Week 4 - Sis

This week was slooooow and so I had plenty of time to read. Sunday was a football and Nook day which wasn't so bad afterall. Worked my way through part of the week catching up on what was left of magazine stack. The articles were very interesting but remembering what I read seems to be a problem. The newspaper article was sent to me by my sister Judy. Psst! Chickie to her family. This article was about a beach my family spent a lot of weekends at. Martin's Beach in Half Moon Bay, California which is the subject of a suit to keep the right (Coastal Act ) for public use. It was a place of a kids dream. You had the water for cooling off and surfing, the wet sand for castles, the picnic tables for eating whatever tastes better while inhaling the ocean's air. Since there were usually at least three families sharing our day that involved a lot of kids. My parents had seven and the average was four for the other families. This meant parents had a time watching and making sure the kids were safe when playing in the surf or helping kids who got sand in thier eyes....with little help from their siblings. ;-) During the smelt season (delicious little fish) my dad, uncles and sometimes friends would rent these nets that reminded me of hammocks with a pole on each end and head out into the water, maybe 3-4 feet deep. Turning the net on its side the men would wait for a wave that brought the fish in and then fling the fish on the beach for the kids to gather in buckets or pails. This was a great adventure for the kids, free labor for the dads and food for the price of a rental fee. Running in the sand burns a good amount of energy, that means parents had a quiet ride home while the kids slept in the backseat of those big old cars. In my family's case, it was more like kids piled on each other with some of us complaining that the sleepers were crowding us. Hoping the re-opening of Martin's allows families in the near future to start a tradition of their own. Remember the last post and us receiving the valuable salami? This was the remains and a snack last night. WAH! Beautiful weather yesterday and today, so the only outing of the week the dreaded grocery shopping. Lisa says she wants to throw a hissy fit when we have to shop; my mental hissy fit comes at the counter when it says, "You pay this amount"!

Week 4 - Lisa

This is one of those weeks in life that you examine and just check off as unremarkable; yet it was full of drama and exhausting.  All job related so <insert Charlie Brown teachers voice here> whomp-whomp, whomp-whomp-whomp. There was no weekend adventure as I worked Saturday.  So what did I take pictures of?  Well Friday I made the 90min round trip drive to get some "soul food."  Thankfully we have found ONE Taqueria with the tastes of home.  My next pic is when I was deliriously waiting for water to boil at 10:30pm one night so I could have some noodle soup.  I started tripping out on the all the bubbles forming in my boiling water; I'll blame the fever for that one.  Next up is my Mama's crack cookies.  We sent home care packages this week.  I made fudge for my Tia Madeline and cousin Britni and my mom made her highly addictive cookies for my sister, Sia.  She froze some dough for us.  So delicious!  Lastly our big outing for the weekend was grocery shopping.  Oh how I loathe grocery shopping.  Like I want to fall down on the ground, kick and scream and have a hissy fit every time I think about having to grocery shop.  I think I'd be okay with it if I could pay someone to unload the truck and put them all away.  My mom is the kitchen organizer as she calls it her "place of work" so I do not even do that much. Yet, I still loathe it.  So I had to find a bright spot while pushing the cart and luckily there were some pretty flowers in the store.  Just as I was feeling a touch of Spring on this fluke of a beautiful 65 degree day and getting a little skip in my step I turn the corner and see the Valentine's Day display. "Oh the horror," I mentally screamed. I'll save my loathing of this holiday for February.  Do not want to seem all doom and gloom in one post.  ;> Let's just say it brings back harrowing memories of working holidays at Hallmark.  Stories for another week...

Message from Dos Dames #4 ~

The ATL's "Best" Weather Report is back!  And yep, the regular news stations are "kinda-sorta-maybe-we'll see-but not sure" talking about snow on Tuesday or Wednesday night.  In fairness as crazy as this season has been I think they are shell-shocked and nervous to give a prediction.  Megan got sold the same goods I did upon moving to the ATL - noooo, it never snows here!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xGfZSq7-LU

You'll also find her hilarious videos of when the storm hit a few weeks ago.  Enjoy!

