Another Rousing Middle of the Night Game of...

At 2:35 this morning, which is the middle of the night to me, I was playing a rousing game of name that sound.  

I got up to go to the bathroom and as I was leaving the bathroom I realized I was hearing a loud buzzing sound.  The sound was probably going the entire time I was in the bathroom, but it took that long for me to wake up enough to understand it wasn't just a sound in my head.  I turned on the lights (I never turn on lights after bedtime unless I have to) and listened.  Definitely a loud buzzing, which wasn't coming from the lights, because they were not on when I heard the sound.  

I looked in my dressing table to see if my electric razor had turned on by accident.  No.  

I went into the youngest's bedroom.  I could not decide if I could still hear the noise, or if the buzzing was a permanent part of my existence now.  I went into my bedroom, definitely no buzzing.  I went into the oldest's bedroom room to see if the septic tank buzzer was going off.  The only sound in there was the youngest snoring, and let me tell you he can never complain about my snoring again.

Back into the bathroom.  Buzzing is really loud. I opened the cabinet under the sink.  The buzzing is really loud under there.  I sit on the floor and look through the items under the sink.  Nothing that could buzz. Is it the pipes?  What would cause the pipes to sound like that?  This cannot be good.  Do I wake up the youngest.  No, he is snoring.  

I sit and stare into the cabinet for a minute and then it dawns on me what is making the sound.  I open the top drawer of the cabinet and the sound explodes into the room.  My electric toothbrush is on and buzzing in its container.  

Game over, back to bed. 

We Were So Blessed November 6, 2011

The one year anniversary of Loni taking a sky dive from her attic was November 6.  Today I was reminded of just how lucky she was in not sustaining severe injuries. 

A few minutes ago I learned that the widow of my friend who passed away last year was in the hospital.  This woman and I have become friends through FB and check in with each other every couple of weeks.  I immediately sent her a message and asked her what happened.  Her son replied back and told me to check the update he had just posted.  The post read: "FYI everybody: I was in the attic last week and fell through the rafters. I broke my lower back and two pelvic bones in the front, but no surgery at this time. Wearing a fitted brace for the next three months, it's doing its job so far. I'm very lucky and very blessed?

That so could have been Loni.  I pray my friend recovers quickly and does not require surgery.  

2012 Lake Trip - Day 5

Tuesday, November 6, the last day of my 2012 Lake Trip.  

Rules of the house say out by 11:00 A.M., but I have a few stops to make between Bella Vista and home, so I am out by 9:30 A.M.

First stop was Sager Creek Quilts in Siloam Springs, AR, a very nice quilt shop in the downtown area.  I was able to get a couple of Stonehenge panels at a great price, and after picking up and putting down a 5 - 1 yard bundle of Christmas fabric decided to buy it so I would not have any regrets later.  They were generous about letting me take pictures of a table topper they had made and guiding me to some other quilt shops.

Second stop was Capstone Creations quilt shop in Pryor, OK. Very customer oriented, but nothing really sparked my interest.  Very nice shop, but more traditional in their fabric collections.


It was time to head to Tulsa, OK. Lunch at Wendy's followed by a trip to Quilt Shop Sampler.  A very nice, bright store, but nothing I couldn't find at a local quilt shop.

The next stop was Sewflakes in Broken Arrow, OK.   I found some fat quarters I wanted from a new fabric collection and then headed home.

I thought I could make it back home in time to go to one of my favorite Mexican restaurants, but I got home so late I had to settle for Taco Bell.

Once home I carried everything in and started catching up on messages.

It was a wonderful trip, and a much needed respite from everyday life.

2012 Lake Trip - Day 4

Monday, Day 4 and the plan is to drive the mountain roads and visit some quilt shops in Missouri.   I love to drive curvy mountain roads.  I particularly enjoy the roads that climb and climb and it looks like you will drive right into the sky.  There are lots of roads like that in NW Arkansas and SW Missouri.  

My quilt shop app on my phone had 3 quilt shops in Missouri in less than 50 miles from the house. There are more out towards Branson, but I am not heading that way.

