Sky Signs

The coolest thing happened on my way to meeting up with Caution a couple weeks back. 

As I was driving along, I noticed something remarkable in the sky...

In case you didn't notice it...

That's right! There was a heart in the clouds! 

Of course, that didn't surprise me a bit, 

since I was on my way to meet one of the sweetest bloggers I know.

Another amazing thing happened in the Wisconsin sky on recent Friday night, when Mr.4444 and I went to the home of a dear friend for dinner.  Earlier, there had been an incredible rainstorm, causing major flooding (2.75 inches of rain in Green Bay, for example.) We found some passable roads and made it to Leslie's (after all, who lets a little rain get in the way of a free meal?!) After dinner, we went outside and saw a double rainbow over the cornfield across the street! It was so big and so close that I was unable to fit the whole thing in my camera lens, but if you look at this shot, you'll see both bows. It was incredibly vibrant and distinct, like no rainbow we had ever seen...

Of course, Mr.4444 had to yuck it up...

(Keep dreaming there, buddy :)

Actually, we really don't need the riches, anyway, because as I told you a while back, 

Publishers Clearinghouse is coming over on August 31st to hand me a check. 

(Someone with my initials, in my zipcode, they assured me, so that's a sure thing, right?!)

First, a heart in the sky. Then, a stunning double rainbow!

If those aren't good luck signs, I don't know what are.

Just in case, I'm off to buy a lottery ticket.

Letters from the Road

photo courtesy of Free Clipart Junction

Letters inspired by a recent (25 mile!) bike ride...

Dear Mother Nature,
Thank you for the gorgeous display today!! You never disappoint! (See Header :)

Dear On-Coming Drivers Who Move to the Center of the Road When You See Me Heading Your Way,

Thank you. When you do that, it lets me know that you have seen me and are not busy texting.  A gentle wave of relief washes over me every time; it's like a little hug, and I appreciate it.

Dear Deer-in-the-Headlights-Woman at the Service Desk,
Yes, I'm aware that you have a garbage can; I walked past it to come into the store with my empty water bottle. What I asked you for was a recycling bin.  You replied, "Oh. Well, yeah, we have one, but it's in our breakroom," (as if the break was a mile down the road.)  Too much trouble, I guess. Never mind. (I took it home with me.) May your dreams be haunted by a landfill full of empty plastic bottles.

Dear Propel on-the-go packets, 

I love you. You're my BFF.

Dear Dumbass,
When the unsecured (empty) dog kennel flew off of your flatbed trailer and crashed along the shoulder (right where I could have been, had I not been riding on the opposite side of the road, towards traffic.), I thought that you would learn something. However, I stood, dumbfounded, and watched you and your wife/girlfriend put it back on the trailer and drive away, without securing it! YOU ARE A FLIPPING ASS!  What is wrong with you people?!

Dear Guardian Angel,
Thank you for keeping me a safe distance from inconsiderate, dangerous dumbasses.

Dear Body,
Thank you so much for working with me on yet another long bike ride. You are so cooperative, and I don't take that for granted for a second. Keep up the good work! :)

Sundays in My City: Summer Lovin'

I love Unknown Mami; she's smart, beautiful (well, most likely), funny, and sweet. Plus, she hosts one of my favorite memes of the week. This week, with one exception, my photos are symbols of summer...

Freshly-picked berries...

Swiss chard (from Dawn's garden)...

Garage/yard/rummage sale...

Breakfast lovingly made for me by Mr.4444 on a lazy, summer Sunday...

Sunflowers sucking light from the morning sun...

And finally, a cute summer pic of me with my sisters, Judy and Michelle, taken Friday night.
Judy (who lives in Tulsa, OK) came home for a visit, and we went out for perch dinner :)

 Find out what summer (or in Mimble's case, fall) looks like in communities all over the world 

at Sundays in My City.

Saturday Sampling, August 28, 2010

If you're like me, your reader is full, and you're kind of bummed about that you've missed some great posts this week. Saturday Sampling is your chance to catch up!

Maybe you've written or read a post you feel deserves more play.  Here's your invitation to link your best/favorite post from the past week or two; the one that's close to your heart or important to you because it really means something to you for one reason or another. Maybe it's a post you felt was good/great writing. a post you think is pretty darned funny, or one you'd like some feedback on. If you've been in a glut lately and don't have anything special to link to, skip the link and just visit some of the other blogs listed, or link up to an old favorite, if you like; we all have popular posts from the past that are worth resurrecting :)

Posts that have a "*" on them are those others have sung the praises of or have been linked up (or is it lunked?) by someone who didn't write them.  Please follow the format below:

Name of Post (tags), and your name if you have room and want to add it

(add "submitted by" if it's not your post)

Enjoy!

