Stargazer

Halloweeny

I have to express my surprise (what has happened?) that Halloween has become such a popular and trendy holiday. Back in the day, it was only we parents who concerned ourselves with costumes, candy and a bit or a lot of decorating. Halloween was a blip on the way to Thanksgiving Christmas. Now it's Big Business! Does that explain it? The Almighty Dollar as my late father used to say. John's neighbor, whose children are grown-up and not living with him, has a 12-foot skeleton in his yard, as well as hundreds if not thousands of dollars' worth of decorations. I am nonplussed. In my minimal way though, I've been putting out a few things...

You can see that I'm much more into pumpkins and fall than I am goblins and witches. Or skeletons. 

My favorite decoration is this very realistic looking black cat. :)

She doesn't care about Halloween although she loves fall weather and the mornings in front of the fire. 

My Halloween houses arrived, and I like them except for the dearth of black cats. 

I think there is only this one mangled looking one. Mari would be appalled if she were to notice. 

We're not known for fall colors here, but the ornamental maples on my street are turning a glorious red. 

Along my walk though, yellow is the predominant color.

Tiny One looks cozy in this photo; however, I doubt that things are going well between his parents or with his mother. Call it mother's instinct. Is it petty for me to wonder why the father's parents were SO excited about the baby coming, insisted upon giving Younger Daughter a splashy and expensive shower, bought a zillion clothes for TO, then disappeared? They have visited ONE TIME since TO came home from the hospital and never offer any help to the new parents. Thankfully, TO's father has stepped up and is doing the best he can to be there for his child. I don't know how long it will last or how much he's willing to do, but at least he's present. And so am I. 

 

October

One of the important questions of life is when to "go with the flow" if the current is out of your control, and when to swim against it. I haven't quite figured that out yet. Sometimes you have to fight the water's pull, other times it's better to float. Either way you could drown, literally or metaphorically. On another note, I'm not surprised that this Mountain Man of Alaska has won beard competitions, but I wouldn't have imagined him as a nurse in an Anchorage Covid unit!

Fall means the return of the hideous (but warm) yellow coat. When it looks beautifully sunny outside, I assume that I can wear short sleeves and a vest; however, several times on my walk, I've turned around to fetch this jacket. Last night it was 41 degrees. Brrrr. 

Chillier temperatures create the beauty of the leaves, right? I'm thankful for that. My big news is that I've made a terrifying exciting commitment for this month. John invited me to head to Eastern Oregon to see the eclipse in his camper--4 days away from mom care, the attention-loving cat, Younger Daughter's drama, and my house and lawn. Will John and I get along in cramped quarters for that long? How will I survive camping off the grid, using his tiny camper shower? Note: John and I have never spent that much time together and this trip would mean VERY closely together. Frankly, I don't care that much about the eclipse, but John does; as for me, I'm tempted by the adventure although Eastern Oregon is not at all scenic. I also think that John wants to give his new tires a try-out: with a 10% discount, they were still over $2,100. His old ones were mud tires and very old (probably original to the truck); they're why he called the pick up "The Great White Toboggan" when the weather was snowy. :)

Before she went quiet (never a good sign), Younger Daughter and I got together to watch the first episode of the new season of the Great British Bake Off. Watching others bake and decorate cakes/cookies is a comfort ritual for me. Am I tempted to replicate their dishes? Heck, no! I did tell John I would bring my homemade chili to our camping trip though; now I have to remember how to make it.(no recipe) I'm also wondering about the wisdom of chili in a small camper. Hmmm. 

Tiny One is starting to fit into his 0-3 months clothing! That's a positive. From holding him, I estimate that he's in the 8-pound range these days. 

When the weather is nice, this family doesn't waste it inside. In spite of mouth sores and spots, the Littles appear happy and energetic. I'm hoping to see them again soon for snuggles and fun! 

 

Photo Test Post

Typepad says that the photo editing tool is fixed, and it seemed to work in a test yesterday, but we shall see. Have I become a bit cynical over the years? I prefer to call myself realistic. 

Yesterday I posted beautiful pictures of my older daughter's wedding five years ago on this date. Today I'm showing you that, in spite of their incredible couple's dance, there was a moment when son-in-law dropped my daughter on the floor. In an excellent sign for the future of their marriage, they both howled with laughter. 

My daughter, lover of dancing, danced with her young cousin and many others.

