Happy Halloween my _ _ _!

I don't hate Halloween.
I just don't enjoy it like a lot of others.
It's inconvenient... the little trick or treaters, that is.
Parents start them out at 4 o'clock in the afternoon for chrissakes.
They will be greeted by the following scene.

That's because it will be too light out for the rest of the preparations to look like anything more than crap.
Because really neat stuff always looks like crap in the light of day.

As it gets darker older children will appear on the street, accompanied by parents, who will pound on the door [because I'm too cheap to fix the doorbell], interrupting our evening meal.
But at least they will have an opportunity to see some of the handiwork that's gone into decorating.

Yep... it just doesn't look right in the daytime.
Besides, we really can't put most of the stuff out until later.

So it looks like I probably will be outside with the camera after dark.

Halloween was a lot more fun when we could take the kids out and bug other people.

or party

Errata etc.

I mistakenly called the mockingbird a magpie.
That error was politely pointed out to me in an email from Mrs. Cuz [who claims she's not into the Internet enough to blog ...or something like that].
In my defense I will say magpie is easier to type and the only reason there's no magpie is because they haven't discovered the berries... or the mockingbird won't let any other birds near the bush?

It's ironic.
The BP posted that his blog entry was inspired by the Cranky Old Man's post, yesterday, about the 1980 Winter Olympic Hockey game.
Then today, Cranky posts about comments on blogs, slipping in the names [surreptitiously] of everybody on the Internet who ever commented on his blog ...except the BP.
That's almost as bad as if the NSA hadn't monitored Angel Merkel's cell phone calls ...almost.

side note: Joe H. will not be receiving the Inspirational Blogger award this month.

One more thing...
The NBA started their season last night.
So now we have the NFL, MLB, MSL[a minor irritation to the leagues in Europe], NHL, CFL, et al playing their sport at the same time.
Worse, they will be overlapping again.
It's a small wonder Christmas wants to start early. 
It's athlete's fault that folks have to work on holiday's.
They started the whole thing by playing football on Thanksgiving.

before long the World Series

 will be on Thanksgiving

Harvest time

I have made a discovery about the magpie.
But at the moment I am listening to the ZZ Top station on iTunes [it gets some taking used to to remember to capitalize the second letter instead of the first].
Born to be Wild by Steppenwolf is the song of the moment.
I guess, since the topic is the bird, that's rather fitting.

Anyway, I am fairly certain the magpie is drunk.

But wait.
Let me tell you that we got a real pumpkin to carve.
That should be all kinds of fun.
Speaking of pumpkin carving and drunk, I have a Halloween horror story involving grandchildren a grandchild to relate.

So, yeah, the bird's drunk.
He's been harvesting and eating the berries from the pyracantha bush next to where the window is.

image-Jane Bruten

The robins at my parents place, when I was a kid used to do the same stupid stuff when they ate pyracantha berries.

The irony is I tried to kill that bush a couple of years ago and it came back with a vengeance.
There's absolutely no good reason for that bush to be where it is because only a prowler or a bird will ever see it.

Where was I?
How about pictures of the culprit?

resting before another attack

under attack

Now they're playing Thunderstruck by the aforementioned ZZ Top. 

isn't that precious

Odds & ends for the start of the week

So I went looking for a picture.
This isn't it.

There is a mockingbird terrorizing the window.
I was sure I had taken a photo, but for the life of me I can't find it.

Then I remembered I had shot a video.
I won'd punish you with it again.
Because when I found the video, I found the still shot.

Meanwhile, I used the phone to try for another action shot.

that's him ...the blur on the left

The weather took a turn late yesterday.
There was a light show off to the east in the mountains.
The wind, here in the valley, spread leaves all through the neighborhood... right after everyone had carefully made piles.
The weatherman says it won't climb out of the low 60s today.

does that mean baseball season will finally end?