ATL, what is this?! - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1eEbS11uWQ

Trying to go to the store - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDLOYLCZBXs

At the store - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJqhuxWjizM

Week 3 - Sis

Apartment fever is what I had with all the daily weather changes. Most of the days were just too cold to be out.  Plus finally getting over a long bout with a sinus condition. On Wednesday we received the World Series programs, featuring the SF Giant's Champions. My daughter in California shipped them UPS about two weeks ago, but WEATHER held up the delivery. Then in the mail I received an invitation to San Mateo, Ca. Historical Association which included, "The End of An Era", saying goodbye to 75 years of horse racing tradition. On Friday, even more home reminders, Gallo dry salami from my sister! Horse racing and good, dry salami, two things you can't find in Georgia. Saturday we decided to make our first visit to the Atlanta Zoo. I had seen a tv program here and learned the zoo's animal habitats were very lacking in the 60's and how Atlanta has worked hard at improving the conditions for the animals. The needs of the animals, as far as more suitable and natural environments, etc. are being implemented. It's definitely in evidence that the process of change is going on and should add much to the enjoyment to both human visitors and living conditions for the animals. There are signs covering fences that advertise more carnivores will be added soon. I was surprised at the size of the grounds, as it's much smaller than the zoos I've enjoyed in California. The all consuming weather turned out to be a sunny and brisk and we were outside, oh happy day! Some of the animal stars for me were the meerkats, otters, komodo dragon, elephants and panda bears. The animals that weren't out or seen that day were the: gorillas, giraffes, rhinoceros, monkeys and peacocks. Others I was surprised to see only one of: lion, tiger, leopard and sun bear. They seemed, from a human's point of view, very lonely or bored. Meerkats, as you see, always on guard. I wasn't sure if I was watching a version of an otter Beach Blanket movie with Frankie and Annette or a famous scene, considered very risque at the time, from a really old movie, From Here to Eternity, with Burt and Deborah! Entertaining and quite noisy this twosome were. The Komodo dragon was stunning and at first hard to see because he blended in with the log he was sleeping on. We found the carousel in the kid's zoo section and there we were able to see some of the day's missing animals! Good to be out from noon until 4:30 and breathing fresh air. Today it was football Sunday with some reading and resting after such a busy and exhausting week. ;-)

Week 3 - Lisa

Well the "snice" lingered way longer than I think anyone imagined.  Never seen JoJah snow stick around well into the next week.  I used to roll my eyes as the elderly people around me talked incessantly about the weather.  And now here I am.  My mother is smirking as she does about all bladder related matters too. You do not realize when you are younger that the weather revolves around your aches and pains.  So the light bulb goes on at forty-seven; they did not mean to blather Lisa, they could not help themselves!  Blame the arthritis, bronchitis and all the other -itises that creep up on you!  I am weather beat-down, humbled by my once youthful ignorance and good knees. Other related news linked to "Week 3" my Tia Chickie sent us two sticks of salami and a surprise Tuscany calendar for me.  Thank you Tia, so sweet.  My mom rolled her eyes upon seeing the calendar and thought, "here goes the whining."  Yes, I whined, I WANT TO GO" as soon as I seen it.  <sigh>  We also received our "lost due to the storm" World Series programs from my sister and brother-in-law.  Yep!  Still riding the high of being the 2010 WORLD SERIES CHAMPION SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS!  Finally towards the end of the week the sun made an appearance.  Severe cabin fever that had taken over caused my mom and I to decide to go to the zoo in 38 degree weather.  We had a good time wandering the animal-less zoo.  Taking pictures of all the JoJah dirt red stained animals that did come out.  Yowza when the wind kicked up but we stayed for about three and half hours.  We are very grateful to the critters who made an appearance. I am sure they thought we were nuts.  Wow, the Atlanta zoo is so small.  I'll never complain about the San Francisco and Oakland zoos again.  We are very fortunate to even have two zoos so close in proximity.  Supposedly they have made a lot of changes to the Atlanta zoo.  We can see the efforts but they have a long way to go.  Sunday has turned into a cooking and football viewing day.  Making some chili verde and fudge.  Mom's baking cookies.  Some of it is flying to California tomorrow.  Wish I was! 

