And it ends.....

Today is the last day of Hurricane Season for 2008.....and what a year it was, 8 names Hurricanes, the most severe being IKE. Reflecting back on the challenges and difficulties of that day, month (9/12/08) and still seeing so much repair work continuing, so many people down in the Galveston, Bolivar areas, still homeless and without the basic needs, it's hard to believe it was 3 months ago. And yet, no surprise. The agencies move slow and deliberate, so many folks that battled Katrina several years ago and moved to H'town and surrounding areas had to face it all again....sigh....

Hopefully next year we will all fare better and the recovery will finally be completed.

from Life's Little Instructions - today's thought:

#33 in the book "Treat everyone you meet like you want to be treated".

Shopping is easier on the web

WOW! A really nice T'giving, my sister and brother-in-law came to "the country" to join BF and myself. Good food, good company and a pleasant day, with much to be grateful for. Believe it or not, BF and I got up early Friday a.m. to go to the mall. I have decided (after much research by BF) to buy a new flat-screen t.v for my den and also for my living room. We had hardly any traffic on the way to the mall, (I told BF that the reason for no traffic, everyone was already at the mall) and went into Sears t.v. dept. After catching a salesperson and getting the info we needed, we proceeded to stand in line to pay. Just as we finalllllyyyyy reached the cashier, the salesperson came up and was very sorry to report they were out of and not planning to receiving anymore the exact t.v I wanted. YIKES! So BF and I returned to the car and headed for home. On the web, Amazon was advertising the same t.v., no tax and no shipping. I made out like crazy. So, during my visit to Arizona next week, the t.v. will arrive at BF's and when I return home we can set it up. Then, if all goes well, I will order the other one. Lesson learned, check the web before racing to the mall....especially during the holidays regardless of what the advertisements in the newspaper circulars say.

Found a wonderful little book that I have had for many years "Life's Little Instruction Book" from which many of my thoughts for the day come from.

There are 511 in the book and you've probably read 4 or 5. So be sure to catch my web site whenever, for some really great thoughts....Today's thought"

"Compliment three people every day"

btw, the book is written by H. Jackson Brown, Jr. as a special gift to his son, Adam. hope you and enjoy them. Take care :=)

Thanksgiving greetings to all

Happy Thanksgiving to all. Enjoy the turkey, dressing, cranberries, pumpkin pie and whatever else graces your table. Enjoy the family and friends and don't forget to be grateful for every blessing and every sorrow, for they make us who we are and what life is all about. Blessings and peace be with you this holiday and always.

The bride was beautiful, the groom handsome

and BF and I got all dressed up....unfortunately I can't move his pic closer to mine, but this is how we looked. (and my eyes were open) :-) The wedding was sweet (the mother of the groom fainted during the ceremony) but other than that, everything went off as lovely as weddings often are. The dinner and dancing loud and fun, the brunch next morning was yummmmyyyyy and the ride home uneventful. We were both sleepy from toooo much fun and food and not enough sleep. All in all, a beautiful weekend and hopefully I'll have a few more pics 2 add to continuing blogs....

Rainy here but kinda nice, motivates me to start cleaning house for T'giving. Today's thought from my favorite thinker, Benjamin Franklin:

"He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else"

Enjoy your day....

Today's Thought

I liked this thought so much that I decided to just make it the blog for today -
"Capture a shadow,
dance with the wind,
stand in a rainbow,
begin at the end." by Mary Anne Radmacher

Since daughter left on Wednesday my days have been very busy getting ready for the wedding weekend. Besides packing up a few things, working to make my self beautiful and not forget anything, I have not only gone to P.T., but had a mani/pedi, hair fixin's and purchased a few new items of clothing. Since the accident, I've lost about 48 lbs.....almost another me...not that the world is ready, but it's a nice thought. Haven't been this slim and trim in a long, long, long, time...and then some. Must admit working out at p.t. and mucho smaller portions have helped. Plus today, since our neighborhood country club has not provided an alternative workout/fitness area, I've visited the local fitness center (Snaps) and now have a membership, compliments of our country club. All new equipment and I'll meet with my private trainer when I return from AZ.

That's it for the day, late as it may be now. Whatever time zone you reside in, I'm glad you stopped by for a visit....:-)

Glamour Gals

Daughter and I out shopping, enjoying the beautiful day and just celebrating time together. The Madonna concert was a big hit, she had a great time with her friends and Mommy had a great time when she came to Montgomery. We took our meals out, visited BF on Tuesday for awhile and hit the new JCPenny store in Montgomery. Naturally we found a few things we couldn't live without. Today came all to soon and we went to brunch at a really cute restaurant, The Egg & I, before heading to IAH. Kayla managed to do a little holiday shopping while she was in Texas - for her friends living in CA and/or NYC. You know, Texas type gifts....

Tomorrow it's back to p.t., then for a pedi/mani and to prepare for the wedding weekend. I'll try and post some more pics tomorrow.

