Rain's a comin' - or so the weather guessers say!

Tucson

So, our local weather guessers are saying we will be getting the rain tomorrow that has drowned California for the last few days. Uh Huh! I want the weather guessers job! What other job can you be wrong 99% of the time and get paid good money for it? First, we were suppose to get rain on Thursday, but it "stalled"; so then today..so far nothing - now it is supposed to be Sunday. We shall see! Just to be on the safe side I am taking the dogs for a walk today...nothing worse than sopping wet, smelly dogs!

Our son,Ric walked the 60 mile cancer walk in Seattle last year. Well, this year he has some company in the walk. Jennifer and Sherrie have both signed up to walk and both of them are in training! They walked 6 miles last Saturday and have walked at least 2 miles a day, regardless of the weather during the week and are doing another 6 mile walk today. GOOD FOR THEM! We are really proud of their dedication.

One of the reasons we love Arizona:





I love our sunsets!

Friends Rod and Cheryl Grahek were in town a week or so ago and we met them for dinner at Pinnacle Peak Steakhouse. Rod is our son-in-law Dan, father. We had a short visit with them and a great steak!


Rod and Cheryl Grahek

This has been a fairly quiet week--at least for me. I FINALLY got all of our last cruise pictures printed! YEAH! Now I am busy putting them in a scrapbook. I am so far behind on printing pictures -- I think I am two years behind. My goal it to get caught up this year...

I also signed up for a couple of quilting classes at our local quilt shop. I got a gift certificate for the shop for Christmas, so I am putting it to good use. I still have two baby quilts I want to get done, plus a ton of other projects! Life isn't dull and I am not bored! Some days I want to retire..oh, wait, I AM RETIRED! Hmmmmm

Birthday Party; Javelina's and other nonsense!

Tucson
Jan 22, 2008

Last Sunday was Al's Cousin's birthday...now, let me explain "cousin". Al and Gary were raised together as brothers...however, they are really cousins. Now, after saying that, Gary is probably one of the nicest men I know and I love him like a brother as well. And his wife Jeannette and I are best friends, so we weren't going to let Gary slide and not celebrate his birthday. He has always wanted to go somewhere where he could throw peanut shells on the floor...of course you can't do that at home (at least not at our homes!) so we decided to take him to the Texas Roadhouse for dinner! What a great idea. Bruce, HOlly, Cortney; Al & I; plus Bob Grabow (they went to school together) and my brother Dick all went. This place rocked! Gary even got to play cowboy and had to ride the "saw horse" saddle and all for his birthday! Take a look at the pictures:

Make a scrapbook - it's easy!

In other news, we have been in the middle of a Javelina party...every night we have had the pesky visitors, sometimes as many as 10 try and eat our bird block seed. So Beau and Schuster have to bark and I go out and chase the critters off! ENOUGH!

I am still struggling with my computer, but I think I am getting the hang of it. I did buy the book "Vista for Dummies" and I am hoping it will help!

So, until next time...enjoy January! We are....it was 70 today..how was it at your house?

Testing....

This is a test to see if I can publish photos from Photoshop.

Make a scrapbook - it's easy!

Let's put a dog in office

I just recieved this--I don't know who wrote it but I sure agree with it. Beau or Schuster would be great canidates!

