That was a cute video of that little girl and the hula hoop.  It’s been many a year since I tried any hula hooping.😀

Today is a spring stormâ€"rain and occasionally the sound of thunder in the distance.  Today is the day of the annual yard sales in our housing area.  I guess people will just have to use their garages.  The housing association only allows a yard sale once a year.  My husband said he saw some trucks riding around looking, but I imagine this sale will be a disappointment.

FYI, the "Shag" is the official state dance of South Carolina.  I graduated from the University in Columbia, but had learned the Shag when I was in junior high.  Every buddy in South Carolina seems to dance it, even the young folks who do all those other dances that I don't understand!

Sue

Now I loved the Hula Hoops should have kept on it. Good for the hips.
Now on the dance floors you don't know who is dancing with who as so apart. Even at weddings the play that awful loud music. Only nice one is the first with the. Couple and sometimes with fathers
Now I remember hearing about the dance THE SHAG. I heard it announced and couldn't believe it. Because that word in the UK is used in a sex way sort of the same as the Fu-- is used here a lot.  I think it was let known and not used now. At least I don't. Here it

Marilyn, I've made contact with some cousins and I only contact 4th cousins or closer.  I get a kick out of how Ancestry rates people's relationships.  I know they can't pinpoint it to removed relatives, but I have two brothers listed, one as a second cousin and the other as a third cousin.  Actually, their father was my second cousin and they are second cousins once removed.  Tom, James and Annie/Cate are all shown as first cousins.  There is an icon that mentions the relationship shown may not be exact.  I had one woman listed and I could not put her in my tree.  I finally wrote her and said she had me stumped.  She had not shown any tree at all so there was nothing to match.  She didn't respond to me but she did put some of her tree in and her grandfather was my mother's first cousin.  I have many more matches on my mother's family than Dad's, but on Mother's side I can go back to the mid 1600s where on Dad's family I can't go beyond 1800.  Mother's family at her level was larger, too.  Sometimes I'll spend more time than others, depending on time and interest.  I'm glad your daughter is so interested.

Mary Ann

Hi Everyone. It is another overcast morning but no rain in the forecast and only a high of 63 degrees.  It should be a pleasant day on the golf course.  The Masters was not interrupted by the weather yesterday.  I think there were two or three brief periods where there was light rain but no lightning that caused an interruption of play.  Today the pay begins at 10 am so the spectators don't have to get there as early as on Thursday and Friday.  Yesterday turned out to be a very down day again for me as just had no energy.  The only thing I accomplished was a brief trip to Walmart. Pat fixed a good spaghetti with hamburger and sausage in the Instant Pot yesterday around noon and kept it warm all afternoon, which is a feature of the Instant Pot, and it with a salad made a very nice evening meal. 

I plan on going to Sunday School and Church this morning and then get something to bring home for our main meal today.  I expect the attendance at both to be down as a lot of people over here leave town on Masters week.  Things should be back to normal for the new week after today. 

Mary Ann, we had a hulu hoop when I was a kid and I never mastered it either. I have watched part of the tournament on my iPhone and it really has a small but very sharp and clear picture. I noticed there were a few very brief commercials for Mercedes Benz and Rolex watches with the computer broadcast but they were very tasteful and not a problem.  Do you still have the Steinway piano?  Those are at the top of the line.  I found the Conn had more versatility than the Hammond organ that I had although I still enjoy the sounds of the Hammond. I just checked and they Hammond Organ is still being made. It was the Leslie speaker in the Hammond that created its unique sound.

Marilyne, glad the Pineapple Express didn't overdo it this time.  I expect the couple inches of rain were very welcome in your area. 

Jean, it has been several years since I even stopped at a yard sale.  We just do not need to put anything else in our house and I might be tempted to buy something.  I used to like to go to them and look at the books for sale.  I hope the big yard sale in your area was a success. 

Sue, I didn't realize that the "Shag" was the official state dance of South Carolina. 

JeanneP, I don't like to tolerate really loud music and the music with commercials anymore really turn me off or I should say gets the commercials muted. I think one of the reasons I have enjoyed the Masters so much this week is that they show the action with some commentary and seldom any background music.  The Networks seem to always want someone talking and then blasting us with music.  It is interesting the meaning of the same word in different countries.     

