Yes, we felt the earthquake! If you saw the map on the news, it showed the epicenter being in Gilberts and showed Sycamore and DeKalb. We are between Gilberts and Sycamore. It was enough to wake us out of a sound sleep. Both of us woke up and sat straight up. I thought another train derailed and was heading for the house. It was hard to go back to sleep after that.
We had nothing falling off the walls but we do have a few new cracks in the walls. Our house is so old there is no record of when it was built. There are pictures at the post office that shows the house being here in the 1910's. I doubt it would withstand a strong earthquake. One more reason to move to TX.....like the snow, cold and unemployment rate isn't enough!
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Monday, January 18, 2010
A week away!
We decided to drive out to San Antonio TX to visit friends that moved there and to get a break from the cold. We left Fri afternoon and got there Sat afternoon.
Sunday.... we went up to the Hill Country and stopped at a few shops where my friend bought a pink plaster flamingo for her patio. Not my taste, but she really liked this tacky flamingo and who am I to judge? Then we went into a local bar for a beer and met some real cowboys who actually rode into town on horseback. I wonder if you can get a DUI on horseback. Later we went for some TX BBQ and just enjoyed the good company of our friends playing ping pong the rest of the night.
Monday.... we headed to the Gulf coast and drove out on Padre Island. This picture shows IL road salt meeting TX sea salt.
It's hard to believe how the wild life just pose for pictures.
Sunday.... we went up to the Hill Country and stopped at a few shops where my friend bought a pink plaster flamingo for her patio. Not my taste, but she really liked this tacky flamingo and who am I to judge? Then we went into a local bar for a beer and met some real cowboys who actually rode into town on horseback. I wonder if you can get a DUI on horseback. Later we went for some TX BBQ and just enjoyed the good company of our friends playing ping pong the rest of the night.
Monday.... we headed to the Gulf coast and drove out on Padre Island. This picture shows IL road salt meeting TX sea salt.
It's hard to believe how the wild life just pose for pictures.
Tuesday.... we explored town and
we went for fresh seafood. I got my first taste of oysters on the half shell. I can say I tried it, I can't say I enjoyed it. The rest of the meal was real good. After dinner we played dice.
we went for fresh seafood. I got my first taste of oysters on the half shell. I can say I tried it, I can't say I enjoyed it. The rest of the meal was real good. After dinner we played dice.
Wednesday.... we took a drive up to the panhandle to check out the area. Not much for riding but the western area of the panhandle seems to be good weather year-round. The landscape is pretty flat and Baron, not much to offer for scenery. Looks like that is another place to check off our list of possible relocation areas. We are looking for the impossible, an area in TX that is not too humid or too hot, has work, and good riding. We have not found anything yet. The places we like are right in tornado alley and we get enough tornadoes here in IL, we're not looking to see more of them.
Thursday.... we actually washed my car and changed the oil. We had a good meal of crab bisque, bacon wrapped filet mignon, shrimp Dijon and twice baked potatoes that Amy fixed at home and then we played Yahtzee. Now all this game playing may seem boring to some but it's not at all boring in the company of good friends.
Friday comes and it's time to head home. We said our goodbye's and our I love you'
s, got our hugs and hit the road. On our way home we took the southern route through LA and stopped at the Bonnie & Clyde Museum in Gibsland. They have a stone to mark the death site. People came from miles around when it happened and tried to get souvenirs.......pieces of their clothing, locks of Bonnie's hair, parts off their car, some people actually tried to cut off one of Clyde's ears. How sick is that? The memorial stone at the site has been vandalized numerous times.
s, got our hugs and hit the road. On our way home we took the southern route through LA and stopped at the Bonnie & Clyde Museum in Gibsland. They have a stone to mark the death site. People came from miles around when it happened and tried to get souvenirs.......pieces of their clothing, locks of Bonnie's hair, parts off their car, some people actually tried to cut off one of Clyde's ears. How sick is that? The memorial stone at the site has been vandalized numerous times.
A little ways down the road we found a nice Cajun seafood place for dinner.
School starts again tomorrow so I'm sure I won't get much chance to do much blogging, so in the mean time I wish every one who reads this good things. Till next time....
Monday, January 4, 2010
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
1st decade of the century
2000: A year of firsts!
- January.....Just getting used to my new office and all the responsibilities that came with it.
- February.....My very 1st Harley
- March.....My 1st year at Daytona Bike week. The 1st time R ever rode Bitch. His bike broke down when we rode down to a little Island near St Petersburg to visit a friend. He started to get on the front and I said oh no, this is my bike, you ride bitch. He has a good sense of humor. He just scooted back and said, "looks like I get to drink!" I can't believe we both rode on that little bike the rest of the trip. After the first ride I took the bitch position.
- April..... I took a trip to Phoenix to make a victim impact statement at the sentencing of the scum that murdered my brother.
- June.....Bike trip to Pa. for R's family reunion and to ride the area. I was on my 1200 Sportster for this trip and at that time I was about 110 lbs. I got blown around allot. I was already wishing I had bought a bigger bike.