Since her own father was dead, the Father-Daughter dance included: two of my late husband's best friends, my brother, her grandfather (my dad) and her father-in-law. (pictured) During that song, I was a messy, emotional wreck! 

The day after the wedding was my dad's 90th birthday; I don't know why he wasn't smiling because he loved family parties. Perhaps he didn't want to drink the celebratory beverage provided by the restaurant? He wasn't much of a drinker. By the way, this photo went in upside down, but I could flip it with Typepad's photo editor. Woo hoo! 

Five years and a little over a month ago I met John; this was his first family outing with us, including Son-in-Law's parents from Iowa. In spite of the craziness, he's stuck around ever since. I chose not to invite him to Older Daughter's wedding since he wouldn't have known anyone, plus I was going to be busy most of the day. 

Yesterday meant time with Tiny One, more appropriately Chubby One. I don't know if you can tell how blue his eyes are. He's a cutie! (but needs more hair)

My late husband's friend has been re-painting the outside of my rental house where Younger Daughter lives. It's looking great! Next, he'll replace the rotting porch. This house also has a new roof, fresh interior paint, and completely re-done interior flooring. If anyone wonders where my money has been going...

My updated Ancestry ethnicity was a bit of a shock. How many times did I tell my students that no, I wasn't French, but was Italian on my mom's side. The fact is that my mom's mother's family lived right by the French border and evidently, although culturally Italian, were actually of French ancestry. C'est cool, n'est-ce pas? 

Why Not?

I was having coffee with a friend (an overpriced and not-warm-enough mocha at the Evil Empire) and was discussing my late mother-in-law and her collection of "goodies." Although not a hoarder, she was definitely a collector; going through her (our) house after she died was a nightmare. I mentioned to my friend that the only item I wanted was her Halloween house with multi-colored lights; for some reason I was entranced by it. Although I don't decorate much for Halloween these days, I enjoy putting out pumpkin placemats and towels, as well as other fall things. Nothing scary since I have an unfriendly black cat as my main decoration! Unfortunately, that Halloween house eventually died (the wiring) and my late husband told me that it would be nearly impossible to fix. Translation: A lot of work. What my friend asked me was this: Why don't you just go on-line and buy another Halloween house? And I thought: DUH, WHY NOT? I could lie and say that my grandsons will love it (them, I bought three), but in truth, I bought them for myself. 

Three tries to insert this photo, but who's counting? Sigh.

Better-this photo went in on the second attempt. The Littles are adorable, even with hand, foot and mouth disease (not to be confused with hoof and mouth disease--which is for bovines). The boys are cheerful and generally feel OK in spite of spots and mouth sores. Poor sweet guys! 

First try! Tomorrow is this lovely couple's fifth wedding anniversary; their wedding was a blast for everyone--such wonderful memories. They did an amazing dance too; you can see my expression of shock at their moves, which I don't possess. :)  I was supposed to babysit tomorrow evening so they could have a date; however, this anniversary will be known as the Hand, Foot and Mouth Anniversary instead of the traditional wood or silverware one. That's the way it goes with kids. Making plans is tricky. 

One of the dearest moments from the reception was when Older Daughter presented my parents with her bouquet of hydrangeas (from their yard); my wonderful late father's birthday was/is the day after their wedding. This Saturday he would have been 95. Oh, how I miss his gentle humor, his intelligence, his kindness and especially his love for me. 

Typebad

I don't know if it was a typo or deliberate but thank you to Luftmentsch for the excellent (and appropriate) post title! The issues continue...major readers like Feedly appear to be fixed. However, blog crawlers like those used by Blogger and WordPress are non-operational even with multiple attempts at a variety of URLs. I've found it fascinating to see who still visits, who has checked in to make sure I'm OK and who is encouraging me to keep blogging. I was touched when a reader commented that I'm part of her morning routine; my first thought was: WHY? I feel like the slices of life, ranting, and drivel I post are only interesting to me. The fact is that I'll always be at Typepad because that's where twenty years of my past archives exist. I would hate to lose those posts, but Typepad seems fragile at the moment. If I have to move on, I'm leaning toward WordPress although I absolutely hate that Blogger and WP require accounts. There may be a way to bypass that, but I've never figured it out. I myself have had great difficulty commenting on either site if I forget my password to my accounts. (not that THAT ever happens-LOL) Anyway, enough of this blather and on to more posting about what Margaret does in rainy weather. (yawn) I'm also testing photo insertion, so if you see any sideways ones, you will have to imagine my frustration and swear words!