The first stop on the list - Bittersweet Quilts in Joplin, Missouri.  What a great shop!  They had a surprisingly large inventory and the customer service was outstanding.   I purchased a quilt kit, and some fat quarters.  

Next stop was Block by Block Quilt Shop in Carthage, Missouri.  Very bright, cheery shop with excellent customer service.  Some very unique fabric choices, and the walls were decorated with lots of samples.  My favorite part was that each sample was labeled with information on where to find the pattern in the store.  I purchased some buttons, snaps, snap took, a book, a pattern, and a couple of templates.

The third stop was another quilt shop between Carthage and Missouri.  It really did not have anything I was interested in so I moved on quickly.

A stop for lunch at the Olive Garden in Joplin fueled me for my drive back to the lake house.  I took a moment to pray for Joplin and its residents after the 2011 tornado.

I did get tickled by a few signs in Missouri.  My favorite was "Hit a Worker, $10,000 Fine" - is that all that happens?  What kind of hit? If I jump out of my car and slap a worker is that a $10,000 fine?

You can get a mini gastric bypass at a strip mall in Joplin.

There was a place on the highway with 3 dead wild turkeys.  Were they so despondent over the thought of getting shot for Thanksgiving they just decided to end it all?

Once back in Bella Vista it was a trip back to Lake Avalon and the heated fishing house.  The weather had changed and a very cold wind was blowing, there was no way I could fish out in the open.  Nothing was biting in the fishing house, so I stepped outside to throw in a few times.  The fish weren't biting so I gave the rest of my baby crawlers to another fisherman and headed back to the house to pack up for the drive back to Texas.

I was surprised once I returned to the house to get a text from an acquaintance I hadn't heard from in a year.  That was a nice way to end the day.

2012 Lake Trip - Day 3

Day 3 of the Lake Trip and Sunday.  Daylight Savings Time has ended which means an extra hour of vacation!

The morning started out at 34 degrees, and as much as I love to fish, I hate being cold just as much so I just spend a leisurely morning working puzzles, watching television, and enjoying breakfast while looking at the lake.

My schedule for this day includes a visit to Crystal Bridges.  A quick check of the tires and I am good to go. Van Morrison is playing in the cd player, sunshine, and the beautiful fall colors make the drive into Bentonville easy and freeing. 

I had decided the night before to go to Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art this morning and since it doesn’t open until 11:00 A.M. I don’t have to shower and get ready until 10.  A quick check of the tires lets me know I am good to go.  Some Van Morrison in the cd player, sunshine, and the beautiful fall colors make the drive into Bentonville easy and freeing.

The architecture of Crystal Bridges is amazing and the museum is quite a gift to the area from Walmart. There is no general entrance fee thanks to Walmart.  The grounds includes over 3 miles of hiking art trails. 

The permanent exhibits are begin at Colonial to Twentieth Century Art.  I was happiest in the Early Twentieth-Century and Twentieth Century Art Exhibits which included pieces by Jackson Pollock and Alexander Calder.  I particularly enjoyed Devorah Sperber's "After Grant Wood (American Gothic) 2," and  Nick Cave's "Soundsuit."

The special exhibit during my visit was "See the Light: The Luminist Tradition in American Art."   It was twelve works of art from 1875 to present. It wasn't really my type of "art."

After the museum it was lunch at Hoolihans.  I don't recommend it.  I checked the place out as I was walking in and after I sat down and it looked okay.  After I ordered I noticed a couple of flies buzzing around, and by the time my food arrived there were about 20 flies on the glass between me and the area servers prep area.  I questioned the waiter about the flies and there was a story but it didn't make me feel any better.  I probably should have complained to the manager about the flies, but I just didn't want to mess with my mojo for the day.  

Once back to the house I went down to the dock to fish. Nothing was biting so I decided to take a short nap in the house (okay, I had a little nap in the chair on the dock too.).

After my nap I decided to drive over to Lake Avalon to fish on the dock dad and I always had luck at when I would visit my parents.  Nothing was biting, but I was enjoying the memories and listening to the church bells peal. 

