Mary and I went to the movies.

We took in Apocalypto. This was Mel Gibson's action movie set in South America, just as the white men arrived. But it wasn't about that. It was about one man's escape from certain death, and saving himself and his family. I thought it was very well done and recommend it to you.

After the movie, Mary and I went to a bookstore to get a book for Eliza's host family and then we went to Michael's to get Eliza 3 American flags to send as well. Do you sense a theme here? We have been doing lots of shopping for Eliza, and very little for us.

We went to Home Depot and got supplies for building the first garden bed frame. I'm going to see how quickly I can get them done, then we will be in business.

For breakfast, I made chocolate, chocolate chunk with pecan muffins. Absolutely fabulous!

Quiet evening

Just a quiet evening at home. A nice fire in the fireplace, some hot tea, and a good book.

Now we need to stay warm! Really glad that we still have electricity tonight! If we didn't we would be very, very cold!

It could be the cold, but I've been having some trouble focusing on things lately. Trying to get up the energy to get the house projects started just hasn't been doable. So I think getting out the tools and scoping out what needs to be done for the project is in the cards for this weekend. Oh, and resting up for the beginning of the holiday season!

Clean out the fridge/freezer soup for dinner.

Well, I've been saving little bits of veggies, rice, wheat berries, for quite some time. I took it all out of the fridge, tossed it in the big pot, added some soup mix, a can of crushed tomatoes, and some chopped celery, a few spices and, drum roll please... "Dinner"! It tastes pretty darn good and will be ready for whenever anyone wants to eat. I think I'll make a batch of corn cakes to go with the soup.

I think this weekends project will be to make some garden bed frames from 2x4s and pvc hoops. I'll go over to Home Depot and get some 2x4s and some deck screws to put them together. I'll also use some clamps to hold the hoops on the 2x4s. I may need to rig it so that it doesn't blow away, so some extra PVC stakes may also go with it. I'll post later how that goes.

Mulching leaves

All of those leaves that I've been collecting and depositing in the back yard are now mulched. I took the electric lawn mower and went at those leaves. Now they will not get blown around by these wind storms that we've been having.

I spent an hour at Home Depot this afternoon getting Mary's Christmas present. I built a light shelf set for her. It has 4 lights, and 5 shelves, and she can use it to start seedlings for next spring. She was very excited about it.

I know, it was early, but with all that will be going on around Christmas, I thought it would be a good thing to get it done when I had some time to set it all up for her.

Sad Time and Happy Time

Mary and the kids and I took a trip out to Colorado to visit her sister. We had a wonderful trip, and really enjoyed Becky and Mitch's kids.

I didn't check my cell phone for the whole trip. I should have. I checked my email upon getting back home on Friday night, and found a message from my Dad, telling me that my grandfather had passed away on Thanksgiving morning.

So, a bit of frantic calling around, and checking plans. The funeral was yesterday, and Mary, Kyle, Tori, Samuel, and Miriam and I went for a road trip. It was a sad time, but we gave my grandfather a good send off. He had lots of people that he worked with show up at the gathering, and I met lots of people who said my grandfather was a wonderful person. It was good to know that so many others thought as highly of him as I did.

My grandmother summed up the problem the best, by saying that she had lost her husband years ago, and was just waiting for his body to fail. My grandfather suffered from Alzheimer's disease. He had no memory anymore, and couldn't remember things for longer than an hour. He could remember your face and your name, but not that you had just been there to see him yesterday.

I knew that he was going, when he had the TV removed from his room, because he couldn't figure out how to change the channel. So he listened to the radio.

What to say of a wonderful man who had some faults as we all do? I'll miss you, PawPaw. I still love you, and will keep your memory alive.

Veterans Day Weekend

Mary and I had a getaway weekend last weekend.

We left on Friday about 11, after her student left, and had a lovely drive down to Appomattox County. We stayed in a lovely B&B by the name of Spring Grove Farm. We stayed in the Library, where a large Murphy bed was installed on one wall. The B&B was amazing, as it took 14 years to restore/build to its current glory. The hosts were wonderful, and very accommodating. Mary and I very much enjoyed our stay.

The reason we were down there, besides getting away from Annapolis for a weekend, was to look at the community, and the area for places to settle down when the kids leave. We enjoyed driving around the county, and seeing all there was to see. The land there is beautiful, but not as striking as the mountains. The hills are often covered with trees, dotted with pastures, and small creeks.

Mary and I had no trouble finding places to eat, as vegetarians. The restaurants there were happy to accommodate to us. I shocked the Chinese American who served us dinner Saturday evening, because we ordered 2 vegetarian dishes, instead of having the heavily meat-laden buffet. When he brought our order, he asked, "You Vegetarian?" When we replied that we were, he went on to tell us that in China, only the Buddhist monks were vegetarian. When I told him that I was Buddhist, his jaw about hit the floor! He couldn't believe it and asked 3 times. I suppose he hadn't met a white American Buddhist before! There is a first time for everything, isn't there! I'm doing my part to keep diversity alive and well in America! Anyway the food was excellent.

We returned home well rested and looking forward to our next trip, Christiansburg on Friday!

Lentils with Wheat Berries

This is a simple dish I came up with about 2 weeks ago, just as something for Mary and I to have when the kids weren't around. But, there were leftovers! And the kids ate them! So, I'm making it again for dinner tonight. I'm steaming up some veggies to have on the side as well. Simple and yummy!

I rode Zippy to work today. The rain had stopped but the roads were a little slick. I managed to stay warm. It wasn't difficult, since it was almost 60 degrees outside. Riding the scooter is so much fun! I really enjoy that silly thing!

I do want to get a motorcycle designation on my permit, so that I can ride some larger machines. I might just want to get a 250 cc cycle next year! Who knows. I love the fact that it is so much more environmentally friendly than the car. And fun to ride. Even when it is cold outside the feeling of the wind is great. I definitely have lost my fear of the thing. I still respect it though.

Looking forward to my birthday getaway tomorrow. Mary and I are sneaking out of town to have some rest and relaxation down in Virginia. More on that next week.

Late Breaking News:
I just got off the phone with my son Kyle. We had a lovely conversation about school, band and such. All was going fine until I asked him if he was still planning to go with us to Christiansburg next Friday. He chose not to go. Instead he is going to a birthday party. I didn't even ask who's birthday party it is, I really don't care. If he is trying to piss me off, he has succeeded. I really was looking forward to seeing him, and taking him down to see his grandparents. Also, it will have been almost 3 months since I've seen him, due to the band thing. I won't get to see him until December, IF THEN! He may choose to not see me then either.
I'm human. I build up hopes and expectations of seeing him, based on his word, saying that he would definitely come on that visit, and now he breaks my heart again. How many times is he going to do that to me? Am I lost to him? Is he lost to me?