- August.....Skeet shooting.....and yes, I am a good shot.
- September.....Camping in Wisconsin.
- November.....New addition to our Harley Family, R decided his old Shovel just was not dependable for road trips any more and he took possession of a purple 2001 Dyna Wide Glide. And guys, before you even think it.....that purple bike is a chic magnet. Everywhere we go the women gather around it, ooooh...I like the purple one! I have to keep telling the women, NO, you can't have a ride!!!! Then they want to get pictures of them sitting on it. After riding this, I now know I want a bigger bike.
2001: A year of seconds and some firsts!
- March.....My 2nd Daytona Bike Week.
- May.....Taught my grandson how to shoot a water gun. He had allot of fun getting Grandma wet.
- June.....Family reunion in Pa revisited.
- July.....House on the rock in Wisconsin. Stayed at the Don Q Inn. Pretty cool place. http://www.fantasuite.com/ They have an underground tunnel to the restaurant next door.
- August.....Sturgis. We rode to Needles and climbed to the top. Did some spelunking in Jewel Cave, http://www.nps.gov/jeca/planyourvisit/spelunkingtour.htm Which is supposedly the toughest spelunking tour in the US??? Went to Mt Rushmore, The Bad Lands, Custer Park and Devils Tower.
- September, a busy month.....Labor day we decided to pack the bikes and head west to the Great River Road and follow it south at a leisurely pace and see where we end up at the end of day 2. We got as far as St Louis Mo. The next morning we headed to Devils Elbow and had lunch at the Elbow Inn. It's a local Rolla Mo. biker bar. Then we checked into a motel and headed back to the Elbow Inn.
http://http//www.theroadwanderer.net/66Missouri/elbow.htm m On the 8th,
I won the wienie bite contest and the potato in the hay contest at the Northern Il ABATE party. Then 9-11. I'm sure we all know where we were. I was at work and we all sat around the TV in the customer lounge, we all had to leave the room from time to time just to get our selves back together. Very little work got done that day. Later in the month, I packed up my Harley and headed south to Campaign to visit a friend by my self. We went to watch a forklift rodeo....you read it right! This I just had to see. For what ever reason, it was at a car show. Strange thing to do at a car show.
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Derailed
We had a loud wake up at about 3:00 this morning. The train tracks are about 100 - 150 feet from our house. This is from our front door. Nice view, don't cha think? Apparently it derailed a couple miles east of us. We have all roads blocked to the south and west of us.
They come through here so fast, I am surprised they don't derail more often. If it derailed in front of our house, we would probably have a car or two in our living room.
I need to go out and finish up some last minute Christmas shopping and get groceries to make cheesecake, ooohh....cheesecake! The snow is not letting up anytime soon and now I'm going to have to go about 10 miles out of my way on country roads that are probably not plowed yet so I might as well just get it done. Wish me and my little Cavalier well. I'm sure it'll be an all day thing.
Thursday, December 17, 2009
School's out!!!
Fall semester is over and I have a month to get caught up on house work and started projects.
It's been hard, but...I got straight A's for my final grades! Whoo hooo!!! It's a good feeling. I had a slow start getting back into the math but it came back. I got nominated by class mates for "The Academy Awards" in business communication for both, most impressive person, and most encouraging person and got a hug from one of the kids.
I was real nervous about being the oldest person in most of my classes. I had one class that someone actually had me beat by 10 years. Cudoos to her!!!
It's been hard, but...I got straight A's for my final grades! Whoo hooo!!! It's a good feeling. I had a slow start getting back into the math but it came back. I got nominated by class mates for "The Academy Awards" in business communication for both, most impressive person, and most encouraging person and got a hug from one of the kids.
I was real nervous about being the oldest person in most of my classes. I had one class that someone actually had me beat by 10 years. Cudoos to her!!!
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
I finally have a little break from school, two days to be exact.
My other half is visiting his daughter in Phoenix, AZ for Thanksgiving. This is the first holiday in 16 years that we are not together. He has called me three times and he just left yesterday. I'm starting to get the impression he misses me. Think maybe he loves me?
With me on unemployment, it's just not a good time for both of us to be spending money on plane tickets; plus, I would miss spending Thanksgiving with my grand kids. He gets to meet his future step-grand kids.....teenagers! How much fun can one person handle? They sound like they are good kids, he's just not used to being around kids that long.
One thing I'm envious of, he plans to rent a Harley and take his daughter for a ride. My bike is winterized and tucked in for the winter. I haven't been able to ride much this summer because of school. I did a ride to Eureka Springs, AR early this year before school started and to Savanna, IL over Labor Day, but not much other than that.
