Paradise Lost

We went for a ride yesterday to see what was happening with Bahia Beach. My room mate may get to work there if his arm gets well enough in time. From the looks of it there will be plenty of work.
Bahia Beach used to be a quiet place with a restaurant, motel and a few homes and of course a beach and a long dock. Now they have started building condos in every inch of space that they can. It looks like mass confusion and I can't believe they are building so much there. The name isn't even Bahia Beach any more it is Little Harbor and the only reminder of the old name is one of the street signs with Bahia Beach Blvd. on it.
This is happening all over our area and it saddens me. I had not driven down that way and was shocked to find out the grooves are gone and housing projects are going in all over.
Maybe we should squeeze everyone into one place and leave some of the other land free and wild - I don't know - it just made me sad to see old places changing.

My Niece Kayla 

Here she is - isn't she cute. Two little teeth shining through now. They live in Ohio and will be coming down the last of March and I get to meet my little niece.
At least I think I have this picture thing figured out at least one way of doing it.

Pictures

My sister sent the latest pictures of my niece Kayla - she now has two little teeth shining. For some reason I can't get the picture to post - last time I had to work on it a while before I sorted out what to do now all I have to do is remember what I did. Oh well help isn't far away, my daughter and my other sister always have an idea as to what to do. Not a long post this morning have things to do. Later.

Cast Iron

Treated myself to a Dutch Oven yesterday. Of all the places to find it the grocery store had two left on the shelf and a big space next to them so I guess they were going fast. It is real cast iron - not the light stuff they pass off now for cast iron. I am tickled pink. Used to have one years ago and used it more then any other pot. In the picture you can see my Grisweld cast iron frying pan - I know it is an antique but I use it all the time any way. Going to make some fried chicken tonight - using the Dutch oven is like a deep fryer and for some reason food isn't as greasy.
Read a few blogs this morning and got to thinking about my stash of 'plastic wares' - butter containers, cool whip, sour cream, cottage cheese and on and on till I have been tossing some of them - no room. They are just so handy for left overs and if the left overs get forgotten you can toss the whole thing with a clear conscience.
I have two passions in food - southern, including all the grits and hog jowls and blackeyed peas and greens with salt pork, fried chicken and on and on. But I have another passion - I lived in the Philippines for seven years and developed a taste for the food that most people can't understand why we eat it. Pancit, pork cooked with soy sauce and vinegar and garlic, tamarand, dried fish, shrimp and squid. I won't go on but I do get to indulge in both kinds of food. We have an Oriental Store a little drive from were I see some of my doctors and stop by to stock up every now and then. Found my coconut vinegar this trip which they were out of last time I stopped by.
Now does that still make me a Redneck? Maybe a half one since I no longer have a yard full of stuff - just a back porch full of stuff.

Arm Sling

At last the pillow thing is gone and my room mate now has an arm sling. It still is uncomfortable - we can't seem to figure out how to get it to stay on - but it is a lot better then the pillow thing he had strapped to him for so long.
Went to the post office and store this morning and when I returned he asked me where all the throw rugs were - we had to pick them up when he was learning to walk again - he said he looked all over the house and couldn't find them. I had just picked them up and stuffed them behind the love seat. Nice to have throw rugs down again.

Grandpa and Kids

Grandpa and three of the grandkids. I didn't tell him that while he was gone to the doctor they all piled in his bed and pretended to have broken arms and legs. Did have to wash his sheet though. Grandpa wants to take Coby fishing. I know the girls will want to go too. As soon as he gets well we will be doing more with the children.

Babysitting

Here is Steph and her kids - Jerrica, Jasmine and her husband's boy Coby who has adopted us as his grandparents.
I stayed home and watched the children while Steph took her Dad to the doctor. It was fun. They like staying with me and when Mom came to take them home they wanted to come back the next day. I keep a small box of toys bought from yard sales so they will have something to play with. Last time they left their dolls for me to take care of but Jasmine, the little one decided she wanted to take her's home this time so they left their coloring books and crayons with me.

My Poncho!

Take a look because the whole thing is coming apart except the starting chain. I kept thinking something was wrong and went back over the pattern - they made a mistake in the instructions. Now that I know how it goes I have already gotten as far as this is only the right way. Wish me luck.