My nose has been running so I decided to not go to church.  My runny noses bring on coughing and sneezing and I felt my neighbors in church did not need that.  I also told Dot I thought I would not go to the Cholesterol Pit after church either.  I feel good from the neck down, but my head is stuffed a bit so I went back to bed for a while and just got up for the second time.  I have tissues nearby because I really need them.  Dot suggested allergy and that can be true because it is time for the trees to bud out, even with a temperature of 18 when I went to bed last night and 13 when I got up at 4:30 am! 

The Masters is exciting with Patrick Reed and Rory McIlroy both playing so well.  I watched some on the computer and saw that CBS was showing the same as the TV only a few seconds before.  And when there was a TV commercial, my computer went black.  Seeing that I could see better on the TV I went there and used the mute button during some of the commercials. 

Yes, I still have the Steinway piano.  It is 127 years old, badly out of tune.  Since I don't go downstairs, it doesn't get played at all and I feel bad about that but there is no room for it in my living area upstairs.  Jamie has expressed a desire for it someday but he'll have to move to a larger place than he has at present; he is living in student housing (a townhouse) in Holland MI.  My folks both played the piano and I have loads of music that they played.  None of the younger generation appreciates "good" music.

The sun is shining and radar shows no snow in our immediate area, but there sure is a lot of snow in the country yet.  Doesn't Mother Nature know Spring has been here for a couple of weeks already?

Mary Ann

My daffodils are out in full force now. Gorgeous! I am trying to convince myself to go out into the yard this afternoon, even if it is just to walk around and list what needs work first.  I need to get to the Home Depot to pick up some bags of soil, grass seed and some kind of foam or something to plug some holes in my basement  wall where the mice can get in.

Yesterday, some Red Cross and fire volunteers were making the rounds to remind people to check their fire detectors, and install free ones to those who didn't have. That was nice of them. Usually, I just see a notice in the township newsletter about the free fire detectors and who to contact. In the last five or six years we have had four fires in the neighborhood. One affected a workshop, and two separate houses, one caused by someone accidentally ramming a garage which in turn caught fire and spread to the house, one duplex in which a neighbor was killed. I don't know the cause of the first one. In all the years I've lived different places, I never lived near any house fires. Most of these are very old houses. Mine and my immediate neighbors' houses are around 110 years old.

My typing assistant just plopped down on my hand and almost caused me to lose the post. Shan has been extra exuberant the last few days to the point I shut him out on the back porch for a short spell, several times, so I could get something done without his "help".

It is partly sunny, not to breezy, and still only 36^o out right now at 11:15am.

Mary Ann - it does sound like you might have the beginnings of a head cold?  It's so hard to tell the difference from allergy and a cold, when these things first get started.  For me, constant sneezing is what tells me that it's allergy. Even though we've had a lot of rain this week, the yellow pollen from the pine trees and junipers is covering everything outside.   Sorry you missed out on church and the  Cholesterol Pit today, but best to stay home with Kendrick.

Larry - I read online, that the Instant Pot, was the biggest small appliance seller on Amazon.  I'm thinking of ordering one for my daughter-in-law.  Is it similar to a pressure cooker?  I'm still tempted by yard sales, as there are a couple of things that I'm always looking for.  I have a number of sets of dinnerware from long ago, that I'm always looking to complete. Sets from the 1940's and 50's, that were made in the USA.

Funny how words have a different
conotation depending on where in
the world one lives. 

When I think of shag, here in the
USA,  I think of rugs or dances, 
but I suspect  it means something
very different  across the Pond!!! 

Giggle!
Sandy

Sandy, wasn't there a shag haircut at one time?  I did not have one, but I seem to remember it being a style.

Mary Ann

Mary Ann - Yes, the shag haircut was very popular in the 1970's.  It was cut in three layers - bangs in front, sides about earlobe length, and then long in the back.  I had one, and I liked it. In fact now that I'm reminded of the shag haircut after all these years, I wish it would come back in style.

MarsGal - That's really nice, that the Red Cross and fire volunteers came around to install free fire detectors, if needed.  I can't imagine that ever happening here.  Enjoy your beautiful daffodils!  One of my favorite flowers.

Yes Mary Ann, I forgot,
that I used to have a shag haircut and I
used to cut my daughters hair like that!

Sandy

Marilyne,
you can wear your hair any way
that you choose ...  most hair dresser
should be able to give you a shag cut. 

I use to like them too!

