SPRING? NO FOOLIN'

They said it was going to be an early spring.  The farmer's almanac, the groundhog, the woolly worm.. all wrong!!  We had 70 degrees and the birds and critters were happy and then.. it got rainy and then COLD.. really cold. We woke up to 29 degrees after a low of 17 and snow covering everything that had been bursting forth with buds and flowers. Nice for people with allergies, non existent right now. If we have a long hot summer then I am just fine with a colder spring. Bring it on..just not the snow. By the end of our week it will be back off the roller coaster and into warmer weather. Maybe this is the last blast.. (yeah I said that the last time.) It's weather in Michigan and it sure can change in a hurry. We have to deal with it. Next week they test the tornado sirens. Weird indeed..

At least 3 inches here overnight.

Yes, they put out the lawn chairs...

 

YES it  sure looks beautiful..

Yes they put out the hoses already and some planted flowers. 

 

 

 

GRATEFUL THANKSGIVING

SITTING in my nice apartment I am so grateful this year that the ground is green and we have no ice or snow to deal with. We had 9 inches earlier in the week and it was 14 degrees one morning. This morning it is 55 and it is all melted. We had our preview of winter. I decided to put up my tree this week and enjoy looking at it. Gets me in the holiday spirit.                                        

Yesterday I prepared several dishes to carry to my Niece's home for dinner today. I am so grateful they moved to my town and we can visit and see each other more. I am so used to preparing dishes to pass for so many years that THIS year I can actually share them instead of eating them alone. She has a 4 year old and that is always fun being around kids for the holidays. Traditions come and go and since Mom passed in 2011 life has been all over the place for me. I am grateful this year we are all together and celebrating the holidays together again. I hope whatever you do and wherever you are this holiday you stay safe and enjoy the blessings of the holiday with family and friends. 

 

HAPPY HALLOWEEN..

Boy am I behind... time was long ago I would make many blog entries every week. Now I make one once a month. I still get out in the world but not very often. Depending on the bus now days to get me around is fine but sometimes not in the budget. I managed to get a few photos on my last trip out. The fall is slowing coming to a close here. Trees turned slow and mostly yellow. I did manage to find some color here and there though.These were taken at a local apple orchard near town. Never have I seen a person deliver gallons of cider on the back of a 4 wheeler though. This place had a whole little house where you could go and pick what apples you want. Kids love it..temperature controlled most of the time. Fresh donuts being made were mouth watering. Nothing like them in the fall. Here are some recent photos

Delivering Cider 

     

APPLE HOUSE

I ventured into our downtown and found it celebrating a scarecrow contest. I began to see a theme start. I am not sure what the one above was supposed to be.

This was the spa.

  

A nurse at the health dept.

On the bus for a country ride.

GOLD tree in the park.

                 HAPPY HALLOWEEN !

THAT OLD HOUSE...

HAD to update here on the progress for our old house. MY my..seems the neighbors that lived around there were pretty sore about looking at it.

  The new owner had really let the place be trashy and unkempt and it needed help badly.They started painting it and the color was well .. not great...It proved to be a real pain to finish the job. When the spring and summer arrived things changed. They picked up the yard and removed the trash and PAINTED THE HOUSE.They hired someone to paint it.. It was a big deal because this old house NEVER had a COLOR before. It's probably 140 years old now and was ALWAYS white. Now it is fresh and clean and looks like this..

There is still plenty to finish up but this latest photo is so very nice to see. I am very happy for the old place to look good again. I love the color and it is such an improvement. AS FOR HELL HOUSE next door.. it is still standing and up for public auction and everyone is wondering if they will get any buyers for it. As a refresher.. Hell House was a home that had three or four apartments and left for the critters to inhabit. It had seen drug dealers and numerous arrests and fights and police visits in its past. The whole neighborhood would rather it be razed to the ground than bought and fixed up. It was gutted after the last tenant left the water connected in the winter and the whole place flooded and then black mold grew inside. It is nasty. Just glad our OLD HOUSE...looks good again.. Mom and Dad surely would approve!

RANTS WORKED...