Today I am going to head to my son's house to teach him how to make homemade apple pie. He used to tell me that he was going to marry a Mexican girl because they know how to cook and most "white girls" are box cooks. OK, first, I need to make it perfectly clear that I love my daughter-in-law, we have a great relationship, she's the daughter I never had. This is something she even jokes about. She's half Mexican and SHE'S A BOX COOK! Guess she takes after her "white mom". Jokes on him! All kidding aside, she really is good for him. She stood by him while he was "away at college." She was pregnant with my oldest grand daughter when he left and she took her to see him every weekend (minus the one she was in the hospital giving birth). They have three kids now. He knows what he has and he loves her completely. He wants me to teach her to cook. I tell him when and if she is interested, I will be happy to. For now it works, he enjoys cooking and she don't mind cleaning after him in the kitchen. I wish some one would clean after my kitchen messes.
My youngest son was easy. My oldest was a challenge. He's grown up allot and we've gotten close now that he can appreciate being a parent. I find it amusing because he is the typical, strict, over protective father. Probably because he got into so much trouble and his wife was only 16 when their first daughter was born.
My 14 year old grand daughter, in my opinion, is really gorgeous. Not to say my other three aren't, but she is at that age where she is growing up and it's starting to worry him. She is a perfect blend of both her parents. My son is a red head and in the summer her hair is a lighter red. she has her mom's dark skin. Her eyes are hazel like mine, except she has a darker brown to them. mine are more of a green with golden brown and hers are more of a medium/dark brown with green.
As for school, it's allot harder going back at my age than I thought it would be. I started out with a C in Business Math and brought it up to a B. I started with a B in Accounting and brought it up to an A. At first, accounting was like learning a new language; but I scored the highest score in the class for the last two tests. Now the question is......Can I keep it up? I'm getting A's in my other classes, but they are all required classes and courses that I have work experience in. I don't like the grammar part of Business Communication. Grammar is not one of my strong points.
We were out with friends and I was asked how school was going and I made a comment about grammar. My other half (being the comedian that he thinks he is) comes up with "she didn't know that ain't is not a word!" I had to inform him that it is in the third edition of Webster's Dictionary.
Till next time, Happy Thanksgiving to everyone who reads this.
Time to make the pies, and the memories.
My other half is visiting his daughter in Phoenix, AZ for Thanksgiving. This is the first holiday in 16 years that we are not together. He has called me three times and he just left yesterday. I'm starting to get the impression he misses me. Think maybe he loves me?
With me on unemployment, it's just not a good time for both of us to be spending money on plane tickets; plus, I would miss spending Thanksgiving with my grand kids. He gets to meet his future step-grand kids.....teenagers! How much fun can one person handle? They sound like they are good kids, he's just not used to being around kids that long.
One thing I'm envious of, he plans to rent a Harley and take his daughter for a ride. My bike is winterized and tucked in for the winter. I haven't been able to ride much this summer because of school. I did a ride to Eureka Springs, AR early this year before school started and to Savanna, IL over Labor Day, but not much other than that.
Today I am going to head to my son's house to teach him how to make homemade apple pie. He used to tell me that he was going to marry a Mexican girl because they know how to cook and most "white girls" are box cooks. OK, first, I need to make it perfectly clear that I love my daughter-in-law, we have a great relationship, she's the daughter I never had. This is something she even jokes about. She's half Mexican and SHE'S A BOX COOK! Guess she takes after her "white mom". Jokes on him! All kidding aside, she really is good for him. She stood by him while he was "away at college." She was pregnant with my oldest grand daughter when he left and she took her to see him every weekend (minus the one she was in the hospital giving birth). They have three kids now. He knows what he has and he loves her completely. He wants me to teach her to cook. I tell him when and if she is interested, I will be happy to. For now it works, he enjoys cooking and she don't mind cleaning after him in the kitchen. I wish some one would clean after my kitchen messes.
My youngest son was easy. My oldest was a challenge. He's grown up allot and we've gotten close now that he can appreciate being a parent. I find it amusing because he is the typical, strict, over protective father. Probably because he got into so much trouble and his wife was only 16 when their first daughter was born.
My 14 year old grand daughter, in my opinion, is really gorgeous. Not to say my other three aren't, but she is at that age where she is growing up and it's starting to worry him. She is a perfect blend of both her parents. My son is a red head and in the summer her hair is a lighter red. she has her mom's dark skin. Her eyes are hazel like mine, except she has a darker brown to them. mine are more of a green with golden brown and hers are more of a medium/dark brown with green.
As for school, it's allot harder going back at my age than I thought it would be. I started out with a C in Business Math and brought it up to a B. I started with a B in Accounting and brought it up to an A. At first, accounting was like learning a new language; but I scored the highest score in the class for the last two tests. Now the question is......Can I keep it up? I'm getting A's in my other classes, but they are all required classes and courses that I have work experience in. I don't like the grammar part of Business Communication. Grammar is not one of my strong points.
We were out with friends and I was asked how school was going and I made a comment about grammar. My other half (being the comedian that he thinks he is) comes up with "she didn't know that ain't is not a word!" I had to inform him that it is in the third edition of Webster's Dictionary.
Till next time, Happy Thanksgiving to everyone who reads this.
Time to make the pies, and the memories.
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