Sandy

My favorite haircut was a feather cut and if my stylist knew what it was, she might give me that kind of cut.  I'll have to ask her.  It isn't that she is a very young woman, she isn't, but they still might have been before her time.  I can't wear my hair long in back because I have a couple of cowlicks at the nape of my neck and my hair splits at their locations, so a shag is out, but I could wear a feather cut.  I dislike the long, straight hair style of today, mostly because the women do not have their hair in good shape at the bottom, the hair is every length, very uneven.  Then you have Annie, Tom's daughter, who wants long hair and wears falls to make it look longer.  Only she needs a new fall because her present one looks like rope.  I hate to say anything to her because she does much for us and I don't want to hurt her feelings, especially when she doesn't have the money for one.

Mary Ann

Hi Everyone.  We had some light rain here this morning and only a high in the upper 50's is predicted.  I just got back from making quick trip downtown to the UPS store as forgot to send off the phone I am returning to Amazon.  I then went on down to the city hall and paid our city taxes.  Other than that expect to stay home all day and take it easy. I do plan on helping Pat's sister with her new laptop later this morning.

Mary Ann, hope you are feeling better this morning.  A lot of people down here suffer badly from allergies.  I take an allergy pill each morning.  That was some show of talent by Jordan Spieth to come back from 9 behind at the beginning of the last round to a tie for the lead only before faltering on the last hole.  It was nice to see Patrick Reed get the green jacket and the $1.9 million dollar paycheck.  He attended his college here in Augusta.  Rory didn't play so well yesterday.  We also watched the coverage on TV once they started the telecast.  You have a valuable piano with the Steinway.  Mine is a Mason and Hamlin and I didn't realize it was ranked right under the Steinway in quality and desirability until I started checking on it a few years ago.

MarsGal, the azaleas have been and still are beautiful down here.  My little miniature ones in front of my porch have now bloomed out with many more buds to go.  They also re-bloom in the fall.  Your house sounds about the age of our son's house.  A couple of weeks ago the house next to his burned down.  It sounds like you have a willing helper in Shan. 

Marilyne, we are several weeks away from when we had the yellow pine pollen but the count is still high for grasses and trees here.  The Instant Pot is basically a pressure cooker and the 8 quart one is quite large and pretty heavy.  I think Pat is very pleased with it.  You probably know but there are many videos showing how to cook with it and many different recipes. 

Sandy, I hadn't even thought about shag rugs, which were so popular at one time. 

Re shag rugs:  My first full carpet was a shag rug.  It had all of the colors of my davenport and I was not familiar with shag.  Never again!  I had a rake to stir up the pile, but whenever I walked across the room, the pile showed the footprints.  It was pretty - kind of pastel colors, light blue, light green, gold all mixed together.  Previously we had had 9x12 rugs and I had to dust around the edges.  I had an aversion to dusting anywhere - floor or furniture so wall-to-wall carpet solved the floor problem.  I still don't like to dust and seldom do.

I think I am feeling better.  Whatever I have is not keeping me down.  I had thought of staying in bed longer  yesterday, but didn't and eventually got dressed.  At 10:30 am I still am not dressed today.  But I will be soon.

The Masters was exciting and I've been reading several articles on why Patrick Reed is not popular.  I think I took a dislike to him the time he had his wife caddy for him.  As he got toward the end of the game, I kind of was pulling for him because he had never won a major game and it was time.  I did not want Mc Ilroy to win because I wanted an American to win, however, I was pleased that Sergio won it last year - and he's Spanish.  Probably I was for Reed this year because I didn't want Rory to rin.  I flip flop!

Mary Ann

Good Morning from the mostly
sunny and still cool rocky coast of Maine. 

IMHO,  shag rugs were the worst!!!   Just a
hiding place for many nasty things .. bugs and
dirt...  You don't see them around any longer.. 
Good thing!


Sandy

Sandy, my feelings exactly.

Mary Ann

Oh yes, the shag rake!  Absolutely worthless! LOL

Sandy, as for the shag haircut - I'm afraid I don't have enough hair anymore, to make it work like it once did.
I'm remembering two celebrity examples of the shag haircut, back in the 70's.  Florence Henderson, in The Brady Bunch, and Jane Fonda, in Klute.

Good afternoon, Sunny no wind, but on the cool side. I am going out and check the sunporch. Have no been out there all winter.

Larry, I also feel tired to day, in fact I am keeping the oxygen on to day.

I still have my wall to wall shag rug, that came with the house,  Keith shampooed it last week.  I cannot afford to replace. I did the bedroom and dining room. That cost a fortune.