Thanks to the time change, it became dark soon after I arrived at the Avalon dock.  I continued to fish and the fish did start biting.  My theory is the fish had not turned their clocks back and were on their daylight savings time feeding schedule. After catching 2, I decided it was just too dark to continue and headed back to the house, after all as much as I enjoy catching fish I was really there to enjoy the act of fishing.

Fish #1

Fish #2

Once back at the house it became apparent that the wi-fi was out and there would be no playing on the computer, so I sent some texts, made a couple of calls, and went to bed to work puzzles.

It is amazing how happy and relaxed I feel.

2012 Lake Trip - Day 2

I woke up on day 2 of my trip freezing.  A look at the thermostat said 62, even though it was set at 68.  I set the controller to 83 just to see what would happen. Nothing happened.  I put in a call to the property manager.  

In the meantime, I made breakfast. I enjoyed scrambled eggs, a blueberry bagel and cream cheese, but not how cold my feet and nose were. 

I layered up and went fishing down on the private dock. It was very windy, and cold.  I had a couple of small bites, but nothing I wanted to bother pulling in and taking off the hook, so let them go.  It wasn't about catching fish, it was about the process and just being there.  I had a lovely conversation with a turtle that came to visit while I was sitting on the dock.  The little birds that would come down and sit on the edge of the concrete were a beautiful shade of green.  The honking of geese and quacking of ducks surrounded me almost constantly.  The highlight of the morning was when a great blue heron swept down right in front of my face.  After an hour I was too cold to move my fingers, but happy, it was time to head back up the hill to the house.  

 

View from fishing dock.

Once in the house I made a couple of cups of hot tea to warm myself.  As I was sitting on the couch wondering if I would ever feel my toes again the phone starting ringing.  The property manager, the property owner's mother, and the owners (calling from England) were trying to figure out what was wrong with the heat.  They all assured me they would do their best to get it fixed immediately but they were having trouble finding anyone to come out to the house on a Razorback game day.  I was extremely impressed at their response to the need.  They asked for permission to enter the house if I was gone when they arrived, and then told me they would be in touch.

I went and took a very hot shower.  I must say it was hard to get out of the shower once I got warm, but I did.  I quickly dressed and hit the road.  

When I got in the car I noticed the low tire sensor was lit, but I also took note of how cold it was out and remembered that usually happens when there is a temperature change.  

My first stop for the day was The Rabbit's Lair, a quilt shop.  First impression as I walked in the door, what a friendly shop.  I was greeted, asked if I was looking for anything in particular (I was), and shown directly to what I needed.  There were several women working and all were very friendly and helpful.  The store is located in a historic building which adds to the charm.  They had plenty of fabric, but there wasn't anything that particularly caught me eye.  I did ask about something I had read about about the night before in my new quilting magazine.  They did not have one, but they offered to special order it for me which I thought was very customer service friendly.  I told them I just wanted to see the item, and was not ready to purchase it.  I did find a Clover Dome Thread Needle Case that I had not seen before and was curious about using for my hand quilting.  When I asked one of the ladies in the shop about the case, she immediately offered to demo it for me.  It went right into my basket when she finished.

 

When I left I looked at my tires, I didn't notice any of them being particularly low.

The next order of business for me was to buy and electric blanket.  They property owner's mother had called to say the heat was fixed in the house, but I wasn't going to take any chances.  The house is 11 miles from the main road, and then it is several more miles to any department store. Who knows if any of them are open 24 hours.  I can always use an electric blanket at my house.  I found a Target and was ready for the next thing.

The next thing was an early dinner at Outback, followed by a stop at Harp's to pick up a new puzzle magazine.  Another eyeballing of the tires and nothing noticeable.  The tire sensor was still going on and off. 

 

I then drove over to see if the heated fishing dock was still on Lake Avalon, took notice of houses for sale, and went over to take a picture of Mom and Dad's old house.  It is now painting a hideous blue.  They had it painted cream.

 

The youngest learned to crawl in this house.

