O.K., So the van broke down....

It all happened on our way out to what was supposed to be a birthday lunch for me on the waterfront somewhere. I had chosen Thai food. We ended-up at Subway in a not so nice shopping center. The van had decided to break down on our way to lunch.

Edilberto pushed the van with me and the kids in it, off the road and into a gas station. At least the van was courteous enough to decide to stop right in front of one. We took the kids to the Subway sandwich shop to get something to eat and into an air conditioned environment (it was 90+ degrees F. today), while Edilberto met the tow truck that eventually showed-up, got a ride to our house to pick-up a second van that, thankfully, we are currently borrowing, came back to get us, we all followed the tow truck about 15 miles to our mechanic's shop (who by now, unfortunately, knows our van well), dropped off the sick van, and tried to proceed back to our original destination in the borrowed van.

It was a long drive back. We were all thirsty and tired. We never got to our Thai restaurant as none of us had much of an appetite anymore. We decided to check-out an upscale mall that we'd never been to. The shops were the usual, but the food area was beautiful, marble, Italianish looking decor with nice lightening. I had a very well made, delicious and refreshing strawberry/banana/vanilla yogurt smoothie, and the kids had gelato. A nice family moment was had at last.

Back home, Edil made me a nice dinner, against my wishes we had cake and ice cream and heard the "happy birthday" song (I wasn't in the mood. By then, we were all a bit cranky and exhausted).

Thankfulness kept things in perspective. Thankful that we're all healthy and together. Which makes it a happy birthday after all!

A Floridian? Who me?

Well, today was the day I gave up my Washington State driver's license for a Florida State driver's license. They wouldn't even punch a hole in my old license to let me keep it. "Not if you're becoming a resident in Florida," I was told. It felt very odd. All I've ever had since learning to drive was a Washington State license.

I was not surprised to see at the department of licensing, due to what I've observed on the road, the steady stream of traffic violation payers who were coming in to pay. Several with suspended licenses. South Florida also has the worst record for road rage in the nation.

Which leads me to the observation about the way many populations of people drive here. I often see people driving leaning on one shoulder against the door in a slumped position, talking on their cell phone, or just plain acting like they'd like to figure-out how to take a nap while driving, all at accelerated speeds racing to the next red light. It's simply baffling to watch. And no, it's not the retired population who seem to drive this way. It's probably hard to imagine for anyone who's never been here to know just how badly people drive in South Florida!

So, here I am. A Florida driver. Let's just hope I don't form any bad habits on the road. That's doubtful. I probably drive more like the retired and age-ed Floridians who've moved here from the Northeast. I refuse to pull-out onto the road until it is clear. So stop honking your horn back there already or I'll shoot! (just kidding)

Been a bad blogger lately...

It's Friday night and I thought I'd stop by and say hello to anyone who may pop-in to see if I've updated here. Sorry to say, I haven't had much to say the past couple of days that would be very interesting to read about.

Hmmm...what about the weather? It's been very hot here in South Florida. Humid, 90+ degrees.

Ministry News: At Missionary Resource Network, there was a boat donated a long time ago that was supposed to be getting repaired by someone. That someone was paid and didn't do the work. That has finally been sorted out this week (after a long battle) and the boat is now being repaired by another person. This boat will be sold as a fishing boat and the money will be put towards the purchase of a boat that will be used for mercy ministry in the Amazon Region.

The kids did great

The kids and I took our first trip to a nursing/retirement home on Saturday. I'd been wanting to start taking them for some time, and there was an organized trip for the kids from church. Edilberto wanted to come but it was his Saturday to work at the store. It all worked-out well going with the group from church initially. The need is great here in Florida to visit those who have nobody and are nearing the end of their life. Having already had this in mind, I was glad when I heard the kids were planning this visit and we could join in.

Isabella did very well, as I knew she would. She is especially wonderful with babies and old people. She is very caring and has no reservations in reaching-out to others. She very quickly engaged in conversation, reaching out to hold someone's hand. She delighted the grandmas and grandpas there with her smiles and hugs and willingness to talk!

Liam was very reluctant, as I knew he would be. At first, he seemed completely resistant to the whole idea of going. I soon realized that he was anxious and a bit scared about it. On the way there, I assured him that he didn't have to say or do anything. He could just stick by me. That seemed to help him.