As I wrote before, I taught line dancing here at the rechall, and senior center.  My husband like the hussle.

MaryAnn, glad you are feeling better.  Yesterday, I would just bend my head and my nose would run, embarrassing.  I head on the rido, that this is going to be one of the worst years for ticks and mosquitos.  the ground did not freeze deep enough to kill the eggs

Hi Everyone. The forecast is for it to be cloudy all day long with only a 20% chance of some showers during the next couple of hours.  Pat and I are going to go out to eat our main meal at lunch time.  She needs to get out of the house for awhile as hasn't been out for several days. I woke up early this morning so just went ahead and had my shower and got dressed and started my day.  Pat also got up early, which is unusual but said she had come to bed earlier last night than usual. 

I was able to work on my SIL's laptop yesterday with the TeamViewer app.  I hope to be able to spend an hour or so with her today as set up Chrome as the browser she would use and unpinned the Internet Explorer and Edge browsers from the task bar so it is less confusing for her.  She is really at the very beginning of knowing how to use a computer so it is quite a task from long distance.  Being able to see the mouse on her computer and take control to point it to the proper place is a big help in instruction.  Other than going out at lunch time I expect to have a quiet and restful day. 

Mary Ann, I sure wish we would have had carpeting in this house rather than the hard wood floors.  The wood is pretty but I still prefer carpet.  We are afraid to even have an area rug in the living area for fear that Pat would stub her toe on the edge and have a fall.  She really doesn't pick up her feet very well.  I do what a small carpet in my office in the area where my desk is and I enjoy it. However, we do what we have to do and the hard wood does make it easier for Pat to use the walker.  Fortunately, the housekeeper does the dusting every two weeks so we no longer have to do it.  Glad to read you are feeling better.  I haven't read anything about Patrick Reed other than him winning the Master's and about his college golf career at the Augusta School where he lead his team to two National Golf Championships. 

Sandy, your explanation as to why we no longer use shag rugs is a good one.  I don't think we ever had one of those either while I was growing up or after getting married.   

Marilyne, happy to see your posting and hope this will be a good day for you and your husband.

deAngel, the other day I called the company that supplies the oxygen concentrator as didn't think it was putting anything out in terms of oxygen as couldn't feel it on my hand.  The man told me to get a container of water and put the hose that goes into the CPAP machine into it and if the water bubbled it was working properly and it was.  The doctor had prescribed a low setting for me and it really helped at first.  I will be seeing her again next month and will ask her about increasing it as not getting the restful feeling I had when I first started using it.  Bad news on the ticks and mosquitos.   

Larry, there are a lot of stories in the news sections about Patrick Reed and his alienation from his family and fans.  I think part of the trouble is he is arrogant but he has not been the most pleasant person in the past.  If you can, go to Yahoo news and you'll find a couple stories about him.  He still is a good golfer.

It's to be a nice day here and our present temperature is 42 degrees with the sun shining.

Tom is to get my condo when I am gone and we've talked about him getting wood floors.  The cat won't be here because he won't want to take care of him and the cat probably will go to Tom's former MIL.  I would just as soon get wood floors earlier, but I know I would not dust them.  I am not a good housekeeper and don't vacuum as I should and I know there are cat hairs on the carpet.  I did better when I was younger. 

Mary Ann

Good afternoon, raining not snow to day. I am waiting for Keith to take me to stop and shop. I take my pushmobile, use the basket to buy my groceries, this is my big exercise as I walk up and down all the aisles. I can always set down when tired. That is what is great about a rollator.

Larry, I keep my oxygen on 2, I have a water container on mine, as my nose keep drying out and I got nose bleeds. So they came and added that.


I have carpet throughout the house. I have fallen a couple of times and it has been a soft fall.  I know a couple who have fallen on their wood floors and was hurt

I lost interest in Patric R one day when he through his club at the caddy.

Mary Ann and Gloria - I notice on the HGTV buying and remodeling shows, that carpet is "out", and hardwood floors are "in".  The two things that the younger generation of buyers will not tolerate, are wall to wall carpets and tile countertops in kitchens or bathrooms!  I still have carpet throughout the house, with the exception of one bedroom.  Carpet seems so much warmer and more comfortable to walk on, or to fall on!  I can't imagine clattering around on hardwood throughout the house, especially if you have little children or dogs!  I also have tile counters in the kitchen and in the bathrooms.

