Inspiration Alley

Big Brother

I am a fan, and am just loving this season.  Last nights whirlwind double eviction was edge of your seat exciting.  This came down to the wire and I was so glad that Keesha ended up winning, and that Ollie was evicted.

In the long run, since Jerry won the new HOH spot, it was actually to his benefit that he didn't win last night.  If he had won yesterday, he would not be HOH now and would have been going home next.  This is an interesting twist and we'll have to see which of the foursome goes home next week.

Although I do not have any insider information - my bet would be that Jerry puts up Dan and Memphis.  The POV competition will be crucial.

Gotta get back to work (it is the end of the month ya know).  I'm looking forward to a 3 day weekend.

Time Flies ...

when you're having fun!

I admit it.  I've been neglecting my blog because I have a new addiction right now.  You see, I've found YoVille (thanks to Kip), and it's all I think about.  I try to get to "the factory" ever 6 hours so I can earn 200 coins, then I can go shopping for furniture, clothes, and food, and if I want to earn more money I can play the slots at the casino (I'm up right now by about 100 coins).  Aside from the shops and the casino, there is the beach and diner, and you can just apartment hunt.

I'm leaving notes when I love how someone has decorated their apartment, and playing games with people too.  It is a riot. 

I change my clothes daily and am saving up for a bikini to wear to the beach (kindof pricy at 300 coins for the top and another 300 for the bottom).

OK ... I confess, I'm a word game addict as well, so I've been playing those on facebook too.  I'll try to share the wealth about and post here and play there.  It's the right thing to do.

Meet Fay

So this is Tropical Storm Fay.  We're getting some squalls and rain but that's about it.  At this point, it is expected to go across the lower keys and into the gulf, then come ashore (possibly as a Cat 1 hurricance) around the Ft. Myers/Naples area.

South Florida is on what they call the "dirty" side of the storm so we have to watch for tornado activity.

All and all things are running smoothly.  I've got the shutters down on most of the house and tonight we'll put down the rest.  It's pretty easy to do and the most effective way to protect yourself during a storm.  As for food and water we are set, but hopefully we won't be without power this time around. I'll keep you posted as things progress.

Checked on mom in Key Largo and all is well there, they also are having some heavy rains, and when I called were bringing in the planters off the porch area.

It's that time of Year

and we have Tropical Storm Fay out in the Caribbean.

Yesterday, I did my normal grocery shopping and even without being on a watch or warning people were starting to prepare.  The shelves were empty of water and the shelf pack milk - items like soup and tuna were also pretty scarce.  The lines at the register however were not extra long which surprised me.

I'm pretty well prepared already.  I start my supply shopping in May and by the end of June I'm ready.  Well, as ready as one can be for these things.  Yesterday was just for sale items and regular food buying but I also ended up adding to my storm essentials (chocolate and cigarettes).  I've got plenty of food and water on hand already.  I'm watching the news now and they are saying that there are lines outside of grocery stores today since we were put on a TS watch. 

As for the house, we had a new roof put on in May/June, and at that time we also had trees cut back especially the ones near the power lines.  Yesterday I saw county trucks working to get debris cleared up from the streets.

I'll be keeping an eye on the storm today - right now it looks to be heading in from the west coast where we will just get some storm bands, but things change on a dime, so I'll be keeping an eye out.  Right now, she's on the south coast of Cuba.

Great Visit

Met with my good friend Holly for dinner last night.  We had a great time and looked back over the good times we had at the hospital, with the Coconut Grove Jaycees, and trips we've taken together. 

I haven't seen Holly in many years, but it was as if no time had passed.  Even though we don't see each other as often as we used to, she "gets" me better than anyone.  It's as if she's in my head thinking my thoughts.

I met Holly when I trained her to be a Unit Secretary at Variety Children's Hospital (late 70s/early 80s - I'm so bad with dates), and we were like the Dynamic Duo back then.  So many fun memories.  The overnight fishing excursions, the cruise with the Jaycees to the Bahamas, the weekend at Paradise Island, working the Arts festival, the celebrities that came to the hospital, getting in trouble for talking too loud on the night shift, Sonny and Stan, the hospital Halloween party we hosted, the Blue Room at the Doral Country club - these are some of the best times of my life.

We've made a plan for the two of us to drop in at the hospital and roam the halls once again, and just see who we can see.

Fun and Games

Facebook again.

