June 2006 Archives

June 30, 1924: Robert M. Tompkins (age 26) and Catherine Cora O'Connell (age 27) were married at St. George's Church in Glencoe, Minnesota. Stella O'Connell Dolan, her sister, was her matron of honor. I can't remember who the best man was. Mom wore Aunt Stella's wedding gown, veil, and shoes. We kept the little satin shoes in the attic for years afterward and marveled that my mother could get her feet into them. Aunt Stella had a little foot and my mother didn't; she said she was in agony all day but it was worth it! They had a one or two inch spool heel and a strap fastened by a satin button across the instep. I don't know what became of the dress and veil.

It was a lovely marriage. They were best friends until the end. Mom was sad that they didn't reach their fifty-year anniversary; he died in 1973 and she died in 1975. She also felt Dad had cheated her and was quite peevish about it -- she said that since she was a year older, she was supposed to go first. What in the world was he thinking of?

Here's some of the highlights of our June.
June 1st~Last day of school for Ashley and Nicole
June5th~Ashley moves up to the boat for the summer
June5-9~Carol spends week up at boat with Ashley making sure she gets settled in
June 7~Ashley starts one of her summer jobs at "Ethel's" a new restaurant in Bayfield
June 6~Nicole starts her "puppy" job
Every weekend~we head up to the boat/Lake Superior
June 10~Ashley starts her second job at a coffee shop in Bayfield, "Blue Horizon's"
June 14~ Nicole gets her drivers permit
June 15~ Dan's brother comes in from CA for his parents 50th wedding anniversary party
June 15 &16~ take Dan's brother up to the boat to show him what we do in the summer
As you can see we are spending a lot of time in Bayfield, WI this summer. Ashley (at Dan's suggestion/idea) is living up on the boat this summer and working in town. So far so good. Many people thought/think we are crazy for letting her do this, but fortunately, it has been a good experience for her (and us I s'pose). She is learning a lot about herself and that's a good thing. We are going up every weekend and though we miss out on some things in town, it's been fun to be up there. Nicole is working at Dan's shop/business a couple half days a week mowing lawn and other various tasks that need to be done. She also has a great/fun job taking care of our neighbors puppy. They got a lab puppy and since both of them work, they hired Nicole to let the puppy out and play with it each day, mid-day. What a fun job! The puppy is very cute, but actually pretty submissive and mellow for a lab. Wishbone was never mellow, only now at the age of 10 is he slowing down. Nicole is also taking some theater classes later in July so not only will she have the fun of taking the classes, she'll be able to practice driving go to and fro. She has been driving (with me) various places and each time she improves. Gotta work on smooth stops, starts and corners. I'm amazingly more calm (and was with Ashley) than I would've thought. I'm such a control person I was expecting to be a "nervous Nelly" but I'm not which is good. So as you can see June has been a fun and busy month. I wish summer would extend into Septmeber~school just gets in the way of the warm weather fun. Carol

Well, even though I understand that NOBODY watched the movie I touted in my last entry, I just want to say it was excellent and then some. It was made by American Movie Channel (AMC) and it showed twice on Sunday and the second half twice on Monday. I hope it plays again and I'm sure it will. The story was wonderful. The cast was wonderful. The scenery was wonderful. I had one complaint: the subtitles were in miniature, too fast, and were often white print on white background. What is wrong with people who attend to this feature? But then, this is my common complaint about any movie with subtitles. I never mind subtitles and can read them, follow the action, and never miss a beat. IF they are readable. One time I saw a foreign film that had a white ribbon across the bottom with large black print and it was just wonderful, but I've never seen that again.

Again, in reference to my last entry, I checked the Internet for a remedy recommended by Katie Tompkins called Bitter Apple and saw that I could buy it for $4.50. Plus $4.45 S&H. So I went to my pet store and bought it for $8.25 plus gasoline for my car. Pretty close to a tie -- but I did have to leave my house and that is a plus. I try to leave my house -- that is, put on shoes and lipstick -- at least once each day.

Okay. I think the caffeine is used up and I can go on to other things.

I can't seem to upload any pictures anymore. I don't know why. I don't have time to find out either.

My news:
Julia got a haircut. (Oh wait, that's Julia's news)
I got a new job - waiting tables at a nice restaurant nearby. Order in.
Shelby had the flu yesterday (Oh wait, that's Shelby's news)
My coffee tastes so good this morning. (that's not news)
I don't have anything....

I'lll go call my Mother.

You all have a great day. What's your news?