A drive down 279 to Missouri was next on the list in my head.  I wanted to be able to say I went to three states on my vacation.  Missouri is less than 10 miles from the house.  I crossed the border, turned around in the parking lot of the liquor store and headed back. As I was driving past an empty lot a large hawk flew down and landed in the lot by the side of the road.  It made me smile, it was if Raymond was putting his stamp of approval on my trip, and letting me know he was with me.

 

As I stopped at the red light at the turn to the Highlands where the house is located, the woman behind me started honking and pointing at my car.  I pulled over into a gas station and she followed me to tell me by rear driver's side tire was low.  Yes, now the tire was noticeably low.  I pulled over to the air machine, put my quarter in and nothing happened.  Now I fill my tires at home with my own air compressor that I know how to work.  I did not know how to work this machine.  I walked into the gas station/quick mart and got in line behind a man ordering a "Frito Pie."  As he was waiting he began to tell me how unhappy he was that they had changed the recipe for the pie.  I told him I didn't know I was there on vacation and had a low tire but didn't know how to use the air machine.  He told me that as soon as he got his pie he would fill my tire.  It was at this point the clerk came over and told me the air machine was broken and handed me a quarter.  She then told me to go to Casey's. I told her I didn't know what that meant.  She pointed to a station diagonally across the road.  So to Casey's I went.  Casey had free air.  I got out to fill the tire with my tire gauge.  As I began to fill the tire I felt like I was letting more air out than in, but the tire was getting less flat. That is when a nice gentleman and his wife came out of Casey's.  He immediately offered to help, and I was relieved.  He filled the tire quickly.  He said I was doing it okay, I just needed to be more forceful with the air nozzle. I asked if there was an NTB in any of the area towns, and he said no - Walmart would have to do.  I thanked him and off to Walmart I went.

 

Fortunately, the Walmart auto service department was not overly busy and they were able to get me in right away.  They repaired the puncture from a nail in my tire, found a nail in another tire and pulled it out and checked for a leak.  I will give all the men in that department kudos for their friendliness and helpfulness.  As I was waiting for the tire repair, I picked up another puzzle book, a quilting magazine and a package of my favorite mechanical pencils.  Then came the realization that it was now dark out and the porch light was not on at the house and it would be impossible to see the key hole on the door.  I went over to buy a flashlight in sporting goods. After the purchase I asked the salesclerk if he had anything to open the package with so I could go ahead and get the battery into the flashlight.  He pulled out a pocket knife, a sign of  a true man to me since my dad always carried one.  He not only opened the package, but he put the flashlight together for me, including the keyring part.  $10.90 in tire repair and I was ready to go.

 

As I drove back towards Bella Vista I began to wonder what challenge the next day would bring.

 

Once back to the house, I had a piece of pie, watched some television and went to bed with the realization that I am really happy here.  I just need to analyze why I am so happy here.  I know most of it is being on a lake, fall colors, and the topography of  the land.

 

I am also sleeping really great here.

 

2012 Lake Trip - Day 1

I still had two days of days off left at work for the year, so I decided to take a small trip to Bella Vista, Arkansas where my parents lived for several years.  I left Friday morning at 8:00 A.M.  I made sure I had set up a late enough time with the property manager of the house I rented to allow a leisurely drive.  

On the way here I stopped at a quilt shop in McAlester, OK and an Amish store in another town that was not what I would consider a true Amish store.  I grew up in far north Dayton, OH and there was an Amish and Mennonite community not far from us.  I have been to real Amish stores.  After a stop at Chili's in Muskogee, OK, and the tourist center in AR it was straight in to meet the property manager in the parking lot of the Golden Corral in Rogers, AR for the key to the house, and then on to the POA in Bella Vista for my guest card that would allow me to fish and use the amenities.  

As I was driving out to the house I was enthralled with the fall colors. It has been so long since I have seen true fall colors.  The drought is obvious, and the leaves look very dry, but there is still intense reds, yellows and oranges every where you look.  

The house is beautiful.  I think it was decorated with me in mind.  There are several green walls in the living spaces, and green and cream wall paper in the kitchen.  My bath has green throw rugs.  It is very soothing and there are beautiful views of the lake from all the rear windows.  Here is the view from my bedroom when I arrived.