Well after my last blog rant here, it seemed to have worked. I contacted the manager who contacted the window company. YES... she called and said she lit a "FIRE" under them because I had been waiting so long. {It did not help that I have been through two managers and so I think the ball got dropped and or lost regarding the window.} So Friday he came and it only took him 20 minutes TOP to replace that window. GOOD!!

While he was replacing it I scraped the old duct tape off the other window and cleaned it up. I picked up my cell and called the office about having my air conditioner put in the window ASAP because the weekend was coming up. I sure did not want to put the AC back in and make a mess of it. So the maintenance man came and WHAM in about 45 minutes...

You have no idea how happy I was to finally get it installed correctly. It had been leaking with all the rain we have been having. No more complaining. Wish I could keep it in the window all year round.. NOPE.. not even with a cover. NEW policy.. they all have to be REMOVED in the fall when the heat is turned on.They pay for heat so I am happy to oblige them. So I hope I can take it out myself..if not I will put my name on a list and hope the guy can come back and take it out.Sliding windows sure are a pain. This AC had to be silicone sealed with plexiglass, so it is not an easy removal. Ordeal over with.. FINALLY.. WHEW what a relief.

WINDOW RANT!!!!!

 ALLOW me to RANT a little....

Well here it is ..coming up JULY and nothing has been done about my window. Despite calls all the way to the district manager .... ZIP.. Almost two weeks ago she promised me that the window was already ordered and ready to install next week. Now you know why I don't believe a word they tell me. So this has been on going since MAY 4th. Meanwhile mother nature and SUMMER decided to rear it's ugly head.I placed the small room air conditioner halfway in the window any way I could and PRAYED it would not fall out. My place faces EAST and boy does it get hot so not putting the AC in was not an option. Then we got storms...one after the other. Towels to the rescue. High winds hitting the window forced me to duct tape the plexiglass down best I could.I had to use a lid from a plastic tub to reinforce it.  It's a real mess.The  heat from the sun coming in kept making the duct tape not stick. Got GORILLA tape and used it. Finally success.

I place towels around it where the rain might come in and I wait. All this for a little tiny nick in the window that "management" said it needs to be replaced. OKAY.. WHEN??? I have lived in so many different places and adapted to so many things and this is just another one I tell myself.. OH WELL... Soon I won't need the air conditioner and will take down the tape and shut the window. I am not going anywhere. I waited a long time for this place and am not going to let RAIN, or a flooded carpet make me leave it.Tomorrow is another day.. WHEW.. thanks I needed that...

DILEMMA SOLVED...

Around our place a person comes and posts some papers on your door if they need to let you know new rules etc. Well I heard her SLAP the papers on the door so I go out and see what it is all about.

LOW AND BEHOLD.....

The new manager here made a BIG BIG mistake and so the district manager had to let us all know that WE DID NOT have to pay the money for putting in our A/C units. WOW talk about a reversal. A whole lot of tenants were thrilled at this news.Seems you only PAY for help putting it in IF you do not go and get the plexiglass to fill in the windows YOURSELF.{ OKAY, this is not interesting to others I know but it sure was a load off my mind. It's the day to day things that add up and get on your nerves sometimes. I am new to how things work here still and having to learn what goes and what doesn't. }          

I ask about decorating my patio, "Sure do whatever you want out there." Ahhhh well within reason of course. No BBQ stuff and NO umbrella stuff. Can I trust what she says to be true? Will some other person in charge change the rule.. probably. Just

the way it is around here. Some already dug up the rocks around each of their patio and planted flowers in there. That's a lot of rocks!! I dreamed I had a birdbath on my patio the other night..I guess I was dreaming of this one I had in our old yard. I took the flowers out and turned it back into a place where the birds could have some fun. I don't think this place here is a good place to have a birdbath, the hawks might use it to drink out of and capture some snacks of smaller birds...Yikes. That would be a horrible sight. So I will just make do with what I have right now and maybe add some things here and there as the summer goes by. I tried sitting out there the other day and it was SO HOT with no shade I could not stay long.