John's photo of the bears at the zoo went in OK although it took me two tries.

Nope, my vertical picture looked sideways and went in that way. So I went into my phone's editor, turned the picture sideways and put it in that way; guess what? It's STILL sideways! Can I swear yet? Although many friends like my messy hair, rain and wind mean that every day is a horrible hair day. But I walk anyway. 

Why I don't walk in the wind: not too long after I came by here, a huge windstorm came roaring through. On my way home, I spotted this killer limb that would have injured or killed me. The problem is that I had no idea those gusts would happen. Weather in the Pacific Northwest is notoriously unpredictable!

Both Littles are home with hand, foot and mouth disease. It looks yucky but they seem to be handling it OK. I would love to help out except that it's highly contagious and miserable for adults. I feel powerless in the situation! Wahhhh! Little Guy is enjoying the digger across the street; I wish I could be there to keep him company. 

This adorable picture of Littler Guy with Dad turned out fine; it's not from my phone though. Hmmm, is that part of the issue? If so, what do I do about it? (and typebad's editing tool still doesn't work like it's supposed to)

Three tries to insert it, still sideways and !@#$%*&. My sweet Tiny One is not quite as tiny and sleeps very well cuddled up on Granny. Not so well in his crib, unfortunately. Today is Book Club which randomly ended up at my house with only three people attending. It seems kind of pointless sometimes. Is Book Club falling apart too? Sigh. 

 

 

 

 

Dysfunction Junction

From the tech perspective it appears that Typepad has fixed the RSS feed problem unless my own reader is lying. Wow, the broken feed has lasted way longer than I thought! Those who continued to visit deserve some sort of medal. My deepest thanks for wondering where in the world I disappeared to. I'm here and haven't gone anywhere...yet. However, I'm still getting comfortable with Blogger and now WordPress because who knows how long Typepad will be around. I would prefer to blog here where my archives are, but that might not be possible. At least I'm starting to feel somewhat confident that this old dog can learn new tricks. :) As far as family goes, every day is up and down, sometimes OK but with many concerns about how Younger Daughter and boyfriend are coping. There are overriding worries about how Tiny One is developing; what in the world is "normal" for a two month preemie? Also I found out today that a lovely 30 something French teacher with two young children whom I very much like and admire has bone cancer that has spread to her brain. And I think--What in the actual you-know-what? The universe can be a cruel place, can't it? 

Although I'm mostly trying to capture the moments of my life on my blog, there is also this. 

Pictures on Typepad are obviously still FUBAR. As I've mentioned to several readers, the photo is fine in its original and looks perfect on the Typepad preview screen, but then ends up sideways or upside down with no way to flip it with the Typepad photo editing tool. I'm so fed up with "Image Proxy HTTP error." 

Tiny One enjoys sleeping on people, but not too long after going into his crib for a "nap," he is bright-eyed and bushy tailed. It's a problem especially at night. He is a sweet one though. 

Autumn has definitely arrived--the death of summer, light, leaves and decent weather. Yet it's probably my favorite season, by a whisker. I sleep best in the cooler temperatures; perhaps that affects my mood? Older Daughter and family plus John and I met for lunch at a small airport restaurant. Little Guy brought his toy plane and was SO excited to watch the planes take off and land. He still likes diggers and loves trains, but he's interested in planes too. Littler Guy is more fascinated with people; he looked over all the other customers and smiled big at them. Such a charmer! 

Our current atmospheric river (rain) means sweatshirt weather and lots of lousy hair days.

Yesterday John and I visited the local zoo with his younger daughter and family. My very favorite animals were the two new polar bears; they're young and still relatively small. They were SO playful, like two pups frolicking with each other. I could have watched them all day! Now before I get too annoyed by the sideways pictures, I'm off to WordPress to explore it a bit more. But I'm wondering how much frustration I can handle...Old dog, new tricks, woof woof! 

 

Fair Weather

Today is our last beautiful sunny day for the near future (rain, rain, rain), so John and I took a couple free tickets to the state fair and went off to "Do the Puyallup." 