Liam warmed-up to the program when he saw a boy, who he knows and is a couple of years older than him, very enthusiastically visiting with the residents of the home. He asked Liam to come and meet one of his friends (a very sweet old woman he knew there). Liam wanted to tag along with this boy.

Isabella and I were engaged in conversation with a very nice woman named Irene, when Liam came to me and asked if he could go with the group to another wing of the home. I heard that they were going to visit the Alzheimer's wing. I didn't think it'd be a good idea for him since he had been anxious about the whole visit to start with. One of my friends in the group said she'd watch him when he said to me that he really wanted to go (after I mentioned to him that he might not feel comfortable and maybe shouldn't go). I agreed to let him go since he was so enthusiastic.

He came back a while later seeming very happy and content in participating. I was relieved. He had had such a big change of heart! I was proud of him.

We plan to return to visit the people we have met during our first visit. I am definite that a couple of people Isabella and I talked with will not remember us when we return. I know that some of them will though. And even if they don't, if we can bring some moments of companionship and love to someone, we will have done what we set-out to do.

Some Recent Photos

Busy with her babies!


Daisy & Pepper

Narrows Bridge - Gig Harbor to Tacoma

"Galloping Gertie" - 1940

As a 7th grader in Southern California, I once saw an old film in our school library about a bridge that buckled, twisted and fell to pieces in the wind over the waters of the Puget Sound. Its nickname was, "Galloping Gertie." A second bridge was built to take its place, which stands today, the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. Little did I know at the time, that I'd soon be living in Gig Harbor, Washington, and using that bridge all the time!

We were in Washington State during a large portion of the construction of a second Narrows Bridge (that runs parallel to the other bridge)to accomodate the growing traffic flow between the Peninsula and Tacoma. We watched with fascination the process of this huge bridge being built. It was the largest construction project happening in the United States. It was a painful process for the community with gridlock, long-delays and constant changing of lane configurations. Today, the bridge is opening. We know lots of people who are attending the opening ceremonies. Although we're not there to see it, we can get a glimpse of it on live webcam!

(Click on the post title for link to the webcam.)

The fish are looking happy!

I'm sitting here watching the four remaining (yes there were five - one departed last night) fish enjoying their evening feed. I'm happy to see that Onion and his (or her) friends have the energy once again to swim to the top and chase the flakes around. Liam named the little black bubble eyed fish "Onion." (I don't know why he did, but it is a cute name for him.) I took a trip to the fish store, bought new filters, and an aeration rock and a pH tester. I think we're good now. Hopefully! Probably nobody cares about any of this, but for me, I was glad to see the little guys doing well again.

We went to a beach BBQ/baptism today. We took our neighbor and her foster daughter. The kids had a great time with her. The party continued back at our house in the new kiddie pool out back. All kids were exhausted by the end of the day.

Today was a blur...

Woke-up with a lovely migraine. What a way to start the day. The kids were stir-crazy having to stay inside with me, their cranky mother, all day long. Took some strong migraine meds. and the worst of it was over about an hour later. Still, the medication made me feel groggy. I didn't have much success at anything today. I feel sorry for my kids as I wasn't in the greatest of moods. Tomorrow's a new day.

Edil went to Costco yesterday to pick-up the new computer (exchange). I haven't even had a chance to take it out of the box yet. Today wasn't the right day with my head hurting. Also, the computer guy has to put all of our software onto the new computer. He's away due to a family emergency. At least I have a so-so computer to use until we finally get onto the new one!

I saved our fish today. They were looking very lethargic (we have 5 of various goldfish varieties in a 5 gallon tank). A couple of them were looking blue just hanging-out near the top of the tank. I replenished their water supply with some fresh H2O. They have all perked-up. I also took out some rotting plants. I'm sure that helped things out in there!

What I'd like to do in heaven

surf with the dolphins...




Woohoo!

The Computer Verdict at Costco

I'm thrilled to say that everything went well at Costco. They were very helpful, no detailed questions, gave me a full refund, and even got on the phone to find the nearest Costco that carries the computer we want to exchange (unfortunately, they didn't carry them there). They were, in every way, very helpful! The Costco we need to go to now is 40 minutes further north from the Costco we were at (which is about an hour from our house). A bit inconvenient, but best option compared to any other options of getting another computer. We are going there tomorrow to buy it! Thanks again, M & M.