For those who read this blog and know me, you might remember HELL HOUSE. Well it still stands today abandoned but bought by our local college. Eventually it will be torn down and something will be built on that spot. I am sure the neighbors cannot wait. AS for our old home. Sad to say it looks so bad I just GASP when I saw it recently. Seems those who bought it did some improvements but the outside looks horrible. This paint was applied almost TWO YEARS ago and then just left. They never finished any of it. The porch was full of junk, furniture and the back area by the garage full of garbage and trash. No wonder the neighbors are in an uproar.

She was a grand ole place when we lived there, yes we miss the old days a whole lot when life was good.

Guess I will wrap this up as I am getting too sentimental here. 

                                    

 

 

ICY SUNRISE

THANKS to a good friend of mine I am able to take photos again. This camera takes much clearer photos than my old one did. This morning I rose to this spectacular sunrise on ICY SNOW..When you think that this exact same scenario may never happen again.. I decided to capture it. 

When the sun got higher
Daylight Savings time starts Sunday morning.
I am ready for it. Come on SPRING!!!

GROUNDHOG SNOW STORM 2015

HE saw his shadow.. yeah right... they already decided before he was pulled from his nice cozy bed. All the snow that is here today is it any wonder we will see another 6 weeks of winter?  The storm lasted 24 hours. Non-stop wind and heavy snow that kept accumulating  at least 18 inches in places without the drifts.  By 2 AM on Groundhog day it had finally let up and the snow plow guys came and cleared off the sidewalks. So glad I don't have to do it all. It was enough to keep up with my own patio spot. 

I recall that back in the fall I saw at least three woolly worms and they indicated that at the back end of winter we would be in for some heavy snow. They were so right! I have been really spoiled this winter so far I guess it was time to bring the cold in.

We expect some more later this week, but not as bad as this storm was. Hope where ever you are you are staying warm and safe this winter. 

SPRING IS RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER...

2015 ..ORGANIZING ONE THING AT A TIME..

I am starting out 2015 organizing and trying to find SPACE. I never thought moving would be such a jumble. I haven't any idea how I am going to do it all but I guess I have the whole year to figure it out. I started in the kitchen. The garbage disposal went out and had to be replaced so all that stuff under there had to be MOVED out. Better now than if a leak occurs I guess.That all done I moved to the shelves and the drawers next. Progress and some things tossed out helped too. The shelves were a real problem but I managed to use every little space I could. Works for me..{note to self, don't buy any more of anything!! ;-) } 

A wise friend told me, "Whatever you buy and bring into your new place, you better have a place in mind where you will store it." So right she was. I got THREE Christmas trees of all sizes I had to find room for. I didn't buy them all at the same time, and I am still trying to find room for them.Tip: Don't wrap them up and throw them up on a shelf, they will find their way off the shelf in the middle of the night.. BOOM!! HA! Scared the beeeegeeeez out of me!!                                                 

 It got cold out and I looked for winter gear. WHAT?? I could not find any hats, scarves etc. even though I knew I had them. What I did find was only LEFT HANDED gloves,.. all of them. HOW odd. The right ones had just been placed away someplace in that maze of a closet. A disorganized mess. Yes I am still hunting the right ones, and still wondering HOW they got separated. Very ODD. 

MY winter will be full of hunting items and trying to label boxes and tubs..at least it keeps me busy on the many very cold days. My advice...when you think of moving please LABEL the heck out of your boxes..something I should have done better. 

HOPE YOU ALL ARE STAYING WELL AND WARM.. 

THE YEAR ENDS

I sit here and think of all the things that have happened in 2014 and just shake my head in disbelief. 

JANUARY we had the coldest POLAR VORTEX  winter we have ever had. It was brutal. I shoveled so much snow I just got so sick of it. Heavy, wet and cold all winter  long. I seemed to never catch up and never get warm enough. Glad it ended.

I ended up in an ambulance, for the first time in my life in late Jan., headed to the ER with my head so dizzy I could not stand up. I stayed 24 hours in the hospital and they found I had 

"Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo 

Sounds bad but it just is plain VERTIGO. I was remarkably healthy otherwise. I had many comments on how amazing my blood tests were.