Does anyone have a good remedy, preferably an excellent and sure-fire, no fail, remedy, for dogs who turn themselves inside out to chew a spot in an unreachable area? It's not a flea problem. I feel so sorry for my little dog who goes to work on an area and ends up with a sore. And then the sore catches fire and she can't leave it alone. It's just a constant. Years ago, I used a Vaseline and Flower of Sulfur mixture on my German Shepherd and it worked, but it stained everything. I have carpeting now and new furniture and a NEW FLOOR as you may recall and I just don't want a yellow wash over everything. So come on. Tell.

There is supposed to be a good made-for-TV movie tonight on American Movie Channel (AMC) with Robert Duvall at 7 p.m. For those of you who watched and loved Lonesome Dove, you might want to tune in. I didn't like Lonesome Dove but I do plan to watch this one. The trailers look good and the second lead is the fellow from Sideways (can't remember his name).

So there you are. Two things to consider on this Sunday morning.

Father's Day at the Aquarium

Getting ready for Zoo Camp

Phil's biggest regret when we went to Hawaii was that he didn't get to go swimming with the sharks. So, when I uploaded this picture from my camera this morning and saw the shark behind them, I was relieved because now he can say he swam with the sharks...even though they were on the other side of the glass! We had a great time at the Aquarium on Sunday. I hadn't been in a few years & the boys haven't been since they were in a stroller. It was all new to them. They loved it, especially Jackson. He's reading so well now and read all the exhibit signs & talked about all the things we were seeing.

The boys are attending Zoo Camp this week. They love it. Jackson got to go behind the scenes yesterday to the animal hospital and he came home reporting all about the sick animals. Jacob stayed home sick with me yesterday. He caught that nasty stomach virus...thank you Samuel, Joey, & Angela. They had it last week really bad, Angela had to go into the hospital to be treated for dehydration. She had started having contractions but she's doing well now. Two days later they came to my house for dinner & I just knew we'd get it. She swore up & down they were fine. But I had plans for this week & the boys were going to camp....a surefire sign that we would get it. But it only lasted a half day with Jacob. By yesterday afternoon he was fine and he woke up perky & ready to go this morning. Cross your fingers that Jackson doesn't get it.

I go to Job Fair this afternoon at 4pm to pick my school for this year. The word "pick" should not be mistaken for actually having a choice in where I would like to go, rather should be understood as taking a position at a school that is absolutely not my first "pick." At best I hope to get back to Butler, the school I was at two years ago. At worst, I get stuck at my school last year, in which case I will seriously consider changing jobs for a while. Wish me luck.

They were every bit as good as Robbie wrote about. Thanks for the tomato delivery. What a special treat that is to have the prettiest tomatoes, so juicy and good. They are ripening at just the right pace for me - so I can have two a day for several days. Mmmm. Julia appreciates them too. Thanks, Robbie (and Patsy).

Happy Birthday, Joey

Happy Birthday to the fisherman with the mostest! Joey went fishing last weekend and participated in a rodeo where he caught lots of trout and redfish. We'll be bringing some trout with us to share in Tennessee. He caught a redfish that won 2nd place for biggest redfish (which gets you nothing, by the way) and they entered their string of 5 largest trout. They also won 2nd place for that, but the guy who beat them cheated. It was a guy that they know and actually stayed in their room one night. The guy's dad had been fishing earlier in the week and caught 2 huge trout. He gave them to his son to keep on ice and enter into the contest. I was appalled to hear that adults would actually cheat in a stupid fishing contest. Of course there was $400 in prize money to be won, but really, is cheating necessary? Joey said they gave the guy a hard time because the guy knew that Joey knew he cheated. It didn't keep the cheater from collecting his prize money though.

I'm fixing meatballs and spaghetti for dinner tonight- Joey's favorite. I'm also making a cheesecake for dessert because Joey prefers that to regular birthday cake. His family will be joining us as well. Stephen, I got Joey a toiletry bag like yours because he made a comment about it after he saw it last week. He said his is too small. We'll see if this one has enough room for him. You have to understand that Joey likes to pack and over-pack. When we went to the hospital to have Samuel, his overnight bag was 3 times bigger than mine (no exaggeration) and I had my stuff and all the "new baby" paraphenalia packed.

Anyone going to see A Prairie Home Companion? I've read a few great reviews but then I saw the trailer. I'm drawn to it and I think I can talk Patsy into going to see it next weekend. I like Garrison Keillor and I also like Robert Altman movies. This one looks like it is right in his wheelhouse. I usually don’t like to see this kind of film at the theater. I usually prefer big budget blockbusters at the theater and quieter movies at home but I think I’ll make an exception this time.

