Chitchat

I 'pop in' when I get the chance. I've been really busy lately with out of town guests and my son and granddaughter were here. I'm also getting ready for a trip to Nova Scotia, Canada!

Oh you world travelers have the life!!

I am going nuts getting the house (inside and out) already for Eric's party tomorrow. I think we just might get it all done in time! I had the boys help me today but I cut them loose a couple hours ago so they could go hang with friends.

Sunday we go see my dad at rehab. Eric has a job interview Sunday morning at 9:00. Wish him luck! Collage and a job my baby all growed up.

Have a great trip Austin and Sky! Stay in touch.

I am here. For the life of me I just don't have anything interesting to report. Still kind of frantically looking for a $$ job. I got one last week for a couple of days doing some web work.

Sending you good vibes in your job search Frazz You don't need anything interesting to report! Just talk to us!

I miss you guys and worry about you when you don't write!

You are really a sweetheart FC, and I mean that sincerely.

Thank you.

Aw, so are you Austin :smooches:

FC.....I would love to be a world traveler. This will be the furthest I've been from home. I would love to travel everywhere, but until I win the lottery, I don't see that happening.

We had a great weather day yesterday for our city's annual Hydroplane race and Blue Angel Airshow over Lake Washington. The skyline you see is Bellevue, Wa. The view is from my Sister's house. Bill Gates mansion is located on the shore of this lake, you can't see it in these shots. The sky is a bit hazy from the smoke of the Blue Angels.

Gorgeous pix!! Thanks for sharing Sky!! Your sister is lucky to have such amazing views from her house!! Should I post pix of some of our beautiful cornfields?!

(yes, I am jealous of people who live in and by the mountains )

Lovely!

Yes, put up them cornfields, FC.

I'll take some pics of the garbage in the alley next to my place.

Frazz!

Actually, we have pretty views from the windows in our house and our neighborhood is very pretty, but driving from our neighborhood to the stores or my folks place and I am just on winding farm roads of cornfields and soybeans!! If I'm really lucky some of the farmers have their horses out roaming around! I joke about it, but I do love the farmlands more than when we lived in the big city. But let me tell ya, when we took our vacation to Colorado Springs a few years back, I completely fell in love with that town and the amazing views! Last year we spent time in Vermont and I LOVED it there too! I'd move to either place in a heartbeat if it were not for wanting to stay here for my folks and we didn't want to uproot the boys while in HS.

Here is the view from my back yard. It's not mountains or an ocean, but it does beat the cornfields!

It's a beautiful view! I would love to see some farmland and cornfields. I grew up in Minnesota..........I miss it sometimes.....but not the winters or the mosquitos in the summertime! I've been to Colorado Springs, it is gorgeous!!! I loved it there.

Thanks!

We had friends who lived in Hudson, WI. but worked in Minnesota, so when we visited we would go shopping and dining in Minnesota. Sadly, her husband died from Leukemia. She moved to Tennessee after that. We have never made the trip to Tennessee. She likes it a lot though. Anyway, they used to say that the winters started in October and ended in April!! I think that is why she moved. I love the farmlands in the states with rolling hills. So very beautiful. Some of our fellow Midwestern states have gorgeous hillsides. Illinois is just pretty darn flat.

FC, beautiful view!

I love Vermont...cold, cold, cold, but the beauty of the place in the winter is as close to heaven as I will ever get. Tall evergreens, purple mountains (yes they really do look purple), and pure white show. A horror to drive in, but so gorgeous.

My intention, when I am past 85, or as soon as it becomes obvious that I really do not have long to live, is to go to Vermont and armed with beer and pills, go off to sleep in a snow drift and freeze to death (apparently that is kind of a pleasant way to die, after the initial chill.)

Yes, Vermont is like Heaven on Earth! We were in Stowe and I wanted to just move in right then and there! I even bought a gorgeous coffeetable book of pictures of Vermont in all the seasons! I look at it often and dream of retiring there.

Sounds like a lovely way to go Frazz! But you have a long time before you will leave us!!

Oh, I secretly plan on not checking out until I am about 94 or even 104...but it really makes me feel peaceful to know that when the times comes, I have a plan I like.

104 sounds good to me!!

HOLY CRAP!! I just ordered my son's books for his first semester of college How can a math book be $125?? I think I should just go ahead and throw my credit card at the school

Oh, and forget half.com. First off, the prices were no where near half. Some of the sellers had lower approval ratings than I would trust and we didn't have two weeks to wait for delivery.

A quick "HI!" from New Mexico. No time to chat. : (

Pretty bad day getting up here. One problem after another. I was waiting for frogs to rain down on us next.

Oh goodness no!! Well, thanks for letting us know you got there safe and sound. Sorry you had some problems. You will have to tell us all about them. I hope tomorrow goes better!

OK ladies, RUN don't walk to the AI thread and watch the new close-up vid of Gina being proposed to by her boyfriend!! I dare you not to get all choked up! It is just the sweetest thing!!

I've seen it................ Very touching moment.......

Hi Sky!

When I saw that he put the ring on the pickle I thought that was just the cutest thing! She loves her little pickle!

Just got back from spending 5 hours at my son's College Freshman Orientation!! I was so freaking excited!! There is just something about your first born starting college that is so fulfilling!! All the speakers were great and a wonderful free luncheon afterwards!

Here is Eric in front of the new Science Building - which on the inside is amazing! It was just completed this summer and is state of the art. The labs and classrooms are wonderful. The whole campus is so beautiful!



Dickson Hall, one of the main halls.


Where he will start his day!


Another class here!


Another new building he has a class in!


There are more, but I bored you long enough!! Anyway, what a wonderful day! I am so proud of him!

Starting college! Cool!

Yes Frazz, it is so cool! The campus has 15 halls with 2 more under construction. A new beautiful auditorium and great cafeteria and little Grilles and a large new "gathering" building almost completed that will be for many extracurricular activities. There are set-ups for eating outside too. We are so incredibly lucky to have this college 2 miles from our home! I am so excited for Eric! The great thing about this transfer program he is in, is that he gets all the mandatory classes over in the first two years, gets his Associates Degree and than can go to Northern, Columbia or any of the other state schools for the last two years and take the courses that he really wants for his major. Getting the Associates Degree is such a good idea because that is something that can never be taken away from you. I have known people who started off at a 4 year University and for various reasons chose to quite before finishing and they have nothing. He is being so smart going this route, plus he doesn't get into any debt with college loans for the first two years.