Every week

Other bloggers have regular features they post like clockwork.
Some even have a theme every day of the week.
Here, you never know what to expect.
Even the language can run to slang and dialect.
About the only guarantee you will get from this blogger is Monday can happen just about any time [and when it does happen, it means there's some news].
We also have Fridays [known as routine Fridays] on almost any day of the week.
They do not occur on the thirteenth of any month [that's another whole category].
One of the things to which I most look forward is the conclusions others make about my posts.
I will remind everyone to check the title of the blog again.
Another blogger said something about one post being a stream of consciousness.
Pretty much all of my posts are like that, unless I am relating a tale about someone else.
Then I usually choose my words more carefully, unless i don't care if I piss them off.
What those who know me will tell you is I am serious about what I do, not about myself.

actually those look like ear buds

life is a setup

OMG, OMG!!!

It's almost noon and there's no post here.
We'll rectify that.
There was no donut run this morning.
Nope!
This morning it was bagels.
That meant a detour to Redding for the real thing [not those lumps you buy in a supermarket].
It also meant some real choices.
GS wanted onion, PHG, cinnamon raisin, and I, garlic.
Just for grins there are a couple of sourdough.
They were good.
The best part is there are still some left for later.

I owe some apologies.
I didn't send an email notification about yesterday's post.
I keep forgetting there are some folks who only read this blog when they are specifically notified there is a post.
You folks out there who don't have Facebook or aren't regular followers really are missing out.
I would do Google+ but it's already too easy for the NSA to keep up with what I am up to.

there's that preposition at the end again

Monday's on Friday this week

Yesterday was the first regular visit to the doc in a couple of weeks.
No, there weren't any irregular visits, either.
Yesterday was also the first day of the new medications.
The last chemotherapy session was October 2.
It took 3 weeks to finally get delivery of one of the new oral meds (the pricey one that we lock up*).
The first thing was the weigh-in.
For the first time in what seems like forever, GS hit the scale at 90lbs.
So while not on chemo her appetite has improved and there's been some weight gain.
Now, we get to see what these new meds do.
The first reaction was a feeling of nausea, which disappeared after about an hour.
We have some anti-nausea meds for that.
GS's appetite doesn't seem to have been affected.

After the weigh-in the blood pressure, heart rate, and temperature were checked.
Everything was well within the right parameters.

Then the doc came in the room.
She was actually all bubbly over how GS looked ...she did spiff up for this visit and it sure didn't hurt that she had all morning to get ready.
The lab results from the blood work on Monday were all good.
The doc says there will be no need for the hemoglobin boosters since GS isn't on chemo any longer.
That mean we will only have to go for labs in weeks when we visit the doc, which will happen about every two weeks since we're self administering.

On the other hand... GS will have to take additional Calcium and Vitamin D because the results of her bone density test shows an early onset of Osteoporosis [we akready knew that] and the new medications tend to create an issue.
The good news is they can be bought in bulk.
The bad news is I have to go back to Costco this week.
Oh, well, I can get the red wine vinegar we need for making the pornographic pomegranate vinegar.

After the visit to the doc we drove to the local deli because GS wanted a Reuben sandwich for dinner.
Hey, I said the appetite's improving.
She may not eat as much as the PHG and I, but she holds her own.
GS gets to have whatever she wants for dinner on Thursday because it's burrito night.
GS eats at 6pm... her choice... about every evening.
On Thursdays I don't get home with the burrito bowl until as late as 7:30 sometimes.

Last night GS ate half of her Reuben.
That's good because it's a huge sandwich.
She'll probably finish it at lunch today.
There's half a turkey sandwich, too, because NT stopped by while we were at the docs with what was left from her lunch.
GS has choices.
She might even decide she wants something else.
We live to serve.

After picking up the sandwich, we went to the appliance store.
We want to replace the 20+ year old fridge.
The catch is it isn't only the fridge that gets replaced because the appliances have to match.
So that means the range, the dishwasher and the microwave all will be replaced.
I'm happy we don't have a trash compactor, too.
Just the thought of the expense is causing my writing hand to cramp.
I know more about appliance manufacturers than I really ever wanted to know.
I also know more about stainless steel than I really ever wanted to know.

But, as my friend Gwen says, "When the wife's happy, life's happy."
She would know because she's a wife.