And for all of you who read my blog - thanx, it makes me feel good. I really had no idea that some of my daughter's friends of long standing where checking up on me. Way cool!!!!!

In leaving, today's thought "Life is just a bowl of cherries".....:-)

It' never to late to blog....

Big doings tomorrow so I'm combining Sunday and Monday's blog. Spent the day getting ready for my daughter's visit. She is in town tonight to see Madonna with some friends and then tomorrow she will head to Montgomery to spend a few days with Mom (me). We always have so much fun together, she's my absolute sunshine. Always has been and always will be. Many folks may come and go in my life, but she is my constant, my sunshine, my daughter. Not to mistake, I love my sons also, but as the saying goes "A daughter is a daughter...."

So today has been straighten and clean, (not just because she is coming) but next week is very busy, BF and I will be heading into Houston for a family friend's sons wedding. It is a weekend affair. And of course, the next week is Thanksgiving. Shopping and chopping and making all the holiday goodies. I do love Thanksgiving and it is always been a special holiday to me. I've been watching all the food channel shows, I could probably make turkey 6 or 8 different ways, but because everyone enjoys what I've been doing for years, why change? Besides, my receipes are from my grandmother and you can't improve on perfect.

I'll catch you next week, off and on - be safe, stay warm (if it's cold in your neck of the woods) and take care.

Somebody turned on the outside air conditioner

brrrrrrrrrrrr, somebody turned on the outside air conditioner. It's really cold out. Time to bring out the sweats. YEA! Good news also, it's sunny out and just a great day, especially for a Saturday. Garage sales, yard sales (not always the same thing in Mongtomery) holiday markets and the beginning of the holiday shopping. I love this time of year - except it goes so fast. Time to slow down and enjoy rather than rush, rush, rushing everywhere for everything. I must admit tho, it's much easier in a small community.

Today's thought - old but good "take time to smell the roses". enjoy

Shopping for a new t.v.

Although I'm really not ready to spend $$$$$'s on a new tv - the truth been told, my tv in my den/study/office is about ready to be a gift to the Salvation Army. I've been captivated by the new thin thin thin models with the very very very clear picture. And I love it. Gotta gotta gotta have one. Would be nice if it could be installed on the wall, but then I would have to shift paintings around. Besides, I have no small ones running around that I would run the risk of one of them pulling it on themselves. BF had to buy a battery something or another and I rode with him to Circuit City, yes I know they are suppose to be going out of business, but it was hard to walk in and out without purchasing a lean machine. BF is always a good one to go shopping with because he checks every detail, including the Internet for customer reviews, who really makes the different sets, etc. and with all the initials they all contain, that's very helpful for someone who goes strictly by what I like. Stay tuned to my blog for the end results. And in between, while you are waiting, have a great weekend....:-)

Girlfriends rock

In all the rain on Monday, and after completing most of my errands with my sister, Barbara, I had dinner with a friend of long standing. Gail and I met at the University of Houston in the early 60's....somewhere down the path, our ways went in different directions and we lost track of each other. When I returned back to H'town in the late 60's Gail and I had a chance meeting at a Shriner's function. We were able to pick up the friendship - even better than when we first met. Through the years, off and on, again different paths, and just within the last year we have once again picked up our friendship. It is very comforting to have a friend that you can do this with. There is an unconditional caring about each other and we laughed most of the night away. To not have to make the trek back to Montgomery, I spent Monday night with her. It was like when you were young and you had a slumber party or such, today the kids call them "sleep-overs".

I'll be visiting another friend and her husband in December. They live in Arizona, and that will be another blog.

today's thought from Dick Francis - "Everyone jouneys through character as well as through time. The person one becomes depends on the person one has been".

enjoy your day and SMILE :-)

Buzz in the rain

With all the rain, I was worried about Buzz, our pet squirrel. He races around the yard, his feeder, the roof, trees, water bowl and anywhere else he want to go or be. During IKE he totally disappeared. I guess he went undercover somewhere. We put a bird house (log cabin looking type) in one of the trees and it was not ever a favorite place for him...He does however like to take the stuffing out of the stag horn plant and also bury his acorns in the other planters.

Have an early p.t. this morning but first I must go by the April Sound Country Club to drop off food for the Montgomery Food Bank. The ladies association will be manning the flat bed truck and BF and I put together several sacks of assorted stuff. Every little bit helps and I am trying hard to become a member of the community and do my part.

More rain today and tomorrow and Friday the temp will drop down to 39. Pretty cool, bring out the sweats...

today's thought - " You never get a second chance to make a first impression"

Best made plans....

often go astray....you can't mess with Mother Nature....Yesterday in H'town it rained and rained and rained and rained (you get the idea). I did get alot completed yesterday and my friend, Gail and I did have a rainy day dinner and I stayed the night. Slept like a log (wonderful) and this a.m. it was slightly dry, so decided to head for Montgomery. Barely made it and then heaven opened up and I was lucky enough to make it in the house...making some telephone calls, working on my appointment book for 2009 and just relaxing and listening to more and more rain and even some thunder.....

soooo....nothing much more to say except I'm sorry I didn't get to take a couple of pics - maybe tomorrow....

stay dry :-)

Phooey!