The Jig for Monday

It's the end of the day here and I thought I'd just jot down some very random thoughts from the day.

To all you from our church who read this blog...just want you to know that we pray for you and especially for the prayer requests that come through via e-mail.

Didn't make it to Costco today to exchange the new computer because the computer guy brought the computer here (the one to be exchanged) after lunch and I wasn't able to go in the afternoon. Hopefully I'll get there tomorrow. I'll let you know how it goes!

Had an emotional moment this afternoon when I showed photographs to my kids from a friend's website of starving children in Africa. There were a couple of very shocking and graphic photos that got the kids asking a lot of questions. They seemed stunned and shocked and wanted more information. They've seen kids who are extremely needy whom we've worked with in the past, but of course, the photos of the children in Africa are hard to comprehend. Instantly it puts things in perspective.

Edilberto and I are really missing our friends, so please drop us a line when you can!!!

Technophobia

As much as I am amazed, in awe of, and thankful for technology that has gotten me back into touch with so many people from the past, helps me keep updated on dear ones around the world, and gives us a normally convenient and fun way to keep people updated on our lives, I am equally frustrated with it sometimes.

What frustrates me is, like everything else, the market is driven by demand; which in itself is fine. However, it seems that companies aren't happy with the natural demand that there is and will be. Companies have to create an over-the-top demand by building things to break, forcing the consumer to have to replace things much too soon after they've already spent a small fortune on something.

I recently saw a news story about a man who had a light bulb that was passed down to him by his grandfather. It was dozens of years old, but still worked. He didn't have any heirs to pass it down to, so he donated it to a museum. They certainly don't make light bulbs like they used to in his grandfather's time (Note to museum curator: Please be careful not to drop it!)

Likewise, when computers (particularly laptops/notebooks) came out, it seemed the hardware lasted for a very long time, outliving software technology and the demands for the hardware to run more quickly and with more memory, and therefore, having to be replaced or upgraded. Nowadays though, the hardware of computers are obviously made to break down much more rapidly. It seems also that sometimes, in making them so delicate, they don't even last through the process of delivery to the store and come to the consumer already defective because of some slight nudge they suffered en route.

I have heard that iPods were made to last for 2-3 years. Batteries too are another obvious example of being more and more expensive, but having shorter and shorter life spans. My brother-in-law used to work for a battery company and confirmed this plot to be true.

I wonder: How do we stop being at the mercy of companies who are becoming increasingly greedy with all the technological advances? (Which are hard enough to keep up with, and sometimes altogether impossible to do so with when your investment soon becomes obsolete. - Which is another thing that happens much faster than ever before.)

Maybe I've hit middle age when one starts to no longer have the stamina to keep-up with the ever changing technological landscape. I'm not at the place of throwing my hands up from the keyboard though and going back to the old fashioned letter writing. As much as I love letter writing and think that it is very charming and personal, I'm afraid my hand would have to do a lot of training to get back into shape for holding a pen.

Does this bother anybody else? It's really bothered me lately to think about all of this, especially in light of all the strange, never seen before flaws on different computers I've been using lately.

The Way I Feel About Machines Lately

Cartoon by Dave Walker. Find more cartoons you can freely re-use on your blog at We Blog Cartoons.

Friday

Well, a very nice man brought his computer guy over to our house today and they took away our new computer to get all of the software backed-up. We're trying this route, taking it back to Costco to exchange for a new one and putting our software back onto the new one. If Costco won't exchange it, we'll probably send it back to our friend who gave it to us for him to exchange. Or, send it to the company to get it fixed. The fastest way is for us to exchange it here, so hopefully, that will happen. We're getting it back on Monday from the guy who's backing it up, so hopefully we'll try and exchange it at Costco then. I'll let you know what happens!

I have to give this computer back on Sunday (the one I'm on now) to our friend who loaned it to us.

We had a good 4th of July. We were with our next door neighbors. We did get rained-out of our BBQ though. Our kids and the neighbor's two young boys had only been in the kiddie pool for about 20 minutes, when the lightening started. So we moved the party indoors at their house. We had some other friends come over as well. In the evening, we did fireworks since the rain had finally stopped. Later, some other neighbors came over to do sparklers with us. We watched the panoramic display of fireworks flying over the entire neighborhood! It was a fun time just hanging-out with everybody.