Now that the 2008 election campaign has officially begun, I'd like to publicly endorse the one candidate I believe has the character to be president: my dog.
My dog has never told a lie. When he gets into the trash can, he meets me at the front door with such a guilty expression that I half expect to discover he has eaten the neighbors. He follows me into the kitchen with his head down, blinking and wincing when I see the mess.
"Did you do this?" I demand. Yes, his expression replies. I did it. I am a bad, bad dog. And that's it; he doesn't try to spin the story (some studies suggest coffee grounds are actually good for the carpet!) or dull the impact (mistakes were made) or shift the blame (I have asked for the cat's resignation).
He faces me in humble misery: The trash can was just too tempting. He made an error in judgment. Isn't this what we want from our leaders, the ability to admit they made an error without piling on a lot of excuses?
And if protecting the citizens of this country from enemies is the No. 1 job of the president, then I can promise you my dog will faithfully execute the task, so long as the enemies are squirrels.
In fact, I can personally attest that in fulfillment of his duties, my dog is more than willing to knock over lamps and grandmothers and will plunge headlong through a closed screen door, so eager is he to protect us from all squirrels foreign and domestic. He'll also sit at the foot of the tree and bark for, oh, seven hours, if you let him. Honestly, can you see Hillary Clinton doing any of this?
Diplomacy is crucial in this dangerous world of ours, and my dog can make friends with anyone. A man could walk into my house carrying a saber and my dog would try to leap up and lick his face. If the intruder got down on his hands and knees to steal my stereo, my dog would joyously embrace him and simulate making love to him. You think when foreign leaders arrive at Camp David that Rudy Giuliani is going to be as friendly?
My dog does not waver from his positions, which are usually on the floor, begging or taking a nap. In fact, he can go all day without changing his position, to the point that I sometimes go over to see if he's still breathing. He does not waffle on the issues, he eats the waffle, often right out of the trash can. (Yes, I am a bad, bad dog.)
So consistent and reliable is he that even after more than 1,000 nights of being told he cannot sleep on the bed with me, he still cautiously puts a paw on the mattress and starts to slide up onto the blankets when I lie down, thinking that maybe this time things will be different. I believe such consistency is a real plus in a world leader.
And don't we want the president of the United States to be optimistic? No matter how great things are, my dog always assumes that if we go someplace else, they'll be even better. You think John McCain ever says, "Yes, I want to go for a car ride! I do! Yes! I do! I do! Yes! Yes! Yes!"?
With so many things going on in the world today, it is easy for a world leader to lose focus.
I defy any of the presidential candidates to pay attention to a given situation the way my dog can concentrate on me eating dinner.
With an unblinking, almost scary stare, he'll watch every forkful of food making the trip to my mouth, ready to lunge at the slightest hint that I might be dropping something edible on the floor. In the past, we've had presidents who have seemed to be, well, a little distracted. I promise you, make a dog biscuit part of the equation and my canine will pay attention until the end of time.
So this election, let's put a dog into office.
It wouldn't be the first time.

BEAU FOR PRESIDENT!

SCHUSTER FOR VICE PRESIDENT!

Vista and I are NOT getting along

Tucson
Jan 19, 2008

Windows Vista and I are definetly NOT getting along! I am having one heck of a time getting used to it and worse yet, it won't run my picture scrapbooking software! OH HELL! Now what am I suppose to do? I tried an on-line scrapbook but couldn't figure out how to use it; tried loading my new Adobe Photoshop and HATED it-- so what am I suppose to do? WAH...I want to throw a temper tantrum! I have tried to go to Microsoft webpage and see if there is help there, but so far no luck. Yes, I think I will throw a tantrum! DAMNIT! I have only two days of our cruise done and printed....I have lots more to do and no way to do it. I want XP back. Who thought Vista was going to be so damn great? Just who do I yell at??????

And on top of that, it is cold here. Yes, I am cranky today...it's my turn. NOTHING has gone right today...I'm cold, my software won't work and did I mention I am cold? I see the sun out there, but it sure as hell isn't doing it's job today either. I have a feeling I am coming down with something...crabbiness! Is that a sickness? Well, if it is, I have it. Damn vista...

New Computer and Keyboard....arg!

Tucson

Jan 14,2008



Okay, first a disclaimer! I will take no responsibility for any typo's in this blog! I am working from a new keyboard and I think they have moved some of the keys around!