This post is going real slow because my attention is being distracted by any number of outside sources.
I haven't posted about weather lately.
That's because there's nothing to post.

better hit publish, huh?

*that was a joke about keeping it in the safe, but it does have to be kept at a consistent temperature in a dark, dry place

Wait and see

Today the new regimen of drugs for GS was started.
We've been on a two week hiatus while we waited for approval of financial assistance and delivery of one of the drugs.
Thank goodness for the financial thing.
One pill's cost is more than the cost of all the other drugs combined.
I locked them in the safe.
There's two reasons for that:

1. the cost
2. it's a cool, dark, dry place

I hope I can remember the combination.
I never had anything worth locking up before.

We go to see the oncologist this afternoon.
It's been two weeks.
They haven't forgotten us.
I've been on the phone with them at least a dozen times in interim.

The one drawback to GS not receiving the IV chemo is the missed opportunity to shop in Redding.
Now I have to make time and drive up there on my own.
That's not something I prefer to do.
I did it anyway yesterday.
The bank (because ours closed their local branch almost 20 years ago ...but that's a long convoluted and totally dull disinteresting story), Tj's (because it's become a habit ...and a Dick's Sporting Goods opened next door), and Costco (because there are some things I just can't seem to get anywhere else, dammit!) are all just as irritating as they have always been (it's the me firsters and there cousins, the center of the universers).
Why is it that a couple thinks they need two baskets and then have to walk side by side as the proceed down the aisles, except when the stop for the free food samples ...or meet their neighbor and have a visit that could just as easily be over the fence?

Boy!
Am I ever glad I have a blog where I can vent ...and y'all can just ignore it to go your own way.
Just imagine if you had to go with me and then ride in the car (see yesterday's post).
I bet, if you didn't know better, you'd think I was the Cranky Ol' Man.

I think I mentioned we're decorating for Halloween.
What that means is I might have had an idea or two and the PHG is doing most of the work.
I will post some pictures ...eventually.

Speaking of pictures, here's one I took after posting yesterday.

stupid pre-Halloween decoration

I actually went out of my way to shoot it (no, Sully, not like that) [it wasn't that far out of the way].

Hmmmm, Google Chrome crashes every time I plug my smartphone into the computer ,,,unless I close it first.

maybe I should do that?

Trouble

There I was, minding my own business as I drove home from the post office.
(In this town of 10,000 people the most convenient letter drop is at the P.O. in the downtown ...but that's whole 'nother story)

As I drove past the local hardware store (which isn't the most conveniently located business in the community) I spied an object on the roof.
It is a freakin' blow-up Santa Claus.
WTF!!!

The "Me Firsters" are taking over the world.
We must fight back.

It is just with the selling and the shopping.
It is just about everywhere we look.
It's not only merchants and manufacturers.
The worst of the lot are individuals.

Christ on a crutch...
At least once a day I find myself aggravated at someone who has violated the right of way on the road just to gain a couple of seconds.

Example 1: 

I was waiting at a light on the highway.
As it turned green for the cars going in my direction, a vehicle on the intersecting street turned right in front of me (against the red light) when I was already accelerating and halfway into the intersection.
Had I been a little quicker I might have t-boned him.
If this was an isolated incident, it wouldn't be so disturbing.

Example 2:

I was driving through my neighborhood, in a school zone, as school was letting out, at about 20 mph because there were children in the vicinity.
The street I was on has a double yellow line.
There are only residences in the direction toward which I was traveling.
Some idiot decided it was not fast enough and crossed the double yellow to pass me and accelerated such that his tires broke traction.
Had he attempted the pass a little further along, I might just have made my left turn directly in front of him.

Those are but two examples of the attitude of the individual "Me Firsters."
As long as manufacturers, merchants, and, in general, service industries cater to them, the situation will not improve.

What's all of this about?
I'm thinking it's a case of I'm gonna make sure I get mine.
Well, if it comes to a standoff, you might just get more than you bargained for.