FEBRUARY and MARCH  Came in with more health problems for family members and a loss of a child that we all were shocked over. I had my eyes tested and the Dr. told me I had Glaucoma..which later in the year was found to NOT BE TRUE. I was so relieved. 

APRIL  We still were having SNOW here in Michigan.. it just would not STOP Easter came and it was cold one day and warm the next. Mother nature just could not decide. 

MAY  Came in with another illness only this time my sister had kidney problems. They went from bad to worse and in 

JUNE  She landed in the hospital in another town for 10 days and one in ICU nearly dying. Very scary times and she still is using the drugs and has improved a lot, but is not stable yet.

JULY while Sis was ill, I received a call I had been waiting a long time for. A new apartment was available. I spent most of the month moving from one place to another in the heat of the summer.                                   

AUGUST, SEPTEMBER, OCTOBER,NOVEMBER and DECEMBER

I have been busy adjusting to my new place to live and gathering furnishings and celebrating the fall and winter here in a new town. Riding the bus to town, meeting neighbors, learning how to gather supplies and find places for all the stuff I have in such small surroundings. I purchased in December a painting that I thought was something I could look at for a long time. I love the waves and the ocean and always have. It will never be far from me.  So much happened this year with friends and family, I pray every day and night that several will be cured completely and permanently. I hope 2015 brings us all good health and happiness. 

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

Getting in the mood for the holiday here. Halloween was

always a favorite of mine in school. We would have

a whole school party in grade school and have cake

walks and fishing booths and a parade through the whole school.

I think they still do some of those things now too. As things got scary

out there in the real world, schools decided to have parties

like we did in the “olden” days and all the kids now either

have parties at school during hours or after and even

churches have parties here. The parties consist of cars in the

parking lot and each party has goodies in the trunk of their

car. YEP, almost like tailgating. Kids go to each car and pick up

their treats and when they are done maybe have a game or two

indoors or out depending on the weather.

Here in Michigan it is often cold, rainy, or snowing.This year it will be pretty chilly, some parts of the state may even have snow flurries..YES I said it!!

It amazes me at the talent and creativity that people have when carving a pumpkin for Halloween. This particular one just blew my mind. Such a neat design. The most creative I ever got was drilling holes in one and putting lights inside. This year I am still getting settled in my new place but have my fall decoration hung up in a place of honor in my apt. In our old home we had it on the front door of our house. It still looks pretty good despite being packed away for 4 years. I managed to buy some candy in case I get a trick or treaters here, I am not quite sure what our complex does for the holiday, but there are several families and quite a few children here. 

Did I keep some for me?? Uhh YES I did.. candy corn...my favorite, but those PEEPS ghosts and pumpkins are running a close second. However you celebrate, if you do, have a fun,safe holiday! 

REMEMBER WHEN

I smiled the biggest  watching a neighbor teach his daughter how to ride a small two-wheeler. The bike never had training wheels and a small boy neighbor could ride it easily. She could not. So dad got his chance to run around holding the back of the bike and running along beside her. They did all this on the GRASS..no cement or paved street, smart dad. I remember falling on that street. OUCH…oh how I wish I had a video of that moment. There is no feeling in the world like the wind rushing through your hair as you ride as fast as you can and feel like you have wings for the first time. Wife came out and filmed a lot of her riding attempts. She just had to keep peddling. She tried another part of the complex that was flatter. MUCH better results. In less than two hours she was riding like a pro. BIG smile on her face. Neighbors came outside and applauded her efforts. I yelled..”Good JOB..DAD too!” I swear his face lit up like a Christmas tree all twinkly. It was a sunny Sunday afternoon at the end of September 2014. I had to think, I hope she remembers where and when she was when she learned, I remember where and how but not WHEN.  I hope her mom NEVER loses that video. A whole new world is ahead of her. Today she went to school, no doubt, with stories of her success. Can’t wait to see if she still rides well after school.. Stay tuned. 