My old computer was sssssssssooooooooooooo slow and so we (well, I, since Al has no idea what to do with a computer anymore) decided it was time to replace our old Dell with a new model. I ordered it and it arrived last week. But first I had to get everything off the old computer...so with memory stick's in hand, I proceeded to take everything that I needed off the old computer. IT TOOK ME TWO DAYS! NO WONDER THE $%^&*(*#@ THING WAS SLOW! But I regress....finally, I got the new one hooked up. However, is has Windows Vista on it, and it is a lot different than XP. First of all, I had to figure out how to turn off said computer, since they changed everything! GRRR. Finally, I got it all hooked up except for my ergonomic keyboard. Hmmm....it seems as if my old keyboard was uncompatable with the new computer! No surprise there, right? So for two days I used the standard keyboard that came with the computer and HATED it. Why are these keys so close together??? Today, armed with my trusty coupon for $ off I headed to Best Buy to buy a Microsoft Ergonomic Keyboard! My, have these changed over the last 10 years. After deciding on one, I made my purchase and came home to install it. Now, I have to tell you, Vista DOES NOT agree with many things. Of course I had to download new software for said keyboard. FINALLY, I am up and running..however, like I said.....everything is different. I am sure I will love it (or not) once I get used to it. If only they would have put everything where I am used to it! :-(

Jan 15
I had to take a break yesterday...and yes, I am still having a hard timegetting used to this keyboard.

Today we had errands to run this morning and then met Seattle friends Glenn and Sande Rittenhouse for lunch here in Tucson. They are spending their winter in Casa Grande this year. It was good to see them and get caught up on each other. It had been way too long. They are such great people and we enjoy them tremendously.

I also took my brother to have his pacemaker checked today. I had never seen how that was done and it really is a simple procedure. He will probably have to have a new one installed this summer as his battery is running out of life. He is like the energizer bunny...he is wired for sound. Matter of fact, so it my other brother in Colorado...gee..I hope this gene stays with the MEN only in this family! So far my sister and I are escaping it.

Weather has been cool..and it is suppose to get to 28 tonight. Of course that is better than the 25 below that was Anchorage yesterday. BRRRRR

More later when something else exciting or not happens....

Friends, Family and Who was Aunt Alice?

Tucson

Jan 10

Happy Anniversary Ric and Janet!!!



I love it when my cousin Ted starts reading my Aunt Ruby's birthday book! I get a call every time with "who was??" I, then, in turn, (since I have no clue either!) call my sister, who is a wealth of information when it comes to this and she explains it all to me; which, I, in turn, call Ted back! Okay...have I totally lost you? Aunt Ruby, (my father's sister) and my mother kept "Birthday"Books in which was recorded births, deaths, marriages, etc. Those in themselves are are great treasure troves of information into our family history. But to decipher them sometimes can be challenging as to who is what and where and who belongs to whom. The Spaid Family Reunion is scheduled for the last week in February and the first week in March and one of the things that we want to do is go over these two books and see if we can put 2 and 2 together and at least come up with 3! OH, and who was Aunt Alice? She was my great grandfather's sister, or my grandmother's aunt, or my great-great aunt! (Still with me here?)And, as family lore goes, her daughter, Eleanor Hicks was a Broadway or movie star to some level. So, of course, I couldn't let well enough alone, I had to find out more and I "googled" her and here is what I came up with...Eleanor Hicks. Now, who knows if this is the correct one or not, but it makes for a good story!

In other happenings, I want you all to know I found a meat fork...actually I found two! The first was located at none other than my locale Ace Hardware store...you know, the store you go to when you cannot find what ever you are looking for in a big box store! They had one, lonely meat fork...and I snapped it up for my brother. Then, Al comes out with "we could use another one"--at which time I challenged him as to WHY? Of course, with Al if one is good, ten is better (it runs in his family...long story) so when I was in Bed, Bath and Beyond yesterday I found another meat fork...they had just gotten in a new supply! Seems as if they had a "run" on them right before Christmas...who'd thunk?