I don't care if the infinitives

 are split, the sentences

 end in prepositions, and

 I hope your mother bites you

Clarification

So I had no idea what I was going to post this morning.
I was thinking it might have to do with a drive to Redding, pending the results from the lab work yesterday.
There is a standing appointment at 9:15am should GS need to have a hemoglobin booster.
But we have to wait to hear what the results of the blood work are.
They won't be provided until about 8:00am.
That means we have to be ready to hit the road almost immediately.

UPDATE
The numbers that determine whether the booster is needed or not were beyond good.
So now that everyone is ready to go out the door,.. [as Buck says, "Insert happy face here"]

Instead, though, the BP gave me a topic.
I mentioned in a comment the Brown Truck of Happiness had dropped a case of cruets at the front door ...or something to that effect.

No, there are no plans to open a restaurant.
I've done my turn as a restaurateur.
That's way too much like work.
The plan is to make pomegranate vinegar for gifting.

Isn't the sixth or seventh wedding anniversary the vinegar year?

Some folks think of cruets like this.

like the ones at Mass

...with water and wine

Others see them like this.

in a caddy on the dining table

...with vinegar and oil.

This is what was delivered.

we had to put the lid on

...empty and in two parts.

The pomegranate vinegar's really good on spinach salads.

seen them used as salt & pepper shakers, too

Friday's dog on a Monday

Actually he's not Friday's dog.
He's Carl's dog.
His name's Tanner.
He's hyper ...gets in and out of the truck through that window.
...is super-protective of anything he deems is his, which just might mean anything he wants.
...drinks coffee ...that's Sweetie Pie's* fault.
But, when Carl speaks, Tanner listens ...and obeys about 95% of the time.

I kinda got a little confused this month.
Lost a week, I did ...this one.
I was thinking this was the last week in the month.
It's only the last full week in the month.

I hate it when that happens.

The new med for GS has been ordered and will arrive some time Wednesday on a brown truck.

say something nice

*that's what folks call her ...among other things ...too bad she doesn't blog or we'd fire a shot across her bow

A funny thing happened

I had it all planned out.
I was going to write a masterful post for Saturday (yesterday).
You know...
One of those posts that one spends at least 30 seconds thinking about, another 20, or so, minutes organizing, and then about four hours agonizing how it to tie everything together.
Then I went on they donut run.

Well, it's not really a donut run.
But I seem to have donuts when I get home on Saturday mornings.
Well, it's only donuts sometimes, but almost always a cinnamon twist, an apple fritter, and a maple bar.
Then, if I am feeling particularly hungry a couple of plain cake donuts.

But that's not why I go out every (really, unless I'm not home) Saturday morning, religiously ...for someting like 11½ years.

That's what screwed up my masterful post.

Here's some of what you were gonna get.
A bit of writing about how the video from Wednesday started a whole string of coincidental observations that included the following images.

This first one, from Cuz, taken at his local airport (Tucson) has little to do with any of the others, except for the type of aircraft.

These are just a slight bit more disconcerting.
They're of a B-17 named "All American."

There doesn't seem to be any reason why that plane should have made the return trip.
It was not on a donut run.
These were sent by someone else around the same time as Cuz's

scary

click the images to enlarge

Random Friday again

This week it's on Saturday.
...and I'm late for the donut run.

...later

Now it's Friday here

Did I mention GS has another test?
Did I mention it's today?
So later on we'll drive up to the imaging center in Redding.
A bone density test has been ordered by the oncologist.

I forgot to mention I got a haircut Wednesday.
That was right after I went to the bank.
My barber's a Dodger fan.
He knows how I feel about the Dodgers
I still got a good haircut.

It's also that time of year when we winterize the house.
That was on Wednesday, too.
The first thing is to shut down the evaporative coolers and cover them.
The house stays much warmer that way.
Since I don't do climbing so well we have to hire it done.
I can get up just fine.
It's getting off the roof that's challenging scary.
The fella who does the coolers had his dog with him.
The dog waits patiently in his truck.

His name should be Kilroy

The best part of the whole day was the text from my daughter.
It had pictures.
Here's one...

...and another.
Big Brother and Little Teeny get along pretty well

They're funny kids.

growin' too fast

It's Friday in Singapore

So far there's only been one Monday this week.
It was a so-called holiday.
Another blogger kinda related how I feel about what Monday holidays are.
Confusing...

