Grrrrr

I can see why a lot of people name their black dogs "Bear".

Witchy Woman

Here is one from the festival at the beginning of the month.

I posted this one in a very large format. How can you tell how much storage space you have left on your blog site? Go to google.com and log in. Choose Settings. Choose Google Account Settings. Choose Picasa web album - Settings . Choose storage. This should tell you how much storage space you have left to post pictures on your blog. There is a limit, you know. I have read bloggers who had to create new blogs because they ran out.

I just tested it. I took 3 of my largest pictures and set them to upload to this blog. I then watched my storage settings (as shown above) and refreshed after each picture loaded and I watched it increase. Now, this is where it gets tricky. You can delete the post, but the pictures still stay on the Picasa and still use up your storage space. How do I get rid of those three pictures since it was only a test posting?

Anywhere in settings, look at the top tabs. You should see one that says "My Photos". Choose that tab. You may have to hunt and peck, mine were at the very end of course. You can delete them here. Just make sure you don't delete any that you actually used in a blog post.

There. I'm done.

Twins

My father is on the left in the dark jacket.
I have no idea when this photo may have been taken.
If I had to guess, I'd say late 30's?

The Waiting Game

I went hog wild with the photo above. Just one of those mornings where I wanted to dabble and splash around like a child in a mud puddle and make the biggest splash marks I could.

I watched a movie a week or so ago called "The Crying Game".  I had heard of it before. I guess it won an Oscar. Whatever. It held my interest.

I play a game at work called "The Waiting Game".  This will sound jaded, but it gets me through the job cycle. A couple of years ago I wrote a post about "The Alarmist", but I am thinking "instigator" may be the more appropriate term for this individual character.

Some people just like to stir up trouble.

It goes on and on. And, I play "the waiting game".  I poke here and I prod there. I call this person and I research this issue. It is the same old, same old.

It is indeed a true "waiting game".

What?

Here is Slade guarding his chewy bone. The boxer has a much more difficult time with chew bones than the other dogs (with long snouts). He cannot maneuver or pick his up as quickly and easily as they can. He did get it stolen from him and I got it back for him.

We put up a baby gate on the steps going down into the basement. The bars were too close together for the cats, so I proceeded to get myself a hacksaw. I have one but it was huge (I bought it to cut the bottoms off my Christmas trees and to cut up shrubbery). This one was smaller and did the trick. Cats can come and go, dogs cannot. No more "P.U.P." in the basement!

The kids cleaned and scrubbed the carpets. They are making it into a video gaming place for them. YAY! Did I say kids? The "kids" are planning a trip to New Jersey at the end of the month. The same time I am planning to go to WV to visit relatives. Dogs will have to go to the vet's office for boarding. I have other family coming in that week-end. I said "Have fun, I won't be here and neither will the dogs! Feed the cats!"

Visitor

A visitor to my house. Luminous light courtesy of altered photo program. I also altered the face so that the identity could remain private. Does anyone else think it odd that this is a Halloween costume?

Amish Valley

Here is the back parking lot of the restaurant we ate at. The food. You have to come to Amish country to believe the food that is served there. It is just 30 minutes from me and I take it for granted. Shame.

This photo has been distorted. The parking lot is not sinking.

Across from the fleat market

Amish country was booming today. This photo is what I captured across from where I parked. The leaves must have hit their peak last week-end because it was just kind of dull. So I messed with the photo in my free program Photo Scape. I messed with it too much, but I'm just playin'.

I purchased hot pepper jelly. What a joke! It wasn't hot at all! I purchased a sweater for the Boxer. We feel bad for him because all the other dogs have long, thick hair and he does not.

Here is another:

Happy Dance - maybe?

I did not take this photo. I lifted it from my nieces' facebook page.

Am I happy it is Friday? Why, yes I am. I usually drag through the work week. Every body's working for the week-end. Loverboy? Was that who sang that song? Can't wait for Friday.

But I have a little, tiny secret. I am kind of ashamed of it. I am very "into" work right now. I have a couple of puzzles and I can't wait to get to the office and tackle them. I keep it on the down low because I get to do this "interesting" stuff when a problem occurs. How sick is that? A district has to be in trouble or have a problem before I get to do my job. Well, mostly.

