Home From Vacation

I'm home!!!  My plane was delayed a bit last night due to the storms that were coming through Chicago, but I finally made it home about 9:00pm.  A little later than I had hoped, but at least I was home.

I'll post pictures and more details later, but for now, I spent a couple days in Tahoe, and a couple days in Reno at a resort and lost $5.00 gambling.  I'm such a high roller!

Today was spent getting caught up on blogs and some of the emails I received.  Thank goodness I don't need to do laundry for work tomorrow.

My aunt and sisters and I were having a discussion about family history one evening.  I discovered "someone" did a family history of my paternal grandmother, and I even know where the Rockefellers split off from us.  A copy of the family tree and all the history of each generation will be sent to me as soon as my sister makes a copy for me.  There was too much to go through the other night when she showed it to me.  I can't wait to read through it all.  Now if I could figure out how to find more about my paternal grandfather; that will be the real challenge.

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

The Bionic Eye

Tori, I think you might find this article very interesting.

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/california-artist-wants-to-replace-lost-eyeball-with-webcam/

Things Are Kind Of Slow These Days

Not a lot going on around here.

Couch and recliner are ready already, told the store to hold them until the end of August so I can paint the living room before they are delivered.  And I can't do that until after I get back from vacation.

Speaking of vacation, I'm leaving this Saturday August 6 to visit family in Reno, NV then to California for a couple days, returning the following Saturday August 13.

I stayed home from work today due to some minor tummy problems.  Hoping it clears up quickly, as I need to start packing and can't miss any more work this week, since I'll be gone all next week.

Weather is still hot here, as I'm sure it is where most of you are at.  Wish it would cool down even for just a day, to give the air conditioner a rest.

Follow up on my license plate that was "stolen".  The morning after I went to the Secretary of States office to order a replacement, I received a call on my cell phone from the dealer.  They had my plate after all!  It apparently came off in the car wash, and wasn't discovered until that morning, four days after my car was there.  So that evening, before my early morning drive to Michigan, I went to the dealer and had them put both plates back on my car.  And when the new one comes in, I'll have them put that one on for me, so it will be nice and clean instead of the dirty icky one I have now.

I hope that these violent storms that have been going through let up, as they have caused various damages here and on the east coast where my friends are at.  Let's stay safe everyone.

Movies, Music, Plates & Furniture

This will be sort of a catch-all post, to mention several different things from the last two weekends.

Furniture - Last weekend when I saw the Double-crested Cormorants, I mentioned I was going furniture shopping.  I bought a couch and a recliner to replace the couch, love seat, chair and ottoman that I currently own.   They are wearing out terribly, to the point I'm embarrassed to have someone over.  The chair is being custom made in the same fabric as the couch, so they won't be in for another 7-8 weeks.  Once they're here, I'll take pictures so you can see them.  You'll just have to WAIT!

Movies - Over the weekend I watched Extraordinary Measures, starring Harrison Ford and Brendan Fraser.  It was a very good movie.  I was prepared to cry, and did a bit, but not as much as I thought.  And after expecting a sad ending, was pleasantly surprised.

Music - Sunday, while watching the Nascar race, during the commercial breaks, I ripped several cd's to my computer that have been sitting around for a long time.  Now that I've ripped them, I can start listening to them in my car to/from work.  The one I picked today was Court Yard Hounds.  That's the title of the group and the cd.  The group, actually a duet, is comprised of sisters Emily Robison and Martie Maguire of The Dixie Chicks.  Known for their musical talents and abilities to play multiple instruments, I was expecting so much more from this album.  There were 14 songs on it, and all but maybe 3 or 4 were slow, dreary-sounding, boring songs that would be perfect for putting me to sleep at night.  I knew it wouldn't be more Dixie Chicks, but I was really hoping for more than what it was.  I'm not surprised that none of the songs every took off or got any airplay that I'm aware of.