P.S. If you're new to Saturday Sampling, please read the "rules" before linking up. Thanks!

Friday Fragments, Episode #109

Welcome to Friday Fragments. This week is the Back to School theme, starting with one of my Favorite Friday Fragments, from Gina, at My Own Brand of Crazy. Gina was school shopping with her young adult sons...

"Okay, Garrett, what do you need for your apartment?"
"I don't know."
"Well, you need things like cleaning supplies and dish towels and an iron and.............."
"Wait.  What?  I thought my apartment was furnished."
Shoot me.  Shoot me now.

I'm pretty sure many of us can relate to this, sadly. Thanks, Gina! Enjoy your award!

***I was starving after work tonight and stopped at the store to pick up a few things. I thought I had made a good choice, buying a certain brand of "Crispy Fish Tenders." I should have stopped at "Crispy," as they were very greasy (though tasty, of course) and put me way over my limits (double) on SparkPeople for fat. Lesson learned: Don't impulse-buy food for dinner!


***We're moving Kyle into his dorm on Monday.  I will be missing a teacher Work Day but hope to make it to Open House at 3:30pm. (Note to self:  Wear waterproof mascara on Monday.)

***Especially now that I am back at work, I truly appreciate those of you who link up your favorite posts from the week on Saturday Sampling.  It keeps me in the loop and gives more play to posts that certainly deserve it! Thanks.

***I'd like to give a little shout-out to Kristin, of The Goat. Kristin, you are a real sweetheart. I love the way you visit so many Saturday Sampling posts and leave such sweet, cheerful comments. You're a gem.

That's it for me. I am wiped out after just two days of working, in preparation for students to arrive on Wednesday. Frag away! I'll try to keep up! :)

Thousand Words Thursday

Yesterday, I did laundry all day and was feeling quite accomplished. 

That is, until I opened the kids' hamper door and saw this:

It's probably a good thing that I'm back at school today; I'm not cut out for housework.

Thousand Words Thursday is the brainchild of The Mom Jen.

Kendall's Brush with Fame

I just chose that title and then chuckled, since "brush" fits so nicely with her encounter today with Donald Trump! She was with a friend's family, in Chicago, at Trump Tower, when they looked over and saw The Donald on a nearby balcony. He looked down and smiled at the girls, who waved. He waved back and offered a friendly, "Hello, Darlings," before turning back to his audience ("some guys in suits" and a TV camera). Of course, the girls were thrilled.

They were also quite thrilled to learn that Transformers III was being filmed right in front of the hotel, but not as much as when they learned that Transformers star, Josh Duhamel, was in the hotel weight room. Now, Josh is one of my son Kyle's top three favorite actors, so his devoted sister made a special trip to the weight room with a Trump Tower notepad and a request for an autograph for her brother. She said Mr. Duhamel was very nice, and you should have seen Kyle's face when Kendall came home tonight and handed him the note, which reads, "Kyle, Good luck at U.W.G.B.! Be good! Josh Duhamel. (He has it in a frame already.)

Believe me, the 4444 family does not frequent Trump Tower. Kendall was fortunate enough to be invited by her friend's very generous family. She texted me frequently while she was there, marveling in the incredible hotel, fancy restaurants (one that provided several waiters for their table alone), and other exciting experiences. I'm pretty sure she'll never forget it!

I'm not really starstruck for any particular actor/actress/singer, etc. (though I wouldn't turn down a dinner with the Travoltas). I will always remember shaking Oprah's hand after her show a few years ago, though. (She is so genuine.) And I did get to eat dinner with Chuck E. Cheese a couple weeks ago, but that's it for me. [Update: Oh, and P.S. How could I forget that I met The Pioneer Woman at BlogHer last summer (and got to sit and chat with her Marlboro man and two of the Punks.) It was a really nice, because they were very warm and unassuming.]

How about you? Have you ever had a brush with fame?

Puppy Power

When we vacationed in Michigan, we met Otto, a 10-month-old Great Pyrenees.

According to PedMd, the breed "shows extreme devotion to its family and is mistrustful of strangers, whether canine or human. It remains well-mannered, somber, and placid, when not incited in any way. The Great Pyrenees is also very gentle towards children and its family."

When a neighbor stopped by, Otto introduced himself in typical puppy fashion. The neighbor engaged him in a little roughhousing, and Otto couldn't get enough of it!