Manny

This is Manny, my mother's baby. I believe he is eight or nine years old (have to check with Mom). He thinks he is a person. He gets excited when you first go in the house but when Mom tells him to get in his bed he goes and lays down.
He has a couple of toys that he holds in his mouth when he sleeps and try as we might we have not been able to take a picture of it he always senses that something is up. He listen's to Mom just like a kid would. I am glad she has him.

A Bee

If you look real, real close you can see a bee that was flying around my mother's camellias. The flowers are pretty though.
She used to have a yard full of flowers and surnuim cherry bushes until her son-in-law attacted the yard with a chain saw. No more hibiscus - beautiful doubles - by the road, no cherries - I could go on and on but it is just too heart breaking. She said she was afraid to tell him to stop.
He isn't getting near my plants.

Xmas? February?

Either I am a little late or real early but here it is the Xmas tree skirt. It should be just right for our three foot tree. I have it all packed up - I slip a fabric softener sheet in with it - now all I have to do is put it with the tree so I won't forget I made it.

Daughter

OK, found this picture of my daughter while looking at some unmarked CDs - I have learned my lesson - label them.
Now I want to brag on her some. She is in her thirties (but still my baby) and has been married a year now. She put herself through college and has her Masters. She did this while working and working at the college she was attending so she would get some free classes - don't get the idea it was all free she paid her way. I wish I had been able to help her but at one point she was helping me out.
She is a master knitter - she knits regular socks - with what she calls toothpicks. Some of her purses sold for a hundred dollars at a fun raiser recently for a dog park. Her doggies are her babies and I just include them Xmas.
Sometimes I wonder how I could be blessed to have such a lovely, intelligent daughter then I just thank the power above that she has taken the right path for her life. She also writes book reviews on the blog 'The Restricted Section' - it is very interesting. htt://www.therestrictedsection.blogspot.com/

Fishy, Fishy

This is my room mate's bass from the days when you actually took the fish to the taxidermist - you can imagine how many years ago that was. Now, thank goodness, you can take a picture, measure your fish and release it back into the wild to be caught another day. The taxidermist today use molds and can make a fish that looks so real if you didn't know you would think it was the real thing.

If there is one thing my room mate misses mostly it is fishing. He is right handed and it was his right shoulder that had to be operated on so he can't even think of throwing a line. He had said once he could get a cane pole and hold it in his left hand but that idea went by the side. Once he gets well I am going to be ready to go fishing too. I just love getting out even if I don't catch anything. Until then we watch all the fishing shows on TV - which is what is on now.

Family

This is some of my family - the picture was taken at the same time as the one with me and my grandmother. I will have to get with my mother - she is a big picture saver and will know the year these were taken.

There are brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews, my parents - this was taken while Dad was still with us.

Seems sense grandmother passed on we don't have family get to gathers any more.

This fits with my other post how time is slipping away and we need to love the ones who are with us now. I call my mother almost everyday even if it is just to say hi - I love you. Thank goodness for phones. I need to start making an effort to talk to my brother more often - he just seems to always be working or sleeping or off doing buying for his EBay business. I just may call and leave a message to let him know I am thinking of him.

Well the dryer has stopped and it is time to get to a bit of cleaning.

Family - some of us 

Time

Here is one of the last pictures of my grandmother and me. I wish I had put the date on it because I don't remember when it was taken - just know it was at least four years ago or maybe five. She was a go getter right up till she couldn't get around anymore. My aunt's suicide about a year before grandmother passed away seemed to take all the spirit out of her. My aunt was the one she got along with best besides me. My grandmother and I could talk about things she couldn't discuss with her children because it upset them too much. It really broke my heart when I had to leave and was no longer there to help take care of her. It was easy to get along with her - you just did things the way she wanted - no big deal.

Time just seems to slip away. For the first time I am going to go to the cemetery with my sister, mother and brother for what would have been my sister's daughter's 30th birthday. It is hard to imagine she has been gone eight years now. Dad is buried there also. What my sister does is buy purple balloons - April's favorite color - and ties uplifting notes to them and releases them to fly off and perhaps someone will find them. I couldn't find a picture of April on a CD. She was a very beautiful young lady and we still all miss her very much.