Here we are (top) in 2019 and then in 2023 in about the same spot wearing nearly the same outfits. Are we kind of boring? Yes. Do we share many fun and interesting experiences? Also yes! Highlights for Fair 2023: trying out archery, eating some absolutely incredible and buttery scones (get them under the grandstand!), visiting the animals, watching a fabulous draft horse show, admiring the art and photography, oohing and ahhing over the flowers (dahlias!) and grange displays AND people watching. Oh, my, the people! 

There are so many varieties and colors. John prefers the more controlled and tight styles whereas I love the chaotic and spiky ones. We decided that our favorites match our personalities quite well. :)

We saw Clydesdales, Percherons, Belgians and even some Shetland ponies, learning about each type of horse and what they could do. It was impressive, truly awe-inspiring. Would I want to stand up close to these magnificent beasts though? Absolutely not. 

However, I did want a picture next to this scary creature! :)

John and I spent $7 on two scones while everything else we did was free. Just looking at food and Dizzy Pass(for rides) prices made us glad that we're elderly and not into wasting money on greasy hamburgers and deep-fried whatever or death defying/vomit inducing carnival rides. Oh, we also walked a long way to avoid paying for parking! 

We did! And yesterday for dinner at Older Daughter's we had a great day also. She prepared a Malagasy dish which she loved while in Madagascar and for which she grew paracress. Have you ever had it? I was freaked out...in a positive way! 

Of course, Typepad has now decided to insert my lovely golden sunset photo upside down, whether I start it out in the correct orientation or not. Trust me, it was even more gorgeous than this! In other news, Typepad is STILL not able to repair the feed issue or the photo insertion problem. Thus, I'm trying out Blogger and will eventually give Word Press a whirl. I'm so sick and tired of dealing with dysfunction, whether it's in my family OR with my blogging platform. 

 

 

Non-Hallmark

First, a confession: I've never watched a Hallmark movie, probably because I've read synopses of the corny plots, looked at the many not-so-famous actors in them, and rolled my eyes over the "happily ever after" themes. Secondly, what brought that to mind was our camping trip where we were in the middle of oyster country; that reminded me of the story of my close friend's sister who fell in love with an oysterman. She was and is a Seattleite who enjoys the pace, activities, culture and beauty of the Emerald City. In a Hallmark movie she (it's always the woman) would have given up her way of life to relocate to the supposedly quaint and picturesque small town of Oysterville. In real life, although he remained the love of her life and she never married, she realized that she couldn't be happy in that area. As John and I told each other, "This is a fabulous place to visit but we could never live here!"--for many reasons that I won't go into, ranging from politics to lack of enriching and interesting activities. Dive bars, yes? Lots of fisherman? Indeed. Love isn't always enough, is it? Besides Hallmark, teenagers have been "Twilighted" into believing that healthy relationships involve drama, excitement and constant romance. I had to explain to my daughter that NO, they are often mundane and boring--exciting guys often don't make the best partners, nor do vampires or werewolves. :) "50 Shades of Gray" romanticized abuse from what I've heard; I haven't read the book and don't intend to. In many people's view, well-reared children are mature at 18, make a few mistakes, yet then go on to lead exceptional and fulfilling lives. Actually, sometimes the mistakes are huge, the children don't learn and mature, and the parents end up feeling like utter failures, partly because of those Hallmark/Disney endings that we're trained to believe in. Finally, we're conditioned to expect that everything and everyone is fixable. That's not true. LIKE FUBAR TYPEPAD! 

It took me four tries to insert this picture and when I tried to flip it, I got an Image Proxy error. My Blackbeard's Brewing Company shirt was perfect for "Talk like a pirate day" yesterday, especially since I'm as grouchy as one at the moment. The back is even more impressive, but impossible to get a photo of. 

If you're stopping by, in spite of my lack of feed (arggghhh!) and wrong way photos (grrrr!) please know that I appreciate you very much. xoxo

Twenty Years

Although I do love blogging and would prefer to continue, the problems with Typepad have been disheartening and frustrating. I now hesitate to use any photos because I can't flip them to the correct orientation which bugs the CRAP out of me. Since I enjoy including pictures (much more interesting than my words!), it takes the heart out of me. Then there's the feed problem. My feed for readers no longer exists, so those who are using a reader don't realize that I've posted. I've never been one to care that much about the number of comments, but I do like a few! Typepad knows about these problems and I'm not alone, yet they don't appear to be rushing to fix them. Or they can't? The idea of moving to WordPress exhausts me; it would be a massive undertaking, probably unsuccessful due to the formatting and number of pictures. Plus, I'm totally unfamiliar with the WordPress platform and how to do anything. Perhaps this Typepad mess is a signal to give up blogging after twenty fabulous years and many lifelong friends made, some of whom won't ever see this post. Sigh. 