Obviously, the neighbor had not read the PetMd article and had no idea what he had gotten himself into...

And to think he's still a puppy!

Sundays in My "City" (on Monday)

I've been riding my bike more than ever these days. Since I live in a rural area, long bike rides always involve farm fields and country roads. No matter which route I take, I'm always rewarded with beautiful scenery and photo ops.

I think a summer bike ride on a Wisconsin country road should be on everyone's Bucket List.

For one thing, the skies are incredibly blue, and the clouds just seem fluffier here...

The greens seem greener...

Yes, the temps get hot (84 this day), but the breeze feels wonderful.

You'll see cows like this...

and this...(Sorry for the intrusion, Mama Cow!)

You might even see cows who like to pose for photos!

If you're lucky, you have a friend whose house is a great half-way destination (12 miles from home), 

and you can have a drink of water while you admire her hard work 

(keeping fingers crossed for a jar of these delightful goodies!)

Of course, a bike ride in the country is not all beauty. 

There's the sweat, 

and the bugs (I ate two on this trip), 

and this, now and then...

For me, there's also the feeling of vulnerability when a car comes up 

(I'm so worried about people who text while driving!!!), 

and on this particular trip, I had the oddest experience ever! 

Right about here (excuse the blur, please)...

I saw a middle-aged woman approaching from the opposite direction, on a motor scooter. 

She was riding right down the middle of the road, wearing a cute, floppy hat, and a big smile.

Just as she drew near, she waved a hand in that "Hallo!" kind of way, 

and I thought, "Oh, she's a friendly one!" 

That is, until she called out this cheery greeting, in a sing-songy way:

"HELL-o....Motherf--ker!" 

[No, I'm not kidding.]

and continued on her way. 

(Honestly, I was speechless, so no, I did not reply,

though I did look behind me, a little fearful that she might turn around and run me over.)

So, back to that Bucket List thing (Try to forget about the crazy woman.

Trust me--99.9% of people who greet you in Wisconsin will typically just say "Hi" 

and give you a friendly smile and maybe a nod.)

Everyone should enjoy a beautiful (curse-free) bike ride on a hot, summer day,

if not in Wisconsin, some other place.

What are you waiting for?!

Visit Unknown Mami for other summer shots from around the globe.

Weekend Recap

*Prepped for garage/yard/rummage sale all day Friday.
*Ate dinner at a friend's Friday night (so nice!)
*Held sale ALL day on Saturday (made almost $200!)
*Got dolled up to go to cocktail/dinner party/obligation Saturday night (wore 3" heels and am sooo glad to finally have my feet up!)

So...I'm too pooped to do Sundays in My City this week, but I will definitely be stopping by Unknown Mami's place to see the other posts; they're always a treat, so I highly recommend a visit.

Plus, I truly look forward to reading Saturday Sampling and Friday Fragment posts, so I will be seeing you soon. In the meantime, I hope you had a wonderful, relaxing, comfortable-shoes kind of weekend. Thanks for stopping by :)

Saturday Sampling, August 21, 2010

I love, love, love Saturday Sampling! (Shh! Don't tell FF!) It's my new favorite post of the week, because you link up the best posts from the week (yours and/or others), and the rest of us get to curl up and read especially funny, inspiring, or otherwise moving posts without having to go search for them! Thank you for making this such a treat!

There's a lot more to Saturday Sampling than simply linking up a post; if you're new here, please click on the tab at the top of this page and learn more about SS before linking up. I (and others) appreciate it very much :)

Friday Fragments, Episode #108

Sorry--No time for a witty intro or cute little dividers this week; just gonna unload the miscellany!  If this is your first time (writing that made me giggle a little), please be kind enough to read the "rules" before linking up. They can be found by clicking the tab at the top of this page.

***

I worked all day on Wednesday (at school) and barely skimmed the surface of what I need to learn to use a SmartBoard (kind of ironic, no?), but I'm excited about it and looking forward to showing off for the kids (who actually know more about SmartBoards than teachers do, most of the time, so who am I kidding?) I have TONS of work to do before school starts. My first teacher day is Thursday of next week, but I hope to be in there every day, starting Monday, to prepare.

***

We're having a rummage/garage/yard sale Saturday. If you need me to elaborate, you've never had one, and I'm happy for you, haha.

***

Remember when I said I talked an old friend into taking a nice, long walk, instead of going out to eat? Well, I've had enough of that and accepted an invitation from another old friend to come for dinner Friday night for braised spareribs. Hey, I may be healthy, but I'm not stupid!