Grandmother and me 

Off to Market

After going to the doctor on my own yesterday - only got lost once - thought I would feel really tired today but went to bed early (make that fell asleep watching TV) and woke up feeling pretty good. So off to pick up my new prescription and a few groceries which are all stowed away.

The new Lowe's that opened down the road has it's traffic light working now. For a week they had it on yellow then a week of green and now it has that red going so people have to learn to stop. The new Wal Mart has it's own traffic light also - they are still working on the turning lanes but they are making progress with the parking lot. It is going to be strange to go through three traffic lights in about a half mile streach of road.

Only a few more days till my room mate goes to the doctor. I hope they put his arm in a sling. With that big pillow thing on his arm he can't hardly get in a car or truck. I asked him if he wanted me to take him for a ride today but he declined.

Valentine's Day

My room mate bought me a Valentine and candy before his operation - wasn't that sweet. He put the candy in the fridge afraid it might melt - he said I could go ahead and open it knowing how hard it is for me to resist chocolate but I promised him I would wait and I did. I don't know if he could have found a bigger card for me but it said so much about how he appreciates all I am doing for him...and I got a card for him expressing the same sentiments. I am glad that life has given me a perfect companion in these later years.

The fish was from his grandchildren - they wanted me to 'fry' it for grandpa. It was just too cute - only Coby understood it was chocolate. My room mate is a fisherman. He hasn't gotten to go fishing for a while now and it may be even longer till his arm gets healed and is rehabilitated.

Happy Valentine's Day to all - hope yours is as happy as mine.

Frost

We had frost this morning. At 4:30 am the TV said it was 38% but we must have gotten colder because everything was covered in ice. Almost too a spill getting down the porch steps to set the trash out. That would have really left us in a fix. I hope you can read the word 'ice' on my truck ( room mate would have gotten upset if I had written on his but it was tempting). Now it is almost noon and just went out to bring in the trash can and it is down right balmy out there. The sun is shining and it is a lovely day.

Baby

Here is Steph all of six months along and having to poke her stomach out to see the little bump. It is OK both her other babies were just little bumps on her also. She just can't seem to gain any weight - everything she eats goes to the baby. This is the new one coming along that I made the granny square blanket for. The doctors thought there might be problems with this baby but now they aren't sure anything is wrong after worrying everyone.

My poor room mate is having a time with that big pillow thing strapped to his arm. He can't get comfortable and I just feel so bad for him.

We feel like we have been at a seafood feast - one of my room mates buddies from work stopped by and brought us some shrimp - already cleaned and cooked and some snow crab legs that were gigantic - all I had to do was warm them up. We love seafood. When my room mate gets all well he said we will go to Shells and have oysters and the seafood platter so we can take home left overs.

Still working on a couple of crochet projects. Amber, the eight year old, asked what I was making now and I showed her the picture of the poncho and she got all excited and said she wanted a blue one. I think if I could spend more time with her she would be easy to teach to crochet - her reading has to improve some but maybe trying to read patterns may help.

Beginning

Here are the humble beginning of my poncho. After taking it apart three times I think I have it right now but it doesn't seem like it is going to turn out like the picture. I will keep onward and see what happens - if I have to take it apart again I will get help.

Room mate had his pain pump removed yesterday. He is getting used to that bulky thing attached to his arm some. Well it is back to the fishing shows and poker - I retreat into my room and watch something else when I can't stand it anymore. My computer is in the living room where his hospital bed had to go.

Need to check out some other blogs - see what my daughter is up too.

Misery

Here is my room mate with his arm in the stabilizer. He has to turn sideways to get down the hall and into the bathroom
He is the one who suggested I take some pictures. I just don't know if he meant for me to put them on my blog.
Poor thing he can only use one hand now and I am having to do little things for him. He needed help getting his jeans buttoned this morning and it was all I could do to get them fastened. At least the shoe string tieing went better.
His brother has taken him to the doctor to have the pain pump removed.
It took me all day yesterday and who knows how many people I talked to about having one of his pain medications filled. Late last night the insurance company called me and said they had OKed it but when I called the drugstore this morning they had not heard from the insurance - so on the phone again to the insurance company and at last there were some results - the drugstore filled the prescription and now he has some pain medication for when he gets home.
I had a shocker when I picked up my medications - one of them is not covered by my Medicare Part D and it cost me $84 - you can bet I was on line filling out forms to get help with my medication from Social Security and from the company that makes that medicine. The government gave me a little more money and then made sure I had to spend more. It just gets to me when I am not prepared for things. Hopefully it will all work out - I will just have to keep plugging along and bothering people till I get some help.