Marilyn, good evening cool sunny day

I just feel more comfortable with my carpets, I do not like to wear shoes in the house.  Lots of time I like to wear those socks they give you in the hospital I also am happy with my counter tops   I had my cabinets refaced 10 years ago, but keep my counter tops. They still shine up to look like the day I moved in, I guess they are some kind of  laminated wood

I chose my kitchen floor and counter tops before I moved here.  Both were leather-like looking and had grooves in them.  That was a big mistake because the grooves collected dirt and to get it out, I would have had to take a toothpick to each groove.  I loved the pattern of the floor but did not find anything near it so replaced it with a tile-look with tiny blue squares at the joinings of the squares.  I'm not describing it well but it is vinyl, or whatever it is called these days.  I replaced the counter with something similar to what I had had, only smooth.  Those two types are all I've had in nearly 37 years.  There are no grooves to collect anything.  Oh, the floor is white and the counter is beige.  The originals were more coordinated but the white floor made the room look a lot lighter.

Tom and I went to Chili's for supper tonight.  I had a Turkey Club that was good.  Tom had a house salad and tacos.  Beverage of choice for both of us was water with a lemon! 

Before we left for Chili's, I went in to sit with Kendrick.  He jumped up on the pad beside me and I rubbed his fur the wrong way; he was in seventh heaven.  He just loves it when I do that. 

Mary Ann

Hi Everyone.  It is suppose to be a beautiful day here in South Carolina.  While it is 41 degrees to begin the day it is suppose to get up into the low 70's this afternoon.  This morning we plan on making a trip to Costco although Pat may decide to attend her crafts group at Church while Scott and I go to Costco.  Then this evening we have dinner at the Church and the kids will be come out to the house for a little while.  Yesterday we invited Jennifer and Elizabeth to go to lunch with us, which they did.  That was the big activity for the day.

Mary Ann, I had read something about Patrick Reed not being liked. Alienation from family is a really bad thing. If I thought we would be living here for many years I would consider doing something different than the wood floors in the kitchen area as you have to be so careful about liquid on the floor and our ice maker likes to dispense one more cube or not get all of the ice in the bin so that when you open the freezer door a cube or two comes sailing out and slides different ways.  I have been surprised that the wood floor don't get cold in the winter but our winters are mild so that may have something to do with it.  Our floors are dark wood but the walls and doors are an off-white color and we have lots of windows or this would be a pretty dark house. 

deAngel, I am saddened that Pat isn't able to have the rollator when we go out she needs the heavy duty type and those are just too heavy.  Glad you are still able to get out and shop.  My oxygen is feed into my CPAP machine which has a water tank so don't have any problems with the dry nose as I have experienced when using oxygen in the hospital.

Marilyne, we didn't have a choice in this new house we moved into as all of the houses in this subdivision are built on the same plan with different facades but as far as I know the interiors were done the same.  Perhaps if we had had the house built we would have had some choices such as carpet but it was too late so have the wood floors and the granite counter tops, which are also a bit of a pain to care for as they require special treatment.  Pat has said several times she wishes our counter tops were the laminated type as much easier to clean.   

Good afternoon, again I sound like a broken record Sunny, but cool

Larry, my rollator is a light wait,  My DIL bought it for me.  As I wrote yesterday, I can shop and when tired find and aile that is not busy and rest.

MaryAnn, I awoke up at 5:30 with something heavy on my shoulder, It was Taffy, purring in my ear.  That I did not need, at that hour

Larry - We've lived long enough to know that housing interiors and exteriors come and go, as to popularity.  Seems that Craftsman style exteriors, with the large covered front porch, and lots of wood and stone, are very desirable here.  It's an old fashioned look that originated in the early part of the 20th century.  Of course the interior has has all the modern finishes.   

I had never heard of Patrick Reed, but I Googled his name, and up came lots of articles on his family issues.  They make it sound like everything is his fault, but I know from experience, that it's usually misunderstandings on both sides.  I hope that he can eventually resolve the problems with his parents.   

Marilyne, when I was a kid? We had a wrap around porch, and summer evenings were spent on the porch, and visiting with all the people that walked by.  The rocking chairs were all lined up.  On a hot summer night My mother would send someone upstreet to Loafs for ice cream.  There was also a street light on the corner, and all the kids would gather under it.   My mother would blow a whistle when she wanted me to come home, from anywhere in the neighborhood. I still like to go out on my back deck and read, or watch the little animals