Update: No dead bodies in the backyard to report about. (See previous post). Liam saw me looking out the back window the other day and joked, "Any dead ladies out there today, Mom?" He got me laughing. I guess that's now our sick joke.

Our Backyard

It can sometimes be interesting living with a university (in a large building) right behind our house. The building itself is in the distance, but the unpaved parking lot extends to the edge of our property (and it's not usually full enough for the cars to reach near our place).

Today they had some kind of Fourth of July BBQ for the students. There was a two-story building sized blow-up of a Florida Marlins baseball player and the Florida Marlins van. There were games, music and food. It’s 2 p.m. and the party has already been packed-up. The kids liked seeing the gigantic baseball player from the back window, but he’s been deflated now.

About a month ago, we had a horrendous rain storm with nerve-wracking lightening strikes all around. The storm passed and a couple of hours later, Liam came to me and said that something terrible was happening in the parking lot and that maybe I should go to the window and see. I looked out and saw two people who seemed like detectives with clipboards walking around a woman's dead body.

I unglued my children from the window (Isabella was especially curious). I'd seen scenes like this before in my life, but the children didn’t need to be exposed to this. I told them to go and play in another room. I made sure the blinds were drawn so they wouldn't be able to keep watching. Isabella came to me with lots of questions. I just answered her honestly that someone had died and I didn't know how.

The two people near the woman had measuring tape and were measuring around the scene, taking detailed photographs of an SUV near the woman. The SUV's driver's door was wide-up. She was lying on the ground several feet away. There were rain puddles all around. I wondered if she'd been struck by lightening in that storm. I wondered if she'd be hit by the SUV. I saw no other police people around, and didn't see anyone else coming to the scene.

Oddly, some of the university students were arriving in their cars, parking in another area, but not even taking a second look at the scene they were slowly driving by. Also, a man from our neighborhood walked out there to find out what was going on. On returning to the neighborhood, I noticed he was laughing and wondered why in the world someone would be laughing walking away from a scene like that.

About an hour went by and nothing seemed to change outside. The two detectives were walking around the scene continuing their investigation. But there were no other officials arriving to the scene.

I saw one of my neighbors from two houses down sitting out in front of her house. I wandered over across the lawns to ask her if she knew what was going on in back. She didn't. I told her there was a "dead body" out there. She just looked-up and said, "Oh, that's not a body, it's a dummy. They do that all the time out there. They're just students." I remembered seeing a brochure advertising the university and the mention of forensics investigation training. Oh my goodness....I was relieved and embarrassed that I'd been "had" for so long! I have had dramatic EMT training with dummies before, but it didn't even occur to me that this was the case. I quickly told the kids about what was going on. And I made sure that they saw them when they carried the poor red haired lady life-sized doll back to their building tossed with head bobbing over their shoulder! We all had a good laugh.

Daisy and the Lizard

This evening, the kids were out near the front door of our home. Daisy, the calico cat, was giving one of her big loud "MEOWs" that let us know she's brought us a "present." Isabella came running in to me and informed me of the dead lizard Daisy was showing them that she'd gotten. Only, the dead lizard got up and started walking away. Apparently, Isabella informed me, "Daisy was only joking with us that it was dead!" I love Isabella's take on things!

I need a crash-course on fine arts and antiquities. When we get a donation of valuable items, we try and research them to know their worth. I find it very interesting to learn the history of these items. Recently, an elderly woman, who appears to have been originally from New York, passed-away. Edil was called by the retirement home to come and take away whatever was left there. There were several signed and numbered lithographs, some beautiful sculpture table lamps (which are worth quite a bit it seems), some furniture, and even some black and white photographs from this woman's life, including photos of her and her husband and who I guess were her sons. There were pictures from vacations, cruises, golf games, times together with people who seemed close to one another. I find it very sad that there seems to be no family members nearby who cared about these things (esp. the photographs). There was an address book that made me think of perhaps calling people with her same last name and seeing if there is anyone who cared about having these things. But then it seems that they'd have known of her passing and would have been here to help her or at least, to collect her belongings. Or they'd have been passed-on to them already. One wonders if she was disconnected from them for a reason. It's hard to know what to do with her photographs. I suppose we'll put them in a shoebox and have them stored for some time in the store to see if anyone will claim them in the future.

Interestingly, one of the artists, who is well known from what I've researched, has the same last name as this woman. I wonder if they were related.