Cool video of a Lyrebird. Make sure you listen to the whole thing.

The problem with growing tomatoes comes about two weeks after they start ripening. For the first two weeks, they ripen two or three at a time and we can keep up with that. One of the things I learned since I started growing tomatoes is that you can put two, three, even four slices of these things on any sandwich. I never put just one slice on a hamburger or a bacon tomato sandwich any more. I digress. At about the two week mark, they start ripening by the dozens. What you see here is the last three days worth and I left quite a few on the bushes this morning because I wanted to get out of the hot sun and I just couldn’t carry any more. One other thing about tomatoes: There are three kinds. Forget about Creole, Celebrity, Bush Baby, etc, etc....There are store bought tomatoes which rate about 1 on a scale of 10. There are fruit stand tomatoes which rate about 5 on a scale of 10. And, finally, there are home grown tomatoes like these that rate about 26 on that same scale of 10. There is no comparison.

Some of the reddest ones and a fresh-picked bell pepper will go in Dad's salad that Patsy is making this afternoon. I'll end up giving a lot of these away.

We've been receiving an inordinate amount of spam at all of the blogs here lately. You need do nothing but delete the email when you receive it. I’m on it. I'm going to attempt a very untechnical explanation of what is happening and why but I'll put it below the jump.

Speaking of Ninjas..................

Jacob, Patrick, Samuel, and Jackson

Jackson, Patrick, Jacob

Angela, Sue, and I and our families went to Perdido Key, FL last weekend. We were there for a long weekend and it was so nice. We each took a night to cook & the last two nights after dinner the adults hung out in the jacuzzi while the kids swam in the pool. We had a great time.

In other news, I was at the Emergency Room yesterday for the second time in less than a month. This time it was Jacob's turn and he was not going to be outdone by his brother! Jacob got 5 stitches in his right ear (Jackson had 5 stitches in his chin.) He & Jackson had been building tents on the sofa & he slipped & banged his ear on the corner of the coffee table. It bled profusely and as I was trying to clean it well, I tried to get inside the curve of his ear by pulling it toward me and that's when I noticed it was split in two. I told him we had to go to the hospital and Jacob walked out of the bathroom, by now he had stopped crying, and he found Jackson and told him "Jackson, I have to get stitches." He was so calm and he talked through the whole procedure. He didn't once cry. I think he was just happy to be able to compete with his brother now! I'm done. There will be no more injuries this summer. You heard it here first!

Happy Birthday, Laura

Have a Day!!!!

Happy Birthday, Carol

May your day be filled with non-chocolate desserts and decaf coffee!
Enjoy your day!

Yesterday was a happy day for Bunk. He has been waiting to have his braces removed for the last few years. We have never understood why they were on so long. There was some negligence on our part in not making the next appointment right after an appointment and letting six months go by without an appointment. And then there was difficulty in getting appointments in a timely manner. But I don't really think that accounts for seven years! He was supposed to go to Camp Winfield on Sunday for a counselor's meeting for camp which starts next week. He called the director and told him how he could not miss this orthodontist appointment. He will be working at this camp until July 21st so he was not going to put off having the braces removed for that long. We were on our way home from Florida last night and he was on his way to camp. He met us at a gas station by the interstate so that we could see his teeth. I was very relieved that there weren't black holes where the braces had been attached!

My friend, Dave, posted some lovely pics at the CrabAppleLane Blog from a cemetery in Minneapolis. I love photos of cemeteries and find myself taking pictures of them, too. Dave is a guy I had lunch with while I was up there for the reunion two years ago. Enjoy.

Update: A few more pics from the same cemetery at Dave's Blog, Fish Fear Me

Happy Anniversary, Carol & Dan

Yesterday was the 20th anniversary of our wedding. We were going to go out on Lake Minnetonka but it rained, so we went to a nice restaurant in Loretto. Ate too much!
It was a hot 92 degree day. Dan started the day off by going waterskiing with his best man and some thought I was crazy to "allow" him to do that on our wedding day. As many would soon learn there isn’t any not "allowing" Dan to do anything fun he wants and I wouldn't have it any other way. After the wedding we had a nice reception at the Medina Ballroom. Gary was kind enough to hire our own personal “waitress”. It was a guy from work who dressed up like a waitress and it was so funny. We didn’t have a lot of money when we got married because we were building our first house and so we used Dan’s parent’s cabin/lake home for our honeymoon in northern MN. I know my mom still laughs 'cause I always swore I’d never marry a hunter! Now 20 (quick) years later I am happy to say I’m glad I married this hunter. I am truly blessed to have such a wonderful man in my life. Carol