I have discovered that photos in a horizontal orientation are usually OK, although sometimes they're upside down. Little Guy got to attend our local fair where he petted goats at the petting zoo and ate part of an elephant ear. However, I think he had much more fun coming up to Gigi (great-grandma's) where he could play with Thomas trains with his 67-year-old buddy. (moi)

Tiny One is such a sweet guy but doesn't like to sleep at night--normal for newborns but tough for his mother. I've been helping as much as I can because his father has been mostly a no-show, being one of the most self-absorbed people on the planet. Although that's not a surprise, it's still a disappointment. 

Just in case of another awful performance by our Seattle Seahawks, John prepared this wonderful dinner. Afterward we had warm chocolate/walnut brownies with vanilla ice cream. He feeds me well, TOO WELL. And our football team ended up winning in overtime, thanks to the amazing Tyler Lockett. Note: this vertical photo is sideways in case you can't tell. 

And now, where I would normally add another picture but don't want the frustration of it, I bid you adieu. 

 

 

 

Nirvana

My post title is ideal on many levels. It's not only because our camping stay at Grayland was spectacular both activity and weather-wise, but also because the route there took us through Aberdeen, the home of Kurt Cobain and the birthplace of the band Nirvana. Is it too "punny" to say that Aberdeen is a grungy town? (because it truly is)

I was less than thrilled to see this sign when we pulled into the campground. The bear was last observed three weeks ago though; I'm sure it went off somewhere else, right? Right?? I would never have envisioned bears at the ocean beaches although where there are fish, there are probably bears. As John's friend and fellow camper K. accurately observed, "I'd much rather have a bear in camp than a cougar!" Sorry, Mari, but your huge relatives are nasty.

Speaking of fishing, nearby Westport had so many vessels which meant seals, sea lions and seagulls everywhere. There was the constant barking of the seals/sea lions and lots of action when the boats briefly left the harbor to dump their fish guts. All the animals raced to the spot; it was fun to watch their frenzy. More nirvana.

Of course, we walked the beach.

Although it's sideways (thanks a lot, Typepad!), I hope you can see how lovely it was--the sun, clouds, blue sky, waves and ripply sand. I sure wish that Typepad would fix this photo issue. Grrr.

When a few people asked me if I intended to surf, I laughed a lot! #1, the ocean is bitterly cold. #2, Washington isn't known for surfing #3, I don't like the salt water much, especially all over my face. However, there were actually many (guy) surfers out there in wet suits, riding the waves. Bizarre!

Sideways John was preparing his crab trap, hoping to get some Dungeness. 

No such luck, only red rock ones which he doesn't like; many of them were too small to keep anyway. We had an excellent time talking with the other crabbers on the pier: a group of soldiers rehabbing at the local military base, some guys who traveled many hours to get to Westport, and more experienced crabbers who advised John on technique, proper reels, lines and poles. At another place we visited (an oyster nursery), I chatted with a woman from Cleveland who was part of a birding tour. They were mostly from the Midwest and paid $4,500 to see birds that are native to Washington, most of which I'd never heard of. People were incredibly friendly, and I loved discovering their stories. 

We ate a delicious array of fresh fish among other culinary delights. It was a highlight to drop in to Blackbeard's for tasty brews which we drank outside in the 70-degree sunshine. I was entranced by this hydrangea; have you ever seen such a bright pink one?

Again with the nirvana theme! John and I stopped at the Olympia Farmers' Market where I decided to buy Mari a catnip treat. She doesn't like it much when I'm gone for days, thus depriving her of our lap time. I felt that she was owed a special present. It took her only 10 minutes of frenzied biting, licking, pulling, rolling, scratching and cavorting to tear this catnip treat apart, depositing soggy catnip all over the carpet. Welcome home, eh? ;)

Note: As well as the photo problems, my feed has disappeared even from my own reader which claims it doesn't exist. So...yet another help ticket into Typepad.