I will relate a story about Monday.
I took GS for lab work in the morning.
On the way home I stopped by the Post Office to mail a letter bill payment [because that's the most convenient place to mail anything now that there are no letterboxes on street corners any more and it isn't safe to leave unattended mail in sight because the miscreants of society will steal anything that's not bolted down].
On the door to the Post Office was a printed notice to the effect that, due to short staffing, the local branch would be unable to process passports for the next two weeks.
As I reached the door, a lady was exiting and mumbling grumbling, "Why did they close the damn Post Office because they can't process passports?"
Poor lady didn't realize the P.O. was closed because of the holiday.

BTW-
GS blood work came back with all the numbers looking good so she didn't need to have a shot on Tuesday.
We didn't visit the doc in Redding this week because we're still waiting on the "specialty pharmacy" to finish the process of getting the new meds.
We have, however, been on the phone almost every day... and sometimes more than once.

The automatic garage door picker upper was acting up.
It would pick up okay.
But it reached a point to where the door had to be lowered manually.
That isn't so much an issue for me, since I can't park the Honda in the garage because of the accumulation of heirlooms on that side of the garage.
But, it is a major issue if the PHG wants to use GS's Mustang.
So yesterday I called the garage door picker upper company ...three times.
They are an extremely busy outfit.
Sometimes it's a two day wait for them to get to a customer.
The first call I told them of my problem and explained what I knew about it.
They said they'd get back to me about when they could make it out for repairs.
I called them back about a half hour later, after further investigation on my part, with more information.
They offered a couple of suggestions.
My third call was to inform them I had been mistaken about the information I gave them on the second call.
They told me they could have someone out today.
Then I went off on a run to the bank, Tj's, Costco, and the lemon meringue pie place [special request by GS].
I bought some flowers, too [who knew pie's cheaper than flowers?].

Buck and Suldog are quibbling about the Red Wings and Bruins [that's ice hockey for the uninitiated].
I feel it's much too early to even begin to think about indoor sports.
Though, I truly believe baseball should be finished by now.
I blame economists for the over-long professional sports seasons.
I include the major college sports under the umbrella of pro sports because they're no longer about the students, but about the money.

Back to Buck and Sully.


Look at teh Sharks
                          
Yeah, yeah, it's early yet and they still have to prove themselves as a playoff team.

the slow post from...

It's for the music

But some o' the Air Force types might enjoy the video?


H5 - WWII Bombers over Arizona Landscape from H5 Productions on Vimeo.

arightythen

Really?

So we aren't going to have to head to Redding this morning because the blood work came back with all good numbers.
I spent a little more time on Facebook than usual.
This was posted by an acquaintance [actually two acquaintances].
I almost took the bait and posted my answer, which was the first word to come to mind.

Then I thought... "Let's have a little fun with this."

How would you respond?

mine had more than one syllable 

Huh?

I posted this image about a year ago.

Someone even commented about the appearance of the tree holding up the cloud ...or something to that effect.

Well I was outside shooting cloud pictures again.
Well... a cloud picture.

Then I noticed this.

The tree is gone.

So's the cloud.

This was a better picture, anyway.

A quote from this blog

This is from a year ago:

"Nothing has changed on the GS issue. That's a good thing."

That was while we were still awaiting surgery for the aneurism.
Funny [as in ironic] how context works, innit?

Since I don't have a dog in the fight, I was able to really enjoy the American League Championship Series game last evening.
I do have some abiding interest because I know fans of both teams.

What I have truly enjoyed, though, is how St Louis has jumped off to a great start over the team they are playing.
No, I'm not particularly a fan of the Cards.

Then there's the Sharks...
Then I remembered they started off pretty well last year.
I kinda liked how the announcers commented on the Senators goalie.
"47 saves is nothing to sneeze at. Too bad he came up one short."

My friend, who had the motorcycle accident, has shown some progress, but also some minor setbacks.
He's still in ICU.
When he was finally able to sit up it jarred loose some other things.
That's what ICU is all about... not making things worse.

yeah, like nothin's changed