Plates - As in, license plates.  Last night I was heading out to return the movie referenced above, and as I exited my building, I was shocked to see my front license plate was gone.  Plate, screws, all of it.  Gone.  The rear plate with the sticker is still there though.  Obviously someone really wanted my front plate.  Since it was 8pm on a Sunday night, I decided not to do anything until this morning.  My first call was to the car dealer, since I'd had the car there on Saturday for my 30,000 mile checkup.  Just to make sure they didn't take it off there, forgot to replace it, and I didn't notice it until Sunday.  Nope, not there.  I then knew for sure it had been stolen.  Second call was to my city police department.  They referred me to an online reporting system, so I filled in the information as best I could as there were no clear instructions regarding what I needed to fill in for this particular incident.  Tomorrow I get to head to the Secretary of States office to fill out a form to request a new front license plate.  Fortunately, it will only cost me $6.00.  If it had been a rear plate, it would be $9.00, and if I needed a sticker, another $20.00.  I've tried to go back to the website to pull up my complaint so I can print it, in case I get pulled over for no front plate, but have been unsuccessful.  Of course this had to happen just days before a planned weekend trip to MI (not Mic or Mich).  If I didn't need a car so bad, I swear I wouldn't own one!

Double-Crested Cormorant

For several years now, I've seen a mysterious bird hanging around the lake by my apartment.  I usually would spot it as I was driving past, with no time or place to stop to get a better look.  One time I walked over to the lake, where there is very little shade, and tried to take a picture.  I think he/she knew what I was doing because it always swam to the far side of the lake whenever I got anywhere near close enough for a picture.

Lately, I've seen it hanging out at another lake/pond nearby, and last Saturday, I decided to go see if it was there.

Lucky for me it was!  With my camera, I hid behind a dumpster so it wouldn't swim too far away and snapped these.  I emailed the pictures to a bird expert I know, and she confirmed it is a Double-Crested Cormorant.  

Apparently, they are becoming pretty widespread in this area.  Here's a link to a page with more information on the Double-Crested Cormorant:  Link

While at the lake, I also saw an Egret, so snapped a couple pictures of it.

The next day as I was going furniture shopping, I passed another man-made lake, and in the middle of it were about a dozen of the Double-Crested Cormorants.  Oh to have had my camera with me!

3D Printer

Just think of all the things this could be used for! It's amazing what technology gives us.

Missing Talent and Beautiful Weather

I decided that if I wanted to get back to blogging again, I would need "something" to help me find things to write about.  My life just isn't that exciting to have topics for blog posts daily or even twice weekly.  So with the assistance of a blog prompt website that gives me random ideas (which I don't always follow) and with the occasional video that I find, I'm able to get back to some not-so-regular blogging.  Today, I am combining yesterday's and today's blog prompts into one blog post.

The "missing talent" part is from yesterday.  If I can remember it correctly (since it was 11pm when I read it last night) the prompt was what talent do I wish I had.  That's an easy one to talk about.  I have absolutely no ability to write stories that grab people's attention, and I have absolutely no ability to draw/sketch/paint/doodle.  I can write, and give you what information you need, in an intelligent matter, so "most" people would understand it.  But to put words down that someone has to keep reading because they are so enthralled by it and can't bear to stop? That's just not me.  I have an example of what I can't do but wish I could, but I have to find it first.  I'll put that on my growing list of things to do tomorrow.

The "beautiful weather" reference is to today's prompt.  It asked me to describe the perfect Autumn day and what activity I enjoy doing.  I'm going to change it up a bit, and list my favorite Summer day, since that's my favorite season, and because, honestly, both Spring and Autumn tend to suck around here.  Nine times out of ten, it's cold, rainy, gloomy.  Sometimes we get what is called Indian Summer, but not always; and there are times the weather is miserable starting in September and doesn't let up until June.  So my perfect Summer day is when it's 80-82F outside, sunshine, and a slight breeze to keep it from being too warm.  My favorite activity would be pretty much anything outside.  Sitting in a chair in the shade, sipping a lemonade.  Or taking a leisurely walk on a partially shaded path through the woods or along a riverbank.  Even a relaxing bicycle ride would work for me, as long as there was a place to stop and enjoy the view or just relax for a few minutes.  Of course I'd want some company doing these activities; what fun are they if you do them alone?