But then again, my brother is a fireman/EMT. He gets a charge when there is a road accident. I KNOW! See? I'm not so sick. I know a lot of volunteer firemen. They love the excitement that a fire brings. Hey, which reminds me. We had five or six fires in the vicinity (covering a few close counties as well) in one night last night. All set by arson. All businesses. All in the middle of the night so there were no lives lost.

Better

Sable circa 2003

She ain't as spry as she was when we first got her, but she is doing much better. Her doctor gave her an anti-biotic for the hot spot on her cheek and an anti-inflammatory for her stiff back legs.  I will start her back on the glucosamine soft chews. I think the medicine has affected her hearing because she won't listen to me when we are out and about. Either that or she feels better than she has in a long time, so she is wandering more and not giving a hoot about keeping up with me and the boxer.

Yeah, she's a real pistol. The anti-biotics will stop, but the anti-inflam. - I am to give her that on an as-needed basis. The doc only gave me a few days supply until I am sure it will work for Sable then I can order more. If it didn't work, she wanted to try something else. I think it works. I am thinking of asking the doctor if I can take it, too. Kidding. I'm kidding!

Although I am cheating and drink a 5-hour energy drink in the afternoon at work. It has made a huge difference in my evening at home. I actually cleaned both my kitchen and dining room ceiling fans last night. My sinks got a good scrubbing with baking soda.  All my laundry is caught up. All the kitty litter boxes are clean. For the third night in a row I did not turn the television on. I ran out and got my hair cut. I know, I know. It's caffeine, but so far I can still sleep. Well, maybe not. I still get the early morning insomnia now and again  -  but I was getting that anyway before I started with the energy drinks. Sigh. I know I can't keep taking them, but for now - I'll take them.

It has been great weather for walking the dogs. With Sable feeling better, I don't worry about her dragging behind us. It was sad this morning. It was dark when I took her and the boxer for a walk. I don't leash her. I carry one with me in case I need it, but she pretty much just ambles about. She became separated from us. I usually go so far, then stop and wait for her to catch up. She didn't show. I started back the way I came. I could see her (she is black and it is dark) barely. I could tell she was confused. She did not know where we went. I think she was scared because when she saw me she was so happy and relieved. It was very sad.

And, what in the hell happened to posting on Tuesday and Wednesday? Stupid caffeine.

Doggie update

This is Chong

Everything is pretty much the same with the hounds. Except Sable seems to be a little stiffer lately. I made an appointment with the veterinarian tomorrow (if I can get her into my car). The last time she was checked out, they said it was probably arthritis. I hate for her to be in pain. She likes to lay in front of the back door and we have to make her move each time we go in and out. A pain, for sure. Once I caught her tail in the door - I know that hurt. There isn't much room to move her, because the basement steps are right there and I don't want to end up pushing her down the steps. Good grief! In order to get her out of the front of the door, I have to pull her into the kitchen. Not real easy to do - she weighed 96 lbs. the last time we had her checked.

While walking her on Saturday, she stumbled a couple of times.  I took her with me to my brother's house. She did okay. I know they fed her some people food when I wasn't looking.

I just remembered I used to give her PhyCox soft chews with glucosamine in it. That works but it takes time. I will pick up some of that tomorrow (if the vet says okay). Then I will go back to ordering it online. I had to stop for a while, but things are picking up and I should be able to start again.

I was able to get her outside and walking this evening. My daughter said she wouldn't go out at lunch for her. I usually don't have a problem. I actually "walk" them. My daughter just stands out in the yard with them and Sable knows this. I love my puppies and I want to do what is best for them, but this stupid economy certainly did make it hard for a while. Grrr!

The "out of gas" story

My brother (1942) and I went to shop yesterday for an extra internal hard drive for his computer. He has  a 160 GB and it was getting full. He deleted stuff and cleaned it up, but thought he should still add one. That's where I come in. I went to his house, we opened up the PC, gave it a good cleaning. I made sure there was a cable for the extra drive - power, yes. Cable for data - no. His was SATA (like mine) and I just did mine (wait, how many times? LOL!).