After unpacking the van, it was a trip back into town to pick up groceries. I missed a turn and ended up having quite a tour of Bentonville, but I finally made it to the Walmart. I needed to go there because I wanted to pick up my fishing license and some bait.  I was fascinated that they had containers of "Baby Crawlers."  Those were new to me.  I am used to having to tear my night crawlers to the size I want when fishing.  I tried to make sensible food choices while I shopped, fresh fruit, bagels, cereal, some light soup, eggs, Chex Mix, granola bars (for hiking), whole grain crackers, etc.  I had to laugh though when I was checking out.  The cashier was reading everything I bought and on somethings looking at the ingredients.  She commented on how healthy everything looked.  I was beginning to think I would be there all night if she did that with every purchase.  I did get checked out though, and headed back to the house.  

A dinner of soup, pimento cheese and crackers was followed by an early bedtime.  Once in bed I called one of my friend to tell her I was safe, and then later a friend called me.  It was nice to have that connection and the laughs. 

The daytime temperatures had been very warm, but as it continued to get later and the temperatures dropped I became aware that the house felt cold and my feet were freezing.  I had forgotten to look for the thermostat when I came in the house, but it was becoming apparent that I must find it and turn it up.  After some searching I found the thermostat, turned up the heat, and went back to bed.  The only problem was it wasn't getting any warmer.  Several more trips to the thermostat did not seem to improve things.  I put on several layers of clothes, and more blankets and finally fell asleep.  

So went Day One of the 2012 Lake Trip.

Fell Asleep

I fell asleep last night writing my post about Knopfler and Dylan.  When I woke up my hand had been on the keyboard and h's were all across the screen.  Took me a while this morning to select and delete them all as I did not want to erase what I had already written.

Knopfler and DYLAN!!!!

Thursday night's was the concert I have been waiting to see for months.  Mark Knopfler and BOB DYLAN!  The tickets were Loni's gift to me and my oldest, although there was a question as to whether he would be able to get out of class to go and rest of the family were fighting over the chance not to go with me.

I picked the oldest up at 4:15 for our early dinner date at Noodle Wave.  I wanted Thai food since he is the only one that will eat it with me.  Well, Mina would but since we are usually with others that won't...  We arrived at Noodle Wave to discover it did not open until 5.  That would not fit our time schedule, so we quickly started searching on our smart phones and discovered Thai Soon and off we went.  Thai Soon is very small, but it was extremely clean and the employees were friendly, so we stayed.  We ordered steamed chicken and shrimp dumplings and two orders of Pad See Ew with chicken.  The food was delicious, and the portions extremely generous.  So generous we should have split the Pad See Ew, instead we ended up taking it back to the oldest's apartment to refrigerate for him to eat for another meal.

After dinner we headed to the Verizon Theatre in Grand Prairie, TX,  We arrived about an hour before the concert and proceeded to line up with all the other cars to park.  I admit the oldest had to preform CPR on me when I saw the parking fee.  Once parked and inside the building, I had to perform CPR on the oldest when he saw the price of a draft beer (not even a good brand he said).  We walked around, used the restrooms and sat down for a few minutes while we waited for them to open the doors to the seating.  By 7:05 we were in our seats.

Loni bought us end seats on the first row of a tier.  She had no way of knowing that we would have a stairway railing in front of us.  Because I am short I was able to look through whichever square I needed to see whatever part of the stage I wanted to see, the oldest had to either duck or stretch.  Other than that the seats were perfect for me.  I wish I had my old opera glasses, but any closer and I couldn't have taken it.  It was so loud.  Of course, everyone around us was like it will be perfect when they turn on the big screens.  At 7:30 straight up, Mark Knopfler took the stage and the night I had been waiting for began.

Mark Knopler and his band were outstanding.  They played 90 minutes. Mark was very interactive with the audience and I so enjoyed watching every musician up there as they continually changed out their instruments.  I also cannot say enough about the lighting of this concert.  My seat was perfect to enjoy every single change of lights and to see every musician at their best.  Watching the keyboard from above was magical, even if it was through a wire square in the fencing. 