OH DEAR Blog Readers….the smells from my kitchen this morning brought tears to my eyes. I used my oven to bake my mother’s recipe for BANANA BREAD.. OH how the whole place smells like home and MOM making  it over and over again. She loved it so. She never needed the recipe almost up to the day she left. She made it so many times it was in her memory bank.  ALWAYS the end piece with lots of butter on it, that was her favorite. HOT HOT out of the oven would make her just ooooh and ahhhh.  Making it this time for my sister’s birthday. I omitted the pineapple this time and made it plain. Can you smell it??? YUMMM!! Haven’t had this in ages. Last time I made bread it was in the microwave for lack of an oven. Well it was edible, but just not the same. It cracked on top just like MOM made it. So happy it came out good. Recipe link is above.

Got to say the fall here in Michigan this past week has been spectacular. The leaves changing very quick but the temps have been mild and cool at night. NO rain, just nice..it does feel like October instead of September though. I fear the winter will be early this year again. Still looking for the wooly worm and his prediction but the black squirrels here are  busy storing nuts from the nearby trees like crazy. That alone is scary. I shudder thinking about last winter, but at least know this year there will be way way less shoveling for me here in my new place. 

IT'S JUNE ALREADY..

Sorry it has been awhile since my last update...
                                                 

                                                

June started a little crazy for us here. Doctor's visits, hospital tests and changes in every day living. Sister's condition went from simple to very complicated after many tests and consultations. Seems her immune system is compromised and now has to be reset with powerful drugs. I questioned the diagnosis, but with 4 doctor's opinions, and they are specialists, I agreed with their findings. Every day is a challenge, new side effects popping up. I have a watchful eye on her. This will go on for months so it keeps us busy with mapping out appointments on the calendar. I had a flash back yesterday to when I had to keep track of my mother's schedule with her dialysis, how hectic that was and how similar this illness seems to be. I find myself back in caregiver mode again, something I never thought would happen. I am glad at least I have the experience to deal with such an illness..
                                           

The weather warmed up and that was a blessing. It was time to put in the AC and stay cool. I purchased a very small one for just one room. Getting it up 14 stairs was no easy task, but one by one I did it. Securing it was another problem though. Old house and old windows..everything had to be re-enforced to make sure it did not fall out into our driveway. What in the world did they do in the OLD OLD days to keep cool without a fan I have no idea? They were tougher than me that's for sure.   This summer has been a cooler one than last year, easier to do chores and outside work is okay by me.

My tablet was not working, after three months using it, it decided it wanted to type words for me all the time and not charge when it said it was charging. I guess it had a mind of it's own. I called the company and paid the shipping to have them send me a new one. I got a call one afternoon ,after I sent it back, from OKLAHOMA...they apologized that they did not have the same model and would I like to try a larger size. YES, yes I would!! So they sent me a 10 inch size. Has been wonderful...comes in handy while sitting waiting for Sis in so many places. I still use the laptop every day, but boy I do love the new technology so much.  Hard to believe only 5 years ago when I had only a large desktop and monitor and no way to leave the room with it.  Love the freedom. 
Speaking of freedom..in case I don't get back here hope you all have a 

it will be here before you know it. 

MOVING ON

Making baby steps to a new beginning takes time and work. Like two steps forward and 10 steps back. That is what it seems to be for me these days. I just am tired of all the confusion and unknown factors.  I am making an effort to move again and do all that packing and sorting that one does. I will be so glad to settle.. for me I want to get to a nice place and stay for a good long while.  Don't know when..so I wait..
                                         MEANWHILE.......
A family member is ill and I am trying to cope with that and find answers. The doctors seem to want to test everything and still not find the solution to the problem. Meanwhile the person gets sicker and sicker. Sad to say I have voiced my opinion to some of the said DOCTORS and have gotten those looks. YOU know what ones those are..." YOU know nothing...I KNOW IT ALL." Oh if they only WOULD listen.  We are on..let's see doctor number 4 now...hmmm maybe they all ought to get together for a consult.. Geez.. it's enough to make a person go crazy. 
                                         MEANWHILE.......
The weather is better so outside I can walk and work in the yard and try to forget all the stuff that is cluttering my mind. Easter is coming and usually I look forward to fixing a nice dinner and visiting with family. This year..not so much. We just want to keep ourselves going any way we can. HAPPY SPRING..the rains are here and the snow is GONE..except for those nasty big dirty piles in parking lots.. Hope that is the last of it til DECEMBER!!!      HAPPY SPRING FINALLY!!

