Chatbug Karen

For the past 4 or 5 years, our mayor has been telling us that the road in front of our home will be repaired. I should say, he is saying it will be taken out down to the bare bones and replaced. This is a good thing. The run off during the winter forms icy patches and we end up with a few cars per season in our ditch. We have had to replace our mailbox a few times. The downside to this construction project is that it will be hard for people to get to our business. I wish we were wealthy and could take an extended vacation. Since we are not, we plan to suck it up, put on our rain boots a wade out the storm.

Here is a picture of the road that will be reconstructed.
Looking from our drive:

The new thingy for the phone line. They destroyed my clematis. I would have moved the plant had I known they would be working there. :-/

The hole they dug. They hit our sewer line and duct taped a trash bag around it for the weekend. Sigh.

A friend sent me these truisms. I was surprised when, at each one I thought, that is so true!

Truisms –

1. I think part of a best friend’s job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.

2. Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you’re wrong.

3. I totally take back all those times I didn’t want to nap when I was younger.

4. There is great need for a sarcasm font.

5. How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?

6. Was learning cursive really necessary?

7. Map Quest really needs to start their directions on #5. I’m pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.

8. Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.

9. I can’t remember the last time I wasn’t at least kind of tired.

10. Bad decisions make good stories.

11. You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you know that you just aren’t going to do anything productive for the rest of the day.

12. Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after Blue Ray? I don’t want to have to restart my collection…again.

13. I’m always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten-page research paper that I swear I did not make any changes to.

14. “Do not machine wash or tumble dry” means I will never wash this – ever.

15. I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring (Hello? Hello? Damn it!), but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goes to voicemail. What did you do after I didn’t answer? Drop the phone and run away?

16. I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of any importance the entire day. What a waste.

17. I keep some people’s phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.

18. I think the freezer deserves a light as well.

19. I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lite than Kay.

20. I wish Google Maps had an “Avoid Ghetto” routing option

21. Sometimes, I’ll watch a movie that I watched when I was younger and suddenly realize I had no idea what the heck was going on when I first saw it.

22. I would rather try to carry 10 plastic grocery bags in each hand than take 2 trips to bring my groceries in.

23. Even when opportunity knocks, you still have to get up off your seat and open the door.

24. I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.

25. How many times is it appropriate to say “What?” before you just nod and smile because you still didn’t hear or understand a word they said?

26. I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars team up to prevent a jerk from cutting in at the front. Stay strong, brothers and sisters!

27. Shirts get dirty. Underwear gets dirty. Pants? Pants never get dirty, and you can wear them forever.

28. Is it just me or do high school kids get dumber & dumber every year?

29. There’s no worse feeling than that millisecond you’re sure you are going to die after leaning your chair back a little too far.

30. As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers, but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate cyclists.

31. Sometimes I’ll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.

32. Even under ideal conditions, people have trouble locating their car keys in a pocket, finding their cell phone, and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey – but I’d bet my all that everyone can find and push the snooze button from 3 feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, first time, every time.

I have been sick since Thursday and while the medicine the doctor gave me certainly made things better, my body feels out of whack. I cannot get enough sleep! Hubby and I both took naps yesterday and feared we would not sleep when the bedtime hour arrived. We decided to make our evening eventful by going to a movie.

We hadn’t eaten dinner so we stopped and got a Rally burger. They are so good and so not good for you so we don’t eat them very often. We got the 2 burgers for $3 deal. I still can’t believe we ate for $6.53. No wonder people eat junk food.

Our children had both told us that Inception was a good movie so we decided that would be the one for us. I am guessing that they enjoyed the special effects. OMG! They were out of this world. I would love to watch a documentary on how all the scenes were produced.

I am still not sure of how the story played out. Something about going deep into one’s dreams. I got the basis of the plot and the acting was very good. I would recommend this movie for a fun night out.

Yesterday, in an effort to avoid yard work, my husband decided we would hit the road. He only planned to go down highway 29. We invited both of our moms to go and they enthusiastically accepted the invite. They always love it when they can ride without having to decide what time to be somewhere and how to get there. I do too!

We were told there would be a test. We had to remember the names of all the little towns we went through. Ha! I don’t think my husband could remember the names himself. It was fun looking at the beautiful farmhouses. The flower beds are at their peak right now and have beautiful blooms and huge sunflowers.

One sight that we happened upon that surprised us was hundreds of cigars with fans that were popping out of the ground near Reynolds, Indiana. I am not exaggerating when I say there were hundreds of windmills all across the country side. As far as our eyes could see, there were these majestic towers with their huge blades turning in the wind. They produce electricity.

I read in our local paper just last week, farmers in our area are being approached to see if they would agree to have windmills placed on their land. There are pros and cons to having these giant monstrosities placed near ones home. I have heard that they are loud but then other people who have them near their homes say they are not noticeable. I think we will see more of them across the flat land here in Indiana. Do you have them where you live?

I spent yesterday with a migraine. I had to work through it because our store is open on Fridays. Luckily, I was able to catch a nap that eased the pain quite a bit. Hubby and I ate supper at a Mexican restaurant and I had a Margarita that just about put me to sleep.