Leaving the store and in the parking lot a nice young lady asked me "Can I ask you a question?"  Besides the fact that she just did, I said "Yes."  She began, "I ran out of gas...." and pointed across the parking lot. I snorted (or something to that effect) and shook my head. "No way!" I said.

She said "Oh, okay."  As I walked away I told my brother   "I'm not falling for THAT one!"

In the car I explained to him that just this past month both our brother 1953 and his wife's niece were ripped off by somebody claiming to have run out of gas. They both gave the guy money (his wife and kids were still in the car out on the freeway, for goodness sake!) and never saw it again. The stories are much more complex, but you get the idea.

Then they told me there were crack addicts walking around (the city my brother lives in) the parking lots telling the woeful store of running out of gas, so they could score some drug money. When we got home and told our sister 1944, she said "That's a shame. Those people are ruining it for people who actually do need help."

Well, I told my story on facebook and wouldn't you know... a friend of mine said "That was my cousin, and she really DID run out of gas!"  I apologized and told her why I did what I did. I also told her (and my sister) it was strange because this girl did not look like a drug addict (but who am I to  know what one looks like?). She had nice hair and clothes and she looked healthy.

So I have learned a lesson. I should at least listen to the person before I make such a harsh judgement again. I should have said "I have my cell phone, can I call somebody for you?"  I know better than to hand my phone over to them. 

I also was a bit perplexed by the way she started her story. My reasoning was (before I discovered that she was my friend's cousin) was that 1. - who does not have a cell phone with them? (I know some folks don't but it is rare).  2. If I ran out of gas, I would not ask people if I could ask them a question, I would just blurt out - "Can you help me?" or "Do you have a cell phone, can you call somebody for me?"  - my first words out of my mouth would be "I ran out of gas".  Of course I probably would have stopped her right there, but if you need assistance, I don't know - I don't think  you start out with "Can I ask you a question?"  That is more like starting a conversation about "Is this restaurant any good, or do you know the directions to somewhere?" Or even worse - 'Who are you voting for and can I give you my opinion on the candidates?' Yikes.

So, next time (if there is a next time) I will listen first and let my instincts tell me if that person in need  IS on the up and up. I still remember Tabor's story about the nice looking lady in the drug store.

And a quick recap on yesterday's post about facebook in the classroom, here is a page that I thought has some pretty good pointers.  http://www.heppell.net/facebook_in_school/.

In the classroom

One school is having a problem blocking facebook. A number of schools in our area want to use facebook. Do you use facebook? Do you think it is a good tool to use in a classroom? Most schools are combining several classes now into one building. If facebook is allowed for 7th and 8th grade students, it may be available for 5th and 6th (or even younger) also.

Sometimes the way a network in the school is setup, is so that all students have access to the same sites. There is a way to break them down so that a certain range can view facebook, and a certain range cannot. But, you need a savvy tech person to do that.

Some schools do not have that. Some are so overwhelmed that they find it easier to just say "no" to facebook than to tweak the network to control it. And, who in the school district makes the decision as to whether a site is blocked or not? Do you know who does this in your school district? Do you think there is a committee that sits down and decides this? Think again. Mostly it is one person. If that person does not understand or use facebook themselves, forget it. If there are enough teachers who want to use the program, they can take it to the Administration and it can be overruled, I guess.

I have heard this conversation many times over the past 15 years I have worked in technology in the schools. The tech person in a district gets very little respect or empathy from the Administration. This in turn causes the tech person to have a chip on their shoulder. They get to feeling overwhelmed. Very few Administration personnel understand technology or what it entails to run a network. Many think that the tech person just sits around and plays on the computer all day. They do not have a clue what he or she does and what knowledge and trial and error it takes to accomplish the job. The tech becomes burnt out and angry over time and when a decision such as "should we allow facebook in the classroom" comes up, the tech says "No! It is too much of a hassle and my plate is too full as it is!" End of story. Period.

The teacher. Does your child have a tech savvy teacher or does your child have a teacher who never turns the computer on in the classroom? I had one superintendent (still working in the school district) that told me the only technological device he uses is the remote control on his television at home. He told an employee that he didn't care about technology, he was only putting his 3 more years in to pad his retirement.  Ouch.  I feel really sorry for anybody who has a child in this school district.