Of course, with me, there was extra entertainment in the people watching.  I was truly amazed at the number of people who made repeat trips to the bar, and made it up the stairs after five or six trips.  It isn't that I am not used to people drinking a lot, it is that I am not used to people spending so much money to drink.  A margarita was $16.00. Beer started at $7.00. A large cup of water was $4.00.  I told the oldest to keep swallowing his saliva, and I would buy him a drink on the way home.

At one point right before the concert started four almost elderly women came in.  They were standing next to me in my seat as they were in the row behind us. I was chuckling to myself because they were handing their tickets to each other and saying "Can any of us read the seat numbers?" I was getting ready to offer to help when one of them got it.   The one I noticed the most was dressed in gold lame and very high heels for someone so up in years and drinking.  Once the concert started they became the ones I wanted to boot out of the building.  They were yelling very racist remarks during one of the songs and I just felt they needed to get away from me or risk me getting in their face.  Fortunately, I think everyone turning around and staring at them did the trick.  Thank goodness they left before Dylan took the stage.

There were a few other obnoxious people around us, although I agreed with some of their comments about the theatre. It was upsetting that the large screens never came on, but then Dylan may have something in his contract that says "If you don't pay for the big ticket seats, you don't get to see my face." 

The oldest and I also did not appreciate the couple one seat over from us who would not get off their iphones.  The light coming from the screen was disturbing in the very dark theatre. 

Intermission came and I watched them clear the stage and set up for Dylan.  This is the moment I had been waiting for and had been so excited about.  The second of what I would consider the trifecta of my concert going.  The first was Joe Cocker (completed), second Bob Dylan (was about to happen), third Van Morrison (yeah, I know may never happen).  I was a bundle of jumping nerves in my seat.

It was time. The lights went out, the stage was lit.  Dylan would be singing in just seconds.  I took note of how different the stage now looked.  It was a more intimate set up with lighting that reminded me of a nightclub.  The oldest said he felt like he was in the 1920's.  Then it happened.  Dylan started singing.  It was better than I imagined, except for one thing.  One thing that panicked me and made me think "I can never ever tell anyone this."  I couldn't find Dylan on the stage.  I could hear him, but I couldn't find him.  I am searching every person up there, and none of them look like they could possibly be Dylan.  I am starting to get a little freaked out. Is he off stage and will come out after he sings the first song, what is the deal.  I look at my oldest, he is smiling, and I am thinking "Oh crap, he can see him. I made such a big deal over seeing Dylan, and I can't actually tell which one he is. Crap, Crap, Crap. I keep looking through different squares in the railing, no Dylan."  The song ended and then I see movement.  I breathe a sigh of relief, there is Dylan center stage, he was there all the time over at the piano but in a shadow.  I can really enjoy myself now.

Dylan's part of the concert was quite different.  He stood much further back on the stage than Knopfler, and he did not interact with the audience at all.  It was also louder, and I didn't think that was possible.  I was wondering if my ears would bleed.  Dylan seems to have lost his upper register of his voice and some of the arrangements were different on the songs so there were some that until he got to the chorus I wasn't quite sure what I was listening to, but it didn't matter, they were all fabulous.  That man can play a piano and blow a harmonica.  He moves around the stage very gracefully.  He did not pick up a guitar all night which surprised me, and if he played a song off his new cd, I didn't recognize it as such, but I heard plenty of my favorites.



We were fortunate in that the family next to us left pretty much after the first Dylan song and once we were sure they were coming back we moved over two seats and had a perfect view of the stage.  Did I see Dylan's face?  No, but probably most of the people in the theatre did not see his face.  Did I need to see his face, no.  It was enough to hear him in person.

The concert was over about 11.  The oldest and I drove home discussing the concert.  I found out he was freaked out during the first song too because he couldn't find Dylan.  We had a good laugh over that.  We called the youngest and offered IHOP which he accepted.  So post concert was a early after midnight family breakfast with so very many laughs.  A perfect way to end a fantastic evening.

Thank you Loni for the Christmas gift.  You made Mama C and the oldest very happy.