COMING TO THE END..

                                    

 

So I haven't been writing much here and there isn't much traffic either, so I will soon turn this place into a private blog. I just need to let go of some things that I cannot keep going. One blog is enough I guess. I will continue to keep my original Wordpress blog open.
You can find the link on the sidebar.  

THANKS FOR VISITING.....

ARE WE DEPRESSED??

On Valentine's day I went for my follow-up appointment for the "spell" I had. They said they opened at 8 AM. They did not. You stood in the cold, trying to keep your feet from freezing to the pavement, until they opened the doors. Many of us gathered complaining that this whole arrangement was crazy. I did mention I was GLAD it was not 20 below wind chill like the week before. I signed in and sat next to the heating vent hoping to stay away from anyone else that had ANYTHING I sure didn't want to catch. Dr. offices are the worst places to be when you are well. When I went back to the cubicle I was asked questions by the RN and all she could say was "Wow" and "Really"...while looking at my charts. I was in remarkable good health. Yay Me!!

 The young doctor, who was a volunteer there looked at my records, he asked me..so.."Are we depressed?".. Don't you just love that term.. "WE".. well  I didn't hesitate to answer him. YES, in less than 24 hours two weeks ago I went from not being depressed to really down and depressed. I told him that my little "SPELL" I had, cost me a fortune and it would be literally years before I would be able to catch up. AS they added on tests, my blood pressure continued to rise.Well I will now try to stay calm when the bills come because they will. Spring is coming, may new opportunities come with it. 


 Happy Valentine's day.. hmmm.. I got a nice surprise when I got back to the car. Sis had bought these delicious treats...from the bakery. It's been years since I had tasted one. They were freshly baked and were delicious. The line went outside the door with people waiting to purchase their Valentine goodies. I will long remember this holiday. 
Hope yours was wonderful too. 

A BRAND NEW YEAR!!

Something called a POLAR VORTEX came down and blasted its way over more than half the USA. Snow and ice all the way to Alabama. Never seen this much snow in ten years some were saying. The stores were packed and people were smart to stock up. Literally nothing was running in our area..... for 3 DAYS. Kids are off school because of the COLD not the snow. Plows ran 12 hours shifts and they got the roads cleared pretty fast considering how much snow we had. THE COLD is something else again. I ventured out onto the porch and right back inside. Way too cold for me to breathe in, 14 below zero and 25 below when the wind kicked up. NASTY..Colder than ALASKA..that polar vortex was nothing to fool with. I started wearing so many layers of clothes I feel like an Eskimo... Welcome to 2014?? It's starting out very weird.
                       

This was a shot of town with 6 inches of snow..where they put 14 more I have no idea.

 I have had this blog at blogger since 2010. I have tried to keep it separate from my Wordpress blog.  Blogging is a venue to express our feelings or talents to the world. 
Well it seems to be really dying out now. I will keep mine around, and write when I feel like it or when I have something to share. What's been happening in my world is something that I had been forbidden to discuss on a public blog. I know that sounds kind of weird but I it's the way it is. Some already know what's going on..others can take any kind of guess they would like. I am NOT in mortal danger or taking drugs etc. but I can say life is not a bed of roses right now. It has not been for some time. I make the best of each day and try to move on. I made some goals for 2014. We will see how well I do. I will update when I can, until then..here are some photos I managed to take while shoveling out this past week. My camera is on it's way out. It has a mind of its own and I have to re do almost every shot I take. Still it takes nice photos.

This poor bush almost broke under the heavy snow, the drift is almost as high as the fence is.

 The snow is as high as the top of the handle. Below you see the van covered up, that is not all drifted snow, it was really deep. 

This was taken before the storm also. We had about 6 inches on the ground.

Stay warm and well my friends...