I have a few pictures I took on July 4 at my friend's parent's house.  They do a barbecue/turkey boil every year and then we watch fireworks from the front yard.  Fortunately I'm not in any of the pictures, otherwise the camera would have broken on me, lol.  I'll try to get those transferred to the computer this weekend too so I can try to write about it next week.

*Adds another thing to my to do list for this weekend*

Extreme Squirreling

I have the perfect vacation idea for IntenseGuy:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/highlands_and_islands/8278286.stm

Pet Peeve

One of my pet peeves is when I find the abbreviation of Illinois done incorrectly.  I think everyone in the whole world does it wrong.  It doesn't matter if it's an email or a national newspaper.  What is so hard about abbreviating the states?

All U.S. state abbreviations are TWO letters.  Not three.

We don't abbreviate Pennsylvania with Pen.

We don't abbreviate Minnesota with Min.

We don't abbreviate California with Cal.

So WHY do so many people insist on abbreviating Illinois with Ill?

IT'S IL!!!!

Cute Video of Boston Terrier Being Tickled

Better The Second Time Around

I remembered what I forgot to mention in my last post.  My cousin, Carole, went through a messy divorce last year, after 29 or so years of marriage.  Even the kids turned against her, claiming she had been abusive to them, and needed mental help.  She remained strong with backing from her siblings and mother.

About the time she was getting near the finalization of the divorce, she met an old friend from her childhood while at church.  They hit it off and on his birthday this past Friday, he proposed to her.  They haven't set a date yet, but she called to let me know, and to make sure I would set aside a long weekend in the future to go to MN for her wedding.

It's unfortunate that at this time her children (who are all adults) will not be there to share in her joy.  I think this new man is making her very happy, and I am very excited for her.

Beautiful Weekend Followed by a Sad Monday

Several weeks ago, I received a message from one of those school contact sites, where you can get back in touch with people from school.  It was my friend Holly, whom I had not been in touch with since we graduated 6th grade.  She actually had lived here in the Chicago area for several years and had never thought about looking me up.  Now she lives in Louisville with her husband and two dogs.  Lo and behold, her husband is doing some work this summer in Chicago, and she came up to visit him.  So on Saturday, I drove into the city and met up with them at their hotel.  We walked several blocks looking for a relatively quiet place to sit and have a drink or two and chat for a bit while deciding what to do.  Unfortunately, we only had a few hours together, but it was so nice to see her again.  We both don't want to let 30 years go by before getting together again.

Then today I go in to work and find out a co-worker passed away Friday night.  Our Credit Manager was undergoing chemotherapy for Mesothelioma.  Unfortunately, the cancer was already very advanced when they diagnosed him, and the intensive drugs never really had a chance.  So after work today I went to the wake, and several from my office will be at the funeral tomorrow.

I keep thinking there's something else I wanted to mention, but I can't think of it.  If I happen to remember what it was, I'll post it later this week.

The Book of Eli

Last night I rented this movie, starring Denzel Washington, who plays the lead character Eli.  It's sort of a post-apocalyptic scene, where he is trying to deliver a very important book to a place for safekeeping.  There were a couple of bloody scenes, and a lot of killing, but it's a very barren, survival of the fittest type landscape.  You start to learn the significance of the book about half way through.  I thought it was a very good movie and would recommend it highly.

Inception

Saturday night I watched Inception, starring Leonardo DiCaprio.  Very deep!  I heard both good and bad comments about the movie, but usually like to make up my own mind.  I remember from the movie trailer, I had no idea what the movie was about.  Here's the plot line:

"In a world where technology exists to enter the human mind through dream invasion, a highly skilled thief is given a final chance at redemption which involves executing his toughest job to date:  Inception."

Basically, they invade someone's dream to steal information, but this job is to plant an idea instead.

The visual effects are fantastic, and when it was over, the idea of controlling a dream amazes me.  I really enjoyed it.

Has anyone else seen this movie? If so, what did you think of it?

If I Were A Flower...

If I were a flower, I think I'd be a Morning Glory.

That way, I'd always be up early in the morning, instead of sleeping half the day away.

Hot Times in the Windy City

.. DANGEROUS HEAT EXPECTED ON TUESDAY INTO WEDNESDAY...

AN UNSEASONABLY WARM AND MOIST ATMOSPHERE WILL CONTINUE TO TAKE A FIRM GRIP OF THE AREA ON TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY. TEMPERATURES WILL LIKELY CLIMB INTO THE MIDDLE TO UPPER 90S ACROSS NORTHERN ILLINOIS AND NORTHWESTERN INDIANA ON TUESDAY. THESE TEMPERATURES... COMBINED WITH DEW POINTS IN THE MIDDLE TO UPPER 60S WILL RESULT IN HEAT INDICES CLIMBING ABOVE 100 DURING THE AFTERNOON HOURS. BECAUSE OF THE SOUTHWESTERLY WIND COMPONENT... THIS DANGEROUS HEAT WILL ALSO IMPACT AREAS NEAR THE LAKE. LITTLE RELIEF IS EXPECTED AT NIGHT... ESPECIALLY IN URBAN AREAS... AS TEMPERATURES WILL LIKELY REMAIN IN THE UPPER 70S TO NEAR 80 FOR OVERNIGHT LOWS. THIS DANGEROUS HEAT WILL CONTINUE ON WEDNESDAY AS HEAT INDICES AGAIN CLIMB TO 100 TO 105. COOLER CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED BY WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND THURSDAY AS A COLD FRONT MOVES ACROSS THE AREA.

THE COMBINATION OF HIGH TEMPERATURES AND HUMIDITY WILL CREATE A SITUATION IN WHICH HEAT ILLNESSES ARE POSSIBLE. DRINK PLENTY OF FLUIDS... STAY IN AN AIR-CONDITIONED ROOM... STAY OUT OF THE SUN... AND CHECK UP ON RELATIVES AND NEIGHBORS.

CHILDREN AND PETS SHOULD NEVER BE LEFT UNATTENDED IN VEHICLES UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. THIS IS ESPECIALLY TRUE DURING HOT WEATHER WHEN THE CAR INTERIOR CAN REACH DANGEROUSLY HIGH TEMPERATURES IN A MATTER OF MINUTES!

Hey You! What Song are you Listening to?

Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery

On Memorial Day, I decided sort of spur of the moment to see what National Cemeteries were nearby, to go and pay tribute to those that have fought and died for our country. I discovered the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery about an hour south of me, so I made plans to head down there for the afternoon.

At the entrance, there's an information center where you can get a map, look up specific grave sites, and use a restroom if necessary. I stopped on the way out, but this is the dedication plaque affixed to the wall. It says:

Abraham Lincoln

National Cemetery

Dedicated to the memory of

all the patriotic men and women

who answered their country's call to service

William Jefferson Clinton

President of the United States

Togo D. West, Jr.

Secretary

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

Roger R. Rapp

Director, Office of Field Operations

National Cemetery Administration

Dedicated

October 3, 1999

Here's the entrance to a Memorial Walk. It's a nice shady walk, with many benches to sit on that have all been dedicated to individual veterans or by veteran groups like the VFW.

At the entrance, there's a marble memorial to the men and women who died in the attack on Pearl Harbor in WW2.

The top section reads: As the eagle soars, Pearl Harbor Survivors Association, Founded 1958

The middle section reads: In memory of those 2403 gallant Americans who perished in the service of their country on the Hawaiian island of Oahu December 7, 1941. A day that will live in infamy. "He" bore them up on eagles wings.

The bottom section reads: Remember Pearl Harbor, dedicated by The Pearl Harbor Survivors Association of Illinois.

Part way in to the Memorial Walk is a square cement memorial to "The men and women who served", listing all wars from the American Revolution to Iraq. On the front, it says "Organized in 1896 by Jewish Civil War Veterans"

Spread in a few places throughout the cemetery are columbariums, where the cremated remains of men and women who served (and their spouses) are placed. There are a total of 16 columns on each wall, with four rows each. As I wandered around some of them, I could see where people had left flowers, pictures, flags, either at the bottom of the wall, or taped to an individual square.

In one smaller section of head stones, is what would be considered an unknown soldier marker. It says: The markers in the memorial area honor veterans whose remains have not been recovered or identified, were buried at sea, donated to science, or cremated and the ashes scattered.

Here is the small section, the marker above is way in the end. I wanted to get a picture with all the flags at each marker. Those flags were placed at every grave, just like you see at Arlington.

Here's a picture of some of the grave sites. There is a lot of construction going on, not sure if they will be adding more columbariums, or maybe a couple small parking areas. As I drove around, there weren't really any good areas to park if you wanted to get out and walk around.

While chatting with the lady at the information center, I found out President Obama appeared there last year for Memorial Day. No one could park on cemetery grounds, so they had to park way off and be bussed in. The day started out beautiful, and the closer it got to the time for his speech, the cloudier it got. About the time he started his speech, the sky opened up and absolutely POURED. There was nowhere for anyone to take shelter, and because of the president being there, no one could leave the grounds. Everyone was drenched while they stood around, or raced for any type of shelter they could find, while the president was ushered off to the safety of a vehicle. Fortunately, this year, only our "esteemed" Senator Durbin appeared. Glad I missed that yesterday morning!

Even though I don't have any relatives buried there, I felt honored to visit, and said a few words of thanks to them for their service.

Go Me!

Today at work was the dreaded "annual performance review".

I was scheduled second out of five.

Last year wasn't that great, as most of us know. Business was down, but then started to pick up again in the second half of the year.

I went in to meet with my boss and his boss, just glad I still had a job, and not really expecting anything for 2010.

We breezed through all the rankings, all the areas I excel, what I need to work on, all the new accounts I handled last year, blah blah blah.

Just get to the good stuff will ya??????

"Because of all your hard work this year, with the extra account you took on in May, we're giving you a 3% raise." OMG, 3%? I honestly wasn't expecting any raise, I'm just happy to still have a job. Truly!

"And even though we only made 94% of our budget for last year, we are keeping the bonus program, so you will get a bonus of 6% of last year's salary." Holy crap! I wasn't expecting this!

And.............................................................................................................................

"You are getting a special President's award of $1500 in addition, for all your hard work on XYZ company from May of last year. He personally suggested this additional bonus." My jaw about hit the floor!

At this point, I had to work really, really hard to keep a straight face and not jump up and down hootin' and hollerin'. It just wouldn't be fair to disrupt the rest of the office. I thanked them profusely and quickly as I could, went back to my desk to hope that work would take my mind off the shock I experience this morning.

I think I'm still in shock.

I'm not posting this because I want to brag to everyone. Well, ok just a bit. But I also want to let everyone know that not everything is bad out there. The economy sucks, people are still losing their jobs, many jobs are still in trouble, lots are struggling to pay essential bills, but there are some good things going on out there, and to just be patient, because eventually things will get better. They always do.

The Great Snow Battle of 2010

You know those dreams that you can't quite believe you just had, and it's so fantastic you have to write it down and tell everyone? Well, I had one of those dreams last week. I'm convinced I was taken by OCHA's and implanted with a chip that forces me to think about them, even when I'm sleeping.

I was walking through a park, looking for someone (or something)...

When all of a sudden, on my left...

Hey! What are you doing here? You aren't in this dream! Go away!

As I was saying, I looked to my left and saw a big mound of snow, and hiding behind it were HUNDREDS of OCHA's, waiting to bombard me with snowballs.

I rushed to take cover as the snowballs flew over my head. I quickly grabbed some snow, formed it into a ball, turned to my left and POW! I knocked three of them over. Once they were knocked over, they couldn't throw snowballs at me anymore. I grabbed more snow, made another snowball, turned to my right, and POW! Knocked a few more over.

And then I woke up. I'll never know who won the great snow battle of 2010.