Time with Good Friends

On Thursday Dee worked at McGinnes Sisters for a few hours, then we went to Ross Park Mall to see the new stores - Nordstrom and Tiffany - that had recently opened. It was nice to walk through and look at things, but I can't imagine why people would spend so much money for some of that stuff. The floors were very shiny and the clerks were friendly, but "geeesh!" We did by a smoothie at our favorite smoothie place. The, since Dee had some great ground meet from Costco, we decided to have homemade burgers at home with multi grain buns, provolone and sweet pickles. Yummmmm!

On Friday Dee interviewed at a nearby Assisted Living place (called Worthington) to be the receptionist. She'd interviewed there before and was offered the job. The offer came after she'd accepted the McGinnis Sisters position. So she turned it down. Since she missed interacting with the public and enjoys ding receptionist work, and saw their ad in the paper again, she decided to make contact. The gal was thrilled Dee called back again. As it goes now, she starts work there on Monday (4 days a week) at a higher pay than the first time she interviewed. GO DEE! After the interview we had Chinese lunch together near our house. Russ and Kathy G. came down about 2:30 p.m. I took Russ golfing at Treesdale for his first time there. Lots of "wows and more wows". We got in 18 holes. The weather was perfect and the fall colors were spectacular with the sun shining through. Dee and Kathy went store hopping and shopping. Then, we met the gals at Applebee's for a nice dinner and headed home for a glass of wine and good conversation. What a beautiful day.

During the day I'd received a couple of emails about a dear friend who died back at my church in NJ. Geneva was a woman who was always there for me. Anytime an opportunity for service came up, she was always ready to serve. She had a huge heart and will be missed by all. Later, I got a call from her daughter asking me if I'd be willing to go back and take part in the service on Thurday. So as of now I plan to to NJ on Wed - Friday to take part in the memorial service.

A Visit With Mom

Yesterday Dee had a full day of work, so during the morning I worked on the words to the music we're singing for the Christmas season at Bogmeisters. I also began working on my part for Sunday's worship service at the church we're joining. The pastor asked me to be the liturgist for the day too.

Then, I went to Rotary for lunch and then headed to Monongahela to visit with my mom. A lot of the construction en route is now finished and makes the driving easier. I checked out her med situation, picked up her prescriptions from the pharmacy and we had a nice visit. I check a couple of things at the house she was concerned about. And let her know that everything was as it should be. We had a nice visit, she'd finished another of my shirts sleeves, and we had a good chat. She's looking forward to coming up for Thanksgiving and seeing Kerri and Patrick. Here's a photo I snapped yesterday at her place.

Dee got home a bit before me and had dinner ready when I arrived home (PTL for Crockpots.) We compared notes for the day and then watched a Monk we had recorded and then the Phillies win the World Series.

A Relaxing Day

Yesterday I went to the men's Bible Study breakfast at the church. Afterward I talked with the pastor about assisting in the service on Sunday. We also explored ideas I have regarding a class at the church either for Sunday nights and/ or Sunday mornings during the Sunday School time. Later, Dee went to her gym workout session and I stayed home. After she came back for lunch, we went out to get some sheers for the bedroom windows and then to the Barnes and Nobel for some reading and cappuccinos. We saw our neighbors there and had a nice visit. At home we surfed the net, watched a program we'd recorded and went to Ryanne's birthday gathering at their home of birthday cake. Here is a picture of Ryanne taking pictures.

Here's another shot of her with her sister, Danielle, and Danielle's future step daughter.

Problem Solving Successes

Monday was a full day albeit a cool day too. Dee worked for 5 hours and a took care of stuff around the house. I discovered that the clean-up of my computer (laptop) created some issues with Microsoft Office I wasn't aware of until I tried launching one of them. The computer kept asking me to insert the original disk for a file it needed. Fortunately I found the disk (after saving it for 4 years and never needing it once. Once that was cleared up all the office programs worked fine. However, I discovered that one of the applications I had installed years ago had some screens missing from them and so I called Marie, my old secretary to see if she could find the DVDs I'd used for the applications. SHE FOUND THEM! And is sending them to me. (It was video clips from movies that are used in a lesson format to demonstrate "theological themes" in everyday films and literature.

When Dee got home we had a nice dinner and I went to Bogmesiter practice. Practice went very well and we made great progress with the Christmas songs. They also had the elections for the officers for next year. I was elected to be the person in charge of PR for the next year. Whooopiee ! Also plans were announced to do a "show" for the holidays for "friends and families". That should be lots of fun.

When I got home, Dee and I decided to use the hot tub (41 degrees out) and enjoyed a glass of wine with it. It was raining just a bit, but that didn't deter us, as the hot tub is under the deck and protected from the elements.

I also talked with my mother and plan to visit her on Wednesday afternoon for a few hours. I want to check on a couple of things around the house maintenance wise and also see that she's gotten her prescriptions filled again (that's supposed to happen today). I told her too that we'd like to have her up to our place for Thanksgiving. It'll give her a chance to see and visit with Kerri and Patrick and to spend the night here again. Kerr and Patrick have decided that they'll need a larger place for the baby that is on the way, and so have found a new place which they plan to move in to after the middle of December. Change is in the wind in more ways than one.

A Busy Week

We've been having internet problems and so I've not been able to add to this blog. Sorry about that.

We're watching the Steeler game and reflecting on the week's activities. Flu shots for the both of us. A periodontal consult and then procedure for me. We were planning on going to a friend's cabin for the weekend, but the weather turned cold and damp so we decided to pass on that. We went to the local Sheraton for Friday dinner and used our Entertainment coupon. However, the fish I had was thick and not cooked enough. They re-heated it and completed the process. However, I'd already eaten some uncooked Chilean Sea Bass and got sick overnight. Lots of stomach pains, and after much moaning and groaning, I clung to the porcelain throne enough to get rid of the foul stuff. Then, I finally got to sleep about 4 AM. Whew! I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy.

Saturday, Dee and I went to the Fisher's for dinner. They were members of our Wilkinsburg church and are dear friends. I used the GPS to find Whole Foods en route to their place. It worked like a charm. If you make a wrong turn, it calibrates immediately and plots a new course. It's a Navigon 2100w. A great little tool. Much better than the OnStar (turn by turn) I was using. The key is to type in your destination before leaving home because you are not to fuss with it in the car while you are driving.

While at Fishers we played anew game called "Banana something". It's like scrabble, but without a board, and each person has to start with 21 pieces and build their own word tree. Lots of fun. Tom was by far the champ. It was a nice night out.

Today, Sunday, we met with the session of the Cranberry Community United Presbyterian Church session. They voted us into membership and will make it official next Sunday.

Go STEELERS !