The hardest thing about blogging is learning how to blog! My great blog for the day got "lost" when I tried to preview it and then edit it.....GRRRRRR.....and it was a really good one. I am not going to try to recreate it. Let's just call it a day and I'll try again on Wednesday. Driving into Houston tomorrow for my 6 month doctors appointment and several luncheon and dinner arrangements. I'll return to Montgomery on Wednesday and have lots of pics of friends and whatevers for the blog...

Have a good Monday, stay dry (if you are expecting rain as we are) and enjoy.

TGIF

Physical Therapy guru Alan at the front desk minding the store while Ivy was away. I've really learned so much at p.t....mostly, "no pain, no gain"....Since the accident, I've had p.t. at Sugarland Rehab, Health South, James (from Health South - home therapist) and now Montgomery County Physical Therapy. Jennifer, Kaylin, Norma and Alysisa are really great at their jobs. The results have been very good. There are still some problems that only time will heal - and the help of a good orthopod foot insert for my right shoe. That's down the pike and I'm excited about getting measured on Monday for it.

It's Friday, so enjoy your weekend and buckle up. :-)

Beautiful bougvillas

It certainly isn't spring, but look how pretty the bougvilla (sp?) at BF's house look. Full of blooms and looking good. We saw them everywhere in Los Angeles on our visit last month. But I think ours are just as pretty.

Overcast day with some rain and we are expecting cooler weather tomorrow. Had some nice telephone conversations this morning with my friend Gail and also with my friend Linda. Linda and I go so far back that our grandmothers were best friends as girls. We never had a chance to not like each other. Gail and I go back to the UofH days - so we've known each other for a long time also. Mornings are so great, it's nice to be able to just leisurely read the paper, check the computer and breakfast. Retirement is the absolute best!!!

IKE cleanup continues in April Sound

IKE cleanup in April Sound continues. Driving around the community and especially down by what was the Country Club , you can see what is referred to as Reserve F - where alot of the debris was taken and is now being loaded away by private contractors. Lots of homes are still having roof repair, etc.

Hallejuah, the election has come and gone and it will be an interesting 4 years to see how things play out. Wonder what will be the next great crisis - so the media will have stuff to report on.....any guesses? Out and about this a.m. doing errands, playing catch-up. Supposedly a cold front is due tonight and chance of rain tomorrow. That's it for today - enuff said.

Voting Day

well, anyway you count it, today was/is a day that will make historical political standards...whichever way the voting goes, we will either have the first black President or the first white femal Vice President. history in the making.....

April Sound Church, voting area for April Sound was rather quiet, I drove by about 10:30 a.m. and took a few pics, I would imagine most of our neighbors did as we did, either voted by mail or early voting. Nevertheless, it's a done deed and now we can just sit back and listen to the news media for the next couple of weeks re-hash, review and project what will be....Long may Old Glory fly.....

Spent the rest of the day at The Woodlands Mall. Had to purchase a wedding gift and then onward to Wal-Mart to do the weekly shopping. Best news, I learned how to post 3 pics on my blog!!!! go solo go.....catch me tomorrow....I have some other pics you won't want to miss....:-)

YIKES, forgot to mention, Stephen is a loving and devoted brother to Kayla and a faithful brother to Jonathan....

Long may he rock and rule.....Mom

November 3, 1963 - Stephen Elliott Gluckman was born in Methodist Hospital, Houston, Texas. Happy B'day to you, to you, to you dear Stephen - and many more. Stephen is a wonderful son, loving and devoted husband to Lisa and a fantastic dad to Ryan and Abby. 2009 Stephen and Lisa will celebrate 20 years of marriage and Stephen's association with REI in Seattle....

Congrats Stephen, I hope the year brings you good health, continued love and devotion from your family and another new bike (:-)

Love,
Mom

Nothing else can top this on my blog for the day - see 'ya tomorrow with more stuff.

Welcome November - how fast the time has flown in 2008. First State Bank in Montgomery, established eons ago and now just a fixture - but still standing.

BF (Dave) and I went today to the Continental Airlines Fall Picnic at the H&H Ranch. (used to be in Sugarland on HWY 90) and relocated to a lovely area by IAH. Lots of folks there (great for little ones, lots of face painting, ponies, rides, etc) Had some good bbq with all the sides. Plenty of food to see me thru the rest of the day. Then home where I raced to the HWY 105 Storage Facility for their "fall back" baazar. Didn't get there in time for anything exciting, they were pretty much closing up (not that I need anything but it's always fun to look-see). All the Halloween decorations have been brought into the house and I'll take pics of my T'giving decorations and post them in the next few days...

Don't forget to move your clocks back an extra hour tonight - works for me....more tomorrow. :-)