After Surgery 

After Surgery 

Pain

My room mate's surgery went well. I was going to take a picture of his contraption they have his strapped to but it is just too pitiful. The stabilizer is a big pillow thing his arm is strapped to and he has a strap wrapped around his shoulder that we hook up a cooler of ice and water to and it pumps cold to his shoulder because he can't use a cold pack. Then he has his pain pump hooked up to an IV in his shoulder. As you can imagine he didn't sleep much last night. Now there is some delay with his other pain medications and we have to wait for word from the doctor. Poor thing can only lay in one position. I hope it heals fast - he has been through so much with his pelvis and hip already. It kind of makes the pain in my knees seem not so bad.

Thanks for all the kind thoughts and calls.

Big Day

The day has come for my room mate's operation on his shoulder. The doctor finally told him yesterday that there is a lot more wrong in there then a torn rotor cup. They estimate the surgery to take a least three hours. His older brother is taking him to the hospital and I am going to stay home and strip his hospital bed and get everything nice and clean for when he gets home. Neither one of us has slept much - I gave it up at four thirty and as soon as I tried to sneak into the kitchen to make myself a cup of coffee he got up and took over my bedroom.
Suppose to have another doctor's appointment myself tomorrow but I just can't leave him alone the first day after surgery so today I will be rearranging doctors once again. At least I did get to my one important one yesterday thanks to my dear sister again. That doctor is out of the way for another three months.
Don't know if I mentioned the hunt for the scanner cable or not - I looked this house over twice and my sister and I couldn't remember if I had sent two cables with her or one. Well I must have been doing something wrong because after we had stopped at a few places trying to find the second cable - no luck - we got back to my house and sis got the scanner to print. I have no idea what I was doing wrong - it woundn't print for me. The second cable wasn't needed.
My sis and I stopped at the Oriental Store and I stocked up on some goodies and pansit noodles. The only thing they didn't have was the coconut vinegar which was what I wanted to buy. Oh, well - next trip.
I now have a secret vice. After watching hours of Texas Hold'em Poker on TV with my room mate I dug out a game I had bought years ago and checked it out - it had a slightly different version of the poker game but after two days I was able to eliminate all of my opponates and come out $51,000 to the good - oh if that was only real money. I told my room mate to send me to Vegas but he said no - ha, ha.

Well it is almost time for the alarm to go off. It is the first time that we have set it since my room mate was injured. He has to take a good shower - at least I am getting the place as warmed up as I can for him. I will update on how things went.

Missing Country

Read a blog - Pure Florida - that took me for a walk through this beautiful Florida country. Maples blooming, sparkleberries swelling, just the country. It made me a little homesick when they talked about the blue berries that were getting ready to bloom. I too had blue berries and gave them that shot of acid fertilizer - I was fated to only see one blooming season from them before life took me away to the city. I have an album of pictures of just my garden and animals that I grew over the years - was looking at it a while back and saw a picture of my son about six holding a frog - had forgotten all about that picture.
Today I grow plants in pots because I rent and who knows where I may go next. I have a cape jasmine that came from a cutting off of my grandmother's bush - she is gone now - I also have amaylis from her place. From my mother, who is still with us I have a beautiful double hybiscus and if I can get it into a larger pot it should recover from being pot bound for a while. I want to get a cattly guava from my mother that originally came from me and see how it does in a large pot.
My room mate and I grew tomatoes in a huge pot he brought home from work. I told him it needed more dirt and that three plants were too many even if the pot is big - we still had plenty of tomatoes off of those plants. This year with his injuries and me not being able to lift we couldn't add the needed dirt - duh - we could ask the neighbor to help us. Not the horse - the nice young lady who lives next to us - not to worry she drives heavy equipment for a living and still manages to look very nice. All this talk of plants makes me want to get outside. I need to buy a couple of lawn chairs so I can at least sit on the porch, get a little sunshine and spy on the neighbors.