***

Can't say a lot about this, but we also have another engagement Saturday night that....well...never mind.

***

Kendall comes home from two weeks away at camp (home on the weekend, though). We missed her a bunch. On Sunday, she is going to Chicago with a friend and her family (staying overnight) and she'll get to brag about staying in an apartment in Trump Tower!

***

Kyle's last day of his summer job is today. This means The Big Day (i.e. college move-in) is drawing near. I'm really excited for him. I haven't felt emotional about this yet (he's going to be 25 minutes away, after all). However, I suspect that I will lose it one day during the first week of school, when I am stressing out and my defenses are down. We'll see.

***

Not happy (again) with Kohls. I called and asked them if they'd be willing to drop the interest rate (21.9%) on our account, if only for a while. They will! They'll cut it in HALF for six months!  However, during that time, they would close our account (which is reflected on credit reports). I guess they preferred that I not shop there any more; I closed my account. (It's obviously their loss.)

***

On the brighter bill-paying side, I called Waste Management and negotiated 3-months free garbage pickup ($65 value) in exchange for paying one whole year in advance. (Hence, the garage sale! haha!)

***

I haven't taken the time to note my Favorite Friday Fragmenter in a while, but Doreen's fragment about holding her new baby granddaughter reminded me:

A precious moment: I was telling the baby how happy we all were to have her in our family and how lucky she was to have 2 of the best big sisters. 4yr. old Avery Paige said "Mom-Mom you do understand that she can't really know what you are saying and she really can't talk yet". The whole time she was explaining this to me she was softly rubbing the baby's head. That reminded me of a time when Dominic was about her age and in the supermarket there was a woman with a very tiny baby. Dominic asked her "Can I pet your baby?"

Doreen, here is your award! Thanks for making us smile :)

***

If you're interested in my experience volunteering for the Extreme Makeover Home Edition build, visit Extreme Sleep Deprivation, But Worth It!

That's it for me! How about you? Link up your FRIDAY FRAGMENTS post here. (All other links will be deleted, sorry.]

Thousand Words Thursday: Plunged into Hilarity

Remember this?

It runs in the family...

Funniest relay EVER.

Thousand Words Thursday is the brainchild of The Mom Jen.

Extreme Sleep Deprivation, But Worth It!

I had a great experience last night, volunteering for the current Extreme Makeover Home Edition project in Neenah, Wisconsin.

I arrived for my 10pm-6am shift to find a lot of people doing this...

Turns out our friends from church, along with about 15 other "general laborers," had very little to do on the shift before mine.  The laborers, on the other hand, were busting tail!  I was blown away (the entire evening) by the level of organization and coordination of the skilled laborers on the job. Wow!  Every single worker seemed focused and intent on doing his/her part to stay on schedule.  

This was my view around 11pm.

And later...

For the first couple of hours, all we had to do was watch (mostly) and serve a lot of this to the workers inside:

We also cleaned up here and there but mostly watched the process, which was fascinating.  About one in the morning, though, we got real busy, since there was finally a lot of clean-up to do!  My co-volunteers and I went in and maneuvered our ways around what seemed like 100 laborers finishing installation of electricity, heating/cooling, and insulation.   I hauled out a LOT of construction debris!

With all of the work to do and the "entertainment" of watching the process, the night went by fairly quickly. Here is my view, shortly before leaving at 6am:

On Friday, a very deserving family is going to come home and be completely amazed by the transformation of their 500-square-feet home to a 5000-square-feet showcase!  [Watch for the episode to air some time in October.]  I had a lot of fun volunteering and encourage you to volunteer, should you ever have the opportunity; it's a wonderful feeling to be part of something so great. [You don't have to wait for EMHE to come to your area, either. Click on Habitat for Humanity to find similar projects in your area.]

Oh, and P.S. Here are the answers to some of your questions, as well as a few miscellaneous facts I learned last night:

*No, I did not see a single famous person during my shift. Some friends of mine saw Ty and others today, during their day shift.
*I learned last night that during EMHE projects, they actually build two homes, flying back and forth between them! (There isn't a lot for Ty and the gang to do between the time they demolish the house and start on the decor.)
*Accelerated curing of poured concrete (think basement) creates a lot of heat! While it was in the 50's outside (I had to wear a jacket and gloves when not working!), the basement was probably in the 80's.  I was extremely impressed by those guys working down there, barely breaking a sweat! (And I did my best not to whine about the oppressive heat the short time I was down there!)
*The show's producers film and set up the project, but they do not pay for it; the builder and his crew donate their labor and materials.
*Contrary to rumor, a lot of EMHE homes do not end up in foreclosure. See Reaction and Criticism for more interesting facts about EMHE.