I am totally addicted to the games on facebook.  First and foremost there is WordPath that Kelcey turned me onto.  I am really trying to beat my high score.  I'm spending time trying to find longer words because you get more points.  Then there is WordScraper which is like scrabble on steroids.  You can design your own board, you can play against someone each taking turns, or you can play live against other facebookers.  I am finally getting the hang of it.  And now Amy turned me on to Parking Wars where you park cars and try to avoid getting tickets.  I've also found some other games where you click and make blocks disappear, and some memory ones.

Aside from the flair there you can have a patch of land which saves the rainforest, send cyber hugs, send cyber drinks and gifts.  It amazes me the things they have on here.

this is the funniest flair I've gotten so far (from Linda) and it is just perfect.  I wish I could blow it up and have it on my wall at work (or anywhere for that matter).

Fun ... yes.  Timewasters ... yes.  But a great way to keep up with your friends.

I'm enjoying my time on facebook, and I'm sure the novelty will wear off - hopefully soon, so I can get some real work done - LOL.

Missed Big Brother

Missed Big Brother tonight because 20/20 went long.  It was a good one too where former Big Brother players were part of the competition.  I'll have to watch it on the net.  This will be an interesting week with the lines clearly drawn after Jessie's eviction (yeah) last week.

I've been following the feeds, and let me tell you there is way too much fighting going on.  At this point it's hard to tell who will be left standing.

What I don't get is the lying and then not wearing your cross or your marine hat.  That really annoys me.  It's not about the symbol of what you stand for - it is what you stand for period.  Taking off a cross because you lied doesn't make it OK.  I just find it weird that people beleive it's ok because they took off their symbols.

Guardian Angels working overtime

My husband was moving cars around today, and let me tell you his (or maybe they were mine since he is not a believer) guardian angels were working overtime.

First, on the trip up to Ft. Lauderdale the tail light fixture broke on the trailer - he stopped for about 20 minutes to fix it.  After he resumed his trip, he came upon a fresh several car accident on the Turnpike.  Because he stopped, it prevented him from being involved.

Then later, after he was finished, he started to leave but forgot the Sunpass, so he went back to the warehouse to get it and found that one of the cars was leaking gas.  He siphoned the tank and added it to the other cars - but going back prevented future problems like the fumes igniting, etc.

Now this has nothing to do with Guardian Angels, but we came home from a late dinner tonight and found that our friends car had been wrapped in toilet paper - not sure if it was just a random thing, or if it was meant for us, since his car looks very similar to ours (with an untrained eye).  In any case, it brought back fond memories of my high school days and made us laugh.

Facebook is Sweeping Hilltop

I finally have more than a handful of friends!!

Since returning from Sebring, lots of folks on the Hilltop group are signing up with facebook.  For some the draw is the flair, for others the games.  Whatever it is, it's fun to have so many of my friends joining up.  Tonight, I found Blackjack -- so starts yet another facebook addiction.  I'll have to split my time between that and Pathwords.  I still have to play around looking for other word games because they are my favorite.

On a side note ... I now have plenty of books to read.  I bought some while in Sebring both at Walmart and at Linda's used books, and today my order from Powells arrived, so I am set for a wee bit.  I need to set my facebook time wasters aside and start reading again.

Home From Sebring

I'm tired.

Sebring is one of my favorite places to crop, but going home is always an issue.  Of course I want to get home to my husband, but leaving my friends always hurts, because I know it will be months before I get to see them again.  I wish I lived closer so I could go to all the crops, but I have to settle for meeting up with everyone just about every few months.  Luckily KnK is having a crop next month, so it won't be too long before we meet up again.  This next crop is in Naples, so it is even a closer drive.

My drive home was great except for the rains.  I drove through heavy rains for about 45 minutes with a couple of panicked minutes where I couldn't see more than a couple of feet in front of the car.  The car is unloaded, I've had a nap and I've watched Big Brother, so all is good.

For the album, my husband thought it looked great, and was surprised that I got something "whipped up" over the weekend.  Tomorrow we'll see the baby and I'll give the albums to my BIL & SIL.

While at the crop, I collected supplies to send to a teen cancer patient at St. Judes who is scrapbooking her cancer recovery.  I took home a huge box of stuff, plus several pizza box size packages.  I going to ship them out this week.  It was more than I expected, but our group as a whole is very generous.  I think scrapbookers in general love to share their love of the craft and are quick to share supplies.

A good trip all in all and I look forward to the kNk HoDown in Naples.