Crochet Projects

Here I go again getting started on more then one project. I will post pictures of my poncho when I get a little more done on it. Meanwhile I was stuck in my bedroom while my room mate was sleeping and had my bag of Xmas yarn in there. After trying a stocking with this dark varigated yarn I didn't like it so started a tree skirt just using my own pattern - it is just going to be stripes of different colors but I think it will be nice the other colors match the varigated. We just have a three foot artifical tree so the skirt won't need to be too big.

Darn Cat

There goes Moocher off in the distant. That trailer is our other neighbor, nice girl lives there, but it is the trailer next to her's that new people moved in who have a little girl about five or six and wouldn't you know it there was Moocher out there just enjoying getting petted by her. I called him yesterday and he wouldn't come he was headed over to the new neighbors. I hope they aren't feeding him - guess I will have to talk to them. He did come in this morning and ate but wanted right back outside. I think with all the hospital stuff - that darn walker, it is folded up but Moocher is still not too sure it isn't going to grab him - he just doesn't want to stay in for very long. Maybe when things get back to normal - which is still going to be six weeks or longer - he will get back to wanting to stay in. It is strange he didn't used to love on my room mate too much but now when he is in the house he jumps on the hospital bed and lets my room mate pet him and he even lays down for a while. I guess Moocher is mad at me for things changing but he still wants me to feed him just doesn't hang around for any loving.

Posing

Here is Amber striking a pose for the camera. Isn't she a lovely child. We get to babysit her tonight for her mother. I don't know the details because my room mate took the call but I will be the one who ends up watching her and playing with her. I don't mind a bit. We will get on the computer and she will play games - I don't have all the fancy games - computer is too old - but I have some that she likes.

Amber and her Dad 

Here is Amber and her Dad. Earlier I posted a picture of Amber and her mother. Amber is a well behaved child. She is eight years old and holding up well for her family proplems and her father's health proplems. We found out yesterday that he does have cancer but they are going to try and treat it. All we can do is help as much as we can with Amber.

Most Interesting Neighbor

Here are a couple of pictures of the nieghbor on one side of us. She has a large pasture and the people who own her take care of her very well. You can tell she doesn't have a bone showing. The kids get a kick out of seeing the horsy when they come over.

Neighbor 

Neighbor Horsey 

February? 


Would you belive this ponsettia is still alive long after buying it in December. After Xmas it was sent to the porch to live out it's last days in the outside but it keeps fooling me. This must be one hardy plant.

Baby Granny Info

The baby granny turned out to be 39 inches square - give or take an inch. I just kept makeing it bigger till I thought it was big enough.
The X in the middle of the granny is just what happens when you make a granny square.
This was one of the easiest and most fun projects I have done lately.

Poncho Found

Poncho 


After all the crocheting going on at Xmas I lost track of my poncho yarn that my dear sister bought me. I have been looking and looking and was beginning to think I would never find it but I did at the bottom of a bag in a bag that I thought was bits and pieces. Had to buy an N-13 hook - too late my sis said she had plenty but the wrapper is gone with the trash. Can't wait to start on it. Also found my yarn for my felted bag that got put aside at Xmas - poncho then felted bag and in between some stuff for next Xmas. I want to get some done early so I won't be in such a rush.

It looks like my room mate is going to have his arm operated on next week. He has been driving a little with one arm - don't really like the idea but it is his decision - he won't be able to move that arm for quite some time so no more driving for him. We were very pleased that the nurse who sets up the surgeries called at 7:30 at night - she must have been putting in some over time - to let us know that he has to have blood work, etc. Friday and then they will operate the following Wednesday. My room mate's brother is going to take him up to town for the tests. I hope he is around to take him for the surgery - I can't drive in the middle of Tampa. My driving is done around were we live and even that is getting harder with all the development going on and more and more people moving into the area. I never thought I would see our main street through town backed up with the traffic it has now. I try to plan my trips when the traffic isn't too heavy.

I have decided that I am not going to let the doctor operate on my right knee. It seems to be feeling better. My left knee hurts worse now so I am scared to let him operate and be worse off. I am sure if things change that he would operate later on.

The nicest thing happened yesterday - Steph, my room mate's daughter, brought me the ten dollars she had borrowed from me some time last year. She had received her IRS check. When I loan people money I really don't expect to get it back. Now if her sister would bring some of the money by that I have given her that would be icing on the cake.