Square entertainment and the local news and now bed time for Bozo.

Happy New Year, God Bless, Nite, nite and sweet dreams

Just lost my post again. Laptop has me fr the frustrated. Body is healing My deepest thank you for your prayers.We can look forward to 2017!!!! THANK YOU GOD !

(https://www.seniorsandfriends.org/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi303.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fnn134%2Fbenjipetramegan%2F1d7706c1-3518-4716-ae00-e95260b3e02e.jpg&hash=6f402bb6ddeee08536d0b2a686e601cd1dd494e9)

We made it, another fresh year to play with...unfortunately it is now 5.15am here in UK and I couldn't stay awake to see in the New Year at midnight, but I did try....Wishing Everyfriends a better year ahead, than the year we have just left behind....

A new week for Soda Shoppe begins HERE (http://www.seniorsandfriends.org/index.php?topic=296.0).