Yesterday I had the fortune to meet up with a long time friend Ginny Blaine for lunch. Ginny hails from Seattle and I hadn't seen her in way too long of a time. She was in Tucson for a meeting and we had the chance to catch up on nine years of each others lives in just over an hour and half! It was great to see her and she is such a neat lady, and lady is the very appropriate word for Ginny. She is a very successful business woman, wife, mother and friend and seems to keep them all balanced well. And on top of it, she is so darn cute! AND she doesn't seem to age. What gives??? It was her birthday yesterday and she wasn't going to tell me, but it slipped out, so I treated for lunch...after all, it is very rarely that I get to treat her anyway. It was fun and we vowed it wouldn't be so long in between times from now on. I hadn't realized how much I missed seeing her until I got together with her yesterday. It is reassuring to know long time friends are still there, even if you don't get together very often.



Ginny

Other than that, our lives have been pretty routine! We had dinner with the other Wraspir Cousin's on Tuesday and Bobbi and Neil were getting ready to hit the road and wander down Texas way. I have been busy still trying to put together our cruise pictures and it has gotten to the point that all the ruins we saw are beginning to look alike! It it wasn't for the date on the camera, I don't know if I could tell where in the heck we were! You know, this is a ruin and this is a ruin, but which ruin is this one? ARG!

Weather has been okay. Kinda' cool and windy at times and we did have some rain over the weekend, which was very needed.

So, until next time, hope this finds everyone happy and healthy and living life to the fullest.

Where have all the Meat Forks Gone?

Tucson
Jan. 5, 2008

Okay, I know that is a strange title for the first blog of the New Year, but it is a question my brother and I have been asking for the past week!

It seems as if NO ONE carries the old fashion meat forks any longer. You know the kind -- large metal fork at one end for "poking" meat and the handle made of plastic or wood. Can't find 'em! Nary a one and we have been to several stores! Bed, Bath and Beyond - nope; Linen's n Things - nope; all the grocery stores - nope; Kitchen shops - nope! What??? Are people afraid of them? Afraid they will be used as a lethal weapon? Have they been banned and someone didn't tell us????? Mine is as old as the hills and my brother keeps "eyeing" it -- I told him if it goes missing I know where he lives! We will continue our search next week with WalMart and Target. I have even stopped at the Golden Goose and several garage sales! No luck!

On to other topics! Our first week of the New Year has been busy as usual. On New Years Day we hosted the Arizona Wraspir Clan....Gary and Jeannette; Bobbi and Neil; Bruce, Holly and Cortney; as well as my brother for dinner. Al smoked two hams (small ones) and they were delicious...YUM! Everyone brought something as well -- we had a yummy spinach salad, creamed potatoes and pea's; and Jeannette brought her famous white cake with peanut butter frosting. We were all sufficiently stuffed!

On Thursday I went to help Bobbi and Neil move into their new 5th wheel. They traded their 2006 Sunnybrook for a 2008 Montana. Nice coach! I am just glad it is them breaking in a new rig...ugh! Jeannette cooked a spaghetti dinner for us that night along with a huckleberry pie. Again...sufficiently stuffed. Must be the theme for this year? I hope not!

Other than that I have been lazy this week. I have just finished Khalen Hosseini's book "The Kite Runner" and I highly recommend it. Very good book even though it does raise a lot of questions in my mind. Now I am starting on his second book "A Thousand Splendid Suns".

And, I have been working on my cruise pictures. Unfortunately, my camera wasn't working well and I lost a lot of my pictures; fortunately, Jack took just about as many if not more than I did so he gave me a copy of his. I want to get them printed and scrap booked before I forget what they are and where they are!

Our weather was beautiful this last week...until today. Now we have rain coming in and it is very windy right now. We can use the rain however!

Hope this first week of the new year has been good to you all. We really enjoyed the letters and cards we got over Christmas from a lot of you. It is so fun to catch up with people! Too bad most of us only do it once a year! Oh well, it is good to hear from you all.

And with that I will close this first blog.....if you see any meat forks in your wanderings, let me know where! :-)