More photos if anyone wants to look: 
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=279347&id=756824667&l=8bcb95fef7

Message from Dos Dames #3 ~

During the "SNICE" storm motivational speaker Megan McGlover began doing the below weather forecasts on YouTube.  We think she is hysterical and could definitely relate to what she was saying and feeling.  Enjoy!  Doesn't hurt that she's from California too, living in the ATL now.

ATL Weather Update Jan 11: http://www.youtube.com/embed/5N1Im1xbjWQ

ATL Weather Update Jan 17: http://www.youtube.com/embed/1f5hOXJJUYM

Message from Dos Dames #2 ~

Hey everybody we've added a playlist of "some" of our favorite music.  Turn up your speakers and keep it playing while you are reading or doing other things.  We hope you like our long list of our mother/daughter/family favorites! Generation after generation; music has been an integral part of our lives.  Mapping the good times, sad times, important milestones and just no reason but want to dance parties in our many living rooms. If any of these tunes bring back a memory, please share it with us.  Enjoy!

Week 2 - Lisa

I'm calling the past week "SNICEAPOCALYPSE" or "SNOWMAGEDDON" here in the ATL.  My boss says I should copyright "snice"; my combination word for snow and ice if you didn't guess.  What a complete disaster.  I did not work Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday and only six hours each on Thursday and Friday.  Atlanta went to its knees between the snow and then the ice caused by record breaking low temps.  Of course all the big rigs stuck on the interstate and the idiot drivers did not help.  Atlanta's combination of trees, country roads and no equipment made for a really stressful time. I lost a lot of sleep worrying about my employees driving, how were we going to make up all this work, would we go in the next day and the next day and then the day after that.  I did a test drive to my facility that was white knuckled.  Doing a 360 degree spin out because someone cut in front of me to try and exit the highway and lost control spinning out in front of me.  Thank God for my Toyota 4Runner!  She kept me safe and partly sane.  With that being said, I did not do a whole lot of picture taking this week.  I was too busy sweeping our patio to keep it from becoming a mini ice cube, strategically parking my truck, protecting my truck engine, leaving me space to get traction,  packing my truck with essentials for when I did have to drive;  blanket, water, flashlight, ice melt, broom and shovel.  Ah the fond memories of living in Chicago and thankfully I did so I wasn't a completely lost California girl!  Here's a link to a few of my snow pics and this week I'm featuring my cat sunii and her brown glass ball.  Hey, there was not a whole lot going on in the house to take pictures of.  You get what you get.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=275532&id=756824667&l=6122ea4bb3

Week 2 - Sis

A long week of staying inside and off the roads for everyone. Snow looked beautiful under a sheet of ice, not so beautiful on the roads and highways. Trying to keep busy while indoors so I decided to iron. First article of clothes, fried the collar and now have a blouse with a Mandarin collar! Ah, daughter goes to work; the cat and I decide an open window with fresh air was great for about 10 minutes.

Week 1 - Lisa

If this is how the rest of the year is going to play out I might start looking for a cave next week.  First I'll have to dig out of the snow and get a better set of lungs!  January is always a weird mix of craziness at work and kind of a blah time personally as you take down all the decorations and the cold sets in.  We did not disappoint. My  mom and I both got really bad colds and it's snowing.  However, in true Carrier women spirit, we still managed to be productive.  Hey, I even read 3 books in one week.  I haven't done that in like three years!  Can't keep us down.  Even if its just a famous tapping or shaking of one of our feet.  LOL