We rented The Bounty Hunter starring Jennifer Aniston and Gerard Butler. It was predictable but entertaining. Seeing Jennifer run in high heeled shoes, and I mean 5″ heels, makes me want to get into shape. My daughter sent me some new exercises that sound fun and easy. I better get on it. I have my new tennis shoes, thanks to Val at Mom Knows It All. I won a gift certificate at her blog and I was finally able to purchase a good pair of shoes. Hubby even got a new pair and he loves them.

Thanks again Val!

It has been so hot and muggy here in Indiana that I have not wanted to go outside. Summer is my most favorite season except when the humidity is at 90% and one feels the need to shower every time they venture outdoors.

Years ago, when my daughter was attending school in Elizabeth City, NC, we visited with her and took a side trip to the Outer Banks . I fell in love.

As you can see in the picture, the beach houses are various colors of pinks, greens and blues and offer a wonderful vacation spot along the ocean. We were staying close to our daughter’s place during that visit but I took note of the nicer rentals along the ocean and each was listed by Carolina Designs Realty. I have been biding my time while waiting to return for a vacation at the Outer Banks.

The time is now! If it is going to be hot, I want to be able to cool down while swimming in the ocean under beautiful blue skies. There are so many water opportunities like kite surfing, jet-skiing, sailing and kayaking. After my skin becomes prune-like, I can then go back to a beautiful home that is filled with spacious bedrooms, luxurious bathrooms and a den with a pool table and a big screen television.

My husband loves to fish and the website at Carolina Designs gives information pertaining to fishing as well as night life, churches and dining. The website also has important information to keep tourists safe while visiting. They give instructions on dealing with riptides and hurricanes along with regulations for off road drive your four-wheel-drive vehicle. There are many miles of accessible beach in Corolla, Duck, Kill Devil Hills, Kitty Hawk, Nags Head & Southern Shores, where you can settle in with your fishing pole or gather with friends around a bonfire and listen to the ocean waves.

It sounds wonderful, doesn’t it?

According to the contributors over at Tasty Kitchen, August is National Peach Month. I cannot tell you how happy that makes me! I love peaches.

It is an art to pick out a good peach but when you do, it is magical. There is no shame in relaxing in your favorite outdoor chaise lounges, taking a big bite of a juicy peach and allowing the juice to run down your chin. That is just part of eating another of God’s greatest creations.

I have to rely on farmer’s markets and grocery stores to find peaches in our area. Most of the peaches I find are grown in northern Indiana and Michigan.

While searching for information on peaches, I discovered that there are many folk tales and traditions associated with the delicious fruit.

From Wikipedia:
In China, the peach was said to be consumed by the immortals due to its mystic virtue of conferring longevity on all who ate them.

will my laptop last? I have not seen my laptop for two weeks because it is, once again, at the repair shop. I think they have had it more than me. Sigh. I am resigned to reading laptop reviews to decide which type of laptop I should purchase to replace it. I don’t need a dvd player but it seems that they all come with one. Most computer purchases entail laptop bundles.

I am intrigued with the mini laptop systems. Mini Netbooks have 1.66GHz of netbook power that would allow me to browse as efficiently as I am used to. I learned, the hard way, that a 17″ laptop is not very handy. I like the 10.1″ size offered with the mini. I just want loads of memory and a fast system. I cannot believe I am having to think about this. Grrrr

I love the television lineup on Mondays. My favorite show, American Pickers is on. I love those guys. Next is Pawn Stars. I always have to stop before I say those words because something else wants to pop out of my mouth. LOL

Last night was a re-run but I had not seen the episode. A man brought in a gold bar that was worth $45,000!!! He had no idea that the value of gold bars was so high. It was interesting to hear the history of gold bars. I didn’t know that before 1971 it was illegal to own gold. We were on the gold standard, which means that our money was backed by gold. I think that our money is supposed to be backed by gold these days but I don’t think it is. I always hear people talking about worthless paper.

Anyway, the man was surprised to walk out of the pawn shop with a hefty amount of cash in his pocket.

There is just something about Friday that makes the whole week worth going through. I guess it is knowing that tomorrow is Saturday and I can sleep in. I never sleep in though, no matter how hard I try. I start to think of all the things I want to accomplish for the day and jump out of bed. Um, I should say drag myself out of bed. After coffee, I can get busy.

Today’s weather is so nice! We have had so many hot, sultry days that take one’s breath away. It has not been a very enjoyable summer. I have been miserable wearing protective clothing as I crawl under our pine trees in search of poison ivy. My dogs rub up against the poison ivy plants and then I get it because I love to nuzzle in their necks and give them love. This cool weather will make getting some outdoor jobs completed so much easier.

I spent all day yesterday making a purse from a pattern that said it could be done in 2 hours. Shea, right. It is a cute little tulip bag. It was easy so maybe the next one will only take 2 hours.

Today, I need to catch up on our business’s paper work. All play could get me fired! Have a great Friday everyone.