To follow the build, visit Lexington Homes, the sponsoring builder of this project.  Visit the Green Bay Press Gazette for more on the story and links to lots more photos.

You Say Cabbage, I Say...

The other night, Mr.4444 and I were in the living room when Kyle was over in the kitchen, 

making a sandwich for his lunch the next day.

"Hm," he remarked. "This lettuce looks really good, but it's kind of mushy."

"Mushy?? That's weird," I replied, 

thinking of the beautiful head of lettuce I had just put in the fridge that day.

Did you get it off of the top shelf?"

"I don't know...maybe. It's kind of rubbery, too."

Rubbery? Puzzled, I turned to see Kyle...peeling a cabbage.

(So, yeah; my son had never seen a fresh cabbage before. What?! Who makes their own coleslaw?!)

We laughed pretty hard.

Why did I have a rare cabbage in my home, you ask? Well, read on!

Many months ago, I received a package of Survival Seeds (from Hometown Seeds), in exchange for posting a text ad in my sidebar. I was happy to receive them, because I knew that my friend Dawn had a big garden and would know what to do with them. (Remember, I have a black thumb! Plus, we don't get enough sunlight here in the woods.) Dawn took gentle care of those seeds; she kept them separate from her other seeds said that the Survival Seeds did a remarkable job surviving, compared to her other seeds; they all came up nicely.  When the day finally came to put the plants out, Dawn even made a special little plot for them! She and her family have planted, weeded, and begun harvesting the Survival Seeds bounty, as well as that from the rest of her huge garden, and I feel like a grasshopper! (Think The Ants and the Grasshopper fable.)

She keeps sharing with me!  (Yes, I know--I owe her, big time!) 

Here are some of the results from the Survival Garden:

(Don't stress about the carrots; they were just the babies that were weeded out to make room for the others.)

I've been loving the bounty of Dawn's garden this summer...

I really don't know how I'm going to repay her.

And I must repay her, because it's going to be a long winter, 

and I recently took this photo at Dawn's house:

Thanks, Dawn, for sowing the Survival Seeds, 

but also using your green thumb on the seeds of our friendship. :)

Family Fun, Reunion Style

WARNING: This post is RATED PG-13 and not suitable for people with class.

At our family reunion last weekend, we played free fun, family games for an hour or so.

I found one of the games when I happened to catch it on the Ellen Degeneres show a few days before the reunion. I highly recommend this game for any size gathering, as it's as much fun for spectators (probably more, even) as it is for the participants. It's called Musical Balls.

We also played a game I found in a book I have from the 1970's, called the New Games Book. I highly recommend this book, as it is chock full of fun games to lead small and large groups of people in. The game we played is called Rock Scissors Paper Tag, and it made for some great photos!

The funniest game of all, though, was the game my cousin Karen found, called The Plunger Relay. We had four teams of three players. Player 1 had to run/walk with a toilet plunger between his/her legs to Player 2, who had a roll of toilet paper between his/her knees. Player 1 had to skewer the T.P. and then head to Player 3, who had a second roll at the ready. After skewering both rolls, Player 1 rushed to the finish line, where his/her teammates take use all of both T.P. rolls to wrap Player 1 up like so:

In this video clip, you will see what happens when my 11-year-old nephew (Player 1) struggles to connect with his teammate, my son Kyle, age 18. (Hands were not allowed, but I helped at the end, because...well...it was necessary.) 

We laughed until we cried.

Sundays in My City: Brockway Mountain

For us, a trip to the U.P. would not be complete without driving to the top of Brockway Mountain.

Uncharacteristically, Lake Superior was as still as glass the day we were there.

Why, yes! Those are my children 30 yards past the caution post in the foreground of the next photo,

why do you ask? 

How far is the drop over that cliff?  Oh, only a few hundred feet. 

(They wouldn't feel much after the first 100 or so.)  

Hey, a mom's gotta get the good shot while she can! 

(We have insurance, you know.)

 [Sorry about the fingerprint, or the poltergeist, or whatever that is.]

Don't worry; I called them back after snapping this shot, my favorite of the summer...

(click to enlarge, but be careful you don't fall!)

Another of my favorites is Unknown Mami, who is the hostess of Sundays in My City. 

Stop by to see more of this beautiful world!