Unimaginable

Some time ago - back in the early 80's - during my idle time where I read, stayed home and studied about art, poetry and whatnot; I caught a show on PBS (one of the 3 channels we were able to receive). It was about the mythological character Medea.

This was the first time that the idea of a mother killing her own child or children caught my attention and brought it to a grinding halt. I may have heard stories before that time, but didn't grasp the meaning of it. That story sunk in.

The 'why' and 'how could she' and many other questions went through my mind back then and as more and more stories appear in the news, they still go through my mind.

Which brings me to the reason for this post. Just a few miles away, a young mother fatally shot her two children before turning the gun on herself.

It appears as if she had been planning it for a while.

It boggles my mind. She was depressed and under stress? Yes, I would think she was.

Stranger still: both Medea and this lady studied a form of witchcraft.

Festival Dance

I had to upload the video to YouTube first, and then embed it here. You really can't hear my brother over the singing (chanting?) of the participants. One year it was about 90 degrees Fahrenheit and I watched them dance. This year they didn't seem so miserable. Beautiful.

Festival 2

I had to zoom to get the photo of these two. I did get more of them, but in a movie format. This dance is just awesome. They invite the crowd to come in and participate. A few did. I did not make it back out on Sunday. Both sisters canceled. They ended up closing the festival early because of poor attendance.

This couple had me in awe. They kept right up with the dancing. Once I check the sound of the video, I will try to get it posted. I am not certain what is said on the video, yet. I'll have to use my backup computer. The sound card in my big one seems to have bit the dust. I blame it on sister 1954 and her making me listen to Lady Ga-gag.

The festival

From the fall festival this year. The best I can tell (from Google) is that this type of pipe is a Great Highland perhaps? I see her every year and I should talk to her (when she is not busy playing, of course).

We walked. Then we ate. Then we walked some more. Then we ate some more. Rinse, repeat. I thought I would burst. My sister and I would not have eaten so much, but she had her son with her and he was like "Next!" at every food tent. I didn't complain, but my tummy did a little.

My other sister just called and cancelled on me today. I guess that is a good thing (for my tummy). The weather has been cold and rainy (yesterday it was cool and cloudy). The ground will be a muddy mess (I know from past experience) and it will be quite miserable. I still have one sister who has not checked in. I may be going, yet.

They want the damn year!

If you ever see this game (www.finditgames.com) turn and run the other way as fast and hard as you can. I thought my arm was going to fall off.

It is a clear plastic cylindrical tube with hidden objects in the confetti-like plastic. I guess the ultimate elusive find is the penny. I was SO obsessed with finding everything that I took pictures. The penny was not as elusive to me as the stupid candy cane.

I got pictures of a wee bit of Abe Lincoln's head. I went to their site and it taunts you with "So, you THINK you found the penny? Click here..." I clicked and they want the freaking year! WTF?! I was livid. I may need to take Advil for the next ten consecutive days for my sore arm from shaking that damn toy for so long and they want the freaking year of the penny!

Can't I just send a picture of Abe's do?

Back Home

A photo of my Mom & Dad and I am thinking - sister 1954. Since the photo is dated 1955. Depending on when the film was developed - it could be my brother 1953.

They would try to visit "back home" once a year to see the family. My Mom didn't have much family left at that time (raised by grandparents) but my Dad had plenty. This photo was taken at my Aunts house in Wild Wonderful WV.

I researched a bit on what was happening in 1955. I was not born, yet. My Mom was a big Cleveland Indians fan - they were pretty popular during that time. My dad was a huge western watcher - Gunsmoke started that year. I doubt that they had a television (maybe) - but I know they had a radio (to listen to the ball games).

I have a full week-end ahead and of course I get a bout of early morning insomnia this morning. I awoke at 3:30. I finally just gave up and got up at 4:30. Old Sable wouldn't even go out at that time of morning. Boxer and Cheech have been sick the past two days with vomiting. Not a lot, just a little.

I made two huge pans of lasagna. I don't put the ricotta cheese in mine, just plenty of shredded mozzarella. I do add sausage. I just remembered that I used to make the pepperoni lasagna and it would come out tasting like pizza